The 11 Seafood Chains That Serve Fantastic Burgers, According To Customers
To many, great seafood is an almost spiritual experience while, to others, it's just fishy. In the eternal land or sea debate, this last group falls squarely in the land camp. But anyone who is friends or family with these carnitarians — that would be the opposite of a pescetarian — need not sacrifice their love of seafood, because many chains offer stellar burger options.
As many have noted, sometimes a burger on a seafood menu is merely meant to appease the seafood-averse, meaning it's made with little attention. But, thankfully, that's not always the case. So, to help you find the restaurants that really care, we looked around to find seafood chains that put as much care into their burgers as they do their salmon, swordfish, or scallops.
We took into account customer reviews, overall restaurant quality, and the diversity and quality of other meat options. While some chains offer a solitary burger, others boast entire burger sections, full of rich variety and a generous assortment of complimentary sides. Some even offer a full menu of mouth-watering steaks, a strong indicator that these people know exactly the right way to cook a cow. So without further ado, let's leave the ocean for a bit and enjoy some great burgers.
1. Bonefish Grill
"There was care and love put into this burger," one reviewer glowingly wrote about the Bonefish Grill's Kobe burger, noting how surprised he was that this casual seafood chain had crafted something so delicious. "My tomato was red and delicious, and the lettuce fresh and green. Cheddar cheese is a good choice for this burger, and its sharp flavor and oils blended and balanced nicely with the lush tastes of the other high-quality ingredients."
Bonefish Grill, a Tampa-based chain currently with over 170 locations around the country, offers a well-reviewed "Half-Pound BFG Burger" that comes on a toasted bun and is garnished with sharp cheddar cheese, special sauce, mayonnaise, pickles, onions, tomatoes, and french fries, starting at $16.50. Diners can select free sides of coleslaw, garlic mashed potatoes, or a veggie mix. A Facebook post about the burger received a slew of positive comments that proclaimed the burger to be one of the best anywhere, let alone at a seafood chain. "The best ever burger is at Bonefish!" wrote one, while another wrote that Bonefish "has one of the BEST burgers in Knoxville."
Bonefish offers several other options for carnitarians. The menu contains an entire "Steak & Chops" section with options like sirloin steak and filet mignon, accompanied by broccoli and mashed potatoes. There is also a chicken section offering chicken marsala and chicken breast with broccoli and mashed potatoes.
2. Flanigan's Seafood Bar and Grill
"The biggest burger I have ever loved," one TripAdvisor reviewer raved about one of the many on offer at Flanigan's Seafood Bar and Grill, a casual chain with 25 locations currently around Florida. "Tastes like it's fresh off the grill," raved a YouTube reviewer about the chain's Caribbean Burger, which contains two strips of bacon, melted cheddar cheese, and Flanigan's special barbecue sauce. "Whatever barbecue sauce that is — shout out to the chef!"
As of this writing, Flanigan's offers five different burger options for $12.99 each. Each burger contains 10 ounces of USDA Choice meat and is served on a Kaiser roll with lettuce, tomato, and a dill pickle. Diners can choose between curly fries, a baked potato, or dirty rice for free sides. In addition to the Caribbean Burger, Flanigan's offers the Texas Burger (bacon, bleu cheese, onions, homemade wing sauce); the Flanigan burger (sautéed onions, mushrooms, and Swiss American cheese); the Bahama Burger, which for $11.99 is a simple plain hamburger; and the Big Daddy Burger, which adds two slices of American cheese to the Bahama Burger.
The Flanigan's grill fires up many more options for meat lovers, who can also select generous combos of baby back ribs, sandwiches like Philly Cheese Steak and barbecued chicken breast, and fine steaks like 12-ounce aged prime rib or New York strip steak.
3. Joe's Stone Crab
If a Michelin recommendation doesn't convince you to try a burger, we don't know what will. The famed guide included Joe's Stone Crab, a high-end chain that started as a lunch counter in 1913 in Miami Beach. Michelin noted how the original Miami Beach location has grown into one of the city's top attractions, attracting celebrities, politicians, and diehard local fans.
Many fans love not just the famous stone crab but also burger, which is available in Miami and the other locations in Chicago, Las Vegas, and Washington, D.C. The "Classic Cheeseburger" contains shredded lettuce, beefsteak tomato, raw or grilled onions, and french fries, for $18.95. "What a burger!" raved one reviewer on TripAdvisor. "Three different kinds of beef ground freshly into a half-pound burger, cooked medium and seasoned so perfectly as Joe's knows how to do. Fresh toppings, and hand cut fries rounded out what ended up being a perfect lunch."
"My wife doesn't often get to eat fish unless we eat out so I knew this place also does a good burger," wrote another TripAdvisor reviewer. "I would definitely recommend this to everyone! We ordered 3 mahi mahi sandwiches and a burger and all were awesome!"
Joe's Stone Crab has other non-seafood options, which include fried and herb-roasted chicken, 6 to 30-ounce steaks, lamb chops, and a wide variety of sides that include both baked and mashed potatoes.
