Better than the memory of a double double cheeseburger

Burger source 

Supernova was a viral smash [sic] when it arrived in Soho, serving smashburgers and fries from its limited but pretty much perfect menu. Simplicity is pretty much its defining attribute from a marketing perspective; little choice, little space; both things seem to drive demand through the roof.

Anyway, I have literally never had the patience to go. Every time I wander past there’s a gargantuan queue, you can’t book, and I’m too middle aged to have the time for that. So, when it appeared on Deliveroo after a late finish at the office… well, colour me tempted.

The order 

There are literally two burgers on the menu, a house and a classic cheeseburger. They’re identical – double smash patties, pickles, onions, American cheese… but then you get to choose the sauce, either mustard + ketchup (classic) or ‘house sauce’ (you guessed it – that’s the house cheeseburger). I got their standard fries with a house cheeseburger and sort of braced for mild disappointment – smashburgers are often better fresh.

So… how was it?

The meat of it 

That’s pretty good looking for a delivery burger that’s been cycled (don’t ask me why, I don’t know) at least 3-4 miles. It was well packaged so protected from squishing, and you can see the phenomenal crust on the patty. There’s a thin pickle peeking out and you can see a good melt on the cheese around the side. The bun is soft but robust and hasn’t gone soggy from either the beef or from being overly steamed in delivery. The fries look crisp and well seasoned.

Let’s go cross section.

Ok, it’s hard to see through the mess of house sauce but this burger is PERFECTLY cooked and stacked. The bun is holding up – just – to the patties. The cheese is fully melted. The house sauce is generously but not excessively applied. There’s an even coating of pickles across the burger. There’s no pooled grease. There’s a fantastic sear on the beef. It’s hefty without being heavy – a well proportioned burger.

First bite, and this is immediately something that somehow beats nostalgia. That part of your brain that remembers McDonalds or In & Out as being better than they are because the gestalt of salt, soft bread, cheese and savoury patty, in eight-year-old-you’s mind’s eye – remembers it as pretty much the dictionary definition of what a cheeseburger should be and should taste like. The savoury, sweet, sour house sauce provides unguence and moisture in a way that balances out the dry, Maillard-rich beef sear on the patty, and the umami appeal of the American cheese. The meat – well seasoned, still crisp from the harsh sear despite the delivery, is balanced by soft, perfectly bland bread, bringing balance to the mouthful. Soft, crisp, unguent, salty, sweet, pliant – is taste of childhood and happiness, of parental indulgence and guilty pleasure. It is a living paradigm of what a double cheeseburger should be; a real thing that is somehow more perfect, more precious than a memory. And it is grown up; the tang of the burger sauce, the sharp, sour bite of the pickle, the rich, savoury flavourbomb that is the high quality beef in itself. It was glorious; I forced myself to pace and paused at the midway point to go onto the fries.

The fries are as they appeared, to a degree. Crisp, well but not excessively seasoned. But they were warm, not fresh, after the journey home, and some were chilling. Again, they seemed modelled on the memory of a McDonald’s fry, improved and upgraded. They are essentially perfect frozen fries… again an improvement on the memory, crisp, tasty and warming, and a delight dunked in a little ketchup and mayonnaise.

Delivery burgers often disappoint. This one was exciting. As if it was this good after 30 minutes on the back of a bicycle, imagine its potential fresh. A thing of absolute beauty and the ultimate hedonism.

Monkey finger rating  

Bun –  5/5  
Build – 5/5 
Burger – 5/5 
Taste –  5/5  
Sides – 4.5/5 – imagine them fresh!
Value – 4/5 – £18 for burger and side, ish.  

Burger rating – 4.5/5 – like a memory wrapped in happiness wraped in a gold brick. 

The deets 

They’ve got three branches now; in South Ken, Soho and Mayfair. My delivery came to NW London inside of 40 minute, even with a cyclist bringing it the 3-4 miles required, and was sub £20. It’s really very good and I would recommend it..