Restaurant Review: JL Beers

I love to go out to eat. O and I eat out so much...probably too much. My excuse is I like to support my local community! HA! I use that excuse for whatever I buy whether it's food or clothes.
Today we went out to lunch to one of my favorite restaurants: JL Beers. The first one to hit the restaurant scene in Fargo was downtown. How convenient considering we live only 6 blocks away! They recently built another restaurant in West Fargo and another one will pop up in Moorhead in October. http://www.jlbeers.com/
They have 100s of beers to chose from; from the tap, bottle or can. But my fav is the 1919 Root Beer. It's dark, dark brown and there is nothing better on a warm summer day. Ah, who am I kidding!? It's good on a cold winter day too. Sometimes you get one and the glass is so cold you get root beer icicles floating in your drink. To die for!

They have a small menu serving burgers, chips and fries. Let me just tell you, YOU MUST GET THE CHIPS! They are made right in front of you using the entire potato. They come out of the frier in minutes and then they are doused with salt. They are by far the best chips ever. EVER!

The burger list is small but there is something on there for everyone; from a regular hamburger to one with a fried egg on top. My favorite is the classic burger with cheese (no tomatoes). When the burger and chips (or fries if you must) come to you all you can do is smile. The first bite will send you over the edge into flavor town. It's juicy. It's meaty. It's simply divine.
I like to compare the burgers to something you'd get at a fair. You know what that's like. A hot summer day at the fair and you have been walking around all day looking at the state's biggest pig, the horticulture building, and machinery hill. You've filled your belly with so many cookies, corn dogs, and cheese curds that by now you just need some "real" food. You settle for a burger in the 4-H building. When you bite into it seems to transport you to a time when there weren't blogs, there was no Facebook, no smart phones and the USPS wasn't going bankrupt. A simple burger for a simple time. JL's Burgers are like this. Old school and good.

Go and check them out but be aware the restaurants are small but it's worth the wait! The downtown location seats 24 and the West Fargo location seats around 40 (they do have outside seating now though). If you want to wait, get a beer (or a root beer), relax and wait for the best burger this side of the MN State Fair!