Wheat and Rye and Bigg Burger

Tried a couple of new places this week. Wheat and Rye in Romulus and Bigg Burger in Livonia.

The Wheat and Rye is a bar near the airport in Romulus. Nice bar. Good menu with lots of specials. We got there for lunch and they have a half pound burger for $3.25 if you purchase a beverage. I was good. I had a Coke. There were conferences that night. Anyhoo... Nice fat burger on a large bun. Very flavorfull beef flavor, no spices detected. Like way too many bars, though it had a slice of crappy cooking onion, which killed my taste buds on the first bite. I got past it but it was by far the overpowering flavor. It would be a good bar to hand out in. Lots of screens good service. I will try the burger again. It was above average and worth a try.

Bigg Burger is a new fast food joint on the bend of Five Guys or Fatburger, in that it has a simple menu with fries, burgers and shakes. They cook it as you order, so you wait a bit, which is good. Their fries have skins on the end, are cut thinner than Five guys and are salty. I didn't check, but I would guess it was peanut oil. They offer a lot more free toppings. The usual condiments plus a blue cheese mayo and a garlic herb mayo. Fresh veggies galore including; tomatoes, onions, lettuce, cucumbers, and alfalfa sprouts. Grilled onions, grilled mushrooms and more. There was an extra charge for bacon and guacamole. A single cost about $3.25 and was probably about a quarter of a pound patty. It was $5.89 for a single burger with cheese, a small fry and a regular soda. Good and juicy. I will try a double next time as the temptation to put a hundred different toppings on is strong, because they are all free! Very comparable to Five Guys, I liked it better than Fatburger. Nice, fresh toppings nice flavor on the burger. Some seasonings, but really overwhelmed by the relish, mayo, tomatoes and onions I put on mine. next time I will get a double to have more of the burger taste. I would put the fries a close second to Five Guys. Really nice flavor. I didn't eat mine until I got home and they should have been terrible, but they still tasted pretty good. I will definitely be back.

Remembering Sparky

Sparky Anderson lived my boyhood dream. His career was baseball. He surrounded himself with friends, and he just had a joy about himself that I am envious of.

Quick story(obvious lie). I lived in Florida from 1993-1999. From 93-96 I had a job that allowed me to sneak over to practices at Joker Marchant in Lakeland. I used to put my quarter in that egg-yolk yellow box get my Free Press, park my carcass amongst the Detroit retirees and just breathe baseball. I loved it. I went in one day and decided to sit behind home plate. I was enjoying Trixie's(Dick Tracewski) banter as he harasses the half asleep infielders into taking some ground balls, when up pops that white hair right in front of me. He starts talking to me about "the boys" and says "Hey, little feller" to a boy who has walked up to see the field up close. Sparky then says it was nice talking to me, winks, points over the boys shoulder and then drops a ball at the boys feet and tells him to get it quick. I am not sure who had the bigger smile, the boy, me or Sparky. That's what made him great. He enjoyed that moment as much as I did, maybe more. I need to find that joy. We all do.

Mr. Joe's Reopening

My buddy John invited me to see the U of M vs. Notre Dame game at Mr. Joe's. I hadn't been there since they had reopened. My first thought was, "Wow, if I brought my wife into Joe's now she wouldn't try to run away when she saw the inside." They cleaned off years of smoke and grime put in a new floor, some more big screens and built a step up section so that you can see a little better. The best news is that they haven't changed the burger. They are more food, but swear there will be no change in the burger. The pickle jar is gone from the table, though.

New link

A quick story about the Lindell AC for those who not lucky enough to visit before it was torn down for a bus terminal.

Sidetrack in Ypsi

Several suggestions in the past, so it was finally time to try it.

Very cool bar and Depot Town itself is pretty interesting. Great motto(Beer is the proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy - Ben Franklin) and a lot of microbrews on tap. If you are dying for a Bud or Miller light on draft you are SOL. I think LaBatts blue was the only commercial beer on draft. Amtrack flying by every so often. Great atmosphere. A nice blend of a crowd, from hipsters to college students to one particular hottie with a zebra striped bra that my friends will not forget soon. (I didn't really notice honey, they told me about her later)


Great looking burger cooked to order. They had no problem making a burger the proper way, medium with ketchup, mayo, tomato, white onion, and American cheese. The meat was spiced nicely and the first two bites were great. Then the next 4 or 5 were just OK. It was weird. My first thought was that it was going to be near the top of the list and then it faded. It was good and definitely worth the drive, it just wasn't as good as the first taste.

On the drive in on Michigan Ave. I noticed a couple of old school looking joints I am going to have to try. Roy's and Gariel's. Anybody tried either of them?

Revisit of Bagger Dave's

Brought large boy-type child home from Leadership Training Camp at Mich-a-Luca and he requested a cheeseburger. He was with me the first time and was reluctant, but he was also starving and would even have eaten McDonald's at that point.

Much better this time. The burgers were overdone, but they were still juicy. I would put them in the average range. I still don't like the fries or the sweet potato chips. Both are very inconsistent. Some burnt, some just right. Not much salt. Marci said the Sweet potato chips were the best she had, so...

