The Roanoker - March 2014 - 57

Top left: The Cowboy burger goes all out.
Middle right: The perfectly fried oreos
are, um, really good.
Bottom left: Beers of the day are posted
by category.

Subtlety is not a hallmark at the
downtown eatery. But if you're
after great and unique flavors, a
selection of 100 beers, seriously
man-cave decor and a fried Oreo to
top it off, this is the place.
WHEN IT WAS ANNOUNCED IN January of last
year that Jack Brown's, a Harrisonburg burger and beercentric restaurant, was opening a third location in the
former Ernie's space in downtown Roanoke, I was skeptical of how good it could be. The concept seemed too
simple, too formatted-for-a-college town, with each day's
offering consisting of a plain burger, cheeseburger, the
day's special, and either sweet potato or regular fries. But
by the time I finally checked it out almost eight months
after opening, it all started to click. Simple food with
great beer and even better music translates to a place I
find myself wanting to return to again and again.
It doesn't hurt that the restaurant expanded its menu
to include many of its customers' favorite specials in
addition to the standard burger or cheeseburger. One
of the reasons I didn't visit sooner was that I wasn't all
that jazzed about only a cheeseburger and I wanted just
a little more variety.
That concern is out the window now that you can
order many of the popular specials any day of the
week, from the Jack Bonderant - a classic of applewood
smoked bacon, cheese, and a sunny-side-up egg on top

THE

R OANOKER.COM

of the hand formed beef patty - to the munchies-driven
Jack on a Piggy Back - a burger topped with a split hotdog, pickled jalapenos, and cheese.
Daily specials (or "Freestyles," as they bill them) like
the Greg Brady - mac and cheese with Martin's BBQ
chips - still exist though, so it's worth keeping tabs on
the Facebook page to see what's being slung each day.
If you're looking for healthy, fresh toppings, however, Jack Brown's isn't the place for you. It's a restaurant of studied excess and fun, something embodied
in my favorite burger, The Elvis. Modeled after Elvis
Presley's favorite sandwich of peanut butter, banana, and
bacon, The Elvis takes griddled patties and tops them
with mayonnaise, bacon, cheese, and, yes, peanut butter
(but thankfully no banana). It sounded so horrible that
it took me a few visits to work up the nerve to order it.
But I shouldn't have feared, the burger is perfect with its
smoky bacon, charred beef, and salty peanut butter - my
only complaint being that it wasn't big enough.
Size is definitely one of the drawbacks to Jack Brown's
- and it's something to take into account when you're
ordering. Each burger is on the small side - maybe a
quarter-pound max - and the toppings, while delicious,
aren't exactly piled on. If you're on the hungry end, be
sure to order a basket of the crispy, crinkly French fries
and dip them in the house sauce - a secret recipe that
tastes a little like Thousand Island dressing with a kick.
Or you could just order a second burger, which is
what I've found myself, on occasion, indulging in. One
evening, I ordered The Cowboy, a classic combination
of spicy-sweet BBQ sauce, American cheese, and bacon,
but found myself craving just a bit more. The Jalapeno
Popper - pickled jalapenos and cream cheese - did the
trick, and I loved the briny tang of the pickled jalapenos
combined with the smooth cream cheese. If you're a fan
of game day jalapeno poppers, then this burger might
be your new favorite.
THE BEER SELECTION, of course, is the other (if
not the main) draw to the restaurant. Though most are
bottled (100, to be exact), you'll also find four on tap
in the custom-made Black Dog Salvage-original tap,
fashioned from the front of an old rusty bus. Normally,
when I'm gorging on burgers and fries, I tend to order
lighter or hoppier brews like Starr Hill's The Love or

MARCH/APRIL 2014

The Roanoker - March 2014

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