TV Restaurants

Is Louis' Lunch Still Open? Best Thing I Ever Ate Update (New Haven, CT)

Open reported

As of September 2026, Louis' Lunch is listed open on louislunch.com, reviewed by our team on September 7, 2026; not yet independently confirmed through direct contact.

Primary source
louislunch.com ·
Secondary source
Wikipedia ·

Last verified

What the source shows: Louis' Lunch's own website returned HTTP 200 on 2026-09-08 with current posted hours and a working phone number matching the OSM record.

Interactive map — loads when you ask for it.

Everything on this map is also in the list below.

© OpenStreetMap contributors © CARTO

What happened after Best Thing I Ever Ate?

"The Best Thing I Ever Ate" (episode "Burgers") featured Louis' Lunch's original hamburger, a beef patty broiled vertically in a century-old cast iron gas broiler and served on white toast rather than a bun, with the option of cheese, tomato, and onion but no ketchup. According to Wikipedia (revised 2026-09-02), Louis Lassen opened the business as a small lunch wagon in New Haven, Connecticut in 1895, and the restaurant claims to have invented the hamburger in 1900 for a customer who needed a fast meal to go. Louis' Lunch's own website, checked 2026-09-08, returned an HTTP 200 response, listed the restaurant's current hours, Tuesday through Saturday, and showed a working phone number, 203-562-5507, matching the located record. Per Wikipedia, the building itself was once a tannery before Louis Lassen converted it for restaurant use in 1917, and the same 1898 broilers and a 1929 toaster remain in daily use.

"Hamburger Paradise" featured Louis' Lunch, which according to Wikipedia (revised 2026-09-02) opened as a small lunch wagon in 1895 under Louis Lassen and, according to Louis' Lunch, created the hamburger in 1900 for a customer in a hurry. Wikipedia reported that the business moved into a brick building in 1917 and, in 1975, relocated four blocks to 261 Crown Street, where it still uses cast iron broilers from 1898 and a 1929 Savory Appliance radiant gas toaster. A 2026-09-08 check of the restaurant's website, louislunch.com, found current Tuesday-through-Sunday hours posted.

Featured on Best Thing I Ever Ate

Season / episode
Season 3, Episode 5
Original air date
Not confirmed
Episode title
Burgers
What was featured
the original hamburger, broiled vertically and served on toast, not a bun
Role
Featured restaurant
Name on the broadcast
Louis' Lunch
Season / episode
Season 1, Episode 1
Original air date
Not confirmed
Episode title
Hamburger Paradise
What was featured
Louis' Lunch's claim to have invented the hamburger
Role
Featured restaurant
Name on the broadcast
Louis' Lunch

Frequently asked questions

Is Louis' Lunch still open in 2026?

As of September 2026, Louis' Lunch is listed open on louislunch.com, reviewed by our team on September 7, 2026; not yet independently confirmed through direct contact.

What happened to Louis' Lunch after Best Thing I Ever Ate?

"The Best Thing I Ever Ate" (episode "Burgers") featured Louis' Lunch's original hamburger, a beef patty broiled vertically in a century-old cast iron gas broiler and served on white toast rather than a bun, with the option of cheese, tomato, and onion but no ketchup. As of September 2026, Louis' Lunch is listed open on louislunch.com, reviewed by our team on September 7, 2026; not yet independently confirmed through direct contact.

Where is Louis' Lunch located?

161-163 Crown Street, New Haven, CT 06511. That is the address on the record as of September 7, 2026.

What season and episode of Best Thing I Ever Ate featured Louis' Lunch?

Season 3, Episode 5 of Best Thing I Ever Ate. The episode is titled “Burgers”.

Every status on this site carries a confidence label and a date, and names the source it rests on. Read the Editorial & Corrections Policy for what each label means and how quickly we act on corrections. The questions above are generated from this record's own published fields — we never publish a question we cannot answer from the data.

More from Best Thing I Ever Ate

Every Best Thing I Ever Ate restaurant we track

Other TV restaurants in Connecticut

All Connecticut locations

Nearest tracked restaurants

Visit info

Address
161-163 Crown Street, New Haven, CT 06511
Venue type
diner
Official website
louislunch.com

Businesses change fast. Always confirm directly with the restaurant — call ahead, or check its own current website or social media — before making plans around anything on this page.

Sources

See something wrong?

We work hard to keep every status accurate and dated, but restaurants change fast and our sources aren't perfect. If something here is wrong — a status, a name, an address, anything — tell us what you're seeing and where you saw it, and we'll check it.

See something wrong? Tell us →

Share this page

Record btiea-0231 · last verified .