Photo: Shahrear Kabir Heemel

Food carts have always been a staple of our street culture -- even beyond the chotpoti and phuchka stands there were carts doling out freshly squeezed aakh er rosh in the summer, colourful iftar offerings on modified thelagaris during Ramadan, etc. But over the past year or so, enterprising people eager to capitalise on the latest culinary trends have slowly but surely begun to challenge the notion that a restaurant has to be of the brick and mortar kind. What this has done is reduce the barriers to entry to the restaurant business, and now with a substantially smaller investment food enthusiasts can explore their ideas and therefore introduce elements each of them think have been missing from particular dishes; all the more for us foodies to be happy about.
Leading the way are the burger carts that can now be seen offering their wares to those with a hankering for flavour and variety. Each of them offer something unique to their adoring and faithful customers.
Awesome Burger
This hitherto alien concept -- a burger shop out in the open -- first entered foodies' newsfeeds (not just of the FB variety) last year in the form of H&B's Awesome Burger. Situated in the alley beside Westin Dhaka in Gulshan-2, at first this mobile joint must have aroused suspicion as it advertised the availability of high quality burgers out of a cart by the side of the road. But soon it gained a reputation for being one of the most interesting burger joints in Dhaka.
It is interesting because it offers numerous toppings to already delicious burger patties, and makes the whole burger-eating experience a customised one, much in the impromptu spirit that a food cart espouses. You can choose to add jalapenos, pickles, mushrooms, cheese, beef salami or an egg -- or if you are adventurous of mind, tongue and tummy, you can always choose a burger with everything on it. They also offer hot dogs. Since it is a mobile shop that can change location, it is best to call them (01710990950) before making your way to one of their Dhanmondi, Banani and Bailey Road outlets.
Wow Burger

Photo: Shahrear Kabir Heemel

Entering the cart market as a competitor of the aforementioned, Wow Burger threatens to leave behind all in its wake. Such has been the success of the carts in Banani (the road beside Sajna on Banani 11) and Dhanmondi that they have now graduated to having their own outlet inside four walls on road 8 (Plot 2, Block D) in Banani.
The reason for this fast ascent is that they managed to carve a niche for themselves by introducing new flavours to their burgers. They claim to be the first in Bangladesh to offer flavoured patties; till Wow Burger, eateries used to offer flavour variations in the form of condiments and add-ons. Wow Burger goes a step further in offering burgers like the London Garlic Burger and the Mexicana Spicy Burger that have flavoured patties. The latter is especially alluring to the Bangladeshi palate, for which the food often tastes better the spicier it gets.
The egg, pickles and jalapenos can be added to your burger for Tk.20 each and at Tk.30 each you can add mushrooms and a cheese slice, while the beef salami can be placed between your patty and bun for Tk.40.
New kids on the block
Hot on the trail of these two pioneers others have descended on the streets to grab a piece of the burgeoning street food market. The road beside Abahani maath in Dhanmondi plays host to Cheese & Burger. This cart offers myriad flavours through the use of condiments that the menu proclaims as 'savours'. Top among these is the Tom Yum Burger, which brings to the burger the Thai flavour that has become such a favourite among Dhaka foodies. Also worth a few munches are the Grilled Bar-B-Q Burger and the Peppery Mexican Burger.
Also in Dhanmondi, near Drik Gallery on the corner of Road 26, is parked a cart by the name of Munchies Republic. The specialty of this burger joint on wheels is that they offer pepperoni as a filling on their burgers, and anyone who has licked their lips at the thought of a pepperoni pizza should zoom their way over to Dhanmondi 26 come evening time.
Last but not least is a stand on Dhanmondi Road 27, beside Ciao Bella. Cause it's Better Grilled is perhaps the best-looking cart of them all and boasts a simple but very effective menu. In common with their counterparts, there is a rich offering of toppings but what sets them apart is the grilled flavour of their burgers, particularly the All-American BBQ burger which combines BBQ sauce, mustard and mayonnaise in just the right balance.All these joints have in common the option to customise their burgers, but each is unique because they bring to the fore their owners' ideas of how the burger should be enjoyed, and so enrich the options available to us. Above all, they offer the rare combination of lip-smacking burgers at low prices, so burger enthusiasts can fill up to their hearts' content.

The locations of Awesome Burger and Wow Burger carts can be found by visiting their respective Facebook pages.