Fries

Laurie Dee’s

Chili Cheese Fries

(fries topped with mild beef chili, cheese sauce and diced onions)

★★★★☆

Chicago Dog

(tomatoes, pickles, diced onions, relish, cucumber, mustard and celery salt on a butter toasted bun)

★★★☆☆

The Laurie Dee

(minced patty, caramelised onions, melted cheddar, special D’sauce, tomato, lettuce, diced pickles, relish)

★★★☆☆

Strawberry Shortcake Sundae

(vanilla custard with a base of shortbread crumbles, topped with real strawberry sauce, coconut flakes and whipped cream)

★★★★☆

Overall:

So the way it works at Laurie Dee’s is that you order and pay at the counter, receive a ticket number, and collect your food on a tray once your number is called out. The place wasn’t full at the time and we waited around 15-20 minutes for our number to be called out. As for the food, it was simple, greasy, and somewhat messily thrown together. There was almost a fast food quality about everything so as long as you know that this is what you are in for, you won’t be disappointed.

Laurie Dee’s

Epping Plaza Shopping Centre, 571-583 High St, Epping, VIC

(03) 9408 0196

http://www.lauriedees.com.au/

Changz Canteen

Truffle and Mushroom Burger

(double beef and cheese, enoki fries, mushroom ‘ketchup’, truffle, roast garlic aioli)

Juicy beef patties that were well cooked, strong truffle flavour.

★★★☆☆

Canteen Classic with Fries

(beef, chicken brick, double cheese, bacon, onion, pickles, jalapeño, lettuce, canteen sauce)

This substantial burger was distinctively peppery, while the canteen sauce reminded us of Big Mac sauce.

★★★☆☆

Fried Chicken Ribs with Aioli

These tasty ribs were coated in a super crispy batter, and are only $1 each on Sundays!

★★★☆☆

Overall:

Solid burgers, enthusiastic staff, awesome Star Wars decor. Burger joints are a dime a dozen these days in Melbourne, and although nothing we tried was phenomenal, I really hope that these guys make it.

Changz Canteen

256 Glen Eira Rd, Elsternwick, VIC

(03) 8592 4941

http://changzcanteen.com.au/

Dexter

Fried Chicken Bun

The green chilli slaw tasted very Asian-like (in a good way) and complemented the juicy fried chicken.

★★★☆☆

Burnt Sriracha Corn

Nicely charred and smoky tasting.

★★★☆☆

Shoestring Fries with BBQ Rub and Aioli

Light, crisp, non-greasy, addictive.

★★★★☆

Hot Meat Donuts

As soon as I saw these on the menu, I was intrigued…

Would the flavours of the pulled pork and the sweet crispy donut go together? Well they sure did! What was great was that the donut’s sweetness didn’t overpower the pork, and that the sweet and mildly spicy accompanying sauce made these donuts taste even better.

★★★★☆

Kurobuta Pork Loin with Mash, Pickles and Slaw

Perfectly cooked flavoursome pork.

★★★☆☆

Cured Beef Brisket with Mash, Pickles, Slaw and Charred Sourdough

Enjoyable beef but I still prefer slow cooked brisket to cured brisket.

★★★☆☆

Overall:

Bright and inviting space, prompt service, great food.

Dexter

456 High St, Preston, VIC

(03) 9973 3577

http://www.dexter.melbourne/

Two Little Piggies

Pea & Ham – crisp roasted pork belly, poached free range eggs, green pea veloute, sourdough toast

Heavenly succulent pork with a beautiful crispy crackling. The pea veloute was also superb and the eggs were well poached.

★★★★☆

Little Pig Cubano – Mojo pulled pork, Grandmother ham, Blackjack cheddar, pickles, dijon mustard

A wonderful union of delicious ingredients made this a very enjoyable (and very filling) sandwich.

★★★★☆

Majestic Fries – duck fat and mustard aioli

Generous serving of light crispy fries.

