The Thurman Cafe

My husband and I got Thurmans to Go last night in Pataskala. It was the worst most expensive burger I have ever had. The fries were minimal and cold. The buns were soggy and the burger so over cooked it tasted like sawdust. Not to mention the hour wait. We ordered by phone and it was still horrible. Wont go back. more

New Year's Eve. Good, sat at the bar. "Family run" (1) Thurman Burger & Fries: Jack cheddar burger, more

New Year's Eve. Good, sat at the bar. "Family run" more

My son and I heard all the hype about thurmans, so we took a 90 minute trek to be taken by there delights. Well it was Sat night 08/11/12 and we found utter dissappointment! The staff were friendly, and the quaint atmosphere was relaxing, thats the only reason we gave it 2 stars. There was a wait at 930 so we ordered to go and ate the food in our car. I ordered the spicy salsa burger, and my son ordered the bacon burger. We ordered both med rare, and they were both med well, the salsa burger was more of a soup soggy mess then a burger, and the bacon burger was mammoth, yet have found more flavor at Burger King, and I don't like Burger King. The french fries were cold and saturated with oil, and again, no flavor. I ordered wings, yet truthfully threw them out after the disappointment of the rest of the food, so I can't rate the wings honestly. Portions are large across the board, yet I would have sacrificed quantity for quality more

simply amazing burgers. worth the wait..GO! more

Thurman Cafe is known for its delightful and huge burgers. Not only burgers are huge but the flavors of those burgers are huge too. That's the reason why I'm addicted to Thurman's Burger. It's simply scrumptious! Among my favorites are the Thurman burger and the Jonnie burger. Both burgers are crazy good. I can't live without those burgers. TC is my life! Other food I liked at TC are their onion rings, chicken cordon bleu sandwich and steak cut fries. Those 3 food I mentioned are food you must order and eat at TC. Their attendants are very warmth and approachable. That makes Thurman Cafe's customer service world class! TC is a must go to place! more

Okay, I have now been there 7 times now, and there is no discussion about, these burgers are the best! Huge patties cooked the way you want it. The Macedonian, the Big TC, and the Jonnie burgers are just a few of the exclusive line of unique burgers only to be had at Thurmans. Yes, some burgers do not come with fries, but that's probably a good thing, because you may not have room for them! And if do order them, then come in a huge basket at a great price. And yes there is a wait. Why do you think that is? Its because its that good! Service may be a little slow too but that's because of the size of the flat top. The cook can only cook so many burgers at one time. But even with the delays, I have never had bad service or a cold burger...always piping hot. The pizza and subs are excellent too. So in a nutshell, if you are too anal to chill out and a have a drink while you wait, this place may not be for you, but if you like great burgers, you cant go wrong here. more

I had waited a few years to make the trip to the famed Thurman Cafe. I'd heard mixed reviews from my co-workers about the place, but after the Man vs Food episode at the Thurman, I figured it it would surely be worth a try. First of all, we were told the wait was going to be an hour; on a Saturday at 5 PM. This is to be expected, given the popularity and the size of the restaurant, so we decided to wait. We got lucky and found some seats at the bar; so our wait was only about 30 minutes between entering and ordering. It' a super crowded little bar, but the staff was friendly and it's a fun place to have a drink. We did not have any surly-staff experiences like some other reviewers seem to have encountered. But then we got our food, served at the bar. I ordered a Thurman Burger ($10), my wife ordered the Fish Dinner ($9), and we got an order of onion rings ($4). The famous Thurman Burger? In summary, it's huge, sloppy, and boring. Most of the taste of this burger comes from the slathering of cheeses, mayo, sauted onions+mushrooms, and the ham - not the burger itself. Honestly, I've had tastier ground beef from many other chain restaurants, as well as my own grill. It's not bad; but surely it's not worth waiting for over an hour for such mediocrity? The fish dinner on the other hand, was a major thumbs down. Greasy, dark limp breading that slid off the codfish; ""fries"" that were similarly greasy and limp. To me this is sort of the litmus test of a bar and grill; the fried food, and this was disappointing. On the bright side the onion rings were pretty good, very crisp and flavorful batter. Overall not a bad onion ring. I won't be rushing back anytime soon to the Thurman, I can't imagine waiting over an hour for food this average. After this meal, I really don't understand all the hype about this place. more

