Gravy

Bondi @2016

Poutine

(chips, bacon, cheese, gravy)

★★★★☆

Polenta Chips with Smoky Ranch Sauce

★★★★☆

Grilled Corn Cobs with Smoky Ranch Sauce and Parmesan

★★★☆☆

Southern Fried Chicken with Honey Butter, Sweet Potato Fries and Homemade Slaw

★★★☆☆

Mushroom Ragout

(wild mushrooms, potato mash, spinach, garlic, rosemary, thyme)

★★★☆☆

Overall:

Formerly known as Fat Rupert’s, Bondi @2026 is the kind of place you’d want to hang out at after a long day at work or a day at the beach. The vibe here is really laid-back and the food pretty terrific. And if you go between 4pm-7pm, beers and wines are only $5!

Bondi @2026

249 Bondi Rd, Bondi, NSW

0421 866 735

http://www.fatruperts.com.au/

Mr Scruff’s

Poutine Chips with Cheese, Gravy and Bacon

★★★★☆

Salt & Vinegar Onion Rings with Scruff’s Special Sauce

★★★☆☆

Beef Burger with American Cheese, Cos, Pickles, and Scruff’s Special Sauce

★★★☆☆

Crispy Chicken Burger with Pickled Ginger, Kewpie Mayo, Cos and BBQ Sauce

★★★☆☆

Snickers Waffle with Peanut Praline, Salted Caramel, Vanilla Ice Cream and Shaved Chocolate

This was a lot smaller than I anticipated.

★★★☆☆

Overall:

I can totally understand why this place is so popular. The vibe is great and the food is pretty damn tasty. The best thing about Mr Scruff’s is that every Wednesdays between 6pm – 10pm the food is HALF PRICE! And it’s not like the prices here are expensive to begin with, so it works out to be a seriously awesome deal.

Mr Scruff’s

60 Smith St, Collingwood, VIC

(03) 9995 3881

http://www.mrscruffs.com.au/

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

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/

The Beer and Burger Bar

Beef Burger (beef patty, smoked bacon, beetroot relish, cheese, tomato, lettuce, American mustard, tomato sauce, aioli)

Wonderful smoky bacon, marginally dry brioche bun, bland patty, excessive relish that overpowered the entire burger.

★★☆☆☆

Onion Rings with relish and aioli

★★★★☆

El Mucho Burger (free range spicy chicken, chipotle aioli, jalapeños, lettuce, corn salsa, smashed avo and corn chips)

★★☆☆☆

C.C.G (chips, cheese, gravy)

★★☆☆☆

Spicy Chicken Wings

★★☆☆☆

Salted caramel milkshake

Inconsistent. One was lumpy and clearly tasted like salted caramel, while another was smooth and tasted like mild caramel.

★★☆☆☆

Hills Apple cider

$2.50 pots all day Tuesday? Yes please!

Overall:

Ordinary burgers, average service, casual atmosphere. Come for the $2.50 pots on Tuesdays.

The Beer and Burger Bar

112 Swan St, Richmond, VIC

(03) 9429 5934

http://www.tbbb.com.au/

The Beaufort

421 Rathdowne St, Carlton 9347 8171

Deep fried pickles with ranch sauce

Country fried chicken

The Beaufort Butt sandwich

The Out-N-Out burger

French dip roll

Thoughts:

Deep fried pickles – crispy batter, tangy pickles, tasty ranch sauce = Not bad

Country fried chicken – super crispy chicken served with pico de gallo and a bowl of shoestring fries = Good

The Beaufort Butt sandwich – juicy pulled pork, kimchi, sririacha sauce, lemon and ginger aioli in a soft white roll, served with shoestring fries = Good

The Out-N-Out burger – meat, cheese, french mustard, ketchup, tomato and spanish onion in a soft white bun, served with shoestring fries = Not bad

French dip roll – slow roast beef in a french roll with sauteed onions and hot English mustard. This dish came with some onion dipping gravy and shoestring fries. I now feel that all rolls should come with some dipping gravy. They just make the roll extra delicious! = Good

Overall:

Good food, average service, poor dining atmosphere (it was so dark that we couldn’t see our menus or even our food without using the light from our phones).