MEATliquor

MEATliquor started life as a burger van. The MEATwagon cooked American-style burgers on the London street-food circuit, built a cult following, and in 2012 turned into a permanent restaurant near Oxford Street: dark, loud, covered in graffiti-style art and serving cocktails in jam jars.

It helped change what Londoners expected from a burger, trading gastropub brioche and relish for messy, mustard-fried patties, American cheese and diced raw onion straight out of American roadside diners. The Dead Hippie became the burger people crossed town for.

A handful of restaurants in London and other UK cities.

• Bunsen (Ireland, since 2013). The Irish burger bar with a menu that fits on a business card: four burgers, three kinds of fries, done perfectly. Also built on beef, cheese and a double stack.
• Franky's (Sweden, since 2014). A Stockholm burger bar that began as a tiny street grill, home of Sweden’s best classic cheeseburger. Also built on beef, cheese and a double stack.
• Bastard Burgers (Sweden, since 2016). A New York–inspired street-food burger chain from Luleå, in Sweden’s far north, with Swedish beef and a big vegan menu. Also built on beef, cheese and a double stack.
• Pasibus (Poland, since 2013). Wrocław’s food-truck burger brand turned Polish chain, with freshly ground beef and cheeky names. Also built on beef and cheese.