The Thurman Cafe
| Address: | 183 Thurman Ave, Columbus, OH 43206, USA |
| Phone: | +1 614-443-1570 |
| Site: | thethurmancafe.com |
| Rating: | 4.4 |
| Working: | 11AM–12AM 11AM–12AM 11AM–12AM 11AM–12AM 11AM–1AM 11AM–1AM 11AM–12AM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 5
MI
Michael Brian
Thurmans Cafe is a small mom & pop establishment in the heart of a residential area. Walking into Thurmans, I noticed there is a designated waiting area with seats available while you wait which I thought was a nice touch. Due to the demand and the small dining area, the hostess wont seat you until your entire party arrives. The booth me and my friends were seated was an old school wooden both. The dining area also has a bar were you can sit have a drink as well eat. After we were seated, the waitress immediately too our drink orders. Since I was from out of town, I decided on the their signature Thurman Burger. Even when busy, the wait time was about 10-12 minutes after we ordered our burgers. A friend or mine suggested I not get a side dish due to the size of the burgers, and he was right. The Thurman Burger is by far the largest burger I had ever ordered, it is essentially 3 quarter pound burgers in one. I decided only to eat half the burger there due to it size and the fact that I am not a larger person. The burger was perfectly cooked the way I wanted it, medium rare. When I finally bit into it, I experienced overload of flavor. The bun was soft. The patty was juicy and not dry. The sweetness of the banana peppers and caramelized onions created a perfect balance with the salty ham. The sauteed mushrooms added a nice subtle texture difference. The combination of American and mozzarella cheeses bonded the burger perfectly in gooey cheesy fashion. I was able to finish the half portion I decided on, but I was stuffed. Couldnt eat more after that. If youre interested in mom & pop establishments with a friendly neighborhood vibe that creates a great product, Thurmans Cafe is the place.
A
A Private User
2/25/2010 A great place for a burger, if you like hole in the wall bars filled with sticky wood trim. Oh, and the staff is super friendly as well. Our waitress made a big fuss because I did not abdicate to have a beer, even though MNF was on, because I had a drug test/breathalyzer the next morning for work and did not want to take any chances. We saw her one more time when she took our order. The menu said something like "We do not cook burgers to order. We cook everything medium well." Now I can understand that at some place that serves thin burgers like 5 guys or graffiti burger, but some place is serving thick burgers, with the audacity to call themselves a burger joint, and they refuse to cook them something other than medium well? OK, food arrives. A remarkably rude little Greek looking man, who presumably was an owner or manager brought out our food. He asked who had the burger with bacon, and then gave my friend his food, and just sat the other plate down that he was holding in front of me. I said, "I had the Rancher burger (it was called something like that) and it was supposed to come with onion straws." To which he said, "what do you want me to do about it?" and brusquely walked off. Now thats what I call service! If you are looking for a nice, juicy, thick, cooked to order burger, I dont know where to go in Columbus to get it (besides your own kitchen), but I know where NOT to go, HERE!
MA
Matthew Geissman
Lived in Columbus for nearly 6 years, and I never got around to going until recently. The feel of the place is interesting - very eclectic, lots of stuff going on with the walls and ceiling. For me, it looked a bit too grubby, but I suppose thats part of the experience. Wait time was roughly an hour and a half on a Sunday afternoon. The entrance area was extremely muggy and crowded; though they dont have much space up there it could be utilized better. And they should look in to getting a better A/C. Staff was extremely pleasant, though there was no one taking names when we arrived (even with a line of nearly ten people). As far as service during the meal goes, it was good! For such a packed place, they managed to be pretty attentive, though you often dont get your original server (which seemed to workout fine). It also didnt take too long for the good to arrive, even with a party of four and a packed house. The food... Well, the food was *ok*. It was a very large burger, Ill give them that. It just wasnt anything that blew my mind. Id definitely eat it again though - just not go out of my way to do so. Overall: Its a cool spot. Go with some friends and grab a drink. Id say its worth it to go at least once, as long as you like burgers.
HO
Howard Luken
Back in the day I used to go to the Thurman cafe because I knew the girls that worked at the bar. Now I tend to agree with those who say this place is not what its cracked up to be. I just went in 2 p.m. on a Tuesday and the place is practically empty but you have to have a hostess seat you. We go in she tells me to sit at the bar and I said no Id like a table. Most of the tables are empty she tries to seat me at one of those high chair bar tables they stuck in the middle of the room for some reason. I say I dont want to sit on one of those uncomfortable high chairs can I have a booth and she says no just flat out no I cant have an empty table when there are at least more than a half a dozen empty tables. We are so special you see they wont let one person sit at a booth. I went next door to the coffee shop and theyre closing in 15 minutes. So I end up at the Easy Street Cafe on the corner just like others have suggested open tables no question as to where I can sit or not sit. Just wanted to sit quietly and watch the traffic go by maybe not even eat but some places I dont know... Im also a little fed up with the 20 something kids you have to bow and scrape to these days who dont understand customer service.
AM
amanda christman
We came in with 5 people and were told it was a 45min - 1hr wait. That was no problem considering it was 6pm on the weekend, we expected the wait! After waiting an hour my fiancé went up and asked the host how much father down the list we were since people were piling in, we didnt want them to miss our name. The host told him that we were next on the list, sorry about the longer wait, but it would be about another 20mins. Again, no problem at all! A group of 6 then walked him, stood for 10 mins and was seated before us. My fiancé went back up to the host and asked why we were told we were next yet he just sat a larger group than us who had only been there for 10 mins. The host told him that those people he sat before us were cousins to one of the waitresses and that family comes first so we would have to wait another 45mins. We then told him that we didnt want to spend our money there, thanks for the wasted hour and a half and out the door we went. What a great first time experience there, huh? Didnt even get to sit down. Why should we spend our money somewhere where guests arent respected?