4. Landry's Seafood House
Any burger described in The Burger Review as "juicy to the point of nearly overwhelming the bun" should probably be included on this list. "The Landry's Gold Burger was the best burger that Happy Meal and I had sampled in Las Vegas on this trip. Landry's restored our faith in Las Vegas burgers," the author enthused.
Landry's Seafood House, a chain with locations across the U.S., offers a Gold Burger, presumably named as such due to the generous amount of cheddar cheese melted on top, or perhaps the crispy gold bun containing it all. The above reviewer appreciated both, calling the cheddar "nicely melted and added depth and complexity to the bite with its creaminess," while the toasted bun "soaked up the copious burger juices with no capacity to spare."
The Gold Burger is garnished with tomato and lettuce, and comes with french fries and onion rings, for $16. Diners can add bacon for an extra $2. Like many seafood restaurants with quality burgers, Landry's also offers a variety of steaks. Diners can choose either a 9-ounce top sirloin, a 6 or 8-ounce filet mignon, or a 14-ounce ribeye, all char-grilled and enriched by butter and mashed potatoes. Diners can also add a few reasonably-priced nonseafood sides, like a vegetable mix for $6 or dirty rice for $6.50.
5. Legal Sea Foods
Legal Sea Foods, a northeastern chain that is particularly prevalent in the Boston area, proudly proclaims that "if it isn't fresh, it isn't Legal." That motto is commonly assumed to apply to its wide array of freshly caught fish, but based on many happy customer reviews, its burgers are deliciously fresh as well. "Try the Boom Boom cauliflower and the burger! Cooked to perfection," one TripAdvisor reviewer gushed of the burger with cauliflower. Another TripAdvisor reviewer professed their particular love for the Snake River Farms Wagyu Bacon Cheddar Burger.
One burger currently on the menu is the Double D Ranch USDA Prime Bacon Cheddar Burger, which contains applewood smoked bacon, Vermont cheddar, lettuce, tomato, french fries, and coleslaw, for a total of $19. Meat eaters can also enjoy a fried chicken thigh served with hot honey, whipped sweet potatoes, and Tuscan kale. They can also select from two cuts of steak: Double R Ranch New York Strip or Double R Ranch Twin Filet Mignon, both arriving at the table with garlic butter, crispy potato wedges, and grilled asparagus. But be sure to budget accordingly, as those menu items cost $50 and $48, respectively.
Anyone who loves both seafood and burgers will enjoy tuna and oyster burgers, which feature on the lunch menu. The cheeseburger is currently offered for both lunch and dinner.
6. Lure Fishbar
There's a certain lore around the burger at Lure Fishbar, an upscale chain with locations in New York and Chicago. Its Bash Burger has won acclaim as simply one of the best burgers in New York City, with reviewers reserving special praise for its elevated take on a lower-quality fast food burger.
A burger at a seafood restaurant is too often an afterthought, put there solely as a consolation prize for the person who doesn't want to be at the restaurant in the first place. That's not so at Lure, where chefs took the trimmings of an In-N-Out burger and raised it to a sublime new haute-cuisine level. Today, for a cool $27, diners can order a Bash Burger with either bacon onion jam, cheese, and shaved pickles, or "Lure Style" with lettuce, tomato, and cheese. The dinner menu also offers a 10-ounce filet mignon, a 16-ounce New York strip, and a 16-ounce ribeye.
7. McCormick & Shmick's
Any restaurant that describes itself as an "upscale seafood and steak restaurant" is probably going to offer a pretty great burger. McCormick & Schmick's, a chain of 18 restaurants across the country, doesn't disappoint. "I thought the beef was buttery soft and did have melt-in-your-mouth qualities. I would have liked more seasoning, but the flavor was great and it was cooked to the perfect temp. The sweet, buttery, creamy Fontina cheese is very satisfying and melted perfectly," one reviewer wrote of McCormick's $21 American Kobe Style Burger, which offers roasted red pepper, bacon, and Swiss cheese to complement the Kobe beef.
"It was awesome," a TripAdvisor reviewer wrote of the Kobe burger. "Great service also." Others have praised the mini-burger sliders, which are available on some location's menus and are beloved for their hearty servings of cheese and unapologetic flavor.
On its lunch menu, the restaurant also offers the McCormick's Cheeseburger, which contains lettuce, tomato, onion cheddar, garlic parmesan aioli, and french fries, for $15.90. As mentioned, McCormick's offers the full range of delicious steaks, including 6 and 8-ounce filet mignons, 13-ounce USDA-choice New York strip, 32-ounce USDA-choice porterhouse, 20-ounce dry-rubbed bone-in Black Angus ribeye steak, and 13-ounce dry-rubbed Black Angus ribeye steak, as well as herb grilled chicken with mashed potatoes and vegetables.
8. McGrath's Fish House
If a seafood restaurant has a single burger on its menu, it may be a sign that the dish will be hit or miss. If it's one of the rare places to create an entire burger section, however, then you could more easily conclude that its burgers are a high priority, and likely very good.
