When you look up places to eat in Saugatuck, one spot is at the top of every list: Phil’s. Phil’s is like the quintessential Midwestern Bar and Grille, serving up a variety of beers, burgers, salads and the like in a dimly lit space that leans more toward dive than romance. Naturally, we had to pay the place a visit.
I narrowed the menu down to the Blackened Burger or the Broasted Chicken and left it up to the waitress, who told me to go with the burger. This was dusted with Cajun seasonings and topped with bacon, gorgonzola, lettuce, tomato and mayo on a ciabatta roll. I ordered without the lettuce, tomato and mayo, then chose fries for my side. I also ordered it medium-rare.
What arrived was one hefty burger. It covered the whole ciabatta roll and the gorgonzola and bacon cam in nice quantities. Plus, for the second time in the last couple months I found myself face-to-face with a burger that used bacon bits instead of strips. If this is to be a trend, it’s a pretty good one because it allows for distributed bacon without the concern of accidentally pulling all of it out of the bun.
As for the taste, the burger was good. Not great, but firmly in the good department. The toppings did well and the extra seasoning on the burger was certainly nice to have. Also, I am a good sucker for good steak fries and Phil’s delivered on those. It struck me that Phil’s dished up the kind of food you love to have in your hometown, but that isn’t a destination on its own. Most of the time, though, that’s all you really need.
