Smacking Burger

"Inside the Mobil gas station, this points to the filling station burger trend. Available in four configurations, it’s a smash burger made with good beef and smashed a little less than most, making it tolerably moist. And sitting at a picnic table in view of the gas pumps is a unique experience in New York burgerdom. Fries are good, too, and we love the red-checkered box." - Robert Sietsema, Melissa McCart, Emma Orlow

"Your Order: The Classic ($6.99). It’s a bird. It’s a plane. It’s a smashburger spot inside of a gas station in the West Village. Smacking Burger operates out of a supply closet-sized kitchen in a Mobil, and it’s worth noting that their classic smash is the cheapest one on this list. It’s fairly simple—onion, american cheese, sweet pickles, ketchup, and mustard on a potato roll, but if you’re willing to spend $9.99, you can get a double patty, and pink special sauce. Smacking Burger is open until 1am on Fridays and Saturdays, and there’s a picnic table outside where you can eat in case it’s 12:30am and you need beef right now. " - willa moore, neha talreja, will hartman, bryan kim

"Outside of New York, there are places where people who drive can go to fill their cars with a substance called gasoline, which the cars need to run. The gas station in the West Village is the only one in Lower Manhattan, and now, it’s host to Smacking Burger. Single smashburgers start at $5.50. They also have horsey sauce. We visited Smacking Burger and added it to The Hit List." - will hartman

"Who would’ve expected to find a good smash burger in a Mobil gas station? But there it is, heralded by picnic tables among the gas pumps. The patty is made of beef, highly seared, and the default is the big smack — though there’s also an Oklahoma smash burger with the onions cooked into the patty, and an ATW (all the way) with a couple strips of bacon." - Robert Sietsema, Eater Staff

"You probably didn’t know this, because you are a New Yorker and you can’t drive a car, but there is a gas station in the West Village making $5.50 smashburgers with onions, american cheese, and sweet pickles. Smacking Burger is about the size of a supply closet, and if you’re open to spending $9, you can upgrade to a double patty burger, or the O.K.T.O, which is smothered in horseradish sauce. They’re open until 2am on Fridays and Saturdays, and there’s a picnic table outside where you can eat, in case it’s 1:30am and you need beef right now. Learn how to pump gas as you ingest one of the most affordable burgers in NYC—even a quarter-pounder at your closest McDonald’s costs more. photo credit: Willa Moore Food Rundown The Classic At $5.50, there’s not much we can complain about here, but it’s worth noting that they use sweet pickles. Not our favorite, but nowhere near a dealbreaker. (Because, again, it’s $5.50.) The Big Smack If the main reason you eat burgers is for that classic pink-ish special sauce, consider The Big Smack. At two patties, it’s also more substantial than the classic, and it’s still under $10. O.K.T.O Oklahoma 2.0 You have to love horseradish to love this burger. If you do, order the O.K.T.O, which has enough onions on top to necessitate a gum purchase. The sharp horseradish sauce is a nice balance with the beef and american cheese." - Willa Moore