Restaurant Guide

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Handmade Burger Co opened its 15th restaurant on the riverside at The Oracle in early December
Handmade Burger Co opened its 15th restaurant on the riverside at The Oracle in early December
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Restaurant review: Handmade Burger Co

By Becky Barnes
January 09, 2013


When I heard a new burger joint was opening at The Oracle I jumped at the opportunity to check it out – especially when I was told that every burger is made to order.

Almost every restaurant has a burger on its menu now, from high- end hotels like Malmaison to Italian restaurants like Bella Italia, so a specialised burger restaurant needs to go above and beyond to draw its punters in.

Promising to make each burger from scratch on site each day certainly seemed like a good start.

Handmade Burger Co opened its 15th restaurant on the riverside at The Oracle in early December and it is tucked on the corner near the Grosvenor Casino end of the river (where lsq2 was).

It’s a stylish place packed with tables with an open kitchen and modern décor. The menu is extensive, we're talking a choice of 40 burgers here, but it is easy to follow with staff on hand to guide you on your way.

Out of the 40 options I was immediately drawn to exclusive burgers from BBC’s Jimmy Doherty’s farm and opted for Jimmy’s beef, cheese and bacon (£8.95).

The juicy delight included mature cheddar, smoked bacon, caramelised onion relish, mayo and salad, to which I added a flat mushroom as an extra (greedy me or one of my five a day, depending on which way you look at it).

My boyfriend picked out the special stuffed burger with cheddar and chilli (£7.95). Warning; when the menu reads ‘hot chilli relish’ it isn’t lying about the heat – thank goodness for the selection of dips we picked for him to cool off with.

The great thing about this menu is you can add or take away exactly what you want and it is definitely a place for people who love to share.

We picked fresh cut chips (£2.95) and Cajun chips (£3.25) plus onion rings (£2.85) and chargrilled vegetables (£2.95). We also had to try the three chargrilled halloumi and veg skewers (£3.75).

We could have fed a table of four with the amount of food we ordered and it was definitely a case of eyes bigger than belly on this occasion. One bowl of chips is more than enough to feed two and maybe pick another side if you are really hungry.

I would opt for the fresh cut chips again next time I visit as there are so many flavours in the burgers and the dips that the Cajun flavour was a bit much against a blue cheese dip (although the waitress did point out this made them taste like Cheetos – good or bad you decide).

The dips were 70p or three for £1.95 and the barbecue flavour was a delight. With classic beef burgers starting at £5.95, a dip or two could certainly spruce up a plain burger on a budget.

This restaurant is no frills and offers a relaxed and friendly atmosphere – you place your order at the till so there are no squabbles about the bill at the end. Food came out very quickly and was tasty, fresh and satisfying.

The veggie options were impressive and burgers included green bean and chickpea with apple chutney (£6.95), sweet potato and bean with a mango and ginger salsa (£7.15) or spinach and lentil (£7.15).

Chicken and lamb burgers also grace the menu as do a range of salads as well as smaller burgers for a smaller appetite or a kid’s menu for youngsters.

Drinks included everything from beers to milkshakes but we opted for a lovely bottle of Chilean Los Romeros Merlot (£14.95).

Handmade Burger Co is a welcome addition to the Riverside and it may be just enough to tempt the burger eaters away from other restaurants where just a solitary burger lingers on the menu.


Contact Details

  • Telephone: 0118 9588106
  • Website: www.handmadeburger.co.uk
  • Address:
    Handmade Burger Co
    The Riverside, The Oracle,
    Reading
    RG1 2AG
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Most recent user comments 5 of 20

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   @Megaman

I would review the consistency of the onions within the burger to set it aside from every other burger review that appears here.

Simples, innit.
Spiddly, Reading
09/01/2013 at 15:42 Offensive or Inappropriate?
   "Promising to make each burger from scratch on site each day certainly seemed like a good start."

"Food came out very quickly and was tasty, fresh and satisfying."

Really cannot see how these two comments can go together.
Harold The Barrel
09/01/2013 at 15:41 Offensive or Inappropriate?
   Hmm burger chips and a bottle of wine for £50.
Whit Lee
09/01/2013 at 14:54 Offensive or Inappropriate?
   Hi Spiddly, could you enlighten us on how you would write a review of a company which only sells burgers, without either ordering or mentioning, a burger?
Megaman
09/01/2013 at 14:50 Offensive or Inappropriate?
   Another burger review. Typical.
Spiddly, Reading
09/01/2013 at 14:46 Offensive or Inappropriate?
Previous Page | 1 | 2 Show 15 | 25 | 50 per page


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