Bleecker St Burger - Double Cheeseburger

Double Cheeseburger - American cheese, onions & sauce £7.90

Burger type: Pub/Gourmet/Inbetween/Dirty

Bleecker burger. Another big name on the London burger scene and one that moves around regularly flipping burgers from their distinctive black van. My visit was preceded by two factors - 1. Bleecker are currently residing on Southbank making it convenient for a dirty lunch stopover, and 2. They have just been crowned champions of the London Burger Bash final which I had chomped through 6 burgers in an earlier round. I had high expectations then especially as the golden burger trophy was sat pride of place in the van as I ordered. Bleecker's burgers aren't particularly big so I opted for a Double Cheeseburger. It's a touch on the expensive side at £7.90 considering that you are ordering from a van. It's a straightforward American style burger with simple fillings, which is all fine and dandy, but there wasn't anything to get excited about. The meat needed to take the stage here and fortunately it does. Top quality aged beef is made into 2 coarse patties, cooked medium rare and oozing with juicy flavour. They are perfectly sized to sit in the light, slightly sweet bun, and it's a good looking burger. Worth a munch are mixed fries on the side (normal and sweet potato). Burger purists may argue that great meat in a simple and appealing package is what makes a top burger, however I just can't get excited enough about it. Sure, I'd have it again and I'd have it over many of the larger chains' offerings. But a Dead Hippie or a Dirty Burger it ain't.

Rating: 

Meat 3/3

Bun 1/2

Fillings 1/2

Package 2/2

Extra point? No

Overall 7/10

Burger King - Double Whopper

Double Whopper - double beef patty, onions, lettuce, tomato, gherkins, mayonnaise, ketchup £varies depending on location ~£5

Burger type: Pub/Gourmet/Inbetween/Dirty Processed

Here it is. I've braved a low-end establishment in order to bring you a control sample. Something that everyone knows and can use as a comparison for all the other reviews. You're bound to have subjected your digestive system to at least one in the past and there's little to say except explain the ratings. Meat gets a 0.5. The patties are thin, cooked to dryness and bland. But the flame grilling takes them marginally above those of the golden arches. The bun is so perfectly formed that it shouts processed. But it does hold everything together and has been toasted just right so 1/2 here. The fillings are hardly inspiring and distinctly budget. No points here. You can see straight away that the meat is overcooked just by looking at the burger, and it hardly gets the tastebuds drooling, but the overall package is well formed with minimal spillage so there's a package point awarded here. Overall a low score then. In fact the lowest score so far. Hardly surprising; I didn't expect my visit to be a great culinary experience. But the burger was rated fairly against all criteria and represents a baseline in order for other reviews to be compared against. The King is dead.

Rating: 

Meat 0.5/3

Bun 1/2

Fillings 0/2

Package 1/2

Extra point? Erm. No.

Overall 2.5/10

Byron - B-Rex

B-Rex - 6oz hamburger, onion ring, crispy smoked bacon, American cheese, jalapenos, pickles, onions, BBQ sauce and mayonnaise £10.25

Burger type: Pub/Gourmet/Inbetween/Dirty

Ok. So I've actually had this burger twice now. Problem was that the first time was post too-many beers, sat on the pavement in Farringdon (it was takeaway only at that time in case you find this behaviour in any way strange). I remember thinking that this was a great burger and even took a photo with the intention of reviewing. But after the foggy head cleared the next day, I decided that it would not have been a fair review, which meant that I would simply have to try it again. Byron do burgers well, and their core range represents a solid burger line-up that can be used as a benchmark for others. Their ever-changing specials often take this up a notch and are well executed. The B-Rex is definitely among the best of these. There's nothing unusual or particularly exciting about this burger. But that's not what it's about. This is about taking a bacon cheeseburger and stepping it up a notch in taste. Good quality bacon laid over oozing American cheese. Onions and pickles for crunch, onion ring for flavour, jalapenos for BITE. There's a hefty tang to this burger and it allows all the other flavours to come alive. Byron has nailed it with this one. This is what a bacon cheeseburger should be.

Rating: 

Meat 3/3

Bun 2/2

Fillings 2/2

Package 2/2

Extra point? Yes - everything just works so right about this burger

Overall 10/10

Burger Craft - Bacon BACON Bacon

Bacon BACON Bacon - beef burger, sandridge streaky bacon, crispy bacon dust, american cheese, homemade bacon jam £9.50 served with pickled baby vegetables and either hand-cut fries or mini hash browns

