Andrew's Hamburgers IV

March 14, 2026

 

We're revisiting lots of places from the first couple of years of the blog to celebrate twenty years of posting about Melbourne's food and to check back on the Cheap Eats 2006 places we got excited about when we first moved here. Andrew's Hamburgers has been going a lot longer than twenty years, churning out famous burgers with the lot and laying claim to being Australia's first dedicated burger shop. There are conflicting accounts of its history, but it seems to have been run by the same family since at least 1957.

 

Its last two decades we can account for, with the shop basically unchanged since we first visited - a narrow, busy space pumping out burgers and chips well beyond the capacity of the few tables out the front. The menu itself has expanded since we last visited, with Mexican, Hawaiian and American themed burger options alongside the classics (plus the souvlaki that turned up on the menu around 2010).

 

Most people are here for the classics though I think. The burger with the lot is the mainstay, and I suspect the veggie burger ($16) recipe hasn't been messed with since whenever it first appeared. There are no concessions to vegans here, with feta in the veggie patty (based on a family recipe). It's gooey and dotted with veggies, layered up with cheese and just soggy enough - a far cry from the Impossible patties that now dominate the veggie burger world. We added in a potato cake ($2.50) and small chips ($6.50) and had a delightful dinner in the sunshine. 

    

Veggie burger prices at Andrew's have gradually increased, from $7 in 2007 to $7.50 in 2010 to $10 in 2016 to $16 on our 2026 visit. It's not outrageous, but it's not quite the bargain that it felt like back in 2007. Still, there's something wholesome about a business that knows what it does well and just keeps doing it.

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You can read about our earlier visits to Andrew's here, here and here. Since our 2016 visit there have been a few blog posts about the meaty options - see Team Cheeseburger and Food Trip (reviewing the short-lived CBD outpost). There is a lovely obituary for Andrew Georghiou here, as well as the interesting but inconsistent articles in The Age and Broadsheet.

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Andrew's Hamburgers

114 Bridport Street, Albert Park

9690 2126

menu

https://www.andrewshamburgers.com.au/

 

Accessibiltity: The entry is flat, but the interior is quite crowded and you order and pay at a high counter. The outside tables are reasonably well spaced, with bench seating. We didn't visit the toilets.

Urban Projuice

Update 12/06/2023: Urban Projuice has now closed.

June 12, 2017

Michael arrived home on the weekend, and made sure to keep active and out in the sun during the days to stave off jetlag. This was a great strategy when we crossed the river to Urban Projuice for lunch - there was a wait for indoor tables but plenty of free spots out back.

The menu is varied and vegan by default: a couple of dishes include optional eggs, but there's no meat or dairy. Gluten-free folks have abundant well-labelled options too. It's all wholefood-oriented and scattered with the trappings of our time: an acai bowl, granola that's paleo, crushed avocado served on 'toasted raw sprouted bread' (...so is it raw or not?). But those of us seeking carby comforts aren't completely left out: there are pancakes, a baked sweet potato garnished with corn chips, and a vege burger.

Beyond the espresso machine there are $10 smoothies, turmeric lattes and something called a Coconut Bomb. Michael confirmed that they do the classics well with a flat white ($4), and I approved the hot chocolate ($4.50, both Bonsoy-based).

Michael went on to order the Big Breakfast ($21), even though he was skeptical that the tofu scramble would be up to much. He was happily proven wrong with this brightly coloured and flavoured batch, shovelling it down with the plentiful baked beans, mushrooms, roasted little potatoes, avocado, kale salad and toast.

I was predictably drawn to those pancakes ($19.50). They're cakey, deceptively gluten-free, and dressed up to the nines with bananas and berries, maple syrup, three scoops of icecream, a sprinkling of seeds and edible flowers. Every component was terrific, although I found the overall effect to be excessively sweet.

Urban Projuice is aimed at the instagram-wellness-smoothie set, but I think its appeal is broader - only the ugh, no bacon?! crowd are likely to be disappointed. It's not often we're willing to queue up southside for a meal and the prices are a little steep, but it was worth making an exception once for this cafe.

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Urban Projuice has received a lot of positive blog coverage, see TOT: HOT OR NOT, THATVEGANLIFEDOE, delightfully tasty, messy veggies, Future King and Queen, Happy Little Coconut, Goodness Collective, simplySunday, Daily Watermelon, Fire & Tea, Frenchy, the baroness of melbourne and Nourishing Adventures. foodie about town had a more mixed experience, and lifestyle by lily was pretty unimpressed.

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Urban Projuice
315 Montague St, Albert Park
9696 0048
food, drinks
http://www.urbanprojuice.com.au/

Accessibility: This terrace house has several steps up on entry and densely packed tables. We ordered at our table and paid at a low counter. We didn't visit the toilets.

