Few town centres these days still retain that quaint, village feel of a traditional British high street; Wimbledon village being one of them. Whilst the area is especially patriotic over the Wimbledon Championships, Burger Shack and Bar has sat their stall out to fly the flag for British ingredients all year round.
From the moment, you walk in front of the restaurant and see the red, white and blue design of the name, you know this is a modern British restaurant proud of its origins. With the colourful mismatching chairs and tasteful modern pop art, this is one of the most welcoming venues you will come across in Wimbledon village.
Their burgers are prime British beef, the cheese are Lincolnshire poacher and no doubt the seafood dishes we tried were from the British coast. The lobster and crayfish roll was summery and light with avocado, shredded lettuce and Marie rose; although using a hot dog roll made it less elegant than you would have expected. With the soft shell crab in crispy batter, you almost expected it to be a burger. Luckily for the diner, the fact that it isn’t means that you receive three decent sized crabs along with fries, red cabbage, chilli and lime slaw. The crab is crunchy and not too greasy, in fact it made the fries seem mushy in comparison.
Their side dishes are some of the best value bargains I’ve seen anywhere in London. Little gem, Shropshire blue, apple and walnut would be a main course in any other venue given the portion size, but is only charged at £6. It is a simple dish to put together, but they have sourced their ingredients extremely well
It wouldn’t be a proper British experience without trying their Bramley apple pie. The pastry is beautifully glazed whilst there is just the right amount of acidity from the apples for the dish. The portion size is ideal to satisfy those sweet-tooth cravings even if you have had a massive burger for your main meal.
Their support for local industry is unrivalled: they have a fine selection of local London beers from Meantime, Brixton Brewery and Gypsy Hill Brewing Co, whilst even their craft sodas are handmade from Hackney with no artificial additives. They don’t cut corners here at Burger Shack and Bar; they find the best of British and bring it to their lucky diners.
baldwin@townfish.com