Burgers in Berlin: #2 Shiso Burger

SHISO BURGER

Located on Auguststrasse 29C, Shisho Burger is an Asian Fusion burger restaurant that has become one of our regular lunch places. Directions here:

Photo by Anne S. / Care of yelp.de

According to the wikipedia, Shiso is the leaf of a Japanese mint plant and here they do combine many asian herbs with the traditional burger. The lemon-chili burger takes the asian fusion one step further by adding a fully flavoured chili sauce to the mix. 

Chili-lemon burger at Shiso (c) MJT

If you are after a full palette of tastes and a satisfying lunch or dinner without over-eating, then I definitely recommend a trip to Shiso Burger. The Angus Beef that is used for the boulette/patties is obviously very high quality, as it is succulent without dripping of fat. Since it is not always easy or cheap to find good quality beef in Berlin, this is a very satisfying yet reasonably priced solution. What is great about this place however, is that vegetarians are equally catered for, and there are multiple burger options, including the "Toad Burger" - Portabello mushroom (essentially a mushroom steak!), "Shiso Burger" - made like a Tuna patty, a "Salmon" and a "Veggie" Burger. 

"Toad Burger" / Portabello Mushroom at Shiso (c) MJT

Shiso Burger have a Mittagsmenu Monday through to Saturday, which for 3€ on top of the normal price of the burger, gives you a drink and house fries. Unfortunately if you want any other variation of the fries it will cost an extra 1,50€ - so in the end the Mittagsmenu "deal" is pretty slack actually. So we often simply share one serving of the sweet potato fries, which have more flavour than the regular house fries. 

Sweet potato fries at Shiso Burger (c) MJT

A unique touch to the already asian fusion burger, is the fact that everything is individually served in bamboo steamers. While aesthetically interesting, we have also noticed how efficient this is at clearing the tables afterwards.

Meal at Shiso Burger (c) MJT

While there is still a fresh and new vibe about this eatery, they already celebrated their first year anniversary and it seems more and more people are aware of how delicious the burgers are, as it is always busy. Conveniently it does not take long to enjoy your meal (a great pit stop or lunch on the go), though the service can fluctuate between being attentive and completely ignored or forgotten about entirely. (Sometimes having to beg to pay...) Oh, and make sure you have cash to pay with (NO CARDS)

Menu Shiso Burger

A little more information can be found at their website: www.shisoburger.de

Itadakimasu / Guten Appetit (c) MJT

Burgers in Berlin: #1 District Môt

District Môt

Saigon Street Food

(C) MJT

Near the intersection of Rosenthaler Platz and on the corner of Mulackstrasse is a new(ish) vietnamese restaurant. Directions here:

We tried their Mittagsmenü when they first opened approximately a year and a half ago, and were intrigued but not overly impressed. 

Since then they have modified their menu, and their Bao Burger is an award winning creating in Berlin. 

  

(C) MJT

Basically if one is familiar with the dough of chinese buns (eg BBQ Pork Buns), this is the bread of the burger - so the texture and density is quite different to that of a regular burger. 

The ingredients are strong in flavour, enhanced particularly by the coriander and chili. 

Care of www.districtmot.com

The effort that has gone into making this Berlin corner restaurant resemble a busy Saigon street is impressive, if not a little too crowded - but that is probably part of the theme. 

While I would recommend trying the Bao Burger, I have to confess that I do find that the service is extremely poor - both in attendance and manner. Given the number of Vietnamese restaurants in Berlin, in order to compete, the service does need to improve.

More information regarding the regular menu can be found on their website: www.districtmot.com  however this does not have the Burger information, as it is usually a special item.

Berlin getaway series: #1.3 SZCZECIN - Buddha Thai & Fusion

EATING OUT IN SZCZECIN - BUDDHA THAI & FUSION

Thanks to the advice on TripAdvisor we discovered a very satisfying lunch and dinner place named "Buddah Thai & Fusion". As it transpired during our stay in Szczecin, this was one of three new asian restaurants under one umbrella company. They are clearly an  entrepeneurial company, with advertisements in all the tourist maps, bus shelters and all main traffic areas in the city. 

Care of TripAdvisor

 

"Buddha Thai & Fusion" is situated in the Stare Miasto - meaning Old City, and the square that the restaurant looks out onto is one of the most beautiful and well maintained areas of the city. It is conveniently the most densely restaurant populated area, so it is worth visiting regardless if looking for somewhere to eat. Directions here.

Stare Miasto from Buddha Thai (C) MJT

When we finally decided to try this Thai restaurant - not really expecting to find great asian food in Szczecin, we were wonderfully surprised an impressed. 

For lunch I ordered the small crispy duck dish, and E a mango and prawn salad. Now I love a good duck dish, but this was AMAZING. So fresh and tender in the meat but perfectly crisped on the outside. However I do believe the chili count was wrong, as it was only supposed to be one chili heat, as was E's - yet mine was at least 5 times hotter than the prawn/mango salad. Still I managed to get through and probably gave my immune system a boost. 

Stare miasto (C) MJT

Very happy with Crispy Duck Dish (C) MJT

We finished up by sharing a Thai Ice-Cream Sunday, helping put out the fire on my tongue and immediately agreed to come back for a dinner another night.

Ice-cream Sunday (C) MJT

Blue skies and sunny days in Szczecin (C) MJT

When we returned for dinner the following night we decided to sit indoors and admire the effort that had gone into the interior  decoration, atmosphere and attention to detail.

Dinner time at Buddha Thai (C) MJT

Happy dinner time (C) MJT

Over dinner we took advantage of the cocktails (approximately €4 each) and tried a few more absolutely delicious dishes. During both our visits to "Buddha Thai & Fusion" our waiters were friendly and attentive without being pushy or hurrying us on, and spoke english exceptionally well. While the price is on the higher side compared to competition in Poznan the conversion to euros is not excessive and well worth it for the service and quality.

Dinner time (C) MJT

Yummy Dishes at Buddha Thai & Fusion (C) MJT

Buddha Thai & Fusion was definitely one of the best finds for food in Szczecin, and further information can be found at their website: www.buddharestaurant.pl

Try the duck!

MJT