Munch: Platform 145

A feed for fuck-all

By the time this issue goes to print, Wellington will again be going feral for chunky sandwiches. Every pub, cafe, and ferry terminal will be scrambling to serve their own Wonky Bonky Baby Burger—a 60-centimetre tall monstrosity, made with the mince of a steer called Jeremy who was fed on a stash of Snickers Pods—topped with beetroot, banana, and a relish of wild dandelion root picked under a new moon, in an Arobake brioche bun. 

No, I jest. A midwinter festival to get people out and sampling the culinary creativity we have in Pōneke is great. There’s just a slight air of overblown pomp; I don’t want to have to book a seat two weeks in advance to have a burger! Luckily, there’s still plenty of places where you can walk in and order a saucy hunk of meat between two halves of an Arobake brioche bun. I will have a Munch through the cheapest Burger Wellington offers later, but today, we’re at Platform 145.  

Platform 145

What: 2-for-1 Korean fried chicken & burgers. 

Price: $18.00+ ($9.00 when split between two people). 

When: 11:30am – 9:00pm, Wednesday. 

Good to split, glorious to keep to yourself. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Having just railed against burger elitism, it does feel hypocritical to present a meal deal that technically starts at $18, especially given the findings of Dan Moskovitz’s poll in Salient Issue 16 that eating out still feels unachievable for the majority of students. I hope I’m making some difference to that perception, by cataloguing the best and worst meal deals around. 

Of which this is one of the former. On Wednesdays, that $18 can get you two burgers, with fries and slaw, at effectively $9 each. Take a friend, a partner, or a date who won’t mind seeing you smeared with sauce. 

Platform 145’s 2-for-1 deal applies to all their spicy meals, which is most of the burgers, half of the fried chicken meals, and half of the share plates (bone-in only). These come with fries or rice, and salad or pickled radish. If you ask very nicely, they’ll even let you swap in their vegetarian option of fried cauliflower, which is about a dollar cheaper than the chicken. 

I ordered a Kiwi Spicy Meal, one of the mildest options, and a vegetarian Hush Burger, with mid-level spice. Crucially, none of these were spicy at all, which makes this deal much more accessible. Maybe I got lucky, maybe subbing in the cauliflower meant I dodged some chilli marinade, but I didn’t notice any burn throughout the meal. The Kiwi fried chicken was piping-hot in temperature, however. Beneath a dry double-fried exterior that shattered at first bite there was steaming and tender chicken which came away in silky pieces from the bone. The meat itself was flavourful and juicy; the batter lightly spiced and not greasy. This was fried chicken made with care and attention; an absolute delight to eat. 

The fried cauliflower was also impressive. Some florets were charred and the trunk was a little soft, but the majority was delectably crunchy. It wasn’t as moreish as the chicken, but held its own both in and out of the burger. You definitely get more value with this: a cauliflower steak is much bigger than any piece of chicken. The rest of the Hush burger was tasty, although too sweet for my taste. There was a lot of caramelised brown onion and pickled red onion—as well as roast capsicum and some garlic—all in a bright orange, sweet-chilli burger sauce. 

The sides were mediocre: spineless fries and sticky white rice, and a coleslaw very heavy on the garlic. But they were useful to pace out my meal with, like a palate cleanser before I dived back into another fried drummette. 

You can easily get two decent dinners out of this deal and go halves with a mate, both the chicken meal and the burger were equally filling. However… you could also eat it all yourself, like I did. Not a very economical option, but Platform 145 wins for being the first restaurant in this column that I have waddled home from, a little more rotund and a lot more satisfied. 

Am I talking shit or shit-talking your favourite restaurant? Or have I overlooked a place that readers really need to know about? Send me something to chew on at: guy@salient.org.nz.