Living in London you might assume that I am spoilt with a choice of new burger joints to try at lunch. You’d be wrong. As much as I’d love to be having a laugh over a burger on my lunch break, the reality is I’m sat at my desk at work. This isn’t because I’m a workaholic or because I skip lunch. Pah! This is because I work out of town. When many Londoners are inundated with food options, sushi, sandwiches and nice little coffee shops, my only option is a supermarket called Budgens.
Budgens is a sorry excuse of a supermarket in the UK. Supermarket is an exaggeration actually, it’s more of a small store with fridges, with expensive poor quality fruit and veg. In fact the situation is so bad that when my colleague and I go to Budgens, we pull what has come to be known as ‘The Budgens Face’ – a really unimpressed, ugly face which appears as soon as you step into the uninspiring neon green world of the UK’s most depressing supermarket. I asked my colleague if she would let me take a picture of her doing ‘The Budgens Face’ for this blog, but regretfully, she declined. For the sake of our sanity, we have renamed Budgens to ‘Bugenne’ (said with French accent) in attempt to kid ourselves that Budgens is better than it is.
But recently something very exciting happened to my colleagues and I. We discovered new burger delivery service Chosen Bun. I was a little distracted by the Springsteen tour when Chosen Bun first launched, but I’ve been back at work for a few months now and must busy myself with other activities. My dear colleagues, who I’m lucky enough to also call friends, have seen me build up to the tour and suffer the Bruce Blues afterwards. They are, thankfully, very understanding.
With my co-workers forced appreciation of Bruce Springsteen, I thought it was about time I pushed some burger eating on them too. We all know enjoyment of food is subjective, so I thought each person in my team could give feedback on their selected burger delivered by Chosen Bun.
I’ve nicknamed them to give you an insight into their character and lifestyle, which naturally impacts on how they might review a burger.
The Californian
The Californian, aka my Burger Sister and creator of ‘The Budgens Face’ wasn’t the most positive about the whole thing. Growing up with In-N-Out burgers as her breast milk equivalent, it was impossible for her to not make a comparison between the two. Her burger was “a bit dry” and she wasn’t happy about being charged extra for ketchup and mayonnaise. Californian by name Californian by language, she also told me that she thinks the bun “SUCKS” – a shame considering their name. Final thoughts: “In-N-Out smacks Chosen Bun in the face” BUT until they open an In-N-Out over here, she “might be tempted to try Chosen Bun again”.
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| The Californian did this crazy thing to the picture |
The Glamorous One
It’s all about the looks, darling. Although she felt the actual burger wasn’t as “pretty as she would have liked” when it comes to appearances she did admire the “impressive” packaging. She opted for The Edamammy burger, the healthier vegetarian burger with bean patty, the texture of which she enjoyed, although the bun was a bit “airy fairy”. I was pleased to see her lipstick remained intact for the whole burger eating process.
The Girl Next Door
No I don’t mean a neighbour who I secretly fancy, this is the girl who sits closest to me and who is always there to listen when I ‘talk Bruce’. Referenced in an earlier post on Discovering Springsteen For The First Time Every Day, she has a good understanding of the life of a Springsteen fan. Forever the optimist she loved the tangy onion chutney and the gooey cheese, as well as the abundance of gherkins. Although the meal was a bit on the cold side, having the option of a burger delivered straight to her a desk on a cold rainy day is a “winner”.
The Hippy
Earthy mother nature crossed over to the dark side for one burger only, enjoying the “tasty” meat “cooked just enough”. With a plate normally piled high with raw vegetables, she lost herself in the moment, munching through some chips, the “wideness” of which she enjoyed. A fan of ethically sourced produce, the “artificial tasting” bun was a concern but she soon sorted that out with a post lunch detoxifying ginger tea.
The Doctor
Got a headache, cold or a trapped your finger in a door? Just shout across the office to our resident doctor, who has a desk draw packed with medication. The Doctor went for the ‘Slim Jim’, a healthier option with “perfectly cooked, lean non-greasy chicken”. Special notes included the zero fat chili jam which had a nice kick and flavour. However, ever health conscious, the bun was deemed a little too processed and sugary – where were the healthy low GI seeds? All in all though it was just what the doctor ordered – a great source of lean meat, low fat, full of protein and lending itself to muscle growth and development. Sounds like a perfect burger for….
The Triathlete
…However triathlon season is over. So this athlete was looking to indulge in a big juicy burger. It didn’t disappoint either, the bacon cheeseburger was “delicious, perfectly cooked” and the patty “nice and pink”. Swapping energy gels for another type of liquid, she loved the decent amount of sauce, a combination of tomato ketchup, mayonnaise, paprika and some other secret ingredients.
The Token Male
What is it with men and not wanting to talk about their feelings? I had to probe The Token Male for his feedback, which was practical and to the point “bacon was crispy and meat cooked well” but the burger was “not very big for nearly £10”. With a baker’s background, he also commented on the bun which was declared to be “a bit plastic and not bready enough” but he did like that he could enjoy a burger as his desk. Working while eating? If I’m honest I do question his multi-tasking abilities.
The Yogi
The Yogi was quite concerned that the burgers arrived 15 minutes late and told me “whilst waiting, I concentrated on my breathing to remain calm”. She noted the tasty sauce and relish but found the chips over-priced, in fact, they cost “a third of the yoga class,” and although they were crunchy they were also very greasy, making her sun salutations a struggle that evening. “Overall – tasty, but I’m going to need to put in an extra intense Bikram yoga session to work this one off!”
The Boss
Phone, email, meeting, the second most important Boss in my world is tight on time and an expert at multi-tasking. In a busy office, the main thing she was after was a quick lunch to get her through a jam packed afternoon. Polished off in 4 minutes 30 seconds, the Chosen Bun burger ticked all the boxes, delivered to the desk and consumed in record time, ready for a 2pm conference call.
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| Don’t ask a busy person to take a picture of a burger |
The Burger Girl
Does it even matter what I think after all that? It was pretty good, great onion chutney, perfectly cooked patty although as a package it was all a little cold.
One thing we all commented on was the high cost of the burgers and side dishes. We like to think of ourselves as creative types as opposed to being numerically minded, so I sent our feedback to our Finance Director who came back with this helpful ROI analysis (that’s Return On Investment).
ROI = 20%
According to twitter, Chosen Bun also have some ‘celebrity’ fans, including, er, Calum Best. Apparently Calum has just declared himself bankrupt. Maybe he has been ordering too many Chosen Bun burgers.
All in all, tasty, convenient, but over priced. We may be pulling ‘The Budgens Face’ for a little while longer.