Andrew's Hamburgers III

Cheap Eats 2006, a decade on

February 27, 2016

We're still working our way through our Cheap Eats 2006 project, revisiting places from the first copy of The Cheap Eats Guide that we bought way back when we moved to Melbourne. On the last Saturday of summer, we headed back to Albert Park for an early dinner in the sunshine at Andrew's Hamburgers. They pre-date the American-driven burger craze that's swept through Melbourne in the past five years or so by about 60 years, first opening in 1939 and coming up with the current burger recipe in 1957.

They've put some tables on the footpath outside, but otherwise not much have changed: the menu's the same, the burgers are the same and the steady stream of customers is the same. Prices have crept up alongside inflation - from $7 for a veggie burger in 2007 to $10 in 2016 - pretty reasonable really.

Andrew's aren't in a hurry to change a formula that works for them. We grabbed one of their veggie burgers (with a homemade patty based on potato, sweet potato and pumpkin, with coriander, feta and parsley), a couple of potato cakes ($1.50 each) and a small serve of chips ($3). The potato cakes were uninspired, but the golden, salty chips hit the spot nicely. From what we could tell, the veggie patties are cooked on the same grill as the beef and chicken burgers, which is probably a turn off for some vegos.

The burger is a classically messy takeaway meal with salad spilling out everywhere. The patty is soft and pretty plain - the sauce and gooey cheese are doing most of the work flavour-wise. Veggie burgers at places like Howler and B.East are streets ahead of this offering (although they charge more as well to be fair).

Andrew's does a good line in Australian takeaway nostalgia - it's offering a retro lineup of burgers and souvlaki served up without any of the fancy toppings on offer at higher end places. It's great that they offer a vegetarian burger, but it's probably not something we'll hurry back across town for any time soon.

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We first visited Andrew's in 2007 to sample their burgers, and returned in 2010 for a souvlaki. Since then, only New International Students have reviewed the vego offerings (positively). 

Among the meatier blog scene, there have been many, many positive reviews: Jar Fed, Melbourne Places, Simon Food Favourites, Burger Review Crew, The Juliet Report, Let's Get Fat Together, Eat and Be Merry for Tomorrow We Die(t), Ms I-Hua and The Boy, The Very Very Hungry Caterpillar, Burger Friday, Melbourne Culinary Journal, Eat.Play.Shop, Edge of My Plate, Food Rehab, The Burger Adventure, One Fat Cow, Mostly Food Adventures, My Diet Starts Tomorrow, The Escort and the Thief, Melbourne Din(n)ing Blog, It's a Tall Order, Sharking for Chips and Drinks, One Fat Spork, yum yum, The Hungry Melburnian, The Baroness of Melbourne, Table to Tummy, Ichigo Shortcake, Gastronomical Ramblings, Simple Palates, Seriously, mochii eats, Sweet and Sour Fork, ps: I heart you, Melbourne Places, Lucy Likes Food, Of Breakfast and Tea, Em's Burger Quest, The Epicurean of Southbank, Eve Lovelle, The Hangry Bitch, The Food Society, Decisive Cravings, Under the Wire, Vanhell's Corner, Sean's Burgers, Verdict Lobster and Chasing a Plate.

A decent number of bloggers have been less enthused - most comparing Andrew's to bog standard fish and chip shop burgers: Andrew's Food Adventures, Missy Ness' Food Train of Thought, Curious Charlie, Food Etc, Double Dutch Oven, Tuesdays with Thao, For Food's Sake, The Best Bloody Burgers, Because I Can't Cook, Tirache and The Hungry Excavator.

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Andrew's Hamburgers
144 Bridport Street, Albert Park
9690 2126
menu
http://www.andrewshamburgers.com.au/

Accessibility: The entry is flat, but the interior is quite crowded and you order and pay at a high counter. The outside tables are reasonably well spaced, with bench seating. We didn't visit the toilets.

November 17, 2010: Andrews Hamburgers II

Melbourne's now seeing some gorgeous days.  And with the sun setting after 8pm, it's the perfect time for us northsiders to cycle across the river for Andrews Hamburgers.  Since our previous post three years ago, the gloriously massive and messy vegie burgers have increased in price from $7 to $7.50 - that's a hike I can handle.

Vegie souvlaki are now also available for $8.50 apiece.  They boast extra yoghurt and spices, but feature the same vegie patties and risk-of-spilling-everything-down-your-shirtfront as the vegie burgers.

Andrews' old-fashioned charm is no Melbourne secret, so be prepared for a bit of a wait and zero space to eat in.  I found myself happily occupied for the requisite 20 minutes just observing the staff's speedy and systematic use of their small open kitchen, and on a bright and breezy day the oversized traffic island/tiny park across the street offers all the al fresco dining facilities (grass, bench chairs, bins) you need.

