By Justin Millar

Copyright belfastlive

Bunsen Burger was recently named the 3rd best burger in Europe so when I heard this I had to head in to try it out and report back on whether I agreed or not. Sitting on one of Belfast’s most iconic streets Bunsen has been a stalwart in the city for years now. The prime location has meant it is always full when I pass it at the weekends when I’m making my way through the Cathedral Quarter bars. I should also add that they now have another store in Belfast as well as locations in Cork and Dublin. One of the unique things about this place is the menu, it is intentionally tiny. With the only options on the menu being a hamburger, a cheeseburger with the option to have those as doubles. They are accompanied by shoestring fries, hand cut chips and sweet potato fries. That’s all they offer in terms of food but they do have soft drinks, beers, ciders and milkshakes to help wash down your order. When we were in we were sat quickly because I went at 4pm in the afternoon but I do know from experience that it gets a lot busier at weekends and evenings. I had a look and you can book if you had a specific time in mind that you wanted to go before you head for a drink in the nearby bars. There were two of us in and we both ordered a cheeseburger with hand cut fries. You can also have them cooked to your preference which is something I really like when you’re out somewhere. All toppings are free so I also had onions, lettuce and mayo on my burger. We also got a cider and a milkshake to try while we were there. When the burger came down on the metal tray it was wrapped in Bunsen branded paper but it smelled absolutely brilliant. The burgers were really juicy and packed full of flavour from the very first bite. It was cooked exactly how I asked and the toppings were just the perfect amount. I noticed on the tiny menu that they minced the beef daily in the restaurant which meant it was fresh and you could definitely tell. The chips were also lovely, it was a great portion size as well as being the right amount of fluffy and crispy which will always get a thumbs up from me. The milkshake was also clearly made from real strawberries, not just a flavouring which was a nice touch and really shows it is good quality. In terms of the things I didn’t like weren’t really about the food. I’d probably try to add a little bit more atmosphere into the restaurant with some music and lighting. This is me really trying to pick at things though because I think this spot knows what it’s at. However, I will go back to my earlier point that this was 4pm in the afternoon so this might have been the reason it was quieter. Our bill came to £35.60 which I do actually think is good value. I’ve paid a lot more for food that is definitely not of this quality. The milkshake was £5.15 which came in at almost the same price as the cider, so this is the only thing I thought was a little too dear. Bunsen Burger is simplicity done right. No frills. Not trying too hard to keep innovating when all we needed was a good burger. Doing that is brave because people want those belly busting burgers that go viral on TikTok , not for how they taste though. That bravery has paid off here because this is a fantastic burger in my opinion. Let this place be a lesson to other food places that if you nail the basics first then you’ll do well. Well done Bunsen you definitely deserved the spot on that list and you’ve created magic in a burger in my humble opinion. I will be back time and time again! In the interest of fairness and transparency we pay for all the meals and drinks we review . This ensures that we are giving accurate and honest representations of the food and service that we receive. So unless we state otherwise we have paid for the meal ourselves so you can trust our opinions aren’t skewed by a freebie. For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter here