Champion's Sports Grille

                Mark had eaten at Champion’s Sport’s Grille a few times with his friend Paul. Each time the burger was good, the service was good, and you could tell that the atmosphere of the place was good. It is roomy with lots of the requisite big screen TVs and sports memorabilia hanging around. Each of these visits had been during the week at lunch time.

                When Mark suggested driving across town to 3670 Werk Rd. (on line you can find Champion’s at http://www.championsgrille.com/), Josh was all for hitting up a new spot in a part of town with which he isn’t all that familiar. Located in a shopping center that is a bit out of the way, if you didn’t know to drive down what looks like an entrance to a business park, you wouldn’t know it was there, at least not from Werk Rd.

                We went on a Saturday for lunch, getting there just in time to see some NCAA basketball tip offs.

            Though the place wasn’t crowded it took us about 15 minutes before someone came to give us menus and to get our drink orders. The drinks came up rather quickly and since we were both going to go the “build your own burger” route we were ready to order as soon as they arrived. This is probably a good thing because our server seemed to disappear for long stretches of time even though she wasn’t the only one working the sparsely filled dining room.

The Burgers

                There are literally tons of options when you are building your burger. We both went with the traditional third pound patty and each opted for provolone cheese and a garden with lettuce and tomato. Mark got pickle which Josh passed on.

                As is becoming the case with many places the burger came with chips and fries could be substituted for a mere $1.29. Neither of us went for the fries, something Josh usually does.

                When the burgers finally came out they were as advertised. It’s just too bad they weren’t advertised as being juicy and bursting with flavor. They were rather bland, not what Mark had experienced in his two previous lunches. In fact the chips were even rather stale.

                Maybe it was the difference between a very slow week day and a medium slow Saturday but neither of us can really recommend this place. This is too bad because there is a lot of potential here.

The Lucky Dog Grille

                It was a rainy Thursday in March and I was on my way to get my taxes done for the year. Josh was off in school, besides, he wouldn’t want to endure a trip to the accountant, at least not until he was older. Besides, as a small business owner I generally am not a fan of the entire tax process.

                Actually, Fred, my tax guy, has been doing my taxes for years and before him it was his mother and father. Fred is very good at what he does. A good friend of mine was complaining some 10 years ago about how much money he was going to have to probably pay in taxes and I turned him onto Fred. Suffice it to say that he and his wife got their first refund in years and that they have been using Fred ever since.

                But because of the timing for my morning client meeting and my appointment with Fred, I had time to kill around the lunch hour and, being hungry, I sought out a burger joint. What I found was The Lucky Dog Grille. Located at 729 Reading Rd. in Mason (and on the web at http://www.luckydoggrille.com/), the Lucky Dog is actually nestled in a small strip mall that I passed the first time I went by. Going back I’m glad I found it.

                Though on this inclement day there wasn’t much of a late lunch crowd, the place had a really good neighborhood vibe. Decked out in typical sports bar chic, it appears to do a good business on the weekends. It has received mixed reviews and from what I can read into them it appears that the biggest problem is poor service when it is busy (along with some folks who said the food was tasteless).

                My experience was, for the most part, rather good. It would have been a bit pricy for this level of restaurant had it not been one of the numerous lunch menu specials. The bartender doubled as my server and she was fast and friendly, getting my drink order before I even sat down and bringing over the menu and making some suggestions right away.

The Burger

                What I knew I was going to get walking in was a burger to review. I was happy to see that they offer up a build your own burger and so I chose the one third pound Classic burger with provolone cheese and a garden that included nice crispy lettuce, sliced dill pickle and an actual juicy tomato, which can be hard to find in March.

                It didn’t take long for the burger to arrive with a side of chips. The burger I ordered was off the lunch specials menu and, while I could have dropped a buck to substitute fries, keep in mind I was heading off to see my tax guy and hear what the IRS was going to rape me for this time around.

The flavor of the meat came through and was accentuated by the other ingredients. Nothing overpowered what should always be the centerpiece of a good burger, and that’s the meat. As I noted earlier the garden was fresh and even the chips weren’t bad, for basic barbeque potato chips.

This meal would have been a bit pricy for this level of restaurant had it not been one of the numerous lunch menu specials. I may have felt a little differently about the meal had I paid regular price and not gotten such good service but for a five dollar lunch, including my soft drink, I can’t complain.

Oh, and I got some good news when Fred managed to do his magic and the feds have to pay me back!

Riverwalk Sports Cafe

                Located across the street and just south of Newport on the Levee, Riverwalk Café has put itself in a good position to draw on the crowds heading to that destination’s many venues. Looking more like a neighborhood joint than the strip mall in which it resides, Riverwalk is filled with the requisite televisions and wall mounted memorabilia or your standard sports bar.

