We eat lunch here every Friday. Â I have tried most of the burgers on the menu and they are all great. Â It's the kid of place where you sit down and the waitress has the drinks ready for you. Â Are they the best burgers around? Â That's a personal opinion. Â You won't be disappointed. Â There's plenty of ND memorabilia on the walls. Â The staff is down to earth and super friendly. Â They don't like Manti Teo jokes and do not mention Charlie Weis.
Review Source:Quality: ok
Customer Service: poor
Cleanliness: eh
Bang for your buck: nonexistent
Two of the three burgers we ordered came out wrong (including one that was smothered in BBQ sauce) and didn't get fixed. Then we were overcharged for the same two burgers, which also didn't get fixed. And seriously, it's January - why are there flies in your establishment?
We will not be back.
After all of the hype I read online about being discussed and praised by Sports Illustrated and other publications, I figured how could we go wrong? Â Needless to say we were a bit disappointed with CJ's. Â The atmosphere was great but come on... we order a Guinness in an advertised Irish Pub and our waitress doesn't even bother to say they only have it in a can. Â We assumed being in an Irish Pub they would have it on draft. Â I thought that would have been a safe assumption. Â I'm not knocking them because it's not on draft, I would just have expected the waitress to advise us of this. Â As for the burgers, well... the meat is favorable but if you'd prefer your burger to be something other than well done forget it. Â Unless she forgot to ask how we wanted it prepared. Â The bun is not your friend in this place either. Â It crumbles to pieces the minute you pick up the burger leaving you to eat it with plastic utensils. Â Additionally, one of the waitresses came and snatched our condiment holder which contained the roll of paper towels I needed. Â Had she had asked it would have not been an issue as I would have taken a few more paper towels and it would have been fine. Â Our waitress was super friendly and therefore I didn't have the heart to share my frustrations with her. Â All in all my first impression was not a good one and I don't see myself going back.
Review Source:With another great night at CJ's, this place could push its way into top 5 hang out bars of all time. The bar is manned by a bunch of forty something's that make you feel welcome to a town that otherwise screams pompous, arrogant ass-whipes. Two hours of CJ's and your notion of South Bend and Notre Dame will sway far away from that golf clap and deusche-e little leprechaun stalking the NBC cameras. This place was fantastic and I will make it a point to go back and even spend a golf weekend (not quite ready for ND football) in South Bend. Go out of your way to hit CJ's but try to get there a little bit before the college crowd so you enjoy the banter of the bar staff and patrons. Awesome!
Review Source:Mushroom and Swiss burger was delicious. This is NOT a "bar food" burger joint. It's a bar. But - again - the burger is not "bar food." BUT DON'T expect anything more than what the name suggests: this is a pub. There's a familiar feel for the bar atmosphere. Staff are great and laid back and "fun." And I hear they start offering "stuffed" burgers next week. These people are authentic, the beer is priced right, and that meat - that burger - the seasoning they use... delicious.
Review Source:3 is generous, 2.5
I'm pretty sure CJ's has two goals: have their total costs be the lowest possible while still remaining open, and serve a great burger. And they completely succeed at both. Went on a Saturday, and the owners' unwillingness to spend money was evident from the beginning. Only two waiters were covering the whole restaurant, so service took forever. The condiments are kept in old 6-packs and food is served on paper plates, which we found pretty funny. But the burger was awesome, if I could get past the fact that the bun disintegrated into nothing by the time I was finished.
You just can't beat the burgers at CJ's Pub. I was an employee here for a brief time and fell in love with the quality food and the family-owned atmosphere that makes the place a South Bend staple. The burgers might seem a little pricy on paper, but you get more than what you pay for. Pair amazing burgers with a great bar and unbeatable liveliness during ND games and you have a combination that is tough to beat.
Review Source:AWFUL!!!! The old CJ's pub used to be amazing....this place however, well, sucks. Â I'm not sure what happened but my last outing there has made me vow to never go back. I ordered a burger 30 mins ahead of time as i only have 30 mins for lunch break, I walk across the street to pick up my food at the time they said it would be ready and it STILL took another 30 mins.
I ordered my food with no cheese as I'm lactose intolerant...and surprise surprise....CHEESE...may sound petty but when you charge 15 dollars for a burger and fries, I kind of expect it to be made to order especially if it depends on me getting sick or not. Â So I address this to the bartender/server giving me the food and he just looks at it and has this attitude like he didnt want to deal with it and said 'ehh....cant you just take it off?'. Â As if im bothering him to fix something I didnt want on it to begin with. REALLY!? no you take it off, thats why im paying for you to make the food for me. I dont understand how this is acceptable. Â They wouldn't expect you to only pay 3 dollars of what they charge, and when they ask for the full payment you just say 'ehh...cant you just take it off?' im just saying....kind of ridiculous.
