Anchor Bar and Grill in Superior, WI

Lori Writer / Heavy Table
Lori Writer / Heavy Table

The smell of smoke still seeps out of the walls of the cluttered, dimly lit, sticky countered Anchor Bar and Grill in Superior, WI, home of one of the cheapest and tastiest burgers on the South Shore. Since 1977 the Anchor Bar hasn’t cared if their atmosphere is right or if the waitresses treat the customers well. It is a place where you can get a fantastic hamburger for cheap while you stare at the cluttered walls and ceiling.

The menu is split into three categories; ⅓-pound burgers, bigger burgers, and other grub. There is no appetizer, salad, or dessert menu. Instead there is a warning on the menu stating that “Foods made from animals that are not adequately cooked may contain microorganisms that can cause food borne illness.” That is why they don’t ask you how you want your burger cooked. You get it the way they want to cook it — all you get to decide is if your onions will be cooked or raw.

Lori Writer / Heavy Table
Lori Writer / Heavy Table

Bigger burgers like the Gallybuster weigh in at one pound and are topped with three slices of cheese for $5.50. The cashew burger ($3.75) is the cornerstone of the ⅓-pound burgers. It is topped with cheese, onions, and raw cashews, and the menu states, “remember you saw it here first.” The crunch of the cashews and the dripping juice of the meat make for an epic burger experience that can’t be found at the Blue Door or the Nook. The cashew burger is an Anchor Bar creation.

Lori Writer / Heavy Table
Lori Writer / Heavy Table

The Anchor Bar doesn’t claim to have the finest meat or the nicest cheese. It doesn’t even make a claim. Their burgers are big and cheap; if you don’t like them the waitress will likely tell you to leave. That is, of course, if the person behind you waiting to get a burger doesn’t tell you first.

Anchor Bar and Grill

413 Tower Ave
Superior, WI 54880
715.394.9747
HOURS:
Kitchen open 11am-12pm
OWNER: Adam Anderson
AVERAGE ENTREE: $3-$6
BAR: Full

12 Comments

  1. morchella

    It’s not kobe beef and organic potatoes but, the cooks in that tiny kitchen are some of the best around and they make some mighty tasty food. (It is WI, though, so will smell like cigarette smoke and grease until your next ablutions.)

  2. David Anderson

    Talk about timing – we’ll be stopping at the Anchor tonight for burgers and a pitcher on the way to Grand Marais. ‘Tis quite the joint – and hard to beat for greasy delights and a decent selection of beers. Good thing it’s not closer to home…

    Farmer Dave

  3. Judd

    One of my all-time favorites, and a beloved college spot. Brother, if you can handle the Galleybuster, Sup-town will be your oyster . . .

  4. Minnesotian

    My friends and I stop there every year on our trip up north. Great place. All the stuff on the walls is fun to look at, but my favorite is the men’s bathroom. The literature in there is creatively profane and crass. Some of the best bathroom script I have ever encountered. My friends and I have a contest every time we use the toilet; you have to come back to the table with a new saying from the bathroom.
    If you go, get the green olive burger.

  5. brad

    You do 120 to 140 #s of burger a day??? Out doing a UofM campus bar?? In supieror wi. I know how the economy is up there I have 3 friends that live there. No way. And no way can $2.31 a pound. I am in the business and
    I think your #s are way off. You don’t have the population to cover what you say your selling… impossible!!!

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