Top Hat Burger Palace

Fairly decent burgers are at Top Hat, if you are hungry and in the mood for a hole in the wall burger shack, drop by. It’s not as awesome as its previous iteration further down Main years ago however. Top Hat has a pretty large menu for a burger joint, which is nice if you want to mix things up.

After watching a basketball game at vhs this Sunday afternoon, my boyfriend and I decided to try this spot. Always pass by Top Hat whenever I drive through Main St. Order a cheeseburger, chili cheese dog, chili cheese fries and large drink. Potions were fair. The cheeseburger tasted like a Mexican hamburgesa, which I love! Something about shredded lettuce and diced onions make any burger taste amazing! Chili cheese fries and dog here were. The only treason I gave Top Hat the 3 stars is for their service. I went to their window to get a refill and another cheeseburger to go, but none of the 3 workers were to be found. I decided to just go home and sure enough I saw them all outside in the back vaping. I don’t mind the vaping, but I was a little disappointed that no one was paying attention to the window.

When you live in Midtown Ventura you have the luxury of walking to several destinations.
I now wish I’d chosen wiser, as I approached the counter only one other family were there and they already had lunch and were eating it
For whatever reason I decided on the corn burritos, probably out of habit from having them so much as a kid. The guy looked at me like I was an alien when I told him I wanted ketchup instead of hot sauce (this was how my family ate them growing up in the Ojai Valley) he then said they’d put cheese on them and then he pointed to the tube on the condiment section next to me and said rather rudely, «There’s the ketchup» and I’m thinking what a chump you can’t even do that?
I sat on a shaded bench with Lucy in tow, I could hear the «kids» talking and laughing and more than likely wishing they were anywhere but in front of a grill and I was surprised how long it was taking for 5 corn burritos, I then heard the girl say, «I forgot they were in there, are they burnt?»
WTF you can’t remember 5 corn burritos in the fryer?
The guy mumbled something, probably along the lines of shut your trap she can hear you.
Yes they were burnt, am I going to walk back and tell them? Frankly those kids could care less and I wouldn’t be surprised if they would’ve laughed in my face.
My first visit will be my last visit and that’s my way of letting them know how I feel.

Stopped here on our way north from LA. Great hot dogs, French fries and friendly service :). I would recommend for a eat outside quick lunch :)

I thought it was very good for a basic burger. My daughters said the chili was no good but I will be the judge of that next time I come here. I got the patty melt this time and it was great!

The tables are pleasant for dining. The place looks clean and tidy on the outside. The service was nice, though we did have to wait quite some time for our little sandwiches. A double cheeseburger, a pork loin sandwich and the «new» fish sandwich all fit in a small, neatly folded paper bag. So first problem: terrible value. These little morsels better taste ambrosial for the money and wait.
My fish sandwich was so bad I couldn’t eat it. When I’m hungry, I’ll eat almost anything. The pork was a breaded and fried, oily mess. The burger had the heft and color of a small Big Mag. Grey meat, gloppy cheese.
There was promise based on appearance, but this place is a Must Miss.

News flash – food made to order takes longer and tastes better. I had some of the best chili cheese fries ever here. Destroys Original Tommy’s. Thank you. If you want instant no-​wait premade food, McDonald’s is about a mile away.

Great burgers and fries. Quite inexpensive and quick service with friendly people. Everything I look for in a burger place

Since opening I have been slowly convinced that the corn burritos from here are better than foster freeze, the chili burgers are really good. I never had top hat before its reopening but so far I have been very pleased. Check it out

The other reviews are certainly accurate. Your waiting time is long and your hot dog is average at best.

Love this place! Love the Cheeseburger French Fries and the sodas. It’s only $ 5.00 Bucks it’s a cheap eat.

Got a 50% off coupon in the paper and tried the famous TOP HAT. one person in front of me — ordered and waited about 10 minutes. I ordered the double cheeseburger and onion rings with an ice tea. Got my food and sat down. Cheesburger was pretty small for a double meat and didnt have much taste. The onion rings were of the frozen type and just tasted ok. The ice tea was good. I think the Big Carl or the Double Double at In & Out is better. With 50% off the regular price of $ 9.45 plus tax for the food which came to $ 5.07 OTD it was about what it was worth. Not bad food just not spectacular.
I would think with all the other choices for burgers in the area this place would really be TOP NOTCH but thats not the case.

Went here on a cool, cloudy day 4÷12÷2014. No customers but me, while everyone is waiting at Pete’s place (or something like that) across the street. I ordered the $ 7.89 double-​cheeseburger combo. At first it looked small, like a 6″ diam. burger, with white cheese. Then I started biting it. Pure great beef burger taste that only a greasy grill place could do. Actually the nice young lady apologized that it took a while since the grill had to heat up. No worries. And in reality, my burger was not sopping with grease and other undesirable stuff. As I was eating I said, this may not be enough, preparing to get a hotdog. But wait! As I continued to eat, I realized this was a solid burger, as in no fillers, so I got full as I finished it. And with a generous serving of well done fries that was crispy till the end, I did not have to order the hotdog. Got a refill of soda. BTW the other young lady who took my order, as well as the one who cooked, were both nice and sweet. They told me they’ve been at this new location about 2 years now (and as some of you know they used to be on Main right next to the thrift stores). A re-​discovered gem in my book.

This place was great. The staff were friendly.
I stopped by here randomly and thoroughly enjoyed it.
I asked, «what do you do best» and she said «anything with chili.»
So we ordered the Chili burger, chili cheese dog, and chili fries.
Each of them was delicious. Like, ACTUALLY delicious. The fries were larger size than normal (but not steak fries) and crispy. But covered in lots of delicious chili and cheese. The hot dog was smothered in chili and cheese but the meat was not lost and it was delicious.
Go here!

They’ll get 5 stars when they get back into the swing of things. I called ahead to ensure I be outta there quickly, but it didn’t really help. Still waited 10 mins and my order was already ready. But anyway. It tastes like I always remember and I will go back again!

I have no idea why anyone would give Top Hat a bad review. Even four stars is ridiculous. LET ME BE CLEAR: This is the best burger I have ever tasted in my entire life. I am a burger connoisseur and have made it a point to try any and every burger I come across. Nothing compares to Top Hat! No fast food chain comes even remotely close. If you have taste buds, you would give them five stars. I am just lucky to live in Ventura (just moved here), right down the street, so I can go whenever I want it. Support a local business — not just because its local, but because it tastes AMAZING!

I remember the good old days… Hey what’s up? Give me like 100 Chili cheese with onions! (leave couple bucks tip) Hey Yo! Big tipper!!! DING DING DING and the line would move in a blistering pace. And some SOBs shut it down… fast forward many months and Wha~? the Tri-​tip joint is now the new Top Hat? So I have friends in from out of town and we stop by for a snack on our way up to Ojai for Wine tasting at Vino V.
The food tastes exactly the same. but the the Charm /​Mojo was not. Every bite was a painful reminder of what it once was and what it will never be. The service was bit slow and the sass was missing from the server. Where as Top hat was once a mighty mite of a hot dog factory, it is now just a mere shadow of its past glory.
With that said, fight on and live on Top Hat! It may not be today or tomorrow, but I have confidence you will get better at serving us hot dogs and onion rings.
3.5 stars.
Happy eating — R

Horrible food. Slow service. Everyone that worked there looked like they were stuck on stupid. When we finally got our order it was incorrect. Burgers are way over-​seasoned. Too much pepper. The chili burger was not good either. Corn burrito was dry. I read about this place in the newspaper and couldn’t wait to try it. Very disappointing. Oh, and they even got our order wrong. Will not be back, ever.

I have a family, so my review is through that lens.
I visited on Jan. 15.
Positive: (1) The burgers are great! There is a seasoning they use on the beef that is unique to what I’ve tasted and quite delicious. (2) There is a website to view the menu. (3) The chili must be good, because as I walked away someone offered me $ 20. I think they ran out of chili.
Negative: (1) I’m really not sure why burgers and fries takes 30 minutes. I’m glad I didn’t bring my kids because there is no way I could keep them waiting for 30 minutes next to a busy road. (2) There are absolutely NO vegetables on the menu. Don’t look to Top Hat for variety on sides. (3) Burgers don’t come with tomatoes. (4) My wife thought the fries were dry.
Hints: (1) Get carry-​out and send only one person to wait with the masses. (2) The regular cheeseburger is small’ish.

It was halftime of the Steelers vs Broncos game, so I raced over to grab a couple of burgers & chili fries. As I drove up, I noticed that there was a modest line of customers, but decided to risk being back for the start of the 3^rd quarter.
Forty minutes later I got my order filled and made it back home well into the 4^th quarter of the game. No kidding, there were only 5 customers in front of me! The double cheeseburgers were small, overpriced ($ 4.60), and saturated in pepper, while the chili fries were gummy & unimpressive ($ 5.00).
As of this first visit, it’s safe to say that this place needs to get its shit together.