There are days when you just want to sink your teeth into a flavoursome juicy burger. Craving for a burger that is bursting at its seams, I head to the newly opened burger joint in town - Burger Lounge.
The restaurant, with limited seating, is not for the calorie-conscious as there are no salads or ‘health’ food. Instead, there is a list of burgers, sandwiches, juices and tall, frothy milkshakes.
The menu sounds promising. There is Cheese burger, Zinger burger, Beef steak burger, Egg burger, Chicken 65 Club, Veg Club, Sausage Club and more. For refreshment, there is Sharjah, Ballgrape juice, Orange juice, Ginger lime....
For me, a burger should be greasy, cheese laden, have flavourful condiments and topped with a piquant sauce. And I need a side of crisp, salty fries. The bun should be soft yet firm so that it does not disintegrate half way through the meal.
Envisioning a succulent pate with onions, pickles, ketchup, mustard and cheese in a soft burger bun, I order a Cheese burger. As most burger joints are fond of adding colour and texture to their burgers with lettuce and cabbage, I ask the waiter to avoid these in mine. While one friend orders a Chicken steak burger, another asks for a Beef steak burger. We also ask for a glass of Ginger lime and Chocolate milkshake. Our waiter tells us as they are out of butter in the kitchen, we will have to wait a bit for our meal.
The burgers arrive and I am disappointed to see that there are no fries. My waiter tells me I should have ordered their Burger meal if I wanted complimentary fries on my plate. The Burger meal has a choice of a chicken, beef or vegetable burger with a side of fries and a glass of milkshake.
“Or you can order a plate of fries,” he adds. I order a plate. My burger is hot and looks scrumptious. I take a bite and although the pate is juicy, the condiments and sauces are slightly disappointing. There is no pickle in my burger and the sauce is nothing but garlic mayonnaise. My friend who is relishing her Chicken steak burger, says, that apart from the fact that her burger is salty, it’s fine. The one who has ordered the Beef steak burger, realising that there is no neat way to polish a burger, chomps down into hers. “The meat is a bit chewy,” she says between mouthfuls.
Crisp, golden fries dusted with salt and pepper arrives. They go well with the side of garlic mayo.
French fries
The ginger lime packs a punch with its generous use of ginger and has just the right amount of sweetness, while the chocolate milkshake is thick and creamy.
The use of muted brown as a general theme for the restaurant lends the joint a warm, cosy feel. Colourful frames of the Eiffel Tower, the London bus, old fashioned telephone booths and the like are artfully arranged on a wall. Burger Lounge is at Bakery Junction, Thiruvananthapuram.
