Pub Life Kitchen, Ultimo

Sydney has an aBUNdance of excellent burger places. Areas like the CBD, Potts Point, Newtown, Coogee, Surry Hills and even the Northwest suburb of Glenhaven have been serving us up with flippin' amazing burgers. Now, Ultimo has joined the line-up with the Pub Life Kitchen.

Some of you may remember them from their old spot on Wentworth Avenue, Surry Hills. After a few pop-ups in the last year, they have recently made The Lord Wolseley Hotel in Ultimo their new home. Pub Life Kitchen's new space has a mixture of vintage and diner look.  I've read about their delicious creations through a few blogs back in 2012 and have been following Pub Life's footsteps ever since. They serve pub staples like chips with gravy, schnitzels, steak & chips and burgers (or BRGRS as they call them). Some items are kept classic and others are served with a twist. I finally got to try what the Pub Life has to offer, thanks to the food loving people that I got to dine with. We were all united by a common goal: to eat ALL the burgers!

Fries with bone marrow gravy

We started with some fries with bone marrow gravy ($8). The fries were perfectly crisped and seasoned. The bone marrow gravy was next level in taste! The bone marrow made the gravy extra buttery and sweet.

Cheesey polenta chips with jalapeno mayo

The cheesey polenta chips with jalapeno mayo ($8) was logs of happiness with fluffiness. It was lightly crisped on the outside while being fluffy inside almost like a firm scrambled egg texture with cheesy flavour.

Sticky hot wangs

The sticky hot wangs ($9) are deep fried chicken wings that are quite similar to buffalo wings. The sticky hot wangs though had less heat and more sweetness. The batter coating was crunchy and the rippley texture was a nice contrast to the sauce. I also loved the notes of cayenne pepper in the sticky hot sauce.

Grilled corn cub with salty malt vinaigrette

The grilled corn cob with salty lime malt vinaigrette ($6) was a smokin' top snack. It really did have a smoky flavour that may have been the result of the grilling and the salty lime malt vinaigrette.

The bird

The Bird burger ($18) had dorito fried chicken, jack cheese, slaw and mayo in a soft sweet bun. The chicken was juicy and the golden batter coating had a nice crunch. The slaw and mayo went well with the chicken in terms or texture and flavours.

The O.G. burger

The O.G. ($18) burger is the Original Gangsta indeed! It had medium rare beef patty, jack cheese, salad, onion jam, roast garlic and lime aioli in a soft sweet bun. Though the sweetness of the onion jam can be the dominant flavour at times, the whole burger was still overall badass!

Cheeseburger

But it was the cheeseburger ($17) that swooned me. It was classic and simply perfect! It had housemade beef patty, double jack cheese, pickles, onion, tomato sauce and mustard.  The tasty patty was cooked medium rare and seasoned well. There's just something magical from the simple mixture of tomato sauce the zingy mustard. The sweet and sour flavours from the pickles and red onions balances out the burger.

Snickers sundae: Snickers gelato, dulce de leche, smashed snickers, peanuts and pork crackles

Team Pub Life Kitchen knows how to bring the best out of pub and diner staples. They can keep it beautifully simple or take a classic to the next level. I will definitely be back for more of that Pub Life Kitchen flava.

Pub Life Kitchen

The Lord Wolseley Hotel

265 Bulwara Road

Ultimo NSW

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Pub-Life-Kitchen/158337977552782

Trading Hours

Tuesday to Saturday: Lunch 12-3pm, Dinner 6-10pm

Sunday 12-5pm

Brooklyn Social, Surry Hills

The initials you see on that burger bun is not what you think it means. It doesn't mean "Bull Shark" I swear! hahaha. It's the initials of a newly opened bar and dining joint called Brooklyn Social. The Surry Hills dining scene just got a lot tastier with the addition of this establishment.

Brooklyn Social is a bar restaurant influenced by American diners with a rock and roll theme. Some remnants of the old Mexico restaurant are still around. But the transformation that Brooklyn Social made has utilised the space well. It gave the place better lighting and some industrial hipster vibe. There's a huge gin and whiskey based cocktail list and a menu full of milk bar/American diner classics. After seeing the photos of food taken by Alana of Alana Bread a few days ago, I knew in that instant that I needed to visit this place. A lunch with JB Jose and The Heart of Food paved way to this visit.

Uptown sour cocktail

I tried one of their cocktails, which was the uptown sour ($17). It had monkey shoulder whiskey shaken with Lairds applejack, lemon juice and cinnamon syrup served over a cider block. If you like a citrusy cocktail that does not hold back on whiskey, then this baby is for you!

Southern fried chicken

The Southern fried chicken ($10) is one classic one shouldn't miss when ordering. The rippled batter was full of glorious crunch and it also had that sweet-ish Southern spice blend with strong notes of cayenne pepper, garlic and onion. It also came with a delicious truffle aioli dip.

Onion rings

The onion rings ($6) had a perfect light crisped batter and soft sweet onion on the inside. It was nicely seasoned and super addictive!

1/2 Rack beef ribs with sticky bbq sauce

They also have beef ribs ($17 for half rack) in the menu that came with some basic slaw and a little jar of extra barbecue sauce. The sauce had some nice sweet and tangy flavours with a very light note of bourbon. Even if the meat was not as tender as I thought it would be, I still really enjoyed it.

Hell's Kitchen dog ($8) - pickled jalapenos, smoked ancho-chilli and tomato salsa

Meat-packing district burger (1/4 pounder)

I must admit that when I was about to dive in to the "meat packing district" burger ($14), I could hear DJ Snake and Lil Jon's "Turn Down For What " song playing in my head. The monster burgers are not normally my thing but this was an exception. It was both monster in size and taste! The double wagyu beef patty was absolutely flavoursome and juicy. I couldn't help but adore the sexy melted American cheese, which also provided a nice texture to the burger. The tomato, pickles, onions and the Brooklyn Social special sauce were the other components that complete this burger for me. The soft sweet bun used makes the handling of this burger much easier (phew!).

I saw a lot of other awesome items on the menu that I would love to try! I would definitely go back to try their caramel-injected donuts. Another good thing about this place is that it's just right across from Central Station!

Brooklyn Social

17 Randle St

Surry Hills NSW

Facebook page: www.facebook.com/brooklynsocialsydney

Instagram: instagram.com/brooklynsocialsydney

Trading hours:

Daily 12pm to 2am