Smokin' Joe's Knockout Burgers — Restaurant in Essenwood

The Iron Mike Burger, marketed as the crown jewel of Smokin' Joe's menu, unfortunately fell short of expectations in both flavour and execution, leaving a sense of disappointment that doesn’t justify its premium price.

The Patties The 75g Wagyu patties, the supposed highlight, were a major letdown. The patties were visibly burnt, resulting in a charred and bitter taste that overpowered any richness or buttery flavour one would expect from Wagyu. Instead of showcasing the luxurious, juicy nature of the meat, the patties were overly oily without delivering any satisfying depth of flavor.

Poor Consistency After expressing dissatisfaction with the first burger, which was bland and unbalanced, the replacement was even worse. The same issues persisted—burnt patties and excess grease—highlighting a lack of attention to quality and consistency in preparation.

Declining Standards Smokin' Joe's has built a reputation for crafting delicious, premium burgers that justify their cost. However, this iteration of the Iron Mike Burger failed dismally to meet those standards. The premium price tag feels unjustifiable when the execution is so poor.

It’s clear that the once-great standards of Smokin' Joe's have slipped with this offering. For R199, one would expect a well-balanced, expertly cooked burger bursting with flavour, especially when featuring Wagyu. Sadly, this burger was far from knockout-worthy and left a bitter taste—literally and figuratively. I hope Smokin' Joe’s can return to delivering the quality that loyal patrons have...

Solid Burger Guys... They serve it well done... unless told otherwise.

Its a messy burger as the buns are slathered generously in the grease and toasted yet left semi dunked. Bun does break apart quite easily.

Fries are decent and have a tinge of another protein fat in them... possibly fried in fat first. I assume twice fried. Not the most crisp but good aftertaste.

Sauces were good and didn't overwhelm the meat. There's a special house sauce which is basically a miracle whip type/big Mac sauce and a decent spicy ketchup.

Onions good... would have preferred raw diced rather than caramelized.🧅

Jalapeños had a great burn.🌶

Gherkin could have been a bit more crunchy and slightly thinner...you can see it in picture 2. 🥒

Smash Burger patties were awesome with a moist centre and very crispy crust. 🍔

Awesome service 🍴 the waitress was seasoned and schooled me about the top 12 in the world review and that the burger on the article is not the actual one the reviewer ate so i got the one that was actually eaten.."the smokin Joe".... wife had the Tripswitch...which was also amazing.

I like the roadhouse style Burger and fries on wax paper. 🍟

It's not a stomach filler but with the generous portion of fries it's a wonderful start to the day.

That being said it falls in my top 5...

8/10

Points lost for soggy bun, gherkin and uncomfortable seating. Will definitely be...

Truly looked forward to coming here from the lovely accolades. The place is well lit, chic and offers a wide range of burgers and pizzas.

I tried the nacho Libre and unfortunately it missed the mark. The burger is more grilled chicken pieces with cheese sauce and tortilla/doritoes flavored in salt salt and more salt. I couldn't finish it so my partner doctored it with his meal and finished it for me.

I had a taste of his smokin joe and the patty was so tender and flavourful, I understood that maybe they haven't cracked the code for flavoring chicken beyond salty renditions. From what we deduced the sauce is the culprit but the Buns were salty too. Will definitely be back to see and taste more.

The staff and co-owner humanized our experience and took time for genuine little conversation despite the busy of the place (10/10).

Please note that the establishment is quite popular but they do turn tables quite quickly so you want to get there early ahead of closing time to get a fulfilling experience.

Ps. Please note to park in the correct places to avoid confrontation with the neighbours and creating uncomfortable situations for...