London - Shake Shack

With post-graduation blues finally subsiding and indefinite unemployment looming, seeking solace in meeting up with university friends in town and going out to eat has become a commonality for me.

Someone suggested we head to a new eatery that had just opened in Covent Garden, serving burgers and milkshakes.
Fantastic central London location: check.
Unashamedly unhealthy American food: check.
Ridiculous London prices: check.

For such a superb location, it was no surprise we had to queue for half an hour to be served; but we were a little taken aback by the limited choices on the menu. Offering a few choices of burgers and hot dogs, the majority of the menu is occupied by what they call 'frozen custards' or 'concretes'. Essentially a glorified McFlurry except thicker and with more ingredients.

Whether you choose to sit outside ogling at the street performers or inside under the awnings of the famous Covent Garden market, upon ordering you are presented with an alarm-type device that emits a horrendous buzzing sound and seizure-inducing flashes when your food is ready.

Whilst tasty, albeit a little too greasy, the burgers are nothing special and you'd get more for your money at a cheaper fast food restaurant, which is essentially what this is. One highlight though is the chips; crinkled and springy and lightly dusted with spices, I haven't had chips these tasty in a while.

In this blistering heat, there was only one choice for me. The 'concretes' are orgasmic and exactly what I was expecting. The one I chose contained vanilla ice cream, peanut butter sauce, marshmallow sauce, and bits of actual banana. A perfect combination. Also worthy of a mention is the fact you can create your own, which is a nice touch.

Randomly, but quite a clever idea given their outside dog-friendly location, is the portion of the menu catering for dogs, because after all, dogs need to cool down too.

To conclude, it's nice and tasty, but not great value for money and better burgers can be found elsewhere. Although the frozen custard/concretes are worth trying if you're prepared to queue.

Keep it cool (especially in this weather),

A

Bristol - Grillstock Smokehouse

Once again, I apologise for leaving it so long between posts, but there's been a lot going on! One massive change is the fact that we are both now graduands (Huzzah!); that blissful state of limbo between end of exams and the impending sense of responsibility signalled by graduation.

I was walking along the Triangle with a friend when we both spotted a new restaurant that had popped up; my compadre, another foodie-enthusiast suggested we go visit the next day for lunch. However, that evening I had plans to see a friend's band at the Coronation Tap... for all those aware of the Cori Tap, as it's affectionately known, can probably see where this is going. For those not in the know - the pub serves 10-12% cider tasting like apple juice. Lethal.

In hindsight, organising work experience in a GP's surgery for the following day was probably not the greatest idea... Thankfully I made it to the surgery on time looking surprisingly suave, albeit swaying slightly and undoubtedly smelling of alcohol. Now further sleep-deprived, I stumbled back up to the Triangle, encouraged only by the overwhelming excitement of a hearty meat-filled lunch.

Waiting outside for my friend to arrive, I was greeted by a charming lady with a tray full of pots of miscellaneous meats to taste - pulled pork, beef brisket, burnt ends, spicy sausages and more. It felt a bit strange tasting the food before I was due to go in and buy it, but at least then I could select what I wanted more easily.

Originally a festival, Grillstock has decided to set up a base in Bristol and I'm so glad they did because this place is incredible. Based heavily on America's deep south, with a single seated bar for diners, with a central trough of assorted sauces and condiments running along it and chefs resembling truckers, with peaked caps, all beardy and tattooed, the menu is one massive smorgasbord of delicious, slow-roasted, barbequed meats. As our orders arrived on trays pilled high with food, my hangover almost vanished in an instant. Vegetarians look away now.

Mmmmm.... meaty meaty goodness.

My order, a mountain of mixed meats, topped with cheese and sauces all fitted into a bun almost defeated me, although I'll admit my stomach was not in the best of states. My friend ordered a pulled pork plate and an additional hotdog topped with jalapenos. Both were delicious, although maybe a touch on the pricey side.

Definitely one of the best new places in Bristol to eat at the moment - go visit. Plus, you get to drink out of those epic Jeremiah Weed glasses, making you feel even more awesome, and for the toughest amongst you, they even have a man vs. food-esque challenge dubbed 'The Grand Champion' which grants you a free t-shirt and bottle of BBQ sauce should you choose to take on the meat feast and successfully complete it.

And now to bear the combined grunt of a hangover and a food coma.

A

Bristol - The Burger Joint

So it's a well known establishment on Whiteladies that probably doesn't need my telling you about it, but I went the other day and loved it, so here goes.

The Burger Joint is bright and cosy, with incredibly friendly staff and the best 'create your own burger' system to date. On sitting down you are presented with a pencil and a pad of paper, on which you tick off the different components of your meal. What kind of burger do you fancy? Beef? Lamb and Mint? Oh chicken was it? Tick the chicken. It truly felt like I was playing a culinary game of Cluedo, and it made the experience fun, and stirred in me feelings from childhood.

You then proceed to tick off your choices from the vast array of toppings (of which one is 80p and three is £1.75 I think, however, including the option of adding two would have been ideal). Then on to sauces, who knew there were so many (although don't be a rookie and tick ketchup - it's sitting by you on the table), then dips, and finally sides. Phew.

Has all this ticking and musing made you hungry? Then never fear, as the meal that is to come will definitely fill you up. The burgers are generous and the sides, (we both had sweet potato chips) even more so. As ever, I ended up with a doggie bag, and a great lunch the next day.

J

Manchester - Almost Famous

When I went to visit a friend in Manchester this weekend, I was taken to the hidden/(sort of) secret burger joint, Almost Famous. Although the entrance is just a small door on a quiet road, you have no chance of missing it; Almost Famous comes complete with queue, and bouncer. This burger place had a queue, and a bouncer, at 5pm. Five in the afternoon.

However, having made it inside, I COMPLETELY see why.

You go up a few flights of stairs, (they make you work for your meal), and enter into a bright and eclectic space that made me so trigger happy I couldn't stop taking photos. The bar wall is as you can see above, and on the opposite wall is a series of fairly bizarre, yet pretty great, quotes (below right).














All the other walls, (it's made of a further two rooms) are clustered with either Banksy, or provocative paintings of 50's style women emerging from sweet wrappers, mustard bottles, and the like.

Our drinks came with names such as 'Bitch Juice' and 'Snap and Tickle', and as if the names, and the fact that they were served in tall jars wasn't edgy enough, they also came complete with glowsticks.

The food was very like Meat Liquor in London, full on, heavy-duty burgers and fries. However, these also came with great names. One burger was called Triple Nom, and if you fancied chicken, you could always get Crack Wings, which were said to be 'Phoking Amazing'. I went for the Rib Roll (pulled pork) and Trailer Trash Fries, both of which were incredible. The fries in particular, as they had a mustard and barbecue and who knows what else sauce poured all over them, and were a-mazing.

After eating ourselves into a food coma, I can honestly say this is the best burger place I have ever been to, and if I am ever back in Manchester again, will demand a visit. (If you can, try and bag a seat on the sofa - this kind of food coma beats the kind at Christmas, and I very nearly nodded off...).


J

Bristol - Urban Wood (First meal together!)

Big A and Little J finally have their first proper blog meal out together…huzzah! 

J: So I arrived first, being ever early, and had to prop up the bar with a solitary glass of red while I waited for A to appear. I did, however, have company in the form of a downhearted businessman-type next to me; yet erase any images of the bar from ‘Cheers’ from your mind, (a very old reference there), as Urban Wood is actually a small and fairly eclectic restaurant. The place is aglow with fairy lights in the windows and with candles bedecking nearly every surface. A large feature of the place is the wax-dripped candelabrum that is set in between the front room of the restaurant, and the back room, separated by the large open bay window. We went on a Monday, which, by pure chance, happened to be 2-4-1 on burgers, and so we both jumped right on it. 

A: I’d never even heard of Urban Wood before Little J suggested it, but what a find! Self-proclaimed ‘Bristol’s best kept secret’, they had a lot to live up to, and they didn’t fail us. With a wealth of tempting choices on the menu, all at reasonable prices, we settled for the burgers filled with chorizo, bacon and cheese, topped with a fried egg, and some olives and sun-dried tomatoes as apéritifs. Arriving fairly promptly, we tucked in. Delicious. Hints of apple complemented the beef from the burgers, which was just extraordinary, putting it on par with my favourite burgers, courtesy of Boston Tea Party and The Mall Pub. My only qualm would be the inclusion of the devil’s food – rocket; but actually, the salad was made almost bearable by an interesting dressing. 

J: What A has ceased to mention is the slightly awkward incident that set both bar staff running. When going to pour some ketchup, (see offending bottle in below image), he dropped it with a bang into the mayo, splattering that on the table, and in turn knocking over the candle, which promptly fizzed out. Watching that bizarre chain of events I half expected a mouse-trap to come tottering down. 

A: ...and what J has failed to mention is her inability to judge how much salt is too much salt, leaving me to polish off what she couldn’t finish (most of it...). This place is definitely worth a visit, especially on a Monday - £5 for a burger is such a deal! Although, I did feel slightly conned that they charged us for the olives and sundried tomatoes separately, when the menu definitely tricked me into thinking otherwise... and £3 for a pint of coke was a bit of a surprise too. However, the quality of the food and the nice, almost homely atmosphere certainly made up for these trivial setbacks. Go and make use of the deal if you get the chance!

A & J

Coming soon - Fallout Burger Challenge

Yes, that's right - the Fallout Pizza Burger Challenge at Atomic Burger, Bristol. I'm going to attempt it.

It's £25. It's 3 stacked burgers, cheese, and mini-pizzas for buns. And it's very very very hot.

Containing 2 of the hottest chillis known to man, you have to be over 18 to take the challenge and you have to sign a legally binding contract saying you agree to it. The challenge also requires that you wear protective gloves throughout.

Never one to turn down a food challenge, I see this as my Everest. Prepping myself on XXX-hot peri peri sauce from Nandos will seem like Ben Nevis in comparison.

Bring it.

A

London - Meat Liquor

Over the Christmas period I went to a few different places, and as my Bristol adventures have been fairly lax lately, I thought I'd share these instead.

One of these restaurants was Meat Liquor, just off Bond Street.

The place itself is styled like a derelict, underground, American Diner; it's very dark, has graffitied walls, and loud music. There are also cages where rolls upon rolls of blue paper towels are piled high. This is almost an ominous sight, but as we found out later, they were SO necessary. We were sat at a table with three young businessmen who didn't particularly suit the place, and who were talking about something very boring to do with the economy. These were soon replaced by two young'uns, (a couple? or were they just friends? we couldn't tell..), who were much more interesting to listen in to.

Now for the food. If you're in the mood for a burger and fries, my God this is the place. Oh and the onion rings! who can forget the onion rings? They were absolutely amazing. And the size of my face. The food is served all together crammed onto a tray, and although this approach is unconventional, it really works. The burgers taste fantastic and are a far cry from anything I've previously had burger-wise; they don't hold back and come with all the extras. The fries were typical, American style french-fries, but were still bloody good.

There are only two things that I would warn you about Meat Liqour. One is that you must be prepared to get messy. The blue towels become your most beloved friend, and are essential in your quest to try to counter the amount of food that is steadily appearing all over your face. And secondly, be prepared to feel full. Very, very full. Not only was I was very silent on the way home, but I then had to lie down for the rest of the afternoon.

However, through all this pathetic semi-suffering, I kept thinking how wonderful it was that a meal that had made me feel this full, had only cost me about a tenner.

J