Burger Basket (Salem OR)

Burger Basket (Salem OR)

Date: April 5, 2025

Location: 2455 Mission Street SE, Salem OR

Website: https://burgerbasketsalem.com/

Returning home from a California road trip, I stopped off in Salem to refuel the Squeetmobile. Looking up from the pump, I happened to see the Burger Basket sign, boasting “Home of the Best Burger In The World.” How could I resist?!

I ordered their Small Cheeseburger, a 1/4 LB locally sourced beef patty with choice of American or Swiss cheese, prepared with pickle, raw onion, lettuce, tomato, and sauce.

1 Aesthetics — Visually, this looks like your typical, classic burger. A semi-melted slice of cheese on a nondescript patty, with chopped iceberg lettuce falling out the sides, and just a sliver of tomato peeking out from under a basic bun. 5.5

2 Flavor — The epitome of your average, ordinary cheeseburger. A little dry and bland, but good. The sauce is mostly, if not entirely, a sweet mix of mayo and ketchup, without the salty, tangy kick you get from ingredients like pickle relish, mustard, hot sauce, or spices. 5.5

3 Mouthfeel — Fair. 5.5

4 Quality/Freshness — Average. 5.5

5 Integrity — Fairly well made, although the veggies and condiments were not evenly distributed. 5

6 Atmosphere — Pleasant enough. This is your basic cafeteria-style burger restaurant, reasonably clean, with plenty of seating and simple nostalgic decor. 5.5

7 Service — Friendly, but a little slow. I arrived to find that I was their only customer. The staff was sitting and chatting at one of the tables inside the dining room. It took them a moment to notice me before one of them lazily ambled behind the counter to take my order. 4

8 Satisfaction — I was moderately satisfied, having been to so many places like this in the past, and knowing exactly what to expect. There’s something comforting about a typical roadside joint, serving up decent burgers, reliably.  5.5

9 Creativity/Uniqueness — Not particularly unique or creative. 5

10 Value — $7.79 is a fair value for a 1/4 LB burger. 6

Nothing special, yet I can understand why Burger Basket has been a beloved Salem, Oregon institution since the 1970s. The food is decent, and you can count on feeding a family here without breaking the bank. Recommended.

Total Score: 53