The Rivergarden

Jump in the canoe...

No joke you can actually canoe here if you wish. It is a short paddle downstream from the Red Lion pub which I believe hosts the pub and paddle. With this pub you can always guarantee an unusually mixed crowd of general labourers and post wedding party goers who all converge into one big weird boiling pot. It's trying to be upmarket (going off the price of a pint!) yet at the same time not really upmarket at all. The river is probably the main factor drawing people in at summertime, is the food as good as the river view? 

The burger

They only had one burger on the menu and at £12.95 I expected something fairly good. It was a bacon cheeseburger with a brioche bun. Everyone knows you can charge at least a whole extra pound for brioche.

The meat had a lovely chargrilled taste which was seasoned well and although they said no to going medium rare the chef once again agreed to cook it as pink as he would dare. There was a fleck of pink in the centre and it definitely could of been pinker but nonetheless the burger was still pretty juicey. It could easily of been eaten in date situations as my face remained reasonably burger free throughout.

There was a good amount of pickle which was needed to combat the chargrilled meat. Though it was thickly sliced and perhaps could of been improved with a daintier slice.

Alongside this the fresh salad was a nice compliment. The tomato was thinly sliced to reduce sogginess. It could of been dried slightly and seasoned to enhance the flavour and further reduce the sog but in comparison to other joints I've been to this was good. The onion was a bit too chunky really for a burger and it was quite harsh raw in such large chunks. It's safe to say when these fell out, I let them, and did not attempt a recon mission to reinsert them back into the bun.

The bacon was good. Of the streaky variety so full of fat and flavour and very crispy. This is the ideal bacon for burgers when crisp as you get maximum flavour and texture in one salty smoky hit. The cheese was of reasonable quality but just needed more of it. I got the odd taste here and there but not the assault on the palette that I like from cheese. When I make a burger I lattice the cheese in a six slice combo like laying the foundations of jenga. Or if grating then avalanche it over the burger on the grill until you can't see it. General rule, when you think you've added enough, add a bit more.

Brioche bun. What more can I say? Soft, fluffy, I wanted to lay my head down and sleep on it.

The burger came with a serious helping of sweet onion pickle. It was a great addition in the burger but made me wonder why the chef didn't commit and just put it in? It would of meant less waste as in reality only 10% of it was needed in the bun.

The sides

These chips/wedges (chepge) were actually very good. Slightly too thick to be chips yet too small to be a wedge. They come skin on so great for the bowels. They were lightly seasoned and had a great crunch. Normally I opt for skinny fries out and about but I have to say these chepges really nailed it for me. Possibly some of the best I've had for a while.

Overall

Great tasting meat. Moist. Good bacon. Needed more cheese (as I always say) and less raw onion. I would opt for very thinly sliced shallots if going raw or some water thin red onion if insisting on it. The only reason I would say the coach gets extra points is the addition of the onion ring into the burger. The meat alone I would say this is close to a 10. It was just the other components that let it down ever so slightly and the committal onion chutney. Still a good burger though and good enough to make all those that ordered a roast jealous with food envy.

8/10

River garden36 Yarmouth RdNR7 0EQ