There certainly is no shortage of hamburger joints, from neighborhood one-offs and small but growing regional ventures to large national chains. To stand out in such a crowded market, a new operator is wise to adopt a trademark feature. That can include secret menus, grass-fed beef, mini-sliders, oddball toppings, and everybody’s favorite: the celebrity chef.
That’s precisely the tack that owners Craig and Michelle Ozan took when they opened Grind Burger this past fall. Their trademark move? All beef would be ground fresh daily, in plain sight behind glass. If fresh is best, then Grind wins.
I’ve now eaten or sampled four different burgers at Grind, and they truly are some of the freshest, most juicy and flavorful burgers around. It all starts with Certified Angus Beef chuck roll from Blue Ribbon Meats, which is double ground, gently molded into patties, and cooked on a sizzling-hot flattop, which imparts a great crust. The burgers drip and ooze and almost melt in the mouth, substantiating the restaurant’s motto that “Perfection is Messy.” My only quibble is the bready top bun, which is larger than the burger itself.
But just because Grind serves amazing burgers doesn’t mean that Grind is an amazing burger restaurant. From the odd layout to lackadaisical management, the restaurant has considerable room for improvement.
Early in the going, the Ozans described their concept as part restaurant, part lounge, and have dedicated a full quarter of the space to a soft-seating area outfitted with low-slung chairs, couches and coffee tables. The only problem is that the restaurant is situated in sleepy Highland Heights not swanky Scottsdale, Ariz., where Craig spent much of his professional restaurant career. I haven’t spotted a single person seated in that area, which could better be used for more conventional seating.
Compounding matters is the fact that tables remain un-bussed for interminable stretches of time. My wife and I watched an unoccupied six-top sit with dirty dishes for 30 minutes under the nose of the general manager, who instead worked the room chatting up guests. On a separate visit, a table in the bar sat un-bussed for 40 minutes, giving that “Perfection is Messy” tagline new meaning.
That’s a shame, because those burgers really are delicious. The Over Easy ($11) was cooked perfectly, the egg yolk oozing onto the beef, bacon and cheddar cheese. Despite the name, the Triple Truffle ($12) manages to not go overboard on the truffle train, lending a funky fragrance to the mushroom-topped burger. The Diablo ($11), however, does not live up to its name, offering almost zero spice for heat freaks. The vegetarian-approved Skinny ($9) swaps a grilled portabella mushroom for the meat and tops it with goat cheese and sundried tomato spread. I splurged one time and ordered the $15 Wagyu beef burger with cheese and sautéed mushrooms. The beef definitely feels and tastes a bit more tender, but I don’t think it’s worth the supplement.
You’ll have to fork out an additional five or six bucks for sides like french fries, onion rings or fried sweet pickles. They are all worth the added expense, with huge portions served in mini wax paper-lined deep-fry baskets.
Not that you need appetizers before consuming a half pound of beef, but the hot dog sliders ($9) are fun, festive and easy to share. A trio of 3-inch beef weenies are topped separately with mac and cheese, chili, and Stadium Mustard and relish. Grind’s sauerkraut balls ($8) are more accurately described as deep fried sausage balls with a whisper of kraut. Too much meat for my taste. Some other menu items are head scratchers, like the whole grilled artichokes ($7) and the cheese board ($11), which seem out of place at a burger bar.
With 20 taps and more than that number of wines by the glass, the beer and wine lists are above average for the genre.
At $8 to $15 per sandwich, Grind hamburgers rank up there as some of the priciest in town, a fact not lost on the owners. “We understand that we’re probably one of the most expensive around, but I think if you show diners why, and you provide a good experience and good value, then you’ll get people to come back,” explains Michelle.
Expansion, naturally, is on the minds of management. But before they can ever focus on Nos. 2 and 3, No. 1 needs to be more finely tuned.
This article appears in Jan 7-13, 2015.
I agree with the author’s experience. The burgers were good, but the service was extremely slow….people were sat and waited 10 minutes for water. Other tables sat for at least 30 minutes with dirty dishes at their table. Additionally, if you go it alone you can’t order a half basket of fries. It’s good, but not that good for the money especially with the service offered.
I recently ate at Grind and while the burger was tasty, the bun is way too big. Makes the actual patty look tiny. And the pricing makes no sense. Besides being expensive, you can build your own burger for less than the pre-made creations. Why?
You don’t know what a good burger is if you think Grindburger has it! My friend and I ordered 2 different burgers cooked medium (warm pink center) and received charred on the outside, well done in the middle meatballs on an over sized bun. The burger had not been pressed so there was about 1″ of bun all the way around with no meat on it. As for the fries ($6.00) they were limp and very well passed the golden stage. I will never return…worse burger ever!
Went there this past weekend, atmosphere was great, beer was great, sat at the bar and someone named Caroline waited on us, who was wonderful. I agree with others that the bun was way too big… would be great if there were other options for buns, i.e. pretzel bun, whole grain, asiago bun…maybe lettuce bun. It will be fabulous in the summer when they can open up the garage door to the outside bar.
Who the fuck can afford to go to this place more than one or twice a year? What goddamn target market do these amateurs think they’re exploiting with these bullshit buns and overpriced fries and absurd service deficiencies? Franchising will never ever happen. I wouldn’t invest to wooden nickels into this impending Zeppelin-style business fail.
We were there with another couple a few weeks ago and I thought the atmosphere was horrible. A big, boxy, noisy room, not very comfortable seating, industrial, boring decoration and the large unused seating area in front. I will say that the onion rings were good but for $6.00 I would expect them to be good. Too many other good burger joints to go to but I guess it depends on what you want out of a restaurant.
Nice article, but would be nice if you mentioned the adress, for those uf us thats never been there or heard of the place before.
Did I read this article too fast or is there no mention of where the hell this place is located??
Service when I went was terrible. Well over an hour and didn’t get the food we ordered. ended up leaving without eating. not good. Hope they worked the kinks out.
Address please ?
This place and management is a joke. Burgers are ok if you want to wait an hour for it. Super salty patty huge bun and skimpy on burger toppings. Over priced. Vanilla milkshake $7 and a choc milkshake with crap in it for $6? Owners are very stuck up. Lady with long blonde hair running expo never puts it back. You might find a suprise on your burger plate. Servers seem like its everybodies first day on the job.
Buns, agreed, are too big. Pricey grub (truly no big deal), but tasty. Decent HH. Punks wanna kvetch about $ but happily spend like crazy on booze and cigs. Take your ass to McDonald’s then. Oh, and yeah, list an address when you review a restaurant. JeZus!
I tried to go in there and help as a food proviar and cook myself I would have done a server training , helped with menu , ESP the lrg bun I guess that’s what you get when you buy your food from a company who’s largest customers are schools .
I think everyone should relax. I am a 15 year veteran of Restaurants; both as GM and have owned a few. This place is still going threw “growing pains”, but Craig, Michelle, and Sean (the GM) have always been upbeat, friendly, and extremely pleasant. I have eaten at Grind Burger about 6 times and NEVER been disappointed. If you can’t afford it, go to Burger King. Why the editor feels a cheese board and grilled artichoke “don’t belong in a burger bar”, clearly don’t see the owners vision. It is NOT just a burger bar. It’s classy, good, fun wine choices, and a cozy, comfortable place to eat and relax. I give it 5 stars!