Diners Archives - Chattavore

Roy’s Grill (Rossville)

July 13, 2016

Roy’s Grill was an institution on Chickamauga Avenue, having been around since 1934 (with a few breaks along the way). Sadly, they closed just a few weeks after I published this post.

For many years, we really never went to Rossville Boulevard or beyond. There just wasn’t much to see there, as far as we were concerned. No dresses to be bought at the (now defunct) LaDean Shop or plasma to be donated at CSL. That area of town might as well have not existed; it never even entered our minds.

Then came Beverage World. I have no idea how long Beverage World has existed next to Big Lots in Fort Oglethorpe, but we’ve been going there for the last 3 years on Philip’s quest to try as many types of craft beer as possible. As we’ve driven down Rossville Boulevard so many times over the last few years, we’ve noticed Roy’s Grill, the cute little old-school diner right past where Rossville Blvd turns into Chickamauga Avenue, just over the state line, many times. Of course, it’s usually not open when we drive by.

Last week, Philip wanted to check for a specific beer at Beverage World, so we decided to try out Roy’s Grill. We arrived at around 11:45 on a Wednesday afternoon, parking in the lot for Roy’s Grill customers behind the restaurant. As we walked up, we could smell the tell-tale scent of burgers searing on a flat-top griddle, always a good sign. We entered through the back door, into the dining room, and were greeted by Anita, who told us we could sit anywhere we wanted, including downstairs at the bar. We decided to go for the bar.

Once we chose a couple of bar stools (we were the only folks down there at the moment), we were greeted by Anna Sue, who took our drink order. Philip ordered a chocolate malt ($3.75) and she quickly set to making that for him, right in front of us at the counter using a classic milkshake mixer. The malts and milkshakes are served in a footed glass with the mixing cup alongside it…plus two straws in case I wanted to drink some. I have to say, Anna Sue makes a pretty impressive malt. Chocolatey and bitter with malt, just the way we like it.

I had heard great things about the burgers at Roy’s Grill so I knew that I had to give one a try. Since I didn’t need a half-pound of meat on a super-sized bun (i.e. the Super Burger), I decided to go with the junior burger, a 1/4-pound patty on a soft bun with lettuce, tomato, onion, mayo, and mustard ($4.75). I omitted the onion, of course, and added cheese ($.70) and bacon ($1.80). The burgers are served with house-made chips, or you can get crinkle cut fries or onion rings. I went with the chips, because you all know I love homemade chips, but saw another customer with some fantastic looking onion rings and decided I would try those next time.

The burger was the perfect size for my appetite, and it was topped perfectly. The condiments and vegetables were portioned well so they didn’t overwhelm the burger or make it difficult to eat. The cook on the burger was perfect – a nice crust on the outside but still tender and juicy on the inside – and the American cheese was lightly melted but not gooey. The chips were perfect – thinly cut, crispy brown, and perfectly seasoned. This was a fantastic, classic burger meal.

Philip contemplated getting the Reuben, but ultimately decided to go with the meatloaf special, which Anna Sue enthusiastically encouraged. I wish I had thought to take a picture of the menu board with the vegetable specials listed, but I didn’t think about it. The special comes with two or three vegetables, your choice. Philip decided to go with the white beans, mashed potatoes and gravy (made from scratch), and fried okra (hand breaded) ($10.45).

This was definitely a generous portion of food. The meatloaf was a little chunky with onions and green peppers, but not overly so, with a thick layer of ketchup on top (I prefer ketchup-topped meatloaf to tomato sauce or gravy-topped meatloaf). It was well-cooked – cooked through but still tender, not tough or overcooked. I didn’t try the white beans (I don’t eat them…a little too mushy for me), but Philip said they were very tasty. The mashed potatoes were creamy and kind of “mid-thick” – not stiff but not runny – with a nicely seasoned brown gravy. The fried okra was some of the best we’ve had in a restaurant. The breading was more of a batter, perfectly seasoned with what I thought was sort of a buttermilk flavor, and the okra is deep-fried to a perfect crisp. The meal was served with a square of cornbread, which is Southern-style (i.e. not sweet), soft but not too crumbly.

