Hench Burger has opened a new pop-up in Cardiff, and tucked away in the back garden of Canton’s Corporation Yard, it’s selling out day after day. The burger brand will be cooking up its popular smash burgers at the site all summer long, so we grabbed a seat at a picnic table to see if the grub really lives up to the hype.
Sat under a marquee in the centre of the yard, we had a scroll through the menu, linked through a QR code on our table. From around half a dozen burger options, we settled on the Tokyo chicken burger (£10.50), and the Londoner, made vegan (£10.50). Not sure we’d have the stomach capacity for a side each, we decided to split the Truffle and Chive Mac and Cheeze (£4.50).
The cook warned us that our order would take about 25 minutes, but we hoped the queue was a sign of something worth waiting for. To get more stories like this sent straight to your inbox, sign up for the Food and Drink newsletter here.
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While sipping a beer in the sticky June heatwave, I watched burger after burger make its way to hungry mouths. But I was sceptical about the Hench brand. In Cardiff, where new restaurants are coming onto the food scene daily, you don’t have to look far and wide to find a decent burger. There are more than a few chains around that churn them out - from Fat Hippo to Honest Burger - and, even better, there are a handful of independents that make it their business to do them well. One of them, the hugely popular Ansh, is only half a mile down the road.
But, Hench Burger has already made a name for itself after taking up residence in the kitchen at The Royal Oak last year. Here they added roast dinners to their repertoire, but it was the burgers that shot them into the spotlight. And turns out, there was a good reason for it.
We were halfway through our drinks when our food was plonked down in front of us. The Tokyo was a massive buttermilk soaked chicken breast doused in a sticky mango and coriander chutney. Topped with spring onion and pickled cucumber, it was a burger made for the summertime, fresh and sweet. Under the bun was a slathering of creamy katsu mayo (vegan, like all the toppings on offer) and a sprinkling of toasted sesame.
Once you get your mouth around it, it’s clear the Tokyo is something special. It ditches all the classic burger toppings for a unique combination of textures and flavours you won’t have had anywhere else. It is messy and terribly unflattering to eat, but genuinely delicious.
The Londoner, meanwhile, is the Tokyo’s less creative sibling. Inside a fluffy burger bun are two vegan patties covered with melted vegan cheese, ‘facon’, baby gem, pickle and red onion. A sweet tomato chutney is a welcome replacement from standard ketchup, and a vegan burger sauce is the bow on top. In ingredients alone, The Londoner is a classic rather than show-stopper, but the vegan patties - which are available on any Hench burger - deserve an honourable mention. With a meaty texture and consistency, and a juiciness you don’t often get in protein alternatives, it could easily fool diners into thinking it’s beef.
After polishing off the main events, there was little room left for the mac and 'cheeze' - but I shovelled it in anyway. It was thick and creamy, with a sprinkle of chives and a pile of fried onion on top, giving it a satisfying crunch.
I didn't know until after I'd finished that it was also vegan. Had I clocked the ‘z’ in ‘cheeze’ before ordering, I probably would have passed on it. But this mac does the trick - and the staff at Hench Burger know it. ‘If that’s not the best mac and cheese you've eaten, I’ll give you another one for free’, they joked when we ordered.
The confidence in their menu isn't cocky, it's warranted. The Hench Burger brand is something to marvel at. Their burgers are big and loaded with toppings, and most need a skewer to stop them toppling over. But the size isn't their shtick. The real reason these guys are selling out day after day is because they’re doing something different, and they're damn good at it. Whether you’re a carnivore, vegetarian or vegan, there’s no way you’ll leave Hench Burger hungry. And if you do, your next mac and cheeze is on me.
