One Tea Lounge and Grill, CBD Sydney (11 April 2017)

73 York Street, Sydney NSW 2000
http://www.onetealounge.com.au
https://www.instagram.com/onetealounge/

For the matcha obsessed

For those completely obsessed with matcha #matchobsession then this is probably the place for you. Although being a non-matcha fan I've stuck to something completely free of matcha for a quick bite to eat. 'Juicy AF burger' - juicy crispy sous vide buttermilk fried chicken, tomato, lettuce, chilli mayo, garlic aioli ($14) had an excellent moist chicken and thin crispy batter that lives up to the description. Nice soft bun held its shape well. The chilli mayo seemed more like a chilli relish spread on the chicken and built up to a spicy and pleasant kick to the tastebuds that lingered throughout the eat. I reckon if you swap the lettuce and tomato for the shichimi maple bacon and some melty cheese would be an awesome burger hack. I was first introduced to this burger via @tonyhollingsworth as a guest and always hoped to revisit it. Service was friendly and polite. The decor colourful and there's plenty of seating available. It was very quiet during my visit but I believe it's more popular at night. Unfortunately there's not much natural light that enters this kingdom of matcha during the day. Love those funny word description posters in the men's toilet but I reckon that sink needs a privacy screen between the urinal to help avoid awkward moments when someone needs to wash their hands ;-).

Taste testing Darren Simpson's Signature Burger at KFC vs McDonald's Chicken Scorcher Burger, Narellan (3 Dec 2011)

3 George Hunter Drive, Narellan NSW 2567

http://mcdonalds.com.au
http://www.kfc.com.au

Something different to compare

After checking out the new Masters Home Improvement centre far out west in Gregory Hills, which was pretty impressive, I passed by Narellan on the way back for a quick and easy snack with the family. Stopping at McDonald's I was hoping to have a McFeast but soon learnt they've discontinued it again — you shall be missed. I tried the McDonald's Chicken Scorcher Burger ($4.95) for the first time which strangely came in a McFeast burger box. The sauce was a little spicy or possibly it was from the coating of the chicken. Not too messy to eat but it was just a simple burger of chicken, lettuce and sauce. Realising McDonald's was not the home of Darren Simpson's new burger I ventured literally next door to KFC to try the Signature Range Chilli Relish & Cheddar Chicken Burger ($6.95). Looking nothing like the creation on the advertising posters it was served perhaps a little poorly presented and much smaller than I was expecting. The layering of the ingredients compared to the promotional images was very different as well.

The bun was soft and the chilli relish had a pretty decent kick to it. I'm not sure why a 'top restaurant chef of UK and Australia' would be needed to design a burger that simply had cheese, lettuce, roasted capsicum, chilli relish and chicken strips in it but perhaps the endorsement of the burger will win sales — it certainly worked on me and I haven't been in a KFC store for probably over 10-15 years. Would I have it again? Possibly not but if I was out on the road and hungry and came across a KFC I might possibly consider it because it tasted healthier than just having fried chicken and the flavours were nice enough. I found it a bit messy to eat as I picked it up and had ingredients fall out easily. A common factor I found with the Narellan McDonald's and KFC stores when I visited was the dining room bins were visibly overflowing and should have been emptied and most of the tables in KFC weren't particularly clean and it wasn't busy. If I was doing a QSCV (Quality, Service, Cleanliness & Value) rating they would have been lowly marked in this area.

McDonald's Chicken Scorcher Burger ($4.95)

Outside McDonald's Narellan

KFC Signature Range Chilli Relish & Cheddar Chicken Burger ($6.95)

Two chicken strips coated with chilli relish

Layering of the ingredients was a little all over the place. The capsicum was falling out from the sides a bit too easily due to being quite small pieces.

I found it a bit messy to eat

Outside KFC Narellan

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Grill'd: Healthy burgers made with love, Darlinghurst (22 July 2010)

241 Crown Street, Darlinghurst NSW 2021
http://www.grilld.com.au

Healthy burger promise

Thanks to Charmaine from Liquid Ideas for sending me a $25 voucher to use at Grill'd. I remember seeing this burger franchise in Melbourne but didn't get a chance to try so I've been curious to visit the popular new shop on Crown Street. Is there such thing as a healthy burger? — well Grill'd aim to achieve this with their promise of using the freshest ingredients and meat patties that are super low in fat. Two of the most popular menu choices are the 'Simon says' chicken burger ($11.90) named after me of course which comes with grilled chicken breast, avocado, crispy trim bacon, salad, relish and herbed mayo and the Simply Grill'd beef burger ($8.90) which has grilled 100% lean beef, salad, relish and herbed mayo. Both burgers are made to order with care by the kitchen staff and have a home style taste which doesn't taste too processed and leave you feeling heavy and blotted in the stomach as you might find with other burgers. I think it might be due to the low fat meat patty which doesn't taste too oily and I can tell by it's taste it's less fatty.

Hot chips are a must with any burger purchase, it's common burger etiquette, and their Hot chips ($4.30 regular size) with tomato relish ($0.70) are quite thickly cut and nicely seasoned. They perhaps could have been a bit more crispy and rustic for my liking although I guess they wouldn't be as healthy then. In terms of the burger structure I prefer my sauce to be near the meat rather than on the bun near the salad — sauce and juicy meat go hand in hand on the taste buds. Also the use of raw red onion is a bit overpowering — and bad for the breath — I prefer it a bit cooked to reduce some of the stark onion taste. Other than that I'd be pretty happy to have the burgers again when the call of a late night craving swoops upon me which seems to be when I usually get tempted to eat a burger these days.

SNAPSHOT REVIEW:

PROS: Healthy home style taste with quality ingredients, Interesting menu choices, Friendly service, Nice decor and seating, 4 unisex toilets available, Handy location

CONS: Use of raw onion, Takes a little bit of time to freshly prepare and cook, More pricey than your average burger joint

MUST TRY: At least once to compare to all other burgers

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Simply Grill'd beef burger: Grilled 100% lean beef, salad, relish and herbed mayo $8.90 with tasty cheese $1 extra

'Simon says' chicken burger: Grilled chicken breast, avocado, crispy trim bacon, salad, relish and herbed mayo $11.90

Hot Chips: Thick-cut Tasmanian Russet-Burbank potato chips $4.30 (regular size) with tomato relish ($0.70)


Kitchen station

Separate and communal table seating

The Grill'd branding

Right next door to Mad Mex

My $25 Grill'd voucher from Liquid Ideas


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