Baggio Burger’s – The Topolino Burger DIY

Baggio Burger are situated in Walthamstow, East London. Recommended to me by someone in London, I was told that it was one of the best DIY kits available for the home delivery. After trying Burger and Beyond, Truffle and Mac And Wild the standard has been set quite high. Unfortunately Baggio left me in tears much like its namesake Roberto. Exotic blend of flavour produced a Burger that would perplexed and underwhelmed. If only I had saw it coming. Boasting a Sesame Seed Brioche Bun, Garlic Oil, Balsamic Vinegar reduction, Mozzarella Cheese, Gorgonzola Cheese, Parmesan Cheese, Fig Jam and a Dry Aged Beef Patty the components sounded exciting.

The Bun: 5/20

Quite honestly when I opened the package from Baggio Burger I was excited at the look of the buns. The dark brown sesame seed brioche was golden in colour and had a shine that I had only previously seen at my staple of Burgers, Burger and Beyond.

When I sliced the buns in half ready for the grill following the instructions I was surprised at the brioche density. I thought that maybe the buns would soften during the heating process but I was unpleasantly surprised. These buns were dense, tough and quite frankly, disgusting. I would compare these buns to any stale bread I have ever eaten. Prior to this it was the Le Bun Potato Brioche that had taken the worst possible bun title but this was honestly horrific. The texture was tough, dense and tasted foul. I have no idea whether this is their standard or whether they had just sent us buns that had accelerated it’s sell by date due to the heat we have had in the last few days. I cannot give benefit of the doubt but I have scored this on par with Le Bun’s shambles of a Potato Brioche.

The Toppings: 3/10

The Fig Jam that Baggio Burger provided with this Topolino was not the best I have ever had. Fig Jam is usually a compliment to a nice patty but this Jam was pretty tasteless. To add insult to injury the vacuum sealed package of jam had approximately 3 inch and a half pieces of fig in the package. Again, I am not sure whether Baggio Burger wanted to have large pieces of fig in their burger or whether it was a mistake made during their production process. I would not order pieces of fig on a burger if I saw it on a menu and if Baggio Burger had put fig other than jam we would not be having this review right now! There fig did offer a little texture differentiation in the bite but as for flavour it did nothing at all.

The Condiments: 5/10

Baggio Burger provided a balsamic reduction along with a garlic oil to mix into the beef before the cook. On opening the vacuum sealed packages I was excited about mixing these into the meat because they smelled fantastic. The reduction was strong in scent and perfectly complimented the hint of garlic in the oil. When the balls of 150g beef was fused with the two condiments I did have a feeling that the patties were going to be out of this world, the aroma was incredible. Cooking the patties did give a blackness, I surmise, because of the balsamic vinegar but the meat was perfectly cooked although there was a little more smoke than you would usually expect.

The Cheese: 10/20

The three kinds of cheese supplied in this DIY kit were Gorgonzola, Mozzarella and Parmesan. The Parmesan was placed on top of the bottom bun whilst the patties cooked. This was placed directly in with the Fig Jam and the Gorgonzola and the Mozzarella was placed on the cooked patty for 20s along with a lid to cover the meat and a sprinkle of water to help the melting process. Gorgonzola is a very powerful taste and I have to say that I liked the flavour that it gave to the burger but the mozzarella offered only texture. The parmesan on the bottom seemed to be little more than a gesture, not much was supplied and it was evenly split across four Burgers. This Burger relies heavily on the cheeses but I would definitely say that if you are not a Gorgonzola fan then this Burger is not for you because it overpowers the Burger to the point of considering whether this is a Gorgonzola sandwich.

The Patty: 5/20

For 150g patty it kept size really well. It looked the part, looked to have been cooked really well against the 2-minute per side fry that Baggio had laid out in the cooking instructions. There is a huge but coming I am sorry to say: BUT, this is up there with one of the worst patties I have ever tasted. I lasted 3 bites into this Burger and decided to throw it away. Given that this is one of the more expensive DIY kits I am pretty angry that Baggio decide to send a beef that clearly lacking in terms of quality. The meat had a texture that you would expect in an overcooked mince, grainy and chalky in texture. It seems to me that they have tried to manipulate flavour in cheap meat by marinating it in a balsamic vinegar reduction and garlic oil. It is an awful effort at disguise, they should be ashamed of themselves. I wish that I had known this from the start, I would have cooked the patties at a lower temperature for a lot longer time than the 2 minutes required and tried to get a full cook at least maintaining some form of edible texture. For a meat fan like myself, this is sacrilege.

The Taste: 5/10

An incredible mix of flavour just seemed to cancel each other out overpowered by strong gorgonzola this burger has no balance. On paper, it seems to be an array of top-quality ingredients that would excite a Burger fan, but unfortunately the taste was perplexing as it was bad. A bite or two gave a nice hint of balsamic vinegar and garlic which were the more pleasing of the flavour profile but the inconsistencies of the burger and the grainy texture of the meat were overwhelming.

Our Verdict: 33/100

This Burger had less cohesion than England’s 2010 World Cup team had a squad full of stars and a terrible manager. Maybe I am being disrespectful to Baggio Burger in terms of management but honestly to combine flavour profiles like this is a brave effort but balance is key when on a mission to create something so exciting. There is no balance here whatsoever and a Burger that I do not even think I would try again. With places like Mac and Wild delivering on the Venimoo with such quality and this Topolino being the same price I think Baggio are quite frankly, taking liberties. The meat is poor, the cheeses confusing, the condiments even more confusing and the overall taste of this burger I would liken to a child first exploring into the kitchen finding whatever they can in the kitchen and cooking! A load of individually likeable flavours all battling for a place in your mouth and the Gorgonzola clearly winning creating an imbalance that had you wondering if Baggio Burger know what they are doing. Quick Fact = I had to put two pieces of Dark Chocolate in my mouth straight after just to try and get rid of the taste! Honestly, you need to check out our Hit List to get some decent options if you are in London