The thing that impressed me most about Roy’s Grill was the employees. Anna Sue (on the left) and April chatted with us and every other customer without being intrusive. They were so friendly and enthusiastic. As each customer came in, they were quickly greeted. Many were obviously regulars, as one of the ladies would hand them a drink without even needing to ask what they’d be having. The atmosphere at Roy’s Grill like a homey throwback to a different era. The prices were good too. Pre-tip, our total was $22.95 for a whole lot of food PLUS a malt.

Roy’s had been around since 1934 (though they were closed for several years during that time). When you walked in the door, you felt like you’d been transported back in time – in the best way. Sadly, in August of 2016, Roy’s Grill announced that they would be closing due to financial difficulties.

We would have loved to return to Roy’s Grill for some of their great food and atmosphere!

Roy’s Grill is located at 116 Chickamauga Avenue, Rossville, GA 30741. They are open Monday – Friday, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturday, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. You can call them at 706-956-8317. You can learn more about Roy’s Grill (including their full menu) at www.roysgrill.us. You can find their daily specials listed on Roy’s Grill’s Facebook page.

Innside Restaurant (Downtown Chattanooga)

August 3, 2015

The Innside restaurant in downtown Chattanooga is the best restaurant in Chattanooga you may have never heard of!

All right, guys…I am very close to being ready to write a follow-up of my post from a few years back, Chattanooga’s Top Five Burgers (According to Chattavore). I’m shakin’ things up, y’all, I can tell you that much. I’m not quite ready, though, so give me a couple of weeks. Part of the holdup is getting to a few places that I can’t easily visit during the school year when I’m working full-time. I knew that I needed to visit Zarzour’s and I’d had several people tell me that I needed to have a burger at the Innside Restaurant.

My reaction to that was, “What in the world is this Innside Restaurant of which you speak?” I’d never seen it or even heard of it. Except that I probably had and just didn’t realize what I was looking at. Turns out that the Innside Restaurant has been on Chestnut Street (in the Pioneer Building) for over 20 years. Apparently I don’t get to Chestnut Street much? It’s pretty much right across the street from Figgy’s Sandwich Shop, another spot that I need to visit.

We had been told to try to get there before the lunch crowd, so we arrived a few minutes before 11:00. There were still quite a few tables open, some people starting the lunch crowd and others finishing up breakfast. They stop serving breakfast at 10:30, which our server, Holly, made sure to let us know when she came to take our drink order. No matter…we were there for the burgers. Anyway, Holly was a very friendly and energetic girl who told us that the Innside opened before she was born. Shut your mouth, Holly. I was probably in high school (feeling old….I turn 37 in 3 weeks, y’all!). She brought us our waters then took our orders.

The menus are on the tables and the prices of each menu item include tax. We perused very briefly but honestly I didn’t notice much other than the burgers. I will have to make a trip back to try other items on the menu! I decided on a regular cheeseburger with no onions ($5.25), while Philip got a bacon cheeseburger all the way ($6.25). All the way means mayo, mustard, lettuce, tomato, pickle, and onion. The burgers were gigantic, made with pretty standard meat on an also pretty standard sesame seed bun. The lettuce was iceberg. They were topped with American cheese. However, if you think that I am saying that the “pretty standard” part of this burger description means that I was unimpressed with the burger…that is not the case. It was delicious! The meat was well-seasoned and well cooked, and there was not an inordinate amount of mayonnaise or mustard. My only complaint was that there might have been a little too much lettuce; however, it didn’t interfere with the structural integrity of the burger too much, as it held together all the way to the last bite (and yes, I ate the whole thing!). So score: meat, 3; bread, 3; cheese, 4; toppings, 3; size, 4; structural integrity, 4.5. Overall burger rating: 3.58. That seems like a pretty low score considering how good this burger was. We really enjoyed it!

On the side, we got fries and tater tots. Again, pretty standard frozen fries and tots. However, the tater tots tasted like they were either fried in some interesting oil or had some sort of unusual seasoning on them, but Holly told us that they were just fried in peanut oil. They don’t have any special seasoning on them either. Maybe it’s the brand? Who knows? Anyway, you know I love skin-on fries, but I pretty much love all fried potato products as long as they are crisp rather than limp and soggy, so even a frozen fry or tot gets a “still pretty good” rating from me.

I am fairly certain this place has a lot of regulars. They seemed to know quite a few of the people that were dining with them. It’s not hard to understand why, because everyone that we encountered (which was several employees) was extremely nice. We were concerned prior to going about whether such a small spot would take credit cards, but they do (with the understanding that there is a $0.25 cent additional charge to pay with a card on orders under $5.00). The prices are pretty reasonable considering the amount of food you get…our order (2 waters, fries, tots, cheeseburger, and bacon cheeseburger) was $14.00 pre-tip. We really enjoyed the Innside Restaurant, and while their location/hours will prevent us from going back often, we will definitely go again, this time to try non-burger menu items or perhaps a special (they change their specials daily, and you can see each day’s specials on their Facebook page). I can’t speak to the other menu items, but the Innside Restaurant is definitely a great place to go for a tasty burger!

The Innside Restaurant is located at 800 Chestnut Street, Chattanooga, TN 37402 (in the Pioneer Building). You can call them at 266-7687. They are open 6:30 a.m.-2 p.m., Monday-Friday, serving breakfast until 10:30 daily. They do not have a website page, but you can like Innside Restaurant on Facebook.

Zarzour’s Café (Downtown Chattanooga)

May 30, 2015

Zarzour’s Café is a Chattanooga classic. It’s been around since 1918 and serves delicious burgers plus meat and three and desserts!

I have been meaning to go to Zarzour’s Café since I wrote my first burger list in 2013 and a commenter declared my list invalid since I had not tried Zarzour’s, which is the oldest restaurant in Chattanooga, having opened in 1918. The problem is, they are not open on the weekend and they are only open 11-3 on weekdays. Plus, I wasn’t sure if they took credit cards (they do not) and I never have cash so I knew that visiting would take some planning ahead so I wouldn’t get caught without a way to pay. Since I’m off from work right now (woohoo summer break!) this gave me the perfect opportunity to plan ahead. We grabbed some cash and headed downtown.

We got there around 12:45 or 1 and were able to easily find parking on the street (there is a small lot next to the restaurant as well). The place is small (and smells like burgers-that is, glorious-and it was fairly crowded but there were still several tables open. We seated ourselves and perused the menu that was on the table, even though we really didn’t need to. There are a handful of items that are on the menu all the time-burgers and fries and a couple of salads-plus rotating daily specials and desserts. The specials come with two vegetables and tea or you can add a soda for an additional charge.

A server took our drink order then when she returned with our waters she took our order-two cheeseburgers, one all the way and one with no onions, plus fries. A lady (who turned out to be the owner, Shannon) was manning the flat-top griddle and the fryer behind the counter while joking around with customers and dropping a few curse words (so beware-and maybe sit in the back room-if you have ears that are sensitive to that sort of thing…I do not), and it appeared that the two servers were getting the other items from a stove in a small room in the back. Most of the people that came in while we were there ordered burgers but a few did get specials. There were several people that left while we were there who were obviously regulars and were on a first name basis with the staff. I also saw a server helping a man with a cane carry an order to his car. That’s service, guys.

Our orders came out fairly quickly, especially considering that one person was preparing all the burgers and fries. I’ll get the fries out of the way first…they were standard frozen crinkle-cut fries. Pretty good but nothing special as fries go. It doesn’t matter, though, because it’s all about the burger here. One bite and I was hooked….the meat had that crispy quality to it from being browned on the griddle, but the inside was juicy and the whole thing was perfectly seasoned…I’ll give the meat a 4 since it was cooked perfectly but I assume that it is just regular, nothing special about it ground beef. The bread gets a 5…it was a Niedlov’s bun and GAH. It was cooked to a perfect crisp on the flat-top. Toppings are a 3.5 …just the right amount of condiments (mayonnaise and mustard) so it was not dripping and the pickles, lettuce, and tomato were fine. Cheese also a 4-American cheese is just the best for melting but others contribute more to the flavor. As for structural integrity, I’ve got to give it a 5…it was darn greasy but it held together perfectly all the way to the last bite. Size is also a 5…it was not huge and I didn’t feel stuffed after eating it but I was not hungry for several hours after. Overall, this burger gets a 4.4. I feel like it needs a bonus, though, and I’m going to hold onto that for later because this burger was just so darn good (and that crispy bread tho!) that even though a lot of its components were nothing special everything together just worked so perfectly.

So I can’t tell you much about Zarzour’s other than that it’s a popular place with a salty-mouthed owner manning the griddle (which I found hilarious). And it serves amazing burgers.

I’ll have to go back to try out the specials and the desserts because those desserts sounded pretty delicious. But I know that restaurants don’t stick around for nearly 100 years if they aren’t fantastic, so they are definitely doing something right. By the way, our total was $18 even pre-tip (you put your tip in a jar on the counter). So go there!

Zarzour’s Café is located at 1627 Rossville Avenue (not Rossville Blvd.), Chattanooga, TN 37408. They are open Monday-Friday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. You can call them at (423) 266-0424. They do not have a website, but you can like Zarzour’s Café on Facebook.

The Blue Plate Revisit

March 23, 2015

The Blue Plate is a great downtown Chattanooga restaurant near the Tennessee Aquarium that serves great, fresh local food!

I love spring more than words can say. Not quite as much as I love summer, when I live in shorts and tank tops and flip flops and get to pretend that I’m a full-time blogger…but spring is when I feel like I am coming back to life after the winter cold (I despise winter as much as I love summer). It’s been so rainy around here lately, which has put a bit of a damper on my excitement about the warming trend, especially since I spend such a large portion of my day driving.

Anyway, this past Saturday was gorgeous, sunny, not exactly warm, per se, but warm enough that I could wear just a cardigan over my t-shirt and not feel like I was going to freeze. To celebrate, we headed down to the Chattanooga Riverfront. That’s the other thing I love about spring-my city is beautiful all year, but when the warmth returns, it springs into its full glory (Bradford pear trees excluded….my sinuses are killing me. Plus I hate those things after the one that we used to have in our front yard broke in half and fell on top of our house. The damage was minimal but we promptly removed it and replaced it with a perky dwarf magnolia).

We decided to go sit on the patio at The Blue Plate, which I first wrote about in 2012. You guys! That was when Chattavore was still a baby blog. I decided that we needed to go back so I could check out their burger as I get ready to revamp my burger list. You guys might be seeing a lot of burgers and revisits for a while, but normal blog activities will resume once I do my list update. I think I owe a lot of places a second visit anyway…it’s kind of fun to go back and see if things have changed and if so, how!

There wasn’t much thought that went into my order. Double-stack cheeseburger, with two house-blended beef patties, American cheese, toasted local (ahem, Niedlov’s) bun, house spread, and pickles, served with hand cut chips. The chips were good, albeit a little under seasoned. The burger was surprisingly (I’m not sure why surprisingly) delicious. It was a very simple, classic, diner style burger that tasted like it was cooked on a flat-top…a little crusty from the cook on the outside and still very juicy. The American cheese was simple, perfectly melted. I’d give it a 4 for meat (well cooked, well seasoned, very flavorful), a 5 for bread, a 4 for cheese (American wouldn’t be my first choice but works great here), a 4 for toppings (minimal, which I have decided is pretty ideal because it lets the meat shine through; the house spread was a little bit sweet and a little spicy-delicious), a 5 for structural integrity (i.e. because of the minimal toppings, the burger held together very well and the bread didn’t slide around at all), and a 3.5 for size (a little on the small side, but I really didn’t mind because I didn’t feel bad about eating the whole thing!) . Overall, a 4.25 out of 5. Impressive!

Philip decided to get the famous fried chicken wrap, with the Blue Plate’s famous buttermilk fried chicken, shredded lettuce, diced tomato, mixed cheese, house cheese sauce and all wrapped in a flour tortilla. It was gigantic and had a good balance of ingredients. That fried chicken-wow! It’s delicious. Philip really enjoyed this wrap, which also came with chips.

Since I’ve never really heard anything about Blue Plate’s burger, I didn’t really think of it as a contender for top burger, but I was really amazed by how great the burger was!

The Blue Plate serves really great, high quality food with as much local food as possible. And they don’t have a microwave in the building, which makes me happy.

We really enjoyed our meal and our first opportunity to dine outside in 2015. I’m looking forward to more opportunities like this…and more burgers! By the way, our bill was just under $20 before tip.

