Hamburger Restaurants in Memphis

June 14, 2026

In a city famous for barbecue, the hamburger holds its own at Memphis tables. A hamburger restaurant here offers something a chain drive-through cannot: a griddle worked by cooks who season their own beef, a counter where the patty and toppings are built to order, and dining rooms that in some cases have been serving the same burger for decades. Memphis is Tennessee’s second-largest city, with a population of roughly 619,000 as of 2024 (U.S. Census Bureau), and its independent burger scene runs from a graffiti-covered neighborhood pub that has poured beers and flipped burgers since 1970 to a downtown dive serving a single famous burger off a storied jukebox. These are beloved local rooms, not national franchises, and their reputations were built one order at a time.

The burger comes in several distinct styles across Memphis, and knowing them helps a diner choose. A classic griddle burger is a thicker hand-formed patty cooked on a flat-top with a juicier center, the style at the city’s long-running taverns and pubs. A smash burger is pressed thin so the edges crisp and caramelize. A slider is a smaller patty, often served in pairs or by the handful, that lets a table sample several builds at once. Most independent burger restaurants in Memphis serve both dine-in and takeout, and many pair the burger with a full bar, live music, or late-night hours, reflecting the city’s blues-and-brews tradition.

Every restaurant serving prepared food in Memphis operates under a food-service framework administered through the Shelby County Health Department, working in coordination with the Tennessee Department of Health. A restaurant must hold a current food-service permit and pass routine sanitation inspections, which score kitchens on cooking temperatures, cold holding, handwashing, and cross-contamination control. Ground beef carries particular food-safety attention because grinding distributes any surface bacteria throughout the patty, so kitchens are expected to cook to safe internal temperatures and to handle raw beef carefully. Prepared food sold by a restaurant is taxed at the full combined sales-tax rate rather than the reduced grocery rate; in Shelby County that combined rate reaches roughly 9.75%, and it appears on the check for dine-in and takeout orders alike.

A few additional rules shape how a Memphis burger restaurant runs. Any establishment that serves beer or liquor must hold the appropriate permit, with on-premises liquor-by-the-drink licensing handled through the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) and local beer permits issued through the City of Memphis. Consumer questions and complaints about a restaurant, from billing disputes to advertising concerns, fall under the Tennessee Division of Consumer Affairs and the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act (TCA 47-18-104). For diners, the practical takeaways are simple: a posted permit and a clean inspection score signal a kitchen following the rules, separating materials from labor on the check clarifies the tax, and confirming hours matters because several Memphis burger spots run late into the night while others keep daytime windows.

Top Hamburger Restaurant Providers in Memphis

1. Huey’s

Address: 1927 Madison Avenue, Memphis, TN 38104
Phone: (901) 726-4372
Website: https://www.hueyburger.com
Services: World Famous Huey Burger, specialty burgers, smash burger, fried pickles, cheese fries, sandwiches, salads, full bar, live blues, dine-in, takeout, online ordering
Description: Huey’s is the classic Memphis burger restaurant, founded in 1970 by Alan Gary, whose childhood nickname gave the business its name. The original Midtown location on Madison Avenue remains in operation and anchors a family of locations across the Memphis area and into north Mississippi. The signature World Famous Huey Burger is built from freshly ground, never-frozen Certified Angus Beef cooked on a flat grill and, by house tradition, never pressed with a spatula so the juices stay in the patty. Beyond the burger, the menu runs to fried pickles, cheese fries, sandwiches, and salads, and the rooms are known for graffiti-covered walls where guests leave their mark and for live local blues on Sundays. Huey’s has been voted Best Burger in Memphis in the Memphis Magazine readers’ poll every year since 1984, a run of local recognition that few restaurants in any city can match.

