- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Movies |
- All
Charley's Famous Hamburgers
Rating Details »
- Price Range:
-
$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Good for:
- Lunch
- Alcohol:
- None
18 reviews for Charley's Famous Hamburgers
The drive from Del Mar to Charley's is more than worth it. You won't find another Burger Shack this good till you hit the South. Yeah, that's right, the East Coast. Peanut Butter Shakes, piles of fries, burgers that are juiisayyy! Lord Have Mersayyy! It's down the street from a pretty big strip club too, if that's your thing. Maybe they'll let you order in!
Oh and you probably won't finish it unless you eat this kind of down home goodness regularly. This ain't no In and Out and that's nothing but a Blessing. ENjoy!
Charley's is NOT a "fast food" place even though the menu items are generally the same. They are by no means fast nor do they have the standardized items that are cloned for worldwide distribution. The wait is not unreasonable and it is worth it (when your in the area) and the food is MUCH better than the international/national corporations that most are familiar with.
Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy the biggies such as McD, BKing,I&O, JBox, etc. But Charley's make your selection to order, no production line here, everything is fresh (like crunchy lettuce, tomatoes & bacon that taste like tomatoes & bacon). The french fries are arguably (yeah, I'd take on those very few who are numbed by their burned out taste buds in a verbal battle) are better than ANY well known fast food place and hold their own with other specialized restaurants. Fresh, hot and crisp... tasty! They have a fair sized menu but I always go for a burger and fries.
You can use the drive-through or choose a bench at one of three tables under an old wood awning.
The restroom, I do believe they only have one multi-use room, that is kept quite clean with one exception. The door. Oh, that is nasty to touch. Sticky. Gooey. There is no knob (the hole is stuffed with paper towels, but there is a latch.
I'll not go far out of the way for Charley's but if I'm anywhere near and I'm seeking a burger I will definitely head in here for a damn good burger & fries.
Don't be afraid of the KaBob. It is good. Everything is cooked to order. You will get a huge bag of fries, so you might want to share, maybe. Their shakes are unsurpassed in deliciousness, try 'em all, well one at a time. My husband refers to the giant double bacon burger as a 'ball-burger', it is huge and round, he orders it every time. OK, this is a small drive thru with outdoor seating or eat in your car. They even have some rose bushes and a fountain to spice things up.
Sounds like ali r. must've ticked off someone in the kitchen -- ha ha.
Nightly dinner conversation; Me:what do you want for dinner? Husband: I don't care honey what ever you want to make me is fine. Me, mumbling under my breath, why don't you get off you lazy ass and get me something? So I go to Charley's and get him a double cheeseburger, well done fries and a large rootbeer. Charleys saved the day again. My daughter likes the kabob, BLT plus onion for me.
I came here not really knowing what to expect, since I've never been around Lemon Grove too much or have had many other hamburgers other than McDonald's and other fast food places...
I'd have to tell you it wasn't quite what I was expecting. Charley's is a small little shack with a drive-thru that was somehow turned into a burger joint. They also have a ghetto little fountain/bird bath thing, but at least they're trying.
But don't get me wrong, because it all works out somehow.
The first thing you notice after entering the scrubby little parking lot is the delicious smell of greasy food coming from the windows of the place. I ordered the double cheeseburger with a large fries and peanut butter&banana shake.
The great thing about Charley's is you can mix and match the different kinds of shakes they have.
They handed me a big paper bag full of fries with a pointless smaller bag of fries inside which was kinda interesting. And the quality of the burger reminded me of an even unhealthier version of In-N-Out's double-double. (not necessarily a bad thing)
It was an interesting change and something you'll probably start craving again the day after. At least that's what happened to me.
Another thing is, the birds are a little too friendly. One kept jumping on my lap while I was trying to eat my food, but it stopped after I finally faced the other direction.
Overall I spent about 10 bucks for the double cheeseburger, large fries, and the shake, which is pretty good considering I shared with my gf and we were both really full. I've also come back to try the kabob and it's a healthier alternative to the regular burger, although I'm not too fond of radishes.
So I say try it if you live around the area or if you're ready to try one of the greasiest burgers yet.
- K
My wifes family swears by this place. i personally dont like it. its pretty tough to screw up a burger and yet they manage to do it perfectly. the fries taste like freezer fries. the burgers have no flavor. i would compare it to a cafeteria burger.
APPLE TURNOVER SHAKE! That's what I'm talkin' about baby!
Yeah man, this place is a little hole in the wall. But it's a very good hole in the wall. At first I went here because of the Apple Turnover Shake (which is the bomb by the way). And then I tried a burger. The Bacon Cheeseburger is damn good. It's like a really good homemade burger. A really, really good home made burger. It is a little tough to find especially if you aren't familiar with the area but it's worth the expedition. Oh yeah and uh...APPLE TURNOVER SHAKE!
After reading some of the reviews, I figured I'd give Charley's a chance. Very lackluster, ordered a DoubleCheeseburger, Large Fries, Medium drink. They did not fill the bag with fries like some of the other reviews.
The fries turn into dust when you eat them. Very gross.
The burger was lacking flavor and taste.
If you want a tasty burger, go to Western Steakburger or Canada Steakburger. This place just doesn't do hamburgers justice.
So I think anyone who lives in Lemon Grove or La Mesa pretty much knows this spot! I have been going here for years. It is down the street from my old elementary school, so we would walk here after school once a week before we headed to the library. I still go here sometimes when i am craving a good burger. I usually just get the cheeseburger meal and add avocado to it. It's worth the clogged arteries I guess! hahah Plus, they aren't janky when it comes to fries. I usually can not finish the fries....they give you a ton!! I think it's better than in-and-out or any burger place. It's a small little burger joint but so yummy!! The workers are so nice and it's still going strong!!
