garlic aioli – Burger Source

Sumptuous, rich Oklahoma style tribute

Burger source

I’m confident in my mid-life crisis here, so I’ll confess that I saw this place blowing up on TikTok, and it was conveniently close to the office. Particularly on a day when the tube strikes meant my route required an Overground train, so I *had* to walk past it after a slightly late finish at the office…

The conceit is Essex-farmed, Essex-sourced, local high quality produce; dry-aged beef ground daily, ‘custom spec brioche’ (maybe it has upgraded RAM? – I took this as code that they don’t make it but ask for an extra egg yolk or something in there) – all cooked fresh on site, daily.

The videos and photos I’d seen made this look truly drool worthy, so was excited to see how it shaped up.

The order

This was tough, on the burger front. I mean, obviously I wasn’t going to order the peanut butter burger because I’m not Elvis, but otherwise… Classic, Oklahoma style (‘the car boot’), Stilton (usually better than I expect it to be), cheese and bacon (well, pancetta), or a classic cheeseburger… Even with a small menu, I felt spoilt for choice!

And so naturally, I opted out of the decision – I asked the server what she recommended and when she called the Car Boot, that was decision made. I had a side of ‘skins’ – rough cut new potatoes, triple fried and heavily seasoned.

The meat of it

It’s a pretty burger. It arrived wrapped, which probably helped the melt on that glorious cheese. The char on the burger and the onions is in obvious evidence – Oklahoma style, for the uninitiated, involves layering a large pile of thin-sliced onions on the raw side of the patty after it hits the grill, then flipping it and charring them in. The bun is toasted, warm and soft to touch. It’s good.

No cutlery, so first bite is also the cross-section…

Ok, maybe I had a couple of bites.

The melange of flavours and textures is an immediate joy. You get the char, the slight bitterness from the crisped onions, the sweetness of the rich, juicy, well-seasoned beef and the velvety unguence of the cheese, blended into a glorious gestalt. The bun holds up and adds sweetness and bready flavour contrast in one; it’s almost in perfect balance. The dry-aged beef is uncomplicated, but that’s not a criticism – it’s simple, delicious and high grade. The lean/fat ratio is spot on, making it juicy but not outrageously messy. It’s cooked to a perfect pink, as you can see, with coarse ground, loose packed meat – just how I like it. The patty has a good heft, too, probably in the 6oz territory, making this a pretty well packaged, pretty well sized bundle of joy.

As to its limitations, it’s hard to critique this as I haven’t had a lot of Oklahoma style burgers in the past so I don’t have much of a frame of reference. From what I’ve heard, they sometimes have a bit more sweetness and crunch from the onions, and the burger does want somewhat for textural contrast. It’s very… soft. But that’s lovely in its own way; the onions cooking on the grill are meant to steam the burger and leave it tender and fresh. From a sweet/savoury contrast perspective, I don’t know if you’d pollute Oklahoma style with some burger sauce or relish, but it was *very* savoury. I love that, so happy with it as was, but thoughtful about the possibility.

All in all – excellent.

As to the side… No fries here, just these skin-on new potatoes, cut into uneven chunks. The result is a mix of crispy corners and chunky, fluffy new potato clouds, all heavily salted and served with a sauce of your choosing (at a premium of 2 quid per sauce pot). I went for a garlic aioli, which added a slick tempering of the – extremely but justifiably – heavily salted new potatoes. I normally gravitate exclusively to the crisp chunks but the fluffier, chunkier lumps were delicious too. I unexpectedly inhaled the substantial portion; can recommend.

Monkey finger rating

Bun – 5/5
Build – 4.5/5
Burger – 5/5
Taste – 4.5/5
Sides – 4.5/5 – think I marginally preferred the new potatoes at The Plimsoll, but it’s a close call.

Value – 4/5 – £23 for burger, side and drink feels reasonable.

Burger rating – 4.5/5 – this one is up there

The deets

The Commercial Tavern is a well known and well-liked drinkery a few minutes from Liverpool Street, Shoreditch High Street and Aldgate East. Highly recommended for the newfound residents, kudos Meat Stop.

Brilliant burger, capital chicken bites, fantastic fries, cool cocktails

Burger source

The Double Standard, in the Standard hotel, has achieved a number of plaudits and made a few ‘best burgers in London’ lists, and as a supremely convenient central location for all my friends, it was a sensible place to go.

The order

The burger itself is described with little ceremony – it is simply ‘the burger’, served with bacon and blue cheese, and fries. We shared a side of chicken bites, and mac and cheese, and tried a brace of cocktails.

The meat of it

There’s nothing overly exciting about the plating, but its competent:

(Apologies for the lighting, it’s a stylish, dimly lit venue). It’s not easy to see, but there’s a brilliant melt on the cheese, a strong char on the burger, the bun is soft, the bacon in clear evidence. Lots good so far.

In cross section…

There’s a brilliantly coarse grind to the meet; the ratios of meat, bun and toppings are excellent, though it is cooked a bit more than I would choose it – no trace of pink – the burger is not dry, possibly thanks to a(n un)healthy fat/lean ratio in the blend.

First bite – a solid crunch from a hard char, the bun is as soft and pleasantly nondescript as you’d expect – lending structure more than flavour – and a light dry-aged funk from the meat comes through. The meat is reasonably juicy, but helped by a measured ration of relish, which also provides a mildly spiced sweetness. A second later, and you are hit with the umami, from the strong but odourless blue cheese and the chewy, substantial bacon – back bacon, cooked well but not crispy – and it binds beautifully. The contrast between the salt and the sweet, between the crunch of the meat, the chew of the bacon and the soft bite of the bun – is really excellent. My only note is that – had the patty just been a smidge over toward medium, it would have boosted the experience even more.

To the sides; the fries are superb, crisp exterior, fluffy interior, well seasoned but otherwise little to remark. Improved by both ketchup and the garlic aioli that came with the chicken bites. The chicken bites are a thing of legend (we ordered a second portion, despite the £8 price tag) – chunks of juicy chicken thigh, brilliantly seasoned, crisp and spicy and juicy all at once. The garlic aioli was an excellent contrast, adding a slick, garlicky sweetness with a dunk. The mac & cheese was mac & cheese-like, credible and competent but about as exciting as it always is – which – to me – is limited.

Cocktails are half-price on Monday and Tuesday and were good value at that price – the pina colada was punchy and delicious. The Elderflower Collins was meh (who aims for ‘fresh’ instead of ‘sweet’ with an elderflower drink?), but friends also enjoyed the Negroni and the Ginger Magarita.

All in all, an excellent experience, in a busy, trendy, highly styled environment, with decent service (slower on food than drink), tasty food, interesting drinks and in a useful, albeit unexpected location (the hotel is MUCH cooler than you would expect).

Monkey finger rating

Bun – 5/5
Build – 4..5/5
Burger – 4.5/5
Taste – 4.5/5
Sides – 5/5 – chicken bites to dream of
Value – 4/5 – £42 burger, 3 sides between five, and 2-3 cocktails each. Not bad for where/what it is.

Burger rating – 4.5/5 – deservedly amongst the best in London

The deets

It’s tucked in on the ground floor of the Standard hotel, literally opposite Kings Cross station on the corner of Argyle St and the A501. You can’t miss it, and you shouldn’t.

Tag: garlic aioli

Meat Stop residency, Commercial Tavern, Commercial Street, London

Double Standard, Kings Cross, London