The Hunt for London's Best Burger…

I often speak of my love for a good Cheeseburger.

It’s one of my guilty pleasures. On the whole I eat fairly healthily, but if you stick a cheeseburger on a menu, I’m always going to be at least tempted – no matter what other tasty fayre may be on offer. There’s something so immensely satisfying about a juicy meat patty, packed inside a soft bun, topped with oozing cheese, crisp lettuce, onion…and whichever sauces float your boat. My mouth is watering just from writing that. I think I may have a problem.

We are extremely lucky in London to have seen a huge influx of burger joints over the last few years. Each new restaurant claims to be the “best burger in London”. Each puts their own twist on the classics. And each has their own recipe, their own USP, their own stand out feature.

So…where should you go for the best burger in town? I have been out and about, dutifully testing the major players (hard, hard life). Here are my thoughts on the best options right now:

Dirty Burger, Kentish Town

We wrote about Dirty Burger opening their second venue, in Vauxhall, back in August – but had not yet been in to try their original space in Kentish Town. Being a North Londoner, I now understand the error of my ways – as it’s fantastic. Owned by the Soho House group, and situated behind their Pizza East (or North?) restaurant, it’s easy to miss; and is fairly surprising. It’s no more than a small shack, seemingly made of corrugated iron, with one wooden island table in the centre, benches around the side and a serving counter. And – don’t forget – there’s only one burger on the menu. So you’d think – and hope – they’d get that burger right.

And my goodness, they do. It really IS what I would call a dirty burger – in that you cannot eat it without getting filthy. The bun is soft, the burger dripping with juices (not grease, just good, tasty juices) and sauce. It’s filled with a generous amount of topping, the meat was cooked perfectly (medium) and the cheese oozed.

The chips that came alongside were good. Good, but nothing sensational. I wouldn’t visit for those alone. But the onion fries? MY GOOD GOD THE ONION FRIES. I would visit, daily, just to eat these. They’re totally different from other onion rings – not just in that they’re not rings, but straight, like fries. They are also a mile ahead in sense of flavour. I’m not sure what goes into the coating, but whatever it is, it’s delicious. Crisp, non-greasy batter encases soft, sweet onion. Tasty and moreish, they made our visit one to remember.

Lastly, and also recommended, come the milkshakes. I went for Vanilla and it was lush; thick and well flavoured, and the perfect accompaniment to the meal.

I loved Dirty Burger. The food is great, the venue is quirky (although can’t imagine what it would be like at busy times, as it’s tiny) and the staff were really friendly. OK, with only one thing on the menu it’s not going to be for everyone, but for me? Yeah. I’m a fan.

Shake Shack, Covent Garden

We visited Shake Shack on a Friday evening. It’s smack bang in the middle of Covent Garden Piazza, and it was BUSY. However, we managed to find a table, under the heaters outside. It was FREEZING, and the heaters do go off every few minutes, so if you visit, my first recommendation would be to take away, or go at a time when you can get a table inside. But do visit. As other than the problem of the wintry evening, it was GOOD.

The menu here is much more extensive than Dirty Burger – with a selection of favourites from their venues across the pond, and some new options aimed solely at the London market. Along with a choice of burgers, they also also serve hot dogs and a puddings. We were hungry, so we chose to try a couple of the burgers that had been recommended; the  Shack Burger (pretty much a standard cheeseburger) and the Smokeshack – which has smoked bacon, special “shacksauce” sauce and chopped cherry peppers. The Shack burger was nice, but the Smokeshack was a bit special. Definitely recommended. We also tried the Shackmeister Sausage Hot Dog, which was lovely but went cold quite quickly in the sub-zero temperatures. I loved it though, especially the beer marinated crispy onions on top. Scrummy.

The burgers here were tasty, sure, but one of our stand out favourites here was a side, again. The cheesy fries are sensational. It’s pure indulgence; delicious chips, slathered in a rich, tasty cheesy sauce that I couldn’t stop eating. Again, I’d go back for this alone. Amazing.

Finally, despite the freezing temperatures, we chose to round everything off with one of the “concretes” – a thick frozen custard with a choice of toppings. I chose Sticky Toffee, which is a vanilla base, with chocolate toffee, Paul A Young chocolate chunks and salted caramel sauce. It’s phenomenal. Kind of reminiscent of a Daim Bar – but SO much better. It’s a shame it’s so damn cold outside, or I’d be eating many more of these. Delish.

Honest Burger

We were lucky enough to visit the newest restaurant in the Honest Burger line-up – on Portobello Road, Notting Hill – which is the largest in the chain.

The TLL crew have been twice now – once to the launch party, when we were treated to a selection of sliders; and then again on a week day lunchtime. The restaurant was quiet, but not empty, and service was brilliant. We were give personal attention by the SUPER friendly (and, I’m not going to lie, rather hot) staff, and the food came to the table quickly and perfectly.

The burgers here were great. They’re made with meat from Ginger Pig – one of London’s best Butcher’s – and are served in a delicious glazed bun. As usual, I opted for the cheeseburger (with cheddar. Good to have a benchmark, I find…), while my friend chowed down on one of the daily specials, which was topped with delicious bacon. The burger/bun held together well, was cooked to perfection and was the perfect size. I was satisfied, but not overwhelmed.

Again, Honest Burgers also excel at sides. Here, the rosemary salt fries are beautiful; and the beetroot and apply ‘slaw finished everything off perfectly.

Definitely impressed, and will definitely be back. A lot. It was LOVELY.

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I have thought about this long and hard…and I’m not sure I could pick a favourite from the three. Each were excellent and all had their highlights, and luckily for me, no real lowlights. I guess it’s lucky that there’s one in North London, one West and one Central. We just need to try out somewhere equally as awesome in East London, and there’ll be something on everyone’s doorstep. (If there’s somewhere you suggest, please do let us know in the comment box below!)

There are also a couple of other burger places we should mention. Five Guys and Tommi’s are both meant to be stellar; I haven’t included them as I haven’t eaten there…yet. Visit’s will be coming soon and I’ll add details if  they’re contenders and as good as they’re meant to be.

Last but not least? As a bit of an added extra? It’s definitely worth trying the Mo’Shroom Burger from Byron (available during November only). I’ve always been a fan of Byron for a quick Burger fix, but the Mo’Shroom, which is raising money for Movember – is absolutely delicious. Seriously good. I ate one on my birthday and couldn’t have been happier.

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Round of applause for all these delicious burger makers. You’re making this London girl a very happy girl indeed.

Long may the burger revolution continue!