Joy Burger Bar

Salmon burger with mango chutney and turkey burger with spicy mayo. Absolutely delisssshhh… Chocolate shakes were so filling. Other than the heavy front door constantly slamming shut so loudly, it was a great experience.

I would put my rate up to 5 because I will love to go again some time and so will my boyfriend.

One of the best burger spots, ever! Bought a Groupon a few years ago and frequent this place at least 3 – 4 times a month.
Veggie burger is the bomb– add the free toppings and the spicy mayo sauce and you’ll be in heaven, promise!
Only drawback for me was I had a reaction after eating the veg burger with the gluten free bun– so either the veg burger or the bun wasn’t gluten free. Could’ve just been a miscommunication to the kitchen.

Wow. Cold, greasy fries. 25 minutes to make a burger. Inedible. Staff seemed amused by how bad everything was. AVOID.

Joy Burger Bar reminds me of a mid 1900’s diner. Equipped with the chrome barstools and retro playlists to match that era. The kind of place your grandparents would order a 50 cent Hamburger and a malted shake.
This place is all about customization. When you order a burger you pick the type of bun, the sauce, the type of meat and the toppings. There’s even 3 different burger patty sizes. I chose the midsize burger with garlic mayo, grilled onions, lettuce and tomatos. The burger was very good. Their beef must have a good fat content because the burger was juicy and flavorful. The toppings were fresh and the bun was nicely toasted. I liked their fries as well. Home style fries with the skin on them.
I’d give this spot 4 stars. I was taking a risk hoping for something tasty and it hit the spot! I can’t think of anything to complain about. The service was good and the food was enjoyable. I wouldn’t hesitate to come back next time I’m hungry and in the area.

Why so many negative reviews? I mean the food was great but the service was excellent! I ordered a very large order (30 individual orders) and they were very accommodating. They even wrote down names for me so that there will be less confusion.
On top of all of this organization, the food was delicious!

I always love the veggie burger here! My friend who’s a vegetarian actually introduced this place to me. I get it with garlic mayo, sautéed onions, and lettuce. Amazing! Nicely charred and grilled on the stove. It may take a while, but definitely worth the wait b/​c it’s fresh on the stove!
BTW you get an NYU discount here!

What came first, the burger or the tampon?*
A generous 3 only because:
–the staff was up front with me about their error in tossing my order-​ahead pickup info
–they had Tallest Man on Earth playing
–the interesting approach to call out your order by the card you’re handed, which I imagine can be problematic can’t tell the different symbols apart
Waited abnormally long for a single burger when it was quiet during lunch)–
*The Maxi Burger (8 oz) $ 8.75 (Our burgers are made of 100% fresh ground beef charbroiled to your satisfaction.) was overcooked /​past medium rare and if really mediocre quality meat, hence the perceived value compared to more reasonable and OK-​named sizes like the midi.
Added:
Medium Rare
Regular Bun
Garlic Mayo
Lettuce
Tomatoes
Raw Onions
Jalapenos
Sauteed Onions
Pickles
In addition to being on many ordering services and excluding their long-​gone
voucher, current Discounts as of this review:
free drink with village alliance card (FYI no water option on fountain)
free drink with Unilocal checkin special (FYI no water option on fountain)
20% off with student ID
Happy Burgers & Beers, Fri & Sat 2−4−1 Beers!
Current Groupon
Flock tag rewards program

