Bill's - Cambridge, UK

Burger name: Bill's hamburger
Price: £11.15

Menu description:
Served in a sesame seed bun with red onion, tomato, lettuce, horseradish mayonnaise and skinny fries.  Addition of monterey jack cheese.

Rating:

Review:

A great burger in a great venue.  The roll was fantastic, one of the best I've had in some time.  Very fresh, soft and lightly toasted.  The burger itself was nicely cooked and tasted good although it did lack the elusive flavour that gives a burger a top rating.  I would recommend eating at Bill's if you are in Cambridge.

About the venue:
Bill's is rustic style restaurant in a side street of Cambridge.  Not easy to find unless you are wandering away from the crowds.

Ruby Tuesday - Tempe, Arizona, USA

Burger name: Triple Prime Cheddar Burger
Price: $11.99

Menu description:

Prime Burgers are the best of the best, made from fresh, 100% USDA Prime beef. Less than 3% of beef is graded Prime.  Topped with aged New York cheddar.

Rating:

Review:

It's been a while since I've eaten in a Ruby Tuesday restaurant so I was curious about how good their burgers still are.  We ate from their Dinner Menu which is served after 3pm and each burger comes with a choice of 2 side dishes.  I chose chips (fries) and onion rings.  The burger was cooked to order, as usual I selected medium, and could have been a 4 burger rating if the bread had been fresher.  You may be able to see from the picture above that it looks a little dry, which it was.  This is always a disappointment when that happens.  The food took a while to arrive and I suspect it spent some time under the heat lamp which caused it to dry out - a shame was the restaurant only had a few guests.

About the venue:

Ruby Tuesday is a nationwide chain of restaurants across the USA.  The one we visited was in Tempe Marketplace just south of Phoenix and Scottsdale in Arizona.

Cheesecake Factory - Scottsdale, Arizona, USA

Burger name: Americana Cheeseburger
Price: $11.95

Menu description:

American and Cheddar Cheese, Crunchy Potato Crisps, Lettuce, Tomato, Grilled Onions, Pickles and Secret Sauce.

Rating:

Review:

I don't recall seeing this on the Cheesecake Factory menu before so it could be a new addition in the last 12 months.  A very tasty and enjoyable burger with a sprinkle of wafer thin crisps (chips to our American cousins).  The secret sauce added another flavour dimension bringing this to a 4 burger rating review.  The chips (fries) were served in a silver cup but I just emptied them onto my plate for easier eating.  As with all Cheesecake Factory burgers this was cooked to order, I chose medium and it was cooked about right.  I may order this again if we return to the Cheesecake Factory before our holiday ends.

About the venue:

Cheesecake Factory is a restaurant chain in the USA with venues in many cities across the country. They are usually very busy at peak times and the portion sizes are very large. If you plan to eat more than once course make sure you are very hungry or are happy to take some of it home with you. The Cheesecake Factory in Scottsdale, Arizona is typical of a restaurant in the chain, nicely decorated and comfortable with a wide range of menu options - especially cheesecakes.

Giraffe - Heathrow Terminal 5

Burger name: Avec Cheese
Price: £10.25

Menu description:

British farm assured beef (170g) with choice of either mature cheddar, american or monteray jack cheese & lettuce, tomato, dill pickle, mayo & our house chipotle sauce.

Rating:

Review:

I ordered mine with cheddar cheese and a side order of onion rings.  I've reviewed a Giraffe burger before and felt that they are above average for airport food and this one was the same.  Nothing special but doesn't have that mass produced look and feel to it.  I enjoyed it as it marked the start of my holiday during which I planned to eat and review a number of burgers.

If you are travelling via Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 and looking for a quick meal then I can recommend this burger as an option.

About the venue:

Giraffe is a busy restaurant located on the upper floor of Heathrow Terminal 5 near the North security area. Giraffe also have high street outlets in many towns and cities around the UK.

Marriott Hotel, Budapest, Hungary

This is a guest review by my work colleague, Andrey.  He sent me a photo of his burger while I was travelling in the Netherlands, I can't tell you how jealous I was!!

Andrey's Dining Out Philosophy:
I am a great believer in importance of aesthetics and therefore invariably I am  more concerned with the ambiance and the mood of the place as well as the presentation of the food, and, probably, less about the taste itself. Why would you go out if you are not expecting to have an experience that ideally should begin with anticipation of something to happen, then, perhaps, it should continue with you either making an informed choice on where to go in case you have a pre-existing expectations or with you making a daring decision to try something new? Then you would go, try, and reflect with all these little elements that form your experience. Well, occasionally you just have to stop at a place and then make the best out of it. And sure enough, then you get very critical of what you are served.

About the Burger:

A standard burger, I would say. Well, at least the only one that was there on the menu with little other options. You probably could get a chicken one as well.

Rating:

Review:

Of course, it was reasonable to believe that Marriott will offer a good quality even in the lounge, but, I would say in this case, the quality from my perspective was very respectable. First, all these little burgers individually prepared. Secondly, a choice of variety of sauces as opposed to the cellophane packets with ketchup - these formed a very convincing view. The quantity was enough to settle your hunger for a good while and I opted to order it yet again the next day.

About the venue:
The Marriott Hotel in Budpest is located on the bank of the Danube River in Hungary.

"El Restaurante" at Los Naranjos - Puerto Banus, Spain

About the Burger:

A great burger at a great venue with fantastic views across the golf course and hillside above Puerto Banus in Spain.



Menu description:

The waiter took the menu before I'd noted the description and price so this is my second review in a row were I've missed this piece of information.  I'll try and recall the description:
Hamburger with cheese, pineapple, fried egg, salad and fries - €11.95

Rating:

Review:

A good burger and my first with a fried egg and pineapple although the egg was too overdone on the underside - I'm fussy about my fried eggs.  It was also my first to have Marie Rose sauce as a salad dressing.  I enjoyed this burger and the taste was above average but not enough to elevate it above a 3 burger rating.  I gave my egg to a friend who also took some fries so she could have egg and chips - I guess living in Spain you must miss some British classics.

About the venue:

I'd eaten at "El Restaurante" at Los Naranjos in the hills above Puerto Banus before when visiting a friend who now lives in Spain and I was looking forward to going back.  It's the restaurant for one of the many golf clubs in this area with a dining terrace that offers views of the golf course and the surrounding hills.

Est Caffe - Luton Airport, England

About the Burger:

An above average burger for an airport, better than expected and I would have it again.

Menu description:

I didn't get a menu description and price and I cannot find it on the internet - I'll update this posting the next time I visit again.  From memory it was something like:
100% beef burger with cheese, lettuce, bacon and skin-on fries - £11.50

Rating:

Review:

I was pleasantly surprised with this burger. I was expecting a mass produced burger with fatty bacon and a dry or over toasted bun.  The burger shape made it look more home made and the bacon was nice (although I prefer mine more crispy with my burger) and the bun was soft and fresh.  The fries were a bit tasteless and I'm not sure what leaving the skin on does for taste - probably nothing.  The burger itself was nice and although it lacked the taste of my recent 5 burger rated review specimen it wasn't bad.  If you're travelling from an airport with an Est Caffe venue I suggest you give it a try.

About the venue:

Est Caffe (yes, there are 2 F's) is a chain of venues that I've seen at various airports around the UK.  They provide a quick and convenient place to eat and kill some time while waiting for your flight.