**DINNER TIME SPECIAL**
You're taught as a child to "never poke the bear", as if a child at the zoo would ever be so dumb. Smokey the Bear warns you about the hazards of forest fires, while Yogi sneaks around yanking picnic baskets. We've got bears that teach us the "Bare Necessities" and families of bears that teach us the values of hard work and sharing. Hell, there are even bears that shoot rainbows out of their guts!
Does a bear squat in the woods? Nope. As it turns out, bears own their own Bar & Grills, they love live music, and could care less about 25 unheard voicemails on their answering machine! At least this is the case with the notorious Fayetteville Bear, owner of Bear's Place off of 15th Street (across from the Hiland Milk plant). And you can take all the other bears from your childhood and shove it!
You're taught as a child to "never poke the bear", as if a child at the zoo would ever be so dumb. Smokey the Bear warns you about the hazards of forest fires, while Yogi sneaks around yanking picnic baskets. We've got bears that teach us the "Bare Necessities" and families of bears that teach us the values of hard work and sharing. Hell, there are even bears that shoot rainbows out of their guts!
Does a bear squat in the woods? Nope. As it turns out, bears own their own Bar & Grills, they love live music, and could care less about 25 unheard voicemails on their answering machine! At least this is the case with the notorious Fayetteville Bear, owner of Bear's Place off of 15th Street (across from the Hiland Milk plant). And you can take all the other bears from your childhood and shove it!
On Friday evening, roughly 8pm, an Englishman, a Chinese Man, and an Indian moseyed on into Bear's Place. And this time we brought a guest! Yes folks, we had our first honorary guest, Mr. Alex Wong, an engineering graduate at the U of A, an avid footballer and headband-wearing champion. Most importantly, Alex has a soft spot for good local food! Speaking of which, how did we like Bear's Place?! |
Our dinner rating system is structured within four primary categories: Atmosphere, Food, Service, and Value For Money (rather than Lunch Bargain, duh). We base our scores out of a possible ten points per category--typical stuff, we know. But this is where our ratings diverge! Sure, we count up the numbers, but they don't have so much to do with the restaurant's overall score. That, friends, is our pride and joy: a celebrity tribute, where we define a restaurant's personality with a famous person's name. Cool, huh? Ya, we know.
ATMOSPHERE
Burgers, bands, and bears, oh my! If Dorothy and Toto had wondered into Bear's Place rather than Oz, they would have ordered a cold beer, sat down with some french fries, and listened to the band's rendition of "Pride and Joy." That's because you can find all three items at Bear's Place, on just about every night of the week.
When the Faylunchin trio and their guest entered that evening, the band was loudly scouring Led Zeppelin, the patrons were drinking, and the overhead fans were generating a furious wind. Just like being out in the woods! We won't lie, fans; this isn't our first time to Bear's Place. In fact, we've steadily tried to become regulars there since our first cold beer months ago.
As Alex says, this place breeds loyal clientele. Could be that's due to the music, could be the consistently good food, could be the low-lighting, the shotguns on the walls, or the many, many bear figurines adorning every corner. The place isn't huge by any means, but it's cozy. Add in an ample back-deck and open dance floor, and you've got yourself a good ol' time.
SCORE 7/10
Burgers, bands, and bears, oh my! If Dorothy and Toto had wondered into Bear's Place rather than Oz, they would have ordered a cold beer, sat down with some french fries, and listened to the band's rendition of "Pride and Joy." That's because you can find all three items at Bear's Place, on just about every night of the week.
When the Faylunchin trio and their guest entered that evening, the band was loudly scouring Led Zeppelin, the patrons were drinking, and the overhead fans were generating a furious wind. Just like being out in the woods! We won't lie, fans; this isn't our first time to Bear's Place. In fact, we've steadily tried to become regulars there since our first cold beer months ago.
As Alex says, this place breeds loyal clientele. Could be that's due to the music, could be the consistently good food, could be the low-lighting, the shotguns on the walls, or the many, many bear figurines adorning every corner. The place isn't huge by any means, but it's cozy. Add in an ample back-deck and open dance floor, and you've got yourself a good ol' time.
SCORE 7/10
Bathrooms
We believe bathrooms are crucial enough to be a subcategory of Atmosphere, deserving of its own score. As the poshest of our trio, Harvey awards Bear's a conventional score, what you'd expect from a bar. However, he would like to point out that Bear's lone bathroom (unless you consider the Porta Potty out back) was big enough for three people, though you'd have to use the toilet one at a time.
