On a recent trip up north, I found myself stopped over in Sydney Airport at lunchtime and really wanted to see what was on offer for all the travelling burger lovers that find themselves in a similar situation. This would also be the fourth burger in 4 days, so I was keen to keep the burger action going. I headed to the “Taphouse” which is an open, casual dining place with a bar, and one that I figured was a safe bet.
There was only 2 burgers on the menu and one of them was chicken, so the choice was pretty easy. I ordered the “House Beef Burger” which came with twin ground beef patties, melted vintage Jack cheddar cheese, bacon rasher, egg, grilled onions, lettuce, house made smokey sauce and of course I said, “hold the beetroot”.
First impressions were not good as it came served with the top bun off?! Errrrrrr…… if I wanted an open sandwich, I would have ordered one!! Ugh!! And the bun didn’t look great either with the bottom looking thick and decidedly dry before I even picked it up. Having said that, the beef was reasonably tasty, and I was pleased there were 2 patties because they were not too thick on their own. The bacon, egg and BBQ sauce were good too.
However, the menu said it came with “melted vintage Jack cheddar cheese”…… well, it’s name may have been Jack, but it sure wasn’t melted. From my perspective, burger etiquette clearly states that the cheese must be melted to the patty before being removed from the grill, yet I’m pretty sure the first time these two rubbed up against each other was when the burger was being put together. Now, I know it’s in an airport and I probably shouldn’t expect too much, but I think melting the cheese as stated in the menu is not asking too much! Is it?
Chips on the side were reasonably average and made better with a heap of salt. The best part was the James Squires 150 Lashes I had to wash it all down with.
Overall, it filled a hole and met my expectations I guess, albeit low expectations, but it was a long way from being a travelling highlight.
