Burger Challenge at Chrome Coffee Lounge – Hobart, Tasmania

Three burgers down, and after wading through the dozens of suggestions I received after my most recent review of Red Jaffa, plenty more to come!!

First of all, I have to send out a massive thank you to everyone that has recommended their favourite burger joint to me over the last few weeks. At this stage I think I’ve got around half a dozen lined up! As much as I would love to knock one off per day, I don’t know that my arteries would be all that appreciative…so instead I’ll aim for one every couple of weeks or so.

From all the recommendations, three places have stood out to me; Devil’s Kitchen, The Winston and Chrome Coffee Lounge. Four weeks ago we were in town making some last minute purchases before flying out of the country to Cambodia and I had an hour free, so I thought I might as well give one of these places a shot. Unfortunately Devil’s Kitchen was closed, and as I’m keen to try The Winston with Karen I thought I’d cross over to the other side of the CBD to see if Chrome was open.

Success!!

I have to be honest and admit that this was the first time I’d ever set foot inside Chrome. I’m not a coffee drinker and as I’ve mentioned before, my place of work is outside the CBD, so the opportunity just hasn’t come up. I had always assumed that this was a coffee place only, with perhaps the odd cake, slice or biscuit as an accompaniment, but I was very quickly proven wrong!

On walking into the ‘lounge’ the first thing I noticed was the menu written up on a massive blackboard that stretched down the length of the left hand wall! A fantastic All-day breakfast selection, a very good range of drinks (including some rather unusual ones such as Italian hot chocolate and hot blackcurrant!) and a number of larger meals and specials. But most importantly, home made gourmet burgers!!

At $16.50 this is the most expensive burger I’ve had to date on the burger challenge, but unlike Burger Got Soul (the most expensive up until now at $13.50) you do get a serve of chips with the burger.

This afternoon I managed to track down Chrome’s website (with great difficulty I might add…I ended up finding it through Yellow Pages online as Google was coming up with absolutely nothing!) and I noticed that they also offer the beef burger without the chips for $13, making it a little bit more affordable, but still at the upper end of the scale.

So how good was it? For more than $15 I was expecting big things!!

As the plate was laid down in front of me I’ve got to say I was quite impressed!

Beef burger @ Chrome Coffee Lounge

A thick juicy patty that was obviously made with a genuine TLC, red onion, vibrant lettuce and sweet slices of perfectly ripe tomato. This was one of those moments when you have no doubt that flavours are going to be good!

It didn’t disappoint either. I was positive I was going to have to pull out the knife and fork, but with a bit of effort I was able to compress the burger down to a (barely) manageable size and into my mouth! I could feel an epic jaw-cramp coming on (an occupational hazard as it’s turned out!) but was able to bite down and savour the flavour before it fully kicked in!

All in all this was a pretty good burger!

The downside? Three things…all minor, but enough to make a difference to the final verdict.

1. Personally I would have preferred to have the tomato relish in the burger rather than in a dish on the side (perhaps implying that knife and fork is the more civilised way of eating this meal?).

2. Where’s the cheese? Only in its absence do you realise how much difference a simple piece of cheese can make to both the texture and flavour of a burger!

3. Again it’s personal preference, but I always prefer fried onion over fresh onion. Unless your significant other is also partaking in the same onion, it’s bound to end in a mid-afternoon teeth brush!

So the final verdict?

Taste – 4/5
Patty – 5/5
Bun – 5/5
Ingredients – 3/5
Condiments – 3/5
Presentation – 5/5
Stuffable* – Yes
Value – 3/5

Overall – 4/5

*Can you stuff it in your face without a knife and fork?

Burger Challenge Round-up

So how does Chrome compare to our other contenders? While the Chrome burger was great, it was missing those little details that make for a truly amazing burger. It is quite clearly in the ‘gourmet’ category, so for its price I was expecting just that little bit extra.

So this leaves Red Jaffa and Budgie Smuggler still reigning supreme, followed closely by Chrome, with Burger Got Soul bringing up the rear.

Red Jaffa – 4.5/5
Budgie Smugglers – 4.5/5
Chrome – 4/5
Burger Got Soul – 2.5/5

Next up? I’m hoping for The Winston! Watch this space!

In the meantime, have you been to Chrome (even if it’s just for a coffee and cake)?

What was your experience?

Chrome Coffee Lounge Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato