Why Chunky’s Burger Company is a must-visitfor burger lovers

Chunky’s Burger Company

Where: Shop 3, 35 Newport Ave, Glen Ashley

Open: Daily 11am to 8pm, Fridays and Saturdays 8.30pm

Call: 031 001 5148

I have never been big on burgers - unless that is I make them myself. And I do make them occasionally, mainly for big family braais. Then an array of cheeses, toppings, pickles, vegetables and sauces get laid out on the table and the nieces and their boyfriends can pile as much junk as they like on their burgers. There have been a few real monstrosities.

Personally I’m of the less is more kind of school. A good burger needs a good juicy, tasty patty that should be topped with decent cheese - like a mature cheddar or even a mature gouda - and should sit on a good tomato relish. If possible it should have a mild chilli tang. But a slice of ripe tomato is also great, and one can liven it up with a slice of red onion or a few dill gherkins.

I particularly don’t like lettuce leaves on my burger. The heat from the burger just makes lettuce go all wilted and slushy. I’m convinced most people put lettuce in a burger simply to prevent the bottom of the bun disintegrating.

The main reason I generally avoid eating burgers at restaurants is that they’re too big, and there’s too much bread. Or they’re so overstuffed that the whole thing falls apart into a big mess.

But the Glass Guy is a fan and wanted to try out a small burger joint he had spotted in Glenashley.

Chunky’s is a fun spot, the walls painted cartoon style, a simple counter at the back where you can place your order and a few tables to sit at inside. There’s more outside but it was raining. And even on a quietish Tuesday night there were plenty of people popping in to pick up takeaways.

The choice is simple - a selection of burgers, either single or double, chips either plain or loaded, some tacos options and ribs by various weights. There’s a small selection of beers and wine otherwise milkshakes are a thing here - we would keep those for dessert.

I really enjoyed my cheese and bacon burger (R105). The patty was juicy and it had plenty of bacon - the saucing was also good, and yes it wasn’t enormous. The Glass Guy too relished his chilli cheese burger and this was one that had a proper chilli kick.

We then shared 400g of ribs (R220), which were perfectly sticky and succulently soft. These meaty creatures are some of the better ribs I’ve had in Durban. The ribs came with good crisp chips that had clearly had their second frying and a little pot of mayonnaise to dip them in. 

So many burger joints do what I call South African chips. They’re only just cooked, anemic and basically “slap”. It’s like the oil wasn’t hot enough and they couldn’t be bothered to cook them properly. Or they're cooking so many chips they don't have time to do them properly. It’s one of the other reasons I tend to avoid burgers.

We were stuffed. But the Glass Guy had to try the shakes.

It was a carrot cake milkshake for him and salted caramel for me (both R85). We were both well satisfied. Rich, delicious and flavourful.

Food: 4

Service: 3 ½  I can’t really give a self service operation more, but the staff were super friendly

Ambience: 3 ½  

The Bill: R650