Look folks, if you want to be seated immediately and are expecting a fine dining experience....go somewhere else. But, If you want a pub dining experience the likes of which you will not encounter again, then the Thurman is for you. First off, this place gets slammed! the wait can be quite long. But that's a testament to how much people love it. Unfortunately the city will not allow them to expand their seating (parking restraints). My advice? If you don't want to wait too long, come during non dinner hours and try to visit on a week day. (earlier than 5pm.) The Food: What can I say? I've been eating at the Thurman for over 20 years now and I love it. The burgers are not only huge. but have wonderful flavor. Each of their burgers offer something different and unique for every pallet. If you don't like burgers, not to worry! The subs are great and I've been known to Jump on the delicious Chicken Cordon Bleu Sandwich a few times myself. (Their Ruben is something else too!) The steak cut fries are great. We get ours with cheese over them (melted cheddar, not canned cheese) The servers are normally quite busy, but they're super friendly and will do their best to help as much as they can while running between tables. That's not to say I've never walked up to the bar to get a refill. But the Pros FAR outweigh the cons. Summary: Don't go to the Thurman if you're in a hurry and don't go if you're looking for health food. this is the quintessential Pub experience with novelty sized food that also happens to taste like a dream come true. It is and will always be one of my favorite places ever more

Simply GREAT service! This is the best place on earth for a home cooked burger! more

I went to Thurman Cafe on a sunday afternoon and it was very busy. Football was on all the televisions. After being seated at the bar the the service was excellent and the food was great. I got the Thurmanator which is hugh and I could not eat it all. My girlfriend got the Western burger. We both love the food and the enviroment. I would go back today. more

I have to say, as a newcomer to Columbus, I was very excited about trying the Thurman Cafe. Boy was I disappointed!!! LONG wait, greasy, overcooked average burger. Not to mention terrible service. If this is the best Columbus has to offer in the burger catagory, you people are VERY unlucky. I know employee/shill chris1961 will make some nasty comment, so bring it on. BTW chris, why is your response to all the unhappy people the same? Columbus has SOOO many great restaurants, why would anyone waste a second trip after such shitty experiences?? Youve been defending this place for over a year as far as I see, so you must work there. Even though its a chain, Teds is WAY better. Plus fries COME WITH the burger. What a novel idea!!!!! more

Went here for my son's birthday since we had all heard all the hype about it, primarily from Man vs. Food. Must say though, I was not impressed. It was very hot, they said their air was not working. The service was not good, took forever to get drink refills. After we ordered it took about 45 minutes to get our food. We all got burgers. I really couldn't figure out what made these ""special"". I can make a much, much better burger than this one. I ordered mine well-done, it wasn't. The tomatoes were soggy, the bun was soggy and falling apart. My husband's burger didn't even have a bottom bun. The ""onion straws"" they serve with the bacon cheddar burger were not ""straws"" and they were gross. I had a stomach ache the rest of the night. It was a fun atmosphere, but I need more than that when I go out to EAT. I won't go back. more

I would loved to have tried the burgers, but I never got the chance. Arriving at 5 PM with tickets for a 7 PM Clippers game, my family and I were told that there would be a 30 minute wait. Satisfied that we could still eat there and get to the game, we waited. And waited, and waited, and waited. 30 minutes turned into 60, and after they started seating people who arrived after us (and who put their names on the list after us), we had to leave. I don't expect I'll ever be going back. more

I ate one of the thurmanators. I'm full, but I could have eaten more. Great burger. Victor the bartender/server has been with the place for 20 years had a great personality, great restaurant employee. I asked the same question that everyone ask, why not expand the restaurant? I guess the problem is a zoning problem because the restaurant is located in a residential neighborhood. I brought my wife and only waited 15 minutes for a 2 top table on a Friday after 3PM. As far as seating, there are basically eight 4 -6 people booths, four 2 tops and about ten bar seats. The bigger the party, the longer the wait. I suggest larger groups (larger than six) be willing to use multiple tables throughout the little dining area. Pros: burgers, service Cons: german village zoning restrictions more

