Haunted Hamburger — Restaurant in Jerome

While visiting Jerome, Arizona, drawn in by the Haunted Hamburger’s glowing Google reviews, we decided this culinary ghost needed to be exorcised firsthand. Arriving at about 1pm on a Monday, we were greeted not by a friendly host but by a daunting 50-minute wait time. Undeterred and slightly optimistic, we embraced the opportunity for window shopping around the charming town while waiting for their text to ping our phones.

When our ghostly summons arrived just on schedule, we returned to find the restaurant buzzing with activity. We were led upstairs to a cozy table surrounded by period-appropriate decor littered with mining era artifacts, adding a tasteful whisper of history to the ambiance. Not to mention the view—an absolutely spectacular overlook of the Verde Valley that nearly made you forget why you came: food.

Speaking of food, brace yourself. Once seated, we discovered that prompt service was as elusive as a ghost in this haunted hamburger joint. It took a solid 15 minutes before our server appeared, slightly overwhelmed, juggling what was clearly an unmanageable section of hungry patrons. Friendly and helpful, yes, but somewhat stretched thin.

Menu in hand and with hours—or so it felt—we eventually placed our lunch order: two burgers cooked medium-rare with a side of nacho dip, along with drinks for good measure. The nacho dip arrived first and was an undeniable triumph. The perfect marriage of cheese, chili, meat, and seasoning on stellar tortilla chips was the highlight we didn’t see coming—finally, a taste of greatness worthy of the hype.

Then came the burgers. Let’s just say the kitchen’s idea of medium-rare and ours were on wildly different planes of existence. My burger was so thoroughly overcooked and dry it might have been served by a ghost chef from the mines: all grit, no glory. I sent it back, hopeful for redemption. My wife’s patty was also overcooked but suffered less from the culinary post-apocalypse that had befallen mine, so she soldiered on. The bun and toppings were excellent.

Round two arrived with my replacement burger looking better than before, but the meat was still a desert wasteland of dryness. It's one of those restaurant moments where you silently wish they’d stop taking temperatures unless they’re absolutely certain they can nail them.

Thankfully, the sides redeemed the meal a bit. The french fries were hot, crispy, and seasoned like a dream, while the jalapeno slaw was a modest tease of spice—spicy enough to make you aware, but not enough to make you regret it.

We wrapped up dinner feeling like we had just checked off a box on some food pilgrimage list we weren’t inclined to revisit. The wait to get the bill was yet another test of our patience. When the damage was revealed—$76 plus tip for two burgers, nacho dip, and drinks—the value proposition didn’t quite add up.

In summary, strengths included a killer view, charming historic decor, excellent nacho dip, and side dishes that pleased the palate. Weaknesses were a painfully slow service that felt overwhelmed, a kitchen that needs serious work on cooking temperatures, and an overall wait time that made this lunch feel more like a chore than a joy.

In my opinion, if you’re hunting for a food experience that matches the legend of Jerome’s ghost town vibe, the Haunted Hamburger delivers on atmosphere but falls short on the main event: well-executed food and timely service. This visit left us with the firm feeling that this haunted haunt is a one-and-done kind of adventure. Next time we’re in town, we’ll admire the view from outside and maybe save our dollars for something less spectral.

Final thought: Don’t let this burger haunt your dreams—unless you like dry patties and slow service with a side of...

Worst customer service experience I've ever had in any restaurant.

TLDR: The waitress was gossiping about my 1-year-old having an accident that had to be cleaned up, told me to clean it up, then only apologized when we talked to the manager.

I've been here once before. I remembered the food being decent. So, I thought it'd be a good place to take my wife and our daughter. This was a very clearly non-diverse establishment right out the gate. We were greeted with smiles from everyone. We sat down to eat, ordered a couple burgers, a milkshake, and a kids meal.

The burgers were passable at best. Not seasoned and the only flavor came from the green chili on mine. I ended up giving a green chili to my wife so she could have SOME sort of flavor in her burger. The best thing at the table was the mac and cheese bites and fries our daughter had been eating, and in my opinion, even those were very dry and needed ranch.

