These burgers are the hit of my town. All my friends come over every weekend just for these burgers. With a little bit of basil leaves, and some olive oil, you will drooling all over yourself while you eat these.

Chris' Bay Area Burger

beef

garlic,

extra virgin olive oil

salt

black pepper

basil leaves

hamburger buns, split

Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat. Mix together the ground beef, garlic, olive oil, salt, pepper, and basil. Divide into four balls, and flatten into patties.


Cook the patties for about 3 to 5 minutes on each side, or to desired doneness. The internal temperature should be at least 160 degrees F (70 degrees C). Remove from grill and place onto hamburger buns. Top with desired toppings and condiments.


These "burgers" are not your traditional burger by any means, so the ketchup mustard route is not your best choice. Being Italian by spice addition, I chose to serve the burgers with an aioli and fresh mozzarella slices on a a rosemary/red onion foccacia instead of a hamburger bun. Keep it Italian and you can't go wrong with this delicious twist to the all-American burger.

Very good recipe.  My kids (12 &amp; 17) enjoyed it a LOT.  Was fun trying to get them to pic the "different" spice!!  
KINA!!  I was taught how to make a burger patty long ago.  Make into a ball...then between your palms, flatten the burger to where you want it....thick or thin.  As you flatten it...keep turning the burger and gently squeeze the sides together to get ALL the air pockets out....dont make TOO thin or it will be tough.  Its not like making meatloaf....you need to handle the burger more to get all the air out...wont have any cracking and wont have that "ball" problem!!!
Good luck....

Probably the best burgers I have ever made! Very hearty! I wouldn't recommend this recipe for picky eaters - if you're used to bland, this may overwhelm you... but if you're used to a little Garlic and like Basil, you simply MUST try these. DELICIOUS.

We enjoyed these, Chris. For a pound of ground beef, I found 1 Tbsp. olive oil and 1 tsp. salt to be adequate for our taste. A bit of worcestershire might have been a nice addition. Thanks for the post.

These hamburgers were so good! I used seasoned salt instead of regular salt. I added a dash of cayenne pepper also. Other than that, no changes.

These burgers are like ones you get at a nice restaurant.  The taste is amazing.  I could definitely eat this burger without any condiments or bread or anything!

I didn't care for these too much.  They were salty and the basil was too strong for out tastes.  Both my husband and I loaded them with other things to cover the taste.

GREAT BURGER... I added a little more garlic with some onion and a little less salt.  Be careful with the oil,I cut back on that a little too! It kept making the grill flare up. 
Otherwise THE GUYS LOVED THEM!

Great burgers! I used ground turkey to make them a little more healthful and one clove of garlic was plenty. The burgers worked great on my George Foreman indoor grill. My husband was very impressed that I made them from scratch! Very tasty!

I made this last night for company and everybody raved about it!  A very flavorful, yummy burger.  We will never make our old plain burgers again after trying this one.

These were good. With any burger, before grilling, pop the patties into the freezer for about 10 minutes. It helps hold in the juices and makes for a super flavorful burger. 

I like a very spicy hot burger so I added diced fresh jalapeno, 1/4 cup of worcestershire sauce, and a 1/3 cup of Italian style bread crumbs to help bind it all together.  All other ingredients stayed the same.  I hand-blended all the ingredients in the meat.  Since it was pouring down rain, and the forecast was for buckets of rain, I pan fried the burgers.  Topped off with a slice of Cheddar-Mozzarella cheese and peppered bacon, it was darn near the perfect burger.  It would have been the perfect burger had I cooked them over a Hickory flavored charcoal fire.  Alas, there will be a next time.  Tomorrow sounds good to me! :)

Love this recipe, but I always use fresh basil and it makes a world of difference, and usually kick up the garlic a bit.  The olive oil is great because it lets me buy lean meat and still get a juicy burger, but with healthy fat.  

"Too much salt." That is the one thing that kept cycling through my mind while eating these burgers. All the wonderful flavors inside this burger could have dramatically tantalized the taste buds. It sounded good and it looked great on paper... err... my PC monitor. However, thanks to a single spice my burger experience was lack-luster. I find it hard to believe that people are drooling upon themselves as it would appear to me that the recipe would suck out all of the moisture necessary to do so. As it stands, this recipe is only three-of-five stars in my opinion (easy enough to rectify the problem, but not outstanding as written).

Good recipe, but needs some adjustments.

