2024 (page 2) | apples-burger-blog

Burger Club

Purpose: Burger Assessment
Good for: A quiet night in the Strand
Verdict:
Quite a small patty in a big bun, very saucy and drippy fatty, but the overall yesterday is pretty good. This seems to be a bit of a theme, and I'm not sure if I should just accept it as serendipity or blind luck, or good preparation, I'd prefer the latter but it would be nice to think that the individual components could be bettered and the overall be better than quote/unquote the sum of it's part. Medium cooked patty with a vague and slightly over-seasoned taste, very much swamped by sauce . The other salad items, present but in abstract form - not really offering much but just there. The chips were barely warm but still crispy, which either a triumph of quality product or chemical technology gone mad, you choose (I had no ill effects, so it wasn't damaging). Beers and wine a tad expensive but available so that's a win.
Burger: Surprising but average
Cost: £££

Purpose: Burger Assessment
Good for: Customisation
Verdict: First thing to note is that the basic burgers need you to request sauce and veggies, so best order at their self order screens. I've been caught out like this before - kudos to the server for warning me. Slightly confusingly the non-basic burgers come with their accoutrements. The bun was big and coldish, which affected the overall taste negatively. It then proceeded to squish to failure, falling apart during the last couple of bites. The double patties fairly nice, no char but beefy flavour, possibly overly juicy (let's say, rather than greasy, which didn't help the bun. I had the usual basic bits and bobs - mustard, ketchup, lettuce, diced onions was a nice touch, pickles were tasty. Cheese, however, didn't show up at all. Much like other recent burgers, the overall taste was good, but with a bit more care would have been good. Also similarly, quite expensive, maybe I'm out of touch.... Skin on fries neither hot nor crisp, but OK to taste, needed sauce, or better not being ordered. No beer, cute selection of local soft drinks which was a nice touch.
Burger: Don't have delivered, foil packaging (yuck, soggy, see 5 Guys)
Cost: £££

Purpose: Burger Assessment
Good for: Richness
Verdict: Not as hideously expensive as it could have been, given it's a Jason Atherton location - but he did say that he was going a bit less fine dining. You decide. Burger & chips £25, glass of beer was £8.50, but the Argyll Arms round the corner charges £7.95 for a pint of Peroni. On the plus side, both burger and Koffmann chips were excellent - and the chips were a chunky portion, so much so that I couldn't finish them plus the burger. The sauces (5 or 6 mayo based mixes plus ketchup/mustard) were also tasty. The burger itself was rich, the cheese and chilli mayo complementing the beef well - there were chilli slices between the patties, which added good piquancy, a bit of a lottery on the heat level. The beef itself was well cooked and tasty, felt like a higher fat percentage adding to the richness. Bun held it together nicely, lettuce and onion a bit lost in the background. My only gripe is the lack of texture, initially I thought the bacon in the burger was going to deliver it as my first bite had some crunch, but sadly the rest didn't - an opportunity missed to, as they say on Saturday Kitchen, elevate the burger to a higher level. I did like the tempura pickle though, nice touch.
Burger: Soft
Cost: ££££

Purpose: Burger Assessment
Good for: Mess
Verdict: Well the burger was not as expected - a chunky patty in a flatbread. On the plus side, nothing interfered with the taste of the meat, barbecue medium rare beef, steaky in a good way and complemented by the sweet caramelised onions, the tomato and sauce were positively dangerous - even with the skewer it couldn't be held together, the closet it came to being a beast. Don't bother with cheese, didn't add anything. Overall though, worth the £15 (without cheese which is £2 extra). Use the spicy chips to mop up the inevitable dripped, mainly crispy and good tasting before the addition of burger juices, sauce and onion. Bee courtesy of Kraft Beer downstairs, B&F do wine and soft drinks.
Burger: Crunchy
Cost: ££££

Purpose: Buying new jeans, didn't work out, tripped over this
Good for: Undercooked chips
Verdict: Burger comes deconstructed, with not enough sauce, but what there is is nice. Good gooey cheese makes a difference and the patty is good, medium cook, thick and juicy with a nice crust. Lettuce and tomato complete the standard burger nicely - all in all a decent effort. Fries on the other hand, not so good - alternately cooked and not, a roulette option I'm not in favour of. Big half slice pickle can't be added to the burger but is presumably one of, indeed all of, my five a day. Don't bother with the Wagyu, decent taste but dry, which even if it comes medium (which it did) shouldn't be the case. And yes, that was my second burger - but I didn't eat the chips. A number of good draught beers, which I wouldn't necessarily call craft (Beavertown being the closest), some bottles, wines and for the non-alcoholics the usual soda drinks and some good looking milkshakes.
Burger: Hit and miss
Cost: ££££