The East End is always fun to explore because you never know what you are going to find. Champ has been on my to-try list to try for quite some time, but they are closed weekends, and that is typically my feasting time where I can casually eat any manner of beast. However this was a slow Monday and these 100 reviews for the year are not going to write themselves, so I need to try new places instead of going to Treebeards again.
It is the same set-up as Sparkle: walk-up to the order window, wait in line, place order, pay, and wait for your number to be called. They give you little tabs with your order number on it, however the lady working the window recognized everyone (including me) by sight from the order we placed earlier, so she knows what she is doing if your little tab blows away in the wind (it was really windy today.) While I enjoy the food at Sparkle, and it spawned an internet famous aphorism "not to let anyone dull your sparkle" I would say that (a) the location is worse as far as downtown workers go but (b) it is a block off the light rail when that switch gets flipped, and (c) the food quality is a little higher end than Sparkle. For fairness' sake I will also include comparisons to Stanton's City Bites, The Refinery, Lankford, Hard Rock Cafe, and Beck's Prime just so nobody gets picked on, but you can fairly evaluate a big-burger experience.
A review of their food in two acts today:
Champ Burger with bacon and cheese: weighing in at 1/3 pound patty at $4.89 the value is inherently there for how much food you get. This is a large burger to eat - definitely on the north side of 1/3 pound at least compared to what 1/3 is at Fuddrucker's. Larger than the patty at Sparkle definitely. It is not lean at all. It is juicy. I got everything on top of it so I am not sure how it is plain, but taken in sound proportion with lettuce/tomato/mayo/ketchup/bacon/cheese and the bun it is a very enjoyable bite every time. Though a word of caution, it does get drippy, so don't eat over your khaki pants. While I thought it was humorous as the lady was handing me the bag, she hesitated for a moment and grabbed more napkins and shoved them in the bag before handing it over. I thought it was funny because I always have to ask people for extra napkins. But she was so good at her job she gave me one look walking up and correctly thought to herself: "this idiot is probably going to get mustard on himself at least twice today, better lend a hand getting him out of a spot of bother later." The bacon is not piled on to the agonizing excess of Lankford's grim burger where literally it is a pound of bacon, but there is so much there that you feel like you definitely got your money's worth, unlike paying more at Whataburger and getting so much less. The bacon is crispy and salty, just like the Flying Spaghetti Monster intended. The cheese is much higher quality than Sparkle - it adds a smooth, creamy offset in a bite of the burger - and the mayo rounds it out for perfection. There are no "Designer" sorts of burgers like the Refinery however when you do the basics like a bacon cheeseburger so tremendously well, who cares you can't something fancier. And they do the basics so much better than Beck's Prime that can at least be covered up with heavy doses of jalapenos and onions in Bill's Burger. While Hard Rock has a fantastic plain burger, Champ rivals them, just they are in a different zip code so it's much harder to swing if you have tickets for the Alley and want to stay in walking distance, HRC is always going to win. Also unlike Stanton's which offers the tremendously pleasing Brunch Burger, Champ offers nothing in the way of a fried egg option, but they do offer a unique option of putting a ham slice on a burger. I like odd things like that maybe next time.
Beer battered onion rings: ringing up at $2.15 compared to the $3.25 chili cheese fries I am inclined to agree with David N. that the onion rings are delicious. They are thick but well-formed, unlike Sonic's failboats where you bite into it and the onion slides out in a failure pile of sadness. The batter is pleasing, it tastes like 'Merica.
Other things to add: David N.'s review from 2011 writes that it is cash only, and that has changed, they accept credit cards now - including Discover. That review almost scared me off because I hate cash only places like Lankford. There's a large part of me that has a sincere distaste for walking around town with peasant napkins, or as the mainstream media calls them, dollar bills. So if you too dislike peasant napkins, then bring ol' plastic here and have a good time, unlike Lankford which refuses to join the 20th century and accept Daddy's credit card.
Champ is a winner if you are willing to leave downtown at lunch. read more