Hodad's is a small chain of hamburger restaurants in San Diego, California, established in 1973 by husband and wife Byron and Virginia Hardin.

[1] In 1973, they purchased a burger stand in Ocean Beach, San Diego for $600 (equivalent to $4,118 in 2023) and called it Hodad's, the name originating as a surfing term for a non-surfer who pretends to be one.

[2][3][4] The restaurant moved to a larger venue on Voltaire Street in 1979 after the previous landlord doubled the rent, at which point the business started to see increased turnover and success.

[4] The restaurant expanded into a second location in downtown San Diego on the corner of Broadway in 2011,[5][6] named "Hodad's Too" and approximately twice the size as their other outlet.

[11][3] Mike Hardin died on February 5, 2015, having suffered a heart attack[13] and a makeshift memorial for him was created by the community in front of the Ocean Beach restaurant.

[15][16] Hundreds of people attended a public memorial ceremony in late March at the Petco's Park location, including Guy Fieri.

[9] In an interview with SD News, Shane discussed the pressures of taking over the business as well as both modeling his behavior after his father and establishing his own identity as its owner.

[31] The restaurant's bacon cheeseburger has been lauded by Guy Fieri, and in 2009 CNN included it on a list of "Five tasty burger joints worth visiting.

[27] The Daily Meal included it in its top 50 list of the best french fries in the U.S.[35] Houston Press writer Robb Walsh argued that the burger was not actually the best in the country.