I have worked in hotels for many years now, I always recommend Thurman's for the simple fact that I hear great things and its part of our History here in Columbus. However I have never been there until today.. Service was okay, my waitress or waiter or my hostess whoever was helping me I couldn?t keep track ... Anywho I could have easily walked out with out paying my food tab. I stood there, moved out of my table because I could tell they were getting busy and I was at a two setter, since I understand how its important to service your guest in a timely manner I got up.. anywho stood there and waited and waited and waited, on my third waited I was ready to walk out, Clearly I was trying to pay had my card out and my to go box in hand which I got by myself. Then I was asked if I was ready for my tab and I said yes, the guy was like just a beer and started walking away and I said and a Thurman burger... then the waitress who had started to help me said SHE HAD A BEER AND A THURMAN BURGER, then gave me a nasty look... I could have hit the cracked out looking b**ch right then... I got my bill and asked for some to go silverware, it took nearly 10 mins to get that.. I had to ask three diff people finally the third lady I asked I said, Excuse me I have asked two others for to go silver where and its been nearly 10 min and I still don?t have any so she said okay and went and got me some, which took about 5 mins... sooo lets do the math 10+5=15min!! FOR SOME DAMN SILVERWARE! I went in-between lunch and dinner shift, so I didn?t have to wait at all to be seated which was nice.. However it took about 25 to 30 mins just to get my burger.. It doesn?t take that long to make a damn burger.. When I got it, it was bigger than I thought it would be so I asked for a real knife, and they brought me a kitchen knife that very easily half the size of my arm, I didn?t really care but it thought it was odd... Anywho had to get up and get my own to go box from behind the bar because once I got my burger I didn?t hear one more thing from the multiple people asking me if I had ordered when I first sat down, it was over kill at first but then I got nothing.. The burger wasn?t as good as I hoped it to be, it was alright... Nothing like they are made out to be... Overall I wouldn?t go back unless I was down in that area and I was with a friend and they wanted to go.. Will I send my guest there anymore.. Eh only if they ask for something that is historic to Columbus itself, but I will stick to recommending Schmidt?s and Ohio Deli before I blurt Thurman?s out.... I was really hoping it would be something great, but It just wasn?t.. Oh and I think its ridiculous that you have to pay extra for fries... Burger+Fries=Normal, but nothing is normal about this place so its a loss... Also on last thing the beer was not cold!! YUCK! Pros: Nice Story Cons: Everthing isnt always everything more

I saw Thurmans cafe on Man vs Food, and I have lived in this city all my life and have never been there; after watching the program I decided to try Thurmans out when I got some free time. On Saturday 06/12 around 5p I went to Thurmans and ordered the Jonnie burger, an italion sub and two orders of fried brownies. I pull up and parking is awful, then I go into the facility and it took me 15 mins to find someone who could tell me where to go get my pick up at; I then finally go into the middle of the crowded bar to get my food, I paid a God awful amount for those 4 items and left, I live on the other side of town. I get home anticipating this great burger I saw on T.V. I took one bite, and saw the burger was severly under cooked, and the fries were just awful, the sub was more lettuce and onion than anything the best part of the meal was the brownies. Forgetting about calling on saturday, I attempted to call on 06/15 just to let the manager know what my experience was, he did not want to hear anything I had to say, I was not looking nor asked for compensation, he just wanted nothing to do with anything I had to say. I will never recommend this dirty hole in the wall with the under cooked food to anyone. Pros: Staple in the community Cons: Food was not great and management stinks more

It was 2 or 3 pm, and we had three hours before I had to head back to work. Plenty of time right? At any average restaurant with an average staff, yes. At Thurman? NO. We waited TWO HOURS. At some point we ventured into the dining area to get a drink at the bar. There were many open spots, I think the least they could have done was seat people and let them look at the menu while they waited. I watched as the barkeep drank on the job, and basically just dicked around until we actually called to him. Pