The Burger Project, World Square

Miss Piggy and Dave attended the launch part of Burger Project as guests.  Sadly my Logistical Director (that's YOU Dave) accidentally left my camera at home, so please excuse my phone camera photos...they don't do the food justice!

There’s been much anticipation in the lead up to Neil Perry’s latest venture, Burger Project. Much of this anticipation is no doubt surrounding whether the burgers at this new causal eatery are going to be anywhere near as good as Perry’s famed burger the Rockpool Bar + Grill. I’ve never had the pleasure of indulging in that famous burger so I’ll leave the comparison making up others.

We visited Burger Project on their media preview night last night, two days before their scheduled opening on 31st October. Things are SUPER crazy and the kitchen is packed to the rafters with blue-shirted staff working the production line. Neil Perry is in there somewhere too, no doubt flipping his fair share of burgers. I think once the craziness dies down here, and the staff get in to the swing of serving a normal amount of people this place will be great.

Burgers aside, one of the most admirable things about Burger Project is the restaurants focus on the provenance of their produce. Only free range meat is used and their philosophy of using only animals that have led a happy life is plastered all over their website and the restaurant. For that very reason Burger Project will shoot to the top of my burger joints in Sydney.

You’d think will all that free range meet gracing the menu that prices would be high, but it’s quite the opposite. The price of a classic burger (grass-fed beef, onion, pickles, tomato, lettuce and a “secret sauce”) is just $7.90. For that price I thought the burgers would be tiny but rest assured these babies are monsters…definitely a two-hand burger if I ever saw one. Why are these great quality burgers so cheap? Who knows, but I’m thinking that perhaps with the size of Neil Perry’s restaurant empire he’s getting some good economies of scale which are feeding down into this venture. Dave and I do have a bit of a chuckle though that the most pricey burger on the menu is the mushroom burger which clocks in at $12.50. We think they must be “special” mushrooms?

To kick off our Burger Project adventure we decide to try the Crispy Hot Wings ($3.50 each or 3 for $9.00). The whole chicken wings are HUGE and come with your choice of Sichuan pepper and salt or a classic hot sauce which looks a bit like the salted duck egg sauce we had in Ashfield a while ago. We opt for the Sichuan pepper and salt (because I love salt, der) and it is delicious. The chicken wings are super moist and tender, though a smidge oily and the seasoning is spot on. 

Although there are hot dogs on offer we both decide to order a burger. Because I had been thinking the burgers would be small, and because I am a guts, I order the Double ($11.90) which is a mistake as it’s HUGE! The monstrous burger holds two grass fed beef patties, cheese, onion, pickles, tomato, lettuce and the aforementioned secret sauce. It looks remarkably similar to the famous Shake Shack burger, coming wrapped in a grease proof paper bag. The burger is tasty but doesn’t blow my mind. Like I said less meat is probably a good thing for me on this one...and I think the burgers will be great once the place calms down a bit and the staff hit their groove.

Dave goes for a single patty option with a Cheese and Bacon burger ($9.50). His burger is basically the same as mine with minus one patty and plus some bacon. He really likes it...as evidenced by an empty tray at the end of our meal.

Housemade chips are on offer for $4.90 and as with the chicken wings you have a choice of seasoning. You can choose to dust your thrice cooked chips with either just salt, salt and vinegar or chipotle chilli. We both have no trouble in deciding on a salt and vinegar flavour…and it’s GOOD! The chips are crunchy and fluffy, and I love how the vinegar is just tart enough to make your eyes squint with each bite.

Dave obviously enjoyed his salted dulce de leche “real shake” ($6.50) as he goes back for a second pretty much as soon as the first one is done. I had a sip and can attest that this shake is THE BUSINESS PEOPLE! Alas milk is not my friend so I made do with a house soda ($4.50) – mandarin for me, though next time I’ll be trying the passion pop.

If the shake is not sweet enough for you there are some desserts on offer. Dave clearly hasn’t had enough dairy this evening and goes for a double scoop of ice cream ($6.50) that is topped with crumbled meringue (toppings are $1 extra). His ice-cream flavours are good old vanilla and again with the salted dulce de leche.

I think it's unfair to judge a restaurant within their first few weeks of opening, let alone solely on a pre-launch party where hundred of people came through door in a feeding frenzy. Given how crazy pants last night was I think every was pretty great for us. Staff were friendly, food came out in a reasonable time considering all of Sydney were there, and our food was hearty and tasty. I'm super keen to come back and try some more things in a few weeks.

The Burger Project is at Shop 11.06, World Square (next to Din Tai Fung, on Level 1); 644 George Street, Sydney. They are open 11am – 10pm every day.

Parlour Burger, The Rocks

Miss Piggy received a $50 voucher from Parlour Burger to enjoy their food + drink.

$10 burgers? Yes please!

It's nice to see more and more restaurants and cafes opening up in the CBD, giving hungry Sydney-siders (and tourists) more city-eating options. I remember when I first started visiting Sydney (back in the 80s) and the only place to sit down and eat up towards Circular Quay was City Extra, a few dodgy pubs...or McDonalds. Blergh.

