The Diner (Kensal Rise)

Almost everything about this place is great. Red neon exterior sign, red booths, well chosen old rock n roll background music, cool looking bar, retro american diner styling and genuinely friendly staff. The Diner has all those facets of the classic American diner that i love so much. I've been waiting to eat here for ages. Just walking in put a big smile on my face.

Be Frika, Buenos Aires

Something a bit different here, i was in Buenos Aires recently to see the sights, eat as much 'bife de chorizo/ancho' and drink as much Malbec as i possibly could. Whilst looking for lunch one day I was fortunate to stumble across this place. Be Frika is a cute little burger spot in a nice part of town. They sell 'Tini-Minis' which are small sliders with a choice of interesting toppings. The venue is very much an independent fast food joint with orange livery, plastic seats, free wifi, papers, magazines, chilled music, and a big list of cocktails. Its a peaceful environment to relax and eat in. 

Meat Liquor. Dirty name, dirty burger

Yianni Papoutsis's first proper restaurant was bound to be interesting, and the evolution from Meateasy to MeatLiquor didn't 
disappoint. Apart from maybe waiting 1h45mins from arrival to burger...

Bob Bob Ricard, Soho

Just off the southern end of Carnaby Street, its easy to miss BBR with its smoked glass windows and net curtains. Walking in you are greeted by smiley staff and art nouveau décor; marble, brass & purple fabric. The staff serve in old fashioned uniforms, girls in blue and boys in pink. The layout is diner-esque, booths resemble old fashioned train carriages, complete with privacy curtains and a champagne ordering button. Its fun. 

Joe Allen's Off menu Cheeseburger

Joe Allen is a place i've wanted to eat at for ages. On Saturday i went with ten friends for a birthday meal. The venue is a theatre district fave, bustling with life and spread over three dining areas, the walls of which are covered in posters of classic plays. Friendly staff showed us to our table. 

The Admiral Codrington, South Ken

Meeting friends after work on a friday for a beer and a burger is something we all look forward to, but for me especially so when the burger in question is cooked by a burger enthusiast, called Fred.

Cattlegrid, Windsor

Popped in for lunch at the 'Grid yesterday as i recently realised i'd never tried their burgers. I must have eaten around 25 steaks at CattleGrid over the years so sampling their burger was well overdue. It was a quiet Tuesday lunchtime and i enjoyed the fast and friendly service. 

Shake Shack, NYC

March, 2011. After a late night of dinner, disturbing theatre (Sleep No More) and a little too much drinking, i was lucky to escape with little more than a headache so thought it a perfect opportunity to try a Shake Shack cheeseburger. I strolled a few blocks and found the Upper East Side Shack buzzing with life. Perusing the wall menu, i was impressed to see they had draft beer on the menu, i really couldn't face anything other than a Cocacola though so went for that, fries and a single $4.50 Shackburger, "hold the onions!". 

Cafe D'Alsace, NYC

Research plays an important part of a holiday and mine consisted mainly of reading burger review sites. After finding this seriouseats list and realising i was staying only a few blocks away from a #1 rated burger spot, it looked very much like fate made this happen. 

Grubbs Burgers, Brighton

I rode down to Brighton last Sunday afternoon to look at thousands of motorbikes parked along the front and also to sample what a quick bit of googling told me was the best burger in town. Grubbs Burgers name kept popping up on review sites for Brighton with 5 star reviews, lots of love from students and the local community, and recommendations for the Malaysian burger with its peanut butter topping. 

The Hawksmoor, Seven Dials

29th of March 2011. I had a rare meeting in central London to goto, and opted out of a free lunch to meet my cousin and pay top dollar for a Hawksmoor cheeseburger instead - dedication huh!

Here Piggy-Piggy... Bar Boulud, Knightsbridge

To say i was very excited to try this burger, seeing as it had made the #1 spot on the youngandfoodish top10, was an understatement. I met my cousin there for lunch in May so we could see what all the fuss was about.

The Meateasy (Meatwagon) experience

The hype that quickly built up surrounding the Meat Wagon was pretty impressive. How a bloke essentially selling burgers from a van can create such a whirlwind of interest is quite something. He's either some kind of PR master or his burgers really are very special. 

Goodman, City

Sitting in a heavyweight #3 spot on the youngandfoodishburgertop10, i'd been super excited for some time about visiting this place. The city venue is pretty much an upmarket steak & fine wine place, the clientele middle aged banker types, chatting over large slabs of pink steak. 
I love having only one burger on a menu, it makes life oh so simple. The burgers arrived and looked fairly unassuming. Chips were decent and included in the £13. Extra burger toppings are also included in the price which impressed one of our party greatly. 

Howies, Edinburgh

Not to be confused with the eco-clothing company, this place has an unassuming entrance which leads to a multi-roomed Scottish?-themed restaurant, full of cool black and white artworks. It was lunchtime and i was starving. They had a cheeseburger on the menu so i went for it.

The Filling Station, Edinburgh

The Filling Station is an "American style" bar and restaurant right on the main Edinburgh High St. aka 'Royal Mile'. The interior is covered in 50's car memorabilia and parts, mostly painted red. 50s rocknroll music could just be heard over the din from hundreds of diners. We were here in a large group and i wasnt expecting much from this tourist trap to be honest.

The Rivington Grill in trendy-ass Shoreditch

This place is nice. An airy, quiet retreat away from all the hipster nonsense going on outside in Shoreditch. Ok we all enjoy the hipster nonsense, but sometimes you just need a break. Plus hipsters couldn't get into their drainpipe trousers if they ate burgers regularly, so that's most likely why its so quiet in here...Anyway, I was offered a seat at the bar while i waited for my buddies. Nicely dressed ladies sipped cocktails whilst perusing menu's, the waiters smiled a lot. So far so good.