Burger Heroes

Burger Heroes opened its first burger bar in 2015 on Bolshaya Ordynka street in Moscow and made its name with one burger, the Black Mamba, a cheeseburger with cherry and bacon. It grew into a chain of about 13 bars in Moscow, two at Domodedovo airport and one each at Vnukovo, in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and in Chita.

The chain talks about its beef more than most. The patties are marbled Black Angus from Russian farms, corn-fed and wet-aged in vacuum packs, ground to an 80/20 ratio of meat to fat with only egg white, black pepper and salt added. Classic burgers are cooked medium by default, and on several of them guests can choose their own doneness. Newer burgers use smashed patties, pressed from a cold ball of beef onto a very hot grill.

The bars sell craft beer next to the burgers, and the menu mixes American builds with Russian and Asian ingredients: smoked suluguni cheese, lingonberry sauce, pickled dill and kimchi.

About 13 burger bars in Moscow plus Domodedovo and Vnukovo airports, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky and Chita.

• Vkusno i Tochka (Russia, since 2022). What McDonald’s turned into in Russia after it left in 2022. Also built on beef and cheese.
• Black Star Burger (Russia, since 2016). The Moscow burger chain from rapper Timati’s Black Star label, famous for its black gloves. Also built on beef and cheese.
• Five Guys (United States, since 1986). Every burger is a double unless you say otherwise, and the toppings are free. Also built on beef, bacon and cheese.
• Goiko (Spain, since 2013). Spain’s burger obsession, where the bestseller is named after Kevin Bacon. Also built on beef, bacon and cheese.