5280 Burger Bar

Amazing burgers! Ken went with the «I can’t decide» & picked the Central Park and Boss Hog. I went with the plain cheeseburger. All delicious! We are in hog heaven!

I came into town on a business trip and found this place on 16^th street. They have super friendly bartenders and the bison burger was amazing with a side of fries.

I really enjoyed the food and atmosphere. We didn’t try the ice cream, but the burgers were pretty awesome!

This place is so good that we ate here twice! The area is tucked away behind the 16^th Street Mall street. We didn’t have to park because we took the 16^th Mall shuttle.
The ambiance of the restaurant is very bright and rustic. The first time we ate in the bar and the second time we ate on the patio. I enjoyed the patio the best.
The first time we ate here we had the Sriracha wings and cheeseburger egg rolls. The second time we ate here we had the Durango Burger and the I Can’t Decide Burger. The Durango Burger was sooooo good. It had cream cheese, jalapenos, roasted red peppers and onion strings. Did that just make your mouth water?
The prices are reasonable for the quality of food! You will want to make a stop here of you are ever in the area!

Stopped in on the first night of a business trip to Denver as I was staying across the street and this was a super convenient location. Tried my first ever bison burger, which was DELICIOUS! Any of their burgers can be ordered in beef, bison, chicken, or turkey. I’m a plain Jane so I ordered the «a-​hole» burger, which is basically a build your own because they’ve got lots of signature burgers. Their ketchup seems to be a house-​made sauce which was absolutely delicious. I literally came here 4 or 5 times during my 5 night stay in Denver. One night we arrived around 9:30 pm and they had sadly run out of bison, so I got beef and that was also great. They also have awesome house-​churned ice cream! I’d highly recommend this place if you’re ever in the area. I’ll definitely be back (probably more than once) if I’m ever back in Denver!

Wow, great food and great beer selection. The pecan smoked bacon wrapped grilled and pimento cheese stuff jalapeño peppers were phenomenal. The best stuffed peppers I’ve ever had. The Durango burger was also fantastic and the in house made ketchup was the best ketchup I’ve ever had in my life. The fries were also outstanding. This place is spot on. Get here, now.

Popped in here because it had a ton of reviews and I was not disappointed!
The service was above average and some of the seating was placed a little awkwardly, but those were minor in comparison to the overall experience!
Appetizer pretzels were warm, soft, with slightly sweet dough (definitely house made) and came with a very flavorful cheese dip.
The burger was the real gem here. Perfectly cooked, fresh ingredients, explosion of flavor. Everything was cooked exactly how it should be and their combinations are creative and worth expanding your palette for! They are also really creative with their food names!
Topped it off with one of the best Turtle Sundaes I’ve ever had. Amazingly tasty ice cream and a great combination of toppings. I couldn’t put the spoon down!
Add this place to your list and don’t be modest! Go all out and order from all areas of the menu!

Probably the worst service I have ever had in my life. Our waiter didn’t even introduce himself when he came to our table. He asked what we wanted for drinks and left. Not even in a nice tone. We were a party of 4 and all got waters, 1 beer, and a Bloody Mary. Drinks arrived 5 – 7 minutes later and he left. He didn’t ask if we were ready to order or needed more time. He went straight to another table, that seated after us, and took their food order. Another 5 – 10 minutes and he finally came back for our food order. He didn’t interact or anything. Our food came out in a timely manner. He never came back to see how our food was. He came back once to fill our waters which he messed up. He filled my brother-​in-​laws water, but he poured so fast he spilled on my brother in laws fried mozzarella making it mushy. Shane didn’t notice and walked away. He probably didn’t notice because he was doing his job extremely poorly. We had some food left over and he didn’t ask if we needed boxes. Those took awhile to get too. Then the check came. Everything was right but I put my card in and put it at the end of the table. He saw me do it, but walked passed our table and didn’t grab it. We waited some more until he finally got it. I’m a very very generous tipper. I always tip minimally 20% of the bill. I didn’t even want to tip this guy he was so bad. I ended up tipping him $ 2 on a $ 70 just so he could get the message.
As for the food. It was okay. I had the Prime burger. It could’ve used more seasoning but the ingredients were very good. My girlfriend loved her taco salad. The appetizer fries were good and so was the fried mozzarella my brother in law had. My other brother law had another burger. I can’t remember which one but it was okay he said.
Being from out of town and our first restaurant experience in Denver, I am not impressed.
Update: Owner replied in a very timely manner. I appreciated that. Food overall was good.

