Melbourne’s Huxtaburger popped up for two days only at Harpoon Harry in Sydney over the weekend. Anticipating a long line, we arrived just before 5pm to score a seat before any queue had formed outside of the venue. But upstairs there was a line to order burgers already.

I like my burgers as minimal as possible. Just give me a soft bun, a beef patty, melted American cheese, and some kickass pickles please.

The Huxtaburger ($9.50) comes pretty close to this, except there’s a bit of lettuce and tomato wedged in. I dig the fact that there are three sauces: tomato sauce, mayo and mustard all get to have starring roles. But the highlight is definitely the pickle. Sweet, tangy, and generous. The only downside is that the bun kind of disintegrates, and it gets pretty messy. But it’s nothing to cry about.

We also get our hands on the even messier Clair ($13). Southern fried chicken is smothered in jalapeno mayo and served with slaw. There’s a whole lot of crunch, and a whole lot of flavour. The jalapeno mayo gets my vote because it’s spicy and moreish.

No burger is complete without chips. Well, I think so anyway. On offer were regular crinkle cut chips or chipotle chips (crinkle cut chips dusted in loads of smoky, spicy seasoning) for four bucks a pop. The chips aren’t as crunchy as I had hoped, but it’s really the burgers who are the heroes here anyway. We washed it all down with a beer (or a cider in my case), and were out of there within 45 minutes.

Was it worth it? Yes, if you got there early enough to avoid the queues. Would I have waited over an hour just to eat a burger? Probably not. I’d rather check out the original Huxtaburger in Melbourne to be completely honest. But a Melbourne trip isn’t always on the agenda for most Sydneysiders, so pop ups like this are the perfect chance to try out some of the awesome food that Melbourne has to offer.

This article was originally published on the AU review.

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Harpoon Harry
40/44 Wentworth Ave, Surry Hills, NSW