Pearl’s Deluxe Burgers

The Mini is a quarter-​pound burger and the Regular is a half-​pound? Dang! I got one with Swiss cheese, but no bacon. I simply had to have a mocha shake the second I heard coffee and chocolate shake options. And Springs completed my meal. No, not the bouncy things. Springs is the delightfully delish mix — half sweet potato fries and half onion rings. Score! The sibling dish is Frings — half regular fries and half onion rings.
The grub was great. But my find was bittersweet. The place is closing tomorrow because the landlord jacked up the rent.
5 stars for my meal. 1 star for closing. I’ll give it 3 stars and say good night, Pearl’s.

Yum to Pearls! What a delight… if it hadn’t been for one of my coworkers mentioning it we wouldn’t have stumbled upon it. Located in a semi-​sketch area once it becomes shady right on 6^th and Market it’s actually not bad because it’s right as soon as it’s sketch on the corner just a few doors down from the delish Tu Lan!
We all ordered different burgers and I send for the turkey but almost wished I did need because it looked like the winner. I tried a speciality mix avocado which was super tasty and added the spicy sauce so yummy! Only thing is I can barely eat a regular and for some reason surpassed the mini option!
We noticed how Pearls competed with say one of our favorite chains Super Duper… and with the exception of the specialty options and buffalo style it had a similar setup. I think because I didn’t try the real burger I can’t pick a better one! The fries we’re super tardy and all reminded us of childhood — eat them to know what I’m saying! We totally shared an order and I had half my burger as a takeaway so it was a lot for me.
We met the owner and she was so sweet she kept getting us stuff whenever we asked. I’m a fan and will definitely go back to try the real thang.
A great Friday treat and a must try it you’re a burger fan!

Oh Pearl’s, how I love you. Market, Post, it doesn’t matter.
I love how friendly the servers are, how the burgers are always juicy and how the pickles are always crisp. I love the thick milkshakes and the fact that you can choose a grass-​fed burger or a Kobe beef burger.
I love how you can opt for a simple hamburger with the regular accoutrements or a juice bomb like the Bula.
Pearl’s is one of my go-​to places for great burgers in the city.

This place makes a pretty good burger. If you’re in the neighborhood, or are grabbing a quick pre-​show dinner (it’s across the street from Golden Gate Theatre), give it a try. I found the best items were the regular burgers. Some of the other items didn’t quite hit the mark.
I recommend you save some $$ and skip the Kobe. The regular burger is plenty juicy and tender, and I didn’t think the Kobe made the burger worth close to the $ 16 asking price :-O. For that price you can get a truly deluxe burger at a proper sit down restaurant.
Also a little underwhelming was the half onion ring/​sweet potato fry combo. I found the onion rings slightly undercooked/​raw inside, and the batter wasn’t think or crunchy enough for my taste.
Servers were polite and friendly, but I thought the guy at the front was trying a bit too hard to upsell a lot of menu items. On the whole though, still a good dinner.

The location is way more convenient than the original spot in the tenderloin. Its still way hood so watch your back after dark, actually, all times. This place is so hood even the pigeons and the rats are more dangerous here.
The burgers are a mess. French fries onion rings and tons pickles what more could the burger connoisseur ask for. The fries are of the battered variety. When its not busy you get amazing table service. The people who work here are all super nice to the customers. If you are lost looking at the super complex menu they will help you figure out what you want.
The Phat Bob is the BBQ onion ring bacon cheese burger type. Sure you could go to Jack in the box and get something similar. It’s way better at Pearls. Fresh is the key word that would separate this place form most other spots. Fresh and greasy.
Beer selection, its not huge but what they have on tap is ice cold!

