Thursday, August 15, 2013

Marsha's Backstreet Cafe

Stop 15 on the burger tour:  Marsha's



Overall Score:  91.3(A-)


BurgerSidesService/ExpValueSCORE
John69.36.510994.8
Russell60610884
Mark70710895

Russell


This week we visited yet another place that I have never been.  One of the great things about the burger tour has been all of the places that we have gone that we probably would have never tried if it had not been for the tour.  Marsha's is a hidden gem on Brainerd Road.  If you haven't been to Marsha's, you probably don't even know where it is located.  Marsha's was recommended to us by one of our followers on the blog.  Whoever recommended it, thank you!  
The burger was great and the service was outstanding.  If you like onion on your burger, you will love this burger.  All of the veggies on the burger were good, but the onion was outstanding.  The only negative about this visit was the frozen crinkle cut fries.  On the menu it says that they serve fresh hand cut fries but we were served the frozen fries.  It was explained to us later that the reason they served us the frozen fries was that they had received some bad potatoes.  I had a hard time deciding how to score this category, but in the end it is what it is.  I also dinged them a point on value since they still charged us the $1.75 to substitute the fries for the chips.

Marsha's is definitely somewhere that I will go back.  They have lunch specials every day and one of the regulars told us that the cold plate was superb.  It will be hard to go there and not get the burger though.  Do yourself a favor and check this place out.  You won't be sorry!

Overall Score:  84(B)

Mark


All summer, I have been waiting for the one burger to come through as the surprise dark horse of the Tour, and today I finally found it.

If someone didn't tell you the location of Marsha's, it's a pretty safe bet you would never find it.  Tucked behind a liquor store on Brainerd Road, Marsha's has been thriving almost exclusively on word-of-mouth advertising since 1999.  I can see why they have been successful.

It's a great little hamburger joint, just the right size, clean and cozy.  Local artwork lines the walls, which I think is a great touch.  Service was outstanding and it was obvious they were glad to have us for lunch, even offering a sample of their chicken salad to try and entice us back for another visit.  To be honest, they didn't need to do that; I'll be back for the burger again, promise.

This is a championship burger; fantastic beef, tons of onion and fresh tomato stacked on a toasted bun make this a perfect 10 burger for me.  The sweet tea was great and our server brought around the refills often.  Again, the friendly service was tops here.

Now to the fries.  Just after we ordered, Jimmy came to our table and explained that normally they serve fresh cut fries at Marsha's, but the potatoes this year have been impacted by the amount of rain we've had this summer.  He told us that after cooking them, the finished fry wasn't up to their standards and rather than serve an inferior product, they decided instead to serve frozen fries and offer an apology.  Wow.  You have to respect that.  They take their food seriously here, and it shows.  He could have just sent out the frozen fries without taking the time to tell us why, but the fact that he did makes up for any negatives I would have given them for serving frozen taters, so my sides score will be higher than normal as a result.

Value is going to take a ding, as we came in at over ten bucks before tip.

This visit has made the entire Tour worthwhile; we found a place in Chattanooga that has a great burger that we otherwise would have missed.  Go to Marsha's and take an appetite.  Sure, they have other items on the menu, but get the burger.  Of all the places we've been, this is going to be the first repeat stop I'll make once the Tour is over.  That's the highest compliment I can give it.

Seriously, it's that good.


Overall Score: 95 (A+)


John


It's been almost 24 hours and I can still hear the chants:  MARSHA!  MARSHA! MARSHA!

We finally got what we have been waiting for since June 26—a burger and diner that gives Merv's and Armando's a run for their money.  


Marsha's is just a great place.  It's really nice inside:  open, plenty of light and funky artwork on the walls which Marsha's son Jimmy explained is courtesy of a former waitress who aspired to be an artist but who now does some sort of work for JLO.  Place was full of regulars, always a good sign.

But let's cut to the chase.  Marsha made us a superb burger.   Size equal to Merv's and Armando's—meaning you may need an afternoon nap.  Really juicy.  Large bun, lightly toasted.  Veggies good as any we've seen.  I particularly liked the thick slice of onion and dill chips-my favorite--attractively served on the side.  It gets a 9.9, same as Merv's, and I think everyone would agree that is saying A LOT.

The fries, as Mark has explained, are really hard to score.  I know Russell isn't going to cut them any slack and they were what they were.  But I have to give Jimmy some credit for apologizing.  So I'm going to give them a 6.5. 

A 10 for Service/Experience.  As I mentioned, the atmosphere is great.  Jerrod was an attentive waiter, but Jimmy really made it for me.  He made sure we were well taken care of and he was fun to talk with.  He brought us samples of their chicken salad which was excellent.

Value is where I'm going to ding them a bit.  Russell is right, they really shouldn't have upcharged for the frozen fries.

Lemon bonus  = 3.5.  I'm giving a little extra here because it was the biggest lemon wedge I've gotten PLUS Jerrod thoughtfully added one to my to-go cup.

Many, many thanks to our loyal reader NoogaTiger for recommending Marsha's.

P.S.  The experience ended on a very special note when we got the absolutely fantastic health report on a very, very good man.  Bless you James.

Overall Score: 94.8 (A)

Next stop on the tour:  Tubby's


Marsha's Backstreet Cafe on Urbanspoon

1 comment:

  1. I'm surprised! I've seen Marsha's, and even tasted their chicken salad (my sister-in-law, who hates chicken salad, loves Marsha's and has brought some to gatherings), but never thought to have their burger. I think Marsha's is kind of known for their chicken salad, so before you guys came along, I didn't even realize they had such a thing.

    I had a burger this weekend at The Pickle Barrel - the black and bleu or something - and it was one of the best burgers I've had in Chattanooga. I know my track record is probably shot, and you guys still have a list of places to go through on your tour, but at some point, maybe after the tour, you should give it a try. I'm not even a huge bleu cheese fan, but this was a fantastic conglomeration of flavors. If you do go, I wouldn't recommend the fries - go for the tots. Wings weren't bad, either.

    I'm moving at the end of this month, and someone from my hometown (where I'm heading back to) recently posted on Facebook, "Who has the best burger in town?" The types of responses that single question received sadden me. There seemed to be 1 local joint people suggested, but otherwise, it was all chains. The variety of burgers and burger joints in Chattanooga is something I'm gonna miss.

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