You can find Parlour Burger nestled behind the recently revamped (and very swish looking)  Morrison Hotel on the top end of George Street.

Whilst the menu (and decor) at The Morrison are a little fancy, Parlour Burger is all about the burger in a traditional looking pub setting. And, the $10 burger at that!

There are five burgers on offer here, including a fish burger, chicken burger and a vegetarian burger. The BFF and I decide to try both the beef burgers on offer, and opt for our pattie to be well cooked rather than the recommended "pink" Parlour Burger suggest.

We start with the Orignal Morrison Burger that comes with Chipotle Mayo, Lettuce, Tomato and gherkins (yay)! I really liked this burger - it had a good, classic flavour with just a tang of heat from the chipotle mayo. The bun was neither soft nor hard, and lacked the overly sweet afternote that the currently popular buttermilk buns seem to have.

The Black Widow certainly packs a visual punch with its bun coloured black by charcoal. Yes, charcoal! The charcoal doesn't change the flavour of the bun (that I could detect) so fear not traditional bun-lovers!  The guts of this bun are basically the same as The Original Morrison asides from the inclusion of fresh jalepenos that certainly pack more of a punch than their pickled counterparts.

Where there are burgers there must be chips, duck fat chips ($6.00) to be precise!  These weren't as crunchy as I thought they would be, but were still very tasty.

I had REALLY wanted to try the deep fried pickles that are on the menu, but they'd run out by the time we arrived, so we opted for the cabbage salad with parmesan slaw ($5.00).

Parlour Burger is at 225 George Street, The Rocks. Phone them on 9247 6744.

The Tuckshop, Glenhaven

Whilst numerous cafe owners continue to set up shop in places like Surry Hills and Newtown, we're beyond chuffed that the guys behind The Baron have opened their new cafe in Glenhaven. We give two thumbs up for people who can see the potential of a cafe outside of the city...

Where's Glenhaven you ask? Once you get to Castle Hill...keep going which is perfect for Western Sydney dwellers like Dave and I!

We love this little motto printed on the menu of The Tuckshop, "where it's not the city and we couldn't care less". 

There's a lot of delicious looking food on the menu but we're here to try the burgers, that have already gained quite the reputation during the few short months that The Tuckshop has been open.

In keeping with "the tuckshop" theme all of the food arrives in these little (recycled cardboard) take-a-way containers...whether you choose to eat in or not. There's a great bigpark next to The Tuckshop so on a sunny day we'd bring a blanket and go eat in the park.

There are A LOT of tasty-looking burgers to choose from but I cannot go past the classic Cheeseburger (a bargain at $12.00) that comes packed with a beef patty, cheese, onions, mustard and ketchup (aka tomato sauce for you die hard Aussies).  The burger comes with a generous serve of old bay seasoned chips.

This is a REALLY GOOD burger! The bun is brilliantly soft and the beef patty is flavoursome and also nice and juicy. The combination of pickle, mustard and ketchup is so tangy and tasty -it's everything a cheeseburger should be. As soon as I finish this burger I debate with myself I could eat another one (sadly the answer was NO)!

The Boy is also swayed by the burger menu and orders "The Lot" ($16.00) and it is a massive burger crammed with a beef patty, bacon, egg, cheese, beetroot relish, tomato, lettuce that is topped with a smokey BBQ sauce.

This a a burger that must be eaten with two hands and deft maneuvering to make sure the egg stays put! The Boy tells me it's very good and has all the components of your classic Aussie burger from a little beach-side corner store.

Of course, all good burgers must have a great milkshake to help wash it down with. It's hard to pass up a Caramel Milkshake when it's on offer ($5.00) and like "the lot" burger, it's a classic flavour reminiscent of the milkshakes of our childhood.

We really enjoyed out lunch at The Tuckshop and cannot wait to go back. The guys have created a cosy, welcoming little space, with delicious food, that is much needed in our area. I'll be back for sure...and very soon!

The Tuckshop is at Shop 1,78 Glenhaven Road, Glenhaven.

 

Charlie + Co, Sydney CBD

Writing a blog post about big, fat, juicy, delicious hamburgers is pure torture when you've embarked on a diet. But I shall suffer for my craft...

Charlie + Co can be found on the food court level of Westfield in the CBD. Along with Becase Bakery it is the last remaining venture from Chef Justin North whose restaurant empire seemed to disappear of the face of the earth a few years ago. 

I've had the famed truffle + parmesan fries here before and to be honest I wasn't a fan. They were expensive, soggy and seemed overly greasy.  I walked away feeling oily (and fat)....but I'm all for second chances.

I'm pleased to report that second time around the fries were a hit. They were still expensive at $8 a pop, but they were crispy and had good flavour. For once I could taste the earthiness of the truffles.  It's a shame however that the burgers don't come with a "side of fries" option as an $8 bowl of fries is just too big for one person...even a greedy person like me.

