Perth's best burgers

Best Onion Rings Jus Burgers

The burger Pulled Pork
Sometimes just tasting a burger isn't enough. Your other senses crave attention, too. The pulled pork burger from Jus satisfied several, simultaneously. For starters, it tasted amazing. I couldn't get enough of the tender strings of Linley Valley free-range pork, marinated in a tangy barbecue sauce and tousled in balsamic red onions and fresh slaw. It looked pretty too, served in a glossy brioche bun from Jean Pierre Sanchos, and lightly charred on top. Out peeked a slice of holey cheese straight from a picture book. But it was the feel of it that got me really excited – it was gloriously sloppy, with rich juices that would drip down my chin as I took a bite... and then down my hand, and my elbow. Screw finger-licking good, this was body-slurping good.

On the side Onion rings with hot sriracha and sour cream
The onion rings were super crunchy, but still light. The ratio of crunchy battered shell to onion was perfect – you could take a bite without dragging the whole skin off with your teeth. Instead of traditional sweet chilli with the sour cream, it was served with hot sriracha – a sorta grown-up version, I guess. The sour cream cooled the spicy sting.

743 Newcastle Street, Leederville; 1 Rokeby Road, Subiaco; 74 South Terrace, Fremantle.

Best Patty Burger Bistro

The burger The Beef Big Smoke
The Bistro is famed for its patties, which are made on site using certifi ed Australian Angus beef and simple seasoning. After all, when the beef's that good, there's no need for (cow)bells and whistles. This honest burger was thick and juicy and pleasantly pink in the middle, topped with a slice of melting Emmental cheese, strips of pancetta bacon, garlic mayonnaise, and a sweet, smoky barbecue sauce. Combined with the buttery brioche bun from New Norcia Bakery, this was unusually sweet for a burger, but the fresh mixed lettuce leaves and robust meat fl avour kept it from being cloying.

On the side Chips and barbecue sauce
The chips were crunchy on the outside and tender on the inside, served with
a smoky sauce and studded with coarse fl akes of rock salt. More!

147 Oxford Street, Leederville; Shafto Lane, 884 Hay Street, Perth; 181 Adelaide Terrace, East Perth.

Best For Brekkie Bilby's Chargriller Burgers

The burger King Pin
Others might be more famous or fancy, but Bilby's is arguably Perth's fi rst gourmet burger bar. The unabashedly Aussie establishment (think burgers like the Battler's Wife and Bonza Brekky, plus kangaroo meat options) has been a Claremont fixture since 2001. And for good reason: it always uses fresh, chemical-free, local meats and produce. Oh, and the servings are massive. I almost dislocated my jaw trying to eat the King Pin – a generous airy bun, piled sky-high with a fried egg, beef patty, salty bacon, cheese and salad. With lashings of mayo and relish, it has to be Perth's best hangover brekkie.

On the side Chips with tartare
The chips are served in the kind of generic cardboard containers you'll fi nd at servos, but don't be fooled. These fries were smokin' hot – in every sense of the word. Crispy, salty, and light, served with a totally moreish herb tartare sauce.

70 Davies Road, Claremont.

Best Aioli Flipside

The burger Pear & Parmesan
Who says a burger has to be beef and tomato sauce all the time? This offering from Flipside would convert even the most orthodox burger fan. I loved the soft, chewy white bread roll, and succulent, grilled free-range chicken breast – but it was the extras that made it something special. Thinly sliced pear pieces, stacked high atop sharp Parmesan shavings, added some juice and grit. A generous bed of peppery rocket was a nice antidote to the sweetness of the tomato relish and pear. It was delicate, perfectly balanced and – unlike yours truly after a week of burger tasting – not too heavy.

On the side Chips and aioli
The chips managed to find the perfect balance: crispy on the outside, super soft in the middle. No tuck shop-style old oil here: it's clearly changed with clockwork regularity. Bonus points for being able to see the sea salt flakes
glistening. The aioli was out-of-this-world good, and super garlicky (not so great for a first date). All of Flipside's sauces are made right on premises.

239 Queen Victoria Street, North Fremantle; 294 Cambridge Street, Wembley;
222 William Street, Northbridge; 2/262 Canning Highway, Como.

Best All-Rounder V Burger Bar

The burger Chicken
You know when you pack a picnic with your mates and try to impress them with gourmet offerings? Yeah, this burger tasted like that – but much, much better. Let's start with the Turkish bread bun, which was lightly toasted in oil, so when you pressed the top you could see it glistening. The chicken patty was cooked well – not tough or stringy. Now let's go to the toppings. It was filled with thick-cut bacon – ham-like and not too smoky – and smothered in melted aged Brie and pine nutheavy capsicum pesto. So much yum.

On the side Fried mushrooms and blue cheese sauce
I loved the fried mushrooms – meaty chunks crumbed in flaky panko batter with heaps of pepper. They sorta tasted like salt and pepper squid. I tried the blue cheese dipping sauce with chips and wasn't a fan, but with the mushrooms, I was hooked. Oh, and speaking of chips, they were killer. Crunchy, battered and melt-in-your-already-salivating-mouth.

