A new burger joint signals Hill Station in Hume is coming back to life

Posted on 31 July, 2025

Ahem. We have an announcement about a new burger joint and a whole new dining precinct taking place in an unlikely location

Burgermaker is tucked off the Monaro Highway, in the industrial back blocks of Hume. But come spring, it may well be the most logical place to come for a burger, beer, goat encounter and more.

The Rabble Group, behind Assembly, Corella, Al’s Deli and Diner, Loading Zone and several others, is reinvigorating the former heritage site of Hill Station and making it hip and happening – a place for weddings, functions and lazy Sunday afternoons with kids and live music (and a goat encounter if you’re keen…).

Hill Station in Hume is getting a revamp from Rabble Group

Currently there are two food vans holding place on the site: Burgernaker and Loading Zone. Burgermaker says it is turning out some of the best burgers in Canberra — crisp-edged, deeply savoury and assembled with care.

Open weekdays from 6:30am (Saturdays coming soon), it’s serving smashburgers, brekky buns, toasties and fried chicken that’s worth the detour.

The Oklahoma is already a local favourite — double smashed patties, grilled onions, American cheese, and house pickles. There’s a properly crunchy Fried Chicken Burger, a full lineup of breakfast staples from 6:30am — sausage muffins, bacon rolls, toasties, and The Brekky Burger – a stacked combo of bacon, egg, hashbrown, American cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, tomato sauce and aioli — messy, satisfying, and exactly what mornings should taste like.

Helping mornings reach their full potential and conveniently located next to Burgermarker is Loading Zone, a barista-led coffee van pouring Canberra’s very own ONA coffee.

And if it is more a lunch burger than a breakfast one then wash it down with Capital Coast Ale and Queanbeyan Bitter on tap.

But as the weather warms, things are going to step up a notch on the site. Burgermaker will be expanding into a huge grassed space — complete with a kids’ playground, veggie gardens, festoon lights and a stage for live music. Plenty of room for prams, scooters, or simply throwing down a picnic rug.

It promises to be relaxed, open-air, and totally kid-friendly — with proper food for grown-ups and a space that welcomes families. And the local goats, used to keep guard and keep the grass down, are always up for a chat.

Further down the track,  the historic Hill Station Homestead will be carefully restored and reimagined by The rabble Group as a premium dining and event space — ideal for long lunches, weddings, and private functions. The building’s heritage character will be preserved, while new kitchens, bars, and flexible spaces will bring it back to life.

Longer-term plans include landscaped gardens, heritage tours, and a large-scale event area equipped for concerts, festivals and markets. Hill Station is being designed as a precinct that grows with the community — activated in stages, each layer adding more reason to visit and keep returning.

In the meantime, Burgermaker promises to make the trip to Hume worthwhile.