American Food

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California Food From Travels San Francisco

Super Duper Burgers

As a general rule, I can’t eat when I’m hungover. I know, it’s like being robbed of the only pleasurable thing about the morning after the night before: the sheer speed at which you can get through the contents of your kitchen without even considering it, let alone without feeling remotely guilty about having eight meals in a day. So to say that I finished this burger, chips and milkshake off on a killer hangover – that, my friends, is a high accolade.

After a few too many wines in San Francisco the night before, I’d dragged myself around Alcatraz, of all places, before collapsing in my dorm bunk for a well earned nap. Waking a couple of hours later, not overly hungry but having promised myself a Super Duper Burger at some point during my time in San Fran, I dragged myself off to the nearest store of theirs just in time before they closed for the night. After all, burgers are a must eat to complete any trip Stateside.

What I instantly loved about Super Duper before I’d even tried their food, is that two burger patties is the standard order, so a bun with only one burger is called the Mini. How brilliant is that – a regular sized one patty burger is considered mini. It’s just the most American thing ever. Burgers here come with free toppings in the shape of lettuce, sliced tomato, red onion, grilled onions, jalepenos and housemade pickles – or any combination of those you fancy. It’s extra for cheese and bacon (either 50 or 75 cents for the former depending on if you’ve opted for the standard or mini, and $1 for the latter); as well as between $1 and $1.50 for the following additions: avocado, mushroom, egg or blue cheese. I went in for the Mini with cheese and bacon and could absolutely be convinced to go full American next time with two patties as standard, because man, Super Duper know how to burger.

If you’ve got room (and you should make room), their skin on fries ($2.75) can be pimped out with cheese and garlic for some serious indulgence ($3.25) and frankly you’d be a fool not to wash it all down with one of their deliciously thick milkshakes made with organic soft serve ice cream ($4.75 for a regular, $5.75 for a super shake). Super Duper are also well known for serving up excellent egg sandwiches and donuts for breakfast, but the sheer number of amazing brunch options on offer in San Francisco meant I didn’t have time to squeeze that in, but it’s worth noting.

Interestingly, whilst Super Duper are very much a fast food outlet, they reflect slow food values, and a part of their ethos is that burgers shouldn’t cost $3, so their prices are above the likes of other fast food places such as In-N-Out. The higher prices allow Super to source sustainably and locally, with high quality at the forefront of their priorites – not just when it comes to ingredients but also designers and sign painters for their store interiors. All this and their packaging is 100% eco friendly and compostable. Pretty great right? It doesn’t even add that much to the price, with the standard double patty coming in at $7.70 and a mini at $5.50. Mini, I mean really. Never change, America.

Several locations in and around San Francisco, visit website for further details.

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Food From Travels Las Vegas Los Angeles

Eggslut

I’m genuinely considering setting up some sort of campaign to get Eggslut to open in London. Eggslut is truly the hangover cure people need, and Londoners need it now. Don’t be so greedy, America. Having read about this spot as a New York must eat among, well, thousands of New York must eats, I was thrilled to find out there was an Eggslut in Las Vegas…right in my own hotel. Nothing could be more ideal to sop up the endless debauchery of sin city.

Waking early with jet lag on my first morning Stateside, it conveniently meant I could skip the queue that snakes from Eggslut inside the Cosmopolitan Hotel to grab my first Eggslut breakfast. After much debate over the small menu, I landed on the sausage, egg and cheese on brioche, made with turkey sausage, cheddar and the genius addition of honey mustard aioli. The best way to describe this creation is a) heaven and b) like a pimped up Sausage Egg McMuffin sandwich, but one hundred times better – and I’m a fan of a Maccy D’s breakfast, believe me. The egg is cooked over medium, so bursts when you bite into the buttery brioche and is a total, messy joy to eat. The honey and mustard add another level of delicious and the American cheddar brings the McDonald’s-esque filth to the bun. If you prefer to get your regular pig in the morning, there’s a bacon version served with chipotle ketchup instead of aioli.

For the veggies amongst us there are two options on the menu: the Fairfax which sounds so good I nearly ordered it before realising it was veggie (I like meat in the morning…) – soft scrambled eggs and chives on brioche with cheddar, sriracha mayo and caramelized onions; and the Egg Salad made with hard boiled eggs and honey mustard aioli. There are two further meat options on the menu – the Gaucho, with seared wagyu beef, egg, red onions, rocket and chimichurri, which my friend absolutely raved about, and an Eggslut cheeseburger which includes bread and butter pickles, of all things.

If you don’t fancy a bun, or you’re gluten free, you can either have salad with any of the above, which admittedly could be a bit odd, but it’s an option. You could have their coddled egg on potato puree, or one of their house-made buttermilk biscuits, served with butter and maple syrup.  But I wholeheartedly and with true passion recommend one of their fancy McMuffin style buns. Sadly to get one of them you’re going to need to take a long flight since Eggslut isn’t in the UK (yet..please?), have closed their NYC pop up and now sits firmly back in their original spot on the West Coast with three spots around LA and one in Vegas. Worth the journey though.

 

Los Angeles:
Downton LA: inside Grand Central Market, 317 S. Broadway, Stall D-1, Los Angeles, CA 90013
Venice: 1611 Pacific Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90291
Glendale: 252 S. Brand Blvd., Suite D, Glendale, CA 91204

Las Vegas:
Inside the Cosmopolitan Hotel, 3708 Las Vegas Blvd. South, Las Vegas, NV 89109

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London Street Food

Bleecker St. Burger

What makes the perfect burger? There’ll be arguments over this one for sure, but for me the top requirement is it needs to be messy, but not messy enough that the whole thing falls apart after two bites. The patty must be juicy, a bit pink and full of flavour, the cheese needs to be cheap and preferably of the American plastic variety: bright yellow and sticky. The bun is up for debate: I love a brioche, but a sesame seeded can also win out. Lightly toasted though, please.