910 Albany Highway, East Victoria Park; 5 Howtree Place, Floreat.

Best Chips Burgermeister

The burger Beef, bacon and blue cheese
This was the fourteenth burger I tried, and let me tell you, at that point I had serious burger fatigue. So props to Burgermeister for reigniting my meaty passion. Crispy bacon and a big slab of rare beef were thickly coated with a sharp blue cheese sauce – so rich, so good. Super-fresh peppery rocket and crisp tomato balanced out the saltiness. I was expecting such a creamy burger
to end up splattering like flubber, but a doughy and dense bun held it all together. For a messy eater, this was welcome relief.

On the side Chips with curry ketchup
God, these were a sight to behold. Golden and crumbly, and with enough variation in shape to assure they were genuinely hand-cut. I was obsessed with the curry ketchup – no, I wouldn't have paired a curry sauce with chips either, but it just worked. Spicy, acidic and totally addictive. Weirdly enough, it tasted awesome with the traditional aioli, too.

170b Hampden Road, Nedlands.

Best For Kids Missy Moo's

The burger Jack & Jill
Another beef and bacon burger? My arteries didn't know if they could handle it. But the Jack and Jill tasted surprisingly... fresh. Really. Sure, it was another big juicy burger dripping with rich caramelised onions and aioli, but crisp tomato and baby spinach, plus a really generous serving of ripe avocado, meant it tasted half-healthy, too. I loved how the bacon salted up the mellow avo and flaky toasted bun. By the way, Missy Moo's is definitely our pick for the kids – from the nursery rhyme-themed names and baby-sized burgers, to the kids' drawings on the wall. (My fave was by Caitlin in Year 2: "Moo Moo yum. I'm an ailian," says one alien, grinning at a massive burger. "What about me mom?" replies another. "I'm an ailian, too." A drink on top of the burger commands, "Drink me". How very Alice in Wonderland.)

On the side Chips with relish
The chips were flat, crispy and firm, with just the right amount of potato skin. I was obsessed with the tangy relish, a nice change from creamy aioli. It was sweet but had a great vinegary bite that cut through thestarchiness of the chips.

148 Scarborough Beach Road, North Perth; 400 South Terrace, South Fremantle.

Best Veggie Burgers

Though you wouldn't guess it from this article, nine times out of ten I opt for a veggie option at a burger joint. Here are some of the best.

1. Mushroom Burger from Burgers with Attitude
Even my most carnivorous friends have ordered this burger (especially on a Tuesday, when they go for just $10 a pop) because it's really freakin' amazing – not just by veggie burger standards, but by any standards. A juicy Portobello mushroom is topped with lime, avocado, coriander, tomato, corn relish, jalapenos,
Parmesan and mozzarella, for a great Mexican flavour.
5/258-288 Canning Highway, Bicton.

2. Sweet Potato Burger from Burgermeister
Slabs of chargrilled sweet potato are roasted in thyme and served with plenty of goat's cheese. The almost molten cheese has a real bite that balances out the mellowness of the sweet potato. Much creamy. Very taste. Yum.
170b Hampden Road, Nedlands.

3. Halloween Burger from V Burger Bar
Don't worry, there's nothing scary about this veggie burger. The patty is made up of big slabs of pumpkin, deep-fried in breadcrumbs so it's super crispy and light. It's topped with basil pesto and chunks of soft fetta, cushioned in a dense ciabatta bun.
910 Albany Highway, East Victoria

Burger Barometer

How much will a burger set you back in Perth? Well, that very much depends where you decide to frequent. We let you in on some of the best burgers in town, no matter your budget.

$7.50 You can grab the humble hamburger from Alfred's Kitchen for under a tenner – there's nothing fancy about it, but does there always need to be?

$11.50 Add a couple of gold coins for a classic burger from Jus or Grill'd. Of course, if you've been anywhere near Facebook recently, you'd know Grill'd charges us two dollars more than in Melbourne, so you may decide to boycott
them in protest.

$15 Up the ante for a Wagyu cheeseburger from Clarence's. We'll take any opportunity to frequent this cool small bar: that the burger is delicious is a bonus.

$16 The Moon is meant to be a cheap option, so we were a bit surprised to see its cheeseburger fall on the wrong side of $15. No matter, it's big and tasty and – better yet – served till the wee hours.

$17 It seems kind of exxy, yes. But when you consider this Double Double Small Bar burger comes with chipotle mayo and a generous serve of Gruyere, it feels like a bargain. And crunchy chips included, too? That's practically an investment!

$21 Eeep, you'll need more than a red bill to score this beef burger at Bib and Tucker, served on a brioche bun with Gruyere and pickles. But that beachside view? Priceless.

$24 Oh hey there, high roller. Fancy types will adore this full-blood Wagyu burger from Rockpool Bar, served with bacon, Zuni pickle and Gruyere (anyone noticing a theme here?). Hell, who wouldn't adore this?