I’m totally glad I stopped by this place and gave it a try. My friends and I were totally famished after walking around all day in the city and just decided to come here on a whim. My first thought was «hey, this joint kinda reminds me of Johnny Rockets» in that they served burgers that were a step up from fast food that didn’t make your wallet cry.
I ordered the Phat Bob, which was sorta similar to Johnny Rockets’s Smoke House Single (or double). The wait wasn’t long at all! The burger was deeelicous! Everything was fresh and the sesame bun just tied everything together. The burger was greasy, seeing that it is a burger, but it wasn’t «soaked in grease» as the other Unilocalers described. I think that Pearl’s took the Unilocal critiques to improve their burgers, which paid off as I got a perfectly good, greasy but not that greasy, burger. My friend’s garlic fries OMG they were to die for. Crispy golden brown fries made with fresh minced up garlic, what more can you ask for!
I had a fantastic experience at Pearl’s, the burgers were delicious and the staff were friendly. I’d say Johnny Rockets better watch out!

Grab a burger and a window seat and watch the freak parade roll by.
Sometimes I want a good, simple, honest burger with just the basic ingredients but all done really, really well. Pearl’s nailed it — thick, juicy half pound patty that oozed delicious grease when squeezed, lots of onion (crucial), tomato and lettuce and mustard and ketchup on a sesame seed bun — this was the Deluxe Burger at around $ 6.99 from memory. Definitely go ½lb over ¼lb.
But yeah, the real reason I came in here is to get a front row ticket to the carnival. SOMA is a hotbed of junkies, homeless dudes, weirdos and odd-​bods, and by ‘hot-​bed’ I mean ‘every. single. person.’ Seriously, it’s like the best reality television program ever. Everyone’s on crutches, or motorised chairs, has a gammy eye, a bung leg, is talking to himself, has mysterious bandages, scabs, is dressed like a ratty cowboy, is pushing a trolley filled with plastic bags, or just has dem crazy eyes. I realise this sounds like I’m the worst kind of voyeur, but hell, I love the ghetto and it’s people, its endlessly fascinating. Screw the movies, hit Pearl’s.

Steps to enjoying a burger from Pearl’s:
1. Ignore the homeless person who is pressing his face against the window. He’s just jealous that you’re about to sink into burger heaven. I got an avocado burger medium rare, and it was perfect.
2. Take a slow drink of soda. Take a break. This burger is pretty intense and fills you up in just a few bites.
3. Take another bite. Ignore the little puddle of burger grease. You will get messy.
4. Eat a fry. The regular ones are nice and crunchy, and the sweet potato fries are sweet, but not too sweet.
5. Your burger is now about half way done. Appreciate how perfectly cooked your burger is. It’ll be over before you know it.
6. Ask the cashier for the key to the bathroom. You’ll need to wash your hands.
Optional: enjoy some of the pickles in the jar by the forks and knives. My friend really enjoyed them.
Not optional: come back and try another burger. Keep trying, until you go through the entire list. Pearl’s is a gem.

We had an opportunity to hit this place up one again while we waited for the doors to open to an event across the street. Both the wife and I were glad we did.
I ordered a «mini» bacon/​swiss burger (yes, they have swiss!). The first question back was «how would you like to have that cooked?» YES… The wife placed her order, and we received one of those little lighted thingies that would light up when our order was ready. What’s cool is that this is really for the server to find your table. Sweetness!
The burgers were awesome. The Stella on tap was even more awesome. What wasn’t so awesome? The fries. They’re really quite bad.
So go for the burger. You’ll be glad you did. Go for the Stella. You’ll be glad you did. Do NOT go for the fries. You’ll be glad you didn’t.

First thing’s first: the burgers surpass the standard level of a «good burger.» Definitely head over here if you are craving a burgery-​burger. No schmutz, no frills (unless you want them, you can order things on your burger like bleu cheese and onions rings etc). and just good, solid, tastiness. They have a slew of different patty types, and the great news is you absolutely can’t go wrong with their plain ol’ regular beef patty. Hooray!
I was a big fan of their multiple fries combinations. You can get plain old normal fries (which are these magical fries that are breaded in something that make them extra crispy and delicious), or you can get any sort of combinations like half normal fries/​half sweet potato fries, or you can get half fries/​half onions rings… the combinations go on.
Pretty sure you can help yourself to free refills on the soda fountain unless I missed something and was actually stealing soda. Plus they have other drinks to slake your thirsts — did I see beer for sale too? If so, have some more points!
The staff is great — happy to help you find burger bliss. The place is mighty clean; fear no strange 6^th street mystery puddles in here.
Bonus: bathroom access for patrons. (Locked, request key at counter. A blessing in that neighborhood).
My stomach salutes you, Pearl!

