cooking. eating. carousing.: grill'd simply grill'd

My first encounter with Grill'd was in Melbourne, since then I kept hoping that they would soon open a branch in Perth. But I never really thought that one would actually open in Perth (just like the same hope I had with Krispy Kreme). Well, one finally did open in Mt Lawley and another one soon followed in Subiaco. So you see, I had no choice but to come up with a reason to go.

A perfect reason came up this week. I recently moved out to a new house and my ever-helpful friends Dylan and Dave (D & D) were there to help. So, what better way to repay the favour than to take them to Grill'd. Doubled as an excuse for catching up with them too.

This particular Grill'd was located in Mount Lawley's busy restaurant hub. If you know Mt Lawley at lunch time, it's really quite busy, with not a lot of parking space. So, come early if you want a parking spot / seats in the restaurant.

The restaurant had this warm vibe from the wooden table, black-tiled pillars, warm down lights and black menu boards. The wall provided endless entertainment with these kitschy-cool framed posters.

I've had their crispy bacon & cheese burger before, which was delicious. But I wanted to try something else. So, this time I tried the simply grill’d burger, which I had with a traditional bun. The bun was subtly sweet and crispy on the outside. Sandwiched between the buns were the yummy grilled lean beef with cheese, salad, tangy relish and creamy herbed mayo.

Simply grill'd (with traditional bun plus cheese) - $9.50 (+$1 for the cheese)

You know when you’re visiting a new place, you would have this "beer-goggle" on and you'd somehow find things better than they are because they're new. Well, I was afraid that this was the case with the Grill’d burger in Melbourne. But this trip to Grill'd Perth disproved my unfounded fear.

D & D had the wild wild west, which were burgers with grilled lean beef, cheese, crispy porky bacon, free range egg, juicy blood red sweet beetroot topped with salad, relish and the same creamy herbed mayo. At first Dave said, “Ah, it’s alright”, maybe because he didn't want to give me the satisfaction since I raved about it too much? But then, three bites in, he reassessed his opinion to “This burger’s great”.

Wild wild west (with panini bun) - $13.50

I think it's a must when you enjoy your burger to make a proper mess of the table with the burger's sauce and juice. Looking at the mess we made of our table after we finished, it looked like we properly enjoyed our burgers.

Their burgers were so yummy that I almost forgot to talk about the chips. I also ordered a regular serving of chips sprinkled with their special herb mix. It won't be complete without a side of creamy herby mayonnaise. I was quite satisfied with the burger, but I think I did well demolishing the chips as well (I admit, D & D helped a tiny little bit). I found that the tangy, creamy, herby mayonnaise did a great job compounding the herby taste of the chips.

Hot chips (regular) - $4.30
Chip dip (herbed mayo) - $0.70

We all agreed the food’s great, but I still can’t shake off my very quick trip to their toilet. They seriously need to work on the upkeep of their facilities. I mean if they can’t keep the toilets clean, I have doubts they can keep the kitchen clean. I expected better.