Restaurant Name: AJ Burgers & Beef

Location: 124 S. River Rd, West Lafayette, IN (map it)

Phone: 765-743-1940

Cuisine:  American

Review:  A reader recently send an inquiry requesting I review AJ’s Burgers and Beef, and I aim to please! Tonight we headed over to the west side to try them out. It’s a small little shop just around the corner from the Silver Dipper, a place I spend entirely way too much time.

The restaurant is small with a few tables and chairs, a couple of small booths, and a long wall bench with high stools. You order at the counter and then they call you when the food is ready. It is small, but very clean and orderly. When we went, they were completely empty. Apparently, they have a delivery service which is available for online ordering. (They do not deliver to my area on the south side, I’m afraid.)

The menu is small, a variety of dogs, burgers, and chicken. Deep fried seems to be the order of the day. Our table ordered a range from a plain hot dog and hamburger to an Italian Sausage and a garlic cheeseburger. They offer waffle fries and regular fries. If you are looking for health food (or anything resembling a vegetable) – look elsewhere.

Mainly, my impression was just “Eh.” It was okay, but nothing special. I can’t see myself deciding to go there again. The bread for all the food was enormous, making everything too big for your mouth. The fries were a deep fried variety, very crispy but practically coated in something. The hamburgers didn’t make anyone at our table all that excited. A very mediocre visit.

And to make things worse, they only offer Pepsi products, and no, Diet Pepsi is not the same as Diet Coke.

Kid friendly: Yes.

Price Range: $3 – $7 for sandwiches

Methods of payment: Cash and Credit.

Restaurant Name:  DT Kirby’s

Location:  605 Main St Lafayette, IN 47901  (map it)

Phone: (765) 429-6666

Cuisine:  Hot dogs, hamburgers, sandwiches

I may have just had the best hot dog of my life at DT Kirby’s. And, I don’t say that lightly. I’m a big fan of the genre. There may have been others that compare, but memory of them escapes me at the moment. I had the Sonoma dog. I can’t remember what all was in it, but in addition to the dog, there were jalapenos, lettuce, and, I think, bacon and tomatoes.  In any case, it was phenomenal.

The venue is unassuming. It’s a bar. In addition to the main bar, there are several tables along the opposite wall. Napkins are in the form of paper towels on a roll set on the table. There are plenty of big screen televisions, so you can see what is on. And, they appeared to have a decent selection of beer – though I was on a lunch break from work, so I didn’t indulge. In addition to the hot dog, I got a side of onion rings. They appeared to be homemade, and they were delicious as well.

If you’re looking for great tasting food and maybe a beer or two, this is a good choice. If you’re looking for healthy cuisine and a fancy setting, not so much.

Kid friendly: No.

Methods of payment: Cash or credit

Restaurant Name: Dog n Suds

Location: 601 Sagamore Parkway S., Lafayette IN (map it)
Phone: 765-447-545

Cuisine: American

Review: Dog n Suds is a drive-in eat in your car type establishment. You pull up to the speaker, order your food, and they bring it to your car, complete with a tray that attaches to your window. (Just no roller skates.) You can also pull up and place a to go order, or park and sit at the picnic table area, where they have speaker ordering.

Today in my never ending quest to dine in places I’ve never dined before, I stopped by Dog N Suds. I like a good hot dog as much as the next person, and I do enjoy eating outside. It was a beautiful day for such an activity.

We opted to park and eat at the picnic area. I ordered a coney cheese dog, which is simply a hot dog with coney sauce and cheese. French fries and cole slaw completed the basket with a large root beer.

This establishment is exactly what you’d expect it to be. The fun of eating in your car or outside offsets the often blandness of the food. The root beer is great, and I liked the cole slaw, although I am not generally a cole slaw person. The hot dog was mediocre, but the fries were good. I’d like to try something else to see if there’s anything particularly spectacular on the menu, but the hot dogs didn’t cut it for me.

Kid friendly: Yes.

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