I’m essentially describing Bleecker St. Burger. Named after founder Zan Kaufman’s favourite street in her native New York City, Bleecker St is a prime example of a small scale street food project that has blown up into a cult favourite amongst Londoners, all whilst retaining the passion that originally caused Zan to give up her law career for that big black van serving incredible burgers.

The burger scene in London has gone from strength to strength over the last few years; competition is fierce and there is constant debate over which is the very best burger in London. Before you jump in with your favourite, I implore you to try Bleecker St first. And I’m going to give you a simple instruction before you do: go double. After the first bite of my first ever Bleecker burger I instantly regretted not going double. After all, if you’re gonna do it, do it properly. These burgers sail to the top of many a ‘Best Burger in London’ list based on the quality of the meat that’s used. The beef comes from The Butchery in Bermondsey, where it’s dry-aged for up to fifty days, creating an intense flavour that I can’t recall being matched in another London burger. (Although of course, I am willing to sample dozens of burgers should you wish to disprove this). So yeah, with meat this good, you want to go double. Then add bacon.

Too often fries are pushed to the wayside in the quest for the best burger, and due to this I often skip them. However Bleecker St don’t shy away from their commitment to excellence and the chips are surprisingly good – rough cut and crispy (£3). They also offer a mix of regular fries and sweet potato with a blue cheese sauce named Angry Fries (£4), for those who are after something punchier.

Next time I visit (and it should be pretty soon, the Canary Wharf site is mere minutes from me, what a drag) I’m trying the famed Bleecker Black (£10) – a double patty extravaganza with black pudding cutting through the middle. People call it the best burger in London. I guess I’ll just have to judge for myself. You should too.

Have you had a Bleecker St Burger? Do you think it’s the best burger in London or have you got another favourite that beats it? Let me know in the comments!

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London

Bodean’s 

Facebook recently reminded me it’s been two years since my friend Harry and I went to Bodean’s and ordered five sides. Five. Between two, in addition to a huge plate of BBQ meat each which, yes, already came with sides. I recently showed my mate Tom (of Foulder Online) the wondrous ways of the world of Bodean’s for the first time, and it struck me I’ve never actually written about my love for the place other than random comments or tweets screaming ‘BODEAN’S I LOVE BODEAN’S’ into the void. I assume everyone knows about Bodean’s because they’ve been around for years now and have quite a few outposts, but then I think, ‘God, what if you don’t? What if you don’t know and you’re missing this amazing meat mecca in your life?’ So here we are.

I’m going to start with the drinks first, because without fail the first thing I do when I reach any Bodean’s is order a margarita straight up, with salt. Let me tell you, they know this cocktail. I’d like to tell you they know all their cocktails, but I couldn’t, because I only ever have the margs. I’m not steering off piste when my favourite cocktail is that good. For those who don’t want to plough their way through the long cocktail list they also serve a wealth of American beers and ales, as well as a decent offering of reds and white wines.

And then, of course, there’s the meat – the star of this all American show. Look around and you’ll see huge racks of ribs smothered in their house smokey BBQ sauce, towering burgers, foot long hot dogs. The smell as you walk past other diners to your table is genuinely saliva inducing. My go-to is forever the pulled pork with burnt ends combo (£13.95): tender meat that falls apart at the softest of nudges from your fork, full of flavour and never, ever dry. It’s a tough pick from an extensive menu, but I can personally highly recommend any platter of meat they offer, and if you’re into hot dogs, Tom assures me the chilli cheese dog (£8.25) is more than up to scratch.

But back to these five sides. If you want to truly experience a Bodean’s feast to its greatest potential, order extra sides. That time Harry and I went a tad overboard (no regrets), we ordered sweet potato fries, macaroni cheese, cornbread (oh God I love cornbread), BBQ beans with extra pulled pork (I know) and onion rings, because of course. All were excellent, but the onion rings and cornbread are a must. Needless to say that what with all that and several margaritas, I’ve never made it to dessert, though the menu is made up of American classics such as pecan pie and New York style cheesecake. You don’t go to Bodean’s for the sweets though, you go for the meat. And then you keep going back.

 

Locations in Soho, Tower Hill, Balham, Old Street, Fulham, Clapham and Covent Garden. For addresses and specific opening times for each restaurant visit the website.

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London Street Food

Smokestak

Oh my God oh my God please eat this. Please go to Smokestak and eat their meat. I haven’t even tried their pulled pork or their ribs and yet I am saying this with the utmost confidence because if they’re halfway as good as their beef brisket is, you will thank me forever.

I would go far as to say that Smokestak’s Beef Brisket Bun is one of the best things I’ve ever had in my mouth. In my body. In my hands, the juice from the beautiful  tender meat drizzling down the side of the charred brioche bun, pickled chillies poking out – a sure sign that this will be a messy meal. As all the best meals are.

Luckily for us mere mortals, Smokestack have the magical ability to crop up in two places at once, meaning that Londoners can take advantage of this brilliant fare in two locations every weekend at Streetfeast’s Model Market in Lewisham and Dalston Yard in, well, Dalston, as well as at various festivals on the summer circuit. Go. Please go. I implore you to go. Take all your friends. Take your date. Take your parents and treat them, because you’re an adult now, and also because you get one of the most delicious things in London in your mouth all for less than a tenner, so really there’s no excuse. I’d pay twenty.

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