For those who appreciate highbrow-meets-lowbrow when it comes to food, the Hojoko Wagyu Cheeseburger does not disappoint. The rock-and-rolling restaurant makes one of the best burgers near Fenway Park, beginning with a decadent blend of chuck and Wagyu short rib. The mouthwatering patty is layered with American cheese, dashi pickles, red onion, and special sauce. Served on a seeded bun with crispy shoestring fries, it’s complete comfort food that packs tons of umami and nostalgia—and like pretty much everything served at the fun, izakaya-style spot, we’re here for it.

With some burgers, we appreciate a less-is-more approach. The Neptune Burger is not such a case. This exquisite specimen, from the North End’s perennially popular Neptune Oyster Bar, is extra in all the right ways. A thick, juicy beef patty (on a tender brioche bun) is encased with sharp, melted cheddar cheese, and gets the addition of zesty garlic aioli, tangy relish, and—the pièce de résistance—a couple crispy fried oysters. It’s absolutely worth the inevitable wait for a table at this small spot.

Frequent culinary collaborators Ken Oringer and Jamie Bissonnette let their freak flags fly at Little Donkey, their globe-spanning third restaurant partnership (following Toro and Coppa). With menu items like gochujang-laced Tuna Poke alongside BLT Lettuce Wraps with house-smoked lamb bacon and pimento cheese, LD cuisine is only bound to traditions of deliciousness. The signature dry-aged beef burger is no exception: Pairing rich French bistro flair with all-American decadence, it’s a masterwork of excess and arguably the best burger in Cambridge. Toppings include words you’ve read before but perhaps not all together: Buffalo pickles, onion soup mayo, jalapeño chips, and onion-wrapped pieces of foie gras. 

At Alden & Harlow, the menu-favorite Secret Burger features bread-and-butter pickles, a clothbound cheddar crisp, and a slather of what’s best described as like Big Mac sauce, but incredibly better. Sandwiched on a house-made Parker House-style roll, the burger is made in limited quantities—but when you can always head upstairs to The Longfellow Bar, where it’s a burger option (as “the Alden Burger”)  on the menu. Pro tip: The Secret Burger is also available, and perhaps easier to come by, during weekend brunch in Harvard Square.

Row 34 is one of our favorite seafood restaurants in the area with a rightly famous lobster roll, crispy Beer Battered Fish and Chips, fresh and fancy crudo, and more—but there’s no shame in ordering up the humble Bacon Cheddar Burger. A menu mainstay at all locations (including the brand-new Kendall Square outpost), it features sweet-and-savory caramelized onions as a standard topping, plus a side of the moreish Shoestring Fries. If you can’t not order seafood, go on and add a crunchy fried oyster on top.

On Wednesdays, we order burgers from Sycamore. The beautiful bistro in Newton Centre does its own creative take on the classic cheddar cheeseburger only once per week, and it sure goes quickly. You’ll understand why once you snag one of these: Stacked on a sesame-flecked brioche bun from A&J King Bakery, the Sycamore Burger is enhanced with Cabot cheddar, salty bacon, and black-pepper aioli. To try it, make an early reservation some upcoming Wednesday, or get your day-of orders in for takeout.

Char-grilled chuck comprises Little Big Diner’s LBD Flat Patty, a few-bite wonder suited as an appetizer for some of the best ramen around. The Newton Centre hot spot doesn’t hold back on flavor, whether we’re talking about the Chef’s Ultra Ramen (with allllllll the toppings), shatteringly crunchy Kara-age Fried Chicken, or the Hawaiian-style burger. What makes the LBD Flat Patty Hawaiian-style? There’s the soft, sweet King’s Hawaiian Bakery bun, mainly—but also a slick of mayo, crispy onions, and spicy-sweet pineapple sambal. 

Updated by Jacqueline Cain