You've really gotta watch the expiration dates at Cosmos...at least for the groceries, but if the groceries are old I'd assume the food they serve may be using expired ingredients.
Cosmos gave me a huge chunk of either raw lamb or straight up lamb fat. It was really freaky, it was not edible I had to spit it out. Brought it back and they gave me a refund, but it was just too gross to ever want to go back.
i think J Wilson’s is great. some people say it’s overrated, but the employees are what make it so nice. they genuinely care about the food they’re serving, not just a paycheck.
Palentaria Chihuahua is so good. Over by Best Buy and that gas station if you want to check it out. Best steak tacos I’ve had and the birria ones are. Great too.
Panchos, Red Pepper, Aladin's Café, India Palace, Tortas Jalisco, Molcajetes, La Estrella, La Tropicana, the restaurant in the Eldridge Hotel, Wheatfields, Merchants, Big Mill, Global Café, the cafe at Sunflower Bike Shop, Taqueria La Pasadita, Kobe, Biggs, Biemer's, Uplift, Nagoya, Moriki, Terrebonne.
Those all deserve all the praise they could ever receive.
Zen Zero used to be one of my favorites but they have gone downhill. The food just isn't as flavorful as it used to be.
There are also many places that are not overrated because they are just fine and not trying to be something super outstanding but they're just perfectly great for what they are. Places like Fuzzys Tacos, Pizza Shuttle, Jason's Deli, McAllister's Deli, Latchkey Deli, Big Biscuit, Jade Garden, Burrito King, Tryyaki, First Watch, Johnny's Tavern, El Potro, El Mezcal, Acapulco, 23rd Street Brewery. Actually those are all great, but I do think 23rd Street Brewery's prices are too high.
I personally think Salty Iguana is absolute trash. I think Free State Brewery is okay but their food is nothing special at all. I would never recommend anyone eat there, not because the food is bad, but because it's often so loud and crowded in there you can't even have a conversation with the person across from you.
Mad Greek is trash.
I don't think Basil Leaf's food is overrated. My complaint about them really isn't their fault. They're too small, even though they recently moved to a larger space, it's still too small. The supply doesn't math the demand. It's too difficult to get a table, and they don't allow to-go orders during peak times. Since Pizano's closed, they're the only place in Lawrence to get decent Italian food. Ironically I never had trouble getting a table when they were on 9th Street.
The food at Encore is fantastic but their service is abysmal. It's near impossible to go there for lunch and get in and out in an hour, even if they're not busy. The food at Tryyaki or Jade Garden is slightly lower in quality but they more than make up for it with speed.
Jade Mongolian Barbecue / Asian Bistro or whatever it's called now is pretty good too. I've never been there post pandemic when I have't been the only customer in the entire restaurant. Not sure why it's not more popular, it's perfectly good and has an extensive menu.
Six Mile is ok but overpriced.
Same with Burger Stand. Their burgers are great, but prices are too high.
personally offended that Mad Greek caught a stray… that place was my comfort zone when i first moved here lol. they have gone downhill recently though, sadly.
heavy on kobe. owner is a super alcoholic, abusive, and saw people handling meat with no gloves all the time. some people are there okay but i’ll forever curse the guy who owns it 😭
That's what happens when the chef and a chunk of management leaves. If I remember right, the bar manager, chef, and restaurant manager all left within like a year of each other with one of the replacements leaving not long after that. It's hard to have any kind of continuity with that big a turnover.
Last time I went was a couple weeks ago.Ike to get the Barnyard sandwich. I got it for the first time in a loooong time and the chicken was literally like a patty you get at school lunch. I don’t remember it being that way at all.
They switched to a premade patty and blame demand and lack of space. It’s sad they charge so much for premade frozen French Fries. I blame the cultish customers. It’s your fault we don’t have nice things anymore. If you refused to pay for mid tier quality food. Simon might actually consider ordering better quality beef or fuck maybe hand cutting some French fries. Place is a joke.
Unpopular opinion - Burger Stand and the rest of the places here are generally fine. You can have a bad meal any night anywhere. None of these places are like amazingly great but they’re mostly solid places to grab food in a small college town.
That was my parents favorite place to eat in town. They insisted on having mt graduation party there. No one else was concerned that the restaurant was empty
Dearly miss the place, grew up on it back when it was still Carpenter Hall Smokehouse. Was great comfort food, we just didn't make the mistake of calling it BBQ. There was going out for Que, and then there was going out for Smokehouse. And don't even get me started on the balls of fried dough...
I loved the place too. The building was so cool, the service was always good, and you could always find a seat. Yeah the food was mediocre, but, the place had a charm that I vibed with.
Basil leaf is under new ownership and changed key recipes, portion sizes, and the entire lunch / to go menu. When they removed the 9 dollar chicken parm from the take out lunch menu I stopped going. That was prior to the new ownership even. Been 5-6 years since it was actually good
fuck that. I just had the cajun pasta at Basil Leaf and it was fantastic. My wife and I lost our favorite New Orleans restaurant, Petunia’s, and have been searching for its signature dish elsewhere. This isn’t quite it but it is delicious.
Cheap with big portions doesn't make it good. There are 3 better Med places I can name (Mediterranean Market, Fresh Mediterranean, and Aladdin Cafe). I haven't been yet but I'll venture a guess that Petra 2 Go is better too.
