Cannon: Utah abounds with beloved burgers

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Oh, Trib readers, when I asked you to recommend a good place to buy a burger this summer, you did not disappoint. Listed below are the places you love.

One thing's for sure — a great burger is easy to come by in the Salt Lake Valley. Besides my beloved Hires Big H (425 S. 700 East), there's also Guzzi's (180 E. 800 South), Busy Bee (2115 S. State St.) and Lucky 13 (135 W. 1300 South) just west of Spring Mobile Ballpark where, as one reader so eloquently put it, "You can easily satisfy both your burger and baseball passions in one stop." The garlic burger at The Cotton Bottom Inn (2820 E. 6200 South) in Holladay is a consistent crowd pleaser. Readers also like The Salt City Burger Co. (9176 S. Village Shop Drive) in Sandy — especially the Southwest burger and the sweet potato fries. And one reader says she's still thinking about the (albeit pricey) hamburger she ate in April at Pallet (237 S. 400 West).

Other recommendations include the Wayne burger at Scaddy's (5430 S. 900 East) and the bleu bacon burger with a side of kale (!!!) fries at Roots Café (3474 S. 2300 East). More places to get a fix? Yanni's (2761 S. Highland Drive) in Sugar House, West Valley Billiards (4669 W. 3500 South) in West Valley City, and Bombdiggity's (1481 W. 12600 South) in Riverton where you can buy beefalo burgers and homemade frozen custard. Outside the valley in Tooele there's Dairy Delight (46 W. 100 South), which still serves a 99-cent burger that one reader calls "wonderful."

Davis County represents with Kitty Pappas Steakhouse (2300 S. Main St.) in Woods Cross. More than one reader, in fact, waxed poetic about the Pappas egg cheeseburger. And, of course, there's also Pace's Dairy Ann (1180 S. 500 West) in Bountiful, where (incidentally) I used to take my kids for popsicles on the last day of school. Habit Burger (260 Union Pacific Railroad), a California chain with another location in Salt Lake, also receives a thumbs-up.

Drive north of Davis County, and you'll run into Dixie Grill (408 S. Main St.) in Brigham City and The Burger Bar (5291 S. 1900 West) in Roy. "The Big Ben burger is great," says one reader. "The bun is what sets this burger apart. That, and you can ask for as many burger patties as you want."

There are also good choices in Summit and Wasatch counties: Timp Freeze (24 E. Main St.) in Midway, Granny's (511 S. Main St.) in Heber ("I go for the shakes, mostly!" says one reader), the old Dick's Drive Inn (235 E. Center St.) in Kamas — now called Uinta Drive Inn — which another reader calls "the reward after a long slog in the Uintas."

Headed to Utah County? Try Stone Drug in Spanish Fork (159 N. Main St.) for a good old-fashioned cheeseburger and cherry Coke. A Provo reader suggests the bleu cheese burger at Black Sheep Café (19 N. University Ave.). Provo people also like Tommy's Burgers (405 W. 100 North) and Sammy's (27 N. 100 West) — especially Sammy's Masterpiece, a burger involving both bacon and guacamole. A reader in Springville gives Art City Trolley (256 N. Main St.) a shout-out, and another in Lindon recommends Marley's (844 W. 600 South) at the Harley-Davidson store. And, of course, there's always the Foundry Grill (8841 Alpine Scenic Hwy.) at Sundance.

There are heaps o' burgers to enjoy even farther south. Readers adore Ray's Tavern (25 Broadway) in Green River. Another has it on a good authority from a foodie friend that hamburgers served up at The Basin Drive-In theater (680 N. State St.) in Mount Pleasant are outstanding. Who knew? Others recommend the Slickrock Café (5 N. Main St.) and Milt's (356 E. Mill Creek Drive) in Moab. One reader throws her full support behind the Murder Burger at Oscar's Café (948 Zion Park Blvd.) in Springdale, and another promises that if I don't love Marv's Drive In (1091 N. Bluff St.) in St. George, he'll buy. Which is an awesome offer, frankly.

Readers are also quick to endorse favorite chains. Most popular? Smashburger, Five Guys, JCW's and In-N-Out. One reader raves about the Beach Burger at Rumbi.

I also received suggestions from out-of-state readers, including one from New York who recommends I visit her.

And have some pizza instead.

Happy eating, everyone.

Ann Cannon can be reached at acannon@sltrib.com or facebook.com/anncannontrib.