Durban - According to Big 7 Travel, Smokin’ Joe’s Gypsy King burger has been voted the 12th best burger in the world.
The survey took in burgers from around the world, including many of the best from the US, looking at issues like value for money, consistency (Google and critic reviews), innovation, atmosphere, location and accessibility.
Not only was Smokin’ Joe’s the best in Africa, but it beat the only other South African burger joint on the list, The Dog’s Bollocks in Cape Town, which came in at number 34.
The overall winner was Royal Stacks in Melbourne, followed by Midcity Smashedburger in Portland, Oregon, and Burger Geek in Auckland. Sweden, Buenos Aires, St Paul, Minnesota, London, Rome, Ontario and Berlin fill the top 10.
Owner Yusuf Bassa said the result came as “quite a shock”.
“We were on the list in 2019, somewhere in the 60s, so we’ve moved up a bit in the past few years.
“It’s great to put Durban on the map. You see all those other famous cities on the list, so it’s pretty cool to be there,” he said.
Bassa started Smokin’ Joe’s at Musgrave’s rooftop night market.
“I had trained as a chef but never took it up and then decided to make my own burgers for the night market and it grew from there. We opened first in Musgrave Road and then at bigger premises in Problem Mkize Road.”
A keen sports and boxing fan, Bassa said the name of the now-famous burger joint was a tribute to the great Joe Frazier.
“Although, my nickname is Joe,” he said. “So it all came together around a boxing theme. Many of the burgers pay tribute to boxing greats.”
He’s proud of the fact that everything is made in-house. “The prime beef is ground daily. We make all our own sauces. Everything is fresh and made from scratch. And I want to make sure we keep up those standards. So the pressure is on to stay at that level,” he said.
Among the list of congratulations on his “knockout” from many satisfied customers on his Facebook page is a plea: “Please open in Joburg.”
More than 1.5 million people from 60 countries take surveys for Big 7 Travel and vote for the best travel accolades worldwide. South Africa has featured in the past, including being the 5th most “Instagrammable” country in the world in 2019 and for the Kruger Park and Cape Town being listed in the top-50 destinations to visit after the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Independent on Saturday