Thomas Bedlam* wants you to forget everything you think you know about what a burger is as he creates gastronomic burger masterpieces at the Bowerbird Cafe from the Mid-North Coast tiny town of Comboyne.

‘The corner store burger is a bit of a tradition in Australia’ says the man who goes by the name Thomas Bedlam*. Grill a meat patty, add some lettuce, tomato, onions and beetroot. Pop it on a toasted white bun and you are done. ‘One with the works’  adds a pineapple ring, an egg, bacon and cheese but Tom believes a burger can be so much more. His ‘Bowerbird Cafe’ challenges perceptions on what the word ‘burger’ means in terms of taste and experience.

Comboyne may seem like an unlikely setting to start a gourmet burger bar but the rich red local soil is famous for producing stunning beef cattle and incredible produce all within arms reach of the scullery door.  Perhaps not so unlikely after all.

Bedlam started out on a quest to make the best cheeseburger. He moved quickly onto a Korean Barbecue Burger with Kimchi (Chinese cabbage fermented with garlic, pepper, salt and ginger) and hot sauce. What followed next has returned many a reformed burger addict back into the fold.  The names are somewhat familiar but the interwoven flavours are unique and sublime.

Bedlam explains….

‘I kinda get bored and just think - what new burger can I make today? - It’s all about building layers of flavours that go together’.

The menu board is heavy with North American influences but it’s flexible and it crosses state lines like a vagabond crossing the street. Louisiana's famous Po' Boy, the NYC Reuben Classic Sandwich and Florida's Cuban Sandwich. The names dance across an authentic ‘specials’ blackboard in white chalk. BBQ Brisket gets a look-in too (Bedlam roasts all his own meats) but there are also vegetarian options like a Roast Veg Sandwich and a slight deviation ‘Pesto Pasta’.

‘I get people in here looking at my list of burgers and I might have like, five burgers on the board and people come in here and say ‘don’t you do a normal burger?’ and I’m like ‘what’s a normal burger?’.

Luckily no one takes offense and Bedlam delights in cooking ‘off-menu’.

‘Sometimes I have a conversation with a customer and then I make something up just for them on the spot’.

Bedlam is quick to admit that this interactive, tailor made burger experience is only possible thanks to his wife and partner Eve.

'Eve is responsible for all the styling and cakes and day to day running of the place, I just flip burgers really'.

Bowerbird Cafe is comfortably busy most weekends. Ambient, yet not so busy that you feel crowded or you are waiting too long for food. People like to come for a drive into the country and it's stunning and surprising countryside. When the rain falls and the grass is green, the plateau is reminiscent of Cornwall, England except for the warm sunshine which gives the game away.

During the week, Bowerbird Cafe is host to small bus tours, motorcyclists and RV visitors from Wauchope touring up the mountain on day trips.  Aside from the day to day running of the business, Eve curates a collection of interesting finds which are displayed for sale around the cafe. Hence Bowerbird.

Meanwhile, a sparrows flutter away in Elands is Ellenborough Falls, one of the most magnificent falls in NSW. The  641 steps down to the bottom help most folks to work up an appetite.  Then there is the stunning Boorganna Nature Reserve - one of the founding nature reserves in the country, Boorganna Nature Reserve was established in 1904 and is a pristine paradise. There are a lot of good things to see in the district.

Thomas says people are often surprised to find such a modern dining experience so far off the beaten track (it’s actually only 15 - 20 minutes off the Pacific Hwy West at Kew or 30 minutes from Wauchope via Byabarra) but once discovered, Bowerbird Cafe is a place you will return to again and again. The food is so good it calls you from your sleep.

UPDATE: Bowerbird closed in October 2017 due to the building being listed for sale however Thomas is looking for new premises. Stay tuned. Burgers like these are worth waiting for.

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