In early twenty twenty I started writing a blog which sought to find Lesothos best burger. Reason being I am a forever fan of hamburgers. They are my absolute best. Then Covid came with its hard lockdowns and general anti good times vibe. We stopped going out and so I could no longer write my reviews. I want to revive that series, because I feel like restaurants especially those that make good burgers deserve a platform to reach a wider audience. Many asked why I chose hamburgers and not food that’s more indigenous, and my response is simple. I wanted to showcase Lesotho as part of a global market with the ability to compete with anybody even in a space like food and beverage. I’ve actually just taken a decision to revive the series with this column being the restart.
I want to start by reviewing all the burgers that I have enjoyed in the past. I have made no bones about declaring my favourite burger as that of Cater City. It was the first burger I reviewed and set a remarkably high standard. My review read like this: The food arrived in due time. Home made bun, patty, gherkin, tomato, cheese and a sauce of sorts… Woah, quite pleasing on the eye. I took a man sized bite in to it. Yuup! “That’s a good burger!” I told my girlfriend (now my wife), she nodded as she took a much smaller, more cultured bite of her burger. I had added some Tabasco sauce to mine, but honestly the burger would’ve been just fine without. For about twelve minutes I was silent as I savoured every morsel of my burger. Between bites, I gulped away at my ice cold Corona beer. A sort of sensory overload ensued. Beautiful, I thought to myself. And for once, I didn’t mean the looker sat across from me. I have had that burger three or four times since and it has been every bit as delightful on subsequent occasions.
The next one I reviewed was from Cuban Linx, and while not as enjoyable as the first one, I was suitably content afterwards and the review read as follows:
I’ve come with a considerable hunger, and am ready to wash this burger down with my favourite Corona… Looking at the menu, this particular burger promises a lot.
One change from the previous review is that I’m writing this in the present tense. I’m reviewing this burger as I enjoy it… And it’s good. But it isn’t “Oh Gotts! Is like a tremm!” Good. Toasted bun, crunchy gherkin (mmm) fresh lettuce and tomato, melted cheese, feta cheese, a battered onion ring all SO good but the patty… The patty let’s the whole effort down because it doesn’t hit the spot. It’s missing that- French for- I don’t know what… I think I felt that patty wasn’t A-Grade beef. While this was not as delightful as the first one, I was still suitably content.
By the third review I had hit my straps and was in to it. I was enjoying burgers, and telling anyone who would listen about them, the third and final review read as follows: The Lehaha grill offers three different burgers. A beef burger, a chicken burger and a vegetarian burger (unbeknownst to us). We decided we would order all three burgers and share between the three of us. A solid plan I thought, but Beef wasn’t sold. He didn’t want his dining experience spoiled by something below par. So, Smokes and I ordered two different things, the Maluti mountain Beef, and the holy cow burgers respectively. Beef ordered the same as me. The Maluti mountain Beef boasts a patty, cheese, bacon avocado (urgh!) Lettuce tomato and a sweet chilli sauce. While the Holy cow is made up of Halloumi cheese, butternut, mushroom, avocado (sies) and onion. The third burger option is chicken and has a name that involves chicken. All three names seemed to imply the contents of the burger. Imagine our surprise when the holy cow had no cow?! Oh, so holy cow, as in sacred cow?! Wow! Okay… It was good but probably on par with that of Cuban Linx.
Had covid not landed on our shores with the tyranny of hard lockdown I would reviewed Dougie’s jawbreaker which is legendary, Uncle T’s burger which he promises will trump them all as well as NADA’s offering and a very very good burger I enjoyed at The Good Times café. These will all have priority in the second season of the series. I’m looking forward to combining two things I love which is burgers and writing. The Corona beer that goes with said burgers is always a treat too.
The burgers will be good, but what is more important is to remind ourselves that we are every bit as good and as skilled as the next country or the next chef. We should never belittle ourselves or our achievements and we should always be players in the global economy.
