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JunieB
May 14, 2011 04:35 PM
Two more thumbs up for BWB. My husband and I went there today for lunch and we were both impressed with the food. The kitchen was a little slow, but they had a full house and I think they were doing the best they could do. Our waiter was running his legs off the entire time we were there but we never felt neglected. The burgers were cooked just the way we asked and the toppings were perfect. The buns were soft, grilled and held up well under the burger and toppings. I hate buns that fall apart! Since tomatoes are out of season I was pleased to see that they are using the little Campari tomatoes, which I think are the most flavorful grocery store tomatoes you can buy. I'm sure when it's tomato season they will use fresh local ones. All burgers come with one of two types of coleslaw - spicy or regular. The spicy doesn't have mayo and has a ginger dressing, and the regular is the normal creamy kind. Both were very good. We split an order of sweet potato fries. The fries were cooked in the same style as Local Burger. I'm not sure what the process is, but they look greasier than they are and they taste great. It's kind of funny to say, but my husband also commented on the napkins. They're very sturdy, not the diner dispenser type.
I loved the warm colors of the space. The walls are a rich pumpkin color and brick red, with some blue tile borders near the kitchen area. They are adorning their walls with photographs of brick walls, which is a very nice touch.
On another note, I was surprised to see so many interesting new places in Greenfield. We walked over to Raven and we passed two or three coffee bars and a music venue. The Raven had a great little patio in the back of the store. Very intimate with brick walls and black tables and chairs. I was just disappointed that it wasn't packed! Maybe when the weather warms up it will be.
But all of this leads me to believe that Greenfield might finally be coming into its own as a destination city. Now we have to go back and try Thai Blue Ginger!
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Thai Blue Ginger
298 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301›12 Replies-
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re: magiesmom
JunieB
May 14, 2011 04:51 PM
Well, thanks for that heads up! I've eaten at Hope & Olive. I was hoping Thai Blue Ginger would be a good place to go for Thai food! Too bad. But now we have at least 4 places to go in Greenfield - BWB, People's Pint, Hope & Olive, and Mesa Verde. That makes it worth the drive up from Easthampton, except on Sundays!
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Mesa Verde
10 Fiske Ave Ste 3, Greenfield, MA 01301Thai Blue Ginger
298 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301Hope & Olive
44 Hope St, Greenfield, MA 01301-
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re: JunieB
andytee
May 15, 2011 12:56 PM
Hope and Olive is one of my favorite spots in the entire Valley, definitely give them a try.
For what it's worth, I actually like Thai Blue Ginger a lot. One thing I learned is to ask for my food "less sweet", I think the chef tends to over-sugar things a bit. They never have a problem when I ask and the food is always great. It's not a must-try Thai place by any stretch, but I like it as well as any of the other in the Valley, and better than several of them.
Magiesmom, what did you not like at TBG? Maybe we are ordering different things.
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Thai Blue Ginger
298 Main St, Greenfield, MA 01301-
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re: magiesmom
andytee
May 16, 2011 09:54 AM
They definitely are heavy handed with the sugar. I only started asking them to reduce it this past winter - somehow I never thought of it before - but it's been very effective. There is still sugar but a lot less and the flavors are good. Typically, for every item I order, I say "Normally I find your food a little too sweet, could you make it will less sugar?" and they are fine with that.
If it's been a few years, I'd say it's worth giving them another chance. Maybe if enough people are asking for reduced sugar things will change and we won't even have to ask.
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re: andytee
I've recently discovered my favorite Thai restaurant in the valley. Don't let the boring name fool you:
Thai Place
413-533-9231
480 Granby Road
South Hadley MA 01075
http://www.thaiplacerestaurant.net/in...The curries are perfectly balanced. You won't have to worry about too much sugar here. I feel like people don't really know about this place even though its not very far from Mt. Holyoke College. Service is very friendly and they have a pretty good wine list and great mixed drinks which is usually not a focus at Thai places. Highly recommended!
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Went tonight for the first time. Food was great. I asked for my burger medium-well and it came out medium-rare. Fortunately I am not too picky and I enjoyed it very much. Fries were pretty good... fairly standard as fresh-cut go, but good. Slaw was good, too. Loved their homemade ketchup.
My only real complaint was with the bbq sauce. It was way, way too spicy. Their menu needs to say its a spicy sauce! Left my lips and tongue burning. Never again with the bbq sauce. Next time I'll just get ketchup, that was enough tang.
But, no hesitation, I'll be back. Hope they succeed great!
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andytee
May 7, 2011 06:07 AM
I ate there last night, I think it's going to work out to be a pretty great burger place.
Here's my thoughts:
Menu is all burgers. You can get a turkey burger, or a pork burger, or a lamb burger, but it's all burgers. The server said all meat is natural/antibiotic+hormone free except for the corned beef (which goes in a corned beef burger, of course). Sides are limited, fries (potato + sweet potato), coleslaw, spicy slaw, and a green salad. I was surprised not to see more specific info about meat source and quality right on the menu, or on a sign board at least. If you are going to spend the money for good stuff, let people know! And buy it from a local farm, and let people know that too! Source of meat was not at all clear, I would have liked to see more info. I admit I didn't ask and could have, but I'd like to see this spelled out clearly for everyone.
