Food trends move at incredible speed – but even so, the rise of the smash burger has been remarkable. Less than a year ago, this style – essentially, burgers rendered as wider, flatter, crispier patties, for maximum flavour – was a fairly niche concern. An enthusiastic hardcore, including Newcastle’s Meat: Stack, Danny’s Burgers in Bristol and Slap & Pickle’s mainly northern outlets, had been serving “smashed” burgers for some years. In October 2022, Honest Burgers introduced a few smash-style burgers to its menu, too. But beyond burger geeks, there was little excitement about the form.
Last winter, that all changed. In Soho, a new takeaway called Supernova generated queues that led GQ magazine to declare: “The smash burger has officially eaten London.” Further London smash burger venues soon followed, including Supra Burger, SMSH BN and Temper Burger. Then in April, Waitrose gave the format national exposure when it launched its own smash burger with bone marrow. Aldi launched its smash burger in May. And this autumn, Honest Burgers, which has sold well over a million smash burgers since adding them to its menu, will open a dedicated smash burger spin-off in London.
