BRGR: go for the burgers, stay for the milkshakes

If you made a new years resolution to lose weight, blow it off for the evening and head to BRGR. It's worth it.

This month was my pick, and after going back and forth between a dozen restaurants, I took the recommendation of a coworker and opted for BRGR. It wasn't easy: While I heard BRGR was great, it is across the border in Kansas. At least I get points for geographic variety.

As my fellow Gassies said, the sweet potato fries are out of this world. To me, a great burger goes down best with a milkshake, and the Guinness milkshake didn't disappoint. Their soft pretzel was amazing too. They make their own condiments, which were good.

Now let me tell you the tale of the mysterious veggie burger, or VRGR: it was ho hum at the restaurant. I don't want to be the flake that goes to a burger joint then complains that the veggie burger wasn't great--but it really should be. The menu promised beets, and no beets! But the next day, I had the second half as leftovers for lunch, and it was delicious. No kidding. I'm not sure what caused the transformation, but it was powerful enough that if I go back to BRGR, I'll order an extra VRGR to eat the following day.

So head to BRGR for some comforting carbs and one-of-a-kind milkshakes. It's worth the journey into Johnson County. At the restaurant I gave a score of 3.25, but the food was so great the next day, I'm upping my score to 3.5.

Brgr more like Mlkshk :-)

S Wntd t wrt ths wtht ny vwls! S wht cn yo sy bt brgr? rlly njyd ths gm f plc! th fd ws prtty gd the pps tht jstn hd t by whr vry gd th prtzl ws t d fr. th srvr ws slw t frst bt gt bttr twrds th nd. fnshd ff wth mlkshk t ws th scnd bst shk vr tstd. 4.0/5 fr BRGR!

BRGR....They should call it PRTZL

This month we visited BRGR in Prairie Village,  it was a pleasant evening and the restaurant was crowded.   Our 20 minute wait was closer to 40 minutes.

Once again Justin was in the Appetizers Hall of Shame (AHOS going forward).  Justin ordered the Sweet Potato Fries and the Chili Fondue which was a cheese sauce served with large soft pretzels and blue tortilla chips.  I was not crazy about the cheese or chips, but the pretzels were delicious.  I though Affaire had great pretzels, but these topped theAffaire pretzels.  The sweet potato fries were also quite good.

I ordered a Bison Burger with cheese, bacon, onion straws and BBQ sauce, though I feel certain that the burger was hamburger and not Bison, the burger was juicy, and flavorful and a tad undercooked for my taste.  I should have order well rather than medium well.

After the meal Josh ordered a peanut butter/marshmallow milkshake, that was probably one of the best  milkshakes I have ever tasted, but I still would choose Glace, when given the opportunity.

The restaurant was pleasant, but nothing special  They had a really nice outdoor area with a fire place.  They had a fire going, which made the wait more pleasant.  The service was a little slow to start, but improved as the evening progressed.   I would definitely go back, if only to get the pretzels, fries and a shake.  I gave BRGR 3.5/5

Fireplace takes the "BRR" our of BRGR

You won't find Mrs. Ref ordering a burger off a menu unless it's a neon menu posted behind  golden arches.  Seems a waste of a menu choice when I can whip one of those up tasty as can be on my grill.  But BRGR is a cool place, it feels friendly and inviting even if we did have to wait outside for a bit until a table opened up.  How could I complain when there was a large outdoor fireplace for us gather around?
When I studied the menu I found several things that sounded interesting.  I really just wanted a big batch of sweet potato fries along with my favorite  Chardonnay--J Lohr.  Not a fancy Chardonnay, but really buttery and delicious and I've yet to see it on a menu until BRGR.  But when I mentioned my selection to an "un-named" Gassy member, my idea was pooh-poohed!  And so, being easily swayed, I changed my mind and ordered the veggie burger and Adult Milk Shake.  I thought I learned my lesson back in Jr. High when I got nervous over some test answers and made quick changes before my time ran out--but apparently some lessons have to be learned over and over again.
At any rate--I got to try the sweet potato fries thanks to a time-strapped blogger who had to spring for appetizers and WOW were they delicious! Salty but sweet and crunchy on the outside, soft and perfect on the inside.   I also enjoyed the onion rings served with a spicy aoili -- thanks to G-pa.  And I can recommend the chili dip served with a warm, soft pretzel.  Delicious as it was unexpected!
The veggie burger isn't even worth mentioning.  (Don't order it.)  No worries--though.  I was able to ingest plenty of vitamin deficient calories with the  appetizers and my Adult Milk Shake which had coffee ice cream and Kahlua and maybe a splash of Bailey's.  A nice bargain at $6.00.  Mr. Ref's b-ball game ran late so he missed BRGR and had left-over Christmas cookies for dinner.  I'll have to bring him back sometime.  But this time I'm having sweet potato fries and J Lohr Chardonnay!    Final Score 3.5

December was my month to choose a restaurant and with it being the holiday season, I wanted to choose a restaurant on the Plaza.   Of course, things did not begin well, the Plaza during the holiday season equals, hard to find parking.  Once my parking adventure was over, my dining adventure began.

I walked into Coal Vines and was delighted wit the decor.   The place was cozy which is exactly what you want on a cool December evening, the walls were lined with bottles of wine and the back wall had large pictures of Dean Martin and another guy, that I should have recognized, but did not.  Coal Vines quickly became my favorite restaurant venue, that I have been to with the GAS club.

Since Coal Vines is a Pizza and Wine (yes I said Wine, not beer) bar,  I decided you can't go wrong with pizza, though the did have a few other dishes on the menu, of which Richard ordered an excellent pasta.  Josh and I ordered a pizza together, basically your choices were white or red sauce and then a list of additional ingredients that could be added for an additional cost.  We ordered the White Special which included, mozzarella, ricotta, tomatoes, and garlic.  We added chicken and spinach.   The pizza will light on the salt and heavy of the ricotta.  The ingredients were fresh, the crust delicious, but as a whole the pizza was mediocre.   With the yearly pizza cook off, Pizza places do have a hard time holding a candle to the delicious and very unique pizza's we make at home.

Now on to the Wine Bar, I ordered a glass of Saracco Moscato, which you just can't beat.  The wine of course was delicious, but much over priced.

The overall experience was enjoyable,the venue and wine excellent, however, the pizza was average at best. I feel my original rating was a little on the high side.  My updated rating for Coal Vines is a 3.2.