We’re just past the halfway point, and already it’s been a long year. We’re right in the middle of a hot, tumultuous summer. Not that you necessarily need an excuse to eat a good hamburger, but we’d say you’ve got plenty.
Below you’ll find a list of 14 burgers offered at locations throughout Nashville. Ranging in price from $3.09 to $23 — and ranging in neighborhood from Antioch to the Nations, Germantown to East Nashville — these burgers are all over the map, with a little something for everybody.
Because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, some restaurants are currently open in a limited capacity — some are open for to-go and delivery only. We encourage you to call ahead and/or visit these restaurants’ websites to know what you’re getting into before you dive in. (And prices may vary when a burger is delivered.) Also worth noting: Some of these establishments are participants in the ongoing Scene-sponsored Burger Week event, which ends July 19. But some of them are not! Visit sceneburgerweek.com for more details on participating restaurants and specials.
Pharmacy Burger at the Pharmacy Burger Parlor & Beer Garden
$9 with a side
The corner of Eastland and McFerrin is noticeably quieter these days, without the large crowds typically congregating in front of the Pharmacy. Fortunately, the popular eatery is still satisfying burger cravings with takeout and delivery, even letting diners enjoy a socially distanced meal, sans service, in the beer garden. Thirteen unique combinations await you — including vegetarian, vegan, fish, turkey and chicken options — but the Pharmacy Burger is surest to satisfy purists. The oversized Tennessee beef patty topped with yellow cheddar, shredded lettuce, sliced tomato, chopped onions, crisp pickles and a dollop of yellow mustard is simple, sure — but a surprisingly refreshing choice amid the menu of smothered and slathered alternatives. NANCY FLOYD
Little Mo at Fat Mo’s
$3.09
Fat Mo’s is a Nashville institution. The unassuming drive-thru burger shacks — in Nashville, there’s one on Gallatin Pike, one on Eighth Avenue South and another in Antioch — predate the city’s restaurant boom, and have none of its pretensions. Namesake owner Mohammad Karimy and his wife Shiva moved to Nashville from Iran in the late 1980s, and Mo worked at McDonald’s for a stint before realizing he could improve on that model. Each burger is made fresh, but it’s worth the wait. The Little Mo and fries, my go-to order, tastes the way I always wanted a fast-food burger to taste, but with lean ground beef that’s perfectly seasoned and never frozen. We have to give them a point deducted for their Styrofoam containers, but their fries are very tasty as well. LAURA HUTSON HUNTER

Joyland
Cheeseburger at Joyland
$9
Among the latest additions to Nashville’s burger trail is Joyland, the East Nashville biscuit-and-burger joint opened in recent months by noted chef and restaurateur Sean Brock. Joyland’s cheeseburger, whose beef comes from nearby Bear Creek Farm, is not like the burger at Brock’s first Nashville restaurant Husk (more on Husk below). Instead of the rarefied nature of that burger, the one at Joyland evokes the past. With its oozing American cheese, “Joy Sauce” and pickles and onions, the Joyland cheeseburger is the apotheosis of the fast-food burger. For $3 extra, make it a double to end your day, or add curly fries for $3. STEPHEN ELLIOTT
Cheeseburger at Husk
$15 with fried potato wedges
It’s rare that you visit a nationally regarded restaurant and friends ask, “But did you try the cheeseburger?” But that’s a frequent query to recent diners at Husk, as that burger is as special as anything else on the hyper-local farm-to-table menu. Former chef Sean Brock undertook his normal obsessive amount of research to develop every aspect of the burger, from the grind of chuck, flank steak and Benton’s bacon to the Duke’s mayonnaise, yellow mustard, hot sauce, diced pickles and jalapeño-infused special sauce and custom bun. Current Husk chef Katie Coss actually lives at Bear Creek Farm, which supplies the beef, so you know she won’t let quality slack one iota. CHRIS CHAMBERLAIN
Cheeseburger at Jack Brown’s Beer and Burger Joint
$7.49
