I love Jerusalem Garden’s lentil soup. It’s like having a bowl of heaven and each bite is full of angels. That actually incredibly sacrilegious and even disgusting, but I swear there’s no other way to describe the taste. It’s incredible. I’m currently in talks with several companies about obtaining bowl big enough to fill with lentil soup and bathe in it. Photographic documentation will follow.
Me and Coco aka That Guy aka co-host of the Coco and Warhammer Show went over to Bagger Dave’s for some burgers the other day. There’s one right down the street from our work and I had never been, despite hearing mostly good things. Apparently this location is one of three, with all of them being Michigan based. A guy who owns a bunch of Buffalo Wild Wings decided he wanted to open a gourmet burger joint in Berkely a few years ago with the hopes that it would catch on and become a chain. Not a bad idea. With the exception of the obvious hole in the wall burger joints, Michigan lacked any kind of gourmet burger establishment until Five Guys started moving in recently. With the two additional Bagger Dave’s locations being added since 2008, it looks like the idea is working so far.
Before I walked in I was expecting a mostly carry out based burger joint. The place is actually more of a sit down restaurant(100+ seats) with a pretty solid(mostly local) beer selection. There’s flat screen TVs and a mini train set that constantly runs around the top perimeter of the restaurant. It doesn’t really have the feel of a burger joint, but it’s a comfortable, yet different, environment.
I started off with the “amazingly delicious” turkey black bean chili, mainly because of the whole “amazingly delicious” proclamation. If you’re going to say something on your menu is that delicious, then damnit it better be. I’m not usually a “substitute turkey for other meat” kind of guy, but like I said, the menu says amazingly delicious. I had to put it to the test. Gotta say, stuff is legit. I can usually tell when things are made from turkey. It just has a weird taste to me. This was delicious, and had a good amount of spice. Despite the fact that a bowl is $4.00+, I would have to recommend that you get some of this before your burger.
For my burger, I felt that there was no other choice for me than to create my own. There are a many options on the actual menu, but come on. How much fun is that? The thin patties start out in the open kitchen at 3.5 ounces — one costs $3.29 and two $4.29 (turkey burgers are a dollar more) and come in a plain, sesame or whole wheat roll or sourdough bread. For 75 cents you can add one of six kinds of cheese, and for $1 you can add on “premium” topping of fries, fried egg, guacamole, bacon or that delicious turkey black bean chili. Bagger Dave’s also offers 16 “meaningless free toppings” that range from ketchup and lettuce to sautéed mushrooms, Cajun spice and green peppers.
The burgers are advertised as hand-crafted from lean ground beef that is never frozen. The burgers are all cooked medium-well, which is always troubling to me. The result is a smaller patty that was actually a little dry for my tastes. I felt like the condiments and add ons made the burger, not the actual patty. I feel like if you’re opening a restaurant that specializes in burgers, your patty should stand out even without a single condiment. These didn’t.
I will say that my creation, with a hell of a lot of toppings, was absolutely delicious. I went with a plain bun and two regular beef patties with pepper jack cheese, Santa Fe chipolte sauce, a fried egg, applewood bacon, mayo, and Cajun spice. Like I said, the beef is pretty average but the slop on top made it into a solid burger. Check this guy out.
Not anything amazing, but pretty solid. Expect to pay about 12 bucks per person if you’re getting a drink, fries/chili, and a burger. A little steep for burgers and fries, you’re getting a lot more than that if you’re creating your own burger.
I’m not usually one to complain about customer service. I’ve worked with the general public in retail positions since I was 15 and I understand people have bad days and its not the easiest thing in the world to deal with the general idiocracy that is the majority of the population these days. When I visit an establishment such as a restaurant, or a retail store, 90% of the time I can forgive mistakes and slip ups just because I’ve been in that position and I understand that not everyone is perfect. I’m definitely not perfect and I’ve made mistakes on the job. I’ve had bad days and my service has definitely suffered from it.
What I can’t take are establishments that consistently serve the public horribly and make customers expect terrible customer service from people like me who generally give a shit on a day to day basis. I’m not sure what it is but I’ve always cared about how people view me and how I am serving them. No matter the level of lunacy that people serve to me, I always try to serve them with as much respect and level headedness as possible. I’m not sure if that’s in my character or if it’s just common sense that is lost on certain people, but it seems that at certain places this concept is completely lost.
I would like to introduce you to the Taco Bell located on State St. in Ann Arbor, MI. This Taco Bell location is currently offering some of the worst customer service in the history of customer service. I may only be passionate enough to write about this because I’ve been drinking heavily and they just failed me for the 3948739473947th time, but goddamnit I’m angry and it’s time to bust some heads Epic Portions style.
There have been many occasions that this Taco Bell has embarrassed the fast food industry. You may be thinking about what a ridiculous statement that is, but seriously. This place is like the class where they send kids who can’t quite cut it in the slow class. It’s the trailer behind the school where they keep the kids who aren’t allowed to participate in standardized testing in fear that their scores alone may lead to the complete cuting of state funding for the entire school. Their interview process must involve a game of Pictionary followed by a game of rock paper scissors, with the loser gaining full time employment and full health benefits.
If you have 30-40 minutes to kill, pull right in and place an order. Guarantee you’ll be waiting for 50. If you’re sick of waiting, too bad. There are curbs on either side of you. You’re not going anywhere. Just in case that wait didn’t infuriate you enough, your order will be wrong and you’ll have to pull back around and wait again. It would be convenient to simply enter the dining room, but it’s currently being renovated. Time to either eat that fiesta salsa you didn’t want slathered all over your Grilled Stufft Burrito or scrape off the tomatoes and deal with that disgusting tomato residue. But wait, we’re getting ahead of ourselves. I have personally been witness to this Taco Bell being out of tortillas, beef, chicken, rice and beans. Keep in mind that all of these ingredients have been absent on separate occasions. What are you supposed to order at Taco Bell when they are out of hard and soft tortillas? Pintos and Cheese? That’s an appetizer.
Who hires these people? Who orders the supplies? It’s not just me who has dreamt up a hatred for this specific location, it’s general knowledge that this is the worst Taco Bell on the planet. It’s almost comedic how bad it is.
I welcome the residents of Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti to share your State St. Taco Bell stories as comments to this post. I have heard many, and I welcome a complete bitch session about the customer service that makes this place the king of terrible fast food establishments.