I love eating the burgers from Secret Burger Club and take any opportunity to track them down for a taste whenever I can. Recently that has been a bit harder as they haven't been in town a lot over the last year or so but happily this weekend they popped up on my feed as being set up over in Chilwell at the Barton Bros site so I packed up my bags and headed to the tram to pay them a visit.

If you are lucky you may see one of their many excellent specials on the menu but today they were just serving the classic menu. I an using the word 'just' very loosely here as their 'classics' are way better than many other specials at other places.

Sometimes you can get extra patties to the burger which can add another meaty dimension to the experience. Today though they were discouraging that as an option as they were expecting that they would have a lot of hungry mouths to feed.

I figured that the best way to get around that was just to order the entire menu, it wasn't even an excuse to be fair I really wanted to remind myself of all the great tastes that they have off the grill.

SECRET BURGER - CLASSIC BURGERS

I ordered the usual Duke, plus a West Coast and a Bacon Cheese at the pass and 5 minutes or so later we had a triumvirate of burgers holding court on the table.

They looked so good lit up by the early spring sunshine but not too good not to eat though. I actually pondered if I could get away with ordering a couple more but I was trying not to be too greedy 🙂

SECRET BURGER - BACON CHEESE

I often seem to overlook the classic BACON CHEESE from Secret Burger Club which is a shame as it really is one of their best burgers. Officially listed as - 'American Cheese, Smoked Streaky Bacon, Lettuce, Pickles, Onion, Ketchup, American Mustard' it will set you back £8.50 for the right to take a bite of this baby.

It is everything that a Cheeseburger with Bacon should be, fantastic tasting beef patties smashed with perfection on the grill. Perfectly seasoned and charred lightly to add a little crust and texture.

The mixture of the pickles, onion, ketchup and mustard provide that oh so familiar burger topping taste that takes you back to the best burger you ever had in your mind. It is everything that you can dream of and more and essentially is a memory in a bun every time you take a bite.

If you imagine what a cheeseburger should taste like then that it what you get from the Bacon Cheese at Secret Burger Club. Not just once, no every single time you have one or take a bite it is just like you are still eating the same burger bite after bite. Now that is consistency

SECRET BURGER - WEST COAST

The WEST COAST has become one of my default orders from Secret Burger Club, a classic rip on an in-and-out burger it is really a very simple combination of toppings on that dry aged beef patty - 'American Cheese, Secret sauce, Lettuce, Pickles, and Onion' .

It is also the cheapest of their classic range being priced at a tasty £7. I like that as then when you add an extra patty it feels like you have somehow won the burger ordering game. It is also a burger that does really benefit from that extra meaty patty (when you can get one as a double)

It is the mix of the molten American cheese with the secret sauce and the tangy pickles and onions that really makes this burger. The freshness of the lettuce cuts through some of the richness and alongside the crunch of the onion adds a nice bit of texture to the bite.

SECRET BURGER - THE DUKE

THE DUKE burger is the first burger that I ate from Secret Burger Club and it was love at first bite. Described as being topped with 'Smoked Streaky Bacon, Stilton Cheese, Onion Jam, Lettuce, Tomato, Mayo' it is undoubtedly an outstanding combination of tastes, flavours, and textures.

It is probably the most grown up of their classic burgers as you need a palate to appreciate that sweet and funky combination of the stilton with the onion jam. I love it and I am not always a blue cheese fan, they just tone it down enough to marry the flavours so that they are really quite harmonious on the taste buds.

Looking back at that original burger vista I am hard pressed to say which one is my favourite, I really do love all of them in their own way.

I cherish the DUKE as that was my first ever Secret Burger Bite, I appreciate the WEST COAST as it reminds me of my time in the States, but I admire the BACON CHEESE the most as it is just pure perfection in a bun and probably the best Cheeseburger you can buy this side of the pond

I tracked down Secret Burger Club to the Garage at Chilwell where they will be popping up again over the next few months.

It is best to locate Secret Burger Club using their Instagram stories and posts as that seems to be the most up to date. They can also be found on Facebook and occasionally on Twitter

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Original Reviews on The Nottingham Food Blog

THE DUKE (2017)

BACON CHEESE (2018)

WEST COAST (2018)