This week is all about restaurant reviews. I have three of them for you this week as I am trying to get caught up after taking so much time off! Hop and Grind restaurant is a unique new restaurant in Durham NH. They are located at 17 Madbury rd. (Madbury Commons area). They are open daily starting at 11:30 am.
If you know Durham, NH you know it’s the home to the University of New Hampshire. There is a lot of activity and the hustle and bustle of the kids and staff in the college community. This little restaurant really fits into Durham for a number of reasons. The decor at Hop and Grind is unique and colorful, the food is well thought out and priced just right for the college community. The service is friendly with the food coming out hot, fresh and quick for everyone on the go.
Hop and Grind is a burger joint but not your typical burger joint. They craft their own burgers, they have scratch made sodas and sell a large selection of local craft beer. Hop and Grind is also the baby brother to the Tuckaway Tavern Restaurant that you have seen on Food Network. New Hampshire restaurants are really stepping up in the food business!
When you first walk in, you head to the counter where you pass a cooler full of various waters and soda that you can grab before placing your order. You can place your beer or wine order at the same counter. The menu is not very big so it’s pretty easy to pick what you want. It’s all about the burgers here. Jim and I both ordered the Hi-5 burger that has string onions, sweet pickles, cheddar cheese, American cheese and hop sauce. Jim had the French fries with his burger. I had the crispy onion strings. Once you order you are given a number, then you can find a seat. This is where it can get tricky as it’s not a big restaurant. They have a number of seats at the bar and window area. Then they have a handful of 2 and 4 seat tables and a couple larger tables for bigger parties or community like seating. I’m not a huge fan of the community type seating, but we were able to grab a table that was for 6 people and shared it with two other fine folks. Not a big deal, but it’s not really our thing.
It did not take long for our food to arrive but before it arrived I have to say I was a little skeptical as Jim likes his burger medium and I like mine well done. This place was so busy with people coming and going I wondered if they would just get the burgers on the plate, not really caring about the specific wellness. I was wrong…both burgers were cooked just as we asked! These burgers were very good and I’m not a burger girl. Now, the fries and crispy onion strings, let’s start with the fries…very good crispy on the outside and tender inside, a solid French fry! Now the crispy onion strings, these are super thin and super crispy. Jim and I both ate those. Delicious!
Let’s talk about the amazing variety of burgers they offer. It’s not just beef burgers like we had. They also have chicken burgers that are all natural and hormone free. They have one called the hot chick with hot sauce, blue cheese, cilantro celery and carrot slaw, with a cool ranch sauce. I have to say that sounds really good! They have pork burgers and veggie burgers too. Maybe a pork burger called Uncle Ham with apples, dry aged bacon, brown sugar apple chutney, smoked Gouda, sage with a cider glaze. Sounds tasty right! I also like the sound of the Beet Box burger with beets, quinoa, apple chutney, smoked Gouda and sage and honey butter, wow!
A couple of other choices that I’m kind of loving and that have become really popular lately is their fried chicken sandwich. Get this, they have a Honky Tonk chicken sandwich that is a Nashville hot chicken sandwich with pickles, slaw and sticky hot chili honey. Hot chicken sandwiches have been popping up everywhere over the past year and I love it!
So that’s a quick overview of sandwiches but they have some mouth-watering sides as well. Next time I go I am definitely trying their salt and truffle vinegar fries. I love the salt and vinegar combination on anything and I know I already love the crispy onion strings. If you like fried mac and cheese or fried pickles, they have those too!
Earlier I mentioned their house crafted sodas. They have several flavors including lemon, lime, orange, blueberry mojito and raspberry Ricky. If you like craft beer, this is a great place as they have sourced a number of local craft beer from places like Moat Mountain, 603, Allagash, River Walk and Ballast Point to just name a few. They have a full list on their website.
https://www.hopandgrind.com/
You can also check them out on Facebook. Go ahead and check out Hop and Grind you will enjoy some delicious burgers and cold local craft beer!
Enjoy!
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