I never went to Sea Breeze. Or whatever was there before Sea Breeze. I drove by every day, often kind of wistful at their fireplace and somewhat sad that there never seemed to be more than three or four people inside. So I wasn’t all that surprised when they closed. I was surprised, however, when I found out there was a burger joint going in there.

Did we really need another burger joint? After all, there’s Lunchbox Laboratory, Zak’s, Scooter’s, Zesto’s, Ballard Brothers, and if you are going to or from Ballard, there’s even Red Mill. So another burger joint? Really?

We stopped in to Hamburger Harry’s about 10 days ago (about 2 weeks after they opened). Then we went back about a week later. Overall, I was pleased. They have a straightforward menu. A handful of appetizers, about 10-12 burgers, 10-12 sandwiches, and a few salads. The burger that I had the first time was tasty. I tried the bacon cheeseburger because that to me is about the gold standard for any burger joint. It was quite good. Not spectacular or anything, but it was cooked with just a hint of pink (and not at all dry), had three or four strips of bacon, and the right amount of cheese - enough to taste, but not enough to make a gooey mess of the whole plate.

Each burger or sandwich comes with bottomless steak fries. These were a touch disappointing. They weren’t bad, but they were a little floppy. However, they were perfectly salted. The onion rings my husband ordered were excellent. Extremely lightly breaded and very thin. They really almost melted in your mouth.

The one dish that didn’t work for me was their nachos. As you might be able to tell from the photo, they were actually fried rice crisps. In theory these were the perfect idea. In practice, notsomuch. They couldn’t support the weight of the chicken and cheese. I ended up eating the nachos with a knife and fork. The chicken was moist and sweetly spiced and there was almost the perfect amount of cheese. The pico was fresh and tasty.

Service at Hamburger Harry’s is great. There’s always at least two servers checking on you, though they aren’t obtrusive about it. They are friendly and happy to answer any questions you might have about the menu. There’s a full bar, but only a handful of beers and wines.

Prices run about $9-$10 for the burgers and sandwiches.

Hamburger Harry’s
2409 NW Market St
Seattle, WA 98107
(206) 297-8000