Dick’s is selling 19-cent burgers this week. Here’s where to find them

Dick’s Drive-In will charge only 19 cents for a burger over the next three days in honor of the beloved local chain’s 70^th anniversary. You can expect long lines for the deal, which takes place for one day only at the nine Dick’s outlets in Western Washington.

Customers can score one 19-cent hamburger or cheeseburger on Tuesday at the Wallingford, Broadway and Lake City Dick’s in Seattle; on Wednesday in Federal Way, at the Crossroads in Bellevue and at the Crown Hill location on Holman Road in Seattle; and on Thursday at the Edmonds, Kent and Queen Anne locations.

The 19-cent special commemorates the chain’s debut on Jan. 28, 1954, when founders Dick Spady, Warren Ghormley and Dr. B.O.A. “Thom” Thomas opened their first drive-in on Northeast 45th Street in Wallingford.

Back then, the going rate was 35 cents for a burger, but the family undercut the competition by selling a patty for 16 cents cheaper, said Jasmine Donovan, president of Dick’s Drive-In and granddaughter of Dick Spady.

“Not many people believed that selling burgers for 19 cents, especially with a commitment to quality ingredients, could succeed,” she said. “But for our customers it was love at first bite, and here we are 70 years later.”

The humble yet iconic Seattle burger was the runaway winner in our readers’ best burger poll in 2018 and has gotten shoutouts from Emerald City celebrities like Sir Mix-A-Lot, Macklemore and the Blue Scholars. The chain plans to open a 10th location in Everett but has not yet set a timeline.

In what is expected to be a hectic week at Dick’s with large crowds cashing in on the 19-cent special, management is encouraging fans to read up on the rules. You can’t order the burger special through DoorDash, and all discounted burgers are sold only at participating locations on designated days. Only one 19-cent burger per customer is allowed; management says that this rule will be enforced and that you can’t order a burger for someone waiting in the car.