Dorset Burger Company The American

Review of Dorset Burger Company The American

Website: http://www.thedorsetburgercompany.co.uk/

What they say:

All of our burgers are made to a secret recipe using only the freshest of ingredients and hint of spice before being char grilled to perfection. The American – our beef burger topped with Monterey Jack cheese, red onion, Denhay bacon, gherkin & American style mustard.

Price: £9.85 including coleslaw and seasoned fries.

Calories: Unknown.

Having booked a long weekend away to the seaside town of Weymouth, Burger Lad® had scanned the internet for burger joints in the local vicinity.

The top search result was the Dorset Burger Company and having experienced the food on offer here I can now see why.

Boasting Taste of the West Gold Awards for two consecutive years (2013 and 2014) I knew we were in for a treat even before stepping through the doors.

Inside Dorset Burger Company…

The Dorset Burger Company or DBCo for short have recently moved premises to The Infirmary tucked away on King Street just off the main Esplanade (look for the clock tower!).

The converted Infirmary is chic and quirky on the inside, there’s an eclectic mix of furniture with no hint of conformity. You almost feel like you’re sat in someone’s welcoming living room.

This is clean, crisp but without feeling sterile and the place reminded us of Laura Ashley furnishings.

There’s an open kitchen at the bar and the restaurant is laid out in a link style with three separate dining areas.

We were lucky to score a table on the Saturday night. We’d popped in during the afternoon to see if we needed to book that night and luckily for us there was only one table remaining.

When I was there every room was bustling with busy chat in this semi-informal eatery. I had a quick walk through at one point and counted at least 70-80 covers alone just while we were there.

Front of The Infirmary at DBCo…

While in Weymouth we had dined at places such as the Crab House Café, The Stable and Vaughan’s Bistro Restaurant but it was always going to be DBCo Burger Lad® was most excited about.

Now before I visited this classic seaside town someone had been slightly rude about the place – I won’t digress details, but judging by the fine number of classy dining options, high property prices and the stunning array of boats and yachts in the old harbour I am afraid you got that one wrong love.

Anyway… back to burger business.

We were greeted by a very well-spoken young waiter by the name of Dean and this guy was an absolute testament to the DBCo.

He took our order, which was the couple meal deal enabling you to get two burger meals and a bottle of wine with £5 deducted off the total price. Nice!

He didn’t even flinch when Miss Milkshake asked for her bacon to be cooked extra crispy and made absolutely sure this was what she got. And she did…

I’d agonised for a month or two prior to arrival but finally opted for The American – I loved the sound of the classic combination of local ingredients with the American mustard, pickles and Jack cheese.

There were some delightful smells coming from the kitchen which wafted through the interior of the Infirmary and I caught a glimpse of what was to come. There was certainly no hospital food on this ward!

First glimpse of The American…

While waiting we looked at the condiment carousel by the sea.

Ketchup, mayo, HP BBQ sauce, vinegar and salt and pepper were provided for you along with a stack of neat napkins tucked away in a ceramic Jamie Oliver holder.

After a relatively short time The American landed in front of me and my goodness did it look good!?

Taste of the West Gold…

As you can see the burger was presented “open” allowing you to marvel at the freshly cooked, local ingredients on-board.

The bacon was cooked just how I like it, the gherkins thickly cut, with the right amount of them and the cheese was melted to perfection and oozed over its 8oz patty pal.

The salad leaves looked lush and the thickly cut red onion clung on for dear life with that American style mustard holding it in place nicely.

On the plate for £9.85…

I took my first expectant bite – this was just what the Doctor ordered… “oooh Matron… what a cracking pair of buns”.

OMG this was a superb burger, really, really good! Cooked to utter perfection and a delightful meaty patty housing a top quality assortment of ingredients. An American a day keeps hunger at bay!

8oz of pure joy from local ingredients…

The patty contains shredded carrot to act as a binding method but also to cater for Gluten Free diners. It also kept the beef ultra-moist and gave a slight sweetness to the perfectly cooked char grilled 8oz patty.

Having read the menu you can double up for an additional £2.85 and I actually flinched at the prospect – this is more than enough and you will not leave The Infirmary feeling hungry or unsatisfied and that’s a BL® guarantee!

This is without doubt the very best burger in Weymouth, possibly in Dorset and those Tastes of the West Gold awards are a testament to what is on offer here.

Best Weymouth burgers…

The bacon was cooked just amazingly and you could taste it amongst everything else – sometimes it can get a little lost. It melded beautifully with the cheese which was creamy and dreamy, just like this stunning holiday.

Speaking of stunning, I didn’t get any photos of Miss Milkshake’s Brie and Bacon but she gave us some insights into the DBCo experience (she also raved on about just how good this burger actually was):

The place oozed with character and each table and chair was different from the next. It was like a Mad Hatter’s Tea Party if Alice had grown up and tumbled down a classier, stylish rabbit hole. This is a grown-up, classy burger joint but not stuffy or pretentious in anyway, the staff are all very friendly and laid back and I cannot wait to come back again.

Back to The American – this was very much DBCo… Delicious Beyond Compare…Obviously!?

DBC – Delicious Beyond Compare…

I loved the thick cut pickles; they weren’t lost amongst everything else on this amazing burger.

Red onion is always a favourite burger topping of mine and this cut through everything else but was not overbearing, nor did it leave your palate reeling.

Inside The American… instant top 5…

In the past, I would have avoided this burger due to the American style mustard, or I would have just left it off.

In fact, I’m not really a fan of it at all so it is a true testament to just how great this burger really was because I enjoyed having the mustard on it very much.

It elevated The American from Surgeon to Specialist. OK the patty was the main star of the show but this had a semi sharp taste which just complimented the beef beyond belief.

It all worked together brilliantly and looking back on my original notes I had written “just wow” and that sums up The Dorset Burger Company and The American.

On this occasion, it was a popular destination for people celebrating their birthday but in my mind all I could think as I finished this up was “happy birthday to me.”

The only Casualty tonight were about 6 or 7 serviettes I used to assist me in this operation of devouring the delectable American burger.

We actually popped back in the next day to get a breakfast (which was brilliant) and had the opportunity to get the interior shots above and have a chat with the lovely owner.

DBCo are opening another venture in their former premises serving up pizzas and pies (it’s no secret as it is on Twitter) so we wish Emma and her team all the best with that.

Keep up the amazing work at The Infirmary, we really want to come down again soon and sample more!

So if you’re heading to Weymouth or nearby in the later part of 2014 or 2015 and beyond then you’d be foolish to eat any other burger than the ones on offer at The Dorset Burger Company.

Amazing location and premises, top quality staff and most importantly the definition of wining when it comes to locally sourced ingredients combined to make what is easily one of our top five burger joints so far.

Great work and thank you! The fries and onion rings were also special too but go and find that out for yourself!

Burger Lad®