Edinburgh: Burger

For yeeeears I have been longing for a proper burger diner/restaurant type establishment in Edinburgh. There are plenty of pubs and other restaurants which happen to do pretty smashing burgers, but until recently there didn't really seem to be anywhere that specialised in this sort of thing. Burger (it does what it says on the tin) opened just a couple of weeks ago and ever since then I'd been hearing great things about it on Twitter, so couldn't wait to give it a try when a few of us were looking for somewhere to eat last Saturday evening. It's located at 94a Fountainbridge, just off Lothian Road, and is very handily less than a 10 minute walk from my flat.

The restaurant feels pretty spacious and there's lots of New-York-loft-style touches with metal, brick, exposed lightbulbs and neon signs galore. We arrived just after 6pm on Saturday and had no problem getting a table straight away - although as the word spreads about Burger this might become more difficult! Laura and I perused the menu whilst we waited for Roisin and Lianne to arrive. The menu is quite short and sweet, but it covers all the main bases and there were also a good selection of specials available which I assume will change quite regularly. I did quite fancy one of the specials which included a chipotle glazed burger and pulled pork, but sadly it was sold out - just using this as an excuse to go back and try another one of the specials some time soon!

I settled on the bacon cheese burger which came served along with tomato (yuck) and pickle (yum) inside a toasted brioche bun. I also added in a side of fries and a Coke, and everything came to just under £10 which I thought was a pretty good price. The burger was nice and juicy and full of flavour, but the bun wasn't over-stuffed so it was easy to eat without the need for a fork and knife. The melted cheese and crispy bacon really added to the flavour, and I was left feeling pretty impressed. I loved the chips too, small and crispy just how I like them! The portions were a decent size but not too huge, and it was nice to finish the meal and not feel like I'd eaten way too much as is often the case with burgers. We even had room for dessert, and I opted for a milkshake made with the mango sorbet from the specials board. SO good, just like a melted Solero!

The staff were all friendly and helpful, and my only real complaint was that it was order-at-the-till rather than table service (yep, definitely turning into my mother). I can totally understand why places like this do self service but I just prefer table service, although it was a bit of an exciting novelty to each have one of the little buzzers and eagerly wait to see whose would flash first. I really enjoyed the food and atmosphere at Burger and will definitely be heading back. I'm looking forward to seeing how the restaurant develops over the next few months - I hear there are already plans to open more branches throughout Edinburgh!

Have you tried Burger yet?

Gillian x

P.S. Slightly sad they didn't call it Edinburger :(