Burger type: Pub/Gourmet/Inbetween/Dirty

Burger Craft....hardly an inspired choice of name. But we'll forgive them this one if their burgers are up to scratch. As seems fashionable at the moment this is a mini burger chain taking residence in three pubs across London. I visited The Great Eastern pub on the Isle of Dogs and opted for the Bacon BACON Bacon burger with its triple hit of bacon in various guises. Rocking up on a pretty horrible and too big for the portion size plate was a very sticky looking burger alongside some homemade and perfectly passable chips, and pickled veg that was ok but needs work on its presentation. The burger was........overcooked! Unforgiveable. The lack of a flavoursome pink patty drops marks. The bacon fillings were good however, and each added a lot of flavour. American cheese is the right choice for this type of burger and the brioche bun did a fair job of holding everything together. It's heavy on the glazing though and squishes like a sponge so there is room for improvement here. For a pub, this is a decent enough burger and credit is due for the ideas behind the burgers here. They are definitely on the right track, but they need a little polishing to get up amongst the Byrons out there. And they need to take the patty off the heat quicker. 

Rating: 

Meat 1/3

Bun 1/2

Fillings 2/2

Package 2/2

Extra point? No

Overall 6/10

Honest Burgers - BrewBurger

BrewBurger - beef patty, Comte cheese, 5AM Saint candied bacon, Punk IPA & beef dripping onions, Paradox BBQ sauce & pickles £11.50 including rosemary chips (£15 together with a bottle of specially brewed Bourbon Baby)

Burger type: Pub/Gourmet/Inbetween/Dirty

Honest Burgers latest monthly special is in collaboration with Brewdog....well, that's one way to grab my interest. A main player in the London burger scene (restaurant no. 6 coming up soon!) together with one of the biggest names in craft beer. Hopes were set to 'high'. Brewdog have brewed a beer that they think matches the burger perfectly, called Bourbon Baby - a baby Scotch ale aged in bourbon barrels. Try it here as it's now run out at Honest Burgers, sorry folks. This comes as a deal with the burger, which is otherwise £11.50 (including damn-fine rosemary salted chips, as ever at Honest). The burger itself has been on a mini binge whilst in the kitchen, knocking back 5AM Saint into its bacon, Punk IPA into its onions, and Paradox into its BBQ Sauce. The cheeky devil. Fortunately you're top of the food chain, my friend, and you get to devour the whole shebang. So what does all this beer add to the burger? You and I both know by now that I don't need to increase wordcount talking about the patty. It's Honest Burger, and it's ruddy good. Their pickles are crisp, fresh and tangy, and a great additon to any burger. The Brewdog soaked trio of bacon, onions and BBQ sauce add a depth of flavour at a level I've not tasted many times before in a burger. Like the accompanying beer, this is deep, dark and complex. So eyes elsewhere lager boys. At face value, its a bacon and cheese burger with onions and pickles. But the beer additions make it much more than this. There's just one issue. For all its complexity, I'd probably rather those beers were slipping down my neck rather than sloshing about in the kitchen. Just.

Rating: 

Meat 2.5/3

Bun 2/2

Fillings 2/2

Package 2/2

Extra point? No

Overall 8.5/10

GBK - Camemburger

Camemburger - Camembert, hash brown, truffle mayo, onion jam, relish, brioche bun £9.75

Burger type: Pub/Gourmet/Inbetween/Dirty

Camembert eh? Definitely goes with chicken. But beef? Blue cheese is the pairing for beef, right? Right. But actually Camembert works. And better than expected. There's a really nice taste to this burger. Onion jam obviously buddies up with the Camembert perfectly, and the hash brown and truffle mayo add further depth of flavour. In fact it all goes together rather too well, and blends into a big mush of a burger. You see, that's the problem. All of the ingredients have the same soft texture. There's nothing to add crunch. And that soft, sweet brioche bun might have been the obvious choice to go with the flavours, but it doesn't help this issue. Sure, it's not the kind of burger you'd want to start sticking salad in, but a nice fat crispy onion ring could have added much needed crispiness whilst complementing the other flavours. A good burger then, but too soft to compete with the big boys.

Rating: 

Meat 2/3

Bun 1/2

Fillings 1/2

Package 2/2

Extra point? No

Overall 6/10

Christmas Burger #3 - Honest Burgers - Christmas Special

Christmas Special - Beef patty, smoked bacon, deep fried panko-crumbed Camembert, cranberry sauce & rocket (with rosemary fries) £11 including rosemary chips

Burger type: Pub/Gourmet/Inbetween/Dirty

Christmas burger round-up part 3. Usually the weak link, right? Wrong. It was the turn of Honest Burgers and I was hoping for something pretty special, save for the usual queue. Fortunately I timed my visit bang inbetween lunch and dinner and got a table straight away (despite now having 5 branches, queueing remains an issue at Honest Burgers, although they do use a text system to let you know when your table is ready - ideal for those of the pre-food pint-in-a-pub persuasion. I can only suggest that they need to open more branches still. Or idiots stop telling everyone how good their burgers are on blogs...). The burger arrived with Camembert oozing over the patty and a nice stash of bacon topped with cranberry. The beef, just like my last visit, was top notch and cooked perfectly. The fillings add a lot of flavour and plenty of moisture to the burger. This is by far the most Christmassy of the three festive burgers, and it tastes awesome. There's no scrimping on the quality of ingredients at Honest Burgers and you can tell. Well done Honest Burgers: a deserving festive addition to the 10/10 burger wall of fame. It's being served until the 5th Jan so be quick!

