Burger 21 — Restaurant in Charlotte

*food safety *food poisoning *terrible customer service

I’ve been a loyal customer of Burger 21 for a while, but my recent experiences have been incredibly disappointing and, more importantly, concerning when it comes to food safety.

On Saturday night, I went with friends and my son. After ordering, we sat outside. When our food arrived, my meal was mistakenly taken to another table. Despite the customer telling the server it wasn’t his order, the plate was left with him before finally being retrieved. To my shock, the same plate of food was then brought to me—cold, with hard fries. I had to ask three different servers to remake my meal, but I was ignored and given attitude until I finally spoke to the manager, who remade my meal.

Then, on Monday, my son wanted their tenders, so I ordered dinner to-go. After calling ahead, I arrived in less than five minutes. When I got there, I knew my food wouldn’t be ready yet, so I paid and got my drink while waiting. Upon checking the food, it was cold. When I brought this up to the manager, she had an attitude and seemed uninterested in helping. She tried to blame me, saying the food had been ready at 6 PM, which was impossible based on my call log. She kept arguing until I showed her proof from my phone. Despite this, only part of my order was remade (the kids’ hot dog and sweet potato fries), and when I asked why the rest wasn’t replaced, I was told it's fine.

Halfway through my burger, I realized it had clearly been sitting out—it was old, and my son’s tenders were hard and inedible. By bedtime, I started feeling unwell, and both my son and I ended up with food poisoning. I was woken up at 4:30am with terrible symptoms of food poisoning. My son woke up about 20mins later with the same symptoms.

It’s unacceptable that the staff not only served old food but also gave me attitude and disregarded me when I asked for help. This isn’t just about poor service—this is a serious food safety issue, and I hope Burger 21 takes immediate action to prevent this from happening to anyone else.

I don't recommend...

The absolute perfect trifecta of service, staff, and food!!!! One of the only Burger joints in charlotte that actually grinds their own meat in house... meaning that you and order and they are allowed to serve their burgers at whatever temp you would like from rare to well. Wonderful establishment. Thank you to everyone at burger 21!!!

update 9/2/23

well it's been about a year since my last visit due to relocating and it breaks my heart to have to say it but the last 2 visits to Burger 21 I noticed that something was different about the burger taste and texture. it was just not what I was use to receiving at burger 21 so on my last visit I asked the cashier if they still ground their own meat in house and she informed me they do not. and so I asked herto verify with the kitchen for me which she did. and the she added that since she had worked there they have not ground their meat in house. now being that I had never seen her there before my last 2 visits id assume that she hasn't been there very long. maybe a year at the most. but needless to say I'd have to downgrade my rating of Burger 21 considerably. now interestingly enough the last two visits were the first time since this establishment opened it's doors that the sweet potato fries we ordered were actually cooked perfectly with one being burnt and crispy like they use to be. but unfortunately I didn't write this review to be about sweet potato fries. I guess burger 21 went the way of most other greats and chose quantity over quality. a truly...

This place is my new favorite place to get burgers! They will make it exactly to your preferred temp perfectly. I love mine still mooing (rare or close to rare, which is why mine is pink, I WANTED THAT♥️). My momma loves hers medium with an over easy egg on top, and this is the first place in a long time that has not overcooked the egg, so she was extremely (eggstremely😜) happy. We loved the sides we ordered, which were sweet potato fries and onion rings. The sides were the only minimal "issue." The sides came out a minute or two after the burgers which leads the customer to believe you are waiting on them to finish cooking, and the sweet potato fries were warm and not hot like we expected if that was something to be waited on. The flavor of the fries and crispness of the fries were awesome. (The ranch is a great pairing with them, by the way, especially the way yall make your ranch) The onion rings are haystack style with a nice level of seasoning. The only downer for us here is they were clumped together too much, so maybe just shake them a bit in the fryer? I'm not sure what would work, but either way, they tasted wonderful. The bottled soda is made with cane sugar! Love that! I ordered a bananas foster shake after (I just couldn't resist). The shake tasted delicious. I would compare it to more of an egg nog flavor with a beautifully placed brûléed banana piece on top.

Thanks again y'all! I'm only giving 4 stars for now for the sides but if it's fixed when I come back I will...