SCORE 5/10
We believe bathrooms are crucial enough to be a subcategory of Atmosphere, deserving of its own score. As the poshest of our trio, Harvey awards Bear's a conventional score, what you'd expect from a bar. However, he would like to point out that Bear's lone bathroom (unless you consider the Porta Potty out back) was big enough for three people, though you'd have to use the toilet one at a time.
SCORE 5/10
FOOD
We can't quite put our fingers on it, but there's something about Bear's food that seems out of its own league! By no means is Bear's Place a dive bar...well then again, it could be, but much cleaner. Their burgers are consistently good, fries are consistently crisp, beer is consistently cheap. Wow, that's it, we figured it out! Bears is consistent every time you visit, and that is worth more than any price.
As this is a dinner rating and we were at a bar/grill, let's start with drinks. All of us, without missing a beat, ordered Bud Light Straw-ber-ritas! Why? For one, they're cheap, only $2. Second and most important, none of us is concerned with upholding some rigid machismo vibe; we care about value, people! As it turned out, they were fresh out of Straw-ber-ritas, and our next choice was equally daring: Twisted Teas.
As for food, Harvey went with his favorite, Bear's Burger without mushrooms and a side of chips. Qi tested the waters with one of Bear's classics: Beans and Cornbread, as well as Jalapeño Poppers on the side. Mike tried a weekly special: the Grilled Chicken Sandwich with chips. And lastly, our guest Alex, proved himself a worthy compatriot with his Loaded French Fries.
And as we've consistently said, over consistent visits, time and time again, the food was CONSISTENTLY tasty. Hot burgers, crispy (albeit store-bought) french fries, blazing cheese that will solder your cheeks together. Just good, plain and simple. Our only qualm came by means of cornbread, as there was only one square to an entire bowl of beans. Yet somehow there was enough butter to spread for twice that amount!
SCORE 8/10
We can't quite put our fingers on it, but there's something about Bear's food that seems out of its own league! By no means is Bear's Place a dive bar...well then again, it could be, but much cleaner. Their burgers are consistently good, fries are consistently crisp, beer is consistently cheap. Wow, that's it, we figured it out! Bears is consistent every time you visit, and that is worth more than any price.
As this is a dinner rating and we were at a bar/grill, let's start with drinks. All of us, without missing a beat, ordered Bud Light Straw-ber-ritas! Why? For one, they're cheap, only $2. Second and most important, none of us is concerned with upholding some rigid machismo vibe; we care about value, people! As it turned out, they were fresh out of Straw-ber-ritas, and our next choice was equally daring: Twisted Teas.
As for food, Harvey went with his favorite, Bear's Burger without mushrooms and a side of chips. Qi tested the waters with one of Bear's classics: Beans and Cornbread, as well as Jalapeño Poppers on the side. Mike tried a weekly special: the Grilled Chicken Sandwich with chips. And lastly, our guest Alex, proved himself a worthy compatriot with his Loaded French Fries.
And as we've consistently said, over consistent visits, time and time again, the food was CONSISTENTLY tasty. Hot burgers, crispy (albeit store-bought) french fries, blazing cheese that will solder your cheeks together. Just good, plain and simple. Our only qualm came by means of cornbread, as there was only one square to an entire bowl of beans. Yet somehow there was enough butter to spread for twice that amount!
SCORE 8/10
SERVICE
This is probably the key component to making this place so damn accommodating. That bar in Cheers, wasn't it the one that claimed "where everyone knows your name"? Well, we can't say that Bear's staff consistently remembers your name, but they remember your face. That, and they always provide friendly, efficient assistance, even when the building is jam-packed with music and dancing.
Once you realize that Bear's Place typically opens with one cook and one bartender, it's simply amazing that they can provide your meals and beers so promptly. That's like a 40 patron to 1 bartender ratio! And just to prove our point, on Friday night it took our food, 4 meals in all, only 18 minutes to get from a notebook, to a grill, and onto our plates. Pretty fast for a bear, if you ask us! SCORE 8/10
This is probably the key component to making this place so damn accommodating. That bar in Cheers, wasn't it the one that claimed "where everyone knows your name"? Well, we can't say that Bear's staff consistently remembers your name, but they remember your face. That, and they always provide friendly, efficient assistance, even when the building is jam-packed with music and dancing.
