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

Byron - Mo'shroom

Mo'shroom - 6oz hamburger, Portobello mushroom, Emmenthal, streaky bacon, shredded iceberg, red onion and cep aioli £9.95

Burger type: Pub/Gourmet/Inbetween/Dirty

Byron have a monthly special burger, and since 2010 during November they've supported Movember by making a donation for each of their special burgers ordered. This year that burger is the Mo'shroom with Portobello mushrooms, Emmenthal, bacon and cep aioli (blanched garlic, cep mushrooms and tarragon). The sliced mushrooms are layered over the burger underneath the cheese and add a distinct flavour without the sliminess that can plague mushrooms. The choice of Emmenthal cheese complents the mushroom, but the real winner here is the cep aioli - adding an extra punch of mushroom sauciness to the package. I really enjoyed the flavour of this burger - something a bit different to most options out there. It was only let down by somewhat lacking service on my visit, an overcooked patty that was not as pink as usual (and hence a half point docked), and a burger that was not as warm or stacked as carefully as it could have been. You've got until the end of the month to get your Mo tickled with some mushroom meatiness.

Rating: 

Meat 1.5/3

Bun 2/2

Fillings 2/2

Package 1/2

Extra point? Yes - credit for helping a good cause

Overall 7.5/10

Founders Arms - Tower 42

Tower 42 - double burger w/ bacon, monterey jack cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickles, mayo, chips and bbq relish £14

Burger type: Pub/Gourmet/Inbetween/Dirty

Served with chips and a sea of lettuce, this is a hefty burger. I never have particularly high hopes for pub burgers - their menus are generally too varied to excel at one thing in particular, so I guess this burger didn't disappoint too much. The positives are the bun which was a solid GBK/Byron standard - good choice Founders Arms. The fillings weren't bad either - nothing overly exciting but monterey jack is an upgrade from stock cheese and there's a couple of decent rashers of bacon in there. The moot point is the meat - not particularly surprising. There's certainly plenty of it, but as it is cooked well done (mine was also slightly burnt) it's dry and somewhat tasteless. The problem lies in the fact that most pubs use cheap cuts of meat in their burgers which prohibits them from cooking medium rare - and the taste seriously suffers for it. Pubs can't compete with the true burger joints, and yet the prices aren't wildly different. So in summary don't come for the burger, come for the views over the Thames and the Meantime/Camden Hells on tap (kudos to Youngs for adding these to the menial standard beers) and if you're going to have a burger whilst in residence keep those expectations in check.

Rating: 

Meat 0.5/3

Bun 2/2

Fillings 1/2

Package 1/2

Extra point? No

Overall 4.5/10

Dirty Burger - Cheeseburger

Cheeseburger - with tomato, lettuce, mustard relish and gherkin £5.50

Burger type: Pub/Gourmet/Inbetween/Dirty (of course!)

It's hidden down a side road in a small steel shack. There's a choice of 1 burger. No toilets (you can use Chicken Shop/Pizza East's which share the location). And you place your order at the till and collect it on a tray when your number gets called. This is a no-nonsense burger and it doesn't give a sh*t what you think about it. And you know what? It's bang on the money. A superbly seasoned patty: pink on the inside, smothered in cheese on the outside, sits pride of place in a steamed bun together with lettuce, tomatoes, gherkin and a strong mustard relish. It's the Ronseal of the burger world and it hits the spot right down the middle. Made even better by the price - you could have two of these for the cost of some gourmet burgers in London and you'd probably leave twice as satisfied. There's a choice of two sides - crinkle cut fries and onion fries - both are good, but they're small time compared to the big dirty reason for your visit. You can get your hit either in Kentish Town, or more recently down in Vauxhall, and both do breakfast before 11am. Camden Town Pale Ale on draught up north and BrewDog bottles down south to wash this beauty down properly.

Rating: 

Meat 3/3

Bun 2/2

Fillings 2/2

Package 2/2

Extra point? Yes - it's a bargain!

Overall 10/10

The Advisory - Cheeseburger Special

Cheeseburger w/ chorizo, jalapenos & beetroot  - plus tomato, lettuce and gherkin £7

Burger type: Pub/Gourmet/Inbetween/Dirty

Don't be alarmed, the meat isn't still mooing - it's beetroot, not blood! Burger joints are a bit thin on the ground over on the East side of town. Clearly the burger trend isn't trendy enough. But The Advisory is keeping burger cravings in check in Hackney with a range of burgers, sides and several specials on the board to choose from. This burger is one of the specials and it was pretty damn good. The patty is a nice big slab, cooked to perfection and good and tasty. Beetroot is a win in a burger, and the jalapenos give the burger a decent kick. Everything works well together in the brioche bun, but the meat is still the main event as it should be. I'm keen to try some other offerings next time I'm in the area. On the menu they instruct you to wash your burger down with a beer; not hard to adhere to when the likes of Kernal Brewery's IPA is amongst the offerings. There's cocktails as well if that's your thing. And the name? Well, the premises used to be an Asian Womens Advisory Service of course.

