The Lagerita at Hudson’s.

I can profess a deep love for Hudsons. I know they get stick for their bad fries (and let’s be honest, they’re not as good as they should be), but I really love the place. It has hip, urban cool written all over it. They crowd is vibey, if a little over the hipster line. The waitresses are pretty. The whole interior design and feel is great. And importantly, the burgers are good. The simple Cheeseburger with its balsamic onion marmalade is cracking. I have tried most of them, but always come back for this one (recommended in 150g size: it just tastes better).

A new reason to visit Hudson’s is the Lagerita. I saw this on the menu while dining at the bar the other night (something I also love). It said Margarita topped with Jack Black. Mmm, Real Beer and margarita… that could be interesting. I tried one. Kapow! What a hit! It’s like a beer shandy, with tequila. This is revolutionary. If Archimedes had discovered this in the bath, he would have screamed ‘Eureka!’ and run down the street naked. Of course he didn’t have tequila in his time, and found another perfectly adequate reason to do this, but my point is that I felt the same way when I had my first sip. The drink is so beautifully refreshing and tasty, you could drink them all night. Okay, it’s R39 for one, which is probably good. Any cheaper and the student population would be decimated. Wiped out. Death by beer and tequila. Can you imagine?

Anyways, I recommend going to Hudson’s and trying one. Or two. You usually have to wait at the bar, so why not. Yes, Hudson’s is always busy. And so what? If you like to dine alone in a quiet restaurant, then Hudson’s isn’t for you. But then if you like to dine alone, you’re probably overly eccentric, oversensitive, self-conscious and/or socially-stunted. Either way, get used to the ready-made-meal from Woolies – you’re going to eat a lot of them. Restaurants are for social eating. It’s not just about eating, but about the combination of good food, drink and company. Oh, and about lageritas. Well, from now it is. So go try one!

www.theburgerjoint.co.za

The Sunday Burger.

Okay, yesterday I was supposed to go to a dinner with friends, but copped out because I was too hungover from the night before. I would never normally do something as juvenile as that, but then again, it was a wedding in Riebeek-Kasteel and I really was hanging. And I hadn’t committed to the dinner really. Anyways, the point was it was a late Sunday afternoon and I had a burger craving. Yet I didn’t really feel social. At all. In any way. So the only option was to make one at home. Off to Woolies. Back home. And I made this beast pictured above. A serious monster, it’s a 100% beef burger with mushroom sauce and fried egg served on an English muffin. Mmmm. So easy. Below is how. And don’t get lean mince. You want mince with a bit of fat. Fat = flavour, folks, so don’t be scared. You’ll run it off tomorrow. Oh, and yes, you’re going to fry it in butter. Not oil. Not anything else. Butter.

Ingredients (makes two, and you’ll only need one per person, I promise):

300g free-range beef mince (not lean!)

100g mushrooms, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1/2 small onion, finely chopped

100ml fresh cream

handful rocket leaves

2 eggs

6 slices mature cheddar cheese

handful Italian flat parsley, chopped

2 English muffins, halved

salt & pepper

2 tablespoons butter

Preparation:

Saute the onions for two minutes in half the butter, then add the garlic and mushrooms and saute another 5 minutes

Add the cream and let simmer another 3 minutes, season with salt & pepper then set aside

Divide the mince into two portions, mix in a good pinch salt and pepper into each

Mix the two into soft balls of mince, then flatten individually between your palms into two patties

Fry patties in hot pan in the other half of the butter

Cook on each side for 3 minutes, then again on the first for 4 minutes (timing is for patties about two-fingers thick)

When you turn it over (for the last time now), top with the slices of cheddar

Move the patties to one side of the pan, and fry the eggs in the other until ready

Serving:

Toast your English muffin halves and put onto two plates

Place rocket on top, then patties, then eggs, then cover with the mushroom sauce and finally chopped parsley.

You’re done.

Now enjoy with a glass of The Hedonist Red Blend 2008, for extreme hangover treatment.

*in hindsight I realise this burger is missing bacon. Please add streaky bacon when you make it. I will next time. How could I not have???!

The Wimpy Burger.

So part of my job means I have to visit wine farms every now and then, which involves trips to various lesser-known parts of the Cape winelands. And lesser-known means passing through small towns with little going on from a culinary perspective. And by ‘little’ I mean towns where the word ‘deli’ refers to the biltong place opposite the Total garage. Towns where Oom Tas wine does a roaring trade. Towns ruled by Wimpy…

Wimpy – yes, that quintessentially South African roadtrip pit stop. Home of The Wimpy Burger. I haven’t eaten one in years, though South Africans hoover up thousands of the things across the country each week. And not just distance-challenged people stuck a half-tank away from something better. People sit a their desk and suddenly decide “it’s Wimpy time.” So many people mow these things down, I realised I had to stop on one of my trips and eat one. Not that I’m against fast food – I just prefer a deliberately 35-day aged piece of meat to one that’s left out 35 days by accident.

So the Wimpy burger – better than I’d thought. In fact, when you’re on-the-go and looking for a fast food burger, I would recommend it. I ordered a Double Cheese Burger and it came tightly wrapped up in wax paper, with a good slab of melted cheddar-ish cheese and the classic pink-coloured tomato sauce that tastes like vinegar blended with tomato essence. But as roadie food goes, it hit the spot. In fact, it knocked the hunger and didn’t leave that sick ‘you’re an idiot for-just-eating-cardboard’ feeling in the stomach afterward, which automatically gives it a one-up on McDonald’s.  It also seemed less carcinogenic than a Steers burger. It was almost disappointing that it didn’t taste worse. If they could only throw Heinz tomato sauce and some good mustard on this thing, it would be a cracking burger. Well, in terms of fast food burgers, that is.

Inspired by this, I’ve noticed several new fast food joints recently that I’ve decided to try out. I walked past one today called ‘Texies Seafoods’ with the tagline ‘Texellent Taste. Texellent Value.’ Seriously. There’s a whole new world out there…

www.wimpy.co.za