December 29, 2009: Jock's Ice Cream & Sorbet

I only just heard of Jock's Ice Cream & Sorbet this month on Melbourne Best Cheap Eats, though apparently it's been in business since 2001. It's clear on entering that they've spent this time rapidly perfecting their craft, with their wall boasting numerous awards.

There were over two dozen different ice cream and sorbet flavours on offer, covering the range that most people will look for - cheery-hued fruits, chocolate, coffee, caramel and vanilla. There are also a couple of seasonal novelties - at the moment there's plum pudding and my pick, Obamarama (peanut butter and jelly). While I detected the peanut butter and jelly distinctly in my first few licks, soon enough my tastebuds dulled and it was more of a homogeneously sweet experience.

What's notable about Jock's ice creams is their texture - more akin to an airy, creamy soft serve than a dense frozen custard. It was luscious to lick on that 28-degree day, but I imagine this style of ice cream would rapidly be lost on the ground in a puddle if the weather were any hotter.

On a warm day, this is ice cream worth crossing town for. And if it requires such a journey there's the opportunity to stock up on takeaway tubs while you're there, so bring an esky! Located only a short stroll beyond Kamel, Misuzu's and Andrews Hamburgers, I'll be making the trip for more before summer's done.

Address: 83 Victoria Ave, Albert Park
Ph: 9686 3838

May 3, 2008: Kamel II

Update 12/06/2023: Kamel is now closed.

On Saturday night we arranged to have dinner with my Queensland-dwelling aunt, Marie, while she was visiting Melbourne for a conference. I wasn't particularly enthused by the dining options in the vicinity of her hotel and hit on Kamel as a better alternative - it's classy, won't break the bank and has plenty of veg-friendly plates to share.

We were so overwhelmed by choice last time that I knew we'd not have to repeat anything we had ordered then. Yet I couldn't resist revisiting the pistachio crumbed goats cheese with fig paste and Turkish bread ($14.50). It's a very tasty opener.

Next to the table were two plates. First, a carrot and chickpea salad with fresh coriander and honey brittle almonds ($10). This was actually my least favourite of the night - I found it too sour/bitter - but Michael like it a lot. Second was roasted spiced chat potatoes with honey, fenugreek and spring onions ($9); soft, sweet and fragrant.

Our last savoury dish arrived later and I was too busy chatting and eating by then to think to photograph it! The broccolini with peri peri butter and roasted almonds ($10) was a crowd-pleaser, though - buttery with a spicy kick and lots of nutty crunch.

Finally, we agreed to share the Turkish sweet plate ($12.50). Although it was intended to be shared between two people, even the three of us couldn't conquer it! Clockwise from the front, it features two pieces of Turkish delight (in different colours/flavours), a huge mound of pismaniye (Turkish fairy floss), two pieces of baklava (one of the nicest I've tasted), and two scoops each of halva and Turkish delight flavoured ice creams. This plate of quality sweets is great value for money, and worth ordering to share around a group. With less mouths to feed, I'd particularly recommend a single order of one of the ice creams. They were a revelation to me, with pure delicate flavours and a refreshing texture.

It was unexpected and lovely to share a meal with Marie in our adopted home town, and Kamel was the lovely venue I expected for the occasion.

(You can read of our previous serendipitous visit to Kamel here.)

January 7, 2008: Kamel

Update 12/06/2023: Kamel is now closed.

Cindy and I had vague plans to cook something on Monday evening, but for some reason she picked up a crazy vegie hot-dog craving while she was at work and we decided to make a return visit to Bowl of Soul so she could get her fix. Unfortunately, they seem to have taken a summer holiday, and we were met with a firmly closed door. We opted for second best: a quick walk over to Albert Park and vegie burgers from Andrew's hamburgers. Alas, they too were enjoying a well-earned January break. With our hunger levels increasing and our Cheap Eats guide at home, we had a quick wander around Albert Park hoping to stumble onto something appealing. And that's when we found Kamel. There were no hot dogs on their menu, but a wide array of vaguely Middle-Eastern tapas plates, at least half of which were meat-free. Score!

We had a quick consultation with our waitress, and decided that three of the plates would be about right for two fairly hungry people. After much agonising (it's hard to believe that a menu would have 'broccolini with peri peri butter and roasted almonds' and 'field mushrooms with feta and herb oil' and that we'd order neither dish), we started with pistachio-crumbed goats cheese with fig paste & Turkish bread. The crumbed cheese was crispy outside and creamy inside, the quince paste added some fruity flavour and the well-dressed rocket helped us pretend it was healthy.

