Burger Fest 2

Last night I checked out the ‘Burger Fest 2’ held at The Plant in Station Drive (where the Morning Trade is held every Sunday). As the name suggests, this was the second incarnation of the event. The first one was so popular that it was either a huge success or failure depending on whether you arrived early or late – by 6.30pm there was nowhere to park, and people queued for 20 minutes just to get inside. (I was one of those who arrived, saw the queues and left).

In an effort to address the crowding issues, Burger Fest 2 was promised to be much better controlled, with only 500 tickets for sale, and presales preferred. The cheapest ticket was R90 which included vouchers for a burger, a side and a dessert – great value! There was also an option to pay R175 for a ticket with three burger vouchers, a side and a dessert. Not a lot of point in this one, seeing as some burgers were only R35 (you do the maths).

My first thought on walking in, was that there were not very many stands –only five selling burgers and sides, one or two selling sides only, one beer stand, and two dessert stations. Having said that, the options were all really enticing, and I ended up having to buy an extra ticket or two to taste everything that I wanted to.

Somewhat surprisingly, only two of the five burger joints were offering traditional beef burgers with chicken burgers, sausage meat and two vegetarian options rounding out the choices.

I couldn’t resist Marco’s Italian sausage burger, which had a focaccia bun, red pepper relish and an insanely good sausage patty. What really impressed me though, were how good the veggie options were – I demolished a Mexican Bean Burger by Out To Lunch (you’ll find them at the I Heart Market where they sell amazing wraps) which I actually would have imagined was completely beefy, there was so much umami flavour packed into the patty. Along with the brilliant bean burger came lashing of rich hummus, spicy guacamole and some fiery chilli (dried and fresh). The famous Falafel Fundi also pulled out all the stops, delivering a beautiful falafel burger with plenty of brinjal, fresh slaw, tomatoes and more creamy hummus.

We used our two tickets for sides for some of the best refried beans I’ve ever tasted (Out To Lunch), and some great root veg crisps. Burgers were washed down courtesy of the delicious beers from Standeaven – despite there being only one beer stand, these guys came to the party with about ten different beers and their famous G&T on tap – the Craft was my favourite on the night, but the Best Black Gold was also excellent, just the right amount of bitter.

To finish off, two servings of Scoop ice cream in salted caramel, a perfectly sophisticated flavour, perched atop great waffle cones.

Bring on Burger Fest 3!

Friday Night Drinks: Frank's Speakeasy, Mount Edgecombe

Luxuriating in the country club atmosphere of Mount Edgecombe, within a driver's range of the nearby golf courses you will find Marco Paulo Bistro, and its adjoining bar - Frank's Speakeasy. Frank's styles itself a 'speakeasy' after the illegal American prohibition-era saloons that were spoken of quietly, for fear of alerting the authorities. Here, however, I think the speakeasy nature most likely applies to the locals reluctance of 'outsiders' discovering the existence of this stylish venue.

Outside of Frank's, the luxury SUVs line up in neat rows, while inside, the predominantly middle-aged and wealthy crowd sip on craft beers, and tuck into great bar food. There's a definite sense of an unofficial dress code, with Golf Dads rocking shorts and Superdry T-shirts and Soccer Moms wearing leopard-print blouses and skin tight pants. The waiters sport beards and tattoos and dress like they've stepped off a Levi's commercial, in skinny jeans and V-neck T's.

The bar has a cool, industrial feel, with bare light bulbs and blacked out walls featuring chalked on specials. There are a handful of deep booths with plushly upholstered seats that will suck you in and make it hard to leave before final rounds. The soundtrack ranged from Counting Crows, Third Eye Blind and Coldplay to recent hits from Imagine Dragons.

The first port of call on arrival must be the impressive list of beers, including perennial crowd pleasers like Darling Brew, CBC and Jack Black but extending to more unusual selections like the Imperial Tequila Ale (at R100 for 660ml). If you're not a beer drinker, there are some good wine choices too, as well as plenty of single malts and pretty much anything else that you're after.

Frank's shares a kitchen with Marco Paulo, so you can enjoy the fine bistro fare, or you can pick from a shorter list of bar specials on the wall. I started with a snack from the bistro menu - brinjal done three ways, including with risotto; parmigiana style, and atop bruschetta. Classy and tasty - particularly the risotto.

Now feeling really hungry, I went with the Frank's burger from the bar menu. It's a serious burger, featuring 250 grams of aged, grass-fed Angus beef from Greenfields in Mooi River; white cheddar; onion rings and chips. Apparently the meat is dry-aged on the bone for three weeks before mincing and flame grilling - it was certainly the best burger I've had in ages, full of flavour and so good I ate it all and was too full to finish the onion rings. This was sad, as the onion rings were excellent.

The dessert choices were rather limited to the usual suspects of crème brûlée and chocolate fondant, along with retro-classics like bread-and-butter pudding and apple crumble. I picked the chocolate fondant, and was not disappointed, probably the best one I've had anywhere, with a luxurious, molten chocolate interior nestled inside a light, crisp edged cake. Served with a simple scoop of vanilla icecream, it was understated but excellent.

So, I've broken the first rule of the Speakeasy (you do not talk about the Speakeasy) - but hopefully they will let me back in. I need to go back, firstly to try out the bistro experience at Marco Paulo next door, but also to return for another go at those onion rings.