Paul and I, as you all know, are on our quest for the Twin Cities’ Most Delicious Juicy Lucy Burger.
Tonight, we hit up The 5-8 Club, in South Minneapolis at Cedar and 58th (just barely north of the Cedar Ave/Highway 62 interchange).
I’ve passed this place a million times, especially leaving softball games, and we finally decided to check it out.
A lofty claim… let’s see if it stacks up!
This is Paul. He has beer, so he’s happy:
This is the menu. This is where descriptions of Heaven live.
So far we’ve taste-tested The Nook here in St. Paul, as well as Matt’s Bar in south Mpls at Cedar and 30-something…, so that’s where our comparisons will be made towards.
The 5-8 is a bit bigger and spacier than the other two. There’s a dining area when you walk in the door, and a bar area in the back with 6 or seats actually at the bar, and another 6 or so 4-top tables. The main dining area was probably twice this size, with booths and tables that could probably seat a room of 50-60 people. By comparison, I think The Nook has a total of 10 tables, and Matt’s probably has 15 or so.
It was nice not to have to wait though, like we did at The Nook awhile back. We ordered a pitcher of Minnesota’s own Summit EPA (one we can always agree on, but that’s especially nice in the Fall season with it’s beautiful amberish richness) right away, then ordered our Juicy Lucy’s.
This is me being really excited about the beer, and getting even more excited about the burgers:
You’ll notice my iPhone (which was on, because I was playing with it) next to my arm. One of the things I love most about Paul is that he validates my nerdiness. He just bought his iPhone, and we spent a solid 15 minutes comparing apps to see if we were missing anything good.
One thing I did really like about The 5-8 (and The Nook does this too), is that you can pick your cheese – the choices they offered were American, Bleu, Pepper, or Cheddar. I love a little kick in my mouth, so I went with the pepper jack (The Nook calls this option the “Paul Molitor”). Paul opted for the classic, American cheese (which is the default at Matt’s. Don’t even try to argue).
Here’s the guts and glory of his gooey burger:
The burgers are topped with onions if you want them (get them fried!!!) and pickles. The buns were OK. We could’ve requested that they were toasted, but we didn’t. They were tasty and slightly sweet, but didn’t hold up well against the greasy, juiciness of the burgers.
We both opted for the basket versions of the meals; I got onion rings and coleslaw. Paul got fries and coleslaw (and I ate both slaws…mmmm). The fried side options were fries, rings or JoJos (potato wedges). I couldn’t decide, so I asked the waitress, who recommended the rings.
Here’s my basket pre-ooey-gooey goodness of melty pepper jack cheese:
Here it is again after a bite into Pure Deliciousness (vegetarians and vegans, shield your eyes):
The final verdict? While The 5-8 does grill up and stuff a fantastic Juicy Lucy, we’ve agreed that both The Nook and Matt’s Bar top it so far.
On what grounds? The vinegar-soaked fries at The Nook are a compliment to the sandwich that’s really hard to beat. And at Matt’s? Just a plain ol’ juicier Juicy. And that’s what wins in our book.
Mmmmm… happy foodie.
I'm Doniree. I live in Portland, Oregon where I practice yoga, obsess about the local farmers' markets and vineyards, and work from home or one of my many favorite coffee shops. I also 
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