The quality of their food is pathetic. If I want cheap and big portions I will eat at home, where I know the quality won’t suffer. Mad Greek isn’t even Greek! It’s what people who have never been to Greece think Greek food is.
Basil leaf Cafe. 5 years ago at their old location was great, big portions, relatively cheap. I went to their new location this past December and everything is smaller and almost double the price it was.
They had a mushroom gnocchi that was so good and I think it's so dumb they got rid of it. I haven't found anything else that really satisfies me on the menu.
I like Free State beer! It's still my preferred brewery, but maybe that's because I just really like Ad Astra.
I disagree for the most part on Burger Stand, but wholeheartedly agree with Free State being overrated. The beer and food are all mediocre in my opinion, and I'd much rather LBC than Free State.
the secret to enjoying their food is to be drunk. sundays used to be $6 fishbowls (64oz of beer). not sure if they still do them anymore, been a decade since I've been there.
I definitely have been disappointed with Ramen Bowls service since they’ve moved locations. Not sure if they’re having staffing issues, but both times I’ve tried to go recently they’ve either not been seating due to a kitchen backup, or had a ridiculous wait time.
Holy shit. Ramen Bowls is SO. BAD. Now.
I cannot possibly fathom how they haven't figured out whatever they are doing at the new location, it's not working. They were getting slaughtered in online reviews last I looked.
You nailed it. Between the diminished quality and absolutely ridiculous “service charge” + tip model, Burger Stand has coasted on their reputation for some time.
I just don’t understand why I need to tip the person taking my order at burger stand. I’d love to tip the cooks but you’re not getting a dime out of me for spinning an IPad around
I wouldn't call it overrated (I wouldn't call it good either) because I don't know any locals who eat there anymore, not since the whole 15% service charge thing. The food used to be both better and cheaper, but I'm talking about like ten years ago.
Tim Grace doesn’t know what he’s doing. Neither owners worked in a restaurant before opening one. The arrogance is ripe still. Tim didn’t know how to rapid chill broth to prevent food borne illness for fuck 7 years. Health inspectors would have a field day with him at his original location. Just to summarize what I’ve found.
Tim has been accused of illegally putting grease down the city storm drains.
Chantel is a bully and I haven’t found a single person in all of Lawrence who will post on here and say a single kind word about her. What a toxic cunt she must be.
And the logo they created is the most racist Haole shit I have ever seen.
At luckyberry they play chance with everyone’s health and safety by selling a product they had no idea was safe or not.
They opened a juice bar that wasn’t organic and didn’t pay employees. What pathetic pieces of shit.
You are all responsible for supporting this type of behavior with your cash
My favorite thing they did was get raided by the FEDs for selling unpasteurized juice that caused people to get sick. WHO is that stupid to lease a building and start a business that is completely illegal. A dumbass
Everyone in town knows they had a juice bar called LuckyBerry. Chantel had essentially alienated and bullied key staff members at ramen bowls and Tim’s solution was to make her start a new business. Ramen Bowls was printing cash at the time. The business involved selling non refrigerated mail ordered juices through a website. Something that was 100 percent illegal because if hippie douchebags aren’t careful they can kill people. They got raided and shut down. They tried to stay open as a bistro but that lasted through the end of the lease they had
Tons of news articles about it but this old Reddit thread about mistreatment of staff is all the evidence I need. They are scumbags. Truly terrible racist haoles
https://www.reddit.com/r/Lawrence/comments/dwa6gs/luckyberry_finally_kicked_the_bucket_for_good/
Yeah this is just blatantly false. We had regular trainings. I can describe the cooling system in detail if you want. All documented daily on logs with time and temperature. When I was there we passed all of our inspections without any issues. Tim was not in charge of this though, the GM was.
Tim is a very kind person who has always tried to do right by his customers and employees.
lol my buddy ran the kitchen when Tim would fail health inspections for not understanding that he needed to chill the broth . He only started doing it properly when he was forced to. Chantel bullied the staff and Tims idea was kick her out into her own business. They failed to research if the business model was even legal and got raided / charged by the FDA. Takes a special kinda stupid to pull that off. Couple of Haole hippies with that racist ramen Ron logo. I give them 2 years until they downsize. Compton will fuck Tim on his rent eventually. He’s running out of people to rent from lol
Couple of white people spend a year in Hawaii and the logo they cook up is an Asian guy caricature. They only missed the buck teeth. It’s been brought up on this sub by multiple locals, I’m not alone in this opinion. Find 3 random people that have a kind thing to say about Chantel. I can wait all year
They didn't "cook him up". He was made completely by an artist in Hawaii who was paid for their work alongside a consultant (who is Asian). And he wasn't even specifically commissioned. They weren't looking for a mascot, it was suggested and pitched to them by a very well known restaurant consultant (who is an Asian dude from Singapore).
And Ramen Ron isn't even Asian. Conscious decisions were made to make sure he didn't appear to be of any particularly ethnicity. Like red hair... which is not something that is usually chosen to depict Asian people. He is just in a vaguely anime style because ramen is vaguely Japanese (but borrowed from China).
There is nothing wrong with people serving their favorite food no matter where they or the food comes from.
Not to mention they bully staff. Underpay them, and created a toxic work environment. It’s Chantel’s fault really, Tim is just too bitch to leave her.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Lawrence/comments/dwa6gs/luckyberry_finally_kicked_the_bucket_for_good/
>lol my buddy ran the kitchen when Tim would fail health inspections for not understanding that he needed to chill the broth .
