Eat & Drink
Originally published on Thursday, 21st April 2011
Byron Burger
Rule Britannia with the juiciest burger on the touristy block.
11 Haymarket, SW1Y 4BP - 020 7925 0276
Location
Oh Lordy, yes you WILL have to traverse Piccadilly’s crazy tourist crossroads to make your way down Haymarket, so expect to see plenty of visitors clutching Lillywhites bags. However, once you’ve made the turn, it’s quite a gentile street with Byron taking a corner spot in an impressive building further down the road away from the hoi-polloi.
Vibe
This new flagship is a curious mixture of American diner meets Rule Britannia. The slightly rockabilly edge from the round racks of condiments and giant airstream-esque open kitchen is balanced by the very obvious ‘Hello this is London’ location with enough irreverent touches to raise a smile (playing card business cards and semaphore flag feedback forms). The staff are friendly and relaxed, plus we reckon this branch is far enough off the main strip to get enough of a buzz without coach loads of camera-wielders ruining the vibe. The back room is better for a darker, more intimate experience.
Flavours
The burgers here are super juicy and succulent (the Scottish meat is minced fresh on site daily with leftovers given to charity) , and with only three varieties all served ‘pink’, it’s fuss-free eating at its best. Top your choice off with the likes of sliced avocado, Portobello mushroom or red peppers, and get stuck into the sides from courgette fries (oh so good) and skin-on chips to a great mac & cheese. If that all feels too yellow, the house salad is a breath of vitamin-infused air. And leave room for dessert, we heard an American couple next to us discussing the Cheesecake Factory and describing Byron’s version as ‘unusually good’ – how’s that for an endorsement. The chocolate brownie isn’t bad either. If you’re feeling festive this weekend get the Royale with Cheese – and call it Pulp Fiction if you can’t bear any more Wills and Kate wordplay.
Décor
It’s an alternate riff on being British from the old to the new, where the front room is decked out with reclaimed furniture right out of a railway station and the back is a modern interpretation of TFL. But before you start having closure nightmares and backing away, stop – we really liked the massive station clock, fun landmark wallpaper (hunt for the taxi driver taking on a cyclist) and big metal lamps in the front (though the salvaged striped tube seating may be a bit much), and the huge neon reconstruction of the tube map hanging from the ceiling and map of London made entirely out of street names round the back. Look – if you’re going to be in that area of town, you might as well as play with it.
Upshot
Don’t diss the mini-chain people – Russell Norman’s a fan of Byron’s burgers and he’s well on the way to creating his own little empire. What you’ll get here is a non identikit interior with the same awesome burger every time. And we really do have to give props to the service.
