In the eight years I've been writing about food, London's (and subsequently the rest of the country's) obsession with burgers has been steadily building. I've written countless articles on the comings and goings of the patty power players. I've had endless discussions with food minded friends about the merits of Patty & Bun's buns. And I've gone from constantly yearning to fill my face with a meat sandwich to shuddering at the thought of another slider.
So when I heard that those Icelandic burger kids, Tommi's Burger were back at Primrose Hill's prettiest pub, The Princess of Wales for their one-night-only monthly pop up did I roll my eyes? DID I HECK. I text a friend to see if they wanted to join me for some bare burger gorging.
Love it or loathe the trend that, like Bruce Forsyth, refuses to die - no one can deny that its ketchup print on the London food scene has been a positive one. I don't know what you did when you were shit faced in Central London before the Meat Markets/ Shake Shacks et al were there, but you would have found me slumped at the counter of the Maccy D's on Oxford Street slurring for a Big Mac (and subsequently feeling terrible for two days). The fact that you can pretty much get a top class burger made from happy cows at any time of the day or night should make us, well, happy.
If the over saturation of saturated fat sandwiches means that brilliant boozers like The Princess of Wales can attract even more fans by hosting Tommi's once a month, then it can be nothing but a g' thang baby. Especially as this time round they are unveiling their Ultimate Burger (a suped up version of their 'New Yorker' burger with three patties topped with horseradish mustard, Monterey jack, sweet pickles and onions). Those that finish the beast of a burger within five minutes and get it totally free, plus a complimentary cocktail (a challenge I'm clearly going to have to accept).
Which will probably mean by the 21st I'll have put myself off burgers temporarily once again. But at least I'll go down fighting.
Tommi's Burger Joint will be popping up at The Princess of Wales from 5-10.30pm on Thursday 20th February.