DesiNental's Philly cheesesteak meets Indian burger is a banger

Sandwich origin stories are among my favourite fables. They tend to be tales of immigration and inspiration, accessible but impassioned layerings of human toil and satisfaction writ toweringly in cheese and meat and condiments and bread.

The Desi Masala Beef Chopped Cheese Burger at DesiNental has a backstory as redolent as an Icelandic saga and the mic-drop drama of a dance-floor banger.

It's a highlight at this Indian fusion passion project which opened last September. The restaurant's name describes the east-west mash-up, combining "desi" (the subcontinental diaspora) and "nental" (for "continental" Europe-ish).

The chopped cheese is a sandwich born in misty Harlem legend. Maybe it was invented by a guy called Carlos at a bodega known as Hajji's; perhaps Yemeni workers were riffing on dagha yamneeya, chopped meat and veg on flatbread, striking melty gold in the boroughs. Some say – sacrilegiously – that it's a Philly cheesesteak redux.

So what is it? Beef mince is griddled and chopped with onions, peppers, sometimes cheese, then piled with burger fixings into a long roll. Gurvinder Sandhu's DesiNental version takes ground beef, marinates it in spices, then it's chopped as it's grilled with red onion, tasty cheese and sev, a crunchy Indian chickpea flour snack.

He makes a "Louidhana" spicy mayo inspired by Louisiana hot sauce and vindaloo, and piles the lot onto a brioche burger bun with lettuce, tomato and more cheese. It's a genre-jumping, flavour-maxing winner.

You get the idea? Chicken on the bone is marinated in spiced potato and rice flour, twice-fried and served with butter chicken sauce, a ghee dipper, or the "special", a classic date and tamarind chutney amped up with gochujang, Korean fermented chilli paste. The combination of hot crunchy chicken and tangy sticky spice is marvellous.

Other highlights include a frisky combination of coleslaw and bhel puri, a Mumbai snack mix. Loaded lamb keema fries are a tasty example of what happens when HSP gets its curry on.

There's an excellent kids' menu and joy for vegetarians. Gurvinder makes soya chaap, a mock meat, and tosses it with blistered grapes. A samosa smash burger recalls Indian school canteens.

DesiNental doesn't just tell a story through food. The restaurant only seats 35 but diners are sprinkled through themed rooms that describe the journey of chef Gurvinder and his wife Samara Bajwa. He came to study cookery in 2006 and has been a journeyman in Melbourne restaurants, cafes and catering venues; she's worked retail.

The convivial "samooh" parlour celebrates friends that supported the couple through tough early years in Australia. Next is the "yaad" or "memory" room, which acknowledges family, especially the grandfather who took Gurvinder on food excursions to old Delhi. The last room is a curtained nook for four: it's the "pataka" or "firecracker" room, a site of celebration.

You can feel the passion in every detail, not just the decor but the food too. DesiNental is heartfelt and flavourful, well worth seeking out.

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Burger Shurger

This Indian burger joint has been celebrating fusion in Elsternwick for about five years now and has recently opened a Williamstown branch, where there's also a function room. Top tastes include the chilli crab burger and butter chicken fries. Burgers are just $12 on Wednesdays and Thursdays.

223 Nelson Place, Williamstown, 03 8529 6542, burgershurger.com.au