Went to a Bagger Dave's in AA, cuz it was only thing open while I waited for an appointment.  The burger was served well done, I asked if it could be served medium, and the response was, " that's the way we make them."  That is it. I am officially done with Over Cooked Burger Dave's. 2 of 6

in and out burger

Finally made it to an in and out in Vegas. Very good, simple burger. Two thin patties with a nice crust to them, while still maintaining the grease. Nice relish and white onion too. I rented a convertible Mustang for the day so we could go out to dinner for our anniversary and renew our vows at the Little White Wedding Chapel. WE both remembered in and out had a few locations in Vegas, so the Garmin was checked and we made a beeline for it right after we got the car. It was definitely worth it.

Update Time

Lindell AC(RIP) For those of you who never made it there, I am truly sorry.
Howell's Great Burger cooked slow. Staff can be entertaining.
Sandy's by the Beech Great neighborhood bar with a great burger and good specials
Red Coat Tavern Now 2 locations. Go to the original. Not cheap, but good.
Mr. Joe's Temporarily closed. Hopefully reopens with the same food.
Poole's Good bar great burger. Triple cheese and bacon, mmmmm
Don's of Traverse City Nice old school diner burger.
CheeBurger CheeBurger Best chain burgers, shakes and frings. Yes, frings.
Five Guys Another great chain burger. Great fries. Order the small.
Fuddrucker's Overpriced, but very good burgers. Add your own toppings.
Miller's Very good, but not as good as the hype.
Nemo's Great place to go before a game, pretty darn good burger.
Cutter's Really good burger right the the meat packing plant

The Good

Mason's Great when cooked right. Great local memorabilia on the wall
Grenwich Time Better than average burger, pretty cheap.
Fatburger Good chain burger. Terrible atmosphere(in Southfield)
Jaws Maybe too much butter on the buns?
Lakepoint Yacht Club Good burger. Better atmosphere.
Bagger Dave's 2nd visit
Harry's
Blarney Stone
Bar Louie High quality beef. Not enough fat. $1 on Tuesdays


The Not So Good

Bagger Dave's(1st try)Over cooked(twice)
Balloon Saloon Over cooked and dull
Checker Bar Frozen Patty
O'Charlie's Gray meat, creepily greasy.

Burgers and Brews on Wednesdays

A few people got tired of reading about the burgers and wanted to go and eat a few, so we now do Burgers and Brews on Wednesdays. Last week I took them to Poole's in Northville. They just happened to have a special on a triple cheese bacon burger. Not much talking once the burgers arrived. Afterward, many stories were shared by friends and a few beers were consumed.

This week we will reconvene at Howell's. I hope they can handle it.

Tony's and the Hubbard Lake Tavern

Tony's
is the King of "Big Food" on I-75, but this time I just got a burger. It was a third of a pound(not part of the Big Food portion of the menu). Made to order and nice and juicy. Solid 4 out of 5.

Hubbard Lake Tavern
is a drive, but if you are in town, stop and get a burger. Lots of garlic, very juicy, loaded with fresh toppings. The beer is cold, too. $3.95 makes it a great deal, too. Say "Hey, now" to Anna for me, but don't look directly at her makeup. 4 out of 5.

Balloon Saloon

Have been told the Balloon Saloon, in Southfield, has a great burger. It doesn't. I got a 1/3 pounder and my son got a 1/2 pounder. I got the same toasted bun as he did just with a lot of extra bun. I order mine medium and my son medium-well. His was well and mine was crispy. I doubt I will go back. 1 of 5

Updates

A few new places have been ticked off the list.

Bagger Dave's Uh, in a word. Meh. Many have raved, so I will have to try again, but the first visit was a DUD! Two patties on a pretty good bun. My burger, my son's burger and the burgers of the people next to us all were wayyyyy over cooked. My medium was a well done. I know what the peoples burger next to us was, because the water swapped our orders and theirs, and I bit into one of theirs, before we realized the switch. The fries were over cooked and the sweet potato chips were bland. I have never had a sweet potato with less flavor. I dunno? 1 of 5

Don's of Traverse City What a diner burger should be pressed to the grill to give it crunchy edges juicy in the middle. Slightly pricey for a diner, but it is Novi... 3 of 5

Places for me to try?

Not that I am running out of ideas, it is just that I love when someone is passionate about a place and wants me to try it. I have a student that wants me to try a couple of his favorites; The Full House in Ypsi and the Wheat and Cheddar in Romulous. Where do you think I should go?

Sandy's by the Beech

Nice bar, nice burger. A good old fashioned alley bar that grew, Sandy's has plenty of tables and probably needs them. The burger is good. I went on a weekday around 11:00 before the lunch crowd came in. There were about 6 regulars bellied up to the building length bar, myself and one other customer at a tables. The staff was nice and the bar itself is nicely upgraded with plasmas scattered around a second room and a patio that looks like a great place to hang when the weather improves.

The menu was simple and they had a daily soup and a dinner special. Of course I wanted the burger. Sandy's burger is about a 1/3 pound, nice size with a side of fries for $5.95. The table has the bar stack of fresh pickles(maybe homemade, at worst deli quality) pepperoncini, relish, ketchup and mustard. It came with onion, tomato and lettuce. I order mayo on the side. One of the best I have had in a while. Nice and juicy good white onion, plentiful tomato blending together with the melted American cheese perfectly. I just had arthroscopic surgery and I could barely eat it with one hand. 4 and half out of 5.

I went back on a Saturday to try it again and this place could sneak into the 5 out of 5 territory. The Saturday special was 50 cent coney dogs...