A review of Butta Burger, a burger bar in Lister Square

I was a regular to Butta Burger in Lister Square in time for my first visit. Friendly staff were pleased to finally meet me, or gave a convincing suggestion thereof, and showed me where my regular table was, which I had never been to before.

How did this happen? Since it opened on Lister Square, some of my family had been going to Butta. Not the first Butta in Edinburgh, but a new one for the area and absolutely the first burger joint my parents ever became regulars of!

True, my folks have been using it as a wine bar and not as a burger bar. But, they are frequently going! And, as is their way, had become known to staff.

On my second visit, the upstairs area wasn’t open, but that’s where my elderly parents felt COVID safer, and so Butta’s staff let us go up.

Butta Burger’s Food

I’ve now been to Butta and see why my folks like it. I’ve always used it as a burger bar, never as a wine bar, which means I’ve not yet tested their hotdogs. This feels like an oversight as hotdogs are now the first choice of many of my family members.

My youngest brother is veggie, and he can always find something to eat from Butta’s menu. My mother makes frequent cooking requests or alterations to the menu and, so far, Butta has always been able to oblige.

I recommend the Truffle Chick. This is a chunky burger with fried chicken and truffles. I hadn’t tried truffles before, haven’t been able to try them anywhere else, so I am poorly equipped to comment, save to say; I like the salty, hints of spice, crispness that they bring to the Truffle Chick.

I’ve liked all the beef burgers I’ve tried at Butta too, all perfectly balanced and cooked, but I think you need a side dish with all of them. Butta’s beef burgers aren’t stodgy, they’re pleasantly hot and light, therefore wolf down quickly.

I’ve talked about hotdogs and burgers, beef, chicken and veggie options. However, I think treating a trip to Butta as a trip to a burger joint is best. Or a wine bar. Treating the visit or bar as anything broader in terms of food invites disappointment.

Butta Burger’s Service

I’ve only ever had quick and attentive service.

The caveat is that nothing less than this would have been accepted by my frequently visiting parents, and so Butta’s staff would absolutely have been prewarned that this group of locals does not like to hang around.

However, the fact that those high demands have been met and that they’ve been met so well my folks are now regulars are enough to reassure me that being quick and attentive is the rule, not the exception, at Butta.

Since we chat to staff at the burger restaurant and talk about their own histories and lives, I know some have fine hospitality training. You can tell.

The chef at the top of the food chain at Butta is Chris O’Connor, and they spent 5 years at The Balmoral’s ‘Number One’, so, yeah, is a heavyweight. It’s not a surprise to find service at noteworthy levels.

Butta Burger’s Atmosphere

It’s hard to describe Butta because it does seem to sit between worlds. The time of day you visit makes a difference as younger crowds seem to sandwich the early and late hours, bringing their own vibe with them. Families turn up in the middle.

You wouldn’t ever classify upstairs as anything other than a reassuringly clean comfort food venue. That’s often precisely what I want.

The ground floor is sexier, and we’re back to people coming here for drinks and a blather in a fashionable locale with the food added as a bonus.

If I’m going to pick some atmospheric constants, I will go with phrases like; clean, professional, switched on, modern and competent.

Overall

I like my family trips to Butta Burger, the food and how well we’re looked after.

I really can’t imagine going to a fast food joint if a 30 minutes walk would take me here. So, yeah, Princess Street, you should take note! We’re yet to see how the venue does being so close to The Meadows when summer comes too.

This Butta is on Deliveroo, too.

I just wish the beef burgers filled me up a little bit more. Maybe if they were 20% larger and perhaps, on my next visit, the hotdog will fill be butta.