KateUa22/Shutterstock Add Tasting Table on Google: Preferred Source Google Discover America's love for burgers is unparalleled, with over 50 billion of them consumed in the United States every year. A large chunk of these sales are driven by top fast food chains such as McDonald's, Burger King, and Wendy's. When it comes to the Midwest, the name that comes up most often is Culver's, the Wisconsin-born chain that's gone from family business to fast food favorite.
Beyond these chains is a whole universe of restaurants, dive bars, and food trucks selling homespun burgers, gourmet burgers, smashburgers, Juicy Lucys, double stacks, patty melts, and more. Given that most neighborhoods are dotted with burger joints, the task of finding hidden-gem cheeseburgers in the Midwest was quite easy. Cutting the list down to five was the real challenge.
To arrive at this list, we first went hunting on multiple online forums and food blogs for the best cheeseburgers. We added phrases like "hidden gem" and "under the radar" to sharpen the list. We then narrowed this down by only keeping restaurants that had between 300 and 1,500 reviews on Google, along with a 4.5-star average rating or higher. To avoid large chains, we also excluded any brands with over 20 locations. And to steer clear of the not-so-hidden gems, we left out names that regularly make it to lists of "most popular burgers" (like the ones in our list of the best cheeseburger in every state or our list of the best hole-in-the-wall burgers). That being said, the deliciousness of these burgers means they can boast a decent amount of acclaim — especially locally.
Highlander-/Reddit Bill's Toasty is a hidden gem in more ways than one. You'll have to make your way to Taylorville, a small town with a population of just over 10,000 located 25 miles from Springfield (which is famous for its unique horseshoe sandwich). It's been around since 1940, but it doesn't have an official website. It's "hidden" in the sense that you're unlikely to end up there serendipitously. What it does have is over 1,300 reviews on Google, with a 4.7-star rating. And the star is the cheeseburger, which customers can't stop raving about.
Hand-written notes from guests lining its wall — from "best burger in America" to "just as delicious today as it was in 1973" — tell the story of many fine meals spanning decades. These days, Bill's Toasty sells its hamburgers and cheeseburgers in different sizes — all of them supersized. One guest on TripAdvisor noted that the small has a quarter-pound of beef, and a regular has a half-pound. The double cheeseburger seems to be a popular choice. "Great little place! Open 24hrs and has fresh food made right in front of you. I got a double cheeseburger and it was huge!" one Google review said. The only complaint, according to a customer, was that it was too big. "Food was EXCELLENT and even with a 7 mile drive our food was STILL hot," they wrote, adding, "... next time I'll order regular cheeseburger because the double is HUGE, couldn't finish lol."
kellysbarhamtramck/Instagram Kelly's Bar in Hamtramck is a local institution, having built a business around serving thirsty workers from the automotive factories in the area since 1917 (it proudly calls itself the oldest dive bar in Hamtramck). It underwent serious upgrades after new owners took over in 2021, which saw the introduction of a highly-praised new smashburger to the menu.
Kelly's has 400+ reviews on Google with a 4.6-star rating. The locally famous burger consists of two perfectly crispy smashed patties in sesame seed buns, along with cheese, lettuce, onions, pickles, and a special ketchup-mayo sauce. "New-ish owners Garrett Ragsdale and Kiersten Schilinski developed a smashburger that is nearly flawless," a review in the Detroit Metro Times stated, noting that the dive bar used a high-quality meat blend freshly ground to specifications.
The cheeseburgers have landed well with patrons. "Such a great place, hidden gem where they sell def one of the best burgers I've eaten," a customer wrote on Google, neatly answering the question we set out to answer. On Yelp, a customer echoed these sentiments with a bit more passion. "If I have two great loves in my life it has to be dive bars and burgers," they wrote. "If you are a fan of smashburgers you will not be disappointed. Excellent in every way, charred [exterior], juicy [center], great buns." The chefs at Kelly's have clearly nailed their patty prepping and smashing technique.