The Blue Plate is located at 191 Chestnut Street Unit B, Chattanooga, TN 37402 (across from Ross’s Landing and the Tennessee Aquarium). They are open Tuesday-Friday, 7:30 a.m.-9 p.m. and Saturday-Sunday 8 a.m.-9 p.m. You can call them at 423-648-6767. Check out their website, theblueplate.info and their menu. You can like The Blue Plate on Facebook.

Kevin Brown Burgers (Ooltewah, TN)

October 27, 2014

Kevin Brown Burgers is a popular hometown spot serving classic-style burgers, sandwiches, and barbecue in Ooltewah, Tennessee!
I’m a major homebody, you guys. During the week, I do my best to never leave the house after I arrive home from work. Usually I am successful. I kind of get stuck in patterns on the weekends as well, and we tend to stick close to home or to downtown when choosing places to eat. For that reason, Chattavore is heavy on reviews of spots in Soddy-Daisy, Hixson, and Downtown Chattanooga. Ooltewah and Cleveland have been terribly neglected. Sorry, guys. I didn’t mean to leave you out…you’re just so far away! In the search for new blog material, though, I realized what a large market I have yet to really venture into, so I started searching for some places in that area to try.

Since I have been planning for a while to update my burger list (I’m going to make it a top ten), I’ve been thinking that I need to make it to a few places that I’ve heard are great for burgers. It made sense, then, that I’d start my Ooltewah dining experience with Kevin Brown Burgers. After a Google Maps fiasco (really, it isn’t that hard to find! I’m just not very familiar with the Ooltewah area), we arrived at Kevin Brown Burgers around 2:00 in the afternoon and found a packed out parking lot. The tables in this tiny, quaint diner (formica tables, booths, a dining counter, and sparse decorations) were all full, but a couple of diners got up right after we walked in so we were seated quickly. A very friendly lady took our drink orders while we checked out the menu, which consists of appetizers, burgers, sandwiches, dinner plates, salads, and specialties (like nachos, barbecue, and stuffed potatoes).

We decided to order the fried pickles (served with a side of ranch) because, well….fried pickles. You know I always have to try out the fried pickles. The fried pickles were spears coated in a seasoned crumb breading. I have begun to recognize when I’m served a food service frozen fried pickle and, well, this was one of those times. I like those well enough, but it’s always a little disappointing when the fried pickles are frozen. I was here for the burger, though.

The large burger is an 8 ounce patty and the small burger is 5 ounces. The man at the table next to us had the large burger and it. was. gigantic. Like the size of my head, I do not kid. Now, I love a gigantic burger as much as anyone but I’ve set a goal for myself to be able to button my smallest jeans ASAP and that burger was not going to contribute to meeting that goal, so I went for the small cheeseburger-5 ounce patty with American cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion (which I skipped, of course), pickle, mayonnaise, and mustard on a small hamburger bun. It was a delicious burger, a classic burger-well-cooked, well-seasoned, with just the right amount of toppings and condiments-not so much that stuff was dripping or falling off of it.

Philip decided to order the brisket sandwich. It was a heaping pile of smoked, sliced brisket on a large hamburger bun with mayo, lettuce, tomato, onion, and pickle. The meat was perfectly tender, falling apart and very moist. It was seasoned beautifully and had a great smoky flavor. Philip did say that he would have rather had it on some other type of bread, but thought that the toppings, which one would probably not normally put on a brisket sandwich, went really well. We also ordered steak fries, which were the standard frozen variety.

While the sides and the appetizers were pretty much the same as you’d find in just about any other roadside diner, the burgers and the smoked meat at Kevin Brown Burgers are definitely worth venturing to the other side of town from time to time for. The people here were very friendly and this is clearly a neighborhood favorite-and an affordable one, at that. Pre-tip, our appetizer, sandwiches, and fries were around $16 and some change.

If you’re looking for a great burger on the Ooltewah side of town, give Kevin Brown Burgers a try!

Kevin Brown Burgers is located at 8228 Mahan Gap Road, Ooltewah, TN 37363. You can call them at 423-344-8344. Their Facebook page says that they are open Tuesday-Saturday 11-8, but when we were there we found out that they actually close at 3:00 on Saturday so that the owner can spend the weekend with his family (several Urbanspoon reviewers also caution that you might want to call first to make sure they haven’t run out of burgers…apparently it happens sometimes). They do not have a website, but you can like Kevin Brown Burgers on Facebook.