Pearl’s Diner
Dinner Review
Casual Americana
I have regularly spotted the Burger Theory truck in many locations around Adelaide’s CBD and recently at the Fork on the Road Festival, however I had never experienced their food due to massive line-ups so I decided to do so by visiting Pearl’s Diner, their permanent home in Felixstow. After a long round of golf with Nick, I knew that I had built up an extreme hunger, large enough to warrant gorging myself on an array of tasty treats from their menu.
As Athena, Nick and I gathered at the front of the quaint and modish diner in the back streets of Felixstow it became apparent that it was already a busy night. Knowing that bookings aren’t accepted, we approached the counter at 7:10pm and were advised there would be a 15 to 20 minute wait as we were 3rd in line for a table. Agreeing and taking a step outside to avoid the growing bustle of punters gathering in the diminishing waiting space inside, droves of people continued to roll in and add their names to the list without too much concern or displeasure.
By 7:20pm we were offered a table outside which we accepted with famished appreciation. Looking over the menu I was somewhat surprised that there were only 2 carnivorous burger options listed along with a kid’s burger, mushroom burger as a vegetarian option or 3 buttermilk fried chicken wings with coleslaw. There were, however, also a couple of sides on offer such as a single serve buttermilk chicken wing, fries, coleslaw or 14-hour smoked Berkshire pork bun. With all of our stomach’s growling with expressions of interest in a large meal, we quickly decided on the following and ordered at the front counter:
Athena: Burger #1 - Beef patty, lettuce, tomato, American cheese and truck sauce served with fries. A pork bun petite starter.
Nick: Burger #1 - same as Athena.
Myself: Burger #2 Beef patty, onion confit, pancetta and blue cheese sauce served with fries. A serve of 3 buttermilk fried chicken wings with coleslaw. A pork bun petite starter.
Our order was taken and we were advised that there would be about a 20 minute wait with the chicken wings taking an extra 10 minutes. Subsequently they also checked if we would like it to arrive all at once or as it became ready; engulfed by burger-licious jealousy of those already eating around us we knew our stomachs would devour us before we waited for the entire order and agreed on a stepped meal.
After 15 minutes we were delightfully surprised with the arrival of our trio of pork buns and greedily scoffed the petite starter. The pork had been pulled apart into tender strings then coated in a sweet spiced sauce and served on an extremely light, fresh and buttery glazed bun. The pork was slightly overdressed by the sauce which unfortunately drowned the flavour of the meat itself but still left you licking your fingers so as not to waste a drop. My immediate afterthought was that I would love to see the main size option served with slaw.
Now that we’d had a taste of the fare that was to come, we were like ravenous dogs awaiting our next feast. As our Burgers were placed in front of us our eyes lit up, almost as wide as our smiles. I tucked into the first bite of my blue vein burger that was contained in a Hong Kong style toasted sweet roll and it was nothing like I’d expected - it was better. Most people would cringe at the thought of eating blue vein cheese and even though I personally love it, the flavours were far mellower as a sauce than as a wedge on a platter. The indulgent creaminess and richness didn’t overpower the rest of the burger and the combination was complemented well by the onion confit. The chips were a welcomed side, as my tastebuds did require something to break up the flavour but I was soon longing for another bite of the burger.
The buttermilk chicken wings arrived while I was still eating and were piping hot, so I saved them until the end leaving a little time to for them to cool before chowing down. Taking my first bite into the wing there were three distinct textures; firstly the crumbling crunch of the skin, followed by the soft tender meat and finally the juices that almost oozed down my chin. On closer inspection it was a relief to see that the juice was all flavour rather than the usual grease ridden drool from some fast food outlets. The wings were served with a wedge of lemon which gave the chicken a fantastic zesty zing and some of their creamy trucker sauce. The bowl of coleslaw was also a great accompaniment with a slight tangy saltiness.
For those who happen to have a sweet tooth, ‘La Waffle’ also operates from the premises and offers Belgian waffles with a selection of 3 toppings (cinnamon sugar, maple syrup and vanilla ice-cream or Belgian chocolate and vanilla ice-cream) as dessert. Although I was too stuffed from the 3 savoury courses to order my own, I was lucky enough to try some with maple syrup, which when mixed with the aroma that resonates from the waffle irons inside it has you ahh-ing in approval over the crusty soft batter treat.
Feeling more than content with the meal, it was clear that Pearl’s Diner is already a huge hit, not only with the hoards of passionate and devoted Burger Theory fans, but also with suburban locals and random Adelaidian’s looking for that something a little different. Although there may be some wait times and the turnover of tables in peak periods is a smidgen slower than some customers may hope for, it soon becomes obvious why the droves of people are continuously flocking through the doors; great food, friendly staff and a funky environment. There is no doubt you will have a ‘Pearler’ of a time dining here.
Average Menu Pricing
Main $11.00 - $15.00
Sides $4.00 - $7.00
Dessert $5.00 - $9.00
Drinks $3.00 - $6.00 (restaurant isn’t licensed to serve alcohol at this point)
Where: 38A Briar Rd Felixstow 5070
Trading: Wed – Fri 5:30pm – 9pm, Sat 11:30am - 3pm and 5:30pm - 9pm, Sun 11:30am - 3pm
Website: pearlsdiner.com.au
Contact: (08) 8165 2448
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Facebook: www.facebook.com/pearlsdiner
Twitter: @pearlsdiner
Photography by Darren Richards
