Best Burgers in San José, Costa Rica

The best burgers in San José, Costa Rica, cluster in Barrio Escalante, the east-side neighbourhood that locals treat as the city’s dining district, with its restaurants along Calle 33 and its open-air food markets. San Pedro de Montes de Oca, next to the University of Costa Rica, adds casual student spots, while Escazú and Santa Ana, west of the capital, have burger restaurants of their own. This page covers the Costa Rican capital, not San José, California.

Costa Rica’s everyday food is the casado, rice and beans with a protein and salad, served in small family eateries called sodas. Burgers belong to the newer restaurant scene, and Barrio Escalante’s food halls put a burger stall next to other kitchens around shared seating. One national condiment travels everywhere: Salsa Lizano, a tangy brown sauce found on tables across the country. The historic Mercado Central, open since 1880, remains the place to see how Josefinos eat at lunch.

Burgers in San José: key facts

• Neighbourhoods to explore: Barrio Escalante, Barrio Amón, San Pedro de Montes de Oca, Escazú and Santa Ana.
• Food markets: Barrio Escalante’s food halls group several kitchens around shared tables.
• Local condiment: Salsa Lizano, Costa Rica’s national table sauce.
• Currency: Costa Rican colón (CRC). US dollars are common in tourist areas.
• Getting around: San Pedro and Escalante are a short ride apart; Escazú and Santa Ana are a separate trip west.
• What our guides check: which canton a venue sits in, since greater San José spans several municipalities.

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