2. Earnestine and Hazel’s

Address: 531 South Main Street, Memphis, TN 38103
Phone: (901) 523-9754
Website: https://www.earnestineandhazel.com
Services: Soul Burger with house Soul Sauce, late-night bar service, historic jukebox, dine-in
Description: Earnestine and Hazel’s is a downtown Memphis institution in the South Main district, occupying a building that has been a church, a dry-goods store, a pharmacy, and a 1950s and 1960s jazz club before becoming the dive bar it is today. The current era began in the early 1990s, when a new ownership group that included Russell George reopened the spot with a deliberately simple one-item menu built around the now-famous Soul Burger, a griddled patty dressed with the bar’s house Soul Sauce. The room is known nationally for its jukebox, often called one of the best in the country, and for a late-night, no-frills atmosphere steeped in Memphis music history. Earnestine and Hazel’s keeps the focus narrow, doing one burger and doing it well, which makes it less a full restaurant than a beloved late-night ritual for locals and visitors alike.

3. Slider Inn

Address: 2117 Peabody Avenue, Memphis, TN 38104
Phone: (901) 725-1155
Website: https://www.thesliderinn.com
Services: sliders and burgers from locally sourced ground beef, specialty builds, full bar, signature cocktails, covered and uncovered patio, weekend brunch, dine-in, takeout
Description: Slider Inn is a Memphis neighborhood favorite that started at the corner of Peabody and Cooper in Midtown and later added a Downtown location in the South Main Arts District in 2019. The kitchen builds its name on creative sliders and burgers made with locally sourced ground beef, from the straightforward Original Memphis with white American cheese, mayo, and ketchup to more inventive specialty builds. The bar is part of the draw, with a full drink list and a signature Jameson slushie, and both rooms offer a mix of bar seating, high tops, and covered and uncovered patio space along with weekend brunch. Slider Inn is part of the locally owned Packed House restaurant group, which also operates Aldo’s Pizza Pies, Bardog Tavern, and Momma’s, giving it deep roots in the Memphis independent dining scene.

Frequently Asked Questions About Hamburger Restaurants in Memphis

Q: What permits does a hamburger restaurant in Memphis need to operate?

A restaurant serving prepared food in Memphis must hold a current food-service permit and pass routine sanitation inspections administered through the Shelby County Health Department, in coordination with the Tennessee Department of Health. Inspections review cooking and holding temperatures, handwashing, and cross-contamination control. A restaurant that serves beer or liquor must also hold the appropriate permit, with liquor-by-the-drink licensing handled through the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission and local beer permits issued through the City of Memphis.

Q: How much sales tax is charged on a burger and fries in Memphis?

Prepared food sold by a restaurant is taxed at the full combined sales-tax rate rather than the reduced grocery rate. In Shelby County that combined rate reaches roughly 9.75%, and it applies to dine-in and takeout orders alike. The tax appears on the check, and an itemized receipt makes it clear how the food and the tax are calculated.

Q: What is the difference between a slider and a regular burger?

A slider is a smaller patty, often served in pairs or by the handful, while a regular burger is a single larger patty. Sliders let a table sample several different builds in one order, which is part of the appeal at spots that specialize in them. A classic griddle burger, by contrast, is a thicker hand-formed patty cooked on a flat-top with a juicier center.

Q: Is the ground beef in a Memphis burger safe, and how do kitchens handle it?

Ground beef receives particular food-safety attention because grinding distributes any surface bacteria throughout the patty, so kitchens are expected to cook to safe internal temperatures and to keep raw beef cold and separated from other ingredients. Restaurants that grind fresh daily or use never-frozen beef often highlight that practice, and a clean inspection score from the Shelby County Health Department is a reasonable signal that a kitchen follows safe handling procedures.

Q: Do Memphis burger restaurants serve late at night?

Many do. Memphis has a strong tradition of late-night burger and bar service, and several spots stay open well past midnight, while others keep daytime windows. Because hours vary considerably, confirming the schedule before a visit is worthwhile, especially for the late-night dive bars and neighborhood pubs where the kitchen may close before the bar does.

Q: How do I file a complaint about a Memphis restaurant?

Consumer complaints about a restaurant, including billing disputes and advertising concerns, can be directed to the Tennessee Division of Consumer Affairs, which administers the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act (TCA 47-18-104). Concerns specifically about sanitation or food safety can be reported to the Shelby County Health Department, which conducts the inspections. Keeping the receipt and any documentation strengthens a complaint.