Burger and Beyond’s – Brown Sugar Bacon Burger

Just over a year ago, we kicked off our DIY reviews with the very impressive Bacon Butter Burger Kit from Burger and Beyond so we thought we would circle back 50+ reviews later and see how Burger and Beyond compares now.   When we saw they had a Brown Sugar Bacon edition, we knew we had to try.  Read on to find out how it did…

The Bun: 19/20

A year ago we wrote that this this was the new gold standard for burger buns and it still holds true, although we had a couple that arrived a little squished in the order and not as fresh as we have had before.  However, they still smelled delicious and were firm without being stodgy.  They have a beautiful golden colour and a sprinkle of sesame seeds on top, but not too many.  This was the first kit I had where the buns are fried in butter and after a year of trying other methods, none has topped it.  Cooking them that way adds a lovely layer of flavour to the burgers and makes them softer as well.  They still held up well during eating and the meat to bun ratio was right too.

The Toppings: 8/10

The pancetta/bacon was excellent and the addition of brown sugar to add during the cooking process resulted in a wonderful sweet and salty flavour combo.  There was lots of bacon, although it was sliced a little thin so took some care to pull apart. The thinness did make it pretty easy to cook though.  The kit also comes with “house pickles” which are slices served in a runny sauce.  Made for awkward serving and they were not adored by the pickle fans in our house.  We did have some crispy onions leftover from a side order at B&B and those are really excellent on a burger.

The Condiments: 9/10

The lone condiment is a vaguely named “pickleback mayo”.  It seemed more like French/Catalina salad dressing in colour, taste and texture than any mayo I’ve ever had but everyone really liked it.  It had a lovely tangy flavour that cut through the other flavours in the burger and provided a nice contrast to the salty and savoury bits.   

The Cheese: 20/20

Each burger came with two slices of good American processed cheese.  Last year I said that processed cheese couldn’t get a perfect score, but I have gotten down off that particular high horse after a year of trying alternatives.  This is really good cheese, it melts perfectly and adds a wonderful flavour and lovely gooey/creamy texture to the burger.  

The Patty: 17/20

The beef comes as a single lump and was a little browner than I remember from last year.  Perhaps it had been in the bag for a couple of days before it arrived as the beef underneath was much more red in appearance.  As ever, their beef is very well marbled and at 135g (nearly 5oz) per portion there is a decent amount.  Last year we thought it was the best beef around but after all the others in between, we were slightly less impressed, and a couple of people actually found it too gamey to finish.  If you like the flavour of organic/grass fed beef or venison then you will love this.  If you are more of the grain fed/no-aftertaste crowd than this might just be a little strong.  Either way, pressing the meatballs onto the grill is the best way to maximise flavour and the fat/meat ratio here is perfect.  They cook well without too much splatter or shrinkage, but still have enough fat to make them nice and juicy.   

The Taste: 17/20

For me, the bacon, cheese, meat and bun were in excellent balance and so you get a little of all of those flavours in each delicious bite.  Perhaps needed just a little more “zip” (like the crispy onions a couple of people tried), or some mustard, or even just more of the mayo on the top half of the bun.  Again, a couple of people found the beef flavour just a little too strong, hence the lower score than a year ago despite the improved bacon.  Burger and Beyond just keep performing. Check out our favourite, the Bacon Butter Burger here

Overall: 90/100

The bun holds up nicely and it is a very good (and filling) cheeseburger.   A year ago I loved unpacking this kit as it was really an excellent way to see how much care a quality restaurant puts into choosing each ingredient and that was still the same with this kit.  A year on we are just as appreciative of the efforts of Burger and Beyond to give you the best ingredients and the best instructions.  Happy DIYversary to our readers!