★★★☆☆

Overall:

Relaxed vibe, simple decor, easy going service. With a porcine influenced menu and an enticing charcuterie selection, the owners of this place are clearly passionate about meat. Choosing what to order was extremely difficult as everything sounded absolutely amazing. In the end I really enjoyed what we had picked out and will certainly return to sample some more dishes.

Two Little Pigs

146 Sydney Rd, Brunswick, VIC

(03) 9939 4042

Leonard’s House of Love

Original Fried Chicken Tenders with Pickles and Chipotle Mayo

Fairly average chicken with terrific chipotle mayo.

★★☆☆☆

Cheeseburger

(beef brisket and short rib patty, special sauce, cheese, onion, green oak lettuce)

Tasty patty that was cooked perfectly.

★★★☆☆

Charcoal Chicken Fries

(fries, pepper gravy, onion, stuffing, cheese sauce)

★★★☆☆

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner

(1/2 chicken, jacket potato, sour cream, fries, Greek salad, dinner roll and gravy)

What a feast this was! And special mention goes to the awesome gravy.

★★★☆☆

Overall:

This unassuming bar is located in a small street right off Chapel St and offer a small and simple menu of American comfort foods. The staff were friendly however there was a considerable amount of wait time before our food arrived. Nevertheless I really liked the vibe of this place and would definitely come back for drinks and a snack or two.

Leonard’s House of Love

3 Wilson St, South Yarra, VIC

0428 066 778

Royal Stacks

The King

All Australian pasture fed beef patty, tomato, butter lettuce, hand made mac & cheese croquettes, American mustard, special burger sauce

The fantastic mac & cheese croquettes undoubtedly added something special to this burger.

★★★★☆

Queen Bee

Hand made chickpea patty, tomato, butter lettuce, American cheddar, special burger sauce, pickles

It had been a while since my last veggie burger experience and I’d forgotten how great they can be when the right ingredients are used.

★★★★☆

Miss Elizabeth

All Australian pasture fed beef patty, Swiss cheese, truffle mayo

I pretty much inhaled this burger! Deliciously simple and definitely crave-worthy.

★★★★☆

Saint

Two all Australian pasture fed beef patties, tomato, butter lettuce, bacon, American cheddar, raw onion, chipotle mayo, pickled jalapeños

One heck of a tasty and good looking burger!

★★★★☆

Fries

If you like McDonald’s fries, then these are for you.

★★★☆☆

Potato Gems

I know this may sound a bit weird, but these humble potato gems were the epitome of potato gem perfection! Perfectly seasoned and unbelievably crunchy on the outside with soft fluffy potato on the inside.

★★★★★

Frozen Custard

Salted Caramel, Mixture of Chocolate/Cheesecake/Peanut Butter, Kinder Surprise

★★★☆☆

Overall:

Royal Stacks is one of Melbourne’s newest burger joints and I was fortunate enough to be invited to one of their launch nights last week. This American-style fast food eatery is Dani Zeini’s latest venture (in case you didn’t know, he’s the guy behind Dandenong Pavilion, Grand Trailer Park Taverna, Easey’s and Truck Stop Deluxe) and needless to say, I had high expectations. But of course my expectations were met, as the food here was pretty darn tasty! Each burger was consistently good and you could tell that the beef they used was of high quality. It turns out that all of their beef is all Australian, pasture fed, GMO free with no added hormones or antibiotics and is minced fresh daily. The locally made bread is baked fresh daily and is free from any additives, while the gelato and frozen custard is sourced from 7 Apples. If the CBD is a bit tricky for you to get to, don’t stress because a Brunswick store and a Dandenong store will be opening within the next few months. So head to Royal Stacks where the food is fit for a king (or a queen)!

Royal Stacks

470 Collins St, Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9793 2133

http://royalstacks.com.au/

*Disclaimer: I dined as a guest of Zilla & Brook and Royal Stacks.