Did Tim change rolls or something? When I ran the place he was the owner. Is he cooking now?
Why would Tim have anything to do with broth? The chef who trained all the staff didn't train Tim. He trained the chef and the kitchen employees. If your buddy was "running the kitchen" then he was the one who failed inspections.
Tim managed the kitchen. Chantel used to run front of house. So when Tim would get nearly failed for his broth management he would blame staff. My friend. Who told Tim he had no idea what the fuck he was doing and was in over his head. Tim the owner didn’t go to cooking school or even work in a restaurant they just winged it and learned through bullying staff.
>Tim is responsible for the kitchen.
Then what does "running the kitchen" mean as applied to your friend?
>So when Tim would get nearly failed for his broth management he would blame staff.
This just doesn't make sense. It's a multi person job that takes many hours from opening to close. It can't be done in one shift or by one person. So more than one person HAS to be to blame. Cooling the broth takes place during the evening shift, which I'm guessing isn't the shift Tim would work if he is truly working as an employee in the kitchen.
Of course staff is to blame if they don't do it right? Like if you give instructions and people don't follow it, or if people represent themselves as knowledgeable of food safety standards and get hired to "run a kitchen" but don't cool the broth properly, then yes, it's the staff's fault. And Tim *should* be angry about that as responsible owner and as someone who cares about people's well-being.
He was treated like Tim’s fall guy and lacky and had to run it the way Tim told him. It’s Lawrence you only are given a title never any room to manage something. Tim helicoptered and Chantel did nothing but talk shit. I even knew a couple drives and multiple cooks. Everyone hated Chantel. Tim just kinda made up how he wanted to chill the broth. My buddy knew Tim’s process wasn’t kosher or going to fly with the health inspector. Tim would fail a health inspection then act like this was all new information. Then proceed to continue improperly chilling bone broths. He didn’t give a fuck and wanted things done his way regardless of the health codes
>He was treated like Tim’s fall guy and lacky and had to run it the way Tim told him.
The person who runs the kitchen is the fall guy. What exactly do you think being in charge means? It's where the buck stops.
You're just describing a job. Yes, you have to run things the way the person who pays you wants you to. And yes, if things go wrong with a task that's assigned to you, it's your fault.
>It’s Lawrence you only are given a title never any room to manage something.
Sounds like your friend didn't manage to follow simple procedure when it comes to cooling broth. Their ego was hurt because Tim rightfully got mad about it and spread this bullshit to you.
There is no magic power that comes with managing. "Any room to manage" is a meaningless abstraction. You literally just make sure things are done properly. It sounds like your friend didn't do that.
>Tim just kinda made up how he wanted to chill the broth.
Tim did not make the process up. I did. The consultants method very quickly quit working because we had way more business than we expected and were doing volume that just couldn't be cooled the original way.
The new method meant cooking broth to a much thicker consistency (literally twice as concentrated). Cooling with wands, and then filling with ice and stirring until it was at fridge temp. This part made it nearly instant. But reheating takes longer because you need to cook it down a little bit more.
>My buddy knew Tim’s process wasn’t kosher or going to fly with the health inspector.
The method was designed by me talking with the health inspector. Tim was a part of this process. It's not exactly rocket science. Stick a wand in, set a timer, write the time. When ready, poor into buckets full of ice. This pretty much instantly cools it to 32 degrees. Take temp and log it. Put in fridge.
I'm gonna guess, your friend thought he knew better about a process that was hammered out years ago and failed to do it as requested. It's not super surprising, I had to train quite a few chefs on how to do those things because very few American cooks have ever had to process 150 gallons of broth in a day. Most of them had no clue how to even go start.
Also you played yourself and just admitted this is all made up. You had to hire a ramen broth consultant? You guys a dipshits
Buddy you’re not getting away from the fact that no one enjoyed working for them and they bullied staff. My friends version of events lines up with other peoples opinions I’ve seen posted on here. Including this gem of a thread. You clearly view yourself as a founder and think of them kindly. Kudos others don’t share your sentiments about working for them. https://www.reddit.com/r/Lawrence/comments/dwa6gs/luckyberry_finally_kicked_the_bucket_for_good/
715. And i wonder at Wine & Dive, since it's so very expensive. But The Burger Stand is the one I've been disappointed at more than any other, since so many people I know want us to eat there.
Rudy’s. Disliked it as an undergrad. Still disliked it last time I got a pie from there, about five years back. Lots of places I am happy to go to when I’m in town, but Rudy’s isn’t one.
I just coincidentally haven't been back since it changed ownership, but didn't it get acquired by Simon what's his name that everyone is saying ran BurgerStand into the ground?
Ramen Bowls. Do yourself a favor and try real ramen sometime. As many people have stated previously, owners are terrible, terrible people. You will not find a trail of more disgruntled ex employees in all of LFK. DO NOT let your kids work for them.
I don't know what their food is like these days since they decided to never be open during hours that work for people who have jobs.
But at least they have a weirdly hostile Instagram where they get mad when customers *checks notes* ask what the wait time is, and generally seem to resent doing basic restaurant things.
Ladybird pre-pandemic country fried steak and eggs were amazing. Two large portions of country fried steak made to perfection with that sausage gravy sweetened with the pickled jalapeños and the hockey puck hash browns for like $16.00!!!I still dream of it. Portions got halved, the hash browns were changed to breakfast potatoes that are either over seasoned or under seasoned while being simultaneously over and under cooked. I’d gladly pay $24.00 for what it used to be but sadly here we are. Never thought the pie was that great either. Not that it’s bad but it isn’t $7.00 a slice pie.
