The reputation of Peter Luger, the third oldest steakhouse in the city, has had its ups and downs. Long regarded as one of the elite eateries of NYC, racking up glowing reviews left and right, the restaurant received a scathing zero star review from the New York Times in 2019 and even lost its Michelin star in 2022. Plus, my dad said it was just ok and my mom didn’t like it when they visited the Long Island location and who am I to disagree with such an assessment!
The burger at Peter Luger is a relatively recent addition to the long-storied Williamsburg establishment. Opened in 1887, the burger only joined the menu in 1995 - over 100 years later and just one (1) year before I was born. Some may say they were preparing for my arrival across the Verrazano Narrows Strait (Staten Island reveal).
The burger is only served at lunch time (til 4pm) so I wanted to try and snag this burger on an afternoon where I’d be thankful to have had such a substantial midday meal. The stars aligned and I made a plan to chow down on the day of friend of the ‘stack’s Claudia’s blowout 30th birthday. Plus, Peter Luger was located pretty close to where I could pick up a couple of those giant number balloons for the party - feeding two birds with one scone.
Kirby and I made our way past the comically huge sign advertising the parking lot down Broadway to the extended brown awning. We were seated within five minutes, in the very brightly lit front dining room. Kirby remarked that it kind of looked like somewhere that Shrek would eat, which makes sense considering the establishment’s Bavarian roots.


For a restaurant that’s pretty well known for serving things in a gigunda fashion, it’s no surprise that the crux of the burger is its size - half a pound of dry aged steak and ground chuck and not much else. The burgers are served on a pretty sturdy, freshly baked sesame bun with a thick slice of raw white onion, a la Red Hook Tavern, for $21.95. For $1.95 extra you can add cheese and $4.95 gets you a pretty petite side of fries. While it’s not the most expensive burger I’ve had, it was pretty jarring to see that back in 2017, it was $14.95 - a steep climb for a lunchtime burgy.
I ordered mine medium and Kirby got his medium rare, with cheese. Both burgers came out steaming on slightly-dated-but-charming white and floral plates, each topped with a little plastic cow color coded for the cook temperature of the patty - mine white and Kirby’s pink. I topped my burger with a light layer of ketchup and mayo, enough to zhuzh but not overshadow the meat.


Within two bites of this burger my hands were absolutely drenched, but I have to hand it to the bun for fighting back and not disintegrating at ALL during the meal. The patty was tavern style, meaning that it’s meant to be loosely packed before getting cooked. But I think in the case of my burger, the pack was a bit too loose, leading to post-bite deterioration as the meal continued.
While the flavor was pretty great, I had this a week after I ate at Minetta Tavern and the memory of Her (the Black Label Burger) stood looming over this whole experience. Plus, the construction was incredibly similar to one of my all-time favorites, the RHT burger. Ultimately I still appreciated the simplicity here!
The Peter Luger burger was pretty damn good, but nowhere near the top of the pack. I think it’s ultimately worth eating but not worth a daytime Williamsburg diversion. But if you’re in the area, swing in for a bite of history - and for some post-meal gold coins. I’m placing the Peter Luger burger at number 18 (my lucky number!), between Swoony’s and the Pop burger at Strange Flavor.
As my burger list expands, I want to know where you thing I should head - what are my must-do-soons?
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