The Times
After his four-week ‘fine-dining’ odyssey and a couple of days discussing whether or not food-writing was literature (“abso-bloody-lutely not”) at Cheltenham Literary Festival, Tim Hayward was determined to get real at the latest venue from the Beefy Boys, four Hereford lads so obsessed with backyard grilling that they entered BBQ competitions in the US – and won.
“Riffing like meat-jazz”, Tim ordered the “OG Boy, Oklahoma style, medium rare, with bacon, double up”, plus bacon and cheese fries, chilli wings and a local craft beer. It was everything he had hoped it would be, perhaps more: “the best burger I can remember eating since I was about 16.”
As such, it was a meaningful experience for Tim – remember, he regarded his ‘fine-dining’ trek as therapy. For it was eating American-style burgers at places like Peppermint Park, the Hard Rock, Joe Allen’s and Ed’s Easy Diner on teenage trips to the Big Smoke that turned Tim on to the delights of hospitality –- “an affair that’s lasted ever since and only gets deeper with the passing years.”
Tim Hayward - 2024-10-27Daily Mail
Just back from the Big Apple, where he double-checked his “triumvirate of New York burger brilliance” (Hamburger America, JG Melon and Corner Bistro, fyi), Tom Parker Bowles headed to the third branch from a cult West Country operation he reckons is “up there with New York”.
“These boys know a proper burger starts and ends with the quality of the meat. Here it’s impeccable”, he said. You can choose your burgers ‘thick’, ‘smashed’, ‘Oklahoma’ or ‘Cali’ style, topped with anything from pastrami and peanut butter to “ghost chilli pepper sauce that would make Satan sweat”, or stick to a classic ‘OG Boy’, a “lusciously messy five-napkin beauty, the juice cascading down my arms”.
For the full “immersive” experience, the ‘Chilli Cheese Boy’ sits in a puddle of chilli, topped with nacho cheese sauce. “Bliss. But forget napkins. After this, you’ll need a bath.”
Tom Parker-Bowles - 2024-12-01
