Introduction
The Madrid Burgers List We Send to Friends
Madrid's burger scene splits into two camps: dedicated hamburgueserías built around a single format, and all-round restaurants where a specific burger has become one of the house dishes. Ten Madrid venues make this list, from a 2022 national smash-burger champion in Justicia to a 1967 American diner in Chamartín where regulars once signed the ceiling.
The short answer
Key Picks at a Glance
In a hurry? These are the essential picks from our full ranking below.
- Best national-championship burgerJunk Burguer
the group says its Smashed Burger took Spain's best-burger title in 2022.
- Best historic pickKnight 'n' Squire
burgers and hot dogs since 1967, one of Madrid's first American restaurants.
- Best bistro-style burgerLa Bistroteca
Galician-beef patties finished tableside, each on its own bread.
- Best cheap eatDon Oso
plain, unfussy burgers from 1 to 10 euros a person.
- Best for groupsJuancho's BBQ
a casual, quick-service group with a free loyalty club and repeat national wins.
Before you order
A Guide to Burgers in Madrid
What counts as a burger specialist in Madrid?
A hamburguesería is a restaurant built around burgers as its main format, rather than a general restaurant that happens to serve one. Several entries on this list, including Junk Burguer and Don Oso, describe themselves this way; others serve a signature burger as part of a wider menu.
What is a smash burger?
A smash burger is a thin patty of ground beef pressed flat on a hot griddle, which crisps the edges and cooks it quickly. Junk Burguer and Kricky Pelton both build their menus around this style.
What is the Campeonato de Hamburguesas de España?
It's Spain's national burger competition, covered by Spanish food media as one of the country's more prestigious burger contests. Several Madrid kitchens on this list, including Junk Burguer and Juancho's BBQ, have been tied to results there by outlets like Madrid Secreto.
What does a Repsol Solete mean?
It's a distinction from the Guía Repsol, Spain's national restaurant guide, recognising good, honest cooking at accessible prices. It ranks below a full Repsol Sol. Junk Burguer and Juancho's BBQ both hold one.
How We Built This List
Years of Eating, Asking, and Going Back
We read through Madrid's own burger coverage, including Time Out Madrid's roundup of burgers worth trying and Madrid Secreto's ranking tied to the national burger championship, plus a wider guide from Vive la Vida Roca, and cross-checked every restaurant those sources named against the Madrid restaurants we've profiled, keeping only those currently open. A restaurant made this list only if we've profiled it and its own detail page independently confirms a burger as a real, named part of what it serves, not a single line on an otherwise unrelated menu. That ruled out some venues these sources cite by name, including a Basque charcoal grill, a Chinese noodle bar and a Brazilian steakhouse, where a burger turns up on the menu but isn't part of the venue's own description of itself. Several other names came up repeatedly in the source articles, among them César's Burger, Burnout, Nugu Burger, Burger Jazz and Briochef, but aren't included here because they aren't yet ranked in our own system; we've noted that gap rather than guessing at their current details. Where a specific price or claim only appeared in a single article and wasn't something we could confirm independently or trace to the venue's own data, we left it out rather than repeat it as fact.
More on how we rank: our methodology and quality standards.
At a glance
The 10 Best Burgers, Compared
Quick reference table. Click any name to jump to the full review.