For best results with juicyness, keep the olive oil at the level indicated in the recipe, and use 80% lean ground beef.  When I did this the results were amazing.  Even overcooked burgers were moist and flavorful.

However, these burgers were WAY too salty.  Make sure you use half as much salt.

Also, as commented earlier, the basil in the burgers made me feel like this was some kind of Italian burger.  I wanted a burger that would go well with the traditional American fixin's like lettuce, tomato, onion and American cheese.  The minced garlic however, is spot on and adds TONS of flavor.

Overall, a very good recipe to use as a base for making your own burgers.

This is a really good burger! The only thing I changed was the amount of oil (cut it in half), and they came out very juicy and flavorful. I let the patties sit in the fridge for a few hours which helped develop the flavor, then grilled them for a total of 8 minutes over hot coals, flipping them every 2. Great mediterranean style twist on the good old hamburger. Thanks for the recipe!

I tried this burger last night.  Not bad at all, but I did add worcestershire sauce and about a tablespoon of parmesan cheese.  If using worcestershire and/or parmesan, I strongly suggest scaling the salt way back or leaving it out entirely.

I try not to rate 5 stars unless it really is a great recipe.  This recipe definetly got a 5 STAR.  The recipe ingredients did not really appeal to me initially, but I made it exactly how it was described, but I did add some extra garlic since we are garlic lovers.  They turned out GREAT!  A really good grilled burger that is for sure!  In the past two weeks I have made them twice and both times I received grand reviews.  I even caught my husband eating a second burger one night about an hour after dinner and asked him if he was eating because he was hungry or because he liked the burgers...He said because he like the burgers, so that was a confirmation that this is a keeper.  We look forward to many grilled burgers this summer!

The buger was very moist and held together well!
I added some onion powder, dash of red pepper and garlic powder.  It tasted like a burger from an expensive restaurant!  Thanks for sharing!


I used fresh basil as I was out of the dried. My whole family raved about these. I thought they were a bit plain even using fresh basil maybe a little worcestershire on my patty next time. I will make these again as 4 out of 5 think these are the best ever.

These had a lot of flavor. Definitely better than run of the mill burgers. I'll probably reduce the pepper a bit next time, though.

Seriously good!  The only thing I did as per other reviews is cut down on the salt, which I am glad that I did.  I used less than a teaspoon.  I wanted to make it as written the first time around, but next time I will use fresh basil and see how it comes out.

Great recipe!   I have never made a better burger.  Had some leftover basil pesto, used it instead of the dry spice and it was fabulous.  My husband was skeptical when he saw me adding the olive oil.  I waited as long as I could and finally, when his burger was almost gone I asked, "WELL?!"  He was so busy cramming it down he didn't have time to get a word out!  Turns out he loved it ;)

I give it no stars (but I had to pick one it wouldn't let me give it zero) - I thought to myself when I read the recipe "high won't the burgers catch on fire?".  They did and what a mess!  Not impressed.

Burgers are so moist, throw 'em on the Foreman and voila.

I cooked this last night, and the results were great! I substituted seasoned salt for the regular salt, and added some smoke sauce to give me the smoky taste I love. Good job!

Yummy!!! Made these for my hubby tonight...he couldn't stop raving.. He even asked what ingredients were in it, which he never does. Very good burgers. The only thing I changed, was I only added 1 tsp of salt.

This could be the most delicious burger on the planet. I roasted some garlic and used it the last time I made these and it was terrific! The olive oil really holds the juices and the basil makes it a taste treat from start to finish.  On the grill, under the broiler, in the pan--Chris' Bay Area Burger is ideal for any cooking method. 

They're what's cooking on our grill tonight!

Edit: try roasted garlic. Nom nom!!!

It was a relatively tasty burger, but my young children didn't like the spice.  You could definitely taste the garlic and basil--too much for 1-5 year olds perhaps.  It was okay, but I probably won't make it again.

These burgers were very good!  Flavorful, easy.  Definitely party-worthy; however, I wouldn't drive across the Bay Bridge every weekend just for them.

Yum!  We all liked these including my 3 yr. old.  I did add a few dried onions and just a touch of worchestershire sauce.  Very good, will make again.  Thanks.

I just tried this tonight and it was so awesome! These (cheese) burgers were absolutely bursting with flavor!! I added a personal desired amount of onion and bell peppers to mine, and used seasoning salt instead of regular salt, but they turned out really wonderful!!!!