                With a menu heavy on sandwiches and bar food, on the surface the Riverwalk doesn’t seem to offer up anything new and unique beyond the location at 136 E. 3^rd St. and on the web at http://riverwalksportscafe.com/.

                We went on a Saturday around lunch time and found that the place had a handful of people enjoying a meal, a drink and a game on one of the numerous televisions. The atmosphere was good, what you would expect in a newer sports bar. And the service was fast and friendly. In fact our server joked with us along with the others in the place. It’s always refreshing to see someone enjoying themselves and their job.

The Burgers

                We both ordered up the Big League Double Cheeseburger, two quarter pound patties stacked with cheese, a garden and tartar sauce on a Kaiser bun. The burgers come served with kettle chips and French fries are extra. This seems to be a growing trend that Mark didn’t mind but Josh opted for the fries.

                Let’s cut to the chase. The burgers were good and tasty. You could actually taste the beef and it was a nice lean, probably 80-20 mix, with enough fat to give it flavor but not so much that it shrinks into oblivion.

                While shrinkage wasn’t the problem, the size of the patties, or rather the size of them compared to that of the Kaiser bun, was. By how full we were after eating it was obvious that we had enjoyed two quarter pound patties each but just look at this picture of what was left over on Josh’s plate after the he polished off the meat and you’ll see the one thing that disappointed us. Even in the shots of before we started eating you can see how much bigger the bun is than the meat.

                We know this should really matter that much but for us it’s become a huge pet peeve. How difficult is it to buy buns that are the same relative size as your burger? Or, if you profess to make the patties by hand, how difficult is it to pat them out to fit the bun rather than look like that old “where’s the beef” commercial?

                Now to the kettle chips. These were more like your average, every day potato chips. It’s like they went out and bought a couple bags of Grippo’s and dumped them on Mark’s plate. Kettle chips are supposed to be thicker and more substantial than regular potato chips. These didn’t hit the mark.

                As for Josh’s fries, they were pretty pedestrian as well. Nothing exciting, they were more like so many other places that sell standard fries.

                On the whole we liked this place, though from the past couple of paragraphs you probably wouldn’t have known it. The atmosphere and the service are very good. The burger itself is tasty and very, very filling. Just expect to toss out a lot of bun if you eat there.

Smokey Bones

                Sure, it’s really a barbeque joint that, we must admit, has some mighty tasty ribs, but we were out picking up some things from Home Depot and there, right across the street, inviting us to stop in for lunch, was one Smokey Bones 67 national locations. How could we resist. Then Josh suggested we do a burger blog about it and so our choice of meals was determined.

                Opened in 1999 in Orlando, FL, Smokey Bones has restaurants in 17 Eastern US cities and while the menu is heavy on barbeque and ribs, there is a good deal of variety with options for everyone, including the vegetarian daughter/sister in the family.

                Traditionally the restaurant’s décor has had an old time, log cabin feel. According to the web, that décor is changing throughout the country to reflect a more traditional casual dining experience. In addition, management is re-branding the chain with a new more contemporary logo design.

                What isn’t changing is the food. Slow cooked, made fresh from scratch meals that, at least to our experience, are always served by a friendly, energetic wait staff. In fact, when we were there for this blog our server was perhaps the perkiest woman on the face of the earth.

                There are three Smokey Bones restaurants in the area and others in surrounding cities. You can find out if there is one near you on their web site: http://www.smokeybones.com/.

The Burgers

                With a number of gourmet style burgers from which to choose, we decided, in keeping with the established theme of this blog, to each order the Build Your Own Burger which allowed us to keep it simple. With our burgers we got a half pound of fresh beef and could choose from a complete garden, numerous cheese and condiment options. Both choosing provolone cheese and our garden and condiments of choice, the burgers were prepared to order and delivered in a very timely (and perky) manner.

                As you can see from the picture, the cheese on Mark’s burger was quite askew but that didn’t hinder the flavor. The beef was flavorful with just enough spice (salt and a hint of pepper) to enhance the natural juiciness of the patty. The bun didn’t get in the way by adding any undo or contrasting flavors. It, like the garden, was fresh.

While Josh had enjoyed the burgers at Smokey Bones before, this was the first time Mark had eaten one (usually opting for the ribs which are always worth it). For Josh this was confirmation of what he already knew and for Mark it was a pleasant introduction to a good, quality chain burger that happily ranks up there with any of the other chain restaurant offerings.

While Mark will probably have ribs on his next visit and highly recommends them (as far as a chain goes) the burgers at Smokey Bones are very well worth a try.