Your Guide to Authentic Regional Eats
Sign In | Register for Free!
Restaurants Recipes Forums Eating Tours Merchandise FAQ Maps Insider

Convention Grill

3912 Sunnyside Rd., Minneapolis, MN - (952) 920-6881
Posted By Michael Stern on 5/6/2007 6:45:00 PM
Here is the great American hamburger. Not the biggest or the best-dressed, not-stuffed with foie gras like the $100 oddities made by show-off chefs, not so lean it's dry nor so greasy it is unctuous, this is a thick, bun-sized patty sizzled to crusty perfection on an extremely well-oiled grill. It oozes juice and radiates beefy savor, and is especially good topped with a mantle of melted cheese and/or California style (with lettuce, tomato, and mayonnaise). Other available toppings include bacon and mushrooms; or you can have a Plaza Burger, which comes with sour cream, chives, and chopped onions and is sandwiched in a dark bun, which the menu boasts is just like the one "featured in the Plaza Bar of Madison, Wisconsin."

For burgers alone, we'll happily make the pilgrimage to this 1934-vintage diner in Edina; but we can guarantee our California cheeseburgers will be accompanied by French fries. Beautiful fries: cooked until honeytone brown, each serving a mix of cream-centered, full-size sticks and darkened crunchy little twigs and burnt ends of delicious potato debris from when the spuds are hand-cut in the kitchen.

On the side you want a malt. Huge and so thick that they must be spooned from their silver beaker because pouring is impossible, Convention Grill malts are available in a rainbow of flavors: chocolate, wild blueberry, butterscotch, strawberry, coffee, banana, vanilla, caramel, honey, hot fudge, butterfinger, mint, and Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. For fifty cents extra, you can have fresh banana added. The only problem with ordering a malt is that it makes it less likely you will have the stamina to have a hot fudge sundae for dessert. That was our problem when we visited, but we couldn't help ogling the sundaes at the next table. They come in the typical broad tulip glass with plenty of fudge underneath the ice cream and a mountain of whipped cream on top; and on the side is a good-size cup of extra hot fudge to pour on as you eat your way through.

All this excellent Roadfood is dished out by a staff of white-uniformed waitresses who are utterly efficient and, in our experience, omnipresent. It was Lynne Rossetto Kasper, host of "The Splendid Table," who said we needed to go here; and while Lynne is best known as an expert on Italian food, this suggestion alone earns her an exalted chair in the Burger Lovers' Hall of Fame.

23 out of 23 people found the review helpful. Was it helpful to you?

No Yes

Scorecard

5 - Overall: Legendary - Worth driving from anyplace
Overall: Legendary - Worth driving from anyplace
Rate this place

Reviewers Photos [Upload Your Photos]

Note the lumpiness of the chocolate malt that has just been spooned from its silver beaker by the waitress who presented it. She forgot to bring us a straw, but that was OK. A spoon is a much more useful utensil for eating/drinking this ultra-thick concoction.
"Note the lumpiness of the chocolate malt that has just been spooned from its silver beaker by the waitress who presented it. She forgot to bring us a straw, but that was OK. A spoon is a much more useful utensil for eating/drinking this ultra-thick concoction."
Michael Stern





It is often said that the secret of a great griddle-cooked hamburger is the grill itself. We don't know if this one goes back to the origin of the Convention Grill, in 1934, but it sure imparts a deeply delicious character to the burgers that sizzle here. Need we mention that this is not the place to dine if you happen to be condemned to a fat-free regime?
"It is often said that the secret of a great griddle-cooked hamburger is the grill itself. We don't know if this one goes back to the origin of the Convention Grill, in 1934, but it sure imparts a deeply delicious character to the burgers that sizzle here. Need we mention that this is not the place to dine if you happen to be condemned to a fat-free regime?"
Michael Stern


At least as much as for the hamburgers, we love the Convention Grill for its superb French fries. This close shot shows the textural variety that makes them so addictive.
"At least as much as for the hamburgers, we love the Convention Grill for its superb French fries. This close shot shows the textural variety that makes them so addictive."
Michael Stern


The addition of lettuce, tomato, and mayonnaise makes this cheeseburger
"The addition of lettuce, tomato, and mayonnaise makes this cheeseburger "California style." I piled everything into the bun and decided that this was the Platonic idea of a diner burger."
Michael Stern


This hot fudge sundae is made with local Kemps ice cream and Convention Grill's own delicious hot fudge sauce. This is actually the small sundae. The large has eight scoops of ice cream!
"This hot fudge sundae is made with local Kemps ice cream and Convention Grill's own delicious hot fudge sauce. This is actually the small sundae. The large has eight scoops of ice cream!"
Cliff Strutz


When you walk into the Convention Grill, this is what you see: a very busy counter where the staff assembles plates ready to get carried out to tables and booths.
"When you walk into the Convention Grill, this is what you see: a very busy counter where the staff assembles plates ready to get carried out to tables and booths."
Michael Stern


We've seen this place described as a 1950s-style diner. In fact, it began in 1934; and while it has evolved over the years, it exudes nostalgia.
"We've seen this place described as a 1950s-style diner. In fact, it began in 1934; and while it has evolved over the years, it exudes nostalgia."
Michael Stern



What is Roadfood?  |   Submit Content  |   Privacy Policy  |   Contact Roadfood.com   Copyright 2011 - Roadfood.com