Honest Burgers champions traceable ingredients and inventive menus while scaling its footprint and pioneering fresh formats
Honesty and traceability are at the heart of Honest Burgers’ business model. As such, the company makes its burgers from scratch in its own butchery, which means they can be served promptly while still pink and juicy. Moreover, Honest Burgers goes to local farmers to source the finest British potatoes for its chips, which are triple-cooked and flavored with rosemary salt. Constantly innovating, the brand reintroduces its exclusive festive burger each year, consisting of a fried poppyseed camembert wedge paired with cranberry sauce, smoked streaky bacon and rocket. Matt Brandon, Chief Executive Officer, reflects on the company’s history and its latest initiatives.
“Honest Burgers was founded by two friends, Tom Barton and Philip Eeles, who started out in the industry serving burgers out of a marquee in a field. They opened
their first store in Brixton Market about 13-to-14 years ago, and it is still operational today. Since then, we have grown the company significantly with a current footprint of 42 stores, two of which were opened within the past month.
The core principle of our brand has always been to serve exceptional food. In line with that, we are known for the quality of our offerings and our outstanding sense of hospitality, as we encourage our team members to be themselves, engage with our customers and provide a memorable dining experience. We have always firmly believed in delivering good value by charging a reasonable price, and that is why we include a portion of chips with our burgers. This way, there are only good surprises for our customers,” he begins.
In terms of geographical presence, Honest Burgers currently boasts 32 stores in London, with the other ten located outside the city. Additionally, the company has recently completed a deal to acquire 12 Gourmet Burger Kitchen (GBK) stores, which it is in the process of converting. Thus, the number of stores is expected to change as three more locations will be opened by the end of the year, with an additional five launching in early 2026. Each Honest Burgers location is designed to reflect local culture and preferences, including through the offering of a unique burger and beer option.
“Every Honest Burgers location features a local burger, which is a key part of our proposition. We collaborate with the team at each restaurant to come up with a new burger that is made from ingredients sourced nearby. Such ingredients could include cheese from a local cheese cellar or other unique items specific to that location, ensuring that customers can enjoy a truly exclusive offering. Similarly, we partner with small breweries to serve local beers in each of our restaurants. To support our research and development efforts in developing these special offerings, we have a small test kitchen, though the majority of the work is done in collaboration with the local team and the valuable input from our head of food,” Matt continues.
Limited-edition offerings
Introducing unique burgers to its customer base has been central to Honest Burgers’ enduring success and reputation in the UK. Matt tells us more about some of the more recent burgers the company has created to delight its guests. “In addition to offering an exclusive local burger at each restaurant, we also feature a rotating Special Burger every six weeks, showcasing a variety of unique flavors. At the moment, we are highlighting our Christmas burger to celebrate the holiday season. Our Christmas burger has gained a lot of popularity over time, and it is a fun favorite that we bring back every year. While it essentially remains the same, we make slight tweaks to it each time, as we strive to adapt to current trends. Likewise, we recently introduced a California burger that resonated well with our customers,” he describes.
Unique and limited-edition burgers, along with other offerings, drive interest in the Honest Burgers brand and fuel its growth. Recognizing this, the company is committed to reinvesting in its facilities and capabilities, as exemplified by one of its latest initiatives. Indeed, Honest Burgers is actively working on a project to upgrade its central prep kitchen. While it may not be a well-known fact, one of the defining qualities of the company, and what makes its burgers ‘honest’, is that Honest Burgers makes all of its own burger patties, chips, and the vast majority of its relishes and sauces. This commitment to quality is the primary reason behind the company’s current focus on upgrading the central kitchen facility where these items are produced. The construction is expected to begin at the start of next year, with the upgrade anticipated to take approximately ten months to complete. Once built and operational, the new facility will enable Honest Burgers to scale its operations and give it the capacity to support around 100 stores, whilst maintaining its ‘made in house’ principle.
Customer commitment
Other significant developments underway include the launch of a new quick-service restaurant (QSR) format. Matt sheds light on the motivation behind this new concept and how it differs from the company’s existing restaurants. “The main difference in our food proposition is the focus on the Smash Patty, which consists of a slightly thinner, crispier burger that we brought into our restaurants more than two years ago now. This brand extension concept is centered around this popular burger and so far, it has sold exceptionally well. These have the added benefit of taking less time to cook than our traditional burgers so ultimately enhance our speed of service. This allows us to deliver the quality that is synonymous with our core restaurant, whilst opening the competitive set to Quick Service Restaurants, unlocking more occasions for our guests to enjoy our burgers. From a customer experience perspective, the format is also more technology-friendly, which allows us to use kiosks as ordering points, something we do not have in our existing restaurants,” he ends.
As Honest Burgers continues to evolve, its commitment to quality and innovation remains the same. By embracing unique local offerings and enhancing its manufacturing capabilities, the company is not only diversifying its menu but also creating better connections with its customers. Furthermore, the launch of the new format represents a strategic move into the QSR sector, demonstrating the company’s willingness to adapt to changing consumer demands.