Times are tough. If you need proof, pay a visit to Jo Burger in Rathmines, where Russell Brand, recently canned by the BBC for that phone prank, is working tables, hoping that the paps don't rumble him.

Saturday afternoon and there's a birthday to celebrate. Ellie is nine, and wants a burger and chips, so it seems like a good idea to check out Jo Burger, which has just won the People's Choice award in The Dubliner's 2009 guide to the city's 100 best restaurants. A call
establishes that they don't take bookings so the six of us show up and hope for the best. The place is hopping but the first tranche of the family is seated almost immediately and there's no hassle from the staff while we wait for the second batch to arrive, despite a queue.

The place probably seats about 60 and seems to be looked after by only three wait staff. Rather amazingly they are calm and cool, in both senses of the word. They smile plenty. Our girls covet the waitress's bright yellow skirt. Seating is on benches at long, communal tables. The décor is funky and eclectic. We like it a lot. The punters are a mix of twenty-
somethings feeding last night's hangover, jocks loading up on carbs, and families,
although Jo Burger doesn't provide
high-chairs, effectively ruling it out as a venue for those with kids who haven't yet mastered the balance thing.

We did not cover as much of the menu as perhaps we should have done because no-one was willing, on a first visit, to pass up on the
opportunity of one of the legendary
burgers to themselves. There are lamb and chicken and veggie burgers, as well as the beef for which we all opted. (One quibble – "barn-reared" chicken doesn't mean anything in my book; it's no
indicator of quality or good
husbandry.) There are also "big salads" for those who just don't do burgers.

But why would anyone not do a burger, when the promise is to deliver "a great-tasting meal from only the highest quality ingredients… [to use only]
ingredients delivered daily to maximise freshness [and]... that burgers are made from the highest quality organic beef''? Jo Burger also promises never to play the Cheeky Girls, which shows a commitment to high standards in all aspects of their operation.

Burgers are offered in a boggling number of permutations, served either with a breton bun, toasted tortilla or nude with extra salad leaves for
carb-phobics. Between us we covered the Molestane (peanut chilli sauce and coriander), the Phiri (red-onion
marmalade and rocket, with added smoked applewood), the Pimville (fresh salsa and avocado, with added bacon), the Dube (three slices of bacon and
relish, with added smoked applewood), the Mapetla (beetroot and horseradish, salad and rocket) and a Plain (prices ranged from €8.95 to €12 per burger).

We loved the fact that Jo Burger
allows the customer to choose how they want their burger cooked – albeit with a health warning if you opt for rare or medium rare. We shared three orders of fabulous bush fries (€3.95), a crunchy ruby slaw (€3.95), a selection of dips – roast garlic, harissa, Thai, pesto mayo and satay (€3) and two bottles each (we were
celebrating!) of Sicilian and raspberry lemonade. Every last morsel disappeared – and the portions are only huge!

Russell, by the way, is an
excellent waiter. Super-charming to adults and kids, with a memory of elephantine proportions, able to retain the myriad Meg Ryan in When Harry Met Sally
ordering quirks of a demanding family. These days he's going by the name of JOe (geddit?) Macken, and masquerading as the proprietor of a burger joint.

Our bill for six came in at €127.60 to which we added €25 for great service. This is excellent value for high quality crowd-pleasing food. Jo Burger is
opening soon in Blackrock, in what
was the old Wicked Wolf. We can't wait.

Jo Burger

137 Rathmines Village, Dublin 6

Tel: 01 491 3731

Rating: 4/5