| # | Restaurant | Neighbourhood | Price | Distinction | Signature dish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | La Bistroteca | Goya | €€ | — | Bacon |
| 2 | Junk Burguer | Justicia | € | Repsol Solete | Smash Burger |
| 3 | Juancho's BBQ | Almagro | € | Repsol Solete | Bacon Juancheeseburger |
| 4 | MEAT | Alonso Martínez | € | — | Royal with cheese |
| 5 | Dispatch | Trafalgar | €€ | — | Dispatch Burger |
| 6 | Kricky Pelton | Chamberí | € | — | Uncle Jota's |
| 7 | Knight 'n' Squire | Nueva España | €€ | — | — |
| 8 | La Gamella | Los Jeronimos | €€ | — | — |
| 9 | Don Oso | Gaztambide | € | — | — |
| 10 | La Mulata Latina | Palacio | € | — | — |
The ranking
10 Best Burgers in Madrid
La Bistroteca1. La Bistroteca — Bistro-plated Galician-beef burgers since 2016
La Bistroteca opened in the Barrio de Salamanca in 2016 with what it calls a Feel and Eat idea: burgers given a bistro's attention. The room borrows from New York, exposed brick and copper lamps, and part of the cooking is finished at the table, including guacamole made tableside. Every burger runs on Galician beef, and each gets its own bread rather than one house bun, from the bacon-and-cheddar Bacon to the poached-egg-and-hollandaise Poche. Madrid Secreto names La Palma as one of its standouts, a burger the outlet credits with a national gourmet-burger award. It's open Tuesday to Saturday for lunch and dinner, closed for summer holidays in mid-August, and runs about 30 to 40 euros a person.
“La Palma, premiada como la mejor hamburguesa gourmet de España”— Madrid Secreto
Junk Burguer
2. Junk Burguer — Smash-burger specialist, Spain's 2022 champion
Junk Burguer started in February 2020 on Calle José Abascal, a month before the pandemic, and says it was among the first kitchens in Madrid doing smash burgers. This Glorieta de Bilbao branch, in the Justicia part of central Madrid, holds a Repsol Solete. The group says it took Spain's best-burger title in March 2022 as the only smash entry in the contest, a result Madrid Secreto also reports, crediting the win to a judging panel that found nothing to match its Smashed Burger. It works to its own bread recipe, buys meat fresh daily and says nothing is frozen. It's open daily from midday into the early hours on weekends, under €25 a person.
“Según el jurado del II Campeonato de España de Hamburguesas su Smashed Burger no tuvo competidor que la igualase”— Madrid Secreto
Juancho's BBQ
3. Juancho's BBQ — Group hamburguesería with repeat national burger wins
Juancho's BBQ has grown from a Chamberí market stall into a group with several Madrid locations plus Pozuelo, Majadahonda and Valladolid; this branch is on Calle Alonso Cano in Almagro and holds a Repsol Solete. It says it started with one obsession, making burgers worth remembering, built from its own recipes and top-quality meat, and runs a free loyalty club called Juanchonistas. The Bacon Juancheeseburger comes with Iberian bacon, cheddar and a secret dressing, and the group has won Spain's Best Burger award more than once. The room is casual and quick, set up for groups and families, closed Mondays, and sits under 25 euros a person.
“panceta ibérica, queso cheddar y su aderezo secreto, se han alzado con el premio a la Mejor Hamburguesa de España en más de una ocasión”— Time Out Madrid
MEAT
4. MEAT — Walk-in-only burger counter in Alonso Martín
MEAT is a dedicated burger restaurant on Calle Santa Teresa in Alonso Martínez, built around walking in rather than booking ahead. The room is industrial with enough warmth to feel comfortable, the energy is lively, and there's a curated playlist rather than silence. The Royal with cheese comes on a brioche bun with organic beef from the Madrid sierra, lettuce, pickle, tomato and an English cheese, with chips or onion rings on the side. Service splits into a lunch block and a dinner block, Wednesday to Sunday, 13:00 to 16:30 and 19:30 to 23:00, and it's good value at under 25 euros a person.
“servida en un pan de brioche con carne ecológica de la sierra madrileña, lechuga, pepinillo, tomate y un delicioso queso inglés”— Time Out Madrid
Dispatch
5. Dispatch — Galician-beef burger from an elBulli-trained chef
Dispatch is a small comfort-food counter in Trafalgar run by Colombian chef Nico Bejarano, who has more than 20 years cooking in Spain and time at elBulli, Arzak and Paco Roncero behind him. It opened in late 2024. The counter is best known for a pastrami sandwich Bejarano refined while cooking on Celebrity Cruises ships, but it also runs buttermilk fried chicken and burgers made with Galician beef. Time Out calls out the Dispatch Burger specifically, 180 grams of Galician beef with Pitchfork Cheddar from Formaje, lettuce, tomato and onion. Dispatch was a co-winner of the 2025 Premios Metrópoli for best restaurant under 40 euros. It's closed Monday and Sunday, open lunch and dinner the rest of the week, around 26 to 50 euros a person.
