We here at The Corporate Lunchbox having been hitting the burgers reasonably hard over the past few months in search of Auckland’s best burgers. Big J’s has been solid in the number one spot and continues the set the bar, but we recently found another hidden gem tucked away in Northcote that’s a contender for top spot.

While The Flaming Onion may sound as harsh as an Alf Stewart rant, our experience with these burger specialists was far less dramatic.

The exterior resembles that of most neighbourhood takeaway stores, modest and unassuming. But there is something special going on at TFO. Make sure you’ve got a decent amount of time if you’re coming from the CBD. The Flaming Onion’s location is not ideal, but as with life it’s all about the journey, not the destination.

Like Big J’s they offer a Burger of the Week – the BBQ Beef, which our review team ordered. Fans of the Burger King Rodeo Burger will rejoice, the BBQ Beef burger was a bigger, more badass version of the Rodeo featuring crispy battered onion rings, angus beef, bacon, cheese, as well as BBQ sauce and mayo on an impressive bun.

The beef patty was juicy and flavoursome and the bun to beef ratio was superb! I was a huge fan on the toasted sesame bun, in fact I would go as far as saying it’s currently the best burger bun in Auckland.

This burger is not for the faint-hearted, it’s formidable in size and weight and more greasy that a Home & Away antagonist. Nevertheless it was thoroughly enjoyable and deserves our respect.

While there was some debate among the review team, there was one thing that limited it from outscoring Big J – it was so close! The Flaming Onion’s prices are a little steep. It cost the review team $16 each to get a burger, a can of soft drink and chips to share, not to mention fuel costs for getting across to Northcote. It wasn’t bad in terms of value, but it was at the higher end of the scale.

Upon further reflection, it may have achieved a better result with a different burger. The Burger of the Week was a nice twist on the BK Rodeo and high quality ingredients made for a delicious burger, but it was lacking in creativity and innovation. It was a typical combination of ingredients.

Those two criticisms aside, The Flaming Onion is still one of the finest burger makers we’ve sampled and needs to be tried by burger enthusiasts. The friendly staff deliver high spec and heavy weight burgers that will satisfy even the staunchest burger critics.

Overall rating: 7.5/10

• Location: 4
• Value: 7
• Service: 9
• Quality: 9
• Environment: 6
• X-Factor: 8.5

The Flaming Onion, 1 Lydia ave, Northcote, Auckland