The city has never been known to be Burgertown USA, but they definitely have some gems and this is one of them. Centrally located in walking distance between Soma and Union square it’s a small location with at most 50 seats, but probably less. 35 tables and the rest are window counters. Décor is classic burger joint menu and motif. Prices are very reasonable for a ½ and 14 patty. They even have Kobe and Buffalo patties. That’s when you get into the $ 15+ burger range. Strange how Buffalo is more expensive than Kobe, which most people know not to be the case so what’s really going on here.
All their burgers are piled with sauces and ingredients and the combination of all that and grease decimate the buns here. Fork and knife after 5 bites. Get the pickles they are pretty good. And the ranch is free. The BBQ sauce is good, strong hickory and molasses notes.
The patty I asked for medium and it came just shy of that, no biggie. Any burger joint that asks for how you like it cooked is a half star up on places that don’t. I couldn’t get the blend, I’m thinking ⁷⁰⁄₃₀ due to the juices, but twards the end the beef tasted like meatloaf, it was kind of hard, like the patty had been pressed.
Get the bacon, it’s smoked, it’s thick and a wonderful addition along with the onion rings which are well cooked, but small and not handmade. The sweet potato fries were good and also not handmade. A little generic.
The shakes and smoothies are excellent with many options like Nutella, Mint Oreo.
Do not sit near the bathroom, there is a constant line going in and out and it’s grossly distracting. Great value great flavor, good option to eat.

After being over seas for a month, and returning to the country I love, I could not wait to find a decent burger. ‘Mericans do the burger the best. So, the first thing on my agenda in SF was to get a burger, near my hotel. Did some research and discovered Pearl’s having high ratings.
Well… My patty was bland, and the bread was stale… I was so disappointed… My expectations were ruined. To top it off, the place was filthy. It was quite a bit after lunch time (2pm? 3pm? something like that) and it looked like the staff hadn’t cleaned the tables yet.
Oh well…
I am still pissed that there was no In-​N-​Out within reasonable walking distance.

We were headed to another restaurant to eat when my daughter saw Pearls and insisted we go here. She had visited another location and deemed it the «best burger» she had ever had. It’s a small place and it was packed. We were lucky to snag a couple of chairs along the window bar.
Now, my daughter’s order: plain double stacked burger, loaded with bacon and cheese. Plus, a side of garlic fries. (She doesn’t play around)
I’m more of a basic hamburger kind of girl. The Pearl burger was a good, solid burger. I wasn’t as blown away as my daughter, but it’s all subjective to your taste buds. Due to the fact I am on a no-​fried food diet, I didn’t know they had combo baskets. You can mix different sides. I love that idea.

I have no complaint with Pearl’s Burgers. I may actually enjoy these burgers more than Five Guys. I wouldn’t mind coming back here for a quick casual bite.
My burger was cooked to my liking: medium rare. It was filled with bacon and teriyaki sauce. I forgot the name of my burger but it was under the specialty burgers. We ordered the half and half fries combo of regular friends and onion rings. Honestly, it hit the spot for pre-​partying.
Service was friendlier than usual when you go to a diner type of restaurant. They clean up on a regular basis after you and serve your food to your table. This Pearl’s is located in the tenderloin area on Market street, so it can be a bit shabby looking. So don’t expect a nice burger place! It does the work if you are pressing for time compared to a chinese restaurant that may suck majorly down the street!

