Best Cheeseburger in Baltimore

September 29, 4:01 PMBaltimore Cooking ExaminerJuliette Goodwin

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   Illustration by J.Goodwin

Charles Village Pub, Charles Village
3107 St. Paul St.
Baltimore, MD 21218
410-243-1611

‘Tis a hefty claim to make, no? “I have had the best cheeseburger in all of Baltimore”. Certainly not everyone will agree with me. We all have our own opinions and tastes and I cannot speak for all of you. All I can do is share with you, dear reader, some information on what I consider to be my favorite. We all must make the decision for ourselves.

I do not think it is a good idea to eat cheeseburgers every day, or even every week, but I gotta tell ya, sometimes a cheeseburger really hits the spot. And having found a place that fulfills all of my cheeseburger criteria makes me feel good about the one or two cheeseburgers I thoroughly enjoy every month.

Best Cheeseburger Criteria

• Size of the burger
• Proper cooking of said burger
• Amount and quality of condiments
• Cursory fries
• Availability of quality slaw
• Availability of Coca-Cola

I do not like a huge cheeseburger – too much ground beef. I find that if the meat part is too big, then the copious amounts of condiments makes the burger way too big, and eating it proves too difficult. So, a small burger is key. This small burger should not taste like a burnt hockey puck. I like my burgers medium-well, meaning a hint of pink is ok, but not bloody and definitely not overcooked. A selection of cheeses is important, as well as a selection of condiments. My preferred are pickles, grilled onion, cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, mayo, mustard and ketchup. If the slaw is good, I’ll plop a spoonful on too, for good measure, and skip the mayo, however I do enjoy both ketchup and mayonnaise on my french fries. Fries, by the way, are important, though they can actually hinder the perfect cheeseburger meal. I like them in a variety of styles: shoe-string, double fried, crispy, crispy-soft. But as the old adage goes: “Eat too many fries and you won’t have enough room for the burger.” Pickles and cole slaw are very important in the cheeseburger experience for me. I like dill pickle chips, though will accept a dill pickle spear if it has some crispyness to it, and the slaw needs to be fresh, slightly sweet, crisp and taste like slaw. It is a refreshing balance to the salty burger. Finally, Coke, NOT Pepsi, is essential to cut through this potentially heavy meal. Personal preference. And I like it with proper fizz to syrup ratios – who doesn’t?

So, WHO, you ask, who meets these strict criteria for the Best Cheeseburger in Baltimore? My vote goes to the Charles Village Pub in Charles Village. You’ve tried the rest, now try the best. Options for a small burger, good quality meat, well cooked. Great slaw, real Coke, tasty fries, friendly wait staff, dark and secluded. The only thing that makes this meal more faboo is the dining partner you choose, and for me, this person is always Arika Casebolt, Baltimore’s Beauty Examiner. She prefers her burger medium rare and branches out with pepper jack instead of cheddar, and she shares my love of ketchup/mayo dip for fries and real Coke. I hope your experience there is as good as mine always is. Bon Appetit, Peoples!