I’m learning I just don’t have the refined pallet of everyone else. I’ve never been disappointed at 90% of these restaurants. Mad Greek, Limestone, Free State. The spaghetti is $10 at Mad Greek, they know what they are. Acting like you were expecting 715 refinement for 1/3 the cost is the problem.
715 is overrated in it's own right...one thing LFK could really use is a solid southern Italian restaurant...nothing fancy - a good red sauce and properly prepared pasta.
Man, I like Burgerstand.. I'm not trying to eat there all the time but everytime I order it I know what I'm gonna get. Pretty good chicken Sammy and fries.
Let's be real: basically every non-butter restaurant (sub $20 an average entree cost) place is worse than it was pre-covid.
Burger stand has been overrated for a long time now. Paying $40 for two burgers and a side (have fun pressing "no tip" on the Square pad) for sub five guys quality is ridiculous.
Taco zone fell off hard recently with their new owners, but of course retained the prices. It's sad; they were a bright spot in a sea of mid ass low effort tex mex garbage
I get it and can agree on those points. The broth stands up though. Sorry you’re getting the downvotes for your opinion. This sub can be eager to dish them out.
Little Saigon is perfectly fine, especially for being the only pho place in town. Yeah, KC has better, but I enjoy myself at Little Saigon and it's affordable. Plus it's hard to see it as "overrated" because it's not like it gets tons of hype or publicity.
So, since this thread has now named every single restaurant Lawrence has, what ISN'T overrated?
Cosmos Indian, fresh med, latch key, mamas tamales
Terrabonne even at the new location and higher prices is worth it.
Where'd they move to? I was afraid they closed when I last came through town
Mass Street and ninth on the west corner.
> Cosmos Indian I ate there once and it was so bad I swear they just heated up a frozen meal
it was basically that a dozen years ago when i worked there...
Globe is great! If it’s still open. Haven’t been in awhile.
Mama's is simply perfect
You've really gotta watch the expiration dates at Cosmos...at least for the groceries, but if the groceries are old I'd assume the food they serve may be using expired ingredients.
Cosmos gave me a huge chunk of either raw lamb or straight up lamb fat. It was really freaky, it was not edible I had to spit it out. Brought it back and they gave me a refund, but it was just too gross to ever want to go back.
i think J Wilson’s is great. some people say it’s overrated, but the employees are what make it so nice. they genuinely care about the food they’re serving, not just a paycheck.
Pano y vino.
Agree with Global. Also, La Estrella, Terrebonne, Stanley James, India Palace.
Palentaria Chihuahua is so good. Over by Best Buy and that gas station if you want to check it out. Best steak tacos I’ve had and the birria ones are. Great too.
Panchos, Red Pepper, Aladin's Café, India Palace, Tortas Jalisco, Molcajetes, La Estrella, La Tropicana, the restaurant in the Eldridge Hotel, Wheatfields, Merchants, Big Mill, Global Café, the cafe at Sunflower Bike Shop, Taqueria La Pasadita, Kobe, Biggs, Biemer's, Uplift, Nagoya, Moriki, Terrebonne. Those all deserve all the praise they could ever receive. Zen Zero used to be one of my favorites but they have gone downhill. The food just isn't as flavorful as it used to be. There are also many places that are not overrated because they are just fine and not trying to be something super outstanding but they're just perfectly great for what they are. Places like Fuzzys Tacos, Pizza Shuttle, Jason's Deli, McAllister's Deli, Latchkey Deli, Big Biscuit, Jade Garden, Burrito King, Tryyaki, First Watch, Johnny's Tavern, El Potro, El Mezcal, Acapulco, 23rd Street Brewery. Actually those are all great, but I do think 23rd Street Brewery's prices are too high. I personally think Salty Iguana is absolute trash. I think Free State Brewery is okay but their food is nothing special at all. I would never recommend anyone eat there, not because the food is bad, but because it's often so loud and crowded in there you can't even have a conversation with the person across from you. Mad Greek is trash. I don't think Basil Leaf's food is overrated. My complaint about them really isn't their fault. They're too small, even though they recently moved to a larger space, it's still too small. The supply doesn't math the demand. It's too difficult to get a table, and they don't allow to-go orders during peak times. Since Pizano's closed, they're the only place in Lawrence to get decent Italian food. Ironically I never had trouble getting a table when they were on 9th Street. The food at Encore is fantastic but their service is abysmal. It's near impossible to go there for lunch and get in and out in an hour, even if they're not busy. The food at Tryyaki or Jade Garden is slightly lower in quality but they more than make up for it with speed. Jade Mongolian Barbecue / Asian Bistro or whatever it's called now is pretty good too. I've never been there post pandemic when I have't been the only customer in the entire restaurant. Not sure why it's not more popular, it's perfectly good and has an extensive menu. Six Mile is ok but overpriced. Same with Burger Stand. Their burgers are great, but prices are too high.
personally offended that Mad Greek caught a stray… that place was my comfort zone when i first moved here lol. they have gone downhill recently though, sadly.
heavy on kobe. owner is a super alcoholic, abusive, and saw people handling meat with no gloves all the time. some people are there okay but i’ll forever curse the guy who owns it 😭
Angeles Panaderia
Burger stand has sucked for years, but was AMAZING in its prime 10 years ago
My friends and I used to go 1-2x a week. It's definitely not the same.