Maybe I was just couldn’t get over the disappointment that the line for Dottie’s was just too long, but Pearl’s just didn’t really do it for me.
Note: Eat breakfast before hitting up a museum for a few hours, then you won’t be fixated on lunch by 1 pm. Then that line outside Dottie’s doesn’t seem so bad.
Got the bacon burger and it was not terribly appetizing. Bacon was really fatty and the patty was definitely not made with love. Onion rings and sweet potato fries were OK. The strawberry shake, however, was a different story! Huge, with chunks of real strawberry… highlight of the meal!
Service is so nice, which makes me wish I liked their food more. That was my second helping of Pearl’s over the last few months and it’s just not my favorite burger joint.

I must confess that I may have overstated my original review of Pearl’s from back in the day. To be fair, that was nearly four years ago, I was insanely hungry at the time, and it was at the OG location. I’m still gonna keep at five stars, and I’m hoping that the following review is a consequence of this being the Market location and not the Post location.
Had the Pesto Burger, since I wasn’t in a BBQ mood like last time. I dunno what it was, but the burger just wasn’t fantastic. It was good and it filled me up, and I can’t say I was 100% dissatisfied. But the burger patty was very dry and lacked the juicy flavor I remembered from the Post location. It was just really underwhelming from what I recalled. Quite a shame since I was looking forward to eating here all day. I will say their fries are really good because of how they fry them up with extra crispiness. And the location is definitely bigger, which is a plus. But I can’t come back here if the other location really cooks up the better burgers.
Additional note: They hold the bathroom key for customers only, yet for some reason a bum was holding up the bathroom. Um, I thought that was the whole FREAKING point of holding on to the key for customers. SMH man.

I absolutely love Pearls. Definitely one of the best burgers in San Francisco, if not the best but I won’t be coming to this location after dark.
First, Stella in a plastic cup. This is a mortal sin. Are you kidding? The only time plastic is OK is at the ball park. This was the worst beer I’ve had in months. Plastic, oh my gosh! Burger Mister started putting beer in plastic and we know what happened to them.
Second, I had the Prized Pearl and I highly suggest you do to, don’t forget to grab a fork.
Finally, people watching is fun. At one point a homeless woman came into the store and the man at the counter kicked her out in about three seconds. I assume this happens often.
I want to give four stars for the burger but the plastic beer killed it for me. The total was $ 11.92 for a mini prized pearl and horrible tasting Stella. When I come back, and I will, I’ll just stick with a Coke.

Pearl’s make great burgers and shakes. I don’t care what anybody thinks, but that is a FACT and not debatable. And I do like the growth of adding another Pearl’s Deluxe burger joint in the city’s needed part of town.
But why does the newest location have to be in the city’s crappy part of town?
The newest Pearl’s has replaced that lousy Chinese restaurant that has been serving the homeless and drug addicts for decades. But any cool new businesses like Pearl’s and the relocation of Dottie’s are a huge plus to change and improve the vague image of the downtown area.
My first visit to the newest burger joint after my visit and breakfast to the newest Dottie’s, which is located a few doors down. I had the Banana Milkshake. For $ 4.50, the milkshake initially sound yummy. But the shake was just okay. The shake had no banana taste and tasted like a vanilla shake. Pearl’s make other shakes too. But I’ll definitely skip the banana shake. Milkshake:
But I did return back a few days later for a quick meal before my trip to Oracle Arena. I had the Prized Pearl Burger with Sweet Potato Fries and a $ 3.00 cup of Bud Light on tap. Every item is sold separately. The $ 8.99 specialty burger had bacon, mayo, Blue cheese and grilled onions on top of a one-​pound patty in a sesame bun. This is one of my favorite burgers from the Post Street location. But unlike the original Post Street location, four different kinds of beers on tap are served here at the Market Street location. Beer and good burgers… yum! My meal:
Despite the Health Department score of: 89 (posted right by the entrance), I hope businesses like Pearl’s, Dottie’s and Tu Lan help make the area inviting for everybody!

