This place has an "award winning" burger and voted best burger by There San Diego. I can most certainly tell you it is NOT the best burger in town. Do yourself a favor and go to Crazee Burger in North park. Way too much bread (too thick and too chewy) the special sauce has too much cumin, the meat was thick, good quality and tasty but both our burgers we're overcooked to a medium well not medium as they say they're normally cooked. We asked for the salt and pepper fries well done and they were not. It's a cool locals spot, great vibe, good beer and a pool table.

We walked down to this bar from little Italy and it was around 10:30 pm on Saturday night, they weren’t open. I don’t know why their business account says until midnight and here are some photos. Misleading. If you’re back to business please put better sign or make adjustments. Update: google took an action for this business. And now I see they adjusted their hours on the system! Happy to see that! Thanks!

One of the best burgers in San Diego! This place has been consistent for years and the expansion is nice. I’d recommend the BBQ burger with garlic fries. They also have a pool table, juke box couple arcade games and 80’s movies are always on. Will be back again.

Of course you're here for the burger & obviously it was amazing! Garlic fries are a F'n must too! I took mine to go. 13 out of 10 stars 🌟 Amazing service & great food. Need I say more ?

Popped in for a quick lunch right when they opened. Simple menu, order food and drinks at bar, and grab a table! We got the balboa original burger and the BBQ burger with a side of garlic fries. Everything was excellent. So far this has been one of the better traditional burgers I’ve had around San Diego and the BBQ one was super delicious, not to mention a great size with nice fluffy buns! They have a $15 burger and a draft special on Thursday which seems like a great deal. Can’t wait to try the other two sammies on the menu as I’ll definitely be back.

Very Welcoming the guys the bartender ( don’t recall the name 🙈) and Charlie ( the Cook 🧑‍🍳). Food was really good 😊 Thanks.

Biting into a Balboa Burger and some garlic fries is like a piece of heaven on earth! The burger is so flavorful, it is well worth the trip from Chicago. Mai Tai is my favorite to drink from here, not stingy with the liquor. Absolute must have when near downtown San Diego.

There is not much to say… but great staff and amazing food and drinks

Grear juicy burger! I had the classic burger with catchup, mayo, cheese and pickles. Lovely pink on the inside but crusty on the outside. I also had the garlic fries and they were not shy with the raw garlic. Do not order the garlic fries if you are out on a date. I would definite go back to try the other items in their menu.

They do one thing and they do it well...a burger. Drink specials, super sweet bartender. Everything a clean dive would want to be! Pool tables, looks like a weekend music venue next door and a roomy joint... I'll def be back👌

Loved and the guys behind the bar and made us feel so incredibly welcome for our first visit! Great burgers!

I’ve been trying to remember if another burger I’ve had in my travels can compare to the Balboa burger and I don’t think it can. The Balboa’s burger is flavorful, cooked to perfection with great visual presentation. The lettuce, onion and tomato are fresh, on a deliciously soft grilled bun coated with house aioli adding just enough flavor. Using any other condiment would be an insult to the chef. This burger was made artfully. Of the dozen or so states, and handful of countries I’ve visited, I would say this burger is the best I’ve ever had as a burger enthusiast. Thank you Balboa team for such a great burger.

Really good bacon cheeseburger. The meat is flavorful and cooked perfectly. Salt and pepper fries were also really good. Super friendly service.

We come here around 5pm on a Saturday. It's not crowded. The menu is simple. You place an order at the bar as you walk in. There is no combo menu so you order as separated item from burger, fries and a drink. The daily beer selection is on the wall of the bar written in chalk. Seating is open with regular tables and others are high chairs seating. The food is made-to-order so it takes time to get your food. Please be patient. We order 2 burgers (the OG & Classic) & 1 garlic fries. The food portion is decent & fills us up. The patty is fatty/greasy side but that makes it delicious. It is not as greasy if compared to the Hayes's or Friendly's. If you're fan of garlic, strongly recommend the garlic fries. Be aware of your breath smell afterwards.The drinking water is self-served located at the end of the bar. There is a few pinball machines at the corner of the restaurant. There is only 1 unisex bathroom. The vibe & deco are cool & it is not loud like other bars You could actually enjoy your food & drink while chit chatting given some background music . I'd come back to try other burgers with grilled jalapeno ($1 extra)

After reading the reviews, we were really eager to give this burger place a shot for lunch. Unfortunately, we found the burgers to be quite average, and the overall experience didn’t stand out. The garlic fries were just okay, but we ended up tasting them for the rest of the day. The service was a bit odd too. On the bright side, the prices were very budget-friendly, which was a plus.

This is a laid back casual bar and grill that specializes in burgers. If it’s your first time going there make note that you have to place your order at the bar - there is no table service here. We ordered the Original Balboa Burger. One of us had a side of garlic fries and the other had a side of salt and pepper fries with the burger. First bite and I was smiling at the taste. Burger was cooked perfectly and the aioli and cheese really added a nice flavor to the experience. Salt and pepper fries were crispy and decent. Garlic fries were a little disappointing because it seemed like they just put fries on a plate and dropped a bunch of garlic on top instead of mixing it in. Ultimately the star of the show was the burger though. With one of us ordering a beer and the other a water the tab was over $40 so it’s not necessarily cheap. Maybe try to go at Happy Hour to save a few bucks. Balboa has a full bar available and a pool table for those that like to play. They also had a couple of pinball machines available. On the menu they also have some other burgers and a chicken sandwich available - next time I will try a different one and probably skip the fries.

