Hog's Breath Cafe (Holden Hill)

I went to Hog's Breath Cafe in Holden Hill tonight. It's one of my favourite places (I also love a good steak). They were running low on steaks (strange!), so I thought it would be a good excuse to try one of Hog's Breath's Burgers. The place was extremely busy, so I wasn't really too surprised. I went with the Boss Hog double burger. The following is straight off the website menu.

Boss Hog Double Burger$14.95

Double beef, double cheese, lettuce, tomato, red onion rings, beetroot and BBQ sauce. Seared with our own Hog’s Breath blackened seasoning. The boss builds big burgers!  Add crispy bacon rashers for only $3.50.

As per the rules, the burger came with fries, and also came with a small salad. The fries were the standard Hog's Breath curly fries. I love curly fries, and Hog's Breath make great curly fries. The burger was decent. As mentioned already, the burger had two beef patties, two slices of cheese, and a fairly standard lettuce/tomato/onion/beetroot mix. I got the burger without bacon (Bacon being an optional extra).

Meat:

The patties were reasonably thick. They weren't too dry, but were over-spiced (a common problem in my opinion). There was too much onion/breadcrumbs and soy sauce. Basically, it didn't taste a whole lot like beef, which for some people may be a good thing (not for me though!).

Score: 3/5

Cheese
There were two slices of cheddar cheese. They were not melted, and had little taste. Cheese is very important to me, and melted cheese has a much better flavour (for burgers).Score: 2/5

Bun

The bun was not toasted - which is not a problem for me. It was fresh, and soft. The bottom half was a little thin, but it managed to keep everything in. Score: 3/5

             

Extras

There weren't too many extras on this burger. While they can add to a burger, I like my burgers fairly simple. The tomato and lettuce were fairly fresh, and added a nice crunch. The beetroot didn't taste of much, and was mainly there to make the bottom half of the bun soft. The onions were mild, which is a good thing to me.Score: 3/5

Fries
I love the Hog's Breath Curly fries. They are usually crunchy, tasty and seasoned properly. On this occasion, they were slightly dry. Nonetheless, they were great. Hard to get a lot better.

Score: 4/5

Would I get it again? Probably not. Not because it was a terrible burger, but because I love their steaks, and they are the winner at Hog's Breath. Having said that, I wouldn't be too upset if I got this elsewhere.

Total score: 15/25
(Decent, worth a shot!)

ABB.

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First review - Highbury Hotel

A few nights ago I went to the Highbury Hotel with the family. They generally serve up decent fare, but nothing to write home about. I felt obliged to get the reviews started, but found that the burger was not on the bistro menu. As a friend had ordered the burger from the bar menu previously, I thought I'd ask if it was available. It was. 

The burger came with fries and a small salad. First up, the fries were ok. Nothing brilliant. The Highbury hotel previously used cinammon on their fries (yes, cinammon), and I'm glad to report that this is no longer the case. The burger was big, and the bun was lightly toasted. Inside, there was egg, beetroot, lettuce, tomato, the meat and cheese.

Meat:

The burger pattie was large, but dry. It was over-spiced, and barely tasted of meat, which to me is very important. It was passable, but average at best. 

Score: 2/5

Cheese
The all important cheese was almost non-existent. It was hidden under some lettuce on the bottom part of the bun. It was normal cheddar cheese, not processed cheese (as is common in many burgers due to meltability). As such, it wasn't melted enough, and was bland.
Score: 2/5

Bun

The bun was toasted, but could have done with a bit more time under the grill/on the hot plate. It was a fairly standard sesame seed bun. It was good, but only at holding the contents in. 
Score: 2/5

Extras

Extras can really add to a burger, but simple is usually best in my opinion. Egg can work well, but when combined with beetroot, extremely soft/gritty tomato and minimal sauce, it did not work well.
Score: 2/5

Fries
Fries can really add to the burger experience. It's hard to completely ruin fries, but it's also very hard to do them extremely well. The fries were long, soggy and under-cooked. I like slightly under-cooked fries generally, but this was too much. The flavour was good, but nothing special. At least they are now using regular salt only, and no cinammon.

Score: 2/5

Apologies for the quality of the photo, it was from my iphone. I will be using my 5DII in the future!

In conclusion, the Highbury hotel burger is ok. I wouldn't rush back to get it, nor would I likely choose the next time I go to the Highbury. The Highbury have a long way to go. Having said that, you could do a lot worse. 

Total score: 10/25
(Don't bother!)

ABB.

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The Adelaide Burger Blog rating scale

Welcome to the Adelaide Burger Blog! We aim to rank Adelaide's burgers, and in the process, find Adelaide's best burger.

In order to be included in the scoreboard, there are a few simple rules:

1: The burger must be a beef burger

2: The burger must come with fries

3:The burger must be ordered as per the menu (removal of items is not allowed, however additions offered on the menu are)

At the end of each review, the burger tested will be given a score out of 25 - based on 5 criteria. Each criteria will be worth 5 points. The criteria to be judged are:

Meat:

Self explanatory really. The taste, texture, moistness and wellness of the meat.
Cheese:

An important part of any burger - the cheese will be rated on taste, texture and meltability.

Bun:

A good bun can make a good burger great.

Extras:

Most burgers come with the usual fare: lettuce, tomato and onion. Some come with something a little different.

Fries:

All burgers will be ordered with fries, and as with the other criteria, they will compromise 5 points of the final rank.

The final rank will look something like this:

Meat: 5/5

Cheese 5/5

Bun 5/5

Extras 5/5

Fries 5/5

Total: 25/25


Ratings:

 ≤10: Don't bother!

11-15: Decent, worth a shot.

16-20: Very good, go for it.

21-25: Brilliant, go now!


First up will be the Highbury hotel, Highbury.

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