We had our second visit to Grizzly Rock yesterday, and after that, we definitely won't be coming back. Â Our waitress (a petite brunette in her 20s) pretty much ignored us after our food came. Â She never refilled our drinks and never asked if we needed anything else and if our food was good. Â She basically took our order, brought our drinks and food, and didn't come back until our check was ready and took quite a while even picking up our payment. Â She was the only waitress working buuuuut, when we got there there was only ONE diner and when we left there were TWO other tables of diners. Â I've seen lone waitresses handle much more and give far better service. Â I don't understand WHY it's SO HARD to find GOOD service these days. Â And it's NOT just in the valley, it's all across the country!
Aside from the poor service, the food was paltry. Â When she brought my biscuits and gravy out, I thought it was a child's plate. Â The food was good, but only half of the amount of ANY OTHER RESTAURANT I'VE EVER BEEN TO. Â This is always a filling dish and yet I left there STILL HUNGRY. Â WTF? Â I guess you have to order something with "trucker", "man", or "grizzly" in the name in order to get a decent sized portion. Â My husband also did a double take when she brought his eggs, bacon and toast out. Â I mean really, how hard is it to eff up breakfast? Â Plus, these aren't exactly expensive or hard to cook items, especially biscuits and gravy -- CHEAP TO MAKE! Â
This place made me wish that we'd eaten at the nearby Waffle House....or Burger King .... or McDonalds..... we would've had better service, better food, and left fulfilled, which is not what our experience was at the Grizzly Rock.
Yes, AVOID!!! Â Unless of course you like kid-size meals and poor treatment from a snobby valley girl.
The first experience here was great but I was very disappointed with what happened today. Â Went here for breakfast and there was only one other lone diner in the joint. Â The waitress seemed attentive and friendly (like the first time) but after bringing our orders out, she basically avoided us until it was time to bring the check. Â No "How is it?" or "Is there anything else you need?". Â I didn't like the vibe we got - she brought the check without so much a word and picked it up just as silent. Â Other people getting in weren't exactly getting a warm welcome except for those that seemed to be regulars.... HMMM! Â
This wouldn't be have been SO terrible but the food was very paltry today. Â I had to do a double take at my 2 eggs - sure didn't look like 2 eggs - and my side of potatoes was also underwhelming. Â My wife's biscuits and gravy - while good - was miniscule (especially considering that such a dish is usually heaping). Â Too bad as I thought I found a decent breakfast joint - these are hard to find in the Valley it seems - and I won't bother to be coming back.
Best hidden gem Turlock has. No one takes the Taylor road offramp unless they are heading home, luckily this is how I found it. I personally don't know how they stay in business as it always seems to be empty, but they've been rocking for years. The prices are cheap and you get huge and tasty portions. If they had a better location, this placed would be packed.
Review Source:This place deserves a solid three stars.
It's got your standard American-style grub: burgers, hot dogs, tri-tip sandwiches, and even a chili-smothered burrito. Â The portions are pretty sizable (particularly with the aforementioned burrito--I ordered a Minnie Moose Burrito, which was apparently smaller than their normal Moose Burrito, but still bigger than my face), and the food tastes pretty good, for the most part. Â A little bland at times, maybe (chili should be just spicy enough to make one's nose run a little--I'm just sayin'!), but still tasty, straightforward food.
As far as food and drink, the only thing I can really take issue with is the lack of a fully stocked bar--and even then, there's really not much of a problem because the well alcohols they do carry are really quite good. Â Given the location of the joint, and the fact that the bar seems to pull an old-timer type crowd more frequently than anything else, it'd be silly to expect specialty vodkas and all that sort of froo-froo stuff--and well is fine, for the most part. Â But it never hurts to carry a little Southern Comfort.
The interior has a casual, relaxed atmosphere, and the restaurant has a large patio for outdoor dining and concerts. Â The restaurant and bathrooms are very clean. Â The bear-themed decor is charming (there is a even a huge statue of a grizzly by the front desk), if a little campy. Â (But in my world, camp is the best thing next to kettle corn.)
What throws Grizzly Rock into 4-star category, you ask? Â The owner, Frank, is a perfectly willing and enthusiastic supporter of the local music scene. Â This last April, he very generously allowed the college radio station in town to put on a music festival that utilized every performing space on the property--and due to the event's success, he has since hosted several shows featuring local acts. Â Go, Frank!
Overall, Grizzly Rock Café is a solid restaurant with good food and great management that supports local music.  I'd totally recommend the Grizzly Rock to visitors.
EDIT: Frank commented below to inform me (and the rest of you) that Grizzly now carries Southern Comfort, Macallans, Jack Daniels, and several other liquor brands. Â Solid 4 stars, it is! Â :-D
This was a great find on the edge of the industrial park north of Turlock. Older place that has a "Tahoe Joes" theme going on. Menu is not extensive, but they have "mountain man" portions going on with lots of MEAT!! ME LIKE... grunt grunt! Â Seriously, their moose burrito puts the new Taco Bell XXL burrito to shame. The size is about Shaq's shoe and it feeds 3 for $7.99. Â But the thing is the burgers!! Get the "Mammoth" and you'll go vegan for a week. Â Couple pounds of hamburger to blow you away! Their onion rings also rock as they use a great beer batter. They have an annual hamburger eating contest on 4th of July weekend which I may check out. Fastest to eat their off menu 3 pounder (it needs a name-"Paul Bunyan Special???") wins.
Review Source:I went here because, again, on a road trip. I didn't expect much but I was pleasantly surprised. The food was tasty and the price was right. The staff were friendly and the ambiance was welcoming. Ordered from the breakfast menu, and I finished everything on my plate. If I'm nearby Turlock again, I will definitely try the lunch menu in this cute resto.
Review Source:Let me start off this review by saying that the food I tried was very very good. I had the tri tip nachos and loved them. I also had the Panda Wings which had an Asian Flavor and they were great also. Had 12-14 different beers on tap with a more than decent variety.
As far as the ambience this place is in need of a serious upgrade. The bar area is huge and they had 1 decent sized TV and 2 small ones. They could easily fit 6-8 good sized sets in this area to give it a real sports bar feel (I'm not sure if they consider themselves a sports bar or not so maybe that is not what they are going for. Just my observation.) Also the room was completely dark. Needs some serious lighting in there. There was only 6-8 people in there so it was only gonna be so lively but it was absolutlely dead in there.
This place has all kinds of potential. Turlock has absolutely no sports bars to speak of so I think they could really market themselves to that crowd and come up with something big. They do have live music on the weekends that seemed to draw a pretty good crowd. If that's your type of thing this just may be the place for you. I was just expecting more of a sports bar vibe...but make no mistake the food is excellent.
I was hoping the out of the way spot would be a diamond in the rough but the few experience we have had there just turned out to be rough. The first couple visits our waitress was great. Very sweet and very attentive. We were told on our last visit that she no longer works there. Sad, but it's the last time we will be going so no big loss. The food is mediocre. Portions are large but quality is lacking. Chicken fried steak is just massive which would be nice if it wasn't covered in a fairly bland gravy and portions of it were either gristly or plain inedible cartilage. The burgers are large but also bland, definitely not the best in Turlock. There always seems to be this weird feeling of drama when there at night. Not sure if it is the owner or the manager but have seen him arguing with customers in plain view/earshot and even once was yelling at a man at the bar who seemed perfectly calm and un-offensive.
Sadly it looks like that notoriously poor spot for clubs/restaurants still hasn't found it's savior.
Gross gross gross. My French toast was soggy. Bacon was fatty and greasy. Hash browns were only good because they were drenched in ketchup. The one redeeming quality is the service. Our waitress was sweet and attentive. Maybe I'll go back for lunch, because the reviews are pretty good for their tri-tip sandwiches, but never ever again for breakfast.
Review Source:I went to the Grizzly Rock Cafe looking for a lunch to share with a friend. Â He had a burger and season fries and I had a tri-tip sandwich and garlic fires. Â My first surprise was that the fries weren't standard with the burgers/sandwiches and I didn't see any meal options. Â
The serving person and adequate but not that great. Â They got the meal alright but should have been a little more friendly. Â They didn't mess anything up so i guess that's a good thing.
