B2A2: Echelon's Smash Burger
The South Main kitchen brings a burger to a restaurant built around seasonal wood-fired cooking.
The third entry in B2A2, Plate & Press's Ann Arbor burger series, comes from Echelon Kitchen & Bar at 200 South Main Street. Echelon opened in February 2025 with executive chef Joseph VanWagner, a wood-fired kitchen, and a menu built around seasonal Michigan ingredients. The restaurant was named a 2026 James Beard Award semifinalist for Best New Restaurant.
A burger in a fire-led kitchen
Echelon's current menu emphasizes wood-fired pita and dips, house-cured pastrami brisket, whole roasted Dover sole, Stonefall Farm Michigan Olive-Fed Wagyu, caviar service, and chef's tasting menus. The bar and social-hour menus change with the broader program. That makes a burger a useful B2A2 subject, but not a permanent fact to repeat without checking the live menu.
The restaurant's online menu is the source for the current burger's ingredients, price, service days, and availability. Because Echelon changes its menu with the season, check that listing before you make the trip.
Where the entry fits
Echelon's distinction is format. It is a James Beard recognized, seasonal restaurant that also offers a casual bar-menu path. The contrast with the series' other entries is the point: a burger can share a building with tasting menus, wine pairings, and a wood-fired dining room without becoming the restaurant's identity.
For current visitors, check the live menu and reservation platform before traveling. Echelon lists seven-course omnivore, pescatarian, vegetarian, and vegan tasting menus alongside its a la carte service, with offerings that shift regularly.
This is part of our ongoing series. Read the full tracker: Best Burger in Ann Arbor (B2A2): The Running List.
Echelon Kitchen & Bar is at 200 South Main Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48104. Confirm current hours, reservations, and menu details with the restaurant.