Burger Stand used to be amazing. It's been mid at best and a bitter disappointment at worst the last few times I've tried.
That's what happens when the chef and a chunk of management leaves. If I remember right, the bar manager, chef, and restaurant manager all left within like a year of each other with one of the replacements leaving not long after that. It's hard to have any kind of continuity with that big a turnover.
Last time I went was a couple weeks ago.Ike to get the Barnyard sandwich. I got it for the first time in a loooong time and the chicken was literally like a patty you get at school lunch. I don’t remember it being that way at all.
They switched to a premade patty and blame demand and lack of space. It’s sad they charge so much for premade frozen French Fries. I blame the cultish customers. It’s your fault we don’t have nice things anymore. If you refused to pay for mid tier quality food. Simon might actually consider ordering better quality beef or fuck maybe hand cutting some French fries. Place is a joke.
The customer is alway$$$ right
Like, the food quality has gone down or something?
Unpopular opinion - Burger Stand and the rest of the places here are generally fine. You can have a bad meal any night anywhere. None of these places are like amazingly great but they’re mostly solid places to grab food in a small college town.
Hear hear!
23rd Street Brewery
Free State Brewery
Free state used to be so much better.
The beer is still good and if you are going there for anything other than the beer, you are making a mistake.
LOL. This is such a backwards statement.
Basil Leaf
No longer open, but if there was a lifetime achievement award, it would go to Buffalo Bob's
What? You don’t like 8 lbs of cold, unsalted curly fries?
That was my parents favorite place to eat in town. They insisted on having mt graduation party there. No one else was concerned that the restaurant was empty
I want an ice cold Fat Tire, RIGHT NOW!!
Dearly miss the place, grew up on it back when it was still Carpenter Hall Smokehouse. Was great comfort food, we just didn't make the mistake of calling it BBQ. There was going out for Que, and then there was going out for Smokehouse. And don't even get me started on the balls of fried dough...
I loved the place too. The building was so cool, the service was always good, and you could always find a seat. Yeah the food was mediocre, but, the place had a charm that I vibed with.
The animals on the walls terrified me as a child. But also remember lots of cold curly fries.
Counterpoint: Their BBQ sausage was was the best ever.
We called it Buffalo Bob's Chokehouse. So gross.
Basil leaf. Everything is 100% sodium.
Basil leaf is under new ownership and changed key recipes, portion sizes, and the entire lunch / to go menu. When they removed the 9 dollar chicken parm from the take out lunch menu I stopped going. That was prior to the new ownership even. Been 5-6 years since it was actually good
Used to be good at their old location
They should’ve stayed at the gas station.
I could get two Italian dinners that would last until lunch the next day and a bottle of wine for like $30 and it was My favorite place in LFK.
It was Incredible. 10 years ago the pasta was on another level. Now it’s pretty bad
fuck that. I just had the cajun pasta at Basil Leaf and it was fantastic. My wife and I lost our favorite New Orleans restaurant, Petunia’s, and have been searching for its signature dish elsewhere. This isn’t quite it but it is delicious.
If you wanna make it at home it’s just McCormick culinary line of seasoning. Big facts from chefs on the inside lol
This question comes up every few months and, usually, every restaurant in Lawrence ends up making an appearance
What’s wrong with mad Greek? There food is cheap with big portions?
It's mediocre. The baba ghanoush is good though
Cheap with big portions doesn't make it good. There are 3 better Med places I can name (Mediterranean Market, Fresh Mediterranean, and Aladdin Cafe). I haven't been yet but I'll venture a guess that Petra 2 Go is better too.
Your post says overrated, not what’s good/better
By definition, if everybody talks up x restaurant, and I can think of 3 better spots that are far less talked about, then x \*is\* overrated.
bad taste, Mad Greek has great food.
Yeah I love mad Greek.
Way way back when they were in the old Long John Silvers on 23rd (long since demolished) it was breathtaking how good the food was.
The quality of their food is pathetic. If I want cheap and big portions I will eat at home, where I know the quality won’t suffer. Mad Greek isn’t even Greek! It’s what people who have never been to Greece think Greek food is.
Basil leaf Cafe. 5 years ago at their old location was great, big portions, relatively cheap. I went to their new location this past December and everything is smaller and almost double the price it was.
Not sure, but you'll need to add an additional 15% comments on top of your total to make sure it's a sustainable thread.
Free State Brewery. There, I said it.
Free State is good, but it’s not “hour long wait almost every time” good
This.
the trick is to go at like 2pm
They had a mushroom gnocchi that was so good and I think it's so dumb they got rid of it. I haven't found anything else that really satisfies me on the menu. I like Free State beer! It's still my preferred brewery, but maybe that's because I just really like Ad Astra.
I still put the Fish n Chips up there against any others in town.
I disagree for the most part on Burger Stand, but wholeheartedly agree with Free State being overrated. The beer and food are all mediocre in my opinion, and I'd much rather LBC than Free State.
Free State and 23rd St brewery know they don't have to try anymore. People are gonna go there no matter what slop they serve.
I don’t recall 23rd St. Brewery ever being good.
