I must admit i was a little apprehensive about this little hole in the wall pub.  I had never really heard anything about it and with a grand welcoming courtesy of a ground floor awash with pokie machines – you may understand why I wasnt jumping at the opportunity to get in there and see what it was about. Nevertheless, the appeal of the burger and beer deal was quite tantalising – so we proceeded forth to the first floor, a cosy dining room that looked like it was stuck in 1992. Somewhat amusingly, the music seems to have been courtesy of the same era (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing). The kitchen, we noted, was about the same size as one of the glass elevators in the myer centre. Given the number of items on the menu, this was an impressive feat indeed. The Burger From the menu – 1/4 pound beef patty with double cheese, fresh onion, mustard, leaves and tomato sauce – $14.50 with a schooner of beer or glass of house wine We originally came in for the burger special as advertised on the street – which sounded similar, but apparently was smaller although it came with a pint – however we decided to go the normal option ($2 more! -hey big spender!) After our meals arrived and then comparing them to another customer who ordered the lunch special, we were convinced our extra $2 was well spent. Although, i must admit i remain intrigued to see what the main differences were and just how much more value one would get for their extra two bob. Patty This (a little surprisingly) was quite a nice, tasty, juicy house made beef patty – with plenty of garlic and spices.  The flavour was certainly good but if i had to be picky, the beef was a little overpowered by everything else in there with it.  No complaints though – the texture was nice and the overall size was excellent.  It was cooked all the way through but it was not dry.  Pretty good overall. Fillings Double cheese, onion, tomato and some leaves made up the rest of the burger and there were no complaints here. There was also a smearing of tomato sauce for good measure and everything went together without any fuss. Roll As you can see – this was the same old brioche that you see everywhere now (which is good!). Sides The chips were a pretty standard pub chip although unfortunately they gave me the impression that they had been sitting around a little while before being served. Coopers Pale Ale from the tap was the beverage of choice. Summary I was pleasantly surprised by the offerings from James Place Hotel.  As mentioned, there is really very little to no appeal whatsoever from street level perspective to venture into this place for lunch given all you can see and hear is pokies. However, if you take a quick stride up the stairs you enter the dining room which feels like a whole other dimension.  The value is outstanding. You get a burger of certainly a most reasonable calibre with a house made patty of good size, chips and a beer for under $15 bucks.  Definitely nothing to scoff at. My only suggestion really would be to add some nice grilled bacon and perhaps switch the onion to being cooked instead of raw and you would be onto a sure bet here. Score – taking into account the cost – a solid 8.0