I drove back from the Big 12 tournament on Saturday. The drive home always seems to take a million times longer than the drive there, no matter where you're coming from. I always get really tired--and hungry--right about in Wichita, so it's the perfect place to stop for a little pick-me-up. For some reason the Wi-fi in my hotel room wasn't working Sunday morning on my Surface, so I couldn't find the restaurant.com deal I had found the day before. So I had to find someplace else to eat. I hadn't eaten much healthy all weekend, and I was determined to get back to eating much better as soon as I got back. But this was on the way home, so I was going to make this meal count. And I came across Fizz Burgers & Bottles, rated #4 in Wichita by TripAdvisor. Sold.
The restaurant is about a 10 minute drive off the highway, but I've learned in Wichita pretty much anything good and not fast-food is. And I really wasn't in a huge rush to get back, as I had left kind of early to fit in this stop. It's on the corner of a strip mall. From the outside, it has this look like it's a chain burger place. But it's not; this is the only location. And you realize that as soon as you walk inside. It's not very large, seating maybe 50 inside. It does have a pretty big outdoor patio, but it was too windy for me out there. When I arrived there were only 3 tables available inside. I kind of wanted a 4-top table, but the waitress steered me to a 2-top...that or the bar. At first I wasn't a fan, but as I watched I realized why. There was a steady stream of customers coming in the entire time. And most of them were families or groups. Duh.
They've got a whole menu of bottled drinks, so of course I had to try one. They had tons of flavors, and I eventually settled on a black cherry soda.
It was really good. Deep, but not overpowering, black cherry flavor. The only negative was that it wasn't ice cold. I thought about asking for a cup of ice, but didn't worry about it. I know the sodas are bottled, but it would be cool if they offered tastes of different sodas. Maybe a soda flight, like you can do a beer or wine flight at some bars.
The next thing that caught my eye was the pickles. At first I was going to pass when I saw they charge for them, but then I realized that they make their own. Dill or sweet. I couldn't decide which kind to get, and my server said she would bring me some of both.
These were so good! I was a little worried the dill pickles would be super tart but they really weren't bad. Just a little tang. Thick cut and very fresh. They should offer larger sizes of these to go, because I would have gotten them. I actually only ate a few so I could eat my meal. And I took the rest home with me. They didn't even make it to the end of the night.
They've got an assortment of sandwiches, a soup of the day, and also several salads. But when I saw that they grind their own burger meat in-house, I knew I had to have a burger. They have 7 standard burgers, or you can make your own. The blue burger sounded really good, so I went with that and I subbed grilled onions instead of regular. They offer both a 1/4lb and 1/2lb burger. I had no need or desire to be gluttonous, so I went with the 1/4lb.
I really like that they offer different sizes of fries. Everything from individual to family sized. Again, trying to be somewhat good, I got the individual. They've got several different dipping sauces, and I went with the garlic aioli.
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| Blue Cheese, Roasted Garlic Sauce, Red Onion, Lettuce, Tomato |
The group behind me got a family portion of fries. I thought it was a little creepy to ask them to take a picture, so I found this one online.
I've never seen that many fries on a platter before. It was crazy. And you get all 7 of the dipping sauces to try.
I fully understand why this place is so highly rated. The food was excellent, the service was friendly and efficient, and it's a very cool atmosphere. I will definitely go back.