These were great! I cut the oil in half &amp; used fresh basil instead of dried so I doubled the amount. I wrapped a piece of really good, maple flavor bacon around the outside of the burger before grilling &amp; secured it w/ toothpicks. Honey mustard sauce (from this site) was a really good condiment for this burger. I'm normally pretty insistent on cheese being on my burger but this one had soo much flavr that it wasn't necessary. Served it w/ Spicy Baked Sweet Potato Fries ( from this site) w/ the honey mustard dipping sauce &amp; a Midnight Special (an adult version of a coke float...also from this site)...very enjoyable lunch!

I use this recipe every time I make burgers and they are very juicy and yummy.

A real hit, thanks Chris! So easy to make, juicy and  flavorful! This will become a staple in our house. We find that high heat make hockey puck burgers, so we cooked over medium and they came out perfectly.

These are soooo good. They leave that nice burger taste but give lots of flavor. I made them for fourth of July, and every one loved them. They do tend to flame up on the grill from the olive oil.

I thought these were pretty good! The only thing is I think next time I might saute the garlic a little bit before I mix it with the meat so it's a little bit softer. I wasn't able to grill them due to the weather so I just cooked them on a griddle so they were a little greasy, but I'm sure cooking them on the grill would solve that problem.  Overall a very good recipe!

These were a nice change and a different burger. They had an italian flavor and you just can't put any toppings on these because of that. They were moist and tender and a little hint of sweet too. These were much better topped with some spaghetti sauce and smoked provolone. Thanks!

Love these!  Best burgers I've ever made!  Like other reviewers said, 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil is enough, otherwise the grill flares up like crazy.  And the salt could be just 1 teaspoon, or even 1/2.  But SO good!

nothing spectacular, but over-all good :)

very   good.i  didnt   grill   mine i  cooked   then   on   top   of    my   stove   ill  grill  next  time

I just had these at my b-b-q and everyone really liked them but no one said they were the best they ever tasted or asked for the recipe...they were good but not nearly the best we ever had. I will try a different one next time!

These were very tasty! Use fresh basil, it makes a big difference in the flavor. I melted a slice of mozzerella cheese on them and made a little garlic mayo. Will definitely make again.

I followed the recipe exactly...these were good! Even the husband liked em and he's such a snob when it comes to burgers!

Not one of the better burgers in my family's opinion. They were not juicy at all and the basil taste was overpowering. On the plus side they were very filling.

These hamburgers were awesome.  I prepared the ground beef a few hours in advance, and let it sit in the fridge for a better flavor.  These were delicious!!!

One of the best burger recipes I have come across.  Juicy, flavorful, and really easy to make.  I serve them with a garlic and black pepper aioli, fresh tomato and mozzarella slices, a leaf of basil, and lettuce.  It's a keeper.

My wife and I tried this recipe for our 4th of July burgers. I would recommend using half as much garlic and salt. Other than that, the burgers were great!

Very good and juicy.  Great flavor with a little effort.

Simple, delicious, worth a try. Get ready from rave reviews.

Too much salt and pepper in the burger; however, the juiciness is top notch.  Next time I'll cut the salt and pepper in half and it'll be a perfect burger.

These were not very good.  They ended up being overly greasy and all I could taste was the basil.  I will definitely not make these again.

The ease of the recipe does not detract from the great flavor of the burgers.  Very satisfying.

I absolutely LOVE this recipe.  I had it at a BBQ and I asked for the recipe.  The host said she got it here.  I have used it ever since.  These make burgers just melt in your mouth!  I think it's the oil that does the trick.  Be sure not to over cook them or they kind of dry out.  They still taste good, but they loose the deliciousness of a juicy burger.

I was soooo impressed. I never make an untried recipe for company, but I decided to go out on a limb with these. What a huge hit. Gone are the days of egg and breadcrumbs and dried out hockey pucks on the grill. These were super juicy, even though we thoroughly cooked them, and the flavour was perfect. I ALWAYS tweak every recipe, but this one will remain untouched. :)

This burger tasted like a turkey burger, without the benefits of it actually being a turkey burger.  I think it was the basil.  Oh well, I won't be making this again.

Yum!  Loved the basil flavoring and the olive oil made it moist and delicious

Made these for a BBQ yesterday and they were gone before I got to try one!  Everyone loved them -- I pretty much followed the recipe, only omitting the oil - will definately be making again.

