Burgeri (American) – Soho, London

Mention the subject of burger joints in Qatar, and Doha’s established chain, Burgeri, will invariably be mentioned and recommended.

And while Burgeri did make its UK debut back in 2016, early lukewarm reviews didn’t exactly inspire us towards following things up, particularly with London’s Halal burger scene being as competitive (and saturated) as it is.

In any case, we mustered up the will to visit their lone branch in Soho’s Great Marlborough Street, which was, it has to be said, quite busy during that afternoon.

The place itself is distinctly decked out, with a clean colour scheme and sufficient seating for enjoying their selection of burgers and hot dogs.

Virgin Mojito – Mint leaves, lemon, brown sugar and sprite, £5.00

Vanilla Shake £5.50

We’re pretty certain this is the first time we’ve encountered a machine-made virgin mojito!

With the mint being placed in the cup before the magic of mechanics did it’s thing, we weren’t expecting much.

But we’d be damned if this didn’t taste better than most of the handmade mojitos we’ve tried over the years.

Not only was there a good kick of lime in this mildly fizzy mocktail, but the mint came through well enough to make this a fairly well balanced one.

As for the wholly unimpressive Vanilla Shake, then it was served thin and watery, and overly sweet too.

B Cheesy – Black angus beef with melted cheese, £5.50

As highly sought-after as Wagyu is as a breed of beef, there’s only so much of the Halal supply available to go around in London and the UK. As such, we’ve been informed by a number of restaurateurs over the years of the headache in maintaining its availability.

We mention this fact because Burgeri had run out of Wagyu on the day, which, truth be told, was one of the main reasons we went down.

In any case, and sufficing with the Angus beef, their B Cheesy burger was straightforward enough, with simple traditional American ingredients therein. To be honest, we’re not sure the wagyu would have succeeded in elevating this above the average.

With a soft potato bun, the patty not only turned out under-seasoned, but also well done. And with a lack of sauce, we’re wondering what the fuss is all about. Perhaps Wagyu is the secret here. Otherwise, this is average at best!

Brave Dog £5.25

Burgeri’s hot dog bucks a trend we’ve been experiencing for quite some time now, because  unlike so many we’ve had in recent times, this actually turned out to be a good’un.

Although the bun itself wasn’t warmed through, it was chock-a-block full of ketchup, mustard, pepper relish, melted cheese, and, as against the normal fried variety, crispy dried onion flakes, which made for an enjoyable textural contrast. The sausage itself was a fairly thick and flavourful one, which, at this price in central London, is a winner with us.

Onion Rings – Giant white onions dipped in seasonede batter and sprinkled with cajun spice, £4.00

These Onions Rings were decently executed, turning out uber crispy on the outside, with little oil on the in.

Our only criticism would be with the batter, which, given its thickness, masked the taste of the large onions therein.

Cheese Fries – Crinkle cut potatoes topped with melted cheddar cheese, £3.50

If there was one item that sums up Burgeri in a nutshell, it’s the Cheese Fries – standard, simple, with little innovation, i.e. fries with some melted cheese poured over the top!