Not Your Average Burger
What makes a burger a burger anyway?
If we’re being literal, a burger is a ground protein sandwich, but that’s about as un-sexy a descriptor as you can get. Most people think of burgers as traditional beef patties, but the truth is these beloved sammies can take on a wide array of flavors, ingredients, and appearances.
We’ve gathered a list of local burgers that, like us, think outside of the box. With intriguing patty ingredients like seasonal veggies, Indian spices, or parmesan shrimp, these nonconformist burgers are anything but old-fashioned. Go off the grid, and try something new!
Writer: Melissa Hayes
The Goan Burger at Maria's Kitchen at the Drop-In Store offers a hodge-podge of flavors with garlic and spices commonly found in Goan cuisine. The burger is topped with lettuce, tomato, mayo, cheese, mustard, and secret sauce.
Photo Provided by FishEye Studios, Greenville, SC
“The Velo Fellow’s Falafel Burger is a unique variant of a veggie burger,” says head chef Mikie Richards. “Our Falafel Burger gives our customers a savory vegetarian alternative to a traditional burger.” House-made falafel is formed into a patty, deep-fried, and topped with smoked Gouda, yogurt sauce, tomatoes, and mixed field greens wedged between a hefty Kaiser bun.
If you prioritize eating food grown in your own backyard, check out the Local Veggie Burger at Farm Fresh Fast. “We tried to create something we could keep local throughout the year," says owner Jonathan Willis. "The sweet potatoes are local and then once other vegetables that we want to include in the burger come into season, we buy them from local farmers as well. We use only fresh herbs and spices so the flavor is a little more intense and sets us apart from other veggie burgers.”
Photo Provided by Velo Fellow
When it comes to seafood burgers, let’s be honest...Kitchen Sync is swimming ahead on this one! Their Shrimp Burger combines fresh shrimp with parmesan cheese and spices served with lettuce, tomato, onion, and TK sauce, a signature smoky aioli.
Photo Provided
Snack Works Smoothie Café & Bodega replaced their soy-based Boca Burger with a new plant-powered offering that is jam-packed with protein. This vegan burger patty is savory and juicy with a meaty texture that will make you forget it’s plant-based. Snack Works serves up the patty on panini bread with lettuce, tomato, pickle, and a toasted sesame ginger dressing.
You can customize the hearty vegetarian burger of your dreams at Universal Joint. Make their house-made, gluten-free Black Bean Burger a “Firecracker” with jalapenos, cheddar, scallions, and jalapeno aioli, or amp up the umami with mushrooms and a layer of melty swiss cheese.
Snackworks Photo Credit: Olivier Blanchard
Carnivores looking for something other than beef will find refuge in Ji Roz’s Lamb Burger. Juicy, gamey, and packed with Greek flavor, these burgers are topped with tzatziki sauce, spinach, tomato, and feta on a brioche bun.
Need more meat? We’ve got a Burger Guide to the Upstate coming out soon…
Photo Provided
“The We Got The Beets Burger is not only our namesake, but it’s also scrumptious and healthy,” says owner Brian McKenna. These vegetarian patties are made with fresh ingredients like kale, sweet potato, walnuts, chickpeas, garlic, soy sauce, and basil to name a few. The burger comes on a grilled Kaiser bun spread with scratch-made fancy sauce (similar to Thousand Island) and cashew aquafaba mayo and is layered with orange bell pepper and spinach.
Photo Provided
Quotes are edited slightly for clarity.
Off The Grid loves and supports all of the incredible burger joints in Greenville!
We recognize that there are many great options, which is why we’ve decided to follow up with a burger guide to the Upstate, SC - coming soon!
In the meantime, tell us about your favorite burgers in the comments below!