In all honestly we weren’t that hungry when we stopped by. We were walking around aimlessly when the mister saw the «we have gluten free buns» sandwich board and insisted we check the place out. Yes, old fashioned advertising still wins!
Their menu was pretty straightforward and easy to navigate. Specializing in burgers, they have several different types of burgers to choose from — if you want to stick with beef they have 3 sizes to choose from munch, midi and maxi. After you have decided on the burger, choose your bun and then sauces and toppings. They emphasize that the sauces are the game changers and they have a good selection of unique sauces you can choose from such as chipotle ketchup and mayo garlic. Traditional toppings are free but if you want to get fancy with that turkey bacon or blue cheese it’ll cost you extra. If burgers aren’t your thing they have a selection of salads as well as wraps and sandwiches you can choose from.
Joy Burger Bar definitely has that diner appeal, there are no waiters or servers rather you order at the counter and take a seat of your choosing. They have both indoor and outdoor covered seating. Once your order is placed they hand you a playing card and wait for it to be called (how cute!). It was pretty crowded when we placed our order but it only took a little over 20 minutes for our food to be prepared.
I was delightfully surprised with our meal. The burgers looked absolutely delicious. They weren’t heavy or dripping with oil like I had anticipated.
I ordered a munch burger with the usual lettuce, tomato and onion toppings with garlic mayo. The burger patty had a great smoky flavor, similar to that of the whopper (in case you didn’t know I LOVE whoppers). The crisp toppings and freshly toasted bun and juicy patty made for a great combo! Fries were great too, crisp and warm.
Our entire meal of two small drinks, a side of fries, a munch burger and a midi burger only set us back $ 20, tip included! What a steal! Also it is important to note, check in with Unilocal for a free lemonade. Their lemonade was delicious, freshly made with a few sprigs of fresh mint tossed in for that extra mmmm!

Joy Burger reminds me of a cross between a high school cafeteria and an almost retro diner. Do with that what you will. I liked the open atmosphere and quirky playing card as an order marker idea. The menu offers extensive options for you to put together a burger yourself but I sometimes don’t feel like doing that much work when I’m hungry.
Non-​burger options that were tasty were the fries, mozzarella sticks and milk shakes. All good but I wouldn’t return just for those. The area is great. So much to do around west 4^th st. Overall Joy Burger is great for a casual meeting with friends or a quick solo bite.

I am not a fan of the burgers (tasteless unless toppings are added). The bread was okay, nothing special. As for the gluten free bread, it’s prepackaged and safe for those CHOOSING to be gluten free. When I went the last time, the chef did NOT change his gloves when he touched the gluten free bread and I got so sick (I am celiac).
The milkshakes are delicious until you’re in the bathroom for the rest of the night. I have no idea what they put in the shakes but it made me and all my friends so sick!
The restaurant has a 50’s kind of vibe to it. Instead of getting a number, they give you a playing card and call out your card once your order is ready. I don’t recommend the breaded zucchini sticks. Barely any zucchini, just breading. The French fries are decent, again nothing great. Although, they are quite oily. The place is also pricey and the workers aren’t friendly in the slightest.

Walked by this place a dozen times and never paid this place much mind. Stopped by for lunch today and I’m pleasantly surprised by the quality of food! I customized my midi burger to be medium well beef patty with lettuce, tomato, and sautéed onions. In my haste to order, I totally forgot to order cheese as well. But in no way did that affect how tasty the burger was. The order did take a little longer to make, but signs on the table did say that they make all burgers at the time of order so it would take a while. If you’re in a rush, then don’t bother with this place.
To make my deal sweeter, I got the Groupon deal which was $ 12 for two burgers (midi) and a choice of milkshake or cheese fries (a value of $ 20). Definitely will be coming back to try other burgers and sides.

Definitely not worth the money. For such a great location, you would think the food would be higher quality.
The service was mediocre and the food took longer than expected to arrive (I ordered a burger and mozzarella sticks). My order was not even correct. Also, the mozzarella sticks looked like they had been bought and heated up from a local convenience store.
Also, upon asking, ²⁄₃ things I had wanted in my order were out of stock. The lady at the cashier also said that she didn’t recommend the Blue Moon and had a strange look on her face… was something wrong with it? Or did she just not like it? I’m still not quite sure.
All-​in-​all, I would probably not visit again… but make sure to check in for a free lemonade! That was actually pretty good albeit a bit watery.

It’s quite underwhelming. The fact that is says burger bar and it specializes in burgers had me geeked to get a mouth watering juicy burger and nice cheesey side of fries. The wait was a little long for the food but as the signs pointed out all over the place, «quality takes time» (not the exact quote but it read something generous along those lines)
The food finally is ready and I see them splattering that same plastic looking nacho cheese sauce that stoically solidifies as soon as a draft of air touches it. I’m taken aback by this but I think, hey it’s a burger bar, it’s probably still going to be good. Maybe it has that nice hint of spice to it that’ll pair well with the fries.
The burger looked good and messy with all of the sauce on it, but I just knew it was going to be one of the best I’ve had as of recent times. It was not. It was extremely average and not a memorable taste at all. I wish that I had just gone to 14^th street to Five Guys. The fries were ok, but the sauce made them meh as it had generally no real flavor. It was a rather tasteless meal. I could honestly say that I’d have rather enjoyed a Whopper meal from Burger King just as much.
The prices here are reasonable enough for the area but the food does not make this a destination. I figure it survives because it’s in a college neighborhood and they have the Happy Burgers and Beers specials that keeps locals stopping in.
It’s really not worth it based on the wait time alone. The value of the flavor of the meal doesn’t justify the wait time to receive even if you are having beers to kill the time. I’d go as far saying pop into any irish pub in the area at happy hour to drink a better variety of beers and I’m sure get a much better burger.
Don’t waste your time unless you really just want to people watch out on 6^th Avenue.

This is a no frills burger place.
No frills CAN mean…
1) Hole in the wall
2) Dingy
3) Divey
4) Possibility of sitting on sticky seats or eating on sticky tables.
In THIS case, it simply means a sit down place with no waiter service.
The space is designed like a smaller Johnny Rockets but without the funky uniforms. The kitchen is wide open which is a good thing especially for ensure that back of house is doing right by that A on that health code that they post on their windows.
The price is cheaper than Umami, Bareburger, and all of the other well known burger places. For West Village, it’s priced pretty well at $ 5.00 — $ 10.00 per burgers depending on what you add on that might be additionally priced.
The service was okay. It got the job done.
The burgers were really good. Was they mind blowing good? Not exactly. But being able to customize the burger (s) how you want it with most of the toppings free of charge but extra price for the cheese (s) is a great deal. Most people just load up on sauces and toppings but I think an eclectic blend works best which is what I went for. Or you can simply refer to my photos. Extra sauces on the side is available for an additional price.
I ordered the Maxi which simply means that the size of the patty is the largest offered. Instead of a 3 oz (Munch) or 5 oz (Midi), the Maxi is a full 8 oz. The toppings I opted for my burger included lettuce, tomatoes and onions (cooked; raw is option). The sauces I had on my burger? Only the best mix EVER. Sweet Chili, Spicy Mango Chutney, & Dijon Mustard. To top it off I had the cheddar cheese. The buns were just plain sesame buns that you might buy at your local supermarket. This doesn’t deter from the very delicious burger (s).
In addition, I took advantage of the 2 for 1 beer deal during their Happy Hour. They only have 4 beers on tap and out of those 4 only 3 I would recommend. Blue Moon, Samuel Adams, & Organic Peak. Good enough for cheap beers.
Good stuff.
FAN.

I would put joy burger in the category of a place to stop by if you’re in the area and need a quick bite based on convenience. This was pretty much my situation…
I came here while in the area and in need of some food before meeting some friends. It’s a bit confusing in terms of ordering since you can build your own burger, but must have it all figured out by the time you order. If you’re a regular, this is fine. But for a new comer, it was a bit confusing. That aside, I got a veggie burger with a bunch of toppings and a side of fries.
The burger was pretty underwhelming. It tasted like 90% of veggie burgers, which tend to taste like thrown together random ingredients. It was falling apart and just wasn’t very good. The fries were fine, but also nothing special in my opinion.
Some of the other burgers may be worth trying, but for this meal, it wasn’t very impressive.