Once you realize that Bear's Place typically opens with one cook and one bartender, it's simply amazing that they can provide your meals and beers so promptly. That's like a 40 patron to 1 bartender ratio! And just to prove our point, on Friday night it took our food, 4 meals in all, only 18 minutes to get from a notebook, to a grill, and onto our plates. Pretty fast for a bear, if you ask us! SCORE 8/10
VALUE FOR MONEY
Paired with live jams and smiling faces, you're already getting quite a good deal just walking through the front door. But we encourage you, prospective bear cubs, order some food. Our food ranged from around $6 to $9, with the more expensive fare being, of course, burgers. When you order a cheap beer, usually no more than $3, you're getting food, a buzz, and entertainment for a satisfying $12. Holla!
SCORE 8/10
Paired with live jams and smiling faces, you're already getting quite a good deal just walking through the front door. But we encourage you, prospective bear cubs, order some food. Our food ranged from around $6 to $9, with the more expensive fare being, of course, burgers. When you order a cheap beer, usually no more than $3, you're getting food, a buzz, and entertainment for a satisfying $12. Holla!
SCORE 8/10
OVERALL SCORE
Every town has their own version of Bear's Place, at least we hope they do. In fact, you might even have two, you lucky a-holes! Since each of these special places is a staple of their communities, a consistent fall back for food and beer, we didn't feel it was right to elect a fancy-smancy celebrity rating. Nope, there's simply no other way to rate it!
Faylunchers: an Englishman, a Chinese Man, an Indian (and Guest), choose...the beast, the myth, the legend...BEAR HIMSELF, as the overall score.
Every town has their own version of Bear's Place, at least we hope they do. In fact, you might even have two, you lucky a-holes! Since each of these special places is a staple of their communities, a consistent fall back for food and beer, we didn't feel it was right to elect a fancy-smancy celebrity rating. Nope, there's simply no other way to rate it!
Faylunchers: an Englishman, a Chinese Man, an Indian (and Guest), choose...the beast, the myth, the legend...BEAR HIMSELF, as the overall score.
We love how Bear's photo is just blurry enough to give him a Sasquatch feel. Does he actually exist?! Yes, he does. In fact, he does a lot of the cooking. As a means of explaining just how special Mr. Bear is, let us recall a previous exchange:
Let's say it was a Wednesday night, about four months ago, roughly 20 minutes before closing time (9pm). Mike and Alex have had a refreshing beer, and both are hoping for one more before facing the harshness of the road home. Mike looks to the bar, but the bartender is nowhere in sight. Instead, Bear sits at the end, talking with one of his buddies. Mike swallows, takes a deep breath, approaches Bear.
"Can we get one more beer?" asks Mike.
"Nope," answers Bear. Silence. Mike and Alex look at each other.
"No more beer," repeats Bear. "You see fellas, when you own your own place, you can tell people 'no' whenever you want to. That's the joy of it. And while you're in my place, I'm the president, I'm the judge, and I'm the jury."
"Fair enough", say Mike and Alex as they leave.
But as they get into their cars, they smile. Bear has a point, they know. It is his place. And we keep coming back.
Like our blog? Have any restaurants that you would like rated? Or maybe just a food fan? Leave us a comment below or email us.
Let's say it was a Wednesday night, about four months ago, roughly 20 minutes before closing time (9pm). Mike and Alex have had a refreshing beer, and both are hoping for one more before facing the harshness of the road home. Mike looks to the bar, but the bartender is nowhere in sight. Instead, Bear sits at the end, talking with one of his buddies. Mike swallows, takes a deep breath, approaches Bear.
"Can we get one more beer?" asks Mike.
"Nope," answers Bear. Silence. Mike and Alex look at each other.
"No more beer," repeats Bear. "You see fellas, when you own your own place, you can tell people 'no' whenever you want to. That's the joy of it. And while you're in my place, I'm the president, I'm the judge, and I'm the jury."
"Fair enough", say Mike and Alex as they leave.
But as they get into their cars, they smile. Bear has a point, they know. It is his place. And we keep coming back.
Like our blog? Have any restaurants that you would like rated? Or maybe just a food fan? Leave us a comment below or email us.
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