Hailing from a city consumed by gourmet burger chains, I’ve grown accustomed to craving pimped-up patties. In this series, I hit the streets of Phnom Penh to sniff out the very best burgers on offer.
Tattie Patty
With potato, spinach, mushroom patty, lettuce, tomato, tatziki sauce $4.95. Including fries and a side salad.
Herby Beanie
With red bean, coriander, mint + basil patty, caramelised onions, lettuce, tomatos, mayo $4.95. Including fries and a side salad.
The Burger Joint
Roots N Burgers sits on Street 454 in the Toul Tom Poung area of the city. I like to think of TTP as the gentrified ‘Soho’ of Phnom Penh, with a variety of sleek hipster coffee shops and bars sporadically appearing in the area. RnB fits in with a sleek decor, and an exciting new area of the venue dedicated to crafting their own delicious Gins.
The Burger
This week, the choice was just too difficult. I’ve been due another veggie-friendly review, and the Tattie Patty and Herby Beanie were equally enticing. So I ordered both.
It seemed obvious to me that thought and meticulous planning had gone into both creations, with the RnB team tweaking flavour combinations to offer up a menu to excite everyone.
It was nice to see that Vegetarians wouldn’t just be stuck with one simple veggie patty, and alongside these two options there was even a third option boasting grilled organic veg, ginger gel, cucumber pickle and celery-yam mayo.
On the Side
A fresh, light salad comes with each burger. A very welcome addition, as Burgers notoriously aren’t associated with healthiness. The portion of fries come chunky and have a nice crispy coating to them, accompanied by tomato ketchup.
First Impressions
Both burgers arrived at the same time, looking equally tantalising. I hoped my taste buds would declare a clear winner between the two, but I have to congratulate Roots N Burgers on two excellent choices.
The Tattie Patty packed a nice filling punch with the potato, spinach and mushroom patty offering salvation from hunger and a lasting satisfaction. Whilst I preferred the tastes of the Herby Beanie’s red bean, coriander, mind and basil patty, I still need to compliment the Tatziki sauce of the Tattie Patty – making it difficult to decide which I’d get on a return visit if pushed to make the decision.
The Verdict
Being decisive, I’m refusing to rate these burgers the same score. I’d give the Tattie Patty 7/10 and champion the Herby Beanie at 7.5/10 – The Herby Beanie is now my favourite veggie burger in the city, and if I wasn’t such a fan of beef burgers we’d likely be looking at an ever higher rating! I’d recommend either to all, skip beef and see how you feel.