The Casbah

The burgers at Lawrence’s Burger Stand in The Casbah in downtown have been ranked as some of the best in the country. I stopped by during my visit to the nearby trails (Baker Wetlands and Black Jack Battlefield).

The burger was indeed tasty – juicy without being greasy, filling without being overwhelming, and they had options for everyone.

For red meat eaters, the options range from the classic topped with cheddar & local micro greens to the black and blue with Blue cheese & granny smith apple chutney to the smoke burger with Applewood smoked bacon, smoked gouda cheese & chipotle-cocoa ketchup.

For non-red meat options and even vegetarian, you can get a catfish po’boy, a black bean burger, the spicy shiitake burger topped with habanero cream cheese, avocado and greens.

Dipping options

For me, the stand out was the topping options for both the fries and the burgers. Parmesan garlic aioli? Marshmallow dip? These were options I’d never seen anywhere else.

I ordered sweet potato fries and the truffle fries (in the name of research of course), and loaded up with every topping option they had.

The food was ready pretty quickly at the kitchen window, even with the short and consistent line to order, and I savored my burger and fries at one of the long bar top tables in the front. In the back dining area are ping pong tables, pool tables, and a foosball table. During the school year, I was there in the summer, I imagine it can get pretty busy and loud in there, but for a burger joint in a college town, I wouldn’t expect much else.

And for my favorite dipping sauce, for both uniqueness and tastiness, it was a tie between avocado ranch and chipotle-cocoa ketchup.

If you go (and you should!):
The Casbah
803 Massachusetts Street
Lawrence, KS
785.856.0543

Have you been to the Burger Stand? What’s your favorite burger or dipping sauce? Let us know in the comments below.