One bonus about Brisbane’s festivals and events is you’ll often find a food truck parked there. On the cheaper side, typically tasty and full of atmosphere, Brisbane food trucks are not to be scoffed at. However, there are some, like Bill’s Burgers’ bus, which are set up to be scoffed in. Australia’s only double-decker burger bus, Bill’s Burgers makes for a fun little experience when you can catch it in town.
I discovered this wandering food bus in the City Botanic Gardens, as I was there with my family for the Botanica exhibition. However, Bill’s Burgers wasn’t the only food truck in town, as just across sat El Corazon, which I’ve been keen to try. Nevertheless, it was Bill’s Burgers’ double-decker charm that won me over (quite easily actually) and my son was eager to sit up top.
The atmosphere
We arrived at night and Bill’s Burgers’ bus was like a party, as they were pulling a crowd. There were people just staring at the bus, people lining up to order, people waiting for food, people picking up food and people in the most desired state, scoffing burgers on the top deck. The top deck seats up to 30 people.
It was like a hierarchical system and we slowly stepped up to the next tier until we too, were scoffing at the top of the Brisbane food trucks. Unfortunately, I was only there for a little bit as we’d brought our dog and my partner and I were taking turns sitting with our 12-year-old. The top deck was packed and it was nice looking at the action of Botanica in the City Botanic Gardens.
As you can see from my video (at the end), it’s a pretty open kitchen as you just walk past it and up the stairs. Apart from being a novel experience, having an exposed kitchen ensures cleanliness standards are maintained. Perhaps because of this, Bill’s Burgers boasts a 5-star Brisbane City Council Eatsafe rating, which is the best of the best.
Brisbane Food Trucks – Bill’s Burgers’ food
Bill’s Burgers’ menu is pretty colourful, like its bus. Of course, this is in the world of burgers, with choices such as Son of a Bill – an Angus beef patty with aged cheddar, pickles, lettuce, tomato, onion, house ketchup, aioli and Bill’s special sauce. Then there’s the Kill Bill – a double Angus beef patty with double streaky bacon, double aged cheddar, pickles, lettuce, tomato, onion, American mustard and Bill’s special sauce.
Fun fact – I used to be a chef, I consider myself a foodie and I’ve been a pretty staunch pescetarian for the last 25 years. I’m just not big on meat other than seafood, although I eat pretty much everything else. However, as I’m a fan of culture and experiences over my dietary preferences, I’ll be adventurous when called for.
Tonight, Bill’s had completely run out of Vegeta-Bill (their veggie option). So, having to write this review, I opted for Bill’s Chick – a golden panko crumbed fried chicken breast with aged cheddar, pickles, Bill’s special sauce, slaw & chipotle mayo. I also ordered a side of chips, onion rings and my partner and son ordered Bill the Kid – which is an Angus beef patty with aged cheddar, pickles, house ketchup and Bill’s special sauce.
Our thoughts
To be honest, even though I haven’t had a chicken burger for about 25 years (no kidding), it tasted the same as I remember, except very ordinary. There wasn’t much flavour and my partner said the same about her burger, and she’s a regular beef eater. However, my son was a big fan, loved the bus, and as he’s a chip connoisseur, he rates Bill’s Burgers’ chips quite highly. My partner also liked the chips, but I personally thought they were average too and their onion rings were lacklustre.
Brisbane food trucks aside, for a similarly-styled but better experience, head to Remy’s in Paddington. To be fair though, that Kill Bill sounds pretty killer. I mean, if you’re gonna go you may as well go, right? If you’ve had a Kill Bill and loved it, let me know in the comments.
Go for: the atmosphere. Bill’s Burgers lured us in with its double-decker fun bus charm.
Vibe: new-aged alfresco hillbilly.
A few fast facts
- Bill’s Burgers has a sound system on board, although I don’t remember hearing it.
- The bus caters for corporate events, weddings, birthdays and school events, to name a few.
- Bill’s Burgers’ bus travels around southeast Queensland to festivals and parks. You can find out where its current location is via its Instagram page, here.