Next up was fried cauliflower in mint, coriander and chickpea batter with a balsamic reduction. The herb flavours weren't overly noticeable, but the crispy batter and the balsamic flavours were the perfect complement to the perfectly cooked cauliflower.

Cindy started to slow down a little at this point, but the food kept coming: zucchini and mint fritters with yoghurt to finish off. These were some substantial fritters: huge patties of herbed zucchini and a giant dollop of creamy yoghurt. To be honest, these were a little blander than I expected - I think because I imagined them as haloumi and zucchini patties and they lacked the salty punch I was expecting. They benefited hugely from a pinch or two of salt - after I'd sussed that out, they were deliciously flavoursome.

We didn't quite get through it all, but that was really no critique of the food - it was a fantastic find with a reasonably affordable, varied and very veg-friendly menu. There's a good handful of menu items I'm still keen to try, so stay tuned for a Kamel update in the coming months.

Address: 19 Victoria Avenue, Albert Park
Ph: 9696 1386
Licensed
Price: Vegie plates: $6-$12

September 15, 2007: Andrews hamburgers

On this Saturday we were blessed with sunny skies and an empty schedule, so we decided to venture southside to visit a Melbourne icon: Andrews Hamburgers. This place is the real deal, a 50-year-old family business that hasn't changed its spots (or wood panelling) over its lifetime. And why change when you've hit on the winning formula? The burger-with-the-lot is widely touted as the best in town.

Now that's all well and good, but such an establishment is unlikely to offer much to a vegetarian, right? Actually, Andrews Hamburgers do have a vegetarian burger and it's not a completely token latecomer: owner Greg Pappas told the Age that the patty - made of potato, pumpkin, sweet potato, coriander, parsley and feta - is from a recipe that his mother made at home. This is veering into the territory of Grill'd Urban Burger Republic, perhaps, but the rest of this construction is old skool Aussie takeaway: a well-toasted white bun, tomato and iceberg lettuce, gooey cheese, sloppy sweet onions and a big gloop of tomato sauce that's destined for your shirt front. It's messy and a tad greasy but an enormously satisfying sunny-day lunch, and good nostalgic value at $7.

If you do succumb to Andrew's old-world charms, consider atoning for your cholesterolic sins with a walk around the nearby lake.

Address: 144 Bridport Rd, Albert Park
Ph: 9690 2126
Price: vege burger $6.50

July 31, 2007: Misuzu's

On Tuesday evening, we managed to find time in Emma and Simon's schedule to meet up for dinner. Cindy had been talking up Misuzu's since dmargster's recommendation, so we navigated our way over to Albert Park to try it out.

Cindy's research had also told us that we needed to book, even on a Tuesday evening - indeed, when we rang them they stressed to us that if we were more than 20 minutes late we'd lose our table. Sure enough, when we arrived the place was overflowing with people - it's a good sign when a place is in such demand on a school night. We squeezed our way upstairs to our table and settled in for the evening. The menu is well-stocked with vegetarian option - a wide variety of starters and probably half a dozen mains. Japanese food is usually a struggle for those of us who don't eat fish, so it was nice to see so many choices.

Emma and Simon were kind enough to share the large vegetarian entree platter ($22.80) with us. Unfortunately, the photo didn't work out very well. Despite our inadequate chopstick skills, we feasted on a selection of sushi, little hot tasty things, some sort of dried sweet potato salad, bits of tofu and various other bits and pieces. It was tremendous - the sweet potato in particular was an odd and impressive dish. It was a fairly gigantic plate of food to get us started, but we were given enough time to rest between finishing it up and the arrival of our mains.

Which was lucky, because when they came, they were gigantic. Cindy ordered the tempura soba ($13.80) - seasonal tempura vegetables in soy-based soup with buckwheat soba noodles. Look at how high they piled that soup! The tempura vegies were plentiful and delicious and the buckwheat noodles were thick and tasty. There was, of course, too much for Cindy, but what she managed to eat she was very impressed with.

I opted for the vegetable don ($13.80): tempura veges stewed with finely sliced onion in a layered free-range egg omelette. It was terrific - full of vegies without being overly heavy, a generous slathering of egg and some tasty rice at the bottom. Again, it was a ridiculously hearty meal - I managed to get through it all, but there was no room left for me to help Cindy out.

Simon and I shared a nice bottle of wine, Cindy knocked back a ramune (Japanese old-style lemonade) and Emma had some sort of tea. The service was pretty good, the atmosphere was great (the mural behind our table was all kinds of weird) and the meal was remarkably affordable for the quality. So make a booking and try it out - Misuzu's is a fine option. Even if it is far, far away across the other side of the river.

Address: 2-7 Victoria Avenue, Albert Park
Ph: 9699 9022
Price: Vegie mains: $10 - $15
Licensed