Smash Masters — Restaurant in Zebulon

This is a great new spot to get a high quality burger, but be prepared to spend a lot of money. The food is excellent, more than making up for the subpar atmosphere.

Food: 5/5 I ordered “The Rizz,” one of their signature burgers, and it was easily one of the best burgers I’ve ever had. It tasted fresh, and the blend of toppings was absolutely perfect. I got sweet potato fries alongside it, and they weren’t anything to write home about, but the sauce that came with them made up for that.

Service: 4/5 Seeing as this place just opened, there were a few awkward moments here and there as the staff still seem to be figuring out their processes and procedures, but I certainly don’t hold that against them. Everyone was very friendly and welcoming. For some reason they didn’t give us napkins at the table, so we had to ask for them. They were happy to oblige of course, but that seems like a pretty obvious oversight not to just have napkin dispensers at the table. I think the experience could be improved if there were basic amenities like napkins and ketchup at every table from the get-go.

Atmosphere: 2/5 The restaurant does feel a little barren at the moment, but I’m sure they will fill it out more with time. I really liked the little mural to the right as you walk in, though. One thing I really did not like, however, is the very obviously AI generated logo they have on the menu and on the sign outside. I don’t want to hold that against them too much because I understand if they may not want to pay for the services of a quality graphic designer, but the reality is that there are teenagers that could make a more appealing logo design who would probably do it for free. The menu design is similarly very juvenile, featuring stock images that look nothing like the actual food they serve, and poorly spaced lettering with seemingly no thought put into legibility or any kind of cohesive brand identity. Additionally, the names of the signature burgers are absolutely ridiculous. Nobody wants to be forced to say “Can I get The Bussin’ Burger?” out loud to their waiter. The “Gen Z slang” names need to go. They aren’t particularly clever or even related to the toppings on the burger. Obviously all of these things aren’t nearly as important as the quality of the food, and thankfully the food is excellent, but I’d really like for this place to succeed and grow, so I hope they’ll one day put together a more interesting brand to drum up more interest and increase sales. Even just a one time investment into paying a marketing freelancer or graphic designer for a month of work could do wonders for the place. Heck, I’d design them a better menu myself just for a couple of free burgers!

Edit: One last thing I forgot to mention regarding the atmosphere: The men’s restroom was not very clean at all. Part of that seemed to be due to age of the appliances, but the floor was also caked with a layer of dirt. This isn’t really that big of a deal to me, as the restaurant itself was fairly clean, but it is something to note.

Cost: I do feel I need to mention that this place is very expensive. My burger with fries was $17.99, and there was a $1.99 upcharge to substitute the regular fries for sweet potato fries. With that being said, it’s important to understand that the restaurant business is incredibly difficult and high risk, so it is very normal for local places to have higher prices. The reality is that a place like this is basically forced to price like this in order to break even. That’s just the unfortunate truth, and things are likely only going to get worse for small businesses in the coming years. I don’t feel bad at all about spending a little extra to support a local spot, but this will unfortunately be a place I can only drop in on special occasions. If you’re somebody with plenty of extra income, I implore you to come here instead of heading into Raleigh for Char-Grill or Bad Daddy’s or Five Guys the next time you want a high quality...

Cool atmosphere, food was hot & fast. I dinned in for dinner and it was quite loud inside from all the kitchen staff and waiters standing at the front of the store talking about random things. Talking is fine, but it was excessively loud inside. My waitress was new and untrained. She had trouble finding the fry substitution option for my meal, and when I ordered a drink she did ask what type of alcohol I wanted, but I told her just whatever normally comes with it and she was unsure. I got my food and it was fresh. My waitress came back to check on me at the very, very end of my meal when I was ready for the check and did not check on me 1 time while I had my food. I ordered an alcoholic beverage and was not given nor offered water(I would have taken it), so when i finished my alcoholic drink, I had no additional liquid to finish washing down my French fries and Sandwich. When I looked for my server, she was just up front continuing to giggle and laugh with the other servers. I paid cash, and was given a receipt AFTER I paid, instead of bringing the bill to my table so I could review it prior. The waitress lingered at my table after bringing me my change. I would say it was a bad serving experience. Minus the menu issue, being attentive, bringing me the check, checking on me after I receive my food and making sure I have something to drink are things that have nothing to do with the menu, just service skills in general. The think the serving staff might need some training on making the guest experience better. I will give the dine in experience another shot before I just get take out. Which is annoying because you are REQUIRED to pay over the phone when placing an order. So if you want to pay cash,...

Went in we were the only second table to be served no one else in the restaurant and our burgers were cold , I think the patties had been heated half way from the previous day . Food just not good at all for 15.99 a plate. Terrible . So since Smash Masters responded, we did talk to the waitress and asked her if these were left over hamburger patties and that they were cold and dried up but she never came back to our table not even with the check so we walked up and paid and left so don't blame your excuse for bad food on us. If it had been served fresh we would not be having this conversation.so let me edit this review once again since you wanted to say that his companion left you one star reviews yes we did and did not want to be loud in your restaurant and let me say this one more time we did tell the waitress!!!!! Yes you did have a reheated burger or cooked to early that was not fresh. Obviously you do not have customer service because you want to down people on your review response. If you have good food you have nothing to get angry about right ? If the health department tested the food we had it would not have been hot enough. The way to avoid bad reviews is to have great food . Our review is not the only bad reviews you have.....do you see the pattern ? Maybe...