Cafe 51

The Meataxe

(beef patty, crispy southern fried chicken, crispy bacon, double dirty cheese, lettuce, onion rings, two jalapeno poppers, chipotle and XXX BBQ sauce)

★★★☆☆

Mac Daddy

(mac’n’cheese, triple dirty cheese, beef patty, potato cake, slow cooked beef brisket, crispy bacon, ketchup, mustard and mayo)

★★★☆☆

Soul Sister

(crispy southern fried chicken, American cheddar, crispy bacon, hand cut pickles, house made chipotle, American mustard and maple syrup in a toasted waffle)

★★★☆☆

Disco Fries

(fries, melted cheese and gravy)

★★★☆☆

Dirty Fries

(fries, bacon, melted cheese and ranch sauce)

★★★☆☆

Overall:

Look no further than Cafe 51 for big juicy burgers that are stacked high with tasty fillings. There are plenty of creatively named burgers to choose from as well as a variety of hot dogs, subs, fries and shakes. Service was quick and everything was good value for money. Although this place is in the middle of nowhere, it has undoubtedly become quite popular. We thankfully arrived before the lunch time rush and managed to grab some seats at one of their few tables. This visit certainly earned me an extra gym session, but I’d like to think that it was worth it.

Cafe 51

51 Buckhurst St, South Melbourne, VIC

(03) 9699 7853

http://www.cafe51.com.au/

Gloria Swanston’s Kitchen

Kick-Ass Beef Burger (200g fresh-ground beef, lettuce, tomato, pickles, onion, bacon and double American cheese served with crinkle-cut chips)

I didn’t order fries! Where were my crinkle-cut chips? Meanwhile the burger was enjoyable but not memorable.

= ★★

Mustard & Gravy Pulled Pork Sliders (slow roasted Moroccan-spiced pork shoulder over coleslaw served with crinkle-cut chips)

Fries again! Not that they were bad, just not what I ordered. The juicy pork and crunchy coleslaw combination with the sliders was tasty though.

= ★★★

Overall:

An alright place for drinks and a quick bite. Come for the $9 lunch specials.

Gloria Swanston’s Kitchen

243 Swanston St, Melbourne

9663 2916

http://gloriaswanstons.com.au

The Collection

Cucumber Gimlet (cucumber infused gin, lime, elderflower syrup, orange bitters shaken and charged with sparkling wine)

★★★☆☆

Nilla Killa (vanilla vodka, apple, strawberry liqueur, vanilla shaken and served tall)

★★★☆☆

Mac and cheese croquettes with hog crackling crumble and cajun aioli

★★★☆☆

Buffalo chicken wings in hot sauce with blue cheese dressing

★★★☆☆

French fries with slow cooked chilli beef and cheese sauce

★★☆☆☆

New England lobster rolls (crayfish, baby cos lettuce, kewpie mayo)

★★☆☆☆

Southern fried chicken, country gravy, cornbread waffles, whipped maple butter

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

Brilliant cocktails, good variety of dishes, prompt service, charming decor.

The Collection

328 Bridge Rd, Richmond, VIC

(03) 9429 8333

http://thecollectionbar.com.au

Pierre’s

Tasmanian oysters

★★☆☆☆

Chicken and duck rillette, fresh baguette, cornichons, apricot puree, lemon

★★☆☆☆

House cured ocean trout, radish, beetroot, goats cheese

★★☆☆☆

Cape Grim scotch fillet, shoestring fries, green salad, red wine jus, cafe de Paris butter

★★☆☆☆

Cape Grim eye fillet, celeriac puree, wild mushrooms, tawny port reduction

Basically a pile of mushrooms with a TEENY TINY piece of average tasting steak underneath.

★★☆☆☆

Duck a l’orange – confit duck leg, roasted chat potatoes, braised green beans, orange glaze

Overpowering orange glaze.

★★☆☆☆

Overall:

Extremely disappointing considering the number of awards they have received. The food was mediocre and pricey, the service was average and the red lighting gave this place a darkroom sort of feeling.

Pierre’s

88 George St, Launceston, TAS

(03) 6331 6835