Better Burger Sylvia Park — Restaurant in Maungakiekie-Tāmaki

Tried out this new burger joint that just opened up at Sylvia Park's Dining Lane.

Promises of a simpler burger and hype that the NZ Herald has partaken in, asking to order the "secret epic fries" led off to a good kick start of this restaurant, with a line nearly out the front door.

A simple menu with 3 burgers and an assortment of addons and shakes greet you as you approach the premises. Service is not the fastest with what appears to be a skeletal crew manning the kitchen. They do yell out your name once your order is ready so you have to pay attention rather than stare at your phone the whole time. Table service is not possible with the ratio of staff to customers.

The "secret epic fries" were basically fries smothered in cheese, caramelised onions, and pickles. I am not exactly a pickle fan but it was okay. Fries are apparently cut from potatoes and skin left on to be deep fried into nice crunchy fries. I have a sneaky feeling that the regular "non epic" fries would have been pretty good too.

The burger, unfortunately, left some to be desired. There was enough meat in the patties, but it was poorly flavoured - a good dash of salt would have helped - and could have been juicier. There was lettuce and onions but it did not provide much to the taste of the burger itself. The wife stated that the bun was dry but I felt that the bun was rather dense and had a chewy texture to it. I guess it is better than most candy floss-like buns but it ended up contributing a heavy hockey puck feel and texture to the burger. Not quite what I had in mind.

A few minor improvements and this could easily replace a Maccas or a Burger King. But they've got stiff competition from more well established franchises. Only time can tell where...

Terrible. I have been many times but this has been the worst customer experience I have ever had. Ordered as per usual and was given my drinks. Nearly 30 minutes later, we realized everyone had their food, including the people who were in line behind me.. I have had restaurants forget about an order before. I work in customer service as well and understand little mistakes. When we asked about our order, the woman who took my order denied remembering taking our order and acted as though we were in the wrong. It wasn’t until a woman from the kitchen offered to remake our food that anything was done about it.

We got our food a couple of minutes later, and some of the extras were on the wrong burger. Again, not a massive issue, until we mentioned it and she claimed we did not order the add on, despite having paid for it and it showing on the receipt. There were some other painful run ins with the same woman who took my order and we just gave up on getting things sorted. It was very shocking. Not planning on going back anytime soon. the manager was no help and basically acted like nothing was happening. i am very patient when it comes to customer service, but I would never treat a customer this way. ...

Another Fast Food Franchise, but a little different, it's ultra basic on all levels. (1) There are only 4 burgers offered. (2) There are 2 types of Fries, Normal & Epic ( cheese, onion, mustard & sauce) (3) The venue has no interior decoration what so ever, it's minimalist. (4) All seating is bolted to the polished concrete floor and immovable. (5) Booth style / Island seating. (6) Interior is laminated light butt jointed timber that could dbl as flooring if reqd. (7) Burger size is acceptable and $$ is borderline. Fries are excellent but $$ by volume. Milk Shakes, bottled water and all regular soft drinks dispensed by Tap, not by bottle. Service is quick n efficient and upselling is practised here. Sauce/mustard with napkins on each table as std. (8) Burger ordered was their Dbl Cheese $11:00, and it didn't disappoint at all, and came wrapped 50% in a serviette for manageability. Taste and contents were 100% and the construction was NOT a slimy greasy mess. Fries are home cut style with some skin still on and 100% good. Pretty sure from what I saw, this place is Card Only, no Cash. Didn't inspect the toilets. Overall its a great new franchise that keeps it simple. Just not cheap. Would I go...