Sydney burger joint Mary's pops up in Melbourne for two months

Brace yourself for the fattening. Mary's, the Sydney burger church from Jake Smyth and business partner, Kenny Graham, is coming to Melbourne from Monday, February 11, taking the first two-month food residency inside the CBD's new all-star cocktail bar Fancy Free.

Smyth and Graham have previously done a couple of sneaky Melbourne pop-ups at Belle's and the Black Pearl in Fitzroy, pulling gigantic queues for their headline burger – arguably Sydney's best.

This time, they're bringing a far bigger burger range, plus their fried chicken and trademark mash and gravy to the party, as well as the mushroom burger and fried cauliflower with hot sauce so beast-abstainers can live the "get fat" philosophy, too.

Is this a test run for Mary's Melbourne proper? Smyth wants to see how it goes. "We don't want to be a burger chain. Being good hosts is part of the pull."

The pair will be in town for launch, then key Sydney staff will keep the operation rolling for the two-month stint at Fancy Free (a yet-to-be announced one-hatted kitchen will follow them). The Mary's Group is behind the bar's wine list through its drinks arm, P&V; Merchants.

Burgers flipped Monday, February 11 to Sunday, February 17, 4pm-late. From February 18, Mary's will open Mon-Sat 11am-11pm.