Then, when we got close to being done, I went to the bathroom. When I came back, my wife mentioned that the waiter asked if we needed more water, but the water wasn't water, it was my 1-year-old daughter's accident. So, my wife went to the bathroom to change the baby's diaper, and while she was in the bathroom, I stared at the waiter for what felt like 10 minutes before she finally came over, after almost walking completely away.

The waiter came by, I informed her that the "water" was pee, and that I thought she might want to know in case they needed something other than the normal mop used to clean it up. I figured it'd be ideal to not clean the other parts of the floor with the same "pee mop." She proceeded to come back with a wad of paper towels and bathroom cleaner. I expected her to start cleaning it up, so I didn't get up or move, then she told me to clean it up. So, I did. Despite thinking this was very strange, I kinda shrugged it off. After all, it is MY daughter's accident. So, after cleaning up, I went to the bathroom to wash my hands.

While I was in the bathroom, washing my hands, my wife had come back to the table with the baby. Apparently, this waitress was gesturing to our table to the bartender and talking about how our daughter had peed, essentially "gossiping" about it. My wife projected her voice to inform her that she could hear every word, saying something to the effect of "I am right here, why are you talking about my 1 year old." The waitress didn't acknowledge my wife or stop talking.

I came out of the bathroom to my wife upset and asking me to not bother boxing the food up and that she wanted to talk to the manager. So, we walked over to the manager where my wife told him about it. As my wife was telling him about it, the waitress profusely apologized and kept saying "I'm going to clean it up right now," which was pretty hilarious considering she had me clean it up just a few minutes prior. All things considered, my wife was very reasonable about the situation. She just told the manager firmly that the waitress shouldn't be talking about people's children and that it was very strange for this waitress to be talking about our 1 year old like this.

Had this been another couple, things could have been MUCH worse. Had someone with a disability, an older kid who could comprehend the situation, or worse, experienced this, it'd be much more offensive. Thankfully, my 1 year old had no idea what was going on.

I will not be going back here, and I suggest that if you want to experience a nice family setting, this is NOT the place. The manager apologized, but in my perspective, it didn't seem like the situation was going to be taken...

TLDR: Good, creative food, good service, great views, kitschy atmosphere- definitely worth a visit.

Upon entering the restaurant, you walk through a decently sized gift shop with cute decor and funny wares. There is a check in desk. We were told the wait would be 45 min at that point- it was pretty busy. We decided to go to the bar and see if there were any available seats, as sitting at a table wasn’t too important to us, and honestly, I’ve frequently found that the service us better at the bar because your server is always right in front of you! We got 4 seats at the bar after about 10 minutes.

The restaurant itself is adorable with spooky decorations all around- skeletons scaling the building outside and bats, ghosts and “chilling” decor featured throughout. We asked for the backstory and were not really given any info so that was kinda lame… maybe they’re tired of telling the story to every customer that walks in? I don’t know.

I like to try “local” beer, so I tried the Mudshark Havablue Blueberry Wheat from Lake Havasu City, which isn’t Jerome but we visited lake Havasu on our trip, so I gave it a pass 😅. It was really good and I was thirsty after walking around Jerome for a while. It had a hint of blueberry, but being a wheat beer, the flavors really balanced themselves out.

We ordered the Chipotle Deviled Eggs (topped with bacon)- yes I don’t eat bacon so I picked it off the eggs I ate. They were pretty tasty (standard deviled egg) and presented well, so I was able to get a decent photo.

Two of my party got the Chili Cheeseburger* (served open-faced and smothered with house-made chili) and they both liked it.

We ordered the Bourbon Jalapeño Bacon Bison Burger* (1/2-pound bison burger, jalapeño bacon jam, pepper jack, and bourbon aioli) and my bf tells me that it was VERY GOOD and one of the best things he had during our trip to Arizona! The onion rings he got were also really good- I had one and they were perfectly fried- no slimy onion!

I enjoyed the Baja Fish Sandwich (beer-battered cod, shredded cabbage, pepper jack cheese & house made baja sauce) which was slightly spicy from the pepper jack cheese and Baja sauce- both of which I really liked. It was a big sandwich and I was definitely full after finishing it. What I really enjoyed was the jalapeño Cole slaw that I got with it! I’ve never had such a combo and it was spicy but refreshing at the same time!

Overall, I think this is a great place to experience. Good, creative food, good service, great atmosphere, beautiful views, and an overall...