Very nice joint… retro chairs and tables like from the 70s gives this place a very cool place to visit. Staff is on point with their mannerisms… The food was cooked to die for.
Cool Music plays at a reasonable volume level. My girls sang to all the tunes… Presently playing was «HAPPY» by Pharrell Williams… I think that’s his name… having a brain freeze lol
The free lemonade we got for checking in was not what we expected so the guy in the front was nice enough to switch to a Vanilla Milk Shake that was awesome… Thanks Tyshaun you were the Man for treating me and my girls so well…
I will most definitely be back for More goodness… The family and I give this place 5 Stars for their coolness… layerd back atmosphere, cool staff and smoking food…

My friend and I came in on a Thursday at around 6:30. The place is pretty small so there were only a couple of tables left. You order at the counter, they give you a playing card, you find a seat, and when your order is ready, they’ll call out your playing card.
We had a Groupon deal (two burgers, and two orders of cheese fries OR two shakes) which we had no trouble using. With the Groupon, you can choose the munch (3 oz), midi (5 oz), maxi (8oz), turkey, or veggie (the maxi burger costs extra but if you do choose this one, you’ll just pay the difference). I was pretty full with just the midi but it’s only because I opted for the cheese fries.
The burger comes with free toppings — your choice of lettuce, tomatoes, onions, jalapeños, pickles. You also get your choice of one of their sauces (it costs extra if you want it on the side). I picked the garlic mayo but I couldn’t really taste it in the burger. The burger itself was good, but nothing great. Can’t beat Shake Shack!
The fries were a little over-​fried and greasy. But the cheese, which was some kind of weird cheese whiz concoction was actually kind of good, in a disgusting I-shouldn’t-be-eating-this type of way.
I might come back if there was another Groupon deal but otherwise, I wouldn’t. It’s a little out of the way for me to go for just an okay burger.
Tip — I believe they have happy hour from 4 – 7, which is BOGO beers.
Bonus tip — check in on Unilocal for a free lemonade or iced tea.

I’ve been to Joy Burger Bar once before but it was just to grab a burger and head back to my office. This time I went with a few coworkers for a sit down lunch.
This location is pretty small. Most of the tables sit 4 people. My group consisted of 5, fortunately we worked it out and we were all able to sit together. The main waiter was super friendly and patient. Instead of the cooks calling your name or what you ordered, you receive a playing card ie Ace of Spades, Jack of Diamonds and when that card is called that means your order is up/​ready.
I recommend ordering the smallest burger option on the menu if you plan on having lunch here. Anything bigger will leave you super stuffed. The great thing about this place is when you order a medium well burger, you’ll actually receive a medium well burger. There were plenty of toppings to choose from (which is a plus). I put grilled onions, avocado, and chipotle mayo on my burger. The sides (avo, mayo, griled onions) were extra money (just a heads up).
This review sounds all positive and you must be wondering why I’ve given Joy Burger Bar only 4 stars and not 5. The reason being, the sweet potato fries were A-​MAZING! Still confused as to why I gave this 4 stars out of 5. I’ll simply put it, your fries should NOT outshine your burgers if your business is called Joy Burger. The fries are life changing. And the side of maple syrup they server will leave you speechless.
I plan on returning here to try a milkshake and to grab another order of the sweetpotato fries. One more tip: eat the fries right away, they are not tasty once they get cold.

I’m giving this place a 2 because overall the service and most of the menu items were very good… My boyfriend and I came and had a groupon and they made it very easy to use it.
We ordered our food I got a turkey burger and he got a beef burger. I got the zucchini fries as a side and he got the cheese fries.
Since it was happy hour they had a half off beer special and we got that as well as a smoothie and the lemonade which was awesome!
My boyfriend burger was really good (yes I’m the annoying girlfriend that eats his food before I eat my own) the fries were ok… Didn’t care much for the generic cheese sauce at first we had to send them back because they were served iced cold but the second set was hot and good! The zucchini fries were awesome!
(WARNING)
The only thing that really put me off to this place and I must WARN my Unilocalers… The turkey burger isn’t really a ground meat patty its some unidentifiable meat (maybe) party… The texture is very strange and VERY off putting!!! Don’t ORDER IT! I didn’t finish my burger and at that point I was just ready to go… I would have given a better score but there really is NO excuse to call yourself a burger bar and not even use real meat!!!
I really wanted to like this place too!!! Please see my Unilocal picture to see the up close texture of the burger.