Rocket Burger is the holy grail of burgers in Galle. Since it’s in the Galle Fort, we weren’t expecting much when we walked in as the fort is notorious for eateries with okay-food for exorbitant prices. But I have to honestly say, especially after trying out Colombo’s late night burgers, that these were the best I’ve had in a very long time.
We randomly found it on Trip Advisor where it was rated number 1 for Galle.
The Theme
Firstly we really loved the restaurant’s look. The whole place has a grey, black and yellow theme, and has the coolest posters on the walls featuring robots, rockets and 60s vintage. We were told they were designed by the wife of one of the owners of Rocket Burger.
The furniture is all stools, benches, clean cut and of the same colour theme. There’s an upstairs as well with a little balcony looking out onto Pedlars Street.
Food & Service
So let’s get down to the important stuff. The menu is pretty straightforward with a range of American style burgers. Service was great, with the two owners themselves coming up to chat with us, asking us what we wanted to order.
We went with the Gringo Chicken Burger (Rs. 880) and the Bulgogi Beef (Rs. 850), in a combo pack with french fries and drinks (they add Rs. 300 for this). One nice thing worth noting is you’re not forced to get carbonated soft drinks – they actually make their own iced tea. We don’t remember the flavours but it tasted good – the lime iced tea was a way better substitute for me than Fanta or Coke.
Bam! Dat burger. Look at this thing. The stuff that was oozing out the sides of this burger included fat chunks of chicken, fried tomato, caramelized onions, green chilli mayo, ketchup, mustard, BBQ sauce and of course, cheese. It was an amazing combo of stuff and even hours later made me grin like an idiot at the memory of the flavours.
That was the Gringo Chicken, which I favoured more. This is the Bulgogi which is interesting because the stuff in it is typically Korean. Bulgogi is a Korean dish usually made of grilled marinated beef, so this had a hefty, soft slice of that, along with Bulgogi sauce, mayo and an excellent home-made kimchi (Korean spicy pickled cabbage). This was quite delicious too, though the bottom had gotten a little soggy (though honestly, by this point we were having such a good time we couldn’t care less).
French fries make such a big difference to a burger dish and it’s very rare you find very good fries to go with your burger in Sri Lanka. These guys make them in the form of potato wedges and they were super.
Conclusion
Leo – the guy behind the recipe for a great burgerWe have no complaints about Rocket Burger and we can’t wait to go there again when we’re in Galle. The burgers are delicious and very filling, the theme is quirky and fun, and the service is wonderful.