“Son 180 gramos de vaca gallega, queso Pitchfork Cheddar de Formaje”— Time Out Madrid
Kricky Pelton
6. Kricky Pelton — Smash burgers styled between Dallas and Madrid
Kricky Pelton is Jota's homage to American cooking on Calle de Modesto Lafuente in Chamberí, built around smash burgers, crispy chicken and a roster of sauces the kitchen is a little obsessed with. By its own account, the food lands somewhere between Dallas and Madrid, and Time Out reports the founder is Dallas musician Joaquin De Navasques-Pelton. Time Out's pick is the Uncle Jota's, the house's signature: 100 grams of beef with bacon, caramelized onion made to a secret recipe, barley-fed melted cheddar, lettuce and pickles. It's a casual, family-friendly spot, open daily for lunch and dinner, under €25 a person.
“100 gramos de carne con bacon, cebolla caramelizada (receta secreta), cheddar fundido con cebada”— Time Out Madrid
Knight 'n' Squire7. Knight 'n' Squire — American diner since 1967, regulars signed the ceiling
Knight 'n' Squire, known to regulars as El Nait, opened in 1967 as one of the first American restaurants in Madrid, on Calle Félix Boix in Chamartín's Nueva España. Through the 1970s it became a hangout for people from film, music and TV, who signed the ceiling of the ground floor, and the room is still part museum, hung with film posters, flea-market finds and a WWII Harley Davidson that appeared in a war film. The kitchen sticks to American comfort food, its typical burgers and famous hot dogs, alongside starters, salads and meats, plus a collection of beers from around the world. It's open daily from 13:00 to 01:00, with a terrace, in the 20 to 30 euro range.
La Gamella
8. La Gamella — American-Spanish bistro burgers, a 20-year institution
La Gamella is a long-standing Madrid restaurant on Calle Alfonso XII, by the Retiro and the Prado, open more than twenty years. It calls itself a contemporary classic of creative cooking that fuses American and Spanish in a bistro register, and names its Caesar salad with a drop of Jack Daniels and its American burgers as the house classics, alongside seasonal plates, a small-plate platillos option and a considered wine list. It's an address better known as an all-round Madrid institution than a burger specialist, but the burger has stood as one of its signature dishes for two decades. Expect to spend 26 to 50 euros a person.
Don Oso9. Don Oso — No-frills burgers from 1 to 10 euros a person
Don Oso is a casual burger spot on Calle Donoso Cortes in Chamberí's Gaztambide area, part of a small group of Madrid hamburgueserias that keeps things simple: burgers, plain and unfussy, nothing to overthink. It bills itself as serving the city's first hamburgers, since 1973. The space is built for big groups, with plenty of seating and, across the group's branches, room for up to 90 at a single location. It's a grab-a-burger kind of place rather than a sit-down dinner, and it's cheap, around 1 to 10 euros a person.
La Mulata Latina10. La Mulata Latina — Latin American kitchen with signature burgers as the draw
La Mulata Latina is a Latin American restaurant on Costanilla de San Andrés in La Latina, described by its owners as the work of two families with a shared love of cooking, its name drawn from Latin culture and its diversity. Where the menu is broadly Latin American, the kitchen puts a special focus on signature burgers built from premium meat, fresh ingredients and homemade sauces, alongside the rest of the carta. The room is casual and family-friendly, with a terrace and cocktails, and it's dog friendly. It's open daily from roughly midday to 1am, later on Friday and Saturday, in the 10 to 20 euro range.
