Meat Liquor, London - Dead Hippie Burger

Dead Hippie Burger £8.50
Cheesy Fries £4

Rating
Burger Patty: 8/10
Bap: 8/10 
Relish: 7/10
Sides (accoutrement's): 9/10
Ambience: 9/10 

Total Rating: 41/50

Ok well this was a huge delight. Today I was escorted by Rosie to Meat Liquor an infamous burger joint in London town.

Despite it being Saturday lunchtime there was a large queue. Pretty amazing. After a short wait we were ushered to a pop-art styled bar which was as dark as Hollister. Very atmospheric, chic and fun. Playing excellent tunes. It's certainly unlike any other burger restaurant I've ever been to.

At the bar we ordered some weird and wonderful cocktails which turned out to be excellent. My name was called and we were shown to our table.

I went for the "Dead Hippie" which is a double stack burger with secret Dead Hippie sauce and pickles along with a side of cheesy fries with onion. Rosie is a veggie and has the veggie halloumi and onion option with deep fried pickles.

Our food came quickly and smelled amazing...

Burger: Hot and fresh, very little rusk used, plenty of fat for flavour. Good sized patty's. Could possibly do with a little more seasoning. Managed to be neither crumbly or sticky. Moist but not dripping, very good indeed. 8/10


Bap: Great fresh white bread, untoasted, only slightly bigger than the patty. Structural integrity excellent, lasted the whole burger even though it was a double. Could be slightly thicker but I'm nit picking. 8/10


Relish: Now, the secret Dead Hippie sauce was excellent, a creamy mayo/mustard based concoction. BUT I think it lacked a certain bite, it almost needed to find a counterpoint in something tangy and sharp e.g. tomato relish, sweet chilli sauce. 7/10


Cheesy chips: These were amazing! Perfectly cooked chips; hot, slightly crisp on the outside, soft but no uncooked potato. Perfectly seasoned. The cheese was top quality cheddar and had melted all over but crucially not been grilled. The fried onion was a subtle, but welcome, tangy addition to this masterpiece.
Deep fried gherkins with blue cheese dip were also out of this world. Never seen them done so well. Total of 9/10 for sides!


Ambience: Totally won over. Fun and helpful staff, busy and vibrant restaurant. Very comfortable and welcoming atmosphere. Fun stuff to look at on the walls. Photobooth to play with and print photos. Excellent bar with great cocktails. Not too hectic, some nice personal touches. 9/10

So there you have it. Welcome to your new leader! Hands down beats Five Guys and edges out Byron Burger. More research needed ;-)

Splitz Bar and Grill - Whistler, B.C, Canada (International edition!)

Splitz Custom Burger and Fries - $12

Rating
Burger Patty: 6/10
Bap: 6/10 
Relish: 6/10
Sides (accoutrement's): 6/10
Ambience: 7/10 

Total Rating: 33/50

So I'm lucky enough to be on holiday in beautiful BC!

Obviously my first port of call was a renowned local burger restaurant. Splitz serves burgers, grilled meats and milkshakes to hungry bikers in summer and skiers/boarders in winter.

The burger I tried was their standard burger with bacon and cheese added at a dollar each. Included in this price is fries and two sauces which is great value for hungry bikers. 

After paying you head to a sort-of deli-counter... Now because of the low price I was not expecting much chane of customisation so this part of the experience was very impressive. You can pick sauces, salads to choice and extra toppings. I went for pickles (lots), red onion, Splitz burger sauce and barbeque sauce. I was restrained for the sake of purity of flavour but it would be fully possible to go mad here and create a huge custom mountain of a burger!

So we headed for the table and tucked in:

The patty was good; well seasoned, nice and chunky cuts of meat and cooked to a genuine "medium". 6/10

I went for a wholegrain bun which was pleasingly grainy with oats and a lovely brown texture. However this lost marks because it could have been fresher and did fall apart a little, 6/10.

 The Splitz sauce was really good, a creamy garlic and chive (?) concoction which made a nice base for the burger. The BBQ sauce was average. A solid 6/10

The chips were well seasoned with salt and pepper and portion size was good. The back bacon was crispy and salty North American style and the Cheddar cheese was creamy but with a kick. The red onion was raw and sweet and there were three thick slices of pickles. Well done chaps!!! I liked these skin-on fries but these tasted a little old so i had to knock them down to a 6/10.

