There’s been a rabid buzz and high level of anticipation on social media websites over the past few weeks since the announcement that ‘Burger Meats Bun’, the latest addition to Glasgow’s booming burger scene, would be opening its doors on West Regent street. Glasgow’s subway has been covered in advertisements for the new burger joint and Twitter has been abuzz with people even considering queueing up before the doors even opened on day one!
Why all the hype? Well, owner Ben Dantzic first met his business partner and chef, James Forrest during their time spent working at Michelin-starred restaurant The Peat Inn located near St. Andrews. Both James & Ben have accumulated a wealth of experience between them and decided that they would put it to use by opening a brand new burger joint in the heart of Glasgow – their ethos being ‘burgers, but better’.*
We’re always going to welcome a new burger joint to Glasgow; however, it was important for us to not get caught up in all of the hype and go in for our review without unrealistically high expectations. With that in mind, we made our way towards West Regent street, expecting to see an angry mob outside, fighting their way down the steps to get inside the basement venue.
We didn’t get an angry mob, but it was certainly very busy during our time there! Fortunately, we managed to grab a table before the large crowds began to appear.
Downstairs and inside, Burger Meats Bun has a very contemporary, stripped back look and feel made up of a mix of reclaimed timber, iron sheets, handmade wooden tables & stools along with a few shiny red leather seats at the back of the restaurant. There’s a couple of larger tables for bigger parties too. As the place filled up, there was a very nice atmosphere throughout, with lots of happy chatter from nearby tables and a cool mix of rock, indie and hip-hop being pumped from the speakers. It reminded us a little of Patty & Bun, widely regarded as the best burger joint in London.
The menu is plain and simple. There’s three beef options, two chicken burgers and one vegetarian. There’s a couple of sides available including wings & fries and a couple of desserts too. The whole thing is sleek and simple, yet there’s still enough to offer something for everyone. The focus is on quality and both the menu and other signs dotted throughout stress that nothing other than the highest quality Scottish beef and ingredients are used here. There’s also a range of beers and cocktails on offer, if you’ve decided to leave the car at home. If you’re in a rush, you can also get your burgers to go, if you’d prefer.
One thing to also highlight is that each table is given an entire roll of napkins once the food has been ordered. To date, this has always been the sign of a great burger joint, no matter which city we’ve been in.
So how was the food? We decided to go with the Fiery Burger, the Smokin’ Bacon Burger and a side of Thai Chilli Cheese fries.
The Smokin’ burger consists of a beef patty topped with smoked bacon, Dale End cheddar, spiced ketchup, BMB burger sauce, braised onions and salad on a brioche bun. The beef patty was ample in size and cooked medium, with lovely hints of pink throughout. To say the meat was juicy would be an understatement. There’s a reason these guys bring an entire roll of napkins to each table when you sit down – these burgers are some of the juiciest we’ve ever eaten and by the time I was half way through mine, my hands were a mess, but in the best way possible. The beef was well seasoned and full of flavour and actually stood tall against the toppings, which complimented the meat rather than overpowered it. Always a good sign. The spiced ketchup and secret burger sauce added plenty of depth and the bacon was appropriately smokey, although I would have preferred it a tad crispier; however, that’s my personal preference.
The Fiery burger consists of a beef patty topped with Toma Raschiera cheese, chipotle mayo, jalapeños and salad on a brioche bun. Now maybe I’m just a bit of a wimp when it comes to hot food or maybe I just can’t handle it like I used to, but this burger was indeed fiery! The chipotle and jalapeños were more than enough to bring tears to my eyes and the cheese only added to the spicy finish. The chipotle mayo had a nice, full-bodied flavour and a good kick. Hopefully it’s also available as a side to dip your fries in for future visits! The meat itself was as described above – very juicy and rich. The beef had a nice, bold, intense flavour and even though the patty of the Fiery burger wasn’t quite as ‘medium’ as the Smokin’ burger, it was still very well cooked with nice slight hints of pink throughout.
Special mention must also go to the brioche bun used on both burgers, which was tremendous. If you’ve ever visited In-N-Out Burger in the US, think that. We actually commented that initially, it almost resembled what we’d imagine a very high-end McDonalds bun would look like! The bun was delicious – super soft, very lightly sweetened and had good form. There was a really nice springiness to the bun and everything from the patty to the other toppings fit inside perfectly, almost as if they’d been made to fit only these patties. Overall, the presentation was very good. We loved the no-nonsense approach of the burgers being brought from from the kitchen wrapped in labelled paper with a couple of steak knifes. Simple, yet effective.
The Thai chilli cheese fries were very good. We said before that these guys aren’t kidding around when it comes to food that has a kick to it and that’s evident here. After only a few bites from this plate of fries, my mouth was on fire. The fries were topped with cheese, chopped chillies and were coated with a delicious seasoning that was both slightly sweet and spicy. I’d definitely order these again.
After our food, as full as we were, we were also very curious about the mysterious ‘Burger & Shake’ dessert option and decided to order one. Plus, my mouth was still BURNING from the Thai chilli fries, so dessert seemed like a good way to cool down….
What we got was a mini dessert burger consisting of chocolate ganache, raspberry puree and mango jelly all housed inside a vanilla macaroon ‘bun’ with a mini vanilla & tonka bean shake on the side. We were instantly reminded of the dessert burgers that we’d tasted at ‘Burger Bar’ in Las Vegas, but in all honesty, Burger Meats Bun’s effort was much better. We love the presentation and it was light enough to not make you feel completely ashamed after wolfing down the burgers & fries. One of the coolest desserts you’ll experience in Glasgow.
Overall, Burger Meats Bun definitely lived up to all of the hype. Despite all of the hysteria, we approached it with realistic expectations and ended up leaving feeling that we’d just eaten one of the best burgers that Glasgow has to offer. Everything from the lively atmosphere to the medium patties, the delicious bun and cool, quirky desserts were first rate and we are very excited to see what BMB come with in the future.
London burger fans were treated to the arrival of US giants Five Guys & Shake Shack, who both opened their first UK branches in the city earlier this week. We’ve heard cries from Glasgow foodies who’ve been telling us that they now regret not going to London for the launch; however, after sampling Burger Meats Bun, it is our opinion that it’s the poor guys in London who are likely missing out.
Despite only just having opened their doors, Burger Meats Bun have already positioned themselves among the very best burger joints in Glasgow and we’d highly recommend heading along to check it out.
Price: Smokin’ Bacon Burger £8 / Fiery Burger £8.50 (Fries £2 – £2.75 / Dessert £4 – £5)
SUMMARY
+ Excellent quality patty.
+ Very well cooked.
+ Full of flavour.
+ Great bun.
+ Burger sauce was very tasty.
+ Cool, quirky dessert was lots of fun and tasted great.
– I’d have perhaps preferred the bacon a tad crispier, but that’s a personal preference. It was still well cooked.
* Background info as detailed on ‘GLP Glasgow’ – http://www.facebook.com/greatlittleplaceglasgow
Have you tried this burger? Did you love it? If so, vote for it in the ‘Glasgow’s best burger’ award by clicking here.
Talk to James on Twitter and tell us what you thought of this burger! You can also leave your own review and comments below. We want to hear from you! You can also leave a message or join in on the burger chat on our Facebook page.
Burger Meats Bun
48A West Regent Street
Glasgow
G2 2RA
Phone: 0141 353 6712
Website: http://www.burger-meats-bun.co.uk
LEGAL / COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
James vs. Burger Photography by Pamela Graham is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Based on a work at http://www.jamesvsburger.com.
James vs. Burger 
I loved everything about BMB but I think you know that already! Fiery Burger was wonderful, Thai Chilli Cheese Fries and the Burger n Shake. FAULTLESS! Great seeing you both again today.