These burgers were soooo good! I’m from Wisconsin and this reminded me of a little slice of back home. Tavern/dive bar, small menu and country music. I loved it. The burgers were delicious and the fries were crispy! Definitely will be back.

BURGER GRATIFICATION: CRAVING-SOLVED I eat burgers about twice a year and when I do I want the calories to count. Because I'm eating the bread and getting fries (with sass). Finally, I made it to The Balboa. Balboa Bar is a mix of dive bar+small tavern. Several TV's, wood seating tables, vintage pics and decor and a laid-back vibe. THE MENU IS SIMPLE: Hamburger, chicken sandwich, fries, a few extra burger fixins and full bar. For my vegan peeps, you can substitute the burger for a black bean patty at an additional cost. ORDERING: You order drinks and/or food at the bar upon entry. Grab a seat with your number and your meal will be serviced to you. My eyes and stomach were tingling inside because the plating of the burgers is so enticing, although I ordered mine to go. I appreciated that my burger remained intact in the recyclable sustainable friendly to go bag. There were four people in line ahead of me. Line-order-completion was 22 minutes. I even had time for a shot. SERVICE: Excelente AROMA: The venting system is great because there is no aroma or smoke permeating through the bar. Good because I just washed my hair. Although I love the smell of grilled burgers. TASTE: I ordered my burger well done and it still retained its juicy grilled flavor, complemented with slightly sweet sweet & soft bun with traditional fixings. I ordered the grilled jalapenos. There were only a few atop the burger. This was an extra cost and it actually did not add to the burger. SEASONING: I would say the burger could stand a little bit more seasoning. It was seasoned just enough that if you added more it would have been too much. But we all know the burger must have perfect seasoning while cooking. PRICE: Justified by hand pressed fresh patties made to order. Mondays burgers are $8.00 all day, this would be a steal. But you must dine-in. Other days to get this deal is Tues -Fri (4 PM - 6 PM) FRIES: Fresh cut like a million bucks and good, good, good. These are real potatoes and they take care to prepare these fries before their fried. Thank you. PARKING: Likely to be difficult. Paid parking lot near by. If you find street parking make sure you pay because the meter persons make their rounds in this area like clockwork. I'll eat here again. But there is another burger I like more. "The best burgers are simple, juicy, and messy." - Bobby Flay.

First time visit I am from San diego born and raised, and this is a hidden gem. The series was great, greeted with a smile. Felt like we were getting personal vip service. Food was cooked while we waited, clean seating area and bathrooms. Felt like we were treated like family. Could be the best buger I have had. Nice size , not too big. Just the right size. And the garlic fries were on point.

It lives up to the hype! I got the classic cheeseburger, and it was delicious. The service was also excellent.

One of the best burgers I have ever had! Staff are very friendly. The ambiance is cool and good place to meet up with friends (only a bit too loud for me). If I am back to San Diego one day, I will definitely come here for a yummy burger again ;)

One of the best burgers in San Diego, hands down. Goes well with salt and pepper fries. Bar environment is chill, and bar tenders are friendly.

We had a great time at The Balboa. The burger is awesome and the atmosphere was fun. We've been looking for a bar that could take Hamilton's place after they closed down, and The Balboa comes very close to achieving that. The Balboa's Burger is very good, not the best I've ever had, but let's just say I think it's surpasses Hodad's as a superior burger. I deducted a star because the garlic fries were a bit lackluster. Not as garlicky as I wanted and a lot of the fries are overcooked. All that being said, I'm still planning to revisit with friends.

This is my favorite burger-hands down. Add an egg to your burger and it makes it even better. The cocktails here are also fantastic. Great vibe, good service, and overall awesome place to hang out on a Friday night!

Pro-Big juicy burger!Full bar. Good music. Con- only cheese is American or Pepper Jack

I've been hearing about how good their burgers were and hadn't had a chance to get in here. Had some friends in town who wanted some good burgers, we all tried it, all six of us loved it. Definitely will return to this place. You walk up to the bar and order and they bring the food out to you, the bartender was super friendly and helpful. They have a great jukebox, pool tables, and two sections for seating. The section by the bar only has four tops, two tops, and at the bar. The second section has 6 and 8 tops.

We love it! In my opinion one of the best hamburguers in San Diego and everything is home made (bread,fries, sauces, etc). We had great food and a nice experience there. Customer service is exceptional! They are very friendly and the owner is always there to help. We ordered the Original Balboa burguer and The Centennial with a Side of Garlic Fries and we really enjoyed them. Kids menu was really good too. We absolutely gonna came back soon!

Honestly have to say these burgers are sooooo good! But let’s forget for a second how delicious the burgers are and just appreciate the people who work there, the bartender is also the one who takes food orders and everyone I’ve meet has been extremely chill. The whole place has a bit of a dive bar feel to it and there’s a jukebox that (for a fee) let’s you change the music in the entire bar. Bring friends or have a chill date with someone special. Oh and the cocktails are really good as well! I almost don’t want to leave a review so that more people don’t find out about this great place!

A proper dive bar! But a polished dive bar. Good tap selection, fun regulars, cool bartenders, delicious food (obviously burgers are top notch).

I enjoyed the burger a lot. This is a nice chill bar with some good burgers and fries. I’m going to need another one of those asap.