A merry little chicken salad at Grill'd

As far as burger joints go in Perth, Jeremy and I love to try new places and new menu items out when the cravings for a burger strikes. We don't often go out for this food type, but these days when we do, we've been returning back to an old favourite, Grill'd.

So you can imagine it was a bit of a pleasant surprise when we received an invitation from Grill'd to check out their new store in Leederville. With all invitations I get I usually do consider them to determine if they align with how I run my blog and am upfront in all communication that I will be honest in my blogging. I think it's important having this kind of disclosure, and in telling anyone reading this that I was supplied a free meal - but as you can see from previous visits in the links before, I genuinely like this burger franchise.

Grill'd seems to be dominating the market these days, but with their extensive menu and program of supporting local organisations, it doesn't surprise me in the least. I like their style - fresh, relatively healthy and simple. Not a genius formula but a winning one it would seem.

Jeremy and I had set out to the new Leederville Grill'd on Saturday for lunch. We're immediately welcomed as we step foot into the less than one week old store, by both a friendly staff member who passes us each a menu as well as the airconditioning which is so lovely and cool. It's 40 degrees on this day so we're both drained from the heat, as well as the impending Christmas shopping we need to do.

We introduce ourselves to Oscar, who is hosting us for lunch that day. He's relocated over from Queensland to look after this new flagship store and has a mean moustache that rivals Tom Selleck's. It's pretty impressive!

Oscar is great at having us feel welcomed in the store, and he's really informative in telling us about the direction of the decor in this particular branch. It's great to see how they've let the architect basically go with what they think will work best, making good use of the open space. There's plenty of dining space for smaller groups as well as larger communal areas.

There's also some gorgeous artwork on the walls which we're told was done by a local artist, Lara. It's all bright, funky and a nice difference to the other Grill'd restaurants I've visited.

After a bit of chatting Oscar leaves us to look at the menu, perusing the options. There's so many to choose from, and I have to refrain myself from ordering my go to lamb burger with goats cheese and hummus. All in the name of my blog right!

Jeremy chooses the Hot Mama ($15) which is grilled grass fed lean beef, roasted peppers, dill pickle, tasty cheese, tzatziki, salad and harissa paste. He's offered the option to have it hot or extra hot, and while he loves his chilli, he goes for the former given the weather is hot enough!

The panini bun is lightly toasted, the beef inside tender and juicy. Jeremy's quite impressed with the flavours, and though it comes out with the cheese unmelted, the heat soon has it gripping to the other fillings enticingly.

The only downfall is that in a bid to be overeager and look after diners, his plate is cleared with a couple of bites left of the burger. A bit of a pain since we both like to eat in a way we call "saving the best for last" - leaving a great bite to finish the meal on. But at least there were some yummy chips still to snack on!

We choose to share between us a regular serving of their Hot Chips ($4.80) with a Sweet Chilli Mayo chip dip each (70 cents per dip).

I love Grill'd chips. They're cut thick and are well seasoned with salt and rosemary. When you combine them with that deliciously zingy sweet chilli mayo, they work so, so well together. I am a very happy camper when I get to eat these chips - they've never disappointed me yet.

While the burgers are great here, I decide to try the Chicken, Pomegranate & Goats Cheese Salad ($14.90). I've had my eye on this the last couple of times I've gone to a Grill'd, so it was an easy choice. It looks gorgeous, and reminds me of Christmas in the colours displayed. 

There's grilled chicken breast, black & white quinoa, Meredith Dairy goats cheese, pomegranate, almonds, mesculin and raspberry & poppy seed dressing. 

As far as salads go, it's quite complex and at first I think it's too sweet but the more I delve in and mix the ingredients together it works really well. Meredith Dairy is the brand of goats cheese we stock our fridge with at home, so it's extremely appealing to me here - creamy, soft and moorish. The texture of it is a nice contrast to the crunchy nut slivers and the pops of sweet, juicy pomegranate. 

All up, it was a delicious meal on a hot day - one I would have happily paid for, which is a win win situation for sure! There's stiff competition in Leederville, with Jus Burgers and Burger Bistro also in close proximity, but I have no hesitation in saying that I believe Grill'd will thrive here in one of the most popular suburbs of Perth.