Pamela, your photos are wonderful as ever!
Only just noticed your comment Michelle! Was great seeing you there. Could go another burger, actually!
I liked BMB but did not think it was amazing. We had the same as you and it was really good but not up to Five Guys good. Also, for a place like this that is all-out marketing itself on being so passionate about the ingredients, the concept, etc, the service was terrible! I am not sure I’ll rush back, as the menu is so limited but I did enjoy reading your review of it (and, in fact, visited on the strength of it!) Keep up the good burger work!
I’m with Claire on this one…service was pretty dire! The burger was all that fantastic either – the fiery was lacking a whole lot of fire! Think i’m more a Cocktail&Burger Gal!
Really disappointing. After everyone raving about it, I tried it and wasn’t impressed at all. The patty was like a round meatball & not cooked evenly, the cheesy fries were soggy and the service was slow. The reason Five Guys, In-N-Out and Fat Burger are so good is they go for flat patties on wide buns. I have never seen the need for a skewer to hold together a burger in any of these places. Indeed a place like Fuddruckers that serves 1lb patties makes the whole thing wider instead of higher.
Many totally free Floridaa courting websites can assist you
to get a date in Jacksonville. I immediately sent him a message requestin
his site particulars. Produce a link that connects back again to your web site.
http://sumitseojacksonville.weebly.com/
What’s up to all, since I am genuinely keen of reading this website’s post to be
updated regularly. It consists of good material.
Such are the ingredients of Adiphene that its one finest selling level is the
shortage of dangerous uncomfortable side effects. The
huge distinction between Adiphene and Adipex is that Adiphene is a product that
uses a sequence of natural and secure to use ingredients.
Having said that, the study has shown that just about anything that can maximize the metabolism, also can raise the weight reduction even if the human being is
just resting.
I every time spent my half an hour to read this blog’s articles or reviews all the time along with
a mug of coffee.
So why is being overweight such a direct link to diabetes.
Perhaps the main reason behind this though is that you have
developed a dependence on food. Glucomannan is among the most active hunger suppressants in Adiphene, and it works to suppress yearnings and help you handle your parts.
If you want to know the crystal clear details it is better to view
just about any online store web sites explaining
the actual product or service information using elements.
There are various surgical methods to combat obesity. Glucomannan is among the most active hunger suppressants in Adiphene, and
it works to suppress yearnings and help you handle your parts.
future, the researchers want to find out whether a combination of several educated in the gastrointestinal tract hormones can further enhance the
effect of the gastric band. There are various surgical methods
to combat obesity. Glucomannan is among the most active hunger suppressants in Adiphene, and it works to suppress
yearnings and help you handle your parts.
You wont find Adiphene in your native pharmacy or some huge store like Walmart or
Walgreens. Adiphene the new weight loss formula is now available
with the power of 11 different fat burners to boost weight
loss. Assuming that you aren’t a super-taught individual, you will have some major
snags adding on control over your zealous urges towards consuming
distinctive sustenances.
It reduces fats and carb absorption, reduces urge for food,
stimulates the metabolism promoting fats burning and offers
you extra vitality. Safety is also assured when taking
Adiphene because of its natural ingredients, which means that serious side effects are unlikely to
happen if taken as directed. There is a section to discuss the biggest loser show, specific diets, and much more.
Such are the ingredients of Adiphene that its one finest
selling level is the shortage of dangerous uncomfortable side effects.
Adiphene is the newest and fastest weight reduction supplement in market.
Assuming that you aren’t a super-taught individual, you will have some major snags adding on control over your
zealous urges towards consuming distinctive sustenances.
You wont find Adiphene in your native pharmacy or some huge
store like Walmart or Walgreens. There are various surgical methods to
combat obesity. Having said that, the study has shown that just
about anything that can maximize the metabolism, also can raise the weight reduction even if the human being is just resting.
Very good write-up. I absolutely love this website.
Keep it up!