What Makes Three Buns Tick?

By the time this post gets published, I'm pretty sure most of you reading this would have heard of or tried the phenomenal new burger place in Jakarta.

It has been a smooth sailing first few months for Three Buns, with the long queues, perpetually crowded place, rave reviews, positive publicity in social media as the 'it' place in Jakarta. It snatched instant fame for various reasons, which I can summarize as follows (based on my personal observation):

- Buzz: Within first few days it opened, several prominent food bloggers and social media influencers in Jakarta already raved (positively) about it.

- The concept: semi self-service gourmet burger joint and bar, order at the counter, wait for your number to be called and you bring it to your own table.

- The venue: unusual, like an amphitheater, it is shaded but open air, with several standing air conditioning, ceiling fans and plenty of plants.

- The price: IDR 125,000 for a piece of burger may seem pretty outrageous for a semi self-service and casual place like this. I know some people wouldn't even flinch if it was served at some fancy prancy restaurant instead.

Three Buns is the latest brainchild of Potato Head Group (Potato Head Beach Club Bali, Potato Head and Potato Head Garage), which was recently open in Jakarta's current gastronomy hotspot - Senopati - and is soon opening in Singapore.

The Place

Every inches and corners of the place spells h-i-p-s-t-e-r. I have been here several times and it sure does not resemble Jakarta much. I'll let my photos do the rest of the talking.

The Menu

As a burger and cocktail place, the menu is not overly complicated, for food there are Burgers, the usual Sides (chicken wings, coleslaw, fries) & Dessert. Staying true to its name, you can expect to find quite varied alcoholic beverages in the form of frozen slush, bottled or fresh cocktails and on top those, there are home made sodas, wine, spirits, beer, water, coffee & tea.

The Food

So what's my personal take on the burgers? The gourmet burgers are not ordinary for sure, so much I can say. Comparing Three Buns' burgers with those from fast food joints would be a major insult.

The ingredients (meat, patties, sauces, etc) are freshly made daily. You can opt for lettuce wrap instead of a bun (good news for those one protein only diet). Portion wise, it is enough for two girls to share, I strongly recommend so, especially if you want to save some space for the fries, chicken wings and dessert.

I must concede that the Naughty Fries is indeed an addictive sinful indulgence. A basket full or crispy, twice-fried fries drizzled with generous sauces combination of Korean gojuchang, spiced béarnaise, beef chilli, crispy shallots, parmesan & sesame seeds. Gotta eat with your fingers so you can lick it clean at the end! Another recommended side is the Wings-Its in other words, chicken wings served with hot sauce, scallions and smoky BBQ sauce. Try the Pot Heads dessert (if you still have room in your tummy), creamy cups of either Rich Chocolate (seriously thick & rich) or Zesty Lemon (boldly sour). 

 To satiate your curiosity, I'll share what each burger looks like and you judge if they are appetizing.

Naughty Fries with spiced bearnaise, beef chili, crisp shallots, parmesan & sesame seeds IDR 45,000

Honky-Tonk - Soya milk fried chicken, coleslaw, lettuce, hot sauce & den miso mayo IDR 100,000

Rambo - 150 gr lamb patty, feta, green chili, eggplant pickle & cumin aioli IDR 120,000

Baby Huey  - Prime 150 gr beef patty, cheese, lettuce, ketchup, pickles & spiced mayo IDR 95,000

Left: The Roots - vegetables, cheese fritter, coleslaw, lettuce, pickles, hot sauce & mayo IDR 95,000
Right: Burning Man - Prime 150 gr beef patty, cheese, roasted jalapeno relish, hot ketchup & dashi mayo IDR 110,000

Four Floors - Double prime 100gr beef patties, double cheese, triple onions, lettuce, pickles, ketchup & den miso mayo IDR 125,000

Big Krabby Kane - 110gr breaded crab patty, curry mayo, pickled chili, coriander & crisp onion IDR 110,000

The Price

Now, the price has been the argument topic of many, with mostly saying that it is exorbitant for a burger. I'd like to remain neutral on this issue, because affordability and worth is highly relative from one person to another. However, considering objectively the value of the ingredients (premium patties, crafted daily, original recipes from an experienced British chef, generous amount of gourmet sauces, etc) and other 'unseen' efforts that goes behind the concept, let's just put it this way: Thee Buns is a luxury. If I can afford it, I should not complain about the price because it is worth it, but if it costs beyond my daily allowance, of course I will save it for a weekend or special occasion treats.

So what do you think? Are you curious to try it out now?

*) Prices are subject to 5% Service Charge and 10% Government Tax

**) Photos without my watermark are courtesy of Davy Linggar
***) No delivery, no reservation, but take aways are available

Open Hours: 11AM - late

Three Buns Burger & Cocktails

JL. Senopati Raya No. 90 (a few buildings after Cacaote)

Kebayoran Baru - South Jakarta

Ph: +6221 29307780

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