Meatwagon Mugging.

[bon3yard]

Popped into the rye hotel yesterday evening for a go on one of The Meatwagons Famous Hog Roasts only to find I'd accidently payed ?8- for a couple of scraps of Stringy cardboard sandwiched between a Submarine roll that was so sugary it could have passed itself off as an iced bun, all topped off with a of piece crackling you could scrape ice off a windscreen with...and no blinking apple sauce. Rubbish.

The Delicious Burger we had at Pull The Other One on Friday however was a true joy, well done those people at Handmade on Barry Road. Delicious and good value.

[StraferJack]

didn't have the hog roast last night (are the meatwagon famous for them? since when?) so can't comment but i did have the pulled pork for lunch there and it was fantastic

[Orbital]

The Hog Roasts are a joke. Overly greasy, ludicrously priced, limp, laughable.

Same goes for the Mexican I tried there; and the vegetarian indian food, at ?5 a box, was a joke.

The pub is fine, the JOKERS who set up shop outside it are not. I don't know how you can hand over what they do and feel happy to take people's money for it. The owners of the pub should have a word.

Price sensibly and improve your product. I have no idea who came up with notion of British street food, but I am positive they did not envisage it being exploited by rip-off merchants.

[*Bob*]

Is this the same thing as 'meateasy'?

Went to The Rye some weeks back after hearing how marv it was, only to be served-up with a totally mediocre burger for far too much money. Pants!

[StraferJack]

The mexican food there is fantastic - and reviewed at the weekend too

Buen provenco

*Bob* - seems to be a common complaint about the burgers in the current incarnation - shame, as the original was a thing of joy

[Matti]

Buen Provecho (real mexican rather than burritos) who will be there again tonight are excellent, I can only recommend them. The Ppork taco is amazing.

[Orbital]

StraferJack Wrote:

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> The mexican food there is fantastic - and reviewed

> at the weekend too

>

> Buen provenco

>

> *Bob* - seems to be a common complaint about the

> burgers in the current incarnation - shame, as the

> original was a thing of joy

Do you think that they are pricing their product correctly? ?2.50 for one of their tacos is a joke. You are eating it off of paper plates and they are miniscule.

[StraferJack]

because tacos are normally huge?

I generally find all tacos (even rubbish ones) pricey for what I get. But I go for one of the box meals and get plenty

[katie1997]

StraferJack Wrote:

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> didn't have the hog roast last night (are the

> meatwagon famous for them? since when?) so can't

> comment but i did have the pulled pork for lunch

> there and it was fantastic

I hear what you're saying as think its their burgers (and onion rings?) that are renowned. But with a name like Meatwagon and its association with pretty darn fine meat, I'd expect the hog roast to be as good too.

Was sadly underwhelmed by the burger I last had there. Cannot compare to how they used to be as only tried them at New Cross for the first time this year.

[StraferJack]

Yep, agreed - and bon3yard knows his food too so I'm surprised to hear it. I saw pictures of the pig before it went "on" and it looked mighty fine , and I've seen other good reports so I'm not sure what went wrong here

[Orbital]

StraferJack Wrote:

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> because tacos are normally huge?

>

> I generally find all tacos (even rubbish ones)

> pricey for what I get. But I go for one of the box

> meals and get plenty

Because tacos are normally miniscule?

And you shouldn't just accept being overcharged because you are used to it.

Their price should be ?1.50. You have a spoonful of filling in them and it is stewed meat or beans.

Come on...

[Orbital]

StraferJack Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> >

> Yep, agreed - and bon3yard knows his food too so

> I'm surprised to hear it. I saw pictures of the

> pig before it went "on" and it looked mighty fine

> , and I've seen other good reports so I'm not sure

> what went wrong here

RE this point. They live the food to keep warm in a pot, and they are so concerned with containing the cost of each roll that they don't give the customer what they want. Which is a decent sandwich. It is a recipe for disaster, and it is a shame because I would strongly support small operations that try to make a go of things, but these guys have it all wrong.

[ibilly99]

Couldn't agree more with the negatives her. Went with the missus on Sunday to see what all the hype was about had pulled pork , a double bubble burger (twin cheeseburger) and a portion of chips sum total ?20.50. The ?7-50 burger was ok but certainly not worth the money - had a much better one at the Royal Festival Hall last weekend in the food quarter round the back for ?4-50. The pulled pork was fab but the coleslaw and beans merely adequate and didn't justified the price. I think they are riding on their own sucess here - and some glowing mentions in the press not to mention Camilla's son doing photoes of the last night of meat easy they were queing round the block on Sunday. I looked in the kitchen and it was an industrial factory process in there - buns all loaded up and ready to go and the burgers being flipped on a kitchen hot plate. No street food charcoal burners here. Left feeling ripped off and won't be back but if folk don't vote with their feet then they'll be laughing all the way to the bank. BTW the food at the Actress is fab last time I tried it wanted to hate it but ended up eating my words and a lovely pizza and some fantastic pork all brought to the table by smiling waitresses.

Meat Wagon watch out just because you did well on the way up doesn't mean you should rip us off when you get there.

[DulwichFox]

Don't by Burgers, Hot dogs Fast Food from a street Trader... Asking for trouble..

They were banned from the West End by Westminister Council years ago.

Still available in Southwark. ??? Why don't that suprise me...

