'It started at the pub': Meet Canberra's burger blogger Zac Jerrim

A Canberra man has turned his love of burgers into a side hustle after a video of him reviewing a burger went viral.

It began when Zac Jerrim went to his local pub, Gorman & Co in Googong, for dinner and ordered a wagyu beef burger and a fried chicken burger.

Zac’s wife, Charlotte, decided to film him as he ate the burgers and reviewed them. For fun, Zac made an Instagram account, @_all.aboutburgers, and posted the video on it. It went viral overnight.

Zac was so inspired he decided to try a different Canberra burger joint each week, based on recommendations.

Now, just over a year later, the 27-year-old calls himself “a modern-day burger prophet” and has an almost-endless list of burger places to try.

“It started as a bit of a joke between friends where we said we should try some burgers around Canberra and review them,” Zac said.

“After going to the pub in Googong, my wife and I decided to post the video she took, and by the time I woke up my followers had gone up by 100.

“We then thought, oh, maybe there’s actually something in this, and continued to create content and post it.

“It took off really unexpectedly and now we’ve tasted somewhere between 60 to 70 burgers in just over a year.”

Besides the fact that his dad was a chef, Zac doesn’t have much of a background in the food or hospitality industry – he just knows a good burger when he tastes one.

Zac first came to Riotact’s attention as a contestant and then bronze award winner in Australia’s “Most Ordinary Rig” competition, which begs the question – are burgers part of his strict training regime?

“It’s like our cheat meal for the week,” he said.

“We’ll go mainly on Wednesdays as we find it to be quieter and our inspiration and thoughts on where we go comes from the Instagram.

“Each week we will make a post saying ‘Where should we go?, ‘Where do you guys want to see us try a burger next?’ and we base it off what the followers want to see.”

The burger enthusiast said his wife always films his videos and sometimes other food bloggers join him as he goes to taste different burgers.

They include Sydney food blogger Issac Martin, also known as Isaac Eatsalot or Sir Eats-A-Lot, @Phaturday_Cbr and Canberra-based food podcasters from Served!.

When it comes to what makes a good burger, Zac said for him it was the quality of meat and the buns.

“Those two alone can make or break a burger,” he said.

“If the meat and the bun are dry, then it’s not the best eating experience. I also prefer a smash patty over a traditional hamburger-style patty which is often quite thick.

“With toppings, everyone has their personal preference but, for me, if you’ve got raw onion, pickles, mustard and tomato sauce, then you’ve got yourself a pretty good burger.

“My ideal burger would have a potato bun with a smash patty, topped off with melted American cheese, raw onion, pickles, tomato and mustard sauce.”

Zac said after trying more than 60 burger places in Canberra, his top five are:

• ‘Papa McCheesy’ from Little Theos Take Away Food & Pizza Bar
• ‘Kevin Bacon’ from Hungry Brown Cow
• ‘Double Cartel Cheeseburger’ from Soul Cartel Cheeseburger
• ‘Sweet Baby Jebus’ from BZB Burgers
• ‘Polo Escobar’ from Hungry Brown Cow

Although Zac only reviews burgers as a hobby, he said the experiences he’s had have made him appreciate a good business.

“I’ve learnt that a lot of businesses that tend to offer say 20 burgers can’t manage to get them all right, whereas when I find a place that has four or five burgers on their menu, they seem to taste much better,” he said.

“Charlotte and I are just having a lot of fun at the moment and we haven’t really thought about a goal for what we want to do with the blog.

“The plan is to just continue eating good burgers and making content for the moment.

“We feel like everyone enjoys a good burger and we’re on a mission to find the best burger in Canberra, so that other people can experience them as well.”

To find out where the best burgers in Canberra are, visit Zac’s Instagram.