Close your eyes and picture the cheeseburger — the classic, archetypical, all-American burger. That’s what you get when you order the cheeseburger at one of Jack Brown’s locations. (I like to hit the one in Germantown, though the small chain also has a location in Edgehill.) With a Wagyu patty and American cheddar, this one is straightforward, like that really good burger you got at the ballpark concession stand in your youth. That is, unless you go with one of Jack Brown’s more adventurous offerings — like the mac-and-cheese-topped Greg Brady, or the El Chupacabra, which is made with sweet-chili-bacon jam. Add a side of the tasty, crispy, crinkle-cut fries ($3) to really transport yourself back to the ballpark. D. PATRICK RODGERS

Bare Bones Butcher
Cheeseburger at Bare Bones Butcher
$10
Having a whole-animal custom butcher shop in your neighborhood is definitely a luxury for the denizens of the Nations, but having one that will also serve you up a fantastic burger alongside a beer from their cozy bar while you wait for your order is just goddamn opulence! The meat cutters at Bare Bones Butcher are pretty talented in their tiny kitchen too, and the team is cross-trained to work both the counter and the griddle, so wait times are limited. They use their own dry-aged beef in the grind for their exquisite version of the prototypical double-patty smashburger, and it’s topped with Duke’s mayo, yellow mustard, housemade pickles and American cheese. Add a side of their beef-fat-fried potatoes for $4 if you’re feeling especially decadent. CHRIS CHAMBERLAIN
The Belgian at M.L. Rose
$11.99 with house chips or waffle fries
I love a good smashburger — it’s like if you cut the crust (the best part) off a bigger burger patty and served it up. I’m a big fan of what M.L. Rose calls its ANM.L.-style smashburger, but the tastiest thing on the menu at the restaurant’s three locations (in Capitol View, Melrose and Sylvan Park) is The Belgian. It’s made with two perfectly crusted smashed patties, smoked Gouda, sweet crispy onions, chopped bacon, lettuce and garlic-peppercorn aioli. Given that mass of toppings, M.L. Rose made a smart move in chopping the bacon instead of using strips — no whole strips of bacon just falling off the burger as you try to bite into it. I’d say you have to be extremely hungry to finish the whole thing, but I never seem to have a problem. AMANDA HAGGARD
4/20 at Phat Bites
$11.95 with mac-and-cheese and marinated vegetables
Given Phat Bites’ hippie-ish decor and theme, it probably shouldn’t come as any surprise that it has a menu item called the 4/20. While the Donelson deli also offers the more conventional Wisconsin Butter Burger and the vegetarian-friendly Black Bean Burger, the 4/20 is ideal for those suffering from, shall we say, a severe bout of the munchies. It’s got two beef patties, goat cheese, local blackberry jam from The Nashville Jam Co., greens and caramelized onions — plus it comes served with a side of mac-and-cheese and marinated vegetables. To be perfectly honest, it’s kind of a lot — a massive, hearty flavor bomb that ought to sate your cravings for both sweet and savory. Get one of these things and keep on truckin’. D. PATRICK RODGERS
Bosco Turkey Burger at Burger & Company
$9
Opening a restaurant during a pandemic is an act of community service. The long-suffering folks in Old Hickory Village have been patiently waiting for a local burger spot, and Burger & Company came along right when we needed them most — about two months ago. I’ve tried a handful of options from the small but specialized menu, but the turkey burger is by far my favorite. Served with balsamic onion jam and a spicy aioli they call BC sauce (which is good enough that you may want to order extra on the side), the Bosco feels like a treat in burger form. And the brioche bun is so perfectly round and smooth that it almost looks like a cartoon or a prop for a still-life — the Platonic ideal of a burger. LAURA HUTSON HUNTER
The 404 Burger at The 404 Kitchen/Gertie’s
$23 with fries
I’m always amused when someone tells me that a burger is too expensive, like there is some kind of internal value meter that sets off alarm bells when you pay more than a certain amount. We do this with all kinds of foods considered “cheap,” mainly because you can get them as part of a value meal in a drive-thru. Well, it’s time to give your meter the night off and get The 404 Burger for the low, low price of $23. Two Bear Creek Farms beef patties — dry-aged four weeks before being ground — are the anchor for this beast, and they’re topped with double-smoked bacon, cheese, a truffle aioli and grilled onions. (I left the lettuce off because I’m not here for a salad.) The genius, though, is in the potato buns, which are baked in the style of English muffins. Lightly charred on the flattop, the bread holds up against all that’s going on in the middle, never failing but also not too chewy. These buns are the perfect fit for any muscular sandwich. Is it worth the cost? I’m still thinking about how delicious it was 24 hours later. When’s the last time you could say that about a drive-thru burger? Plus, the $23 price tag gets you fries as well — they’re not monsters! STEVE CAVENDISH
