I met my friend @wibia
the other day for lunch at Bagger Dave’s-- a mostly Midwestern chain of burger
places that has recently come to Indy. Honestly,
I was kind of expecting more of a fast food kind of place, but this place is a
sit down place with table service. It’s still fairly casual, but not so casual
as a Five Guys, Punch, or 96th Street Steakburgers. More along the
lines of Bru Burger. (There is also a
toy train that is constantly running around the entire interior of the place,
which might be a good kid thing).
They have several of their own combo burgers, or they have a
sheet on the table that you can design your own the way you want ($4.19 for
small). That’s what I did. Some of the combos sound interesting, but
they all are a little toppings heavy for me.
I got the small burger (which is one patty vs. two) (also, when did one
patty become “small?”). I had it with
one of their custom sauces (the “Railhouse Burger Sauce”), cheddar cheese,
grilled onions and pickles. What can I
say? The burger was fine. That’s it. It
was a little dry (overworked maybe). The
sauce was like Thousand Island dressing (which I have noticed is a favorite at
burger joints these days—when did that start? Has that always been a
thing?). I like it, basically slightly
spicy mayo and ketchup together. You could also choose your bun (sesame, plain,
honey wheat). I kept it simple and got plain.
We also split a single order of fries ($2.59) even though
the server tried to convince us we needed a double. It was a generous portion and plenty for both
of us. The fries seemed fresh cut and
were pretty tasty. I could have stood them to be a little crispier. They weren’t bad though. We got a couple
dipping sauces to try (the ranch and the horseradish ranch). Eh, I think they
were better with just ketchup to be honest.
Our server was very enthusiastic, and I think also very new
to serving, and hadn’t quite gotten his groove yet. He came to the table just a
little too much.
Overall, it’s a burger, and not a bad one, but not a really
good one either. I can see how it may
fill a niche on this side of town though—there were a lot of business people in
there having lunch. They also have a bar
in the back with what appears to be a pretty decent beer selection. They also do “craft soda” which is an
interesting concept. My soda (I just got
a diet) wasn’t very fizzy. But if you
want somewhere along that Michigan Road corridor that is kind of an “upscale
casual” restaurant, that serves beer, and has a very accessible menu, you might
give them a try. If you want a kick ass burger, I would go elsewhere.
Speaking of, what is your absolute favorite burger in town?
Bagger Dave’s
8840 North Michigan Road
Indy 46268
317/870-3531