McGrath's Fish House, a chain with locations in Oregon and Washington, is one of those special seafood spots. Diners currently have five burgers to choose from, though admittedly one is a salmon burger and the other is a cod burger — this is still a seafood restaurant, after all. But beef lovers will still be more than satisfied with the three other options, which all contain a 6-ounce Wagyu-Angus beef burger with lettuce, tomato, and a pickle. The John Q. Publick Cheeseburger oozes with cheddar cheese, grilled onions, and Thousand Island dressing, with options to add bacon or mushrooms and peppers for a little extra. The BBQ Bacon Cheeseburger is exactly as described, as is the California Avocado Bacon Cheeseburger, which contains smoked bacon, mozzarella cheese, and mayonnaise. All burgers are served with either a garden salad, coleslaw, french fries, clam chowder, or fish stew.
"Best burger I've had in a long time! Super yummy food. Everything made fresh to order," one TripAdvisor reviewer raved, while a reviewer on DoorDash noted that, "The burger and fries were delicious and a good portion."
9. Ocean Prime
Ocean Prime, an upscale seafood and steak house with locations across the country, makes a burger that's just as prime as anything else on the menu. "If you're looking for one of the best burgers in town, try their happy hour menu!" one reviewer wrote on OpenTable regarding their experience at the chain's Denver location. "Not a bad burger and cooked to medium which tasted good," another reviewer said on TripAdvisor, who then noted that the burger was cooked to medium, which tasted good.
"It's a decent burger," one notoriously tough-to-please burger YouTube reviewer said. "I like the cheese. The caramelized onions add a nice touch. Hey, for a seafood restaurant, not bad!"
Each Ocean Prime location has a slightly different menu, but most contain the Prime Cheeseburger, which costs $25 and consists of Tillamook cheddar, caramelized onions, lettuce, tomato, mayonnaise, and pickle relish. Each burger comes with either fries, a cup of lobster bisque, or a cup of onion soup. A Caesar salad or house salad can be added on for an extra $20, which is more of an additional meal than a side. Ocean Prime is just as renowned for its finely prepared steaks as it is with its seafood. Diners can order filet mignon, bone-in filet, ribeye, or New York strip, in sizes ranging from 8 to 16 ounces.
10. Red Lobster
The truth of Red Lobster is that it may be somewhat polarizing among seafood fans, but its menu is clearly a haven for seafood haters. burger devotees seem to be in pretty general agreement that they heartily approve of its two different burger options, though different locations have different availability. Some offer the $16 Dockside Cheddar Burger, a grilled patty combined with aged white cheddar, lettuce, tomatoes, and pickles on a toasted brioche bun. Others offer the fairly similar $16 Wagyu Bacon Cheeseburger, served on a grilled Wagyu patty with bacon, white cheddar, lettuce, and tomato on a toasted brioche bun.
"This is a really good burger," one surprised YouTube reviewer said. "I finally tried the burger, and it's fantastic," another commented on Facebook. "The toppings were great, but the beef is the star." "Endless fries along with a great burger. cannot be beat," wrote another.
Indeed, the burgers are served with sea-salted fries, and burgers ordered to go are accompanied by two warm Cheddar Bay biscuits, a Red Lobster staple. Like many mid-market chains, Red Lobster offers many non-seafood sides that will go well with a burger, all for about $3 to $5 extra. The smoky, fiery beef is nicely enhanced with mashed potatoes, a baked potato, broccoli, crispy Brussels sprouts, cole slaw, a house salad, or more fries and cheddar biscuits if the complementary ones didn't suffice.
11. Truluck's
You're truly in luck if you try anything on the menu at Truluck's, an upscale chain with locations around Texas and Florida that claims to offer nothing less than the "ocean's finest seafood and crab."
"The best part of the night by far was the food," wrote a reviewer on Texas Tasty. "The steak was the perfect mix of tender and just cooked right, the frites were seasoned well to go with the [tartar] bearnaise sauce." "I highly recommend coming here if you love steak and seafood," said a YouTube reviewer. "This is really a fine restaurant to eat dinner."
We couldn't find any reviews specifically regarding the $19 Prime Burger, which is featured on the lunch menu and is served with french or sweet potato fries, American cheese, lettuce, tomato, red onion, and Truluck's special burger sauce. However, based on the chain's extensive steak menu and the rapturous reviews that accompany it, we feel it's safe to assume that its burger will be of similar lofty quality as well.
Methodology
Assembling this list sometimes felt like swimming upstream. While most seafood chains serve steak, not nearly as many serve burgers. And even if they do, most reviewers are interested in the fish.
But we dug deep and found chains that serve burgers that were good enough to win the respect of online reviewers, a notoriously picky crowd. We also took into account the overall reviews for the restaurant, because chances are good that if dozens of other menu items are stellar, the burger will be as well.
We also factored in the diversity of burger offerings and awarded extra points for creative additions like bacon or avocado. Offering lots of yummy free sides didn't hurt, either. Finally, we awarded bonus points to chains with a steak menu, because that indicates they know how to expertly prepare all kinds of beef.