Bleecker Burger vs Honest Burgers

In this battle of the burgers, some people may think this unfair as Bleecker Burger is a food truck, whereas Honest Burgers is a fast growing chain with 8 locations across London. However, as long as it’s a patty and a bun it can be compared.

I’ll start with my review of Bleecker Burger. Situated in Old Spitalfields Market, the smell of those sizzling burgers draws you closer, so I couldn’t wait to try this burger.

I’d also heard great things and if their Instagram is anything to go by, this burger should have been epic. I decided to have the Bacon Cheeseburger and Sweet Potato Fries.

I’m not sure if they were trying to go for the home barbecue style burger with fries or should I say ‘chips’, but this burger was just like a burger I’d make at home on my barbecue. The taste was indeed good, but I felt it didn’t have the juiciness I was looking for in a burger. Also the portion was incredibly small, not sure what size they advertise their patties are but if I did go back there again, I’ll definitely go for a double as the single was too small.

The sweet potato ‘chips’ were also quite salty and tasted like sweet potato they had just sliced up and fried, much like something I’ll make at home if I was trying to experiment making sweet potato fries. And to put the icing on the cake, a burger and fries came up to £11.00 and unfortunately I was still so hungry, I felt like I had just had a quick snack.

In Bleecker Burger’s defence, and also because I don’t like to slay any food that I try completely, the other diners food looked nicer. However, what I noticed about the two gentlemen who visited Bleecker Burger that were seated beside me was, one had two double cheeseburgers and the other had cheesy fries and a double cheeseburger, so clearly the portions aren’t enough for the customers.

 

Honest Burger: No bias here but this has to be one of the best burgers I’ve had in a long time. Here I went for the Tribute Burger along with the Rosemary Salted Chips that all the burgers at Honest Burgers comes with. I also substituted my cheese in this burger to mature cheddar instead of American cheese, as I’m not a big fan of the latter. A bit worried, considering my recent experience at Bleecker Burger, I considered ordering a double but the waiter assured me a single patty should be fine, and I was glad he did because this was very filling, and all for £10. The Tribute Burger was well cooked, with lashings of mustard, cheese perfectly melted and best of all this burger wasn’t messy in the slightest and it still retained the juiciness a burger should have.

The Rosemary Salted Chips, were well done, not refried, and salted to perfection. I was full but still continued eating my chips, because they were so good. At some point in my meal, I was eating and I stopped, and it was funny I thought to myself ‘This burger is so good, I don’t want it to end’.

The atmosphere in Honest Burgers was also quite nice and warm, and I got a vibe like it had a fusion of British and American culture. Also they have gluten free options, and surprisingly gluten free beer. The customer service was in a class all by itself. I was intrigued by one of their cocktails they served with an aperitif Kamm & Sons, that I never seen or heard of. One of the waiters gave me a shot of this to try and told me more about this drink with citrus notes and a honey palate, tasted a bit like a bittersweet gin. I was really impressed by this level of customer service.

Clearly in this battle, Honest Burgers won. Not only in the taste and portion of their Tribute Burger and value for money, but also due to their exceptional customer service. I would recommend visiting your nearest Honest Burgers if you haven’t yet, and if you have they have a special burger right now, which is a spicy Mexican fusion burger, with jalapeños, adobo and monterey jack quesadilla. Also they’re introducing a special warm cocktail for the season, made with Kamm & Sons as well and ginger beer. So you could definitely try something new.

Bleecker Burger 

Overall Experience – 3 stars

Customer Service – 3 stars

Meal – 3 stars

Honest Burgers

Overall Experience – 4.5 stars

Customer Service – 5 stars

Meal – 4.5 stars

Street Kitchen vs. Dining Room: Roti Chai

Roti Chai is run by Rohit Chugh, who previously ran Cinnamon club and set up Cinnamon Kitchen before branching out on his own. Roti Chai however isn’t your average Indian restaurant, it serves traditional Indian meals with a modern twist. So for those out there who like to say ‘I don’t like Indian food’, this is a completely different experience. That being said, the meals here are still great for those who like traditional Indian food.

Roti Chai, set in the middle of Mayfair behind Selfridges, is split into two different sections under one roof. The Street Kitchen, creatively designed with Indian consumer goods, which serves food from the streets of India, and the formal Dining Room. The Street Kitchen has a more casual setting, with a different menu that is more suited for a quick bite if you’re on the go or lunch. On this occasion, I had dinner in the Dining Room, as I wanted to try the meals on their recently updated menu.

We ordered a round of cocktails, my friend had the signature Maha Mojito and I decided to go with the Pomegranate Martini, along with some chilli cashew nuts. The pomegranate martini was rather strong but not overwhelming, however, I could barely taste the pomegranate in this, and I expected more of a fruity pomegranate taste from the drink but this was lacklustre.

To start, we decided to try the Chicken 65, moreish Chennai style chicken famously served at the Buhari Hotel, the Gilafi seekh kebab, their take on classic lamb kebabs cooked in tandoor, and Dhaba tandoori chicken with a traditional tandoori masala rub. The Chicken 65 was quite different, tender chicken pieces adequately seasoned, and I would definitely recommend trying this starter. However the lamb kebabs were lacking spices, and weren’t as tasty as lamb kebabs should be. The Dhaba tandoori chicken on the other hand, was cooked perfectly and the chicken was seasoned right to the bone, this was my best starter of the various starters we ordered.

For our mains we decided to go with Malabar mooli prawns coastal style spiced prawns, mooli, snow peas & fine beans and one of their specials Raan e baluchi a 16 hour slow cooked Welsh lamb shoulder shank with cumin tandoori masala. We also ordered the Roti – bread selection and basmati rice as sides. The lamb shank could have done with a bit more sauce, however it was quite tender and was falling off the bone, it had a stirfry side of spinach and mushroom which complemented the lamb. The Malabar mooli prawns were cooked in a batter then served in the curry with fine beans and snow beans. The curry sauce for this dish was definitely the nicer of the two and went well with the basmati rice. The roti – bread selection was a mix of garlic naan, parantha and roti. The roti was a nice crisp texture whilst still retaining the layers of freshly cooked dough and the parantha retained its soft inner layers which were filled with sautéed vegetables. The garlic naan was also quite nice, if you’re not keen on experimenting, then you can never go wrong with naan.

If you’re looking for a traditional curry, Roti chai isn’t the place to go, however if you’re looking to try some flavours of India, Roti Chai is a nice restaurant that offers a taste of India. Be warned if you’re hungry as their portions are small. Also if you’re looking for meals that are more affordable and quicker, try the street kitchen which serves dishes inspired by rustic dishes from the roadside ‘Dhaba’ cafes and bustling train stations as well as Indian street cart food. What intrigued me on the Street Kitchen menu was the Tikki wala mini burgers, I wonder how these will taste, well until next time.

Overall Experience: 3.5 stars

Customer Service: 3.5 stars

Meal: 3.5 stars

http://rotichai.com/

Aspen Ski Dreams – Le Chalet

Following the success of the pop-up ‘On the roof with Q’, Selfridges have continued in seasonal style in conjunction with Des Macdonald (Q Grill) and opened up ‘Le Chalet’ another pop up which is open until February 2015.

Instead of having the summery vibe on a roof top, the roof has been transformed to have a ski chalet theme, which makes you feel like you’re in Aspen. The décor has a wintery feel, that’s very warm and cosy, which makes it suitable for a romantic meal with your other half, or a great hang out with friends.

The drinks menu consists of winter favourites, Gluwein – Le Chalet’s twist on the classic winter mulled wine and Hot chocolate but this time spiked; ‘Choctails’ which are a must try. Also the main menu had the same winter theme going on with dishes like the Oxtail and winter root broth, and herb dumplings, Spit roasted suckling pig, with apple & black pudding fritters, Buttermilk chicken schnitzel, with blue cheese fondue amongst other great main dishes. I tried one of their choctails The Cuban also referred to as El Dorado, and this was a nice hot chocolate with the kick and warmth you get from the rum topped with whipped cream. My friend ordered the Double Choc, a mix of white chocolate and hot chocolate with Brandy. She was raving about it, and would definitely recommend trying this drink.

Prior to Le Chalet opening, I checked the menu out and was really excited about it, especially their Lobster Mac ‘n’ Cheese, but unfortunately this was removed from their menu, I’m not sure why, so I decided to go with the USDA beef rib eye, grilled jumbo shrimp and my friend decided to go for the Barked short rib, with caramelised parsnip mash. She loved the short rib, and was quite surprised at the parsnip mash, as she doesn’t like parsnips and she really enjoyed this, I’ve had the short rib previously when it was served at ‘On the roof with Q’ and I can testify that it’s one of the best meals on their menu, the portion size is quite sufficient and it’s good value for money.

The USDA beef rib eye, grilled jumbo shrimp, didn’t come with any sides, so I ordered a side portion of seasoned fries. The rib eye was really tender, cooked to medium perfection, the jumbo shrimp also was perfectly grilled with a nice charcoal taste to it, all topped off with a garlic butter sauce. Unfortunately my seasoned fries were too salty and since this was my accompaniment, it didn’t go well with my steak, which was a shame as the steak was cooked really well.

We ordered another round of cocktails, this time my friend ordered the Gingerbread Slipper which was a mix of Havana rum, gingerbread, lemon, egg white and vanilla bitters. Initially she was a bit sceptical about the drink having egg white in it, but the drink tasted nice, as I was able to taste it as well. She described it as a sip of the winter sun. Unfortunately, Le Chalet needed their table back after 2 hours due to pre booked reservations and demand, however the waiters were really pleasant and showed us to terrace which had been transformed into a log cabin that offered a great view of the city, and we were given blankets to keep warm. We stayed and chatted here for a while until British weather decided to dampen the situation and unfortunately there wasn’t a roof so we had to leave, but it was a nice experience, made me feel like I was in my ‘ski lodge in Aspen’.

I would recommend trying ‘Le Chalet’ this winter, as they have a lot to offer, they also have a nice Christmas menu, which would be great for those planning Christmas parties, and they do breakfast and afternoon tea, which would be nice to catch up with friends before or after your day of Christmas shopping. For those who are daring enough, they also offer cigars, which could be a good chill out session with the guys, smoking Cubans and drinking cocktails or choctails should I say.

 http://q-grill.co.uk/selfridges/

Overall Experience: 4 stars

Customer Service: 4 stars

Meal: 3.5 stars

Brunch : The Lockhart

I had come across this restaurant over the summer, but never had the chance to check it out, so I thought today for brunch would be a good opportunity to try it out, especially as I found out they served fried chicken and waffles, and I’d never tried that before.

Unfortunately I arrived late for my reservation and their kitchen closes at half 2 for brunch then reopens at 6 for dinner. However, the waiter was able to speak to the kitchen and they managed to seat me for brunch and take my order which, was quite accommodating.

No surprise, I decided to order the fried chicken and waffles and I had the seasonal iced tea to go with that.

The iced tea was nice but a bit too sweet for my liking. The waffles however, were very fresh and fluffy and the chicken was fried to perfection, crispy yet tender on the inside. The portions were also quite generous.

The waiter explained they usually don’t have a dessert menu for brunch, but they offered donuts which are from a company set up by the head chef of The Lockhart @1235donuts. They had two flavours available today, chocolate and strawberry, and I opted for the chocolate donut.

The filling of this donut was divine, tasted like chocolate ice cream and buttercream icing mixed together. Would definitely recommend saving some space to try this.

All in all, The Lockhart would definitely be a go to for brunch, especially if you would like to try something different than the usual pancakes and bacon or full English breakfast.

Overall Experience: 4 stars

Customer Service: 5 stars

Meal: 4 stars

The Lockhart: http://lockhartlondon.com/