The 7 Best Burgers in Israel (2026)

Updated August 2026 · 7 picks

The best burgers in Israel come from three places: the veteran kosher meat grills, the Tel Aviv burger bars that treat it as a chef's dish, and the newer smash-patty counters. Kosher burgers cannot carry cheese, which is why so many Israeli burgers lean on egg, onion and sauce instead. Seven worth ordering, below.

1. Vitrina — Tel Aviv

Butcher-led burgers from people who take the meat seriously first.

₪₪₪ Upmarket

Vitrina came out of the Israeli butchery and meat-nerd scene rather than the restaurant one, and the burgers reflect it: the grind, the fat ratio and the cook are the whole argument, and the toppings stay out of the way.

It is the kind of place that will happily discuss which cut is in the patty this week, and the beef quality is noticeably a step above the chain competition.

Tel Aviv has a lot of burger restaurants and most of them are fine. This is one of the few worth crossing the city for.

Good to know: Order it medium and resist the urge to load it — the meat is the point here.

Google Maps Website

2. Moses — Rothschild, Tel Aviv, and nationwide

The reliable Israeli burger chain, and the one locals actually go to.

₪₪ Mid-range

Moses is the burger restaurant that most Israelis mean when they say they are going for a burger — a homegrown chain with branches across the country, big menus and a consistently decent product.

The Rothschild Boulevard branch in Tel Aviv is the flagship and has the best setting: pavement tables on the city's main promenade, open late, always busy.

It is not the most interesting burger in the country but it is the one you can rely on in almost any city, with a strong vegan option and portions that assume you are hungry.

Good to know: Branches vary on kosher certification — check the specific one if that matters to you.

Google Maps Website

3. BBB — Nationwide

The national chain that put a proper burger in every Israeli city.

₪₪ Mid-range

BBB has branches across Israel and has been the default sit-down burger option in most cities for years, which makes it the useful answer outside Tel Aviv and Jerusalem where the choice narrows sharply.

The burgers are large, well seasoned and come with the full range of toppings and sauces, and the menu extends well past burgers into grills and salads for anyone in the group who does not want one.

Predictable in the good sense: you know what you are getting in Be'er Sheva, Netanya or Haifa.

Good to know: The most findable good burger outside the big two cities — worth knowing on a road trip.

Google Maps Website

4. The smash-patty counters — Tel Aviv and nationwide

Thin patties, crisp edges, fast turnover — the format that took over.

₪₪ Mid-range

The smash-burger format arrived in Israel and spread quickly through small counters and street-facing kiosks: a thin patty pressed hard onto a hot plate, crusted at the edges, stacked in twos and threes.

It suits Israeli eating habits — quick, cheap by local standards, and available late — and the best examples are independent counters rather than the chains that popularised it.

The trade-off is that a smashed patty is cooked through by definition. If you want a pink centre, this is not the category.

Good to know: Order a double rather than a single — one thin patty in a bun is mostly bread.

Google Maps Website

5. The Machane Yehuda burger bars — Machane Yehuda, Jerusalem

Jerusalem's night-time market, where the shutters come down and the grills fire up.

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Machane Yehuda transforms in the evening: the produce stalls close, the painted shutters come down and the alleys fill with bars and small restaurants, several of which do a serious burger.

This is where to eat a burger in Jerusalem — the food is better than the sit-down chain options and the setting is the best night out in the city.

Most places here are kosher and closed from Friday afternoon to Saturday night, so plan around it.

Good to know: Thursday night is the market's biggest — go then if you want the full atmosphere.

Google Maps Website

6. The Jaffa burger bars — Jaffa

Open on Saturday, cheeseburgers allowed, and the best setting for one.

₪₪₪ Upmarket

Jaffa's bars and restaurants around the flea market and the port include several doing genuinely good burgers, and because much of the area is Arab-owned and non-kosher, they open on Shabbat and serve cheese on the burger.

That combination — Saturday opening plus no kosher restriction — makes Jaffa the most practical place in the country for a weekend burger.

The flea market square is one of the best places to sit outside in Tel Aviv, and it stays lively late.

Good to know: The one part of greater Tel Aviv where a Saturday cheeseburger is straightforward.

Google Maps Website

7. The vegan burger counters — Tel Aviv

Israel takes plant-based food seriously, and the burgers prove it.

₪₪ Mid-range

Israel has one of the highest rates of veganism anywhere and a substantial alternative-protein industry, and the result is that vegan burgers here are developed rather than tokenistic — properly seasoned patties, made to be eaten by choice rather than by necessity.

Tel Aviv has dedicated vegan burger counters as well as vegan options at essentially every meat restaurant, and the quality gap between the two categories is smaller here than in most countries.

A useful side effect of kosher separation: a vegan burger can carry cheese without any certification problem, so vegan cheeseburgers are easy to find.

Good to know: Ask what the patty is made of — several Israeli producers make very different products.

Google Maps Website

Frequently asked questions

Why do so many Israeli burgers have no cheese?

Kosher rules separate meat and dairy, so a certified kosher burger restaurant cannot serve a cheeseburger. Israeli burger culture adapted by building flavour elsewhere — fried egg, caramelised onion, mushrooms, aioli and a much heavier hand with sauces. Non-kosher places in Tel Aviv serve cheeseburgers freely.

What does a burger cost in Israel?

Roughly ₪60–₪90 for a burger at a decent restaurant, often before chips, and ₪90–₪130 at the upmarket burger bars. Fast-food chain burgers are cheaper but the gap in quality is large. Israel is an expensive country for eating out and burgers are no exception.

How do Israelis order their burgers?

Medium is the default and medium-rare is available at the better places. Chips are usually ordered separately rather than included. Ask for it 'with everything' and you will get the standard build — lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle and the house sauce.

Are there good vegan burgers in Israel?

Yes, and unusually good ones. Israel has one of the highest rates of veganism in the world and a serious plant-based food industry, so most burger restaurants carry a properly developed vegan patty rather than a token frozen disc. Tel Aviv in particular does this well.

Which burger places are kosher?

Most in Jerusalem and a good share nationally; far fewer in central Tel Aviv. Kosher meat restaurants close from Friday afternoon to Saturday night. If you want a burger on Shabbat, Tel Aviv, Jaffa and Haifa are the reliable places to find one open.

What is the local burger style?

There isn't a single one, but two tendencies are common: a thick, coarsely ground, well-seasoned patty served at a proper temperature at the restaurant end, and a thin smashed patty with crisp edges at the counter end. Both usually arrive on a soft brioche-style bun with a lot going on inside.

1. Vitrina — Tel Aviv

2. Moses — Rothschild, Tel Aviv, and nationwide

3. BBB — Nationwide

4. The smash-patty counters — Tel Aviv and nationwide

5. The Machane Yehuda burger bars — Machane Yehuda, Jerusalem

6. The Jaffa burger bars — Jaffa

7. The vegan burger counters — Tel Aviv

Frequently asked questions

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