Mary's - Newtown

The humble burger and fried chicken. Perfect combo no?

Mary's is a new ish hip bar in Newtown. It's slightly hidden with no sign on the entrance. It's hidden on Mary St and the entrance looks like you're entering some dingy place. And when you walk in, it's cool, it's dark, and it's grungy. People are chilling out, drinking beer and eating fried chicken from super early in the morning.

But the main reason why we came here was for the burgers - although the fried chicken and potato & gravy look super duper tempting (note to self: must come back to try). We were looking for a burger that emulated Shake Shack burgers from NYC - so after being seated, we got the cheeseburger ($14) and the Mary burger ($14)

Hubby decided to get 'trashcan bacon' in his cheeseburger. The name 'trashcan bacon' is meant to be derived from the way the bacon is smoked and prepared. The bun of the burger was soft, and the meat juicy. Apparently, for the patty, they use 2 parts chuck to 1 part brisket and 1 part rump - which results in flavoursome, tender and juicy beef. Slathered with bbq sauce and with a melty cheese slice chucked in the mix, the burger was small but really tasty.

I actually preferred my Marys Burger more. It was essentially the same except with lettuce and tomato in it. Also, instead of bbq sauce, it had their "special sauce". All up - it was succulent, juicy and awesomely tasty. Mmm... YUM. The fries which came with the burgers were golden and crisp. Salted well and super crunchy. Even better than freshly cooked Maccas fries (and I have a soft spot for Maccas fries).

So all up, this place is pretty cool.I guess the all-stars team behind the good food (and bar) helps - with Jake Smyth (ex-Bodega), Kenny Graham (ex-Porteno's bar), and Luke Powell (ex-head Tetsuya chef). Next time I come, I think I'll drag along a few more people so that we can have the burger AND the delicious-looking fried chicken and super smooth potato and gravy :) Mind you, leave a little more time - service is quite slow (I imagine they'll try and smooth that out as time goes along).




Ratings:
Food - 8.5/10
Service - 6/10
Ambiance - 7.5/10
Value for money - 7/10
Overall - 29/40

Mary's
6 Mary Street
Newtown
NSW 2042