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| - While on a run up State St. with my better half, we passed the spot that was previously occupied by Paul's Club and were surprised that a new restaurant had opened up. Always up to try new thing (us being absolutely ravenous also didn't hurt), we showered up and returned that evening to try it out.
The owners did a nice job with renovating the space post-Paul's tree. The bar is on your right when you walk in and tables line up against exposed brick left wall. The menu is heavy on the sandwich options (burgers and paninis) with some appetizers, salads, and main entrees sprinkled in.
We started out with the sweet potato skins stuffed with cheese, chorizo, and green onions. While the spiciness of the chorizo played well with the sweetness of the sweet potato, the sour cream based dip was fairly bland and did nothing to complement the dish. For our main course, I went with the nacho burger while Katie tried her luck with the grilled cheese. Both sandwiches come with your choice of side or soup. Advertised with jalapenos, a lime avocado sauce, crispy strips of tortillas (among other things), I was expecting the burger to pack a punch of flavor. It was more like a limp handed slap when I bit into it. Just nothing exciting about it. The same could be said about the green beans. Sauteed in garlic butter, the green beans were just OK. Something I could easily duplicate at home.
The grilled cheese (served on Madison Sourdough bread) came with cheddar and gruyere but neither cheese really stood out. The cheddar was extremely mild and tasted more like American cheese than a true cheddar. Again, something we could easily duplicate (and improve on it) at home.
I struggle with giving negative reviews when a restaurant first open but with the high density of restaurants and the heavy competition that comes with it, I feel a restaurant has only once chance to impress a diner. Its critical they get it right. This didn't happen with us and unless I read differently from other Yelpers, don't think we will be stopping back in.
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