Jerry’s Burger Bar – Kloof Branch

Having been to the different Jerry’s restaurants a good number of times before, we thought it only fitting to re-visit their Gardens branch (situated in Park Rd, off Kloof), this time with our Burger Brews goggles on. It was an exciting occasion as it was the night before one of the bru’s was set to say “I do”. Once again, another bru wasn’t able to join us (being away in Ireland), but we had a most suitable replacement at hand. A great friend of ours had flown all the way from Sydney (with his wife and baby twins in tow) just to be a bru for one night as he joined us as a Burger Brews guest reviewer. Not too certain whether the fact that he was Best Man at the wedding the next day also had a bearing on his being here, but either way it was a lucky co-incidence…

Now, to begin with, we did what one should never do when wanting to eat out at one of Park Rd’s humming restaurants on a Friday night…we arrived without a booking! On arrival, the stars were aligned! There was a table, situated in the perfect spot between the inside and outside of the restaurant, which soon became available for us to sit our hungry, thirsty selves down on.

Our waitress, Toni, was soon at hand to take our drinks orders. One of the bru’s went for a Jack Black’s Lager while the other two had an Anchorage Lager (this is a beer brewed in-house by Jerry’s), and our “mate” from Sydney went gangster on us and ordered – get this – a Windhoek Draught. We put it down to jetlag but he was soon put in the picture of how these nights work – craft beers only, thanks!

Starters were then ordered, after much to-ing and fro-ing. There was a good selection on offer, many of which we each felt like on the night. Finally, we went for a portion of Poppers (crumbed and fried mixed cheeses, onion and jalapeno, served with Sriracha mayo) and, on recommendation from Toni, a portion each of Killer Kimchi (spicy home-made Kimchi with cheddar, mozzarella and Mexican pickle – fried and served with Gochujang mayo) and Cheese (rich, melted cheese bombs stuffed with 4 cheeses and wrapped in crispy phyllo, served with mustard mayo). When they arrived, we thought they had made a mistake in that we didn’t see any Poppers. The penny then dropped as we re-read the menu which explains that these starters are all served as “Bombs”, which are described as “oozy, cheesy filled croquettes”. They come as either single or double portions. We had ordered a single portion of each, which meant four per portion. The highlight for all of us, both in presentation and in flavour, were the Cheese Bombs. The crispy phyllo in which the bombs are deep fried provides the perfect texture to the bite which is followed by the oozy, creaminess of the cheese inside. They also have a funky presentation which makes it stand out from the rest.

Another round (or two) were then ordered with the bru’s all going for Anchorage Lager’s whilst our “mate” – who by this stage, we realised, was going rogue – stuck with ordering Windhoek’s.

Our thoughts then turned to burgers. Man, what a selection! Jerry’s has options to suit ANY burger tastes. They offer sliders which are available as a variety of either beef or chicken. They also have an extensive range of single-patty options (which all sound delicious) and, finally, they have a range of signature burgers which are called “Lucy’s”. These are beef patties which have been rolled into two, leaving a pocket in the middle, which is stuffed with a variety of ingredients. These are dubbed, on the menu, as “A Jerry’s Original”. Having had burgers of this concept before (at another restaurant in the CBD which has since closed) I have to say, on that occasion, it sounded way better than how it was experienced. As is often said about movies, you can never beat the original. In the case of these burgers, I can honestly say that the same can most certainly be said!

From the Lucy’s options, our “mate” and I both went for a Sloth burger (the patties were stuffed with cheddar cheese and jalapeno and topped with avo and bacon) – his with crispy deep-fried onion rings and mine with skinny fries as sides. Another bru went for an Envy burger (the patty was stuffed with pecan nuts and sharp blue cheese and topped with caramelised apple and bacon). The bru who was getting hitched the next day decided on a Jerry burger from their regular patty range. The patty had BBQ basting and was topped with Swiss cheese, fresh rocket, and red onion relish.

Conversation took a backseat as we set about devouring what can best be described as burger heaven on a plate. What made them such great burgers was that it would have been easy to have let the toppings and fillings carry the meal into being something very good. However, the patty itself was able to have its deliciousness rise through the other great flavour combinations happening around it. Now this was a great example for any true burger lovers out there who believe, like we do, that no matter the toppings and flavours added to the burger, the patty should always be the hero of the dish.

It was a fantastic experience, made even better by the thought that the next day we would be standing with our fellow bru as he says his vows to his chosen one. From your fellow bru’s – congrats to you and your missus!

Ratings

Beginnings – A good selection with every one of them right up our alley. The Cheese Bomb really wowed, while the other options ordered lagged a bit in “wowness”. 3.5
Burgers – Sublime in every aspect! Even with the flavour combos going on, which were all on-point, the patty shone as the true hero of the dish – so much so that I coughed up a cape during the night. 5
Beers – We weren’t at our most adventurous in our choices on the night, though there was great variety available. That said, we thoroughly enjoyed what we had 4
Bringers – Toni was extremely efficient, and helped us a great deal when it came to recommendations when ordering. 4
Background – As is the norm with a great restaurant in Park Rd, the atmosphere was buzzing! We were lucky to have gotten such a good table having not booked.   5

Ratings Key

• 1 Bad
• 2 Better than bad
• 3 Bleh (neither here nor there)
• 4 Bloody good
• 5 Brilliant