Best Burgers in Kansas City: Diners and BBQ

The best burgers in Kansas City are found downtown and in the Crossroads Arts District, in Westport and around the Country Club Plaza, in the River Market, and across State Line Road in Kansas City, Kansas. Two traditions meet here: small burgers griddled with onions at all-night diners, and burgers that borrow from the city’s barbecue.

Town Topic has sold hamburgers in Kansas City since 1937, cooking them with grilled onions on a steamed bun, and its Broadway diner near the Crossroads stays open around the clock. Barbecue is the city’s main food identity. Burnt ends, the crusty, fatty point of a smoked brisket, and a thick, sweet sauce built on tomato and molasses define the Kansas City style, and both are worth asking about when a barbecue joint lists a burger.

Burgers in Kansas City: key facts

• Neighborhoods to explore: the Crossroads Arts District, Downtown, the River Market, Westport, the Country Club Plaza and the 18th & Vine Jazz District.
• Diner tradition: Town Topic, selling griddled onion burgers since 1937.
• Barbecue crossover: burnt ends and Kansas City sauce.
• Two states: Kansas City, Missouri, and Kansas City, Kansas, are separate cities facing each other across the state line.
• Getting around: the KC Streetcar, free to ride, links the River Market, downtown, the Crossroads and Union Station.
• Currency: US dollar (USD).

Every guide we publish on Kansas City is dated and lists only venues, addresses, prices and ratings we could verify. See every city we cover in our burger restaurant guides.