It happened. It was glorious. In total, six dudes and eleven burger places. I was filled to the brim with beef. The venue list:
Now relax. I didn’t eat 11 full burgers in a single day. We ate at four places on a Friday afternoon and night, then six on Saturday, and I hit up the 11th about a week later. In a few locations we decided to split to save our wallets and our stomachs. At each place, we tried to stick with their classic burger. Beef, toppings, cheese, bun. We sampled the fries, occasionally threw in a beer or drink, and we were heroic eaters. I didn’t eat again for almost two days. We took notes, we discussed the merits of the bun and the meat, the freshness of the toppings. So, the results:
Hands down the worst burger was at Frying Pan. Granted, it’s not a burger place. We went there as a side trip to visit a going away party for a friend, saw the burger on the menu and it became an impromptu addition. But, I think a burger cooked on the floor of a bathroom by a drunk dog might have tasted better. Thankfully, we split that one among us. It was still the worst 1/4 burger ever. Among true burger joints, the real worst burger was Atomic Patty. So bad that some companions decided not to finish it. The bun was like rubber, the meat thin and boring. Odd because it is located in the middle of LKF and has gotten great reviews. Perhaps you need to have several pints in you to actually enjoy it.
The best burger? Unanimously, Burger Republic [39 Gough St., Central LINK]. While HK magazine denounces it’s greatness, our group must respectfully disagree. Great bun, great burger. Well cooked, slightly pink, and a happiness of toppings. The fries were crispy, the ambiance of the place was trendy and cool. But what is the true test of a great burger place? Let me set the scene. We had already eaten 4 burgers, fries, beers, and walked all around Wan Chai, Causeway Bay, and Central – since 11 AM. We showed up at Burger Republic around 6 PM, tt was the second to last place we went to that day. Despite being over stuffed, exhausted from eating and walking all day we still loved that burger. That is a winner.
Second places definitely go to Shake-em Buns [blogged about previously] and Burgeroom. Burgeroom is a little difficult to get to [as is Wow! Burger], but they are nicely priced and if I was in the area again I’d hit them up. Burgeroom also has some wild creations [a lobster burger and a soft shelled crab burger] which warrant a try just based on weirdness. If, however, you head to Shake-em, make sure you ask the to go light on the mayo. McSorley’s was good, but considering our prices before the pub had hovered below 45 HK for a burger, fries and drink and our price at the pub went over 100 HK, it was simply knocked out of the runnings by simple burger joints.
We used Time Out’s Best Take-Out Burgers guide as a jump point. But, as they placed McDonalds and Burger King in the top 10, we definitely took the list with skepticism. Sometime, however, I’d like to try out their United Nations of Burgers. That would be a fun day. Next post – burger pics.
I love a good burger. Meat, cheese, bun with a tomato, lettuce, onion – as Buffet once said, ‘Cheeseburger is Paradise.’ After a fun night in Central, we worked our way down to Shake em Buns. See their menu here. Cute title’s like ‘Cushion for the Pushin’ and ‘Doggystyle’ highlight otherwise boringly titled ‘Classic Hamburger’ and ‘Hotdog.’ To boot, the place is delicious [except the gravy fries. stay stay away from the gravy fries].
I opted for a Cushin with some bacon and fries. A little heavily slathered with mayo, this thing brought a party to my mouth and belly. It is probably the best burger I’ve had in Hong Kong so far. A friend ordered the same thing I did, while another ordered ‘Poutine ‘A’.' Fancily titled, they are french fried potatoes with gravy sprinkled on them. Now, I am a fan of all unhealthy cuisine – the faster it’ll cause a heart attack the bigger fan I probably am. Normally, gravy covered fries should be delicous. Problem? This gravy tasted distinctively of the sea, most likely scallops our taste buds informed. Now, fish gravy fries sounds just gross – which it is.
But man, that burger reignited a love lost within me. There are a few other burger joints around Hong Kong that profess to have ultimate and life changing patties. So, I think a burger-palooza is in order in the immediate future.
