Ventured into a burger restaurant whilst away for work yesterday. It was called "The Proper Burger Co" or "Burgers Done Proper" or "Burgers Done Right" or something like that. You get the idea.

Walked in. First surprise, I have to go up and give my order rather than have it taken. Fair enough not that arsed.

Drinks arrived.. wine not in a wine glass.. instead in a small normal glass.. the type you'd use for a glass of fresh orange in a hotel. Different I'll give them that.

Food arrived. Chips were over cooked.. crispy.. border line burnt. Actually felt a little sickly eating the last of them they were soaked in fat. Presented in a small tin.

Burger was mediocre at best. I'd actually go as far as to say it wasn't far off McDonalds Big Mac quality. Appeared to have a cheese slice. Some of it was burnt. The rest wasn't exactly the "medium" I'd ordered either. Salad was just.. present.

In general it just felt a bit.. naff. And it's the second time now I've had a dodgy experience at one of these places. The last one was at a "Byron". Ordered tortilla chips.. never arrived. Burger was again.. unimpressive.

The funny thing is these chains are all over the place at the moment. Within one block there is three where I was at last night. The one over the road is called "Hand Made Burger Co" or something along those lines. Yep apparently making burgers with your own hands is something worth bragging about in your restaurant title now.

Is it just hype? Are we buying into "hipster" burgers that are not all that far off a cheaper good old McDonalds? Have I just had untypical bad experiences?

There's a new burger place round the corner from me that, prior to opening, was advertising for a chef, a waiter, and a "burger artist".

BURGER.
ARTIST.

I really think I need to move. This place has become horrible. No wonder normal people can't afford to live here anymore.

Do Subway still advertise for "sandwich artists"?

Don't think I've ever seen a "proper" burger restaurant.

I always think it makes a nice change when you order a burger (usually in a hotel) and it arrives all "deconstructed" so you get a burger, a pile of salad and the buns all on a plate.
Makes it feel like you're getting a proper meal rather than a snack.

Tasks and Responsibilities:

Exhibits a cheerful and helpful manner while greeting guests and preparing their orders.
Demonstrates a complete understanding of menu items and explains them to guests accurately.
Uses Point of Sale system/cash register to record the order and compute the amount of the bill. Collects payment from guests and makes change.
Performs Cash-In Procedure- accounting for all forms of money, bread, etc., during the shift.
Prepares food neatly, according to formula, and in a timely manner.
Checks products in sandwich unit area and restocks items to ensure a sufficient supply throughout the shift.
Understands and adheres to proper food handling, safety and sanitation standards during food preparation, service and clean up.
Cleans and maintains all areas of the restaurant to promote a clean image. Understands and adheres to the 3-step method for cleaning.
Understands and adheres to all quality standards, formulas and procedures as outlined in the SUBWAY® Operations Manual.
Maintains a professional appearance and grooming standards as outlined in the SUBWAY® Operations Manual.
Performs light paperwork duties as assigned.
Completes University of SUBWAY®courses as directed

: rolleyes:

Very little about food prep in that description

I would totally go to the University of Subway

I remember getting 'The Manual' when I joined McDonald's... I don't understand why anyone thinks this is in anyway new!

Has this been a thing for ages?

Holy shit. We're actually doomed as a species, aren't we?

And that's probably a good thing.

Something good about these places is the fact that you tend to have very few annoying little sh!ts running around and screaming. You can also get alcohol too, which you can't in the generics.

what do they call toilet attendants??

Don't think I've ever had a proper burger

I like Rustlers Microwave Cheeseburgers

yum !

I was on a night out recently (my first in a year) and we decided to go into a fancy burger place. After a very long wait, we got our burgers and chips which were served on a block of wood with the chips sitting in a fancy little bucket thing. We had six chips each, the top of the bun looked as though it had been creosoted and the burger was solid in the middle. For this and a soft drink each, we were charged almost £30! My OH complained about the burgers as we actually couldn't bite into them and after a lot of discussion they knocked a fiver off the bill. We were going to a show so just paid and left, wishing we had just went somewhere cheaper.

