Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Terry's Turf Club


So a few of us went out last weekend to a fairly new place called Terry's Turf Club. We had read that they had the best burgers in town so we decided that it was a challenge that we were definitely willing to tackle.
It takes a lot for a local joint to get the honor of having the best burgers in town and around here they have some stiff competition with other local eateries. I personally love the franchised Red Robins and just the thought of their burger selection sends me into a tailspin.
But let's talk about Terry's. The place is small. I think the dining area is about 15x30 so it really doesn't sit more than 40 people at a time. The room is filled with the best collection of local neon beer signs I have seen anywhere in Cincy. It has three retro standing beer coolers positioned around the room to add to the nostalgic feel. So that takes care of the ambiance............
How is the food? Well.....they have a limited menu. This is probably a good idea since they can't seat a whole lot of people at one time. The burgers start at $7. A basic burger can come "through the garden" and with your choice of cheese. Now....if you want to get a bit fancy.....bacon, blue cheese, etc etc.....can cost you an additional $2 an item. This can get a bit pricey no matter where you are.
I had a burger with blue cheese and bacon. ($11) While the burger was big, perfectedly cooked and juicy.....the saltiness of the bacon just about ruined it for me. I am a bacon lover too.











Lyn had a burger with grilled onions, pickles and some special fried cheese that they laid on top of the burger. When I say fried cheese......they take a thick cut slice of cheese.....place it on the grill to cook for a bit.....and then place it on the burger. It was a speciality cheese ($2) so it probably wouldn't work the same for us at home with a slice of American.










We also shared an order of fries. These were actual sliced potatoes fried to a dark golden brown. In some places they were overdone. but if you like them like that.....its probably gourmet.


I would be remiss if I didn't talk about the cocktails we consumed during our visit. Lyn and my other friend Tina both had the mysterious Elixir cocktails made with Pomegranate/Blackberry juices. Needlesstosay it was a bit more than either one of them could handle and Lyn had two of them! They packed a punch and I think it just added to the taste of the burgers. I enjoyed the Sam Adam's Summer Ale drafts immensely.














I do not claim to be a food critic and I love leaving that up to the experts like WineMeDineMe. However, now that I have talked about Terry's I have to end this blog with something! If I had to grade this establishment - let's say Rita's list A+ to F..........I would give it a B. Perhaps I have been tainted by the Red Robin's of this world but I have to say......their burgers were good but nothing to have an orgasm about. Slightly overpriced for the extras but hey...you have to make a living somehow. The cocktails were inventive and delicious. The atmosphere - while it was small (I hear an expansion may happen in the near future) - was conducive to a nice evening out with friends. Loved the retro neon beer signs!
If they had a website I would post it. A Google search will find lots of reviews about this cute little place.
Good food, good times - a B.

4 comments:

lynt said...

It wasn't 'fried' cheese like a mozzarella cheese stick. Isn't that an image on top of a burger. It was nicely grilled, a mild, semi-soft white. Despite my googling, I can only find reference to a village of a similar name in France...

Rita said...

I can't remember the name of the cheese at the moment. Hoo hoo something?

Sue said...

Well, the cocktail looks delicious!! The burger looks very dry in the picture but glad to hear it was juicy!

Martini Cartwheels said...

Those burgers look pretty big. I think they should make the cocktails as big as the burgers.