We happened to be driving by and thought we'd give it a try. The bacon cheeseburger is pretty good and the fries are fresh and tasty. I probably wouldn't make a special trip but if you're in the area and feel like a eating a solid burger in the shadow of some massive freeway overpasses then this is the place.
If this place were at all convinient to me you would probably see me on Jerry Springer weighing 1200lbs with the fire department cutting out a wall of my house and using a forklift to take me to the hospital because I had a triple bacon cheese, corn dog, and apple turnover shake from Charley's lodged in my throat (yes, all at the same time).
This place is that damn good. I don't know what the duece a kabob is, but my parents fancy them and they enjoy the ones they get at Charley's. Personally, I dig the fact that no matter what you order, if you get fries with it, the dude working the hut just dumps the whole basket of fries in your bag and then tosses the little fry holster bag thing in there just for the hell of it... Seriously, about 15oz of the pound of fries you are about to get are running free inside the bag of food like clowns at a circus.
As I mentioned before, they have corn dogs... wonderful, and priced at a bargain too. As well as any caliber of burger you think you can handle. Personally, I like my burgers uncomprimised by vegetables. Not that I have anything wrong with veggies (trust me, I have a salad place in my reviews with 5 stars... and not even a taco salad!), but when I want a burger it should be meat, cheese, and bun, with bonus points for additional meats and cheeses, but no bonus points for additional bun because I really don't get the point of the bonus bun (Big Mac, I'm talking to you). Right, so I always find myself disappointed when I get a cheeseburger plain while my friends get the fully loaded cheeseburger that is piled high with a salad and eats like a meal. The solution: more meat, more cheese. Charley knows whats up... serving 8" high burgers availible without a spec of chlorphyl between the buns. If you are the type that enjoy the decked out bugers (I'm sure many of you are), then you certainly can get all that here, but you better have a van or sometype of large vehicle because a fully loaded triple bacon cheese likely won't fit into the usual economy car. You probably will need to have a mouth like Steven Tyler if you are planning on taking a bite out of that beast anyways.
In closing I leave you with 3 words: Apple Turnover Shake. (Made from a real apple turnover, not just flavoring, and even with $4 gas it is worth driving from anywhere in the county to get one.)
I had passed this place on the road for many years and always wanted to try it. After reading the reviews here I decided last night was the time to give it a try. These independent old-style burger places are hit-or-miss. They are either really really awesome, or really really bad. Unfortunately my experience with Charley's tended toward the latter. It wasn't that it was awful, I just don't think it lived up to it's hype.
My wife and I ordered the Double Cheeseburger combo with fries and shakes (mine Chocolate, hers Banana). To start her burger was not what she wanted, but that may have been my fault in placing the order (I used the drive-thru and took it home). The burger was greasy and really nothing special. The fries were just okay. The best thing about Charley's was the shake. It was thick and pretty good.
The drive thru took quite awhile. Charley's has that classic burger place look....it's been around for years and looks it. If the hamburger had won me over I would have tried the Kabob next, but with my overall experience here I don't think I will be trying Charley's again.
Ask for a side of fries...they fill up the to go bag with yummy fries!
Shakes? AMAZING! Peanut Butter sooo good, black cherry, apple turnover...overall all GREAT
Burgers and greasy goodness, not so much tasty goodness but just you know you shouldn't goodness
Well.... I tried! When I pulled up I thought it was going to be great! A small place with big burgers! I ordered the tripple with bacon combo and for my daughters a corndog and a regular cheeseburger. I live in El Cajon, which is a ways from there. On the way home the cheeseburger smelled so good we pulled over in a parking lot to eat NOW! It looked great! On the first bite I detected a little off flavor. I thought it may be from the bacon? Well the farther I got into the burger the more this off taste took over the burger. My oldest daughter got about 3 bites before calling it quits. The corndog was OK at best. The fries were also OK. I will be going back to try the chili dogs. Wish me luck!!
I like Charley's a lot. Their burgers are decent but have a tendency to be a little too gristly for me, I still crave the Bacon Cheeseburger from time to time though. Their fries are really good too. I like the way they serve their meals: a white paper bag about half full with French fries and a burger on top. Kind of cool. The best thing about Charley's has got to be their milkshakes though. The two best shakes are Banana and Apple Turnover, you can only get these in medium (or large?) though and they're huge. I'm a complete pig and I can hardly finish one. The Banana is made with vanilla ice cream and fresh bananas, best when the bananas aren't too ripe, IMO. The Turnover shake is really cool. Vanilla ice cream with a hot Apple Turnover blended in to it. It's kinda weird at first but now I totally love it.
Not worth the drive unless you love Milkshakes, but if you're in the neighborhood for some reason - give it a shot.
Three stars because I absolutely LOVE cheeseburgers and theirs don't come close to Hodad's! ...also cause it would be nice to offer the two shakes I like most in size small.
This place is delicious. There milkshakes are off the hook. They have vanilla,strawberry (my favorite) and chocolate. It's really small. Their food taste like in-n-out but it's not that expensive. Their french fries are crispy and tasty.
Greatest Hamburgers Ever. But just a little greasy. If you ever want a pimple just go to Charley's.
The burgers are not bad--fresher tasting than most burger joints. Veggies tasted fresh and the bun was firm and quite spongy. However, the meat patty was a bit salty for me, but the fries were really good--hot and crispy! They give you a pretty hefty portion of fries which surprised me. I have heard so much about their banana shake and I thought it was bananalicious.
