leonard's house of love

the best nights start out with spontaneity. we walked in on a busy saturday night and were lucky to get a table. i ordered the southside chicken burger. the burger was simple and hit the spot. thegoodnews is that they didn't try to do too much with the burger which was appreciated. the restaurant can get a little loud so probably not the best place for a deep and meaningful.

go for the beers, stay for the food, then stay for more beers. then roll home and sit on the couch in your jocks, happy as larry. 

this is my favourite bar in the south yarra/prahran/windsor area for multiple reasons, however purely talking food, i'd vote this the best cheeseburger in all of melbourne. if you like your burgers simple in ingredients (think patty, cheese, sauce, pickles, lettuce and bun), yet rich in flavour, leonard's is it. it's perfectly right. and roughly the same price as a pint. 

the rest of the menu covers all of the other american style comfort food you could want, such as loaded fries, mac n cheese and fried chicken, all of which are highly rated, however make sure you arrive with an empty stomach, or even better, a hangover, as this food isn't for the faint hearted. best to get a few dishes and share, then wash it down with a pint or five. 

great vibes andgoodtimes.

great vibe! big courtyard. tried out the spicy dog, connie island dog, southern fried chicken burger, double cheeseburger and chicken fries between a few of us. all were super tasty! the sausages had a great snap! fried chicken was super crispy.goodneighbourhood joint for a quick bite and social drink. love the old school cabin feel, super cozy!

one of the best cheese burgers i've had in a loooong while.. most are forgettable i mean there'sgoodand then there's reeeeeal good!! sogoodthat you are planning the next visit after you've just gobbled it down! without touching the chips!!!

yupz thus was my experience at leonard's ... ordered the double cheeseburger! the patties were juicy and cooked medium rare with chargrilled bits on the edges! not salty. i mean it was simply burger heaven perfection yum!! it's your greasy type with a brioche that was not heavy and managed to hold the whole thing together. the sauce used 'special' was spot on! it's mayo based and once infused with a mouthful of everything .. the american cheese the pickle the sauce the patty and the crunchier patty grit ..... wooooah!!

usually by two mouthfuls i'd reach for the chips already in most places.. but not at leonard's i just couldn't get enough of it. we had the bbq chicken chips which actually had bbq chicken breast in it. we weren't interested in it after the burger cus we wanted more burger. had to begrudgingly finish off the chips. i think if it wasn't there we'd be emoted to order another burger!!!

my first and second apartments were both in south yarra. but in that time i had never made it to leonard’s house of love. i definitely heard the noise, and saw the back part of the kitchen. this made me think the place was at least a little bit ‘grungy’. and now that i’ve tried it, it’s definitely grungy, but agoodgrungy with amazing burgers to match.

the decor here is really cool, and the pinball machine is agoodaddition. we came on a tuesday night and it was fairly busy. however, the service was stillgoodand we were approached quickly for drink and food orders. the food came promptly. got the popcorn chicken - it was freakin' delicious. burgers were also good, (hash double cheeseburger and diner cheeseburger) but in the single cheeseburger we found that the patty was quite thin although there was an awesome sauce ratio (i'm really into condiments). we also had the broccoli and almond salad which was good, but we weren't given a knife so the giant broccoli trees were rather difficult to eat. 
it would be great to see a more adventurous range of beers/ciders, maybe tapping (tapping...geddit?!) into local microbreweries? 
atmosphere is rad. would fo' sho recommend.

my chicken sandwich was asgoodas any i've had. it was just really good. my friend said his double cheeseburger was awesome and juicy. our other friends said their hotdogs had great snap, best they've tried in melbourne. this is a funky little joint had an awesome playlist, 60's rock! and a cool mountain cabin hipster vibe.

awesome spot for a quality burger. went here for my birthday on recommendation from a friend and it did not disappoint. small menu but this is usually agoodsign that they know what they are doing and trust the food they are serving. burgers were so flavorful and juicy, thought mine was underdone but was so wrong - never usually have as pink but loved every bite. the fries and gravy were also super delicious not to mention the popcorn chicken which the kids smashed. great atmosphere with a laid back vibe. my only complaint was parking, but it’s chapel street so to be expected. will be back for sure!

4.0 very good

we got in early (like real early 5:15pm) and it was already bustling. seating is mostly outdoors which we didn’t mind as it was quite humid. table was a bit sticky so i guess they could do a proper wipedown before each seating. we knocked down a pint or two of some local ipa before deciding to order some food. we were allocated a seating bracket of 90 minutes which was fine for us given the type of quick burger and beer arrangement they were going for.

we got a burger each, i had their southern fried chicken burger which was properly seasoned with a bit of mildness to it. crispy and juicy with a rasher of bacon andgoodole american cheese made it a salty meal perfectly washed down with your beverage of choice.

we also had some sides to share, we particularly enjoyed their cheese and gravy fries with the meaty feels paired with a more mild cheese to not overpower it. the cheese wasn’t stringy which can be an issue with loaded fries as it can set and clump up. i can’t turn down their onion rings and they were good, constructed well (though some stuck together), not too heavy on the batter nor too oily. mac and cheese was basic but nice and stringy.

when our time expired we walked out to see a line of 20 or so patrons lining up. it’s a very popular spot especially in summer and is a dog friendly venue.

located just off the famous chapel rd, was introduced to this place by my friend.

tried their famous burger & it absolutely blew my mind, sogood& satisfying 🍔

🗓 visited in april 2018

leonard’s has somegoodfried chicken. their spicy chicken wings are actually spicy and dressed in some tangy, smokey sauce (potentially worcestershire sauce - not too sure). their sides are prettygoodas well: the chicken loaded fries and mac n’ cheese were well balanced, while the curry coleslaw could’ve been a bit less sweeter.

in terms of environment, the venue is a dark, rustic bar full of old memorabilia. it can get quite crowded in there, but the service is pretty decent. however, like most old bars, it does smell like old alcohol which is a bit of a turn off.

mozzarella balls, mac & cheese and nachos. i mean what’s not to love. it’s proper drinking food. treat yoself.goodvibe, music and crowd.

leonard's has all your friday favourites. agoodselection of burgers but really everyone goes there to get the fried chicken burger. and all the usual suspects for sides, chips, tater tots, onion rings the lot.

great place for a team lunch or for some drinks on a friday arvo.

best cheeseburgers in melbourne! fried chicken isgoodtoo.goodatmosphere. waiters/ waitresses are generally great. every now and then you get one that seems completely disinterested in their job and acts like it's a chore to serve you, but most are great.

been here couple of times.. love the atmosphere here and the ambience. just what you need sometimes. live music, chilled beer, games and little something to eat and agoodcompany! sometimes it gets too crowded but overallgoodexperience so far!