Michael's Bar & Grill

Oh my god this place was as good as I remembered. I spent the first 23 years of my life in St. Louis. I remembered going to michael's before the basement was renovated. I used to go here after little league games almost every week. When I was in college (Wash U), we used to drink here and enjoy the food that even poor college kids could afford. So when I returned last week to St. Louis for the first time in more than 5 years, Michaels was the first place I wanted to go. Wow. The place was the same as I remembered.

The food was amazing, the beer was ice cold, and the staff was great. I even got to see the manager Gus (the man with the interesting toupee...). Salads, burgers, gyro, and appetizers were to die for. Keep it up guys!!! I will be back the next time I am in town.

I have been here so many times, it has got to be over 300 over the years I have lived in St. Louis.  This is my true stand by, my go-back-to, my want-to-grab-something quick and solid place.  Michael's is good/excellent on all levels: service (quick, consistent, outstanding), food (awesome, consistent), atmosphere (welcoming).  It can get crowded here on certain nights, like cardinal games, between 5-7pm on Fridays - but they are so efficient in getting people through and get seated, you will never wait very long.  I love the chicken kebabs, one of my favorites.  I love the greek salad and the salmon is very good.  Really, you cannot go wrong with any of the choices there.  Wings are a must, one of the best in STL.  One of my best accolades of this place is in all the times that I have been there, the food always tasted the same, it is always good and consistent.  That is high praise for a bar and grill.  Just go and it may become a staple for you, too.

I got to say, there is really no redeeming factor that keeps me coming back to Michael's other than their killer soft cheddar cheeseburger. The atmosphere is just all right, everything else on the menu sounds just all right, the service is just all right, even the steak fries that come with the burger are just all right. I'm willing to ignore all of that just to sink my teeth into 10 oz of juicy, charbroiled deliciousness.

Here's a word of advice. Once I got the smaller 5 oz version just so I wouldn't be so stuffed. Big mistake! It was too small to really taste all the elements that make the burger great. Go for the big boy!