Saturday afternoon we caved in to Gourmet Burger Kitchen at The Avenues. Although the food court was jam packed, we got our table within minutes at GBK, and with the usual chant of ‘good afternoon sir, maam’ we were seated in.

First impressions, GBK is well placed, post-modern style furnished, and the joint has good seating arrangement inside. The cheerey server brought us the menu. Didnt take more than a couple of minutes to decide what we wanted, as they have a limited variety, and as the speciality goes, 90% menu is burgers only. We ordered for Chilli beef burger and Chicken Avocado burger with coke as drinks. We were under the impression that the dish would cover atleast the fries, but they had to be ordered separately. KD 1.000 per serving..bad move. Even cheese is optional..duh. We asked for sauce [not ketchup] and even that cost extra 200 fils.

Burgers in GBK are served in fresh baked buns and the patty/fillet is prepared fresh, so thats a good thing. They have open kitchen area sealed off by glass walls so you can have a look at your burger getting prepared. Servers are great, and would suggest options in case you are not sure about which burger to opt for. Although service seemed a bit slow.

In came the fries [minimal serving] in a bowl, and the extra sauce [serving size tiny] served in disposable plastic cup! Another bad move. Drinks were served. After about 10-15 minutes the burgers got served, cut in half [as requested].

The burger itself was quite delicious full of juicy patty, well done, and the bacon strips add a great flavor to the entire serving. The burger taste was sumptuous full of deep flavors and richness of meat to bite into. Although the serving size did not justify the price tag KD 2.650. One can compare the burger size to McDonalds double cheese burger. The only reason GBK burger would look bigger is that its presentation rather than substance. The burger bun though fresh, still lacked the enticing factor. Half way through the meal, I had finished my drink, and the server was kind enough to offer the refill, which I gladly accepted. The catch is that the refill is not on the house, they charged me full price for the drink. Good for me I had only one refill. I felt this as a misleading business practice and I should have been informed of this.

Overall the steep price tag of KD 5.000 per person for a burger meal does not go well with the offering. I rather drop by at CheeBurger, McDonalds or Burger King for my next burger meal where I would pay half the amount and would get drink and fries with a burger double the size of GBK burger.

Rated [rate 2.5]