Jeffrey's Hamburgers — Restaurant in San Mateo

As a vegetarian (bordering on vegan), I have been avoiding Jeffrey's Hamburgers since I moved to San Mateo more than a year ago. Man, what a mistake that was.

They are mainly about burgers, which was my concern, but in addition to fresh ground beef, they offer turkey and garden burgers. They have a few different burger options (cheeseburger, pineapple teriyaki, patty melt, etc.) which you can get on a bun (classic white or whole wheat) or as a bowl (over a salad). They offer 5 different cheeses and a do-it-your-self toppings bar. In addition to burgers, the offer sandwiches (chicken, grilled cheese, tuna melt, BLT, ...), hot dogs (no veggie dogs), salads, fish/shrimp & chips, sides (all kinds of fries, o-rings, soup/chili) and old fashioned milkshakes. They serve beer and wine and even have a kids menu (for food, not beer and wine!).

On my much belated visit (the first of many, I expect) I ordered a teriyaki Garden burger bowl and garlic fries. Order at the counter then have a seat. The decor is very 50's with hits of the day like "Big Girls Don't Cry" playing over the speakers. I sat in the covered patio area in the back. The food came out pretty fast and was delivered by a super friendly and helpful server. Once he was sure I had everything I needed, he left me to it.

The burger bowls consist of the patty of your choice on mixed greens tossed in a lovely lemon vinaigrette shredded carrots, cucumber slices, chopped tomatoes and onions topped with crispy onion strings. I really like the dressing and the teriyaki glaze on the Garden burger raised the bar even higher. Maybe next time I'll try it with the grilled pineapple as well. The garlic fries will knock your socks off! There's enough fresh garlic on them to keep Count Dracula himself at bay for years to come! For those on Team Edward (is that still a thing?) may want to pass on these.

In summary, Jeffery's Hamburgers offers great food (with good vegetarian and vegan options), friendly service and a great atmosphere. I'm sad that it took me so long to try it out, but I will definitely be a regular there...

• In Short *

Solid diner-tier burgers with a toppings and condiments bar so you can customize your burger to your heart's content.

• In Depth *

Fancy burger joint, Jeffrey's is not. But crappy burger joint (a la Mel's), they also are not. In fact, the bacon burger I got from them was probably the tastiest diner burger I've had in a while, especially with other diners having set the bar so low for, well, food in general. The same is true of their sides as well, with the onion rings and garlic fries both being pretty on point.

They have a bar towards the back with all the basic toppings and condiments you could ever desire, like lettuce, tomato, cheese, ketchup, and so on. So, you know, go crazy with it.

Again though, I stress that, compared to other diners, Jeffrey's is pretty good. Against the likes of, say, Marlowe's or Monk's Kettle's burgers, they don't fare so well, but, you're also spending less than $10, so, trade offs!

Accessibility Info

Venue - Wall benches line one side of the tables at the diner, but the other end is comprised of normal chairs that can be pulled out, so accessibility isn't an issue for seating. And while the toppings and condiments bar didn't give me too much trouble, the height and distance may necessitate asking for help.

Bathroom -...

This is one of the best places for burgers anywhere. They also have delicious salads (I know- a hamburger place with great salads..go figure), amazing fish and chips, and delicious turkey and tuna melts. Their milkshakes are good. They used to have great fries, but unfortunately they moved away from fresh cut fries to frozen fries...and they are no longer tasty, but a small price to pay for those burgers. The turkey burger is so good I would not have guessed it's turkey. They use fresh cut and sauteed mushrooms with their mushroom burgers, real swiss or Cheddar or blue-cheese (not processed cheese food) for their cheeseburgers. We used to eat there 2 times per week on average for lunch when I worked nearby. It was always full during the week. I went back today and it wasn't as full as it used to be, probably because there's a lot more competition now in San Mateo for lunch places. It still is good as it ever was except for those fries that they changed years ago, I would now say it's one of the best burger places but not THE best since super duper burgers and ROAM burgers are now good competitors. ROAM has less NON-burger options, but they do have the...