The bigger picture
The Burgers Scene in Madrid
Madrid's burger market has grown fast enough to support its own national competition, the Campeonato de Hamburguesas de España, and several of the city's specialists, including Junk Burguer and Juancho's BBQ, have been tied to results there by Spanish food media. The scene runs from smash-burger counters like Junk Burguer and Kricky Pelton, through bistro-style kitchens like La Bistroteca that plate burgers with a tablecloth restaurant's attention, to old-guard addresses where the burger sits alongside a wider menu, Knight 'n' Squire since 1967 and La Gamella for more than twenty years. Prices swing widely too, from Don Oso's 1 to 10 euros a person up to Dispatch and Kricky Pelton in the 26 to 50 euro range.
Practical tips
Know before you go
A short survival guide for eating burgers in Madrid— everything we wish we’d known on our first trip.
- 1
Prices swing widely
From Don Oso's 1 to 10 euros a person up to Dispatch and Kricky Pelton in the 26 to 50 euro range, so check a venue's price band before you go.
- 2
MEAT is walk-in only
No reservations, and service splits into a lunch block and a dinner block, 13:00 to 16:30 and 19:30 to 23:00, Wednesday to Sunday.
- 3
Check the group's own site first
Junk Burguer and Juancho's BBQ both publish full menus on their own sites, worth a look before you go since offerings can vary by location within the group.
- 4
Watch for summer closures
La Bistroteca closes for summer holidays in mid-August, so check dates if you're visiting Madrid in high season.
- 5
Groups and families
Juancho's BBQ and Don Oso are both built for bigger tables, while Knight 'n' Squire and Kricky Pelton are family-friendly too.
Know the terms
Glossary
The vocabulary you need to order burgers in Madrid like a local.
- Hamburguesería
- A restaurant built around burgers as its main format, rather than a general restaurant that also serves one.
- Smash burger
- A thin patty pressed flat on a hot griddle, which crisps the edges quickly. Junk Burguer and Kricky Pelton both build their menus on this style.
- Repsol Sol / Solete
- Distinctions from the Guía Repsol, Spain's national restaurant guide. A Sol ranks above a Solete, which recognises good, honest cooking at accessible prices.
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
All restaurants on this list were independently verified as open and serving the dishes described as of .
What are the best burger restaurants in Madrid?
+
Junk Burguer and Juancho's BBQ are two of the most consistently cited Madrid burger specialists, with Junk Burguer tied by Spanish food media to results at the 2022 national burger championship.
Which Madrid burger restaurant has won a national championship?
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Junk Burguer says its Smashed Burger took Spain's best-burger title at the 2022 Campeonato de Hamburguesas de España as the only smash entry in the contest, a result Madrid Secreto also reports.
Where can I find a historic burger spot in Madrid?
+
Knight 'n' Squire, known as El Nait, has served burgers and hot dogs since 1967 as one of the first American restaurants in Madrid, in a room still hung with the memorabilia regulars left behind. La Gamella has kept an American burger as one of its classics for more than twenty years near the Retiro.
What's a cheap burger option in Madrid?
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Don Oso, in Chamberí's Gaztambide area, keeps things plain and unfussy at around 1 to 10 euros a person, part of a small group of Madrid hamburgueserías built for big groups.
Which Madrid restaurant specializes in smash burgers?
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Junk Burguer says it was among the first kitchens in Madrid doing smash burgers, and Kricky Pelton, on Calle de Modesto Lafuente in Chamberí, builds its whole menu around the style too.
Is there a Latin American take on the burger in Madrid?
+
La Mulata Latina, in La Latina, puts a special focus on signature burgers built from premium meat and homemade sauces alongside its broader Latin American menu.
Which Madrid burger spot suits a sit-down meal rather than a quick bite?
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La Bistroteca, in Barrio de Salamanca, plates Galician-beef burgers with a bistro's attention, finishing some dishes tableside, while Dispatch, run by a chef with time at elBulli and Arzak, treats its Galician-beef burger as one part of a short, considered menu.
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About the author
Justin Mota
Guidavera founder
Justin Mota is the founder of Guidavera. He has lived in Spain for over 10 years and runs a native AI agency alongside building this platform. Food has always been the way Justin connects with friends, and Guidavera started as the list he kept sending to everyone visiting Barcelona. He built it for himself and his friends first, and now hopes it can transform the way people discover great food experiences everywhere.
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