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“Bondi Road”

Occasion:	Cuisine:	Area:	Cost:	Rating:
Night Out	Seafood	Lower East Side	Moderate	Great

oing. We chatted—love, life, weddings (hers), food, repeat—we watched the surf, we sipped our grapefruit tequila concoctions, pulled off a piece of fried fish with our fingers and dipped them into the tarter sauce, then each grabbed a few fries.

But our cycle was interrupted by the arrival of the Burger with the Lot, a sandwich that was about the height of half the distance between my elbow and my wrist. It is nuts. I am not sure you will be seeing this at a Burger King near you but this is what a burger with a Lot is: a burger topped with cheddar cheese, bacon, lettuce, tomato, onions, and three other completely wild ingredients: grilled pineapple, sliced roasted beets, and a fried egg—all served inside a sesame seed bun. No special sauce. Try to make a jingle out of that one.

I was in shock when I heard about all the layers and flavors that would be involved in this sandwich and inquired about the origin of the recipe. But the Aussies I surveyed (and there were quite a few to survey) had no idea. “It’s just the way we always had ‘em growing up,” one said. “I don’t know why, it’s just the way Mum served it,” another said. So, if you have any ideas on why these items ended up on a burger, please let me know.

As for me, I think the reason there are beets and pineapple on the burger goes to the age-old issue of getting kids to eat their fruits and vegetables. What better way than to sandwich them between bacon, cheese and a burger? But really the reasoning is neither here nor there, what matters is that people actually eat it this way and that it really tastes great. While I thought the burger was overcooked, I loved the unexpected contrast and combination of flavors. I made sure to cut a piece that gave me a little of each flavor in one bite. I loved the juicy sweetness from the pineapple against the smoky bacon and the runny egg with the earthy sweet beet. It all works. It’s odd, and quite massive actually, but it’s good fun mate.

Before we left, we had to give two classic desserts from Oz a go, and tried The Lamingtons, little fluffy cubed sponge cakes shaped like fuzzy dice that are filled with cream, then rolled in chocolate and tons of coconut. While they were slightly dry, they were nonetheless quite nice, and a Pavlova, a giant meringue topped with fresh whipped cream, kiwis and raspberries that was way too sweet for my taste ... [more, click below]

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Posted: August 20, 2006

Other restaurants in Lower East Side :
+ Mojo   + WD-50   + Schiller's Liquor Bar   + Azul Bistro   + Barrio Chino   + 71 Clinton Fresh Food-- Closed   + Little Giant   + Kuma Inn   + Falai   + The Stanton Social   + The Tides   + Thor   + The Orchard   + El Bocadito-- CLOSED   + Bondi Road   + Rayuela   + Suba   + Bun (boone)   + Sorella   + The Fat Hippo   + Pulino's   

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