Ox Burger — Restaurant in Seattle

This used to be my favorite spot when I moved to the neighborhood from U-District a little less than a year ago. The prices were reasonable, the food was good, and the happy hour had good deals for 4 hours from 3 - 7pm. In the 8 months I’ve lived here, they’ve:

Raised their prices twice Nearly halved their happy hour time Reduced the happy hour options to not include fries and pay more to add them on instead of it being a combo

Simply put, it’s not worth it for the money anymore and I can’t recommend going here let alone traveling to go here, as someone who literally lives up the block. It’s on Capitol Hill so obviously you’re struggling to park anyway. The fries especially are just slop and go cold faster than any fry I’ve ever had. The music there is almost always so loud you can’t hear yourself think (and to be honest the music is just… bad). The cheeseburger is good but now overpriced for how basic and quick it is to make them. If you just really need that Lao burger, go ahead, drop 3/4 of $20 for something that’s hardly the size of your hand. The only person who works there that I don’t get mean or judgy vibes from is the owner himself. It’s small, cramped, the door is heavy, it’s just not enjoyable anymore. If you want a cheap burger that’s still quality, your best bet is Picks’ in SODO, you can really get a lot more for the same or less. Ox is just slowly getting worse and I don’t want to give them my money anymore if they’re just going to keep asking for more and more and more for the same exact thing. They flat out don’t deserve the reputation...

They told me burgers were just burgers. That meat and bread were finite things. They were wrong.

Because then I met him — Chef Ralph. The man, the myth, the culinary demigod behind Ox Burgers.

The first time I walked into Ox, the air was thick with something divine. Not just the scent of sizzling beef or the whisper of garlic in the aioli — no, it was the unmistakable presence of greatness. And at the heart of it stood Ralph. Calm. Focused. A spatula in one hand, destiny in the other.

When my order was called — a simple cheeseburger and fries — I felt the earth shift. The first bite? My soul left my body. The second? It came back just to weep.

Ralph doesn’t just cook. He composes symphonies of flavor, stories of heat and char and love. His sear technique? A masterclass in Maillard reaction romance. His buns? Pillow-soft poetry. Every condiment, every topping — placed with the care of a sculptor carving marble. Each burger he makes is not food, it’s an emotion.

I once saw a grown man cry at the counter after finishing his meal. Ralph walked over, patted him on the back, and whispered, “Next time try the Laos burger” The man nodded like he’d been given purpose again.

Chef Ralph isn’t just a chef. He’s a healer, a flavor prophet. A burger bard telling greasy tales that live in your memory long after the plate is empty.

Ox Burgers isn’t a restaurant. It’s a temple. And Ralph? He’s the high priest...

There's an awful lot of talk about smash burgers recently. They're all over the zeitgeist as the most desirable burger. In your mind's eye, you have a very specific idea of how these should be - walking the line between a late night drunken indulgence, and a culinary benchmark of a chef's skill.

I had noticed this establishment while out walking my Pikmin, and decided I'd come back to have a go at their burgers. The place was pretty packed on a Saturday night and I had to come back after the dinner rush. But when I did, I was given gracious service by the main servitör, and my burger was served to me by the chef himself.

I gave it half a minute to cool, and a half minute later I was all but finished. These are the best smash burgers I've had in the area. If I had a minor quibble, I found it a tiny bit too "rich" - Flavors were a little overwhelming. But in that, it's really clear that the staff love what they're making. On my way out I really wanted to compliment them, but I was suddenly nervous in the face of such raw talent and just said "fank u it wuz vewwy nice" and went home and got drunk...