#57 in NYC
The Snail
Greenpoint, Brooklyn
Location: 544 Manhattan Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11222. Directions
NYC address record · Address checked 2026-09-14.
Brotherly Breakdown
Written by Brotherly Burgers
The Snail's Double Cheeseburger is a good, down-the-middle bistro burger: solid beef, American cheese, pickles, and a mustard aioli with a real kick, on a brioche bun. Nothing about it is offensive, and not much about it surprises.
An overly creamy sauce and a bun that turns bready in some bites keep a well-built burger from impressing more than it does. Two of us, on visits nearly two years apart, landed in almost exactly the same place.
Best for
Classic double cheeseburgers, mustard-forward sauces, American cheese, a balanced bread-to-patty ratio, walk-in bistro meals, and Greenpoint dining.
The catch
The mustard aioli has a nice kick but runs too creamy, and the brioche turns flaky and bready, with too much bite in some mouthfuls. It is a good burger rather than a destination one.
Visit
- September 2026 — Double Cheeseburger
What it's actually like
The Snail is an American bistro across from McCarren Park at 544 Manhattan Avenue in Greenpoint, opened in late 2024 by chef-owner Austin Baker, a former partner at Saraghina and, before that, culinary director at Hogsalt, the restaurant group behind 4 Charles and Au Cheval. Derek went in its first week. Nick went in September 2026 with a friend, Justin, and the two visits, nearly two years apart, came out almost exactly the same, for almost exactly the same reasons.
The beef is solid. It is good, well-made meat with nothing offensive or alarming about it and nothing that stops you mid-bite. Justin called it a straight pitch down the middle, and that is the burger in a phrase. The American cheese suits it.
The mustard aioli is the most interesting thing on it. It has a real kick, and Justin found it refreshing next to the pink, ketchup-and-Worcestershire sauces most burgers lean on. It is also overly creamy. The pickles in the sauce were a nice touch, and the pickled cucumbers were not too salty and left a little bite at the end.
The build as a whole reminded Nick of the 4 Charles burger, a fitting echo for a chef who came out of Hogsalt, and so did the bun, on one of its off nights: flaky and bready, with too much bite in some mouthfuls. Justin liked the bun more, as a solid one that is not too thick, with a good amount of bread for two patties, though as Justin put it, the ratio would not hold on a single.
Add it up and it is a good burger that does not impress as much as its reputation suggests. Nothing is wrong enough to sink it, and nothing is distinctive enough to make it a destination.
One note for anyone going: The Snail is walk-in only apart from a limited number of large-party reservations for groups of seven to ten, and The Infatuation reported waits of up to two hours at peak times in 2025. The Double Cheeseburger, listed with mustard aioli, pickles and onion, is on both the lunch and dinner menus.
Strengths
- Solid, good beef
- Mustard aioli with a real kick
- American cheese suits the build
- Pickles with bite and restrained salt
- Good bread-to-patty ratio on a double
Weaknesses
- Overly creamy sauce
- Flaky, bready bun with too much bite in places
- Little that stands out
Why this score
The Snail separates itself through solid fundamentals: good beef, a mustard aioli with a kick, American cheese, and pickles that keep their bite.
An overly creamy sauce and a bun that turns bready in places hold it back, and nothing in the build is distinctive enough to lift it past good.
Last written September 2026.
- Neighborhood
- Greenpoint, Brooklyn
- Cuisine
- American Bistro
- Price
- $$$
Double Cheeseburger
Two patties with American cheese, mustard aioli, pickles and onion, on a brioche bun.
Menu price: $19
Same price on the lunch and dinner menus.
Checked 2026-09-27 · Menu source. Prices may change.
American bistro across from McCarren Park at 544 Manhattan Ave, from chef-owner Austin Baker, a former partner at Saraghina and culinary director at Hogsalt, the group behind 4 Charles and Au Cheval.
How to get it
As of 2026-09-27. Source: thesnail.nyc.
