Best Burgers in Cincinnati: Taverns and OTR

The best burgers in Cincinnati are found in Over-the-Rhine and downtown, in old East Side taverns such as those around Mount Lookout Square, in Northside, around the University of Cincinnati in Clifton, and across the Ohio River in Covington and Newport, Kentucky. Expect hand-formed pub burgers and plenty of chili nearby.

Zip’s Cafe, in Mount Lookout since 1926, is the city’s reference burger tavern: hand-formed patties made with beef from a local butcher, a model train circling above the dining room, and a 100th birthday in 2026. Cincinnati’s German roots show on the plate. Goetta, a loaf of pork, beef and steel-cut oats brought by 19th-century German immigrants, is sliced and fried crisp, and Findlay Market in Over-the-Rhine is the place to buy it. Cincinnati chili, a thin meat sauce spiced with cinnamon and served over spaghetti or hot dogs, is the other local flavor, and the region counts its chili parlors in the hundreds.

Burgers in Cincinnati: key facts

• Neighborhoods to explore: Over-the-Rhine, Downtown, Mount Lookout, Northside, Clifton, and Covington and Newport across the river.
• Tavern landmark: Zip’s Cafe in Mount Lookout Square, open since 1926.
• Local specialty: goetta, sold at Findlay Market and served all over town.
• Local chili: Cincinnati chili, ordered as a three-way (spaghetti, chili, shredded cheddar) or on a coney.
• Getting around: the Connector streetcar loops between downtown, Over-the-Rhine and Findlay Market.
• Currency: US dollar (USD).

Every guide we publish on Cincinnati is dated and lists only venues, addresses, prices and ratings we could verify. Explore other cities in our burger restaurant guides.