A venue that brings the best of street food burgers, fried chicken and cheesecake could be coming to the Coventry, Nuneaton or Bedworth area later this year.
Few Midlands foodies will need an introduction to Urban Cheesecake. The company, born out of the Whitestone restaurant in Nuneaton, has grown into a formidable brand that tours the country’s food festival and street dining scene.
Two years ago, the Urban Cheesecake team dipped deeper into their restaurant roots to launch Filthy Burgers and Filthy Fried Chicken.
The two street food brands were born out of the Filthy Butties project that turned heads on social media, and are now popular additions at Herbert’s Yard and Dockworks Waterfront – both run by Digbeth Dining Club – as well as at the McArthurGlen designer outlet village in Cannock.
The beating heart of the operation is Tony Jackson, who has now set his sights on bringing a permanent base to run alongside these nomadic, touring brands.
“Nothing is signed and sealed yet,” said the Bulkington resident. “But we have been looking for a premises where we can bring the best of Filthy Burgers, Filthy Fried Chicken, Urban Cheesecake and potentially Filthy Butties too.
“It’s a really exciting time for the team and it will return us to where it all started for us – serving food from a restaurant. But we’ve got all this experience and developed our products so much over years on the road, seeing the best of street food and tasting it for ourselves.”
So how does a cheesecake connoisseur turn his hand so seamlessly – and successfully – to becoming a burger king?
“We knew that between us we could offer a good savoury offering,” Tony said. “From being on the road and participating in so many events, we knew the trends, we knew what was good, what was working and what wasn’t, what people wanted and how not to be a busy fool. There’s lots of things you learn along the way.
“At the time, at Digbeth Dining Club, there was a lack of burger traders. When we started two years ago, smash burgers were the thing everyone wanted and tended to have the biggest queues at events. It’s a simple product when it’s done really well – starting with a really good meat patty and working your way up.
“Digbeth Dining Club said they had lost a couple of burger traders and asked if we’d be prepared to switch from butties to burgers. Because we had a fried chicken element in Butties, we just separated into Filthy Burgers and Filthy Fried Chicken – both of which tend to be popular trends at food events.
“We offered a simplified menu. Some traders have menus you could stand there all day and read. We just want three or four things done really well. It’s the same with the chicken – we don’t overcomplicate it, we stick to a couple of things and do them well.
“That is why DDCstyle stuff is the level we want to be at. You can make big money at festivals, but it compromises your quality and standards – it becomes a case of just getting it out.
“That doesn’t work for our products. We’re not desperate to get into festivals. Trying to smash a thousand burgers in a day at a festival means corners need to be cut, and that’s not something we want to do.”
Filthy Burgers has already had several successful ventures into the region, with popups at Poplars Farm Shop and the Coniston Tavern in Nuneaton, to name just a few.
Their reputation is growing online too, using the foundations of their hugely successful Urban Cheesecake brand to diversify into a new area.
“When burgers were in their infancy, when people realised we were the same people, it gave them confidence,” Tony explained. “It works alongside it differently. Burgers and cheesecake is a pretty good combination. We can do the two together quite well.
"Urban Cheesecake is so streamlined now – what we used to do with three staff, we can do with one without changing the quality or process.”
Excitement is now building among the team as they move closer to setting up permanent roots in the region. They hope to make an announcement soon about the next major step for the business.
While Tony could not reveal where the Filthy Burgers branding will be installed, he was willing to share the secret to a good burger – and it’s more straightforward than you might think.
“It is a simple thing, but very easy to get wrong,” he said. “You’ve got to start with a really good beef patty. With our butcher, we have moved around different meats. We use brisket and chuck in ours and it tends to be 20% fat.
“We didn’t invent it – plenty of places have tried and tested that over the years. It’s a very flavoursome patty with enough fat to keep it juicy. Because it’s smashed, the days of pink burgers are numbered – it’s not what people want any more. We have a smashed patty with simple salt and pepper seasoning.
“And then we use a good baker – we use Baked in Brick – so we use a really good bun and don’t overcomplicate the rest of it. We want simple but good. We want to taste the meat, taste the cheese, and have a good bun that holds it all together.”
Want to keep up with the latest What’s On news in Coventry and Warwickshire for all the news on upcoming events, restaurant openings, family attractions and more? Sign up to our free email newsletter here.
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.