I had a beef burger with bacon and aoili. Ordered medium rare, it came out cooked through. I'll give them a pass on this since they are newly opened and were very busy to boot.
The meat was great, it was really a high quality, delicious burger. Bun was great too - seemed "homemade" and I'm guessing they are using SevenSouth bakery just like Holy Smokes does.
Slaw came with, it was not at all bad but nothing special either. A little sweeter than I'd like and a little too much liquid pooled in the bottom of the bowl it was served in. Fries were excellent, though a small portion. Perhaps they serve more when it's not just a side for a burger?Menu prices were a bit high. My combo (burger, bacon, fries, slaw, with water to drink) came in at $10, which I thought was just fine, though I would have been ok with $8 too. Some burgers (esp. from the side of the menu where they had "specialty" burgers) were coming in at $15-18, which, honestly, I thought a bit too high to stomach.
Decor is.. Bart's. They clearly put some effort into "renovating" the place but really the changes are curtains and paint. So, Bart's but a little darker. I'd love to see something fresher, lighter, more open - even if not a big renovation, less dark. And maybe it's just my taste, but I think they could use some help with their visual approach overall. The menu is this clunky brick-colored and brick-themed thing that feels like it was composed in MS Word and just looks very dull and 1980's. Not a huge fan of the signage/logo or the website either.
It's a lot of the same people as Bart's, and it seemed like they had hired new staff as well. They definitely have made an effort to step up service (it's table service now) and it was very nice.
Someone asked about hours - their Facebook page has hours posted recently saying they are open for lunch and dinner 7 days a week. They are new, so maybe check before you go. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Brick-Wall-Burger/107354256017184
A menu is also (newly) up on their website.
http://www.brickwallburger.com/menu.htmlAnd - all told - good burgers speak for themselves. Everything about what I ate suggests that the burgers will be excellent. Take a minute and try them out!
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re: andytee
andytee
May 17, 2011 12:28 AM
Just wanted to say I was back today for my second burger and Brick Wall seems to be hitting it's stride. I'm still not in love with the decor and still think prices are a bit high, but the burger was just 100% excellent. I had a medium rare patty with blue cheese, aioli, chili garlic paste, and lettuce, tomato, onion and pickles, with a side of spicy slaw - skipped the fries this time, to keep the pre-tip lunch bill under $10.
Anyhow - perfectly cooked, right to medium rare and not at all beyond. Flavors were incredible, plenty of salty and fat, just as it should be. The texture of the freshly ground meat is incredible. The bun this time felt a little too soft and squishy, I'm guessing this is just an anomaly as it was great last time. Also, spicy slaw is really really good - no mayo, and just a gentle spicy tang and lots of crunch. Great to cut through the burger. I do think, as I did with the regular slaw, that they need to get a slotted spoon to dish it up with, and let it drip a bit before plating - it's just unappealing to see a puddle in the bottom of my bowl.
One question I'd like clarified is their meat sourcing. They make a big deal of it being "ground fresh, never frozen" and also describe it as somehow natural - maybe as "antibiotic and hormone free" or something like that. But (and this is true regardless of prices, but especially at their prices) I'd like to see more info up about exactly where the meat is coming from - are they sourcing locally? Is this Meyer Black Angus (BA's "natural" line)? Is this just good high grade beef from a non-descript source? I'd like to know, and it's less clear than it should be.
Service is very nice, thought at moments it felt a bit over the top for a burger place. There was a new "please wait to be seated" sign, which felt a bit excessively formal, and the biggest surprise for me was getting handed a warm napkin at the end of my meal. Maybe they are trying to justify the high prices, but it just feels like a weird fit - the place is so barely renovated from it's ultra-casual Bart's existence that the formalities just feel weird.
As I said, though, the burgers are great - totally my new favorite in the Valley, and really up there with the greats from anywhere. So I'll keep going back. Here's hoping that over the next few months things settle in a bit further, in the direction of service that's really nice without being overly obsequious, and prices that are a little bit more in line with Franklin County than San Francisco's famous Zuni Burger. And - dare to dream - a little time spent with an interior designer and a graphics professional. This place has the magic to soar well beyond the shell of it's former incarnation, I'd like to see it look like it was ready.
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I heard from a friend who went that it's really good. Apparently they grind their own meat and offer beef, of course, but also pork. And I guess there are a lot of different toppings, including grilled habaneros, which sounds pretty awesome to me.
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JunieB
May 1, 2011 05:37 PM
I would love to have a new burger place to go to! Give us a review as soon as you check it out! Be sure and let us know hours and what days they are open too. I can't tell you how many times we have driven to Greenfield for a burrito at Mesa Verde, only to remember it's Sunday and they're closed!
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Mesa Verde
10 Fiske Ave Ste 3, Greenfield, MA 01301›7 Replies
