I hate to do this, but Burger Bar was nothing like we expected. The menu seemed inspired, and we…read moreheard nothing but good things from everyone including our flatmates. So you could imagine our disappointment when we made the trip out to Noosaville for lunch on empty stomachs after 2 hours of stand up paddle boarding and still couldn't enjoy what we were served.
The Midnight Delight (beef, cheese, smoked bacon, garlic & chilli mayonnaise, fried onions, lettuce, tomato, house mayonnaise, AU$14) was far from delightful. The patty was burnt to a crisp throughout, so all I could taste were lumps of what I would imagine chewing charcoal would be like. The bun was dry. The greens were limp. And to be honest, I couldn't understand the sauces which they were stingy on anyway. I rarely splurge on bacon, and I utterly regret doing so today. The burger itself was rather substantial, but a large, incredibly overcooked burger is nothing to cheer about.
The House of the Rising Bun (premium Wagyu beef, japanese teriyaki sauce, pickled ginger, house mayo, wasabi, kimchi, roasted red peppers, lettuce, AU$15) was something my partner was absolutely ecstatic for; he was giddy just uttering its name to the cashier. But from the very first bite, his palette was confused. He rarely ever complains about food much less a burger, and he stated that this topped his list for the absolute worst burger he's ever tried. I eat Korean food regularly as does my partner; we've both travelled through South Korea, and neither us saw how the kimchi was true to its name. Fermented, it was. But the spices were completely off.
To make matters worse, I was telling my companion the other day about how I haven't had a bad batch of chips since arriving in Australia about 1.5 months ago, and I guess I jinxed us because the chips were boring and some were undercooked. Granted they were busy and the wait for an order was approximately 30 minutes (quoted by an employee), but cutting corners and taking chips out of the fryer a minute or two early does more damage than good. I had a stomachache after, and this was my first meal of the day. It's hard to stuff up chips, but Burger Bar did just that.
When we got back to our flat, we were still fuming and it was then that our flatmates told us to avoid lunchtime since they've had bad experiences then as well and have had great food only at dinnertime. Even if that were true, the keys to a successful business includes consistency and Burger Bar just doesn't have it.
The only saving grace was the super friendly woman with a smile on who took our order. +1 star for her.