From that point forward I will go out of my way to NOT go there. Nobody should pay for something they dont ask for and attitude to go with it.
The bad part was this was the 4th time I went since they moved to the new location to give them 'one more try' after what i thought was just an unorganized re open...but it's been progressively bad.
It was a quiet new year's day in the little town of South Bend. Â The boyfriend and I were walking around downtown (it was quite dead...) looking for food. Â Since it's new year's day, all the shops and restaurants were closed.
We saw a sign for CJ's Pub - famous for their award winning burgers. Â Boy, they weren't kidding. Â I'm not typically a burger person. Â In fact, I was pretty close to getting a grilled chicken sandwich (boring, but at least it's somewhat healthier!). Â After reading all the descriptions of their famous burgers, I had to give it a try.
Both of us got the TOM GORMAN's ULTRA WORKS Â with bacon, olives, 'shrooms, swiss & BBQ sauce. Â *drop dead now* Â It was delicious! Â The burger was enormous! Â My boyfriend is a manly man and even he had to eat this monstrosity with a fork and knife. Â I probably only finished a quarter of it... hey, I gave it my best shot.
Oh yeah.. WISCONSIN CHEESE CURDS! Â They are essentially breaded mozzarella balls with marinara. Â SO GOOD!
Service was excellent. Â I love the Midwest.. they aren't the South, but they are still welcoming and very friendly.
I'm a fan :)
Thanks to all the great reviews from you yelpers we decided to try CJ's as we were passing through South Bend. We were not disappointed! As soon as we walked through the door we were greeted, the friendliness was fantastic! As far as the food goes, the burgers r HUGE and the onion rings melt in your mouth! My husband and I were so full and extremely satisfied. We will definitely return next time we travel through Indiana!
Review Source:A right hook from Tate to Clausen is the best thing that has happened at this place.
I like all the different hamburger options, but the service and presentation ruin any chance complete success.
All the servers I have seen are nothing but nice and... slow. So very slow. Also, I requested a side of ranch with my fries... they left it out.
As for presentation, the lettuce they use is unnecessarily bulky to give the impression of a "huge" burger. And the buns are of such low Wonder bread quality that I'd prefer removing them altogether.
If you wanted to invest in the tools, you could make a better burger yourself.
I loved this place. Â Very good burger. Â I had the 10oz burger with Swiss cheese and bacon. Â I just had the chips but stole a couple of waffle fries from my friend -- they are also great. Â The finishing touch is when the brought me a Vodka soda and it was mad with Tito's. Â Tito's is the best vodka in the world made in Austin, TX. Â Seeing my Dad's and Mom's old stomping grounds. Â (Dad was the "Golden Domer" at ND '51 and Mom was SMC '53). Â Having a great burger. Â Finishing it with an awesome cocktail. Â What a truly fun evening!!!
I APOLOGIZE AS THE STARS ARE BROKEN I GIVE IT 4.5 STARS!!!
i heard over and over again about how awesome this place is...and....not so much. Yes, it is good, but I have had much better burgers. These are really greasy and kinda charred  so if you like that you'll like this place. Me, I think you can find a better burger at Max n Ermas or Houlihans in Mishawaka. I love the atmosphere though because they have good bands that my friends and I will go and listen to. again though, don't go for thr burgers...esp if you're from Minneapolis-home of the Juicy Lucy. You'll be disappointed.
Review Source:Not at all the best burger in town. Â That would be at Joe's. Â Not the cheapest drinks either. Â Walls covered with more classic ND stuff per square inch than any other obsequiously pandering business in Fighting Amish country. Â But there is something about this place that I love. Â I think it's the staff. Â Also the new location is a definite improvement on the old place.
Review Source:One word: LONESTAR.
After hearing it talked up by a friend, I visited CJ's and took the suggestion to try the Lonestar with extra jalapenos. AMAZING. Â It is a huge burger, and honestly the best burger I have ever had in my lifetime.
Very worth the visit - you will not be disappointed.
After all the hype, we finally went to CJs Pub for burgers and beer. It didnt disappoint. The place is plastered in Notre Dame swag. Thats to be expected in a sports bar located in South Bend. Â Theres a pool table, clean but very small bathrooms.
I ordered the little cubbie burger ( crappy name) with cheese, grilled onions, BBQ and lettuce, tomato and mushroom. That particular night the special is a cubbie burger with all the topics you want so I went all out. I got fries with them which tasted like typical fries. Still, I left quite satisfied as it was just enough food. My only complaint with the service was that the waitress didnt ask how I like my burger cooked. Luckily it was well done enough for me. CJs didnt have much on imported draft beers but the standard beers are here.
Word of advice: Look and see what the specials are any particular night. You can save some money.
