Martin's Downtown Bar & Grill

We went a couple weeks ago on a Monday night and I was looking forward to trying it. I was impressed with the variety and selection in the burger section of the menu. For a place to offer half price burgers every Monday, it's surprising to see so many on the menu you can choose from. Some of the options include: The Wisconsin Cheeseburger (pepper jack, cheddar, & provolone), Philly Cheeseburger (mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, & provolone), Bistro Burger (havarti, mushrooms, whole grain mustard on an English muffin), and The Pitts-burger (coleslaw, French fries, tomato, & provolone). I ordered The Western - a burger topped with smoked bacon, house BBQ sauce, cheddar, and an onion ring. They also have good variety with their side dishes, but I ordered the traditional staple - French fries.

The presentation of the burger was great. The combination of the onion ring, bacon, and BBQ sauce made for a nice picture with lots of different color. Unfortunately, I wish it had tasted as good as it looked. For as many different flavors as I had on the burger, I was hoping I would be able to taste more of them. The meat seemed to lack seasoning or any sort of grilled flavor and the BBQ sauce was relatively bland. The hamburger bun also didn't do much for me - it tasted a little stale and could have used a minute in the toaster. I had high hopes as I was seeing people's orders delivered to the table and even higher when my plate was served, but it just didn't live up to expectations. However, the size of the burger was great, and for $5.50, it's a very good deal.

Even though I wasn't a huge fan of the food for my first experience, I'm definitely willing to give Martin's Downtown Bar & Grill another chance. I think the Pitts-Burger has good potential and there are a number of other things on the menu that look good besides the burgers. The first visit might have been a let-down, but I'm confident my next meal there will be a better experience.

My wife and I came here last night to their outdoor festival to see Tobacco Apache, because the guitarist works for the same company as me.  The band was great, but we'll never spend a damn dime in Martin's, ever....  

The band was going to play outside, so we came in to grab a bit to eat before they started.  were told to take a seat anywhere, so we found an empty table smack in the middle so we could get a bite to eat and a beer before the band started.  We sat for 10 minutes and in that time, 3 different servers walked directly past our table several times each.  I made eye contact each time, and we expected, since we were sitting there with no drinks and no menus, that one of them would bring us menus and ask us what we'd like to drink.  Sorry, no such luck....  

As we were sitting there, we saw another couple come in and sit down, and the waitress was at their table within about 30 seconds.  Their drinks came back, their orders were in, and the waitress came back by their table again to check on them.  My wife was doing "the countdown" (when we get tired of waiting, we count to 100, and if we hit 100, we get up and leave), and she finished up just as the waitress at that table turned to leave.  

I waved at the girl, and beckoned her to our table.  I explained that we'd been sitting for quite some time, and in that time, she and several other wait staff people had walked right by us several times each, but it was like we were invisible.  She apologized and asked me if I wanted a drink, but by that time, my wife was at the door leaving.  I told her absolutely not, that we were over it, and she tried to pass it off that they were busy and short-staffed.  I told her that was no excuse, and she asked if there was anything she could do to get us to stay.  I have to give her points for trying, but really, it was a day late and a dollar short by that point.  I told her that we'd be outisde to see the band but that we'd not be spending any money there, ever.  

By that time my wife was waiting out front for me, so we went around the corner, watched the band, and had a great time hearing them play.  After that, we left and went to Grace's Place for pizza and beer.

Seems to me, from reading other reviews, that the service problem is a recurrent theme at Martin's.  That's a problem they need to solve.....

We always love coming to Martin's...everyone there always seems to be having such a good time.  1/2 price burgers on Monday (including side item!)  can't be beat!  The staff is kinda funky, which I appreciate cause it gives the place character.  I've seen a lot of really good local and touring bands here.  AND, I was thrilled when I came in for lunch last week to see outdoor dining!  The owner, Jason, came by to check on our lunch and he seriously couldn't be nicer or more genuine.  I enjoy seeing local, family owned businesses surviving and thriving in today's day and age.