Following Barcelos, the black burger is catching fancy of many city restaurants. Experts tell Rupinder Kaur that the trend is here to stay
What are your thoughts about food served charcoal black, garnished with some greenies and a bit of melted cheese as if to dress up the delicacy that’s a victim of severe burnsIJ A meal that will not go down so readily... will itIJ Also with every bite and chew, while you maintain steady eye-contact with whoever you’re dining with, you will surely feel like a food connoisseur deciding on the taste factor. This we say with surety after our trip to Barcelos in Khan Market where we went to check out the fuss over black burgers.
The sliders that seem straight from hell’s kitchen (not Gordan Ramsay’s) were introduced by Burger King in Japan in 2012. Not just the bun, they also blackened the cheese by smoking it using bamboo charcoal and the patties had black pepper in them. McDonald’s soon followed the suit there and introduced its own variant using the almost shudder-inducing squid ink. Maybe we overlooked the fact that black really is the ‘it’ colour even after famous painter Renoir had quoted centuries ago saying, “I’ve been 40 years discovering that the queen of all colours was black.”
Why black burgers, is the question we popped first to Rohit Malhotra, GM, Operations, Barcelos India. “Japan has had very unusual food concepts and we wanted to try this out here too. It looks so different that many are intrigued to try it out and it does attract. If you ask me why we picked burgers then it’s because it is one of the highest selling products in the world and has more reach.”
Barcelos hasn’t blackened its cheese using squid ink though it will soon come out with black peri mayo using a different ingredient. The black bun recipe, too, has been kept a secret but Rohit did give us a hint about mixing of organic permitted colours in appropriate proportions. Some herbs like parsley, garlic and ginger powder have been added to give the buns a fresh flavor and to “make it healthier”.
Have those black buns also kept the foodies at bayIJ Rohit believes it’s a personal choice. “A large number of people have been flocking in to try them out. People eat dark chocolate, they drink coca-cola and also use soya sauce in their cooking, so why not try these burgers out,” he asks. Priyank Sukhija, owner of Fork You (also popular for its customised burgers), says they too are planning to introduce black burgers and the announcement will be made in a couple of weeks. “Our chefs are on it but we’ll introduce only if we come out with something dramatically different.”
To break the monotony, the Fork You chefs have worked more on what goes between the two buns. “When it got boring, we started experimenting with the fillings for the burgers, added some more veggies to it. We came out with chicken chettinad, chicken 65 and schezwan burgers. But the buns we’ve had were multigrain, whole wheat or simply plain and if not buns then we’d use focaccia bread,” he says.
“Innovation always pays and Barcelos has surely scored. Whoever introduces something new and different will always be known as the pioneer,” Priyank adds commending Barcelos’ initiative. He believes the trend will catch on even if it looks unappetising because it’s the taste that matters. Jharna Bhatnagar, lifestyle journo for Buurp.com, who also had a go at these sliders says, “Though the black burger lacks the taste and consistency of ingredients, the concept that Barcelos has brought to India, amidst all the competition in the fast food industry, is giving brand an edge. It will be exciting for those who would love to experiment with tastes.”
Manu Chandra, executive chef at Monkey Bar, tells us the other story behind the ‘dark side’ of the burger. “The origins of the black burger commercially go to a French QSR called Quick when they launched it in the year 2012 to coincide with the Star Wars movie. After gaining many admirers, the black burger later was offered by many other food chains of Europe and other countries.”
Monkey Bar had introduced the black bun burger ‘Black Money’ at the Mo Shake, a burger festival, in April 2015 in Bangalore. Shortly after, Monkey Bar Bandra launched the MoBar burger with a black burger bun. Manu tells us that the buns are coloured using powder made from eggplant that is de-hydrated for 24 hours.
Asserting that the black burgers are here to stay and will surely relish the taste buds, Manu explains, “India as a country revels in its abundance of colours and vibrancy as opposed to black which culturally has negative connotations. There have been squid ink pasta dishes on the menus of few restaurants in India and people have welcomed and enjoyed those dishes. I think all chefs like to push the envelope when it comes to creating something new and different. Bringing in a strong colour to an otherwise well known food item, gives it novelty and drama, without compromising on the taste.”