Best Burger Counter in Los Angeles · Los Angeles, CA
The Apple Pan has been serving burgers and pie from a single U-shaped counter in West Los Angeles since 1947 — no tables, no reservations, just paper plates, a hickory burger, and a slice of pie handed over by waiters in white paper caps. It's one of the last true counter joints in the city and helped inspire a certain chain's original design.
Cash-preferred and cheerfully unchanged for nearly 80 years, it earned the 2026 Centurion Award in Los Angeles for doing one thing perfectly, for generations.
Each Centurion Award is a dated record tied to one year’s evaluation — earned annually, never carried over. Open a year for the full citation and verification details.
Awards run one calendar year and renew only if the business clears the bar again. Selection is by published criteria, never for sale.
Visit The Apple Pan
This page is the standing record for The Apple Pan (2026). It was not bought, voted on, or sponsored — only winners are published, and an award that stops holding up is revoked, not quietly removed.
If you’ve put in the years, you may already clear the bar. Evaluation is free, private, and never for sale.