SC Burger at Subculture
$10.50
As with any burger, the SC Burger at Subculture comes down to the meat. Subculture’s beef is Tennessee-raised and grass-fed, and it is seasoned impeccably and cooked to a perfect medium (unless otherwise specified). While the meat is the standout here, the homemade bun is chewy and perfectly portioned. The juicy patty is topped with cheddar cheese, thick-sliced bacon, aioli and house-made pickled red onions, which are so crisp and flavorful that I would buy them by the jar if I could. You can add pimento cheese or an egg on top if you’re an extremist, but you truly don’t need them. At $10.50, the burger alone is the ideal size for a meal, but throw in some of their quinoa salad ($3.25 for a small order, $4.75 for a large) for another healthier taste of Subculture’s pickled veggies. ELIZABETH JONES
Cheeseburger at Chago’s Cantina
$11 with fries
Wait, a great cheeseburger at a Mexican restaurant? ¡Por supuesto! Standing out like a delicious sore thumb on the menu at Chago’s Cantina on Belmont Boulevard, this double-patty smashburger is a matter of pride for the kitchen. In fact, Chago’s discontinued serving it during the first months of the pandemic because they lost access to their custom grind of beef, and switched to brisket instead for their beef tacos. In a sign that we’re at least figuring out how to make our way through this pandemic, it’s back on the menu, topped with steamed onions, “gringo sauce,” pickles and a perfectly gooey slice of American cheese, which holds the works together beneath a sesame-seed-studded Charpier’s bun. CHRIS CHAMBERLAIN

Makeready Libations and Liberation
The L+L Burger at Makeready Libations and Liberation
$15 with fries
This burger at Makeready Libations and Liberation beneath Noelle Hotel on Fourth Avenue North sets some eyebrow-raising expectations at $15, but damn, does it deliver. As any burger enthusiast knows, all the best ingredients mean nothing if the meat isn’t top-notch, and this meat is tender and flavorful. Oh, and it also has all the best ingredients, with a potato bun, American cheese and bread-and-butter pickles. Plus, the bacon jam and caramelized onions add just a hint of sweet to the savory. For the more plant-inclined or curious, they also offer a Beyond Burger option. JONATHAN SIMS

Grillshack Fries and Burgers
Veggie Burger at Grillshack Fries and Burgers
$9.95 with fries
I’ve been a vegetarian for nearly 20 years. I don’t long for poultry or pork — and certainly not for red meat. But I cherish a meat-filled memory. My father was from a family of chefs, and fast food was off the table. But one summer evening, he came home with a big paper sack, and he spilled a couple dozen McDonald’s cheeseburgers onto the patio table as his four kids looked on, astonished — I’ve been chasing that memory for most of my life. In that time, I’ve determined that the deciding factor that makes a good veggie burger is texture. It must not be smushed together with gobs of quinoa, or contain whole beans. I don’t want it to taste like beef, and more importantly, I don’t want it oozing out of the bun onto my plate. Despite our many fine vegetarian establishments in Nashville, this Holy Grail burger is hard to find. Enter Grillshack Fries and Burgers. With a location in East Nashville and another in Germantown, this local business knows how to do it. The veggie burger is thin — about a half-inch — but big. It has a subtle flavor that the menu describes as Cajun, but we mild-spice lovers need not fear it. The burger stays together until the last bite and is served on a big, bountiful bun from Charpier’s Bakery. Get it with cheddar, blue cheese or muenster, and enjoy the best damn hand-cut fries I’ve had outside the Jersey Shore. It doesn’t taste like McDonald’s — I promise — but it’s got that summertime feeling that gets me every time. ERICA CICCARONE