Good burger...huge burgers! I got the Cubbie burger which is smaller but still enough to satisfy. The burgers are not grilled but fried so it makes them super juicy and flavorful. It came with fries that, wah wah, were previously frozen. the house salad was also a little generic. It was a huge salad and they didnt offere anything smaller. I only wanted a small side salad to go with my burger but only had an option of a $5.99 salad.
The atmosphere seemed pretty standard for a college town bar/burger joint. Sports decor, TVs, darts.... Our waiter was very cool and friendly.
DOMER BURGER! Â I hope they still have it at their new location after burning down. Â If immediately after eating a burger you wish that you had another, you HAVE to come to CJ's and try the Domer Burger. Â Its 30 oz. of burgery juicy goodness will leave you uniquely satisfied. Â To this day, the Domer Burger is my standard for monster burgers worldwide.
If that sounds like too much, try any of their Super Pub burgers, which are only 10 oz. of beef. Â
My personal Super Pub favourites include in the following order:
1) The Chicago
2) The Works/Works Captain
3) The Baja
4) The Tom Gorman's Ultra Works
5) The Bubba
The waffle fries are always perfectly crisp and salty.
Burgers and fries aside, this has always been a fun place to come just to have a couple beers. Â I hope that is still true in its new location.
We were devastated when we heard that CJ's Pub had burned down earlier this year ... and so when we heard that they had rebuilt and were reopening for business this fall we were thrilled!
We made our annual football weekend Friday night pilgrimage to CJ's for beer and burgers, and the new establishment is better than ever. They were actually so crowded that they ran out of wings .. .but promptly sent someone out for more and the problem was solved immediately.
We are thrilled to see the old place back up and running again and highly recommend a Friday night stop ... or a post game visit to CJ's Pub while you are in South Bend for a Notre Dame game. A must enjoy football weekend tradition!
Cheers!
Lisa
So, in my sixteen years of existence, I've had quite a few burgers.
Maybe more than a few. Yeah, more like hundreds.
Anyways, so out of those few burgers, just a couple have really stood out. The cheddar bacon charburger at Paradise Pup, the regular at Five Guys, the pub at Chief O'Neill's, and the one at Rosebud.
This... Â beats... all of them.
The "Bubba": Spicy BBQ sauce, grilled red onions, bacon.
I've never had anything like it.
The meat was tender and outstanding, even resembling tenderloin in its bursts of beefy flavor and tendency to fall apart. The sauce was incredible: tangy, with hints of chipotle peppers, and a perfect consistency. The red onions were sweet, which helped balance out the other flavors.
If you're in town for a game, there is absolutely no reason not to stop here. Please, please, PLEASE STOP HERE.
Thanks, CJ's.
A tradition from when we were band members, when we were back for campus, we had to visit CJs. We headed downtown with a group of about 30 immediately following a game to the new location.
Other than more space in the new location, I think most folks would still be happy to see the normal CJs flair still exists. Much on popcorn prior to getting your meal. Enjoy the charm of receiving the huge and tasty burger on the paper plate, accompanies by chips. Â Split an order of fries or half and half with onion rings with the rest of your party. Enjoy an Amberbock.
Quite impressively as well, our server for this large of a group was amazingly attentive and also got every order right.
CJs isn't the best burger I've ever had, but it's certainly top 10 and merits a visit if you're in the Notre Dame/South Bend area.
I have been hearing rave reviews about this place from my Notre Dame alumni friends for years. Finally after going to a Notre Dame game we got to check this place out. They recently had moved to their new location and opening with a lot more seating space than before.
They are known for their burgers and the great number of combination's of toppings they put with them. Mine had sour cream, jalapenos, and cheese on it! It was DELICIOUS! Big, thick and juicy burgers with a secret seasoning that is to die for! The burgers are a hearty heart portion and I felt full after half but it was so good I had to eat more.
If this place was in Chicago then I would be eating here at least once a week!
Is CJ's permanently departed from South Bend (or anywhere, for that matter)? Â Supposedly it's been closed for a while now. Â
I made but one trip to the burger mecca that most ND students and SB locals have patronized dozens of times. Â A tasty burger, but not quite the culinary paradise that others have made it out to be. Â If they turn up again, I'll certainly try them again.
This place is now relocating, but I still feel compelled to give my opinion.
It used to be better than it now is. They became famous for having large and delicious burgers, if a little overpriced. Then, once the word got out, it became totally overrun by Notre Dame alumni and fans. On football weekends, they will only let you order their most expensive items, and raise their normal prices.
The burgers are good and the wait staff is adequate. The prices are probably too much for what you can get elsewhere in the city, but not so outrageous as to not merit a visit.
I imagine things will only become worse, as this is the now infamous location of THE SUCKER PUNCH.
I went there with 3 other people this summer, I would guess around 7-8pm on a Friday, for dinner. The place was EMPTY, the air conditioning was OFF, and the burger was...ehh.. alright I guess. I don't see myself going back, but thats ok- Roc's and Between the Buns has amazing burgers!
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