Burger kings: Faces behind Qld’s gourmet hamburger boom
We live in the era of craft breweries and now, gourmet burger chains. We take a look at the people driving the boom in fancy salads and meat on a bun.
Southeast
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There was a time when burgers were considered a little bit fancy if there was a fried egg or a barbecued pineapple ring thrown in the mix.
When Parrots gourmet burger restaurant opened in Elizabeth St in the CBD three decades ago, it proved to be ahead of its time.
After a long hiatus, there are now several dozen such stand-alone restaurants including one at Paddington which serves bloody Marys with its cheeseburgers.
And in the past decade franchises have flourished, with the latest a development application lodged late last month for a new Slim’s outlet at Garden City shopping centre.
Even Hollywood star Mark Wahlberg is said to be opening one of his burger joints Downunder, at a site in Indooroopilly.
We take a look at just some of the people driving our upmarket burger boom.
SLIM’S QUALITY BURGERS
Founded by the people who started up Betty’s Burgers, they have continued a rollout of the drive-in retro burger concept harking back to the ’50s.
A new development application was lodged last month at Garden City shopping centre in Upper Mt Gravatt.
A development application was lodged in September last year for a drive-in restaurant at Chermside as well.
Slim’s Quality Burgers director, American-born businessman Nik Rollison, said the concept was a more “retro version” of Betty’s Burgers & Concrete Co, which he and his partners David Hales and Michael Tripp opened in 2014 at Noosa.
Mr Rollison said there will be different store formats but most of Slim’s Quality Burger’s Queensland stores will have dine-in, take away, drive-through and they have also revived the old drive-in concept.
Mr Rollison, 43, has two decades in hospitality under his belt.
He has opened more than 50 restaurants, 20 bars and 10 nightclubs with the likes of David Chang, Jean Georges Vogerichten and the TAO group, not to mention Betty’s Burgers.
GETTA BURGER
Founded and owned by Brent and Amy Poulter, they literally started with nothing but by 2019 had opened their 14th store, in Springfield Lakes, with more than 200 employees.
“I mean we did our first day of trading in a van and we lost heaps of money, it was raining, we both wondered ‘what have we done?’,” Mr Poulter said.
But the van took off and gave birth to the first Getta Burger restaurant in Carina in 2014.
“It started back in 2008 when we backpacked overseas,” Mr Poulter said.
“In the USA we went from one side to the other.
“We basically lived on a diet of barbecue and burgers for two months.
“We refined our barbecue sauces, the smoking of the meat and the recipe for our patties.
“We are not a franchise and will not be because we want to know that the stores are all working to the standard we expect.’’
BURGER URGE
After opening with a single store in New Farm in 2007, a decade later Burger Urge had 20 stores in Queensland and at the time planned to open another 12 across Australia.
It’s trademark cheeky burger names, such as the Pauline Hanson-inspired Please Explain, landed it in hot water with the parent company of the Sizzler restaurant chain which issued a cease-and-desist order over the Sizzler burger.
Co-founder Sean Carthew last month put his former franchising company into liquidation, owing close to $1 million, after a heated court dispute with pizza king Tom Potter.
Bill Karageozis, of McLeod & Partners, was appointed liquidator of ACN 159 816 832, formerly known as Burger Urge Franchising.
The Burger Urge chain is continuing to operate and the company in liquidation is not a trading entity.
Mr Carthew and his brother Colby grew up emulating their entrepreneurial parents and always had a project on the go together.
The duo made doorstoppers, yoyos and juggling balls, selling them at local markets while still at school.
After completing several residential property projects together, they opened the first Burger Urge aged in their 20s.
BETTY’S BURGERS
Initially a beloved Noosa institution, it shares the name of the iconic Betty’s Beach Burgers, a store previously run by late local Noosa legend Beatrice “Betty” Wallace.
Mr Hales said it was named after his grandmother Betty.
To date, it has 39 stores across the country, with the slick chain of 1950s-themed diners enjoying a meteoric rise since launching in Queensland seven years ago.
Its menu has inspired a cult-like following among fast-food junkies, with Betty’s arrival in a new suburb, town, or city usually considered as a news item.
Such is Betty’s success that it has become the major money spinner for parent company Retail Zoo – with burgers and fries far outstripping the sales contribution from its Boost Juice.
In 2017 it was sold to Shark Tank star Janine Allis’ Melbourne-based Retail Zoo company, which is funded by Bain Capital.
GRILL’D
THE two former best friends who turned Grill’d from a small burger shop into a $300 million-plus empire wound up in court in 2016 fighting each other over ownership of the company.
Simon Crowe and Geoff Bainbridge had previously been friends for 17 years.
The franchise has had its fair share of negative headlines, but also plenty of good ones.
It was the first restaurant chain to stop using plastic straws and one of the first to sell plant-based patties, and also has won accolades for its support of local charities.
The group now has more than 150 restaurants and employs about 4500 people.
It was named in the top 10 brands in Australia in the 2021 Forces of Good report.
Mr Crowe said the chain started with his frustration at a lack of “decent burgers” in Australia.
He also learned from the best in the burger world, Americans, while working for Fosters in Milwaukee.
BROKEN HEARTS BURGER CLUB
Late last year founder Jay Gordon added Ashgrove to his list of outlets at Morningside, Mango Hill and Victoria Point.
He spent the first years of the pandemic perfecting the ultimate LA-inspired, hand-smashed patty burgers, using his Instagram page Peer Reviewed Burgers to build a fan base.
Mr Godron also enlisted taste testers and trialled several burger pop-ups before opening his first actual restaurant, in Morningside.
BROOKLYN DEPOT
Owner Danny Sibillo, who rescued Brooklyn Depot South Bank from the brink of insolvency and later launched Brooklyn Depot Express venues at Fortitude Valley and Hamilton, opened another outlet at Stones Corner in February 2021.
But the Hamilton store was closed in November that year due to staffing shortages and other issues.
As well as burgers, Brooklyn Depot sells American-style delights such as Philly-style hot dogs, Hershey’s chocolate shakes, signature slaw and caramel pecan brownies.
WING FIX/SUE’S BURGERS
Brisbane brothers Peter and Ross Jacobi started operating from a food truck before opening their first Wing Fix at Morningside in 2018.
A larger 70-seater venue debuted in Coorparoo the next year.
They added Sue’s Burgers and Shakes at Westfield Carindale in November last year as well.
Sue’s features ‘80s-inspired modern street art, funky neon lights and retro furniture including Malibu-style diner booth seats.
ZE PICKLE
Former diesel fitter Sean Haufe caught the Ze Pickle bug after spending most of his days off at the burger chain’s original outlet at Burleigh Heads.
He now runs outlets at Hawthorne, Camp Hill, Fortitude Valley and Brisbane Airport’s Domestic Terminal.
Ze Pickle has made their name with epic burgers including ingredients such as pecan wood smoked brisket, house made mac n’ cheese, maple smoked bacon and corn chips.
Some other top notch burger restaurants
Miss Kay’s, Mitchelton, Springwood, Birkdale
Fritzenberger, Petrie Terrace
Benz On Miller, Murarrie
Ben’s Burgers, Valley
Mac From Way Back, Woolloongabba
Broken Hearts Burger Club, Bulimba, North Lakes, Ashgrove
Wing Fix, Morningside, Coorparoo
Plan B Works, Petrie Terrace
Red Hook, CBD
Just Poppy’s, Jindalee
Hashtag Burger And Waffles, Fortitude Valley and West End
Milky Lane, Newstead
GrassfedVegan, South Brisbane
Lucky Egg, Valley
Charboys, Bulimba
Remy’s, Paddington
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