The Ivy Burger

When we first moved to London, a little over a decade ago, there was just the original “The Ivy” in Covent Garden and it was a great spot to take out-of-town guests for dinner after a day of exploring the city.  A good location, a cool history (back to 1917) a menu that offered “something for every occasion” as the old review went, made it an easy choice.  So when the Ivy started spinning out new locations faster than McDonald’s, I was skeptical but have been a few times since to various locations and feel the concept still works very well, even if they do diminish the specialness of going to the original location.  There are enough now to justify doing a burger review so read on to see how it was…

The Bun: 16/20

It is a photo-ready brioche bun.  A lovely shiny texture and not a dent or bump anywhere to be seen.  Not sure how they ship them, but they are pretty.  Taste-wise doesn’t quite match up to the glistening golden brown outside, lightly toasted on the inside, as it was a tad dry, but tasted good and held up fine through the meal.

The Toppings: 7/10

Pretty basic toppings with a build-your-own concept which I always like.  A crispy leaf of butter lettuce, a thick tomato slice and a few red onion circles are topped with two large, but slightly soggy pickle wedges.  The pickles got shoulder shrugs from the fans at the table.  Not very memorable in their opinion and not easy to put on the burger due to shape and size.   

The Condiments: 5/10

The top bun comes with a modest amount of mayonnaise.  Had a nice tang and texture but perhaps could have used a little more.  On the side is a little sauce cup of horseradish ketchup which was surprisingly good given I do not typically love horseradish.  Just enough to give the ketchup a gentle kick without overpowering the flavour.  Could have used a little mustard or relish but at least it was something a little different overall. 

The Cheese: 10/20

Sadly, like a few other places, it seems the chefs have focused on the bun and the beef and not invested in the cheese.   There was a single slice of a very mild cheddar on the patty.  It was cooked ok, perhaps a little set by the time the burger got cut into. It was thin enough you could see the meat clearly through it.  To be fair, it was a group of six and a couple of other dinners ordered needed gravy or a sauce poured on them so there was a slight delay before we got started eating.  That being said, there was little added to the overall taste/texture of the cheese.

The Patty: 16/20

Really good for a restaurant that doesn’t focus on burgers.  I couldn’t tell if the patty was pre-formed and had split at one end, or had been hand shaped, but it was cooked to a perfect medium-well…just a dash of pink, but still juicy.  Not much of a crust so the flavour wasn’t optimized and perhaps just a little dense, but I am being picky here.  

The Taste: 14/20

Normally a burger without mustard/relish and with poor cheese wouldn’t taste great but I didn’t mind this one. The crisp vegetables, the little zing from the horseradish, and the quality bun and beef made this a decent overall flavour. Chips were great too and the pair filled me up nicely as well. If you would like to check out The Ivy menu you can check it out here

Our Verdict: 68/100

If you are at an Ivy and nothing else on the menu tickles your fancy then this won’t let you down,  especially with some of their interesting cocktails along for the ride.  However, it is a tad disappointing as I think it could be easily improved.  If I was craving a cheeseburger specifically, then I think there are lots of better options around.  Check out our hit list to see some of those.