Slick’s Burgers is a popular burger spot, formerly located in St. Elmo and now on Main Street in Downtown Chattanooga, serving house-ground beef burgers.
A few weeks (maybe a month?) ago I was driving back to my school after a meeting on West 40th Street in St. Elmo when I saw a sign at the old Sugar’s Ribs location (across from the Incline and adjacent to 1885 Grill) for Slick’s Burgers. I filed it in the back of my head and kept moving…I was starving and needed to get back to work in time to eat lunch before time to get the kids up from their nap.
Last weekend I was dying for a burger, but Philip was sick so we ended up staying in all weekend. I have a list of several places that I’m planning to go in the next few weeks, but there was one reason or another not to go to any of the places that I had ticked off in my own head before we left the house. Philip had noticed a post on Facebook about Slick’s Burgers and suggested that we head out there since I had been wanting a burger. Sure! Why not?
We were greeted when we walked in by a man whose name I didn’t catch but who I think may have been the owner or manager. He quickly explained the menu to us and told us that all of the meats are ground in-house (they get their beef from Buckhead Beef in Atlanta) and they hand-cut their own fries as well. They have a very small regular menu-burgers in various sizes, a chicken sandwich, grilled cheese, and hot dogs, fries and a handful of other sides, a soup of the day, and a specials menu. I love restaurants with small menus because that often means that they are focused on quality, not variety.
Philip and I both decided to get the 7-ounce “Slick” burger (I briefly debated getting the 4-ounce “Sissy” burger but then I decided that I am probably never going to be satisfied with a 4-ounce burger). The burgers come with lettuce, tomato, red onion, and pickles on a Niedlov’s bun. I added cheddar cheese to mine and Philip added pepper jack (pictured below). They also offer American, Swiss, and blue cheese. Ketchup and mustard are on the table and they bring mayo to you when they deliver your food. We split an order of fries (they offer truffle fries and chili-cheese fries but we decided to just have regular). We just drank water, but they also offer fountain drinks, Pure Sodaworks bottled drinks, and a decent selection of beers. Our total was $19 and some change.
The food came out pretty quickly, about ten minutes after we ordered. The fries had been split between the two baskets-I love when restaurants do that! The burgers were open so that we could put on the toppings as we wished (except for the pickles, which were on the bottom bun). The cheese was melted on top of the burgers, which you would think would be a given but…isn’t. The burger was huge, and when I moved the bottom bun to put some mayo on it there were tons of juices soaked into it. Yum. And the verdict was….wow. This was a great burger, pink on the inside and so juicy. I know some of you are queasy about pink on the inside of a burger, but I am not and this was glorious. If you don’t like pink…be sure to tell them to make it well-done. It was delicious, simply seasoned with just salt and pepper and simply topped. I had considered getting the BBQ burger but I’m glad I decided to go with the Slick so that I could taste how good this burger was in its simplest form. The fries were also fantastic….skin-on, perfectly crispy, and wonderfully seasoned.
So…I officially loved this place….in fact, if I see fit to revise Chattavore’s Top Five Burgers, they may garner a spot (there may be an opening depending on whether or not the rumor I heard about Merv’s closing permanently is true or not. Update 2/14: not true! Not true! Merv’s is reopened!). Philip grumbled a little bit about the music (they were playing The Doors and he hates The Doors) but I was find with the music. The atmosphere is great for a little burger joint and the guy we talked with when we came in as well as the cashier were very friendly. The service was quickly but not suspiciously so, and the food was great. And, a big plus for a St. Elmo place, they have their own fairly large parking lot (as odd and jumbled as it may be-not sure who designed that lot!).
I strongly recommend that you check out Slick’s Burgers!
Slick’s Burgers is located at 7950 Tennessee Avenue, Chattanooga, TN 37409. You can call them at 423-385-8392. They don’t currently have a website but you can find them on Facebook.
Also in St. Elmo: 1885 Grill, The Purple Daisy, Pasha Coffee & Tea
Other great burgers in Chattanooga: Main Street Meats, Tremont Tavern, The Terminal, Merv’s, Southern Burger, The Honest Pint, Tubby’s
Comments