I only heard about this place because of a Buyclub offer, but was intrigued at the prospect of brasserie-eating in Carouge - not to mention the fact the website was pretty classy, so looked promising from the start. It isn't quite what you expect upon first arriving - the brasserie is housed at the bottom of a not-so-pretty housing development close to the giant Migros multi-shop area in the part of Carouge that is not the delightful, cobbly part of Carouge most people associate with Carouge. However, the restaurant makes up for all this with a contemporary, spacious look and an atmosphere that was buzzing when we arrived. For starters, we went for malakoffs and squid. Both were tasty and generous. The one observation was the fact that the online menu suggested they had mini arancini for starters, and when I asked the waiter, he seemed to think I was crazy. Something BdT might want to look into... Although the burgers looked good, we went for entrecote (husband's choice) and I went for the house tartare - tartare de boeuf des Tours. I may not be a total tartare connaisseur, but I have had a few in my time. This one threw me. The seasoning was good, but the beef came in chunks rather than minced and had a strange chewy texture that was not a winner. The chips were chunky and portion was decent, but the problem was they were dry and lacked seasoning. My friend ordered a burger without chips, but got given chips anyway. To rectify this, she was given a big dish of cooked vegetables, which was well-cooked. Dessert was ok - cafe gourmand came with some strange desserts, although the moelleux au chocolat was pretty rich it seemed. All in all, the meal was average and would have been costly without the Buyclub offer. However, I would say that should you ever happen to be shopping in the giant Migros park, you could do worse than to stop by here for a burger...

OK, so technically this burger joint is not in Switzerland, but it is so good that it can't be ignored. Furthermore, it's in Ferney-Voltaire, which these days is practically metropolitan Geneva, so well worth the inclusion and what's more you can get the bus there too. We first heard of Mr Tutu through a very well-informed foodie friend who invited us to a dinner party at Mr Tutu. 15 of us arrived at a reserved table (note the capacity is practically no more than 30) and were greeted with welcoming and super-personal service from one of the founders (I think). Although it took a while to get burgers to 15 people, they were well worth the wait. I selected the 'chilly willy' (full marks for inventive names), which at €14, was actually one of the more expensive burger menus. It comes with jalapenos and onion rings and was just delicious. Great patty, delicious fillings. For me though, the fries were the highlight. Seasoned with chipotle and other spices - according to the server - they added a whole other element to the meal. The salad came separately prior to the burger meal, in a fashion similar to THF, and was generously covered in dressing, French-style. All in all, a seriously delicious burger meal. Other small but important details - artisanal beers alongside other beers such as Asahi were available, which always makes dinner more interesting. Things to note - definitely reserve and only plan on Friday night or Saturday night if you want burgers as that is the only night they serve them; in the lunchtimes, they do hot-dogs - which sound pretty amazing too (although be prepared to contend with hordes of the local international school kids on weekdays). Definitely heading back for another visit soon - €20 well spent and well worth the 'trek' into the dark French side!

If you read food reviews of cool places to eat in Lausanne that won't break your bank balance, the Great Escape comes up pretty much every time. Styled as a 'pub' that does delicious burgers and other 'pub grub', the place is located in a really central location near the Cathedral and had intrigued me for ages as another burger joint to try out. I wasn't disappointed. From stepping into the pub, you already feel transported to London or some other city that actually has decent pubs - the decor is easygoing yet classy - exposed brick, slightly sporty, and the tv screens showing Premier League football isn't a bad thing either! The staff are young - practically students - and friendly and multlingual. You order your food at the bar (pub-style) and it comes out pretty quickly. I ordered the standard 'Classic beefburger' and potatoes, which comes with ketchup and a nice touch of gherkins too. Honestly, the burger was OK - not anything amazing - but the bit that made Great Escape a bit different was its home-style potatoes (thick potato slices) fried in herbs and superbly well-seasoned. A highlight. The salad in the burger also somewhat resembled a rustic coleslaw, and all in all the burger meal was pretty pleasing and not too heavy on the stomach. Once you order a drink of your choice, you end up paying about CHF 20, which to me, is more than reasonable in Lausanne. A hearty meal in a pretty cool atmosphere while watching the football (and they even switch sports channels if you ask nicely!) Only downside for me was that when I got the bill at the bar, I was inexplicably paying CHF 2 extra - marked as 'consigne' (?), which I can only perceive to be a cover charge? Not so English pub-like there.... great stop though for a fun meal with friends if you're looking for a reliable place in central Lausanne.

Holy Cow sprung up around the time I moved to Geneva in late 2011 and has gone from strength to strength, more recently opening up a branch near Cornavin, and with branches in Lausanne, Zurich Rouen and Lille (?!). The constant flurry of customers is a good sign to me; whether it be students or professionals, it always seems pretty packed. The menu is a generous offering of chicken, beef and veggie burgers and has a fun, quirky presentation to it. The price of a menu is extremely good value – at CHF 19.90 you can get a very tasty burger, a generous portion of country-style chunky chips (with skin-on) and a refillable drink. The burgers are packed with flavour, with cool fillings like Mexican salsa, avocado mash etc, the chunky chips are piping hot, crispy on the outside and soft on the inside and their refillable syrups (in four flavours such as raspberry or elderflower) are perfect for fluid guzzlers like my husband. Only down side is that the buns are a little glazed and sweet, which I find a bit strange as I prefer the savoury, sesame seed ones you would usually find. In any case, I think Holy Cow is a very dependable joint, when you get tasty, filling meals for a bargainous price in useful locations like Plainpalais and Cornavin. A great addition to the Geneva / Lausanne eating scene.

Some friends took us to the truck in the Sunday market in Plainpalais to try out this burger place, which has since opened a branch (proper sit-down restaurant) in Paquis, to much acclaim. I had the bacon cheese burger menu – there wasn’t much to pick from as there were only 4 or 5 choices – and have to say I was pretty underwhelmed. After waiting for ages, the burger that came out was a flaccid little burger that reminded me of a McDonalds cheeseburger in terms of size and presentation. The fries were the skinny French fries and the portions were pretty slender too. Although you could get a meal with drink for around CHF 20 (or just over, from my recollection), I have to say that I was pretty uninspired and couldn’t quite understand why THF is such a hit amongst quite a few of my Geneva friends. I’ve also recently tried the Paquis flagship restaurant more recently, and found the burger menu (which comes with a rather sad-looking side salad) to be just how I remembered it from the Plainpalais stall – i.e. just not really something to get excited about! Note the local beers on the other hand, are pretty good.