[StraferJack]

a bit of straw-man arguing going on here - I'm not sure why anyone is complaining about "charcoal burners" - who says that's what constitutes street food?

And having someone prep the buns in advance of the burger going on? Madness.. with those queues out the door, far better to wait until each patty is done, then the same person can assemble the bun. Only then should they go back to the next patty. That'll keep the punters happy!

anyway - the cooking process for meateasy burgers is described below (from an article taken before the word was out)

Personally, I don't think the burgers at the Rye match up to the wagon burgers. As others have posted on here, the bun seems to have changed and other ingredients also not matching up - but we've not heard from them on here so it's all second guessing

Anyway - that cooking process (for transparency, so no-one can claim they were diddled out of charcoal - !)

The cooking process. Yianni places a ball of meat on the 30-year-old cast iron flat-top griddle and then squashes it down into a round patty with the palm of his hand. When asked how hot the griddle was exactly, he smiles and says "fucking hot." Good answer: the extreme heat of the cooking surface produces a crust that only griddle cooking can, skipping the charcoal-grilled taste for a superior crunch to the outside of the patty. The griddle can hold up to four burgers at a time, and all burgers are cooked "with a little bit of pink in the middle", though requests can be made for rare or otherwise. On the blend, Yianni bypasses the usual ratio of 80:20 in his freshly ground, locally purchased 28-day aged chuck in favour of a slightly leaner blend. He cites the reason that a fattier patty of minced beef will retain slightly unpleasant globules of uncooked fat if done rare, whilst his blend guarantees juiciness and a good eating experience no matter how it is cooked. Liberally seasoned with just salt and pepper after being squashed, Yianni flips the patties and then adds two slices of American cheese. Not Kraft Singles, but better, and he isn't letting anyone on to his cheesy secret weapon.

Steaming the cheese into the patty with a lid. A lid! I bloody love lids, I really do. No one else seems to do this in London, but it is an essential component to creating an environment where the cheese can steam and properly melt into the meat.

The buns. A truly contentious issue with all burgers in London. A bit of meat this good needs a good bun, and Yianni has sourced the best burger bun available in London (well, for this type of burger, at least). A brioche bun would be absolutely wrong here. The bun is a soft sourdough, toasted and then placed on the meat for the final few seconds of the cooking process. A pleasure to eat, not distracting from the meat but complementing it and retaining its structure until the last bite. Hardly a surprise that Yianni and the local baker he sources the buns from took about three months to perfect the recipe.

[dubluke]

Had burgers from the meatwagon before and always thought they were great. Eaten them in their current kitchen at the rye and still think they're the nuts

[ibilly99]

Well thanks Strafer Jack - knowing what you have now told me means I have retrofitted my previously shallowly held opinion into the best burger I've ever had and a steal at ?7-50 I must return shortly for more of the same.

Oh and I forgot to add the cheese wasn't up to much either.

Disclosure here - I don't know the team behind the pub or food and have no financial interest in any local establishment

[taper]

Sad to see the special stuff decline in quality. Some will remember an earlier thread where blood was shed arguing about the fabulousness of the burgers.

http://www.eastdulwichforum.co.uk/forum/read.php?30,650901,675014#msg-675014

[Bellenden Belle]

I agree it's sad to see - I was one of those that so vehmently defended the wagon.

But I've been disappointed on a couple of occasions now and when I sent a friendly email to Yianni saying what a fan I was but how something had slipped, I received a rather lacklustre response.

[ibilly99]

My major 'beef' is the pricing - like I said the pork was fab and there was nothing intrisically wrong with any of the texture,flavours or presentation - just a ludricous price for above average pub food.

My wife and I spend a load of time seeking out good food all over London and the world - current local favourite is the Angels and Gypsies at Camberwell and Barrafina and Koya in Frith Street - all exceptional , great value for money for the outstanding quality of the food and you enter with expectation , are delighted throughout the meal and leave with a feeling of money well spent. Here the Meat Wagon came with similar high expectations , a sense of excitement at finding it on our doorstep and a crashing feeling of being ripped off when we left. I wasn't going to post as I generally keep off forums preferring to lurk but when I saw a thread developing which echoed my own thoughts I felt compelled to act.

[njc97]

iblly99 - what pubs nearby do you get average burgers in for less than ?7.50?

I tried the burgers at the Rye shortly after the meateasy team moved in, and thought they were very good if not quite up to the standards of New Cross meateasy. By the sounds it has drifted slightly, which is a real shame.

(and back to OP - surely this is the first hog roast they've done?)

[Alan Medic]

Please SJ, what pictures? Is this of piggy on the farm or what?

[ibilly99]

You're right njc there is a wider issue of East Dulwich and environs pricing but it's still ?10-50 for a burger and chips and there is a sense of trying to test the market here and pricing what the market can stand. There is a recession on and if Meat Wagon want to get down and dirty with the punters how about some more sensible pricing. If you want to charge a premium you have to be bloody good all the time or expect flak on internet forums and review sites.

[StraferJack]

"Please SJ, what pictures?"

On their twitter feed Alan,

veggies - please don't click

[v_the_gelfling]

Well, to go against the grain, i went down there yesterday and yes it was a bit chaotic but the burgers and atmosphere was great. And ?7.50 for 2 slabs of chuck steak really ain't a rip off. I had a burger not that long ago at Gouurmet burger which was pretty tasteless, stale and over cooked and i'm pleased to say the meateasy was none of these yesterday!