Kua 'Aina, Avocado and Bacon Hamburger: 7/10

Originating in Hawaii's North Shore in 1975, this burger and sandwich joint promotes it's hot lava rock grills, a cooking method which produces a flavourful, clean meat. If there was a 'healthy' end of the burger scale, this would be it. The real differentiator however, is the strong retro branding, a summery, tropical surfer vibe which runs throughout the shack-themed menu and décor. Oh, and it's Obama's favourite restaurant when he's back in his native Hawaii - may or may not appeal! 

Good enough for the President

• Plumping for the larger half-pound patty vs 1/3lb cooked medium-rare topped with avocado and bacon, all Kua 'Aina burgers come with tomato, lettuce, grilled onion, mayo on a white-seeded burger bun: 

And a random carrot

• The hyped-up lava-grilled patty is a 100% premium cut grass-fed West Country beef burger. You can taste the quality, but it lacks the depth of flavour that you'd get from multi-day aged-beef (which features in several previous reviews - maybe Burgerite is just spoiled now!!). Moreover, the low-fat, low-smoke result that the lava-grill is known for certainly makes for a healthier burger, but feels somewhat self-defeating. After all, what is a burger without grease and charring?! 

• Good news on the sides, Kua 'Aina serve excellent sweet potato fries! Slim-cut, deliciously caramelised in flavour with the optimal crisp bite with a slight inner chew, these were delectably moreish.

• Don't go to Kua 'Aina for an indulgent burger treat; you will feel cheated. But check it out for its exotic island ambience, because you're curious about Obama's food tastes, or you're a burger fiend on a diet!!

Bleecker St, Double Cheeseburger: 8.5/10

• Inspired by a NY joint, Bleecker St burgers are the epitomy of simplicity done to a high, US-style standard. The focus is truly just meat, bun, sauce, and cheese.

The infamous black burger truck

• Made from rare-breed British beef, this meat is dry-aged for a staggering FORTY-FIFTY days! Closing in on Hawksmoor steak quality, this is effectively luxury street food, if a touch on the plain side.

• The patty is definitely the star of this show - everyone should try a Bleecker St at least once, but it needed to be jazzier to entice me back for a second!

MEATmarket, Dead Hippie: 9.5/10

• This famed double-patty delight truly lives up to its hype, a universal crowd-pleasing dirty burger.
• Signature Dead Hippie sauce is amazing, with little mustard seeds.
• Minced onion is inspired for texture and a complementary enhancer to the mustard-fried beef.

The Fried Pickle with blue cheese dip side is quirky, but not a substitute for chips

Bukowski Charcoal Grill, The Fat Gringo: 8.75/10

• Another American inspired home-grown joint, Bukowski offer chunky, tongue-in-cheek, adventurous grilled burgers, perfect for a hefty blow out comfort meal.

• Their version of a bacon cheeseburger, the Fat Gringo, is composed of a weighty grilled patty, monterey jack cheese, candied bacon, tingly jalapeño mustard, red onions, tomato and lettuce, whilst batons of smoked pickled gerkins are skewered through a glazed bun.

• Hearty and bold in the look and feel, but this eat delivers on quantity rather than quality - a fun and filling experience, but it won't push your burger boundaries.

• What will surprise and delight, however, are the fat hunks of a chip, triple-cooked in beef dripping to epic effect!

MEATliquor, Dead Hippie: 9/10

• Whilst this double-patty burger does live up to the hype, I found the Dead Hippie at MEATliquor lacked the full punch compared to the one at MEATmarket - probably a one-off, but to explain why I gave lower marks for technically the same burger!

• The signature Dead Hippie sauce is still amazing, with little mustard seeds.

• Whilst the minced onion is still inspired, providing texture and a complementary enhancer to the mustard-fried beef.

Side of Dead Hippie fries and a Philly Cheese Steak (blaming MEATliquor's OTT dungeon-style lighting for abysmal photo quality)