This recipe is great, adds lots of flavor to the basic burger.  We halfed the recipe, for just my husband and I and cooked them on the stovetop, turned out so yummy.  Thanks for the recipe.

these were good but not the best, I like the basil flavor. I reduced the salt to 1 tsp as many reviewers recommended and used fresh basil. I agree with many reviewers that they don't go with the "typical" hamburger toppings, better with a toasted bun and some mayo, tomato and cheese.

We Loved these! I did change it a little bit by using 1 TBS olive oil per 2 lbs meat and added 1 TBS worschestire sauce for 2 lbs of meat. I also used fresh basil leaves, chopped.

These were so flavorful!  We put these on the BBQ and the oil dripping on the flame just made them perfect!  Nothing to change about this recipe.  will definately make again.

I followed this to the "T" , it tasted just like a regular burger to me. My wife said she could not even taste the garlic or the basil. Neither could I.  UPDATE: I ate one of the leftovers today for lunch and it tasted better than yesterday. I think the pickles, mustard, tomato;s lettuce, that I put on my burger had hid the flavor.

Yummy! Very simple yet very delectable burger. However, I put in a little less salt than indicated. About half a teaspoon. It came out great with just the right flavor I wanted. Thanks Chris!

Amazing burgers.  I added Balsamic vinegar and crumbled Feta cheese to the hamburger. I brushed Olive Oil w/ Italian seasonings on Pane Turano bread and grilled it just long enough to make it crisp.  I spread Classico Basil Pesto spread on top of the burgers when they were done.  Incredible.  My son says this is the only way he wants me to make hamburgers from now on.

I have made some great burger recipes, but they are all so complicated and loaded with expensive ingredients. This one is hands down, the best "simple" burger that I have come across. It takes you back to what a burger should be about....the meat! Only having cheddar in the house, that's what we used in addition to fresh tomatoes and lettuce topped of with a touch of mustard and ketchup. (I did reduce salt to just under 1 tsp and found it plenty). This is my new go-to recipe for exceptional taste, easy prep, and basic ingredients I always seem to have around. Highly recommend it.

Tried this tonight and it was delish!!! I made it exactly as the recipe calls and will def be making this again! Thank Chris!

These are wonderful!  This is the second time in a week we've had them. Although not everyone was home the first time, they agree it's a recipe we'll keep (the first time, two of us intended to save some for the missing family members, but ended up eating them all ourselves...piggy piggy).  Added a little onion, cut back the pepper and increased the garlic, but no other changes.  Since we like our burgers pretty well done, sometimes they turn out rather dry, but not these.  We've tried several other seasoned burger recipes found at Allrecipes.com this summer, but these are by far the best.

maybe it was something i did but these were the worst burgers i have ever tried. they tasted like salt. so maybe that is my error. but these were not good

Pretty good!  I added some more seasonings, mixed in some vegetable crumbles and parmesan cheese.  It was a hit.  Only thing we didn't like, a little meatloaf like in consistancy.

These burgers were excellent.  tasty and super juicy!  The garlic and basil gave them such a great flavor! The recipe was followed exactly. I don't understand why people don't love this unless they're looking for a plain, bland burger.  this is a basic burger with just a subtle super-yummy lift! Most worthy of making for guests too!

These burgers were a nice change from the norm.  The basil really gives them an herby flavor. I made some sauteed mushrooms and onions to accompany and topped the burgers with swiss cheese.  My husband asked that I make them again and I would agree that the recipe is a keeper.

Loved it. Awesome garlic flavor. I made up a bunch and threw them in the freezer for later. No more plain burgers for me.

These were very easy to make, but didn't taste any different than your regular hamburger.  Overall, pretty plain.

Really flavorfull, tasy hamburger. I don't know if I'd start drooling over it but it was pretty good.

WOW!!  Thats all I can say!  We are stationed in Germany with the US Army and at our Memorial Day BBQ we served these to the neighboring Germans for their first ever American Hamburger and they LOVED THEM!  Well we did too...  Thank you for the recipe

Boy these had a burst of flavor! Delicious. I will never be making your boring old hamburger again! (and my 2 yr old devoured them, too!)

These were a nice change from my standard "Lawry's, minced onion, and pepper" hamburgers.  I wouldn't say they knocked my socks off, but I will make them again sometime.  BTW, I used Italian seasoning instead of plain Basil.

Awesome recipe! The olive oil is key here. Great idea.

I tried this recipe using ground beef and was not thrilled with the results.  Came across it again and decided to try it with ground venison since I have a freezer full thanks to my hubby.  It makes the best veinson burgers ever.  Something about the spices really goes well with that meat.  I used 1t. granulated garlic instead of minced.  Also used white american cheese instead of yellow.  Try this with venison!

These are really good and moist burgers.  The olive oil is key to these.

Perfection!  I use fresh basil from my garden and these are to die for, exactly as the recipe is written.  If using fresh basil, julienne enough leaves to make about 2 Tablespoons.

These are the best burgers I've ever made according to my husband and 23 year old son.  I made a few alterations in that I used seasoning salt rather than regular salt and reduced it to 1 tsp, used Angus beef (85/15), and added a tbsp of worchestershire sauce and 1/4 tsp onion powder.  My son always asks for plain burgers with salt and pepper only so I didn't tell him that I'd added some extra seasonings.  He loved them and never commented on the extra seasonings that really gave these burgers a kick.  They definitely aren't your ordinary backyard burgers.  Other reviewers are right when they say to go easy on the condiments.  My husband and I only needed mayo and slices of onion simply because that's how we like our burgers.  You could really eat them without any rolls or condiments...they're so yummy!!  Great recipe and thanks for sharing.

I have been making these burgers for the last 4 years. They are so flavorful. And the salt makes your mouth zing.

These are very tasty  - good change from plain hamburgers!

Added a nice, genuine flavor to the burger.

I don't know if that's drool or just the juices from this amazing burger ... but either way, wow. Go easy on the toppings though; it sits like a brick.

Seriously the BEST burger recipe I have ever tasted.  My family came up to visit last weekend and they all requested a copy of the recipe!

The ingredients in the recipe are similar to those I use to make meatballs, which are good. However, I would like to have a different flavor so I can distinguish the difference between this hamburger and a meatball sandwich.  I would give this a 4 star because of its similarity to what I make.

FABULOUS! I agree with kevnbro that it is not your traditional burger, and doesn't need traditional condiments. I served it with sauteéd mushrooms, onions, and an Italian five cheese blend shredded cheese. I didn't need anything else! I also did not grill them, I broiled them for 3 minutes on each side and they were unbelieveably juicy!  My husband loved them and I will definitely make again :-)

I just made these today for a pool party bbq and they were a big hit....everyone, even the kids loved them.  They were moist with a perfect blend of flavors.  Next time will try a special dressing/sauce and probably try various cheeses.  wonderful.

Everyone (young &amp; old) loved these burgers! So flavorful and so moist! Will definitely make these again and again!

I am not a big fan of Salt so I used the ingredients as a rub instead of mixing the meat and spices together.  I marinated the burgers (1" thick) in the fridge for 2hrs, cooked on charcoal bbq low heat and used water soaked cherry tree chips for extra flavor.  I added a slice of marble cheese, buttered and added basil and garlic salt to the buns, toasted on the grill.  For the topping all I used was ranch salad dressing.  I also did full mushroom Kabobs and used the left over spice mixture as a baste for them.  This is the best burger I have eaten to date, thanks for sharing!

I made these burgers on my Foreman grill and they turned out delicous!!

This was sooo delicious!! The only changes i made is i was used fresh basil instead of dried and it was yummmyyyy! My hubby loved it and ate it all. I was sad when it finished even though i was full i wanted 3rds!

Nice and juicy with great flavor (basil is a favorite of mine) -- however be sure to have a spray bottle on hand while grilling... the olive oil makes the flames flare up even more than usual.

chris' bay area burger

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total: 30 minutes

Servings: 4

Author : GAVEN

Ingredients

Instructions

Top Similar Recipes from Across the Web

Chris Freytag, CPT

Chris Freytag, CPT

Chris Freytag, CPT

Remove line breaks in text area

Chris Bianco's Pizza Dough

Chris Bianco's Pizza Rosa

OLD BAY® Seafood Seasoning | Old Ba...

Chris Bianco's Pizza Margherita Rec...

Ruth's Chris Sweet Potato Casserole

Ruth Chris Stuffed Chicken Recipe

Ruth’s Chris Sweet Potato Casserole

Ruth's Chris Sweet Potato Casserole

RUTH'S CHRIS POTATOES AU GRATIN

Cheddar Bay Biscuits

Bay Scallop Gratin

"Old Bay" Hollandaise

Cheddar Bay Biscuits

Cheddar Bay Biscuits