Drip burger offers ambitious menu in Manchester

This small, independent burger restaurant in Manchester’s Burnage has had somewhat of a chequered history since opening in 2020.

Having first been launched as a “spin-off” joint called Burger Bae by the local burger brand The Meating Room (since closed down), it wasn’t until 2022 that Drip took over proceedings.

Drip has come a long way since opening as Burger Bae in 2020

Fast-forward to November of last year, and this place has changed hands once again, with new management having taken over and introduced some exciting new menu items.

Only recently, they unveiled what they dubbed their ‘Drip Boxes’, which comprised of an assortment of goodies from their fully Halal menu.

Otherwise, Drip offer a selection of chicken and smashed beef burgers, plenty of starters, a large range of fries and loaded fries, a variety of shakes, and more.

As a restaurant, the place certainly stands out, particularly at night with its huge burger sign brightly lit-up and complemented by the neon signage, with very limited seating available therein.

Shakes – Lindt (left), Bubblegum (right) – £5.50 each

They certainly started off well, with a pair of luscious shakes that boasted the perfect consistency being gorgeously thick and creamy. Of the two, the chocolatey Lindt, topped with whipped cream, stood out over its sweeter Bubblegum counterpart.

Mac & Cheese – With chef’s special twist, £4.50

This Mac & Cheese starter on the other hand was underwhelming, suffering as it did from an acute lack of that one thing that all well-made versions require plenty of: cheese sauce.

And despite the grating of actual cheese over the top, we found the cooking of the pasta to be a tad under, resulting in some being overly chewy.

Drip Burger – Smashed patties, double cheese, grilled onions, lettuce, burger sauce, £9.00

There were two essential shortcomings with their signature burger. The first was that these patties, as can be seen, weren’t as much smashed as they were  squished.

The second was that they were underseasoned, which meant that, given the quantity of meat with three big patties, this was a decent tasting burger.

What’s more, the patties we felt were a little on the dry side owing to the fact that they were cooked well-done by default.

Philly Cheese (with egg) – Beef steak, triple cheese & onions, £8.50

This Philly Cheese burger wasn’t just a recent addition to the menu, but extremely good too, and made better by the addition of the runny egg.

With tender strips of beef covered in plenty of lightly piquant cheese, sauce and onions, the runny egg really brought the entire thing together into a coherent whole by adding that earthiness.

If we had the chance again though, we’d request a sweeter sauce being added to bring some balance to an already phenomenal sandwich.

Nashville – Fried chicken breast, lettuce, burger sauce, £6.00

The first thing to stand out in this Nashville chicken burger was the delicate breadcumb coating which, in addition to some decent heat, was nicely complemented by the gentle tanginess of the burger sauce.

And though the breast of poultry was a large piece, it was a little on the slim side making it chewier than it should have been. Not bad though.

Drip Box – Drip Double Patty Burger, Nashville Chicken Burger, Parmesan fries, Curly fries, Mac & Cheese, 2 tenders, 2 wings, 2x Drip sauce, £25.99

Their signature Drip Box is quite the monster with plenty included from a beef and chicken burger, to an assortment of fries, Mac & Cheese, tenders and wings, and inhouse sauces.

The curly fries were quite magnificent, having been cooked in high heat to a crispy finish. The parmesan fries were good too. All in all, a very good box!

Roulette Drip Box, £14.99

While the parmesan fries in this Roulette Drip Box were underdone, the soft pulled brisket topping was pleasant enough.

But it was the wings and tenders that impressed, with the barbecue glaze being thick, sticky and quite delicious. We were informed that Drip are in the process of introducing parmesan wings too.

Donut Mix – 4x assorted donuts, £5.99

This box of donuts certainly looked the part. And while all the flavours were accounted for, alas, all four turned out to be a little doughy on the inside despite being beautifully light and crispy on the out. Almost there.