Rating: 

Meat 3/3

Bun 2/2

Fillings 2/2

Package 1/2

Extra point? No

Overall 8/10

London Burger Bash Round 4

Another month, another burger competition. This time held at Camden Town Brewery, there would be 24 competitors in total flipping burgers for votes over 4 rounds, each held over 2 days, unlike the 12 burgers in one night extravaganza at Borough Market last month. The winner from each round will go into a final to compete for best burger. This was serious business then. And this time I had a ticket.

In the previous 3 rounds, Fred Smith, Patty & Bun and Bleecker St Burger had conquered, knocking out the likes of Byron, Elliot's, Hawksmoor and Mother Flipper. Competition was stiff.

Armed with our full tickets (5 half burgers and 1 full burger all washed down with some top beer from Camden Town Brewery), myself and a fellow burger muncher set off to chow down some meat and cast our vote.

So in reverse order, here's my ranking of the 6 burgers from the evening:

6th Place
Ibérica - Iberica Burger Grande - secreto Iberico pork loin, rosemary manchego cheese, salsa Iberica, demi-brioche bun

Thoughts:

There's no doubting the quality of the meat and other ingredients in this offering, but for me pork burgers just can't stand against beef pattys. The meat is much drier and so doesn't pack as much flavour.

5th Place
Trific - Hamburg Hamburger - aged beef patty, smoked shallot mayo, beetroot pickles, fried quail egg, herring salsa, brioche bun

Thoughts:

So what have ze Germans from Hamburg got for us? I fairly liked the sound of this one (with the exception of the herring salsa); I think beetroot works really well in a burger and who doesn't like a fried egg? It's certainly a packed half burger with the salsa and mayo going on once cut, but there were too many flavours in this offering. Everything competes rather than working together and the quail egg was completely lost inside.

4th Place
Zoilo - Chimichurri Burger - chimichurri-infused patty, caramelised onions, grilled tomatoes, provolone cheese, roasted garlic aioli, house spicy pickle, brioche bun

Thoughts:

A nicely cooked patty here and a lot of flavoursome ingredients in this burger. It's not a bad burger by any stretch, but I found the herby flavour of the chimichurri very strong. All of the ingredients are cooked resulting in quite a mushy burger. It needs a bit of lettuce or something crunchy to add some texture.

3rd Place
Shake Shack - Smokeshack - cheeseburger, British free range Wiltshire cure smoked bacon, chopped cherry pepper, shacksauce, potato roll

Thoughts:

The only full burger of the evening (due to the modest size of the patty) and extra points for all the guys on the stand being really friendly (and giving us t-shirts) and for bringing their beer nut ice-cream to the party (yep, we managed to fit it in!). I haven't got round to visiting Shake Shack in Covent Garden yet, but from what I hear the burgers are McDonalds esq but better. This was the feeling with this burger. The patty (in part due to its thinness) can't compete with the other burgers here, but it's still a good few leagues above McDs. The bacon was good quality, the potato roll clothes the fillings well and the chopped cherry pepper is a little bit special. Both of us munched down this burger very happily.

2nd Place
Burger Bear - Black Forest Bear - aged beef patty, black cherry bacon jam, double oak smoked bacon, american cheese, black toasted bamboo charcoal bun

Thoughts:

The most unique looking burger of the night due to the black bamboo charcoal bun. And the most impressive patty of the night as well - initially the size and shape of a tennis ball before being smashed down into a patty on the grill by Tom Reaney (Burger Bear). It doesn't disappoint. A great burger with everything done right and with special touches from the black cherry bacon jam and that black bun. These guys seemed to be having the best time of all the flippers, dancing around their mirrorball to disco beats. If I was being very critical the burger is very sweet and would soon get sickly, but this is a minor complaint.

1st Place
Tongue + Cheek - Piccante Heartbreaker - ox heart & dry aged beef patty, spicy nduja, smoked provola cheese, kewpie mayo, pickled onions, gem lettuce

Thoughts:

My top burger of the night. Great patty with extra meatiness from the ox heart and cooked superbly. Nice touch with the kewpie (egg yolk only) mayo, but the killer ingredient was the nduja sausage giving just the right amount of heat to the burger to make it something really special. Top burger this where the meat is still the lead role but all the supporting ingredients give a stellar performance as well.





And the winner is: No democracy can be based on just one burger blogger's vote - over the 2 days Burger Bear collected the most votes and was a deserving winner of the Golden Patty. He joins the 3 previous champion flippers in the grand final - I hope to be there!

A few shots from the evening: