Grant's Neighborhood Grill — Restaurant in Meridian

The owners and employees love this place and it can be seen for sure. I live near Grants, seen it a few times, but never thought to stop in. This place is rather small, like many other places in the area; however, they make good on their space .They have patio seating that goes out into the shopping center parking lot with a fence around the area for safety and privacy. The inside is decorated pretty awesome (see photos). I like the vibe of the place and felt very comfortable inside. The waitress made the experience a positive one for me. She ran outside and handed me my sun glasses. THANK YOU! But then I started to drive away and she was running after me again with my phone... what's going on with me?!? THANK YOU, AGAIN! I was dining with good friends and was in a fun, albeit serious conversation. The wait staff box up your food for you, which is pretty cool. Price: As you can see from the photos of the menu that I uploaded this place isn't cheap--but then again the food isn't cheaply made. In speaking with the waitress everything is fresh and local--they make their own dressings (ranch, BBQ, blue cheese), they cut their own bacon (super thick) and even grind their own burgers (good). So, because of the quality, and the fact that they use everything local, I can understand the cost and am happy to pay it. However, one thing that made me a little upset was the fact that healthy eaters have to pay $3 more to substitute salad for fries. Many places do this, but when you're paying $13 for a bun less burger, you have to now pay $16 to get a hamburger and lettuce with cheese, and let's face it, the salad wasn't much more. So, we talked about the inside and I touched on the service (extra positive), let's get to what's important... THE FOOD!!! All food (what we ordered) was served on plates that look like cutting boards inside a cookie sheet, which I thought they were really cool and unique! I will touch on all four of our purchases with the review from each devourer:

Me: I got the Mushroom/Swiss 1/3 pound burger with no bun and a side salad substituted for the fries. $13 +$3 for the "salad". This burger usually comes with a locally made Acme Bakery blended pretzel bun. The waitress asked how I wanted my burger--well done please. Well, it came bloody still, which I wasn't a fan of. The mushrooms were very well cooked and the Swiss melted deliciously. The salad was nothing short of lettuce, with some shredded cheese, and peppers. The ranch is homemade and was okay, nothing too special. I took it to go, ate the Swiss cheese and mushrooms later and gave my dog the burger--now, that's because I don't like red hamburger, the flavoring was good and others would really enjoy this.

Inside out grilled cheese--pretty cool concept. I happen to like cheese fried so if I ate bread I would have tried this. Basically it' white cheddar, Parmesan, and Gouda cheeses cooked on the outside of the sourdough bread with fries. My dining companion said that it was "good" and a fair cost at $9.

BBQ pulled pork, $11-- slow cooked BBQ pulled pork in their homemade sauce served on a locally made Brioche bun minus coleslaw with fries. This sandwich was served with tomatoes, which I thought was interesting. George liked it, but thought that the BBQ sauce was a little spice, be he is someone who doesn't like any spice. However, he enjoyed it and called it a 3/5 or 7/10.

Deli Club, $11--Turkey and pit ham with lettuce, tomatoes, onion, roasted garlic, mayo, and house-made bacon. My dining companion, Yesi, said that it was delicious and she offered me a bite of the bacon, which didn't look like bacon because it was super thick--it was delicious! She only was able to eat half of the sandwich and fries and took the rest to-go. I recommend this, based on the portion size and the amount of...

Been here a number of times for lunch. Atmosphere is perfect for having a great meal in a quaint and comfy space that offers patio dining and bar seating along with table dining. IMO they have the best burgers in southern Idaho. Seriously, their fresh ground brisket burgers are to die for and when we are in the area, we always stop by to have them. When you add great beers on tap, its hard to say no to this place.

Normally, we are only around for lunch, but tonight we had an appointment in the area and were able to visit for their dinner entrees. I had the pork chop and my wife had their chicken piccatta.

Okay, so my favorite pork chop in Idaho has been at Brick 29 in Nampa. Its my go to whenever we dine there. The pork is amazing, although the sauce and sides won't knock your socks off.

But I've been hearing about Grant's pork chop and being there at dinner time, I had to try it. OMG. So not only was the cook of the chop nailed, it was perfectly seasoned and savory, lightly brushed with their own BBQ sauce and the side of Elote and the cactus salsa was way too good to be true. Hands down better than Brick 29 and for the price, probably the best pork chop in the region. They also switch up the preparation of their entrees over time so I can't wait to try their next chop iteration, but I expect to come back before that and try their New York or Ribeye steaks which also come highly recommended.

My wife loved her Chicken Piccatta. The flavors were on point, the chicken was tender and well seasoned, and the sauce was tangy and buttery. Both entrees had a creamy mashed potato base that was perfect.

We both shared their Caesar Salad which has a Jalapeno Caesar dressing that is perfect. Has just a slight heat and freshness that elevates the standard Caesar salad.

Even their desserts, a creme brulee and cheesecake, were really good. You don't always expect the desserts to be up the same standard as the rest of the food, but these were perfect after the meal.

Our waitress was Chasey who works the evening shifts and was very nice and engaging and gave us enough time to ask questions and pick the perfect options. She is quite an asset there, but everyone is nice and the service is great. They also had Boont Amber Ale on tap which is a favorite of mine and is a hard find here in Idaho.

Anyway, point being, try Grant's Neighborhood Grill. Aside from supporting local small businesses which we always try to do, they really have figured out how to provide an excellent atmosphere, great service and amazing food in an unassuming location at the end of a strip mall. Grant's is a true gem and you have to...

While Grant's should not be confused with fine dining, the dining is more than fine!

This was our first visit, and we immediately noted the finishes... Not elegant, but good quality and stylish nonetheless.

I didn't catch our servers name, but she was attentive, helpful, and pleasant.

The food came out pretty quick and was hot and fresh. I ordered the stroganoff and noted the perfectly cooked steak cubes, delicately cut mushrooms, and traditional sauce (I asked for fresh parm and was accommodated). The accompaning Texas toast-like grilled bread was scrumptious. Overall. a very nice Stroganoff rendition.

My wife had the chicken burger... The chicken breast was grilled to perfection, and the produce was fresh. She doesn't usually finish such a large sandwich, but she did tonight. Her fries were lightly battered and tasty... Thank goodness she couldn't finish all the fries, so I found they were perfect for dipping in my leftover sauce (Make-shift putine).

Oh, did I mention that the prices were pretty reasonable for a restaurant that truly cares about the details and executes your meal so well.

One thing to note, especially if you highly value personal space, is that the restaurant is small, I mean, Paris cafe kinda small, so conversations are not necessarily private.

All in all, we will be back to try some of the other menu items.

ps. I was close enough to a couple of neighboring tables to see each of their meals as they came out, and they...