T.G.I Friday’s – The Inferno Burger
Review of The Inferno Burger from T.G.I Friday’s, Cheltenham
What they say:
Heat things up with our burger blazer! A juicy 7oz burger with cool, creamy Buffalo mozzarella and fiery chili mayo, Habanero sauce and jalapeños, all served up on a classic toasted bun with fresh cos lettuce, red onion and beef tomato. Served with tangy chili jam.
Price: £10.99 with crispy fries and dipping sauce.
After a brief hiatus, BURGER LAD® is back on the burger front line. This was my first ever trip to T.G.I Friday’s and I was there to sample the spicy sounding Inferno Burger. What would it be like? Would it trail a blaze through my taste buds or turn into an ‘inferno indigestion inducer’?
I was joined on this ‘Fry-day’ burger jaunt with a friend and the never too far from trouble ‘Kondiment Kids’. We were shown to our pre-booked table and greeted by one of the friendly TGI’s staff.
If you have never been to a T.G.I Friday’s it’s an American themed bar and restaurant. On this evening there was a busy mixture of chatter and music with videos showing sports and the most popular dishes ordered that day.
It’s always a good start to any fast-food restaurant when you are presented with the opportunity for bottomless soft-drinks but thanks to my new regime these had to be Diet Cokes. It was also going to be a memorable evening as a young man would take his first steps on a steak journey that will last him a lifetime. He in fact ate none of his child portion steak but did enjoy his chocolate milk chaser.
We kicked off with a plate of Chicken Fajita Nachos but we’ll talk about those later, because we need to get to that Inferno Burger.
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| The Inferno Burger by T.G.I Friday’s… |
The burger arrived and was well presented with that creamy Buffalo mozzarella oozing all over the beef. I liked the touch of the fresh chili thrown on the skin on fries and the little pot of tangy chili jam. It looked like a good plate of food and at £10.99 it should do! Especially with so many high-end burger joints competing these days – sometimes at less the price!
The beef burger packed a meaty punch and was moist and juicy. It had been cooked well done and I do not believe you have the option to choose how you get your burger cooked at T.G.I’s. I am a big fan of hot and spicy food and I did not think that the Inferno would present much of a problem or make me feel like I was participating in a food challenge eating stunt.
The Habanero sauce and chili mayo provided a nice constant heat which ‘normal’ people might find a little too hot. The jalapeños were crunchy and gave a good kick now and then and helped soup-up the spice scale. I found the spice levels to be ideal as it wasn’t harsh on the mouth but made you feel the warmth instead.
I really enjoyed the stringy and creamy mozzarella which clung to its burger host and it acted well as a counter to the heat from the other ingredients. As you can see from the pictures the lettuce leaves were huge and fresh and provided a nice crunch. The red onion is also fast becoming one of my favourite burger toppings as I enjoyed the clean, sharp taste of it splicing through the other ingredients.
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| Fresh red chili is optional… |
My only minor disappointment were the fries – they were nice enough but a little lukewarm and far from crispy. This was only a small gripe and dissipated pretty quickly as we joined in a chorus of ‘Happy Birthday’ as the flames of the Inferno flickered in my mouth.
We also had the Chicken Fajita Nachos (£8.99) as a sharer starter which had a generous amount of melted cheese, jalapenos and red onion. My friend commented that it would have been nice to have more of the fajita chicken on them. I liked the guacamole which had a fresh, strong avocado with mild garlic flavour to it. Overall a good, mini Mexican mouthful but all I could think of when eating it was “just how many calories are in this?”
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| Captain Calories at your table Sir… |
Back to the Inferno Burger…
The glazed brioche bun was fresh and held the burger and toppings together nicely – it was firm on the outside but soft on the inside with good air pockets. The chili jam was sticky and clung to the fries when dipped. It had a sweet, smoky flavour and I found it quite addictive.
Overall the burger was pleasantly spiced, with a subtle heat but it must also get a special mention for the way the mozzarella fused everything together nicely. The meal as a whole is slightly over-priced in my opinion but I would definitely return for one of their midweek £9.99 or £14.99 2-course deals. The staff are very friendly and they are great with kids too – it is a very family friendly environment.
The Inferno Burger from T.G.I Friday’s is a welcome member to our ever-growing burger family with a well presented 7oz juicy burger and a hot habanero hit as a bonus!
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| Would you go for the Inferno…? |
Burger Lad®
