There are certain foods that invite gluttony, that relish in the mess they create across your hands, face, arms, and the table. BBQ springs to mind, with juicy, sauce-laden ribs, and hunks of luscious meat. But the king of the gluttonous foods, a food that can never (and should never) result in a clean plate or face, is the burger. Fat Hippo, an already legendary burger institution outside of London, has some of the filthiest, messiest, dirtiest, burgers around. And they’re pretty proud of it: “The good kind of gluttony – that’s our motto”. And now they’ve opened up a restaurant in Shoreditch, so Londoners can also get filthy with the best of them.
Hailing from Newcastle Upon Tyne, and starting back in 2010, Fat Hippo is the kind of place you can mention to a Northerner and see their eyes light up. And it’s sure to be a welcome arrival for Northerners in London as much as for the Londoners themselves. Their locations span 15 restaurants, and a fleet of trucks and kiosks. You’ll find them all across the UK, ranging from Bristol to Newcastle (obviously) to Liverpool, Edinburgh, and more. And we’re thrilled that they’ve finally decided that we need a bit of the Fat Hippo too.
On the menu at Fat Hippo
Serving up “good old fashioned, roll up your sleeves and get it all over your face” food, they pride themselves on their filthy fries, adventurous burgers, and exceptional sides. They’re not content to just serve up one type of fry as well, with diners able to choose from a variety of potato delivery mechanisms: we’re talking tater tots and waffles fries as well as the old standard. And the burgers are just mad.
Their signature burgers include the PB+JJ which loads a double cheeseburger up with chunky peanut butter, bacon jam, and smoked chilli jello, and the Honey Monsta, a monstrous combination of two beef patties topped with American cheese, a buttermilk chicken piece, smoked bacon, pink pickled onions, Fat Hippo sauce, and hot honey. For the vegans they’ve got five burgers to choose from, with many of the sides and drinks also either coming vegan as standard or able to be made vegan. Among the vegan burgers is the Notorious VFC 2.0, a southern-fried plant-based chkn piece, loaded with waffle fries, vegan cheese, lettuce, pickles, BBQ sauce, and zinger mayo. To cap it all off, all burgers come with a side of free hand-cut chips as standard.
Plus, if that somehow isn’t enough, on the side you can get their famous beer battered cheese balls, Frickles (fried pickles), Wachos (a waffle nacho hybrid), wings, and more. And all that’s not forgetting the drinks and deserts, which are just as indulgent (and blur the lines between the two). Alongside their own beers (like the Fat Hippo IPA and the Fat Hippo Hillbilly Lager), they also serve up Naughty Slushes and Shakes. The PB+Jack, for example, blends up Jack Daniels, peanut butter, honey, and vanilla ice-cream for a truly decadent shake. And you’re sure to see their exclusive black vanilla soft serve ice cream all over London Instagram accounts soon. Blended from almonds and cashews, it’s a Fat Hippo exclusive, created for the brand by vegan soft-serve makers DÀPPA.
Take everyone!
Thanks to a plethora of vegan options, and a ‘build-your-own‘ kids menu for the little ones, Fat Hippo allows anyone to partake in the filthy goodness. As an added bonus, they’ve got some incredible deals to keep your wallet safe even as they ruin your favourite t-shirt. A burger and fries can run as little as £8 until 4pm. Meanwhile their ‘Hippo Hour’ (from 5 – 6 PM on weekdays) nets you two courses for £15 and three courses for £17.50.
So roll up those sleeves, maybe grab a poncho, and head on down to Fat Hippo.