My Notting Hill: Honest Burgers

I'm not really a meat eater.

Most of the time,

I stick to veggies...

unless it's exceptionally delicious meat.

Like boeuf bourgignon at a favorite French restaurant

or pork barbecue sandwiches when I'm in the South...

or Chick-fil-A nuggets by the handful because they are goooood.

We don't really eat at ton of red meat,

so we save our burger splurges

for the best...

which means we don't eat them in England.

Burgers in England are gross.

I hate to be a downer, but it's just true.

They're nasty (in my Texan snob opinion)

for two reasons:

1. The cows are grass-fed and it makes the beef taste weird.

2. They use breadcrumbs in the patties so it makes them have

a weird, meatloaf-y consistency.

Now, a year ago,

I could have written off this entire

soggy island and it's soggy burger patties...

but I actually, have to allow for a few exceptions.

Now that the US darlings Shack Shake & Five Guys 

have come to town,

it is possible to get a good burger...

AND because Honest Burgers is here.

Since they are British and have created a good burger,

they get an extra gold star.

There are a few locations,

but we go to the one in Notting Hill

on Portobello Road

(duh).

They offer a really simple menu,

but it's a good one.

Go with the Honest burger (bacon, cheddar, carmelised onion relish)

 + homemade fries with rosemary salt.

Once your tummy starts protruding

with a burger pooch,

you'll singing John Cougar Mellancamp

and swearing to yourself that you were

back in the good ole US of A.

(Except you actually won't be... so don't sing... Just hum.)

*      *     *

Honest Burgers

189 Portobello Road 

London W11 2ED

+44 (0) 7229 4978

(Other locations available here.)

*photography by Noah Darnell