Ambience was fun with lots of extreme sports pics, very friendly staff and fast service. Although the range of choice was a little overwhelming the staff guided me through well. a solid 7/10.

I think it should be noted that my friend Greg who I ate with found my scoring system unnecessarily harsh, but I don't believe so. 5/10 indicates an average score - it indicates that there is nothing special going on but everything is adequate. 6/10 is above average - worth a special mention. 7/10 is very good, this really surprised me and is worth travelling for. 8/10 is excellent, this is much better than the norm and exceeded any expectation. 9/10 is pretty much perfect, this totally blew my mind and is an amazing experience in itself. 10/10 is perfect, this cannot be bettered and is the best thing you can have in the world with no equal. Hope this clears everything up for you Greg...

If you wanna go to Splitz, their website is here.

Table Table Cheese & Bacon Melt Burger

"Served in a glazed bun with lettuce, tomato and red onion, accompanied by our NEW skinny cut fries and burger relish". £8.99

Rating 
Burger: 6.5/1
Bap 7/10 
Relish: 5/10 
Sides: 3/10 
Ambience: 7/10
 
Total Rating: 28.5/50 

Sorry for the long absence and lack of blogging readers! I've been busy with other projects but I hope there will not be another burgerless gap this long!

So I took a trip to a restaurant called Table Table. Of course I ordered a burger from their "Gormet Burger" menu. I chose the standard cheese and bacon burger and waited expectantly for it to arrive. Customer service was excellent but a lack of culture/atmosphere brought down the ambience score to a solid 7/10.

Burger was good - tasty, dense and moist so a good solid 6.5/10 there. The bun was fresh and not too crusty, but constructed well enough not to fall apart before the end of the burger; 7/10.

The Sydney relish (tomatoey stuff) was good but nothing special, 5/10. The bacon was unsmoked and very salty and crispy, good job lads. The chips seemed good quality but they arrived cold, soggy and oily. A disappointing 3/10 as they knocked them off the bill. Thanks guys!

Overall this burger hit the spot. It was good value and it filled a hole, an enjoyable meal although calling it "gourmet" was a bit of a stretch!

The Kitchen Table 'Welsh Lamb & Mint Burger'

Rating
Burger: 7/10
Bap 9/10
Relish: 6/10
Sides: 6/10
Ambience: 6/10

Total Rating: 34/50 

The Kitchen Table is a small, nicely decorated rustic cafe/restaurant in the seaside town of Mumbles, on the edge of the Gower. Open since June 2010 and serving up its homemade, mostly locally-sourced food since then. 

The lamb burger was good but didn't have 'zing'. Possibly needed more seasoning. Very nice though. Moist, fresh, filling and cooked correctly. Perhaps a little too small?

The bap was a highlight. In my opinion it couldn't be much better. It was wholewheat (usually not my preference), but because it was home-baked, of a good thickness, maintaining good structural integrity throughout, and very fresh it gets the Will seal of approval. 

There was an onion relish to go with the burger. I can proudly say it was introduced to the menu due to my previous feedback when trying the burger before; proof of Burger Boy's influential credentials! A lovely relish but unfortunately didn't quite match the lamb and mint burger, it would taste better alongside their beef burger.

On the side was a large portion of salad that included pine nuts, mixed leaves, roasted potatoes and some fabulous gherkins. There weren't enough of these as they were amazing. (They're called 'Cowboy Pickles' and you can buy them at The Kitchen Table.) It was all very nice, tasty, and filling. However it's just not chips!

The restaurant is based in an old pottery, and is full of trinkets, homemade candles, pictures drawn by visitors and lots of pottery for sale. The atmosphere is great. It's relaxed, with a sea view, nice music and really friendly staff. The only downside to this experience was that we were placed by the door, so every time anyone came in or out we were hit by a draft. This, accompanied with the just too hot radiator means that I had to knock a couple of points off for ambience. Please don't let this put you off going though as it's a great place!

SO this burger takes pride of place on top of the burger shaped-podium here at Burger Towers. Fresh, locally sourced ingredients and a different spin on the mix of ingredients tipped the scales for me. It just goes to show that sometimes you have to think outside the box in order to succeed. So head down to The Kitchen Table and try it sometime - an excitingly different burger...