I’m a fan of a good burger and 5280 Burger Bar did not disappoint. Clark at the front desk of our hotel recommended this place when we said we wanted something close and good. The location was perfect and atmosphere was great.
I couldn’t decide which burger I wanted so I ended up ordering the I Can’t Decide (clever right?) which is two sliders of your choice. Now these aren’t your typical sliders. They are «oversized» which basically means they are only slightly smaller than a full size burger. My first burger was the Boss Hog — Cheddar cheese, pulled pork, bbq sauce and pecan smoked bacon. I ordered this one as a bison burger instead of regular beef. The second one was the Durango — Jalapeño cream cheese, pecan smoked bacon, lettuce, roasted red peppers and fried onion straws.
Both burgers were cooked medium, which was perfect for me. They were delicious and juicy and the buns are made fresh daily. My only complaint is that they forgot my jalapeño cream cheese and I had already eaten most of the burger by the time I realized it was missing so I didn’t get to try it. We ordered fired pickles also. The batter was spicy which was a nice change to a typical fried pickle. Their beer menu has a nice variety with lots of local Colorado beers. I ordered the Give Peach a Chance from Joyride Brewing and found it crisp and tasty with just a hint of peach.
They also have an ice cream place connected to the burger bar with a bunch of unique options including some adult milk shakes. We weren’t planning on getting anything but who can pass up a mini cup of really good ice cream? Not this girl.

Well. I ended up at 5280 because my friends wanted to go, and I wasn’t in the position to counter. But. It was decent. Not amazing, which I expected/​hoped for based on the menu and reviews and hype.
I ordered the «I can’t decide» burgers, which I liked because then I could have two smaller burgers and try two different ones instead of picking just one. I ordered the shroom and Swiss burger and the ring of fire. Both bison burgers. The shroom one was a winner for sure. The ring of fire was pretty good as well.
I was turned off by the lack of standard fries on the side. I mean. Really. Also, they didn’t have a burger with avocado on it at all… You could pay $ 2 to add avocado, but why wouldn’t there be an existing burger with avocado??? So confused.
We ordered the green chili queso fries also, and it was, again, okay, but not great. The queso seemed to be cooked independently of the green chilis, so it wasn’t too flavorful. Also, I’d complain that there must wasn’t enough of it… But maybe I’ve just had better.
Their ketchup seemed to be made in house, which was cool. Seems like many of their food items were made in house, which is nice.
Also I just like plates, not foofy, trendy non-​plate items restaurants sometimes serve food on. I occasionally like cutting burgers, even just in half to make it easier to eat. And I witnessed a few other folks while I was there attempt to cut their burgers on the weird wirey placemat type thing they were served on.
But overall, it was pretty good?

Awesome burgers at a pretty reasonable price right in the heart of 16^th street mall in Downtown Denver. Place has the vibe of an upscale sports bar, so it’s approachable for just about anybody and super casual.
They make just about everything in house right down to the ketchup and ranch (order extra of both of these, by the way). I’m a sucker for overly spicy things, so I almost punished myself with the Ring of Fire burger, but I defaulted to the Vail Valley this go-​around. White cheddar, fried onion straws, and a creamy horseradish sauce. Simple ingredients but very well done, cooked to perfection, and made my tummy super happy. The only real gripe I had was the burger seemed a bit small, and if you do opt for the Vail Valley, I’d recommend getting extra horseradish sauce.
They also make their own ice cream next door (because, why not?) and will spike your milkshake with booze upon request.
Definitely consider stopping here instead of one of the many chain restaurants on the strip.

I used to pass this place on a consistent basis when I studied at CU Denver, which is right across the street from the 16^th St. Mall. Tucked away in the Pavillions is this alluring hidden gem; it looked stuffed to the brim with customers, but once me and my friend entered, the establishment was busy, but had room.
Immediately after being seated, we were greeted by a vibrant server. She was patient, knowledgeable and bright and knew just how to answer our questions. I pulled my usual «what do you like to eat here?» stunt. Unlike some others, she made a handful of recommendations. After a period of pondering, I decided to take her advice and order the fried cheese burger.
Oh lord. I swear the glistening light of heaven shined down on that plate. Before my eyes was a thick (but not super huge!) patty; freshly patted, seasoned to perfection, and moist. After the first, marvelous bite of the american delicacy I couldn’t stop. Bite after bite was a little more closer to heaven. The fries were freshly cut and seasoned with just enough salt.
After an astounding dinner, me and my friend ordered desert. Attached to this eatery is an ice cream parlor, loaded with all kinds of exotic flavors. Me and my friend decided on «campfire marshmallow,» and that was an excellent choice! The ice cream was soft, flavorful, and exquisite!
At the end of our experience the server informed us that everything we ate that day was made completely fresh. A DEFINITE plus considering that we’re health nuts having a cheat day. Thanks again 5280, we will be back!

5÷12÷2016− Just arrived in Denver and our hotel recommended we tried this place. So here we are and so far it’s great! Love the location and look of the restaurant. We sat outside to take in the sites.
I ordered the Collette, American Farmhouse Ale from Great Divide Brewing Co. (ABV 7.3%). I’m pairing it with 2 burgers because I literally couldn’t decide so I ordered «I can’t decide»…lol. Pick 2 of their burgers jumbo slider style. I got The Durango, Jalapeño cream cheese, pecan smoked bacon, red leaf lettuce, roasted red pepper and fried onion rings. The other one was the 5280 Prime, Colorado raised «7x» prime Wagyu beef, sharp white cheddar, onion ring & house made steak sauce. These came out fresh and they are bigger than what you would expect a slider to be.
The Wagyu beef burger was phenomenal. So juicy and cooked to perfection… medium rare. The Durango did not disappoint with all the perfect trimmings. This is Craft Burgers at its best!!!
Great service by Ashley!

Thanks to Unilocal for this awesome dinner choice! My husband desired local craft beer and a «manly» local burger; I desired great gluten (among other things) free options that didn’t make me feel like I was missing out. We both were beyond satisfied!!!
The only downside was that a previous reviewer mentioned a portobello cap burger for GF eaters and I got so excited and looked forward to that all day; when I arrived, the server told me they haven’t done that in a few years. There was a GF flatbread or lettuce wrap option.

2.5 stars
Deeply committed to trying a burger place in Colorado – after all, Cheeseburgers are my favorite food. So after checking Unilocal and the reviews, thought I’d give 5280 a chance.
Luckily able to get seated right away during a busy Friday lunch time… dining solo has it perks! The menu boasts grass fed Colorado beef, always fresh, never frozen. There are about 15 different burgers, including a have-​it-​your-​way type burger, plus an extra toppings list.
I opted for the Vail Valley Burger – Vermont White Cheddar cheese, Fried onion straws and a creamy horseradish sauce. It sounded a lot better than it tasted. Usually people will beef about well, the beef. No issues here. But where was the cheese? it was a super thin layer that looked like it had almost melted away. Sad face. I love Vermont cheddar. And the bun. really folks, the bun is just as important. It was on the dry side which always makes me think «old». The beef was flavorful and I loved the horseradish sauce, but unfortunately because of the other issues, I missed the whole concept.
A local cider to wash it all down – very refreshing! And a side of fries – which I“m sorry, I think is sacrilegious to make people have to order a side of fries. Fries should just come with a burger. I mean, burger and fries, not burger and sides. Amiright?
Anyway, friendly service, clean bathrooms.

I came into Denver for work, and was staying downtown (15^th St), so I immediately started looking for a good lunch spot. I asked 3 people for a suggestion, and they all said 5280, so I went for it. The décor inside is super clean and really cool. Lots of inside seating, large bar and you can even sit at the bar outside and eat. The bartender was super quick, friendly and helpful. She recommended a good local brew for me, and offered help with the menu.
After careful deliberation, I decided on the Ring of Fire burger. First off, let me say, if you do not like spicy food, don’t order this. It is a beastly burger with habañero (yeah I said it!) and serrano peppers, pepper jack cheese, house made chipotle mayo, and the famous ring of fire sauce! I enjoyed every bite of this, and didn’t even mind that my nose was running like nobody’s business! But, in the words of Ice Cube, «If you’re scared, go to church!» Seriously though, great burger. I’ve also heard that the cheeseburger egg rolls are like a small slice of heaven. I counted 15 total burgers, so chances are that you will find the right burger for you at 5280. I’m very happy with my visit. I will definitely be back!

My family loved this place! We stopped in before attending the auto show last week for lunch. We were seated promptly, and our hostess was very friendly!
There was definitely something for everyone. I especially liked the «I Can’t Decide» — mainly because I couldn’t decide what I wanted! I had the Fried Cheeseburger and the Durango. Skip the Fried Cheeseburger — I usually love fried mozzarella, but this burger with pesto and fried mozzarella just didn’t work. Do NOT skip the Durango: jalapeño cream cheese, roasted red pepper, onion straws — fantastic!!!
Split a basket of fries — we all got our own orders and it was way too much food!

I had high hopes for 5280 Burger Bar. I would say it was so-​so. We started with the soft pretzel and mustard for an appetizer. I would say the pretzel needed more salt and the mustard was just ok. I had a burger bowl for dinner. Instead of a burger I opted for chicken. It was a standard salad with chicken. My husband did get the 5280 prime burger. He liked it and would get it again. Next time I’d stick with a burger.

Went here on a Thursday (gorgeous day!) for a late lunch.
Read the consistently great reviews so I had high expectations. I’d say this place is better then «meh», but honestly I’m not terribly impressed.
I ordered the 5280 burger. It’s good, not great. Fries were good.
My coworker doesn’t eat red meat so he got the Chicken Durango (- bacon). No complaints from him.
Server was friendly but a bit slow — especially for a non-​busy part of the day.
Honestly, I prefer Smashburger over this place.

When I walked in the door, I felt like I walked into your average chain restaurant which made me instantly hesitant about the quality of the food despite the great reviews. However, I was not disappointed. They have this clever option on the menu called «I can’t decide» where those of us who want to try more than one of their unique burgers can actually choose two types of burgers as large sliders; this option made this indecisive food lover light up with joy!
I highly recommend the hog boss burger and the fried cheese burger.
And save room or be sure to come back for ice cream! They have creamy, distinct flavors and also some classics that are not to be missed!