It does sound like you had a bad experience, but eating in a burger restaurant is hardly haute cuisine - you get what you pay for. Cheap and cheerful - dark lighting, loud music and a botoxed Lithuanian waitress fishing for tips.

I've always found them quite pleasant tbh, best visited when pissed out of your skull though.

Rest Room Executives.

I don't buy in to any hype.

I go to places that do "slow food" because I want something as close to all natural as possible. Proper minced steak, preferably Aberdeen Angus; properly cooked. A decent bread bun. Fresh salad etc. This is stuff that the fast food restaurants just aren't geared up to provide. But if it isn't up to standard then I'll tell 'em so.

We ate at a pub restaurant last Saturday evening. My boy had their burger. The menu price was £9 or £10. It looked hand made and he said it tasted fine, but it wasn't as good as a little Portuguese catering van we have visited together in Manchester. Their burger is £5 and it's just sublime. No hype, no fancy pots for the chips. Just a great burger made from top ingredients, cooked perfectly by somebody who cares about what they're doing.

"sorry mate, I'd give it 5 minutes, but when you've got a moment, there's an enormous turd that needs curating in there"

I don't think it's hype, it's probably just hit and miss in some places.

Byron is only cool because they give me a colouring page and crayons. Food wise, I don't really feel anything they have to offer.

Gourmet Burger Kitchen isn't my thing either. Free peanuts is awesome, but I don't like their food.

Five Guys has a grilled cheese sandwich that's epic! I should probably add that I don't eat beef, so my opinion of burger restaurants aren't really based on their "proper" burgers.

Shake Shack is bomb, though. Their shroom sandwich and cheese fries, BRUH.

Best read in a Swiss Toni voice.

We have a decent burger joint here in town; is an independant, but isn't expensive or poncy. Just great ( big) 1/2lb tasty burgers for 4 quid, loaded up with salad, Amy extras such as jalapenos or olives etc and a huge choice of self-applied sauces for you to mix and match. Lovely.
chips can be ordered, and they are fat and golden. Again, plenty of toppings. Tea and coffee ( instant- no poncing here either) in a mug too.

Long may it never change!

Five Guys have the best burgers I've ever tasted, absolutely delicious! Unfortunately they are far too expensive and the chips are rank. It's also a horrible place to sit down and eat because the music is usually at full volume and the staff shout orders at each other and then shout order numbers at the waiting customers.

These days I'd rather stick to a larger quarter pounder meal with chicken nuggets from McDonald's. Nothing better than a McDonalds strawberry milkshake either.

[quote=sweh;79936939]I don't think it's hype, it's probably just hit and miss in some places.

Byron is only cool because they give me a colouring page and crayons. Food wise, I don't really feel anything they have to offer.

Gourmet Burger Kitchen isn't my thing either. Free peanuts is awesome, but I don't like their food.

Five Guys has a grilled cheese sandwich that's epic! I should probably add that I don't eat beef, so my opinion of burger restaurants aren't really based on their "proper" burgers.

Shake Shack is bomb, though. Their shroom sandwich and cheese fries, BRUH.[/QUOTE]

Can someone clarify. Is this a positive review or a negative review?

I like GBK because I like their skinny fries, hei hei salt and their blue cheese dip. Their burgers are okay and actually taste of meat unlike McDonald's which taste of cardboard and I have had some random burgers with pineapple and beetroot.

Not a fan of chains in general but we've some fab local burger places, well I say burger places but they're pubs that specialise in burgers. Proper homemade burgers though, lots of different and unusual toppings (haggis pakora for example) and proper homemade chips and fries. I've no issue whatsoever paying £11 for a burger if it's a good burger which these are.

They had an apprentaship at one point (i really need to install a spellchecker) when the government were bought out the ability to have an apprentaship for literally anything and pay them f-all