by JT
If you’re going through Girard on North State Street, (US422), at the route 304 intersection, stands Margherita’s Grille. It’s a small, (if you catch the light green you may not even notice it), well manicured, Italian themed restaurant. It’s very popular amoung locals, and in fact, it reached us by “word of mouth”. A co-worker, Linda, said to me, “If you go there, forget about the hamburgers – order something with the vodka sauce!” Some pasta with vodka sauce does sound intriguing, but, forget about the hamburgers?!!! That’s just silly! That’s why Scott and I teamed up again… to scout Margherita’s Grille, in Girard.
Entering the restaurant, the first thing we noticed is that it was much larger on the inside than it appears from outside. And everything, top to bottom, looked very clean. After we were seated, we began scanning the menu for the hamburgers. Margherita’s offers 4 choices; the Classic Pizza Burger, which sports two slices of pizza instead of a bun! ($7.99), the Traditional Burger, ($6.99 +.50 for cheese), the Hawaiian Burger, with bacon, (where’s 2 Meat Mike?), fresh pineapple and cheese, ($8.99), and the Veggie Burger, (OK – 3 choices).
Pineapple on a burger? I’m a fan of pineapple on pizza, so why not? I’ll give it a try. Scott ordered the Traditional Burger.
Upon the arrival of our orders, we both had mixed feelings. The burgers looked great! Beautiful! A large toasted bun, fresh toppings, the large Angus steak burger, (Mmmm)! But on the other side of the plate, sitting all by themselves, were less than a handful of fries. Can these great looking burgers overcome the handicap of a small accompaniment?
After tasting his burger, Scott immediately remarked on the lack of seasoning in the meat. I agreed. It seems that the beauty in this burger is only bun deep! But I do admit, the fresh pineapple, bacon and cheese on the Hawaiian Burger was a plus for me. And what about those fries that were trying to hold up their side of the plate? They weren’t crisp at all, and a little on the greasy side.
We’re not saying it’s a bad burger. If Margherita’s seasons their beef a little better, and do some work on the fries, they would be ranked pretty high. But as is, just average.
