• Howick and Pakuranga Times

A BETTER BURGER: Here’s the beef! Times photos Jon Rawlinson.

Gourmet burgers have become big business as humble take-away joints and up-market eateries alike seek to tempt the palates of 21st Century diners.

No longer consigned to the junk-food diet, it seems as though hanging the word ‘gourmet’ on a burger, can metamorphose meagre beef-in-a-bun creations into a perceived gastronomic wonder, complete with a double-digit price tag.

I’m pleased to say this is not the case... at the Taste!  

A humble outdoor eating establishment, more akin to a chippie van than a fine-dining establishment, Whitianga’s Taste Cafe lets its food do the talking with gourmet-style burgers at fair prices.

For a light lunch we ordered a cheese burger ($8.50) and a satay chicken burger with camembert ($14).

The succulent beef patty with fresh salad, a generous serving of cheese and just the right quantities of mayonnaise and tomato sauce literally made this cheese burger one to write home about.

I would like to venture an opinion on the chicken burger, however there was no way my dining companion was going to part with even the slightest morsel, such was her satisfaction!

Although the chicken burger included fries, the cheese burger did not, so we treated ourselves to a large side of curly fries ($10 – also available at $6 for small) with aioli dip.

These fries offered just the right balance of salt and sour and curled my toes with delight!

While the prices are certainly very reasonable, as with many other eateries, a 15% surcharge was in effect.

I understand this public holiday surcharge is used to cover increased staff cost, however, surely it could be incorporated into standard pricing.

Although some restaurants may not enjoy increased patronage on public holidays, vacation destinations, such as the Coromandel, would certainly benefit and, I’m sure, would not be driven to ruin by a mere, yet noticeable 15%.

I have stopped by Taste Cafe a number of times over the years, always drawn back by the burgers. However this eatery, located in Albert Street, Whitianga, also provides a range of other cafe-style meals.

Ultimately we’re only talking hamburgers and fries here, but if the art of good food is found more so in the precision of preparation than the nature of the fare, Taste Cafe is actually a master of the culinary arts.