Eating (Burgers) Around the World with Hard Rock Cafe

If someone mentions a Burger Tour, is there really any question as to whether or not you’d want to participate? Of course not. And with a long-standing restaurant like the Hard Rock Cafe heading this tour, you know it’s going to be good. 2016 marks the second time Hard Rock is hosting their World Burger Tour, and the details are enough to turn anyone into a burger fan.

From now until June 30th, you can drop into a Hard Rock Cafe to taste the flavors of the world without even needing to leave the country! Of course, if you’re a fan of traveling for the sake of satisfying your taste with flavorful world-fair, Hard Rock Cafe has an option for you, too. The restaurant chain has paired with global experience agency RPMC to craft a 10-day travel experience that includes stops at iconic cities in Argentina, Greece, and England to get the full flavor experience right from the countries’ kitchens. Here’s more info on the travel package if you’re interested in a burger-fueled getaway!

But what’s this about tasting the flavors of the world without leaving the country, you might ask? Well, the stateside Burger Tour allows those without a passport to indulge in an impressive list of burgers that chefs from around the world were able to create to best represent their cities.

“Legendary Local Burgers” on the limited-time World Burger Tour menu include culinary creations to take your taste buds to London, Honolulu, Buenos Aires, Greece, and more! Luckily for me, I got to take a little trip to a few of these delectable destinations… And let me tell ya, every bite was a taste-filled adventure!

My taste buds took off headed to Mumbai, India to savor the Tandoori Chicken Burger, which was a tandoori seasoned chicken burger topped with delightfully light mint mayo, crisp cucumber, iceberg lettuce, tomato, and monterey jack cheese. The mint mayo on the burger and on the side really made this meal special!

Next on my tasting tour I got to sink my teeth into the English Breakfast Burger–if you needed an excuse to eat a burger before noon, this dish is your ticket! From London, England, this Angus patty was topped with sliced ham, a sausage patty, a fried egg, a portobello mushroom, arugula, and garlic aioli. Along with fries, the side included baked beans, which was interesting, but I wasn’t complaining!

Next stamp on my palette pleasing passport was the Jamaican Jerk Burger, from none other than Montego Bay, Jamaica. If you like the balance of Jamaican fruit and jerk seasoning, this sandwich is for you! The Angus patty was topped with banana pepper rings, mango jalapeño cream cheese and jerk mayonnaise, a simple combination that made for fireworks on the tongue. The complementary cocktail created to match this meal was called All Jacked Up. It was a mix of Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey and Whiskey, Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum, PJ, Orgeat and lime juice, and garnished with pineapple and orange wedges. The name sounds very fitting for this whiskey and rum drink! Dare I say… It would be Jamaican me crazy. 🙂

Last stop was back home in the good ole’ U-S-of-A for a little lot of West Coast flavor. The Java Lava Burger hailing from Seattle cooked the city’s coffee fame into burger form. The beef had an espresso rub, but it was then offset with some spice: jalapeño lava sauce. Topping the concoction was melted cheddar, java onions, arugula, tomato, and a deep-fried jalapeño for that final kick. There was also jalapeño lava dipping sauce in case you needed more heat. Although I didn’t try it, there was also a crafted mocktail pairing called the Black Cherry Melonade, which was Black Cherry Real, Monin Cucumber, and ginger beer to complement the burger’s rich espresso flavor.

Since there was a lot on the menu, I wasn’t able to try it all, but I did get to sip a couple of the cocktail pairings! The two I tried were the Crisp Sipper and the MelonPalooza. The Crisp Sipper was made to go with the Aloha Burger (Honolulu), which combined Hendrick’s gin, Monin Cucumber, lemon, orange, and raspberry, topped with tonic. It was so tasty, and I can only imagine how it’d taste with the Aloha Burger, which is topped with a grilled pineapple, SPAM, sweet soy glaze, pico de gallo, and guacamole. Yum!

The MelonPalooza was mixed to complement the Greek Burger (Athens). It was sweet mix of Midori Melon Liqueur, Malibu Rum, Hard Rock’s house-made sour mix and PJ, garnished with slices of pineapple and strawberry. It made sense that this lip-lickin’ sip would be perfect with the simplistic and fresh Greek Burger, which was just an Angus patty topped with arugula, feta cheese, and a tomato slice.

If burger season has you craving a tasty twist on the old classic, head to your nearest Hard Rock Cafe for a bite into one of these (and more) creative flavors. It’s good to shock your taste buds every now and then, and when there are cocktail pairings just nudging you to try something new, it’s hard to decline! (Trust me.) 😛

Remember, this special #WorldBurgerTour menu is only available until June 30th, so get going!!!

Oh, and if you’re just as obsessed with burgers as I am, you’re gonna love this! I’m giving one lucky reader some fab Hard Rock Cafe goodies to up your grill game and make this summer super hot! The *gift pack will include a branded oven mitt, apron, and spatula! Here’s your chance to be a #BurgerBoss a score the ultimate BBQ gift set!!!

Simply leave a comment below to enter! The winner will be chosen at random and notified by email on Sunday, June 19th.

*The information, gift card, gift pack and giveaway have been provided to me by Hard Rock International. Contest open to US residents only.