£16 for two courses (I chose the amazing garlic mushroom and pesto bruschette for starter)

thekitchentablemumbles.wordpress.com

Gower Kitchen Gower Burger, smoked bacon, cheese & fries

Rating
Burger: 8/10
Bap 7/10
Relish: 4/10
Sides: 5/10
Ambience: 8/10

Total rating: 32/50

Gower Kitchen opened in Summer 2012 and is a quirky and quaint, local restaurant and tea shop in Uplands, Swansea. It's popular with students and Mumsy-types who enjoy vintage china, excellent (Teapigs) tea and kitsch posters. 

The burger was enjoyed as part of their lunch time deal where all main courses are discounted. It arrived and first impressions were good - all parts of the burger were secured with a sprig of fresh rosemary. The rustic cut chips were presented in a bowl, alongside a sour cream and chive dip. 

The toasted white bap was crusty but not too crusty. The bacon was smoked, which was a nice touch but in some ways seemed to overwhelm the subtle flavour of the patty (which was *excellent* - juicy and flavoursome). 

The cheddar cheese was a nice touch, keeping with the classic, British theme of the burger. Greenery was provided by fresh watercress, which was a welcome change from crunchy, American-style salad. 

The cheese and chive sauce was a risky choice for a side, and - in my opinion - the burger was lacking tomato/chutney/relish underpinnings. That said, it did go excellently with the chips, which were perfectly cooked and definitely from fresh potatoes.

£10.50 seemed a very good price for this gourmet delight, staff were friendly, and the atmosphere was light and sociable. 

http://gowerkitchen.com

Chiquito’s Classico Burger "A juicy beefburger with dill pickle and melted cheese"

Rating
Patty – 6/10
Bap – 5/10
Relish/Sauce – 7/10
Accoutrements – 5/10
Ambience – 4/10


Overall Score = 27/50

A "Texican" style diner opposite Odyssey nightclub off Wind St in Swansea which serves Mexican and Southern American food. Mexican music is played and there is a stone gecko by the door which you should rub for good luck. 

I have had poor experiences at Chiquito's before but I was tempted by the £5.99 lunchtime menu. All seemed promising as a polite and genuine waiter seated us and took our order. 

The burger...
The burger was hot and the helping of burger and chips (although small) was acceptable for the bargain price. I was pleasantly surprised at the patty which was tender and succulent but not overly fatty. The bap was average. The salad in the burger was fresh but as is so often the case; too much tomato for my liking! Chips were good but nothing special.

Sauces were a major winner; on top of the salad was a helping of ketchup and below the burger was mayo - although nothing groundbreaking in terms of actual ingredients, this was a classic sauce combo and saved the hassle of me doing it myself.


Unfortunately Chiquito's you only get a 4 for ambience because (despite the excellent waiter) there were no other customers and it was a bit on the dark side (sorry lord Vader).

Overall; a satisfactory burger which met my high standards and for the price this has got to be pretty high on the list :-)

http://www.chiquito.co.uk/site/menus/lunch/

Bacon Cheeseburger Frankie and Benny's, Swansea,

Bacon Cheeseburger

Rating
Patty – 6/10
Bap – 4/10
Relish/Sauce – 6/10
Accoutrements – 6/10
Ambience – 5/10


Overall Score = 27/50

An Italian-American style diner just of Wind St in Swansea. Decorated with pictures and posters from America from the late 20th century, it was pleasant for a chain. In the evening a bonus is the great view of drunken people falling over, many of them wearing minimal clothing. Right, the bacon cheeseburger...

The patty and was good, but not as fresh as it could have been. The bap was not fresh and fell apart and I had to resort to crude and unorthadox eating methods (knife and fork). Relish was caramelised onion and really hit the spot, especially with the cheese with was real grated stuff, not plasticy rubbish. Chips were good but nothing special. The stand out of this burger for me was the bacon, cooked to perfection (not too crispy) and tasted like good quality meat. Service was fast and the waitress friendly.

Also, worth trying is the Ginger Daniels, an interesting cocktail made with alcoholic ginger beer and a shot of Jack = yum!