I found myself out in Lilydale recently and saw where a place called “Hello Harry” was located. This burger joint has been on my list for a while, and physically seeing where it was located seemed to move it up the priority list. So when I needed to get out and about for another Friday lunch, I decided to head back there to find out what their burgers were like.

I walked in grabbed a menu and started to work out what I wanted. There is also a number of additional burgers listed on a huge chalk board too. Whilst the lure of the “fat bastard” burger was attractive, which also has a challenge attached to it too, this time I felt like a straight up, with the lot styled burger. I ordered the “Aussie” burger, which comes with grass fed beef, BBQ glaze, bacon, egg, lettuce, tomato, cheese, mayo and of course I said, “hold the beetroot!”. And on the back of the staff telling me how big the burgers were, I resisted the urge to add another patty.

As soon as it arrived, I thought “that’s not too big! I should have added another patty!!” The upside was that with less calories I was closer to my beach body, albeit still a long way away! Lol. I picked it up to get stuck into it and it tasted pretty good. I would have liked it to be a fraction hotter, especially as the tomato was near frozen. Anyway, the meat was reasonably tasty, but lacked that ‘x-factor’ of explosive flavour. The bacon and egg were the highlights, and seemed to be the centre piece of the whole burger. I was very disappointed that the cheese was not melted to the patty – a massive burger faux pas in my opinion!

Chips on the side were decidedly tasty, and as usual, the Furphy beer was delightful!

Overall, the experience was ok – not out in front, not behind, but right in the middle. If you are located near by, it’d be worthwhile paying a visit and finding out for yourself.

Another week flies past, and this time my Friday lunchtime adventure took me over to “Mad Patties” in Mitcham. After hearing plenty of good things about this place, I was really excited to be finally getting there to find out first hand what their burgers are really like. This place has a very interesting menu, with the usual beef, pork and chicken options, plus the appropriately named, “Pretty Mad” which comes with a pumpkin and chickpea patty?! Not to mention the beetroot patty filled, “Red Alert” burger!? Whoa! Hold the beetroot!!

Being somewhat of a traditionalist, I decided to go for “The Mad Lot”, which came with beef, cheese, bacon, pineapple, lettuce, tomato, egg, onion, ketchup and sweet mayo. However, I’m not always that “traditional”, so I added a piece of fried chicken too! I was starving and was getting hungrier every passing second.

Finally it arrived. It was a big burger, and despite the fried chicken hanging out, it looked well constructed. I got into it straight away. It was very slippery and the first bite felt like it pushed half the ingredients out the back of the burger. I needed to reestablish my “Kung fu” burger grip before proceeding, otherwise it would have been a complete disaster. Once I got in a rhythm, I noticed how good this burger tasted. The beef was good and whilst on it’s own, probably wasn’t the most amazing tasting patty going around, but when coupled with the other ingredients, made for a very tasty treat. The fried chicken had a slight spicy taste to it which was nice, and the bacon and egg were good too. Sauces were tasty without been over powering, and the bun was soft and tasty too. The best part was the pineapple. The sweet flavour was spot on and one of the best I’ve had on a burger!

Chips on the side were awesome – good size, lightly salted, and with just the right amount of crispiness. Plus, the chocolate thick shake was one of the best going around. Thick, tasty and delicious!

Overall, it was a solid burger and one that I would definitely recommend trying out for yourself. Not sure I would come back and try the beetroot burger, but definitely interested in trying the “double madness” next time!

Friday lunchtime and another burger was on the cards. This time, I found myself in Springvale, and after reviewing my burger bucket list, I headed to a place called “Double D”. Except for a few social media mentions here and there, I had not heard much about this place, so I was looking forward to possibly uncovering a burger masterpiece!

This is a small place located close to the station, and as I reviewed the menu, I thought of ordering a chicken and beef combo burger. However, I ended up deciding to go for the signature burger, the “Double D” – with double Angus beef, American cheddar cheese, onion jam, lettuce, double D aioli and teriyaki sauce on a brioche burger bun! To be honest, at first I didn’t want to order this burger because the teriyaki sauce seemed a bit strange, but then the ‘lure of the unknown’ set in and started to pull at my conscience. “Different” is what it’s about sometimes, so I just ordered it and got on with things.

The burger arrived and standing upright in a small, cardboard box, it looked amazing. You could smell the teriyaki sauce, and it smelt good too. I couldn’t wait. I picked it up and got stuck into it. The small bit of scepticism I had in the back of my head quickly disappeared with the first bite. It tasted great. The beef was so tasty and surprisingly well complimented by the teriyaki sauce too. I thought the sauce would be really sickly, but it was actually quite good. The butter lettuce, cheese and onion jam were all good too. I’m not convinced that the aioli was the perfect match, however it also wasn’t too powerful so fitted in well enough.

Chips on the side were crispy, lightly salted and not bad either. One of the main highlights was the “Double Chocolate Tim Tam Milkshake”. Despite being disappointed that the “Double D” name wasn’t a reference to different “cup sizes”, I was super impressed with how amazing this milkshake, sorry, thick shake tasted. It was like an ice-cream infused Tim Tam drink. So good!!

Overall, this was a great experience and definitely a surprise packet too. Whilst not something I would have all the time, I have to say the teriyaki sauce worked really well on the burger. So if you’re up for a tasty burger with a slightly different angle, then I would recommend you get down to “Double D” and try it out.