I've been wanting to try Sobelman's Tallgrass Grill for sometime now. I really like that all of the burgers are made from grass-fed, humanely raised beef and that the restaurant uses as many local products as it can. I've had a Groupon for a while, too, and it was set to expire in a few weeks, so Nate and I checked it out Saturday night.
I wanted to enjoy the place, I really did (I like the other Sobelman's burgers, so I had high hopes for the experience and flavors), but unfortunately, neither Nate nor I really enjoyed our burgers. The restaurant itself is nice--it's a really casual, order-at-the-counter kind of place with lots of condiments (including jalapeno ketchup!) on each table, making for easy access. They have a few beers on tap, including a special Sprecher beer brewed for Tallgrass Grill.
I ordered the Fresco Burger, which came with chipotle jack cheese, tomato, avocado and raw red onion. It sounded good when I was contemplating what to get, but the flavors just didn't work. I'm definitely one to order burgers--or any kind of beef, really--well done, but when you have a lean, grass-fed burger, you usually want it a little more on the medium side. These burgers were pretty well done. The flavors of everything else just weren't very good or prominent--the tomato was either not ripe or old, giving it an odd flavor. The cheese didn't have much flavor either, which really surprised me. I like red onion, but this was too much--all I could taste was the onion. The sweet potato fries I elected to get for an extra $1 were good--they tasted fresh and crispy. The bun was also good. They're the same buns they use at the Sobelman's on St. Paul.
Nate ordered the Jalapeno Bacon Cheese Burger, which came with the chipotle jack cheese as well and jalapeno-flavored bacon. He was a bit disappointed in the size of the burgers--they're supposed to be 1/3 pound burgers, but looked more like 1/4 pound burgers. He said the bacon was good, nice and smokey, but there wasn't much on it. He said he could taste the pepper in the cheese, which was good. He had the regular fries with his burger, which were OK, but nothing special. He said the sweet potato frieds were much better.
Overall, we had a bit of a disappointing experience. Like I said, the place is nice, but I wouldn't rush back for a burger. There are much better places in Milwaukee--including the original Sobelman's.
I've been to the original Sobelman's and the tall grass grill - which I've been to twice. I had really good experience at tall grass both times. Once I got a mushroom swiss burger and the second time was just mushrooms and onions on a hamburger. They were really good! And I love their buns.
ReplyDeleteAny other burger places you would recommend?
Alysha
http://shesontherun.com/
The three times I've eaten at Tallgrass I was underwhelmed. I love the concept of grass-fed, but for some reason at both Bombers and Tallgrass, these offerings are always really dry. Grass fed doesn't have to mean less fat or flavor!
ReplyDelete@Alysha have you tried Solly's? That place is evolving into my favorite burger in Milwaukee.
@Alysha--I wonder if it's best to get their burgers without all the bells and whistles? It might be worth it, too, to ask for it to be made medium or medium well. For other burger joints, I like the more popular places like Sobelman's and AJ Bombers. I've yet to go to Solly's, but it's on the list! One of my favorite bar burgers is Walters in Tosa. And I had an excellent patty melt a few months ago at Rounding Third in Tosa/west side of Milwaukee.
ReplyDelete@Neil--I completely agree about grass-fed--I think that's why I wanted to really like Tallgrass. We only use grass-fed at home now, and it never comes out that dry.