Cheekyburger, once a Paddington-only exclusive, has opened up shop a little closer to the CBD locale. You can check out their fresh new look at The Chippendale Hotel, located a stone’s throw from Broadway. One can get nice and cosy in the dimly lit interior of the pub or make like my friends and I did and enjoy the longer daylight hours in the outdoor seating area.
Indeed the decor does feel like something out of the chic and edgy Eastern suburbs while also staying true to being an All-American burger joint. Check out the red, white and blue.
We were right next to service, allowing us a sly peep into kitchen operations. The place was blasting 90s R&B much to our delight.
Curiosity is what led us to order the yam fries ($6.99) but we realised upon their arrival that they’re actually sweet potato. It’s less crispy due to its chunk, making it more like wedges than the advertised fries. It has good flavour though, from being well seasoned, and we made quick work of it with the aioli sauce provided. However, the portions are a little scant for the price point.
Deep fried pickles ($6.99) are five big fat ones that were delivered to our table with the same aioli. I’m not the biggest fan of cucumbers fresh or pickled, but my friends demolished this in its entirety. This is one that’s definitely for pickle superfans and I can appreciate that the moreish batter complements the tanginess within quite well.
If aioli isn’t your thing, feel free to slather your food in any variety of sauces available at the table.
The “Cheeky Cheeseburger” is their signature, consisting of a classic American beef burger with pickles and gooey cheese. Feeling a little bold that night, I opted for the cheeky doublecheese ($15.99). The photo doesn’t show it but both patties came to be a formidable portion of meat. Each bite denotes flavours of awesome as I fell truly, madly and deeply in love with the combination of meat, meat juices and cheese. The bun while pillow soft, was made enough of the tough stuff to not cave to saucy innards.
My vegetarian friend ordered the shroom burger ($15.99) which was the antithesis of me and my meat sweats from the aforementioned cheeseburger. It’s the sole vegetarian burger option on the menu with haloumi, a giant mushroom cap’, some lettuce and sauce that make up the filling. For the same price of a double cheeseburger, it’s surprisingly lacklustre and I couldn’t help but feel shortchanged on behalf of my vegetable-loving friend. She noted that while decent, it’s certainly not the best veggie burger around and one of the most expensive.
Last of the mains was a philly cheesesteak ($15.99), a neat little sandwich packed to the brim with slices of tender steak, capsicum and an unidentifiable sauce that unites all the components together. Steak sandwiches are notorious for housing dry, leathery meat but I’m happy to report that nothing of the sort goes down here at Cheekyburger.
Shakes ($7.99) and soda floats ($6.99) were the drinks we ordered to wash the food down with. Our float or “spider” of choice was the root beer float topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Having it brought me back to early childhood days of A&W drive-throughs with my parents, so you know this float is the real deal. The peanut butter and jelly shake tasted like a good ol’ strawberry milkshake with copious chunks of peanut butter throughout. Sucking peanut butter through the straw was like finding the prize at the bottom of a cereal box, a glorious achievement of the little things in life.
Cheekyburger is home to one of the best burgers I’ve had in Sydney. Come for the burgers, stay for the sides and return for the milkshakes because you will fall to the biggest of food comas if you attempt all at once. Take it from someone who has lived to tell the tale. Some of the menu items are a little on the pricey side but hey, be cheeky and treat yo’self.
Cheekyburger
Address: The Chippendale Hotel, 87-91 Abercrombie St, Chippendale NSW 2008
Contact: (02) 9310 5133
Website: http://www.cheekyburgerbar.com/
All images by Samantha Low for the AU review.
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