Rating: 

Meat 3/3

Bun 2/2

Fillings 2/2

Package 2/2

Extra point? Yes - this is Christmas is a bun

Overall 10/10

Christmas Burger #2 - Byron - Triple Cheesemas

Triple Cheesemas - Two 6oz hamburgers, American cheese, Emmenthal, Monterey Jack, onion, shredded iceberg, pickles and spicy burger sauce £11.95

Burger type: Pub/Gourmet/Inbetween/Dirty

Ok, so Byron's Christmas offering is distinctly un-festive save for the name. But just look at it! It's the stuff of cheesy burger dreams. Sure, it's not the cheapest burger around, but you get a hefty package weighing in at 12oz of beef, with three types of cheese. The pickles and spicy sauce add some crunch and kick to the burger, which is packaged in Byron's signature squishy bun (a bun up among the best). There are a lot of fillings and my burger was served up standing tall and perfectly formed. Inevitable spillage occurs once you tuck in but considering the amount of fillings, it's a very photogenic package. The patties were served perfectly medium on my visit, and 12oz of them will keep those meat cravings in check. If you've got a hangover to soak up or simply got a big appetite, this is the festive burger to get your grubby hands on.

Rating: 

Meat 2/3

Bun 2/2

Fillings 2/2

Package 2/2

Extra point? Yes - this is pretty special. I haven't stopped craving it since I had it.

Overall 9/10

Christmas Burger #1 - GBK - Bah Humburger

Bah Humburger - 6oz beef (or chicken) burger smothered with smoked cheddar cheese, crispy bacon, house mayo, shallots and crunchy red pickle £9.95 or £14.95 with fries and a drink

Burger type: Pub/Gourmet/Inbetween/Dirty

Dry, dry and dry. This burger was simply too dry. The patty was overcooked again. There seems to be an issue with the large chains (GBK/Byron I'm looking at you) that when restaurants get busy, patties get overcooked. This aside the fillings sounded appealing with the red pickle adding a Christmas touch to an otherwise pretty standard burger. But the result lacked any sort of juice/moisture - there needed to be a lot more cheese and more mayo or other sauce. And I'm not a fan of the standard sesame bun - the fillings need to have a lot of moisture to counteract the dryness of the bread in this style of bun rather than with glazed and brioche buns, which are a lot more forgiving. The pickle is a nice addition to this burger and saves it from a lower score still, but there is nothing special enough about the Bah Humburger to recommend it. Did I mention it was dry?

Rating: 

Meat 1.5/3

Bun 0/2

Fillings 1/2

Package 1/2

Extra point? No

Overall 3.5/10

GBK - Kiwiburger

Kiwiburger - Beetroot, egg, pineapple, aged Cheddar, salad, mayo & relish £9.25

Burger type: Pub/Gourmet/Inbetween/Dirty

It doesn't sound particularly appetising - egg, beetroot and pineapple in a burger. But take it from me - it works. It's not going to blow you away but it's a far cry from the stomach-churning mouthfuls you might expect it to be. As I've said before, beetroot is a top burger filling adding a nice sweetness to the patty. I think few people will argue with an egg, especially with a pleasingly runny yolk as served here. The major sticking point is probably going to be the pineapple for most people; if this is an insurmountable obstacle between plate and mouth then it can always be removed or ordered without. If you can get over this you'll find that it is a fairly subtle taste in the burger and works well with everything else. My major issue with the burger is that there is so much sloppiness that it doesn't stand a chance of holding together. Sure it turned up presented and stacked well (with the help of a stick), but once you get your knife/mouth into it things turn decidedly messier. The egg yolk breaks and runs everywhere which is to be expected, but with the relish and cheese sliming over the already slimy beetroot and pineapple, the burger ends up looking like it's just endured a giant earthquake. It tastes good, but it doesn't feel enough like a burger as half ends up on your plate. I would cook the cheese into the patty, put the egg on top so that the bun can soak up some of the yolk, and use grated beetroot in an effort to straighten this Pisa - just a suggestion GBK! Oh, and my patty was overcooked again - that lack of consistency an inherent problem with chain restaurants.

Rating: 

Meat 1.5/3

Bun 1/2

Fillings 2/2

Package 0/2

Extra point? Yes - we might not see one in this country, but well done GBK for trying to prevent the extinction of the Kiwi with donations from these burgers

Overall 5.5/10