Takeout Burgers: RSVP (Victoria Island, Lagos)
FOLLY: What’s everyone’s take on upscale restaurants offering deliveries during the pandemic? On one hand, most of these restaurants weren’t really made for takeout, but it’s business and they need to survive. At the same time, the price points are usually elevated because of the dining experiences that they offer so if they are pivoting to delivery should the higher prices still be retained?
NOSA: Nope.
FOLLY: These are some of the things Nosa and I have discussed over the past few months.
Since the lockdown started a lot of people have been asking us where they can get different things delivered hence the lists, so we finally decided to do these mini-reviews of specific take out items.
NOSA: Lockdown is over, but restaurants still aren’t open so I guess this is a good time to do this.
FOLLY: We can’t give the best reviews on delivery because there are too many variables between when the food leaves the restaurant and gets to you. From the possibility of the bike man’s anyhow-ness or he could decide to use the alternative route because he wants to chop the toll gate money and then your food arrives soggy. There’s just too much that could possibly go wrong.
NOSA: Yeah, we’re not going to knock the restaurants on how long it takes to get food delivered. We’ve seen how it works behind the scenes, and it’s a mess.
Of all the restaurants to pivot to delivery, RSVP and Talindo were the most surprising. Both restaurants are very big on the ambience and I didn’t think that experience would translate. So you know what we did?
Yes, we ordered from RSVP.
FOLLY: I remembered Nosa sending the RSVP menu like look at this i.e The Dirty Burger and the price (it costs N9,200). Initially, we were both like “nope, too expensive” but after going back and forth, I decided to treat myself for my birthday.
Ribeye patty, brie, maple glazed bacon, tomato confit, and truffle mayonnaise in a fresh brioche bun, served with fries
We obviously loved it so a few days later we ordered the Mushroom and Swiss burger, for science.
Portobello mushrooms, swiss cheese, caramelised onions on our beef patty in our signature brioche bun, served with fries
FOLLY: While Nosa preferred the Mushroom & Swiss, the Dirty Burger was the winner for me. I couldn’t believe how “together” everything was.
NOSA: That’s probably the most impressive part of it. There’s a commitment to excellence about RSVP, but this still impressed me.
FOLLY: The driver was likely careful when driving but the protection was three layers deep. First the food paper (I think that’s what it’s called), then the burger box, and then it was in the carrier bag. Another good idea that they had was not to add the wet ingredients to the burger yet, so the confit tomatoes and garlic aioli were in small containers for us to top ourselves.
FOLLY: In general, the buns on RSVP’s burgers and sandwiches are always A1. They make all their bread fresh in house and it’s never ever stale.
I found the Mushroom and Swiss sour but Nosa disagrees with me.
NOSA: I see how Folly hates it, but that’s why I loved it. It’s all in the mushrooms and Swiss cheese. If you like Philly cheesesteaks, you definitely love the Mushroom & Swiss.
FOLLY: The patty was very dry.
NOSA: Ok, this was a negative.
FOLLY: Admittedly, I ordered the burger medium considering that I don’t like pink in ground beef like in steaks, but I don’t know if that’s the reason why it was so dry (I contend that the beef didn’t have enough fat and was too lean). I wasn’t a fan so much so that if the burger was some sort of vegetarian mushroom burger without the patty, I wouldn’t have been upset.
NOSA: Funny enough, the Dirty Burger didn’t have this problem.
FOLLY: Yup, the patty in the Dirty Burger was juicy and flavourful, granted it was a rib eye patty with a lot of fat. Also, considering that EYE personally dislike raw tomatoes in burgers, the confit tomatoes were a win. Other things I don’t believe belong in burgers are iceberg lettuce and raw onions (caramelised all the way please), so the absence of these literally made this my PERFECT burger.
NOSA: There wasn’t anything dirty about the Dirty Burger, to be honest. I expected it to be A LOT messier. This was too neat
FOLLY: Facts.
NOSA: and probably explains why I preferred the Mushroom & Swiss.
Both burgers are pretty good and the best we’ve had so far (we’ve had a couple so expect more reviews), but God, these are so damn expensive. If anything, the price will turn most people off, but if you’re making the big bucks in management consulting, you should order this instead of that Johnny Rockets stuff you guys always order.
Postscript
NOSA: Jesus. It’s expensive, lol. I need a new job.
Verdict
Damage
The Dirty Burger - N9200
Mushroom & Swiss - N9400
Delivery
Ikoyi, VI, and Lekki Phase One