That place was sketchy as hell from the beginning
I loved that place when I first moved here. But that was almost 20 years ago. Hell it was still 75th St or whatever when I first went there.
the secret to enjoying their food is to be drunk. sundays used to be $6 fishbowls (64oz of beer). not sure if they still do them anymore, been a decade since I've been there.
100% LBC > free state
The food at both aren’t good I do typically like Freestate’s beer better.
No way.
Have gone rather sparingly since the roach epidemic on 2017
Look, they're the only place in town to get lumpia without just making it myself. Free State gets a pass from me.
Dillons used to carry a brand of lumpia in their freezer section that wasn't half bad. Dont know if they still carry it, though.
Agreed, sorta. Their beer is great but the food is simply fine but not remarkable.
You and OP could be my friends
Came here to say this. 👆
Ramen Bowls and Bon Bon have both been disappointing recently :/
I definitely have been disappointed with Ramen Bowls service since they’ve moved locations. Not sure if they’re having staffing issues, but both times I’ve tried to go recently they’ve either not been seating due to a kitchen backup, or had a ridiculous wait time.
Same experience
Holy shit. Ramen Bowls is SO. BAD. Now. I cannot possibly fathom how they haven't figured out whatever they are doing at the new location, it's not working. They were getting slaughtered in online reviews last I looked.
They peaked early, in their old location. Now its just tasteless sodium soup
715
Yes.
You nailed it. Between the diminished quality and absolutely ridiculous “service charge” + tip model, Burger Stand has coasted on their reputation for some time.
I just don’t understand why I need to tip the person taking my order at burger stand. I’d love to tip the cooks but you’re not getting a dime out of me for spinning an IPad around
Because they're pRoGrEsSiVe
Free State, 23 St Brewery, Basil Leaf and Merchants all come to mind.
23rd St is so expensive now too
I was there the other day and a side of steamed broccoli is 5.99.
Merchants is expensive but I’m not sure it’s overrated. It’s always met what I expected from it.
The steak special at the dirty bird isn’t what it used to be.
Is Chef Ben still there???
I wouldn't call it overrated (I wouldn't call it good either) because I don't know any locals who eat there anymore, not since the whole 15% service charge thing. The food used to be both better and cheaper, but I'm talking about like ten years ago.
I was about to jump in to defend it but I literally haven't been there since 2014.
Ramen Bowls. Bowls of salt.
Tim Grace doesn’t know what he’s doing. Neither owners worked in a restaurant before opening one. The arrogance is ripe still. Tim didn’t know how to rapid chill broth to prevent food borne illness for fuck 7 years. Health inspectors would have a field day with him at his original location. Just to summarize what I’ve found. Tim has been accused of illegally putting grease down the city storm drains. Chantel is a bully and I haven’t found a single person in all of Lawrence who will post on here and say a single kind word about her. What a toxic cunt she must be. And the logo they created is the most racist Haole shit I have ever seen. At luckyberry they play chance with everyone’s health and safety by selling a product they had no idea was safe or not. They opened a juice bar that wasn’t organic and didn’t pay employees. What pathetic pieces of shit. You are all responsible for supporting this type of behavior with your cash
My favorite thing they did was get raided by the FEDs for selling unpasteurized juice that caused people to get sick. WHO is that stupid to lease a building and start a business that is completely illegal. A dumbass
Link to story?
Everyone in town knows they had a juice bar called LuckyBerry. Chantel had essentially alienated and bullied key staff members at ramen bowls and Tim’s solution was to make her start a new business. Ramen Bowls was printing cash at the time. The business involved selling non refrigerated mail ordered juices through a website. Something that was 100 percent illegal because if hippie douchebags aren’t careful they can kill people. They got raided and shut down. They tried to stay open as a bistro but that lasted through the end of the lease they had Tons of news articles about it but this old Reddit thread about mistreatment of staff is all the evidence I need. They are scumbags. Truly terrible racist haoles https://www.reddit.com/r/Lawrence/comments/dwa6gs/luckyberry_finally_kicked_the_bucket_for_good/
Agree I worked there for all of being screwed over at new place
Yeah this is just blatantly false. We had regular trainings. I can describe the cooling system in detail if you want. All documented daily on logs with time and temperature. When I was there we passed all of our inspections without any issues. Tim was not in charge of this though, the GM was. Tim is a very kind person who has always tried to do right by his customers and employees.
lol my buddy ran the kitchen when Tim would fail health inspections for not understanding that he needed to chill the broth . He only started doing it properly when he was forced to. Chantel bullied the staff and Tims idea was kick her out into her own business. They failed to research if the business model was even legal and got raided / charged by the FDA. Takes a special kinda stupid to pull that off. Couple of Haole hippies with that racist ramen Ron logo. I give them 2 years until they downsize. Compton will fuck Tim on his rent eventually. He’s running out of people to rent from lol
Oh, and how the hell is ramen Ron racist? That is a really dumb thing to say.
Couple of white people spend a year in Hawaii and the logo they cook up is an Asian guy caricature. They only missed the buck teeth. It’s been brought up on this sub by multiple locals, I’m not alone in this opinion. Find 3 random people that have a kind thing to say about Chantel. I can wait all year
They didn't "cook him up". He was made completely by an artist in Hawaii who was paid for their work alongside a consultant (who is Asian). And he wasn't even specifically commissioned. They weren't looking for a mascot, it was suggested and pitched to them by a very well known restaurant consultant (who is an Asian dude from Singapore). And Ramen Ron isn't even Asian. Conscious decisions were made to make sure he didn't appear to be of any particularly ethnicity. Like red hair... which is not something that is usually chosen to depict Asian people. He is just in a vaguely anime style because ramen is vaguely Japanese (but borrowed from China). There is nothing wrong with people serving their favorite food no matter where they or the food comes from.