There are only about six burgers on the menu so I stuck with a classic - The Charlie Wagyu Burger ($16 {or forgo the special Charlie + Co "special seating area" and save $2 and go sit in the food court with everyone else}) as it comes with cheese AND pickles

Whilst expensive (are you sensing a theme here) the burger I had was good. The bun was nice and soft, but not sweet (which is a good thing in my book). I thought the patty was flavoursome but I was super chuffed that Charlie + Co offers a selection of cheeses and I was even more chuffed to see Blue Cheese on offer! Yes PLEASE!

Charlie + Co can be found at Level 5, Westfield (Cnr Pitt St Mall and Market Street),
Sydney.


 

(almost) 48 hours of eats in Melbourne

WAY WAY back in December The Boy and I made a quick weekend trip down to Melbourne. Why? Well, to eat...of course!

We started the weekend off with dinner at one of our tied and true favourite places, Mamasita. I honestly don't believe we have Mexican as great as this in Sydney so we go almost every time we're in Melbourne. The corn, oh the corn!  I've written about Mamasita before so you can check it out over here...

Bowery to Williamsburg

Set in a sub-basement level space you can't help get the nod to all things New York Subway as you descend the stairs into the cafe.  Owned by the team behind our beloved Hardware Societe, Bowrey to Williamsburg is every bit as good as I thought it would be. The menu has a decided bent towards Americana (in a good way)...bagels, pastrami beef hash, lox latkes...and not a slider to be seen anywhere folks.

The Boy (of course) goes for the Big Breakfast and I cannot help but covet his slab of farmhouse, thickcut bacon that is hidden beneath all those eggs, tomatoes and spinach. Me, I wanted something lighter as we had a special lunch planned in the not too distant future. I ADORE onion bagels and when I found out these guys have them I was sold! Whack a bit of smoked salmon, scallion cream cheese and capers on there and I'm as happy as a pig in...an onion bagel!

Bowrey to Williamsburg is at 16 Oliver Lane, Melbourne.




Movida Next Door

We visited Movida about two years for my birthday and I whilst I thought it was...ok, I wasn't blown away. I totally thought Movida would totally rock my world and I walked away a bit flat. For starters, I think my expectations were too high, plus we didn't order very well (too many small plates and not enough biggies left us hungry...and broke).  The wait staff weren't particularly helpful in pointing our our ordering woes...and they weren't overly friendly either.

BUT I'm all for second chances and this trip I really wanted to lunch at Movida Next Door. AND I loved it!  LOVED IT!

Our waiter was super friendly and gave us great suggestions in ordering what turned out to be a specular and tasty lunch. I also loved the more relaxed feel of Movida Next Door as opposed to its  more dimly lit, slightly stuffy next door neighbour, Movida. This place felt light, airy, fun, modern and special....in a relaxed Saturday afternoon kind of way.

We ordered mostly from the specials menu - a lovely fennel salad; unctuous, fatty pork belly with a zesty apple salad; a sizzling pot of buttery tiger prawns; and a plate of massive, meaty field mushrooms.

Of course we had to order the bomba from the menu as it's one of the dishes that Movida is well know for - chorizo filled Catalan Potato Bomb with a spicy sauce. Delish. As was the Croqueta - a fried croquette of wild mushrooms that the waiter talked us into having for dessert.  This was an EXCELLENT lunch and I'd head back to Movida Next Door in heartbeat.







Movida Next Door is at 164 Flinders Street (cnr Hosier Lane), Melbourne.




Huxtaburger, Collingwood

What can one say about Huxtaburger other than "YUM"...oh, and "get in my belly" (and maybe "should I have a second burger so soon after finishing my first")?

This place is a well known institution for burger lovers.  We made our pilgrimage to the original store on Smith Street, Collingwood TWICE to worship at the alter of the best burgers around - soft buns people! SOFT BUNS - they really make or break a burger.

I'm not really sure I need to say anything about the burgers here.  I mean LOOK at them! LOOK! A picture really does paint 1000 words, especially if those words are just YUM repeated one thousand times.  And they burgers really are better than they look - so enough said really.

Oh, and crinkle cut chips? Still the best chips EVER I say.

Was this better than Shake Shack?  Hmmm. Yes...probably...maybe. The beef patty was so flavoursome and whilst the bun was quite sweet this was offset when you got a good mouthful of all of the burger ingredients.

Huxtaburger is at 106 Smith Street, Collingwood.



Jimmy Grants

To be honest, whilst Jimmy Grants was on my radar it wasn't at the top of my hit list for this Melbourne Trip. It was a case of too many great places to eat and not enough time or belly room.

And then my brain and my stomach had a negotiation and we decided that there was no problem having kebabs for lunch...no problem at all. I love that the souvas (aka kebab) comes stuffed with a few chips but the real winner for me was the grain salad - LOVED this so much! The salad was a medley of grains and lentils with toasted almonds, Spanish onion and parsley mixed through. The dressing was probably a mix of lemon and olive oil -- but so much better. And a fat dollop of Greek yoghurt on top was the icing on the cake for me.



Jimmy Grants is at 113 St David Street, Fitzroy/Collingwood.