If there’s one thing Chicagoans love, it’s hamburgers. These sandwiches are simply a staple when it comes to Chicago cuisine, so since that’s all I was going to do when I was at home over winter break, it seemed obvious to hunt down the best burger in the entire city. I started by checking out Time Out Chicago, a website dedicated to all the things you can think of to do in the city and surrounding suburbs. Fortunately, Time Out Chicago’s list of the best burgers in Chicago has a break down by category. I know I wanted to find a real burger place, nothing fancy or expensive.
The winner of the “pub burger” category is Kuma’s Corner, which I’ve heard of but never been to. Then I was calmed down from Yelp, and I was horrified by what I saw. Kuma’s Corner (located at 2900 W Belmont) has over 1,800 reviews and a solid 4.5 star rating. It seemed to be agreed; wonderful and almost vital food. I knew I was about to stop.
The first time I went to Kuma’s Corner was around 2PM on a Wednesday. My brother and sister tagged along and we were excited to try the food. When we arrived, we could hardly enter the door because the small restaurant was so packed. The big metal music was raucous, the lights dimmed, smoke from grilled burgers hung in the air. Finally I was able to squeeze through the crowd and make my way to the hostess in the corner who was tossing out the names of prospective diners. I gave him my name and the number of my party, to which he replied that the wait would be two hours. I think at that point most people would say “thank you” and leave, but I was just thinking “there must be a price to pay”. I think the hostess had a bit of hungry desperation on my face because she casually told me that I could always come back. It sounded doable because I wanted to head to the store still in the city anyway. I left with my brother and sister to go through retirement. We got to the restaurant at about 3:30 PM, thinking it was time to spare, but when I went, the hostess told me that she had called my name about three minutes ago. My soul melted. We want the figure to drop to the bottom of the list and it would be a lost cause at that point. She told me to just wait a few minutes and she would have the next table. When our names were called about five minutes later, we were ushered through a crowd of people, trying to squeeze in among the diners, waiting while they were done sipping their beer, and accidentally bumped into a bar.
To our surprise, we were actually seated at the best table in the house, placed all the way in the far back right corner. All the diners sitting at the front seemed to take an unfortunate pleasure in flying around them and bumping into them frequently. Our table was so far from the road, the only person walking was our waitress. As soon as we sat down, we were greeted by a waitress who took our order. Kuma’s Corner has a great selection of beer and even has bourbon on tap, but they all opted for RC (they don’t have Coke or Pepsi) because there were free refills.
Next on the agenda was what we ate. First we looked through the appetizers and the BBQ Pork Fries sounded heavenly. So we settled on our burgers and the Clutch, a 10-oz burger with smoked gouda, jackfruit, cheddar, and Swiss cheese sandwiched between a pretzel bun. My sister went with the Kuma Burger, with a fried egg, cheddar, and bacon and my brother ordered a topping. Zeppelin, the same 10-oz burger with BBQ pulled pork, cheddar, garlic, and bacon. Our fries came out as expected and were absolutely delicious. Crispy fried waffles with tons of BBQ pulled pork, melted jack cheese, and green onions for a little garnish. We devoured them in about 5 minutes and were ready for the next course.
It took a little longer for our citizens to come out, but it was worth it. The burgers were delicious and came with fried waffles. My burger was cooked to perfection. The meats are well seasoned and a variety of cheeses complement the dense artificial bun and beef heart helping. My brother and sister were delirious between bites and it seemed like not everyone was getting enough fast food. . By the time we did we were fired up and sat there fighting for a good 15 minutes so we could avoid the cramps later. The maid was pleased and came to replenish. By the time it was over, the restaurants were a little less crowded, but people were still waiting. Our bill was about $60 with each burger at $13, plus $10 tastings, and $2 drinks plus tax.
Overall, Kuma’s corner was well worth the drive, wait and money. It’s easily the best burger in the Chicago area. Since my first visit, I have been back twice and experienced it both times. Here’s the lowdown on everything you need to know before heading to Kuma’s Corner.
Location: 2900 W Bello Monte. Chicago, IL
Website:kumascorner.com
Hours: 11:30AM – 2:00AM (Monday – Friday), 11:30AM – 3:00AM (Saturday), 11:30AM – 12:00AM (Sunday). Closed on holidays (see website)
Best time to go: 30 minutes before the door, in the afternoon on weekdays
Price list: $10 – $13 burgers, $10 appetizers
Food Substitutes: Additional Ingredients are $2 each.
Exceptions: No
Wheelchair accessible: Yes
Vegetarian friendly: Yes, a burger can be substituted for a veggie patty.
Other house rules: No parties larger than 6, no splits, no delays over the phone, no saving tables, the entire party must be seated.