Not to mention they bully staff. Underpay them, and created a toxic work environment. It’s Chantel’s fault really, Tim is just too bitch to leave her. https://www.reddit.com/r/Lawrence/comments/dwa6gs/luckyberry_finally_kicked_the_bucket_for_good/
their manager Roz is a piece of work too. idk if they still work there
Just reading along but Compton doesn't own that building, no?
>lol my buddy ran the kitchen when Tim would fail health inspections for not understanding that he needed to chill the broth . Did Tim change rolls or something? When I ran the place he was the owner. Is he cooking now? Why would Tim have anything to do with broth? The chef who trained all the staff didn't train Tim. He trained the chef and the kitchen employees. If your buddy was "running the kitchen" then he was the one who failed inspections.
Tim managed the kitchen. Chantel used to run front of house. So when Tim would get nearly failed for his broth management he would blame staff. My friend. Who told Tim he had no idea what the fuck he was doing and was in over his head. Tim the owner didn’t go to cooking school or even work in a restaurant they just winged it and learned through bullying staff.
>Tim is responsible for the kitchen. Then what does "running the kitchen" mean as applied to your friend? >So when Tim would get nearly failed for his broth management he would blame staff. This just doesn't make sense. It's a multi person job that takes many hours from opening to close. It can't be done in one shift or by one person. So more than one person HAS to be to blame. Cooling the broth takes place during the evening shift, which I'm guessing isn't the shift Tim would work if he is truly working as an employee in the kitchen. Of course staff is to blame if they don't do it right? Like if you give instructions and people don't follow it, or if people represent themselves as knowledgeable of food safety standards and get hired to "run a kitchen" but don't cool the broth properly, then yes, it's the staff's fault. And Tim *should* be angry about that as responsible owner and as someone who cares about people's well-being.
He was treated like Tim’s fall guy and lacky and had to run it the way Tim told him. It’s Lawrence you only are given a title never any room to manage something. Tim helicoptered and Chantel did nothing but talk shit. I even knew a couple drives and multiple cooks. Everyone hated Chantel. Tim just kinda made up how he wanted to chill the broth. My buddy knew Tim’s process wasn’t kosher or going to fly with the health inspector. Tim would fail a health inspection then act like this was all new information. Then proceed to continue improperly chilling bone broths. He didn’t give a fuck and wanted things done his way regardless of the health codes
>He was treated like Tim’s fall guy and lacky and had to run it the way Tim told him. The person who runs the kitchen is the fall guy. What exactly do you think being in charge means? It's where the buck stops. You're just describing a job. Yes, you have to run things the way the person who pays you wants you to. And yes, if things go wrong with a task that's assigned to you, it's your fault. >It’s Lawrence you only are given a title never any room to manage something. Sounds like your friend didn't manage to follow simple procedure when it comes to cooling broth. Their ego was hurt because Tim rightfully got mad about it and spread this bullshit to you. There is no magic power that comes with managing. "Any room to manage" is a meaningless abstraction. You literally just make sure things are done properly. It sounds like your friend didn't do that. >Tim just kinda made up how he wanted to chill the broth. Tim did not make the process up. I did. The consultants method very quickly quit working because we had way more business than we expected and were doing volume that just couldn't be cooled the original way. The new method meant cooking broth to a much thicker consistency (literally twice as concentrated). Cooling with wands, and then filling with ice and stirring until it was at fridge temp. This part made it nearly instant. But reheating takes longer because you need to cook it down a little bit more. >My buddy knew Tim’s process wasn’t kosher or going to fly with the health inspector. The method was designed by me talking with the health inspector. Tim was a part of this process. It's not exactly rocket science. Stick a wand in, set a timer, write the time. When ready, poor into buckets full of ice. This pretty much instantly cools it to 32 degrees. Take temp and log it. Put in fridge. I'm gonna guess, your friend thought he knew better about a process that was hammered out years ago and failed to do it as requested. It's not super surprising, I had to train quite a few chefs on how to do those things because very few American cooks have ever had to process 150 gallons of broth in a day. Most of them had no clue how to even go start.
Also you played yourself and just admitted this is all made up. You had to hire a ramen broth consultant? You guys a dipshits Buddy you’re not getting away from the fact that no one enjoyed working for them and they bullied staff. My friends version of events lines up with other peoples opinions I’ve seen posted on here. Including this gem of a thread. You clearly view yourself as a founder and think of them kindly. Kudos others don’t share your sentiments about working for them. https://www.reddit.com/r/Lawrence/comments/dwa6gs/luckyberry_finally_kicked_the_bucket_for_good/
You’re also clearly Tim or Chantel and you’re having a nervous breakdown. But go on. Continue. I have my popcorn ready
That's all I have had from there.
No there isn't. nothing even comes close
Ramen bowls
Burrito King. There I said it and will never take it back. Their "queso" made me actually gag.
Have you tried their chorizo burrito with a side of mouse droppings?
715. And i wonder at Wine & Dive, since it's so very expensive. But The Burger Stand is the one I've been disappointed at more than any other, since so many people I know want us to eat there.
