The Burger Lounge – 902 Main Rd, Eltham, Victoria, Australia

If you look down the main street of Eltham on a Sunday night you’d say its a pretty quiet place. That is, until you spot The Burger Lounge. Its no wonder MP Steve Herbert (State Member for Eltham) recently nominated these guys for a 2011 Telstra Business Award; they are killing it. One of our readers had recommended The Burger Lounge to us, but it was safe to say this is not what we were expecting. People are everywhere; either scrambling for a table or picking up takeaway orders. The music is pumping and the lights are dimmed making the interior look more like a CBD cafe/bar than the everyday suburban burger joint that most of us are used to. We somehow managed to score a couple of seats outside and watched with astonishment as more and more people rolled in. It was crazy. After a bit of deliberation and going over their menu a million times we ordered the Lounge Signature Burger that came with a 100% prime organic beef pattie stuffed with havarti cheese, basted with a balsamic glaze, pickled cucumber, red onion, lettuce, tomato, relish & herb aioli.

“The first thing that took me by surprise was how unbelievably busy this “burger lounge” was. All of the burger’s individual ingredients seemed really fresh and of good quality but the whole package didn’t come together as well as I expected for a specialty burger shop. I wasn’t really sold on the idea of the havarti stuffed pattie as it didn’t add anything special and just seemed more like a gimmick. The pickles were good, but the whole thing seemed to be masked by it’s relish. I think it could’ve been a better burger if it were more simple.”

“After much heated debate about what burger to choose from their extensive menu, I lost. I would have preferred to try the Classic with Cheese, but the guys were hoping to try something new. The idea of some cheese that I’ve never heard of before stuffed inside beef just doesnt float my boat. It sounds like too much preperation and therefore not the freshest beef possible. Saying that, the beef still tasted great, but I didn’t actually notice the small lump of cheese in it’s centre as the mayo and strong chutney sauce overpowered it. Overall a very filling and messy experience. I can’t say I’ve ever been to Eltham before but in what seems like a sleepy pocket of Melbourne, full of fresh air, trees and birds, this place is doing a roaring trade.”

“Something about this burger really unsettled me. As I started eating it I could taste this flavour that would linger and semi-ruin the whole experience. After much discussion (debate) with the team I came to the conclusion that the relish was completely taking over in a bad way. By the time I had reached the end of the burger the bun looked more like a soggy, messy car wreck. So really the pro’s were only the pattie and pickles. I’d label the burger average, but only by a fraction. Chips were good.”

“My first impression was Great, weird bread again. Then I got a bit excited about trying our first burger with stuffed cheese inside the pattie. Sadly, the havarti was the wrong choice of cheese for the job, because once I bit in it didn’t ooze out at all. It just ended up going hard and rubbery like a Boccocini or Oaxaca cheese. On its own, the beef was actually pretty good; seasoned well and quite tasty. I wasn’t sure whether it was the balsamic glaze or the havarti but I did get a few sour hints with every bite. The Turkish/Foccacia style bun was way too big for the burger and I was left with just bread that I didn’t eat. Like we’ve all said, this place has the locals in a furor, so I’ll have to go back to try their Classic. As for their Signature though, I’d re-write it.”

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