Best Burgers in New Haven: Since 1895

The best burgers in New Haven start at Louis’ Lunch, a small downtown counter near the Yale campus that has served hamburgers since 1895 and claims to be the oldest continuously operating hamburger restaurant in the United States. The patties cook in vertical cast-iron broilers and come on white toast, with cheese, tomato or onion and no ketchup. Beyond downtown, look in Ninth Square, Wooster Square, East Rock and Westville.

New Haven is more famous for its coal-fired pizza, called apizza, centered on Wooster Square, and its burger scene lives in that shadow. Louis’ Lunch sets the local rules: one burger, toast instead of a bun, and condiments kept to a minimum. Its claim to have served the first hamburger sandwich is contested by several other American towns, and the debate is part of the visit. Central Connecticut adds its own regional style, the steamed cheeseburger of Meriden, about 20 miles (30 km) north.

Burgers in New Haven: key facts

• Historic counter: Louis’ Lunch, family-run since 1895, four generations on.
• Local style: a broiled patty on white toast, with no ketchup offered.
• Regional variation: the steamed cheeseburger, cooked in a steam box, from Meriden.
• Neighborhoods to explore: downtown and the Yale campus, Ninth Square, Wooster Square, East Rock and Westville.
• Getting around: downtown is walkable, and Union Station links New Haven to New York and Boston by train.
• Currency: US dollar (USD); Connecticut adds a meals tax to restaurant bills, plus the tip.

Every guide we publish on New Haven is dated and lists only venues, addresses, prices and ratings we could verify. For other cities, browse all our burger restaurant guides.