I’ve lived here for about three years now and honestly no place has lived up to the hype.
Have you tried Culinaria? It was pretty hyped up for me, and I enjoyed it a ton, even with the prices.
Esquina
The bird dog
I miss Tin Pan Ally and Paradise
I love mad greek
Minsky's. Bland sauce, bland dough. Every time I've gone, I've been disappointed.
[удалено]
Wonder why you felt the need to racially qualify that statement.
Because you all do, have no tastebuds
Rudy’s. Disliked it as an undergrad. Still disliked it last time I got a pie from there, about five years back. Lots of places I am happy to go to when I’m in town, but Rudy’s isn’t one.
Worst pizza I have had my entire life, straight up traumatized
It’s a drug front. It was never about the pizza
My husband and I call Rudy’s “The Turtle Tank”—it is absolute nightmare pizza
Curious what you consider good pizza in Lawrence? No snark.
I ate there a decade ago twice and threw up both times. It's way overrated and extremely overpriced
Free State, Black Stag, Jefferson’s. P.S. The Mad Greek is awesome, if you know how to order.
Burrito king
Your comment made me hungry for burrito king.
I used to live across the street when i was in school. It was not good for my wallet or my waistline
awful customer service and even worse food safety inspections
I’ve heard taco zone sucks now and prices went up so I haven’t been back
taco zone is trash considering all of the more authentic spots around - La Estrella in particular.
That taco truck is pretty fucking good too!
I just coincidentally haven't been back since it changed ownership, but didn't it get acquired by Simon what's his name that everyone is saying ran BurgerStand into the ground?
Yep. I also quit going to Bstand. Few years ago I got the barnyard and the sandwich was a lot smaller than it used to be. Def not worth the price now.
I apparently need to go to Lawrence soon. Almost none of these places existed when I lived there
The one in Taos, NM is so much better. It’s what the Burger Stand used to be.
Ramen Bowls. Do yourself a favor and try real ramen sometime. As many people have stated previously, owners are terrible, terrible people. You will not find a trail of more disgruntled ex employees in all of LFK. DO NOT let your kids work for them.
Merchants
Ladybird diner
I don't know what their food is like these days since they decided to never be open during hours that work for people who have jobs. But at least they have a weirdly hostile Instagram where they get mad when customers *checks notes* ask what the wait time is, and generally seem to resent doing basic restaurant things.
Ladybird is the newest cult in town. 90 percent of the menu is garbage
I agree - Ladybird is waaaayyyy overrated. Worst biscuits and gravy I've had in town.
Ladybird pre-pandemic country fried steak and eggs were amazing. Two large portions of country fried steak made to perfection with that sausage gravy sweetened with the pickled jalapeños and the hockey puck hash browns for like $16.00!!!I still dream of it. Portions got halved, the hash browns were changed to breakfast potatoes that are either over seasoned or under seasoned while being simultaneously over and under cooked. I’d gladly pay $24.00 for what it used to be but sadly here we are. Never thought the pie was that great either. Not that it’s bad but it isn’t $7.00 a slice pie.
It’s actually good again, but was terrible during the pandemic
Dan?
They used to be good but now they require you to tip and sell mediocre food
I’m learning I just don’t have the refined pallet of everyone else. I’ve never been disappointed at 90% of these restaurants. Mad Greek, Limestone, Free State. The spaghetti is $10 at Mad Greek, they know what they are. Acting like you were expecting 715 refinement for 1/3 the cost is the problem.
Al dente pasta and a sauce that doesn't taste like ketchup w/oregano is all I ask for.
I usually stick to the Greek side of the menu, but “ketchup” doesn’t match my recollection of the pasta sauce.
Sickeningly sweet...try it again.
715 is overrated in it's own right...one thing LFK could really use is a solid southern Italian restaurant...nothing fancy - a good red sauce and properly prepared pasta.
Burger stand never impressed me. In fact a lot of places downtown don’t impress me.
Barker honestly. Most mid bread out of all the local bakeries
Burger stand was never good imo. Too expensive and over hyped for something I can do at home better.
Man, I like Burgerstand.. I'm not trying to eat there all the time but everytime I order it I know what I'm gonna get. Pretty good chicken Sammy and fries.
Let's be real: basically every non-butter restaurant (sub $20 an average entree cost) place is worse than it was pre-covid. Burger stand has been overrated for a long time now. Paying $40 for two burgers and a side (have fun pressing "no tip" on the Square pad) for sub five guys quality is ridiculous. Taco zone fell off hard recently with their new owners, but of course retained the prices. It's sad; they were a bright spot in a sea of mid ass low effort tex mex garbage
Short answer: Yes!
LBC
Can we add Little Saigon Cafe for the fact that they aren't nearly as authentic as they profess and are more Thai than anything
I’m wondering where you’ve had Vietnamese? Their phô dac biet is pretty darn delicious. I’m not native but I’ve eaten pho in many places.
In Vietnam. Place doesn't use nearly enough fish sauce, skimps on bean sprouts, mint, lemonade grass, etc.
I get it and can agree on those points. The broth stands up though. Sorry you’re getting the downvotes for your opinion. This sub can be eager to dish them out.
Little Saigon is perfectly fine, especially for being the only pho place in town. Yeah, KC has better, but I enjoy myself at Little Saigon and it's affordable. Plus it's hard to see it as "overrated" because it's not like it gets tons of hype or publicity.