Burgers

All posts tagged Burgers

The 2018 Butcher Block Meat 16 restaurants are ready to rumble!

Posted by burgerguyz on March 23, 2018
Posted in: Mahoning Valley Burger Review Board, MVBRB Extra. Tagged: , , , , , , . 3 Comments

May the best burger win! The Badurik’s Butcher Block Meat 16 Cheeseburger Challenge starts next month, and the competitors are ready to strut their stuff! The 16 restaurants, taverns and pubs, (who make some of the best burgers WE have ever had), are each creating a burger that they think will take home the tournament trophy.

Mahoning County

  • Bogey’s Bar & Grill, Lowellville
  • Magic Tree Pub & Eatery, Boardman
  • Phoenix Fire Grill & Spirits, Canfield
  • Davidson’s Restaurant & Tavern, Cornersburg
  • Coaches Burger Bar, Poland
  • Mojo’s Pub, Austintown
  • The Pour House, Canfield
  • Ice House Inn, Austintown

Trumbull County

  • Big D’s Newton Grill, Newton Falls (2017 champion)
  • Peter Allen Inn, Kinsman
  • Lake Tavern, Mecca
  • Sunrise Inn, Warren
  • Raptis Family Restaurant, Howland
  • Niki’z Pub, Niles
  • High Pointe Restaurant & Tavern, Niles
  • The Lime Tree, Warren

Check out the March 28th edition of Valley Food, (The Vindicator), to see the 1st round pairings, rules and thoughts from a few of the competing chefs. Follow the tournament on our Facebook page and our blog at www.vindy.com/weblogs/burgers.

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BURGERGUYZ: Mojo’s Pub N Grill, Austintown, OH

Posted by burgerguyz on February 21, 2018
Posted in: Mahoning, Mahoning Valley Burger Review Board, MVBRB Review. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

Put another dime in the jukebox, baby! Check out our rock n roll burger review at Mojo’s Pub N Grill, HERE!

The Mahoning Valley Top 40 Burgers so far (2/12/18)

Posted by burgerguyz on February 12, 2018
Posted in: Mahoning Valley Burger Review Board, MVBRB Extra. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

After nine years of trekking through and around the Mahoning valley in a quest to find the best burgers, we have come to the conclusion: Man, there’s a lot of great burgers around here!

The last time we published our overall MV rankings was in 2014. A lot of places have come and gone since then, and many of the places that we have visited have stepped up their burger game, so, we decided to do it again.

Four years ago, Chef Mel McKee, from Bogey’s Bar & Grill, in Lowellville, put together an awesome burger menu with so many delicious, unique toppings that we unanimously voted them in at #1. Can they hold on to the top ranking or has one of the 47 restaurants we’ve reviewed since then, unseated them? Click on the “Top 40” image at the bottom of the page to see the current top 40 burgers of the valley.

Here’s a little insight as to how we rank them;

  1. Our visit. The biggest factor is based on our initial visit. We have a scorecard for each burger we try. We scrutinize the beef, the bun, the toppings, sauces, and sides. Then we take into account, cleanliness, the service, and the atmosphere.
  2. Competitions. Entering competitions and losing will not cause a drop in the rankings, but we do factor in any awards that are won.
  3. Media recognition. Any awards from newspapers, magazines, or websites, such as, Best of the Best and Peoples Choice, also count.
  4. Revisit. We listen to all of the comments and opinions on our social media posts, good, bad, and ugly, which sometimes leads to a revisit.

 

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The 2018 Meat 16 Rules

Posted by burgerguyz on February 11, 2018
Posted in: Mahoning Valley Burger Review Board, meat 16, MVBRB Extra, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment
2018 MEAT 16
Chefs – Start your grills! We’re less than 2 months away from the biggest cheeseburger tournament of it’s kind in Ohio, the 3rd annual Meat 16! The rules for this year’s competition are below. Good luck to all competitors and may the best burger win!
The 2018 Meat 16 Rules:
  • A change for this year – restaurants are to provide the same burger recipe, all the way through the tournament. 
  • Burgers that are entered must appear in on restaurant’s menu, even if it is only during the tournament. Several tournament followers during last year’s tournament expressed to us on Facebook and through CD 93.3, their disappointment in not being able to try for themselves the burgers they were hearing about on the radio and Facebook, when they visited the restaurants.
  • Any toppings and condiments can be used, as long as they are on restaurant’s menu, during the Meat 16.
  • All burgers will be ordered medium-well.
  • For, “Build-your-own,” burgers, all components used in the recipe must be listed on restaurant’s menu during the tournament.
  • Restaurants are to provide a copy of the menu with a full description of the burger.
  • The orders for each of the preliminary rounds will always be the same; 2 medium-well cheeseburgers, with the toppings of the restaurant’s choice, cut in half, placed in 4 to-go boxes, (that BURGERGUYZ will provide at time of pick up).
  • As in the 2017 Meat 16, each restaurant will be given a time, usually between 5:00 and 6:00 PM for pick up. Orders will be placed at least 1 hour ahead of pick-up time for each predetermined match day. The burgers will be picked up at the exact same time from each restaurant in a match, and delivered to the judges at the exact same time. This is to insure that restaurants closer to the judging venue will not have an unfair temperature advantage.