The food was acceptable but not the best. Â I had better tri-tip sandwiches by nuking some bowl of Loyds BBQ meat and sticking them in some bread. Â The garlic fires didn't have any flavor, should have had some other seasoning or at least salt because garlic wasn't enough to make the fries all that great.
My view might have been skewed a little because I was hoping this little out of the way place would be awesome and be some great discovery but it was mediocre bar and grill.
This diner North of town is a good spot for a bite... and relative to the town, it is a GREAT spot for a bite. The food is better than you would expect. Â Good, but not amazing. Â This place is all about price and portions. Their regular menu items are sure to fill you up, and just in case that is not enough, they have special, huge portion items on the menu, too.
I am not a very big breakfast person, but I think the breakfast here is great. Â Lots of options and a few unique items. Â Their lunch and dinner is geared a lot more towards filling you up.
If you're heading up or down the 99, I recommend making this a pit stop.
After reading the reviews I decided to give Grizzly Rock Cafe a try. Â That will be the last time I ever eat there. Â Everyone raved about the breakfasts. I ordered the biscuits and gravy with eggs and bacon. Â The biscuits were small, flat, and hard and the gravy was pasty and didn't have a good flavor. Â
It's too bad about this place. Â It could have potential but the owners need to get a clue. Â To be successful you need amazing food, atmosphere and excellent service. Â I guess they got one with the service.
I must agree with Paul R. This place has some killer potential but needs work.
From my experience, the out door patio is awesome for the summer time. Â They offer COLD beer and good service. The food is FREAKING AWESOME. But its kinda boring. Not much going on. Please check their web site, if there is one, or call for more information. This is not a dive bar, its a family restaurant under construction. Once it is built up, it has the potential to become Turlocks Number One bar/eatery. Until then, fierce competition is ruling with a mighty fist. Â You can defiantly take your family here.
Reading the reviews I decided to give the place a try. Â Since Eppies left this place has seen many a change in hands. Â
First of all the food is good. Â I got the tri tip, which resembled BBQ beef, but for $8 I got a small roll stuffed with meat and no fries. Â So there goes another $4 for a handfull of fries.
My wife ordered the burger which was pretty good, but not the best in Turlock. Â Only a few people know about the coffee shop at the flea market.
The service was good, people friendly. Â We got out of there for just over $30 which is expected in the bay area but Turlock? Â Downtown I can eat for $10 less.
I think Grizzly Rock has potential, but it's currently very lacking in atmosphere and ambiance, and VERY loud. Â My experience was for lunch, so perhaps evenings might be somewhat different, but I was left with kind of a cafeteria feeling...
As for the food, my lunch was "ok," but some of the dishes I saw go by looked rather impressive! Â I'll give the food another chance...
Service though was great! Â Our server was Cheryl and she is on top of it! Â She was very friendly and attentive, and she alone would bring me back!
I really do not want to give Grizzly Rock a high rating because I don't want a lot of people suddenly showing up and ruining it for us, but I can't lie. Â
It's a great place if you want to feel welcomed and enjoy unique food. Â Tuesdays are our night. Â We have dinner and around 7 - 7:30ish people with guitars, saxes, drums and even a harmonica show up and have an open jam session. Â The food is BIG however, so either come hungry or share a meal. Â For a small extra fee, they'll split your meal with salad/soup for two.
As for Donna G.'s review.............You purchased a school fundraiser dinner. Â That explains the styrofoam and the foil. Â It wasn't a Grizzly Rock meal you ordered. Â You should thank Grizzly Rock for their selfless participation in a school fundraiser in the first place. Â Instead you rake them over the coals for petty things. Â Nice. Â
Go back again and next time order off the menu. Â You'll change your mind about the place. Â Rainy days sometimes make people grumpy.
It's a great place for breakfast. You can tell it's full of Turlock locals, because the server was calling most people by name. The service was good, most of the time the one server was working the floor on her own. Our food was really good and even better priced. The husband and I ate breakfast for about $20. Not too bad!
The biscuits and gravy are delish, and totally home made. I can't wait to go back and try the lunches, the tri-tip sanie sounded so good. I'm reserving the 4th star for my next visit, our food took a bit too long to get out to us. I'm guessing just one cook in the back?
Grizzly Rock, (or Grizzly Toe as it should be called) is awesome. Â Compared with the corporate atmosphere of most other Turlock bars, the Grizzly Rock really has the best you could ask for. Â The owner and staff are the friendliest you could find anywhere, and the food is great. Â They make a great tri-tip sandwich, and their fries are damn good with some options of spices or beer-battered. Â As far as their bar goes, it is great for the beer drinker. Â They make an effort to have a big variety of beers, so the times I went, they had some good adventurous burly styles of beer, and they also of course carry the pussy light beers that are so popular in the central valley. Â They have some big TVs set up, and an actual wood burning fireplace. Â
Overall, definitely a chill place to down some serious beer, or some of the tastiest Turlock food in the restaurant section, and enjoy the company of the staff! Â Also they have live music switchin up all the time!
The Grizzly Rock has great BBQ meats - from pulled pork to ribs. Â
The peach flambe is a mammoth finish to any meal. Â If you have
a hearty appetite - and a taste for the best BBQ meats - then the
Grizzly Rock is for you. Â Forget all of the local chains (like Chilis and
Applebees and Red Robin). Â The locally owned-and-operated
Grizzly Rock Cafe is just much better - at less cost.
The owners of the Grizzly Rock Cafe even kept the whole restaurant
opened after hours so that our baseball team could get a bite to
eat (after playing at nearby Pedretti park - under the lights - until
10:00 p.m.). Â The owners couldn't be more friendly - nor more
accommodating. Â These folks deserve your business!
So I just moved to Turlock and I was trying to find some good restaurants through Yelp. Â But it seems the fine people of Turlock don't like writing reviews or don't know about Yelp. Â So I'm here to provide some help and pop my Yelp cherry.
On with the review, this place is really good. Â I had the tri tip sandwich and side of fries. Â Tri tip sandwich was really good but not the best since that special place in my heart is reserved for Firestones in SLO. Â If you guys have been there, you'll know what I'm talking about. Â Grizzly's tri tip sandwich is full of meat on a soft roll with the perfect amount of bbq sauce. Â Fries were good..... it seem to have some special seasoning on it. Â The atmosphere was nice, it has a lot of potential with a huge outdoor patio area. Â The only negative thing is the location, its located in the middle of nowhere, well at least its close to the freeway exit.
Next time, I think I'm going to try the burrito.
Just about everyone here is spot-on with their reviews, so I don't really have much to go on here. The food is fantastic and the atmosphere is friendly and fun, the prices are appropriate and the staff is awesome.
The only original thing I can add is that this place has food that can fill me up and beat me into submission. The real kicker is that it all tastes so good that you want to keep eating, but then your stomach tells your brain to shut up and stop before you explode. Take my advice and listen to your stomach... this time.
Try the chocolate cake only if you want to have your mind blown via choco-explosion, but its totally worth it. Eat here and help this place grow into the thriving hotspot it deserves to be.
The Grizzly Rock also serves wonderful breakfasts. The omelets are very good sized and reasonably priced. I had the Turkey Club omelet which was very good. My family and I agree that their hash browns that are served with breakfast are the best in the area. They are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. I tried some of their chicken fried steak and it has to be the best I have tasted in quite some time. We talked to the owner and he said its the cut of meat he uses. So go on in for breakfast for a great meal that will have you coming back for more. BTW I am not a family member and am not being payed. This is honestly a good place to eat. So the next time you are in turlock looking for something for breakfast, forget about IHOP and Denny's and try Grizzly Rock. You won't be dissapointed.
Review Source:Super friendly staff makes you feel welcome and part of the family. The beer-battered fries are amazing, the burgers are all fresh and flame cooked. Have eaten there three times and every single time was great. Location isn't great, but it its worth going to. Â I can't wait to see this place flourish! They definitely make the best burgers in Turlock.
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