I love being surprised! I really wasn’t sure what to expect. On one hand my cousin raved about this place. On the second hand, a quick check on Unilocal and saw a lot of mediocre reviews. The reviews here must have had glaucoma… cuz there were smokin’ some sh*t. These were some AMAZING burgers… with a few caveats.
THE ORDER
Bula Burger — 5 out of 5 — Their award winning spicy pineapple teriyaki sauce over a ¼ lb or ½ lb burger with bacon, mayo and swiss cheese. Yeah… that award was well worth it. The teriyaki sauce may be the best I’ve ever had. It was tangy and sweet without being overwhelming. The plays nice with the smokiness and crunchiness of the bacon and the earthiness of the swiss. It’s very umami. One bite in and I was impressed and intrigued. It’s very well balanced. Great burger… never had anything like it.
Kobe Burger — 4.5 out of 5 — ½ pound kobe burger with bacon and choice of cheese (I choose swiss). This has to be one of the juiciest burgers I’ve ever had. The kobe burger was a real treat. The patty had a nice sear from the grill top that caramelized the fat giving it a nice charred saltiness. This paired nicely with the salty crunch of the bacon and the earthiness of the swiss. The raw onion gave a nice kick. Really, really well done.
French Fries — 5 out of 5 — Wow these are some great fries. They are battered and fried (my gut feeling is that they are twice fried) and super crunchy. These are probably some of the best (non gourmet) french fries I’ve had.
Sweet Potato Fries — 3 out of 5 — Solid. Good but not in the same ball park as their regular fries.
LOCATION
Not the greatest location. I wouldn’t recommend this place for people who aren’t used to being in the in or near the Tenderloin. Also parking also sucks… because there isn’t any.
VALUE
Not the greatest value either. The burgers start at just under $ 6 for the ¼ patties, the ½ pounds are around $ 2 more. Needless to say the burgers are pretty small for the price in my opinion.
OVERALL
Pearl’s offers some really great burgers. I think the restaurant suffers from a bit of an identity crisis. The is set up and looks like a kind of generic diner/​burger stand but is price and portioned more like a gourmet burger place… without really being all that gourmet. It was a great experience but considering where the restaurant is located along with the cost, I’m not sure when I’ll be back.

I’m crossing my fingers that the opening of the new Pearl’s on the corner of Sixth and Market will mark a turning point for this embattled area, but alas, I think it will still be an uphill battle. Case in point: Jamie W. and I decided to brave the line that was starting to snake out the front door onto the bustling sidewalk. It only took two minutes for a mouthy, smelly, Australian-​accented vagrant to berate all of us for waiting in line for such an expensive burger. He wouldn’t move until he was able to provoke a response from us, but I used my best blank glare to indicate I had no interest in conversing with him.
The office girls behind us were less lucky. They tried to humor him, but then he started getting very nasty at which point they tried to ignore him. But it was too late. He kept standing there hurling insult after insult to get them to talk to him until he grew tired of his own game of manipulation. Welcome to Sixth Street, folks. Pearl’s might do with a security guard or at least a burger flipper with a Taser. Once we made it through the door, the place was abuzz with customers, a good sign I hope of business to come. Even though a quarter pounder is a full patty at Mickey D’s, here it’s considered a mini-​burger.
Well, I ordered one, a $ 5.99 ¼-​lb. Mushroom Burger with mayo and Swiss cheese (see photo), and it was delicious for the morsel it was with definitely a high caliber of beef nicely grilled, very juicy. Jamie went for the same-​price, same-​size Prized Pearl with bacon, sauteed onions, blue cheese, and mayo (see photo). I had a bite, and it was equally good. The $ 1.99 small order of Fries come piping hot and are enough for two since they’re big muthas (see photo). We shared a $ 2.49 refillable Diet Coke since we were lucky enough to secure a table amid the opening week hullabaloo. Definitely go but stay clear of the motor-​mouthed Aussie in need of a Glade Plug-​In.
FOOD — 4 stars… quality burgers nicely turned
AMBIANCE — 3.5 stars… really crowded now but pretty well managed all things considered
SERVICE — 3.5 stars… lots of staff here
TOTAL — 4 stars… nice to see you in the ‘hood, Pearl