Mahoning County Burger Rankings (1/29/18)

Posted by burgerguyz on January 29, 2018
Posted in: Mahoning, Mahoning Valley Burger Review Board. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a comment

So many awesome burgers, so little time! Since 2009, we have ranked all of the burgers we’ve tried that you our readers have recommended to us; close to 100 Mahoning Valley restaurants, bar & grills, taverns, pubs and diners. A very small percentage have been disappointing. Over the years, restaurants have moved up or down on our list and ones that no longer exist, obviously, have been removed. Our rankings are based primarily on our official visit but other things factor in, such as, comments from the public endorsing or criticizing, awards from any competitions, media awards, and anything else noteworthy. We do try to keep up with everything, but, occasionally we miss a closing or an award, so any assistance you can give us is much appreciated! We have overall rankings that will be published soon, but we also broke them down by county.  Burgers reviewed in 2018 have not yet been ranked. We enjoyed ALL of the burgers on this list, just some more than others! Let us know how we did, or if we missed your favorite, so we can get them on the list! Click on the “Top 20” image below to view the current Mahoning County burger rankings.

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Trumbull County Burger Rankings (Jan. 2018)

Posted by burgerguyz on January 25, 2018
Posted in: Mahoning Valley Burger Review Board, MVBRB Extra, Trumbull. Tagged: , , , , . 2 Comments

TCT20After so many requests to see our complete Trumbull burger rankings, we put together the top 20. Keep in mind that ALL of these places have great or pretty darn good burgers! We’re only publishing the top 20, but, even #20 is worth a revisit! We ranked them based on the scores we gave them at the time of our review, any comments, positive or negative, that we receive from readers about them, surprise return visits, awards from any competitions, media awards and anything else noteworthy. We try to keep up on these awards and also restaurant closings so we can remove them. Any help you can give us with this is appreciated! Let us know what you think!

TRUMBULL COUNTY BURGER RANKINGS (Top 20 – 1/25/18)

  1. Big D’s Newton Grill – Newton Falls, OH
  2. Peter Allen Inn – Kinsman, OH
  3. The Lake Tavern – Mecca, OH
  4. Sunrise Inn – Warren, OH
  5. Raptis Family Restaurant – Howland, OH
  6. High Pointe Restaurant and Tavern – Niles, OH
  7. Station Square – Liberty, OH
  8. The New Manhattan – Hubbard, OH
  9. Niki’z Pub – Niles, OH
  10. Crossroads Bar & Grill – Southington, OH
  11. Shaker’s Bar & Grill – Liberty, OH
  12. StoneYard Tavern – Niles, OH
  13. The Lime Tree – Warren, OH
  14. Up-a-Creek – Howland, OH
  15. Courthouse Grill – Warren, OH
  16. JD’s Post House – Champion, OH
  17. Yankee Kitchen – Vienna, OH         
  18. Master’s Bar & Grill – Liberty, OH
  19. Amen Corner – Girard, OH
  20. Leon’s Sports Bar & Grill – Howland, OH

Click HERE for a closer look at the top 5.

BURGERGUYZ: Top 5 Trumbull County Burgers

Posted by burgerguyz on January 22, 2018
Posted in: Mahoning Valley Burger Review Board, Trumbull. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

 

TOP 5 TRUMBULL COUNTY BURGERS

#5 –  Raptis Family Restaurant

IMG_5438 (1)On State Route 46, North of Howland Corners, this quaint, hometown restaurant has a loyal base that swears by the food. We can testify that the hearty burgers are a savory delight! Raptis is home of the Howland Tiger Burger, a favorite among patrons. Check out our review of Raptis HERE.

 

 

#4 – Sunrise Inn of Warren 

102_1937Located at 510 E. Market St., in the heart of Warren, Sunrise Inn is well known for their delicious pizza and other authentic Italian dishes. But Chef Stu wants it clear that his good ole All-American burger isn’t taking a backseat to the Italian cuisine! Crafted with fresh ground steak, fresh and sometime unique toppings, and served on a crispy crust brioche style bun, it’s easy to see why they received the 2011 Burger of the Year award! Check out our review of Sunrise Inn HERE.

#3 –  Peter Allen Inn

IMG_6976 FallIf you are looking for a little history with your meal, check out Peter Allen Inn, 8581 State St. in Kinsman. Completely restored to it’s 1820’s splendor, the historic bed and breakfast offers a surprise in the cellar – the Tavern on the Courtyard. The menu offers one burger selection that changes seasonally. Negotiating other options for toppings is possible, but after seeing the menu burger, you may not want to! The key to this burger is the fresh, high quality, grass fed beef directly from owner Richard Thompson’s Heritage Hills Farm. See the review HERE.

#2 – The Lake Tavern

 
Lake TavernSpeaking of history, walking into the Lake Tavern is almost like being transported back in time. With all of the ambiance of an old West saloon, this tavern, on SR46 in Mecca holds many awards including the 2012 BOTY, several Battle of the Burgers awards, 2017 Tribune Chronicle People’s Choice Best Burger, 2013 Trib People’s Choice Best Tavern, several wing competition trophies, named by Thrillist.com as one of the top 15 burgers in Ohio… you get the picture! Literally dozens of burger choices on the menu. Check out our review of the Lake Tavern HERE.    
#1 – Big D’s Newton Grill
20664437_1648493925202200_6908741896816063412_nOwner Ron Dillon has turned Big D’s into a shrine to hamburgers! His love for burgers, his talent for cooking, and his willingness to push the creativity envelope has propelled the Newton Falls restaurant to the top of the the Trumbull County burger mountain with cheeseburgers that will knock your socks off! Winner of the 2017 Meat 16 tournament as well as the 2017 BOTY, Ron is constantly experimenting in the kitchen, searching for the holy grail of burger toppings. If you are lucky enough to time your dinner right, you may be asked to be a guinea pig for one of these artistically crafted beauties! Check out the Big D’s review HERE.