328 Grill — Restaurant in Saint Paul Park

There was a lot of buzz about this place so I will admit my expectations may have been a bit too high, in some regards so I have taken some time to think about this review.

You are going to a VFW and so in terms of atmosphere you should be expecting a local watering hole with a mix of family friendly appropriate... but also a dash of old hole in the wall bar where the locals blow off some steam. Align your expectations to that and you'll not be disappointed. Service... friendly, kind, very slow and definitely comes with a measure of disorganization that aligns with the setting. Again... dont set expectations high and you'll probably enjoy the service Food... now this is sort of why you end up there... if you’re like me... you are really excited to try the food and you should be... there have been a few articles about the head chef and social media is doing a good job pumping out hype about how creative and unique these burgers are.

So let me help you out... the burgers are pretty good. Not enough to warrant the hype but better than average. The ingredients are fresh and obviously a lot of effort goes in to the burgers. The tots have some sort of association with an award but they are absolutely straight out of the freezer and from Orida... seasoned well... and I love all tater tots... so Im not complaining... just cant imagine an award being bestowed upon them.

So it probably sounds like im picking on the place but Im not. The food is good quality food... but if you go in expecting to be blown away... Id say dial that back and you will really enjoy yourself. Its just not fair to go in with super high expectations and I understand that.

Star of the show: for me... Minnesota Poutine is a clever spin on the Canadian fair. The chicken wild rice soup is great too but poured over tots with curds and you are in heaven. I think that spin alone is worth a nod to the chef.

Disappointing: portion size... I love burgers... these are good burgers... but id expect a touch more size at the price... not a huge difference but say about 20 percent larger and you have a good price to tasty ratio. Same goes for the side of tots.

All in all .. even for the nitpicking... Ill be back... and I expect ill find a burger that does blow my socks off eventually... but one thing is for sure... until then, Ill be okay with the smaller portions because it will help me save room for some...

We found this place from a page we follow on Facebook so we had to try it. This is set in the American Legion in St Paul Paul Park. Your standard Legion older tables and chairs. Everyone seems to know everyone. We started out with the buffalo fries. This is house fries topped with chicken tenders, buffalo sauce, and ranch. This was so flavorful. The fries had an amazing flavor with a good crunch. The buffalo sauce was rich and spicy. The chicken tenders were fried to perfection with a good crunch. The ranch pulled it all together. One of my favorites. We also tried the tater tot hot dish soup. I’m not a soup guy but this was so amazing. Great flavor with a touch of sweetness from the corn. We shared the Fo’ cheezy burger. A perfectly seasoned burger with American, cheddar and pepper jack cheese sitting in between 2 pieces of Parmesan crusted sour dough bread. This bread was so delicious! Amazing flavor in every bite. We also shared the burger of the week, shorty don’t play. This is their signature short rib brisket, chuck Patty top with braised short ribs, in gravy and white cheddar cheese on a grilled brioche bun with herb mayo. It is sloppy in every bite and so delicious. Every bite from start to finish is flavorful and messy. For sides we got the cajun tots as well as regular. Nice crispy crunch with well seasoned flavors. Chef Mil German is a master at burgers. Our server Amy was a rockstar. Great knowledge of menu and very attentive to...

We dropped by 328 Grill because of its award status for having some of the best cheese curds and tots in the whole state. We arrived right at opening time at 11am on Saturday. Judging by the calls of greeting the staff made to others as they entered, this is a place with a lot of regulars. The whole vibe of the place is homey, nothing fancy, but it's well-kept and well-loved. There were two rooms we could sit in, over by the bar or near to the pull-tab and gaming counter; we went by the counter.

Service was good the whole time. We shared the cheese curds. They were indeed exceptional. Very thin breading over piping hot cheese, giving the effect of little cheesy clouds. Definitely some of the best I've had.

My son had the fries, and I had one as well. They were outstanding. Crisp and seasoned in all the right ways. My husband had a burger alongside tots, and greatly enjoyed his food.

I ordered the Fondue You Love Me with a side salad. As I dug into my sandwich, I kept thinking, this is good, but where's the cheese? I didn't bring up the issue with the server, because we just couldn't wait around as we had a hockey game to get to, but if you compare my sandwich pic to those posted by other people, the absence of the fondue aspect is pretty clear. To their credit, it was still a good sandwich, but it could've been amazing. At least the awesome curds had already given me a good dose of cheese...