In London, surrounded by the Olympics fever, I had the perfect burger last week. I was at the Taste of London, an annual summer ritual at Regent?s Park, pitched as the world?s biggest restaurant festival (40 of London?s top restaurants had a presence there this year), and one of the most interesting bites that I sampled there was a burger. A Gordon Ramsay burger, to be more precise. But this was not so much a gourmet offering as a comfort one and came with just the right, fluffy bread complementing the meat.
There?s a difference between good burgers and great ones. And the Gordon burger was definitely in the latter category, even if the patty was not beef (as in any legit hamburger) but chicken. Nevertheless, it was juicy and moist, the bread did not overwhelm it, the lettuce was perfectly crispy and above all, it came accompanied by the most interesting pickle that I have seen dished out as a side: something resembling our very own Indian lal mirch ka achar; a red chilli pickle, except that the chilli did not have the same strong bite that it does in India. Just perfect with the burger.
In India, it can be very difficult to come across a really good burger, forget a great one. The world of burgers is divided into ?gourmet? and ?fast? and chefs and critics have been known to debate the merits of both. But even if you are dishing out a strictly pop version, it is not necessary to go either the McDeez way or the chaat-seller way, where aloo tikkis sandwiched between buns are now regular offerings. East London food vans, for instance, are now dishing out fabulous street versions of the burger, marrying flavours ranging from Caribbean to Ethiopian ones with this American classic. We may not get a chance to sample these in India, yet. But luckily for all the fans, July is quite the burger month, not just the world over but in India too. So, here?s my list of the top places where to find juicy burgers in the country:
Hard Rock Caf?: I did not know this before but Hard Rock Caf? is a surprisingly good burger stopover quite aside from the music, funky waiters and the cocktails. At all their outlets in the metros, HRC has a competent, extensive hamburger menu?with real, thick beef patties, that are a must for any legit burger contrary to how most are made in India?a variety of condiments and fries. This entire month though, all Hard Rock Cafes in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore are hosting their trademark ?legendary? burger fest, where specially created burgers with flavours from Lebanon, Sri Lanka, Mexico, Thai and the Mediterranean are on offer. In fact, it is possible to substitute the beef patty in the burger of your choice with grilled chicken and vegetarians can go with Sri Lankan and Lebanese options.
The All American Diner, Delhi: The Diner?s popular annual hotdog fest also runs through this month (to coincide with the national hotdog month in the US) and has 11 new creations on offer, including a blackened cottage cheese dog for the veggies, a smoked cheese one, a Hawaiian and a Californian version.
The Burger Barn, Pune: It is inevitable that a student town like Pune should have a specialist burger joint. This modest caf? is popular with Koregaon Park students, office-goers, et al, and portions are huge so that you can split a burger between two people. Recommended options include the basa filet burger and a crunchy BBQ chicken burger. There?s also the gigantic six-patty burger made of 1.5 kg of chicken and vegetables that makes for their in-house challenge. They apparently put your name down on the restaurant wall if you manage to finish it!
Caf? Thulp, Bangalore: This is as American an offering as you are likely to get in India: Pounded beef patties inside fresh bread, with or without cheese and bacon. Besides that there is a Vietnamese pork burger here that you may want to try.
Finally, if you want to stick to more Indianised streetfood, you can always buy vada pav off the streets. This after all, is the true Indian burger. The story goes that in July a vendor in Dadar sandwiched the batata vada (potato chop) between pav and thus it was created. What can be better that to take a spicy bite when it rains?
The writer is a food critic