Particularly liked the hamburger that could be ordered to specifications and made without any salt. The quality of beef and the willingness to make substitutions to replace the salty sides was much appreciated!

You would think I would have nice things to say about Hamburger Hamlet because by some mental lapse and twist of fate I had my first date with my wife there a couple of years ago. Alas, it is not to be.

Hamburger Hamlet never won any culinary awards. But under new management, it is nothing but an overpriced diner. Great! You can pay through the nose for mediocre food 24 hours a day now.

My wife had a $15 Cobb salad with ingredients that were not fresh. I had a $12 hamburger that was really a $6 hamburger -- I would have traded it for a Big Mac. But at least the meat seemed fresh unlike my wife's salad. What I was curious to see, but didn't order because I'm not insane was the $12 margarita. Do you think there are free refills or something?

There are a lot of much better restaurants in Bethesda where you can spend good money and get good food. I recommend you do so.

We dined (or tried to) at the new 24-hour Hamburger Hamlet at 10 pm on a Saturday night.

Summary: an interesting 24-hour concept with a broad menu in an attractive setting is sabotaged by poor service. Management: service should be fixed to realize an excellent idea.

Experience: we arrived around 10 pm on a Saturday night in mid-January 2013. Very few tables were occupied. Despite a number of busboys in evidence, no one was available to seat us. After 10+ minutes, during which we deliberated leaving, we flagged down a bus boy and reported that we wanted to be seated. Several more minutes passed while a host or manager was located, and we were seated without urgency.

The same lack of service persisted throughout our dinner. The wait staff vanished for 15+ minutes after we asked for a minute or two more to decide on our order. Requested ketchup was not brought until we had asked a second time. Our burgers were almost fully consumed by the time the ketchup arrived. We noticed another party wandering around waiting to be seated, and we decided against dessert, fearing that it would not be brought.

This is a shame, because the new 24 hour Hamburger Hamlet, now combined with a venerable, Los Angeles-based diner chain, is a great concept. The setting is comfortable. The menu includes eggs, pancakes, burgers, chicken, barbeque and steak. The pies displayed in a case at the entrance look delicious, and the full menu appears to be available 24-7.

While we found the meat in our burgers a little under seasoned, the burgers were thick, juicy, of good quality and cooked perfectly. (That is of course correctable with tableside pepper, salt and-- if brought by the wait staff-- ketchup.) Burger toppings were excellent. Salads and side orders (fries and cole slaw) were very good. Mixed drinks were well-made.

If the service problems are fixed, this 24-7 concept could be a winner. We hope management will attend to this. A bit more flavor/seasoning in the otherwise excellent quality hamburger would also be welcome.

We happened to see this restaurant in a strip mall. We were seated immediately, even though it was a busy Friday night. The hamburgers were very good, and the waitress was attentive. Prices were very reasonable. We also enjoyed their bakery items for dessert. We recommend the southern pecan pie.