Are you a fan of a burger? Would it be your choice for a relaxed meal with the family? We decided to do put that to the test this Fathers Day, as we decided to go for a meal at the Handmade Burger company in our local, recently refurbished, Intu (Victoria Center) shopping area in Nottingham.
The choice of burgers is over 40, all handmade from scratch in the restaurants every day. The choice include vegetarian options, a gluten free and a junior menu. They also accommodate people with allergies, just ask for advice. We have eaten at this restaurant before, well the girls and I have, and we were so impressed we thought it would be the perfect place to take the Tall Fella (my husband) to celebrate fathers day this year.
Just to let you know, I had a camera malfunction, so didn’t get as many photographs as I would usually, or as good quality, my apologies.
We started off with a round of drinks, and though there was a great selection of bottled wines, beers and ciders on offer, even the Tall Fella opted for a milkshake after we had raved how good they were when we tried them last time. So we ordered a vanilla, butterscotch and Oreo flavoured ones and they definitely didn’t disappoint!
It was a warm evening, so these ice-cold drinks were the perfect remedy, and felt really quite decadent to drink!
The staff at The Handmade Burger Co are very friendly and relaxed, it’s not a place that stands on ceremony, but more feels like real family friendly casual dining. I love the industrial feel to the restaurant. With bare plaster and brick walls, distressed steel tables and exposed ducts on the ceiling. It doesn’t feel harsh though it just adds to the laid back modern feel.
We all ordered a different burger, two of which were from the new menu.
New Menu
Dirty Burger £7.65: Fried Onion This is a Beef patty, American cheese, lettuce, onion, ketchup, fried onion, HBC sauce, served on a fresh buttermilk bun with jalapeño slaw & a gherkin. (Tall Dad)
Hawaiian £8.85 : Grilled pineapple, mature cheddar, smoked bacon, mango salsa, mayo, lettuce, tomato & red onion and chicken. (Nia)
Classic Menu
Falafel £7.65 : Traditional spiced Moroccan relish, freshly made raita, lettuce, tomato & red onion. (Me)
Junior Menu
Junior Chicken Classic £4.95: Chargrilled British chicken breast, mayo & lettuce. We opted for the meal deal £6.50 for under 12s -any junior burger, any junior side & any soft drink. You can add £1.00 for a milkshake, or for an additional side.
Sides for the juniors are chips, onion rings, coleslaw, corn on the cob, cucumber & tomato or mixed leaf salad.
We couldn’t resist ordering sides to try too, and were really spoilt for choice. We opted for rosemary salted chips, onion rings, delicious slaw, corn on the cob and for the more adventurous (well maybe that’s because I’m veggie) Denver Chips. Handmade chips topped with ‘slow n low’ 6 hour cooked marinated pulled pork, melted cheese & HBC BBQ pit sauce
Everything was finished and we absolutely loved each of the burgers, the bread was fresh, burgers perfectly cooked. My falafel burger was mildly spiced, soft and full of flavour. Tall Dad after demolishing his milkshake, started work on his Dirty Burger, which he said was amazing, and just what he’d fancied. He felt it was perfectly cooked and lived up to the Dirty Burger name!
Of the sides, the slaw was a favourite as it had added red peppers and not overly heavy on the mayo, it tasted fresh and the perfect tangy and crisp accompaniment. The rosemary salted chips were amazing, I can’t add anything more than, a perfect choice! Least favourite were the Denver chips, as the meat eaters thought the sauce a little too sweet for their palate.
In truth we were all a little too full for anything sweet afterwards apart from my youngest daughter, who always has room for vanilla ice cream. She couldn’t make her mind up on her topping, so they very kindly gave her all three in little bowls so she could try them all. We then ordered a small (ahem) Brownie and Waffle sundae – a mason mug of vanilla ice cream, chocolate sauce, brownie, waffle, toffee sauce, topped with whipped cream. So pleased we finished the meal with this, even thought there was no way even the three of us could finish it. I always think its nice to finish a meal with even just a small mouthful of something sweet.
Overall this was a great relaxed meal. Perfect place to eat to with friends to enjoy a drink and meal, as a family or as a couple which we saw many of on our visit.
It is a great place , especially because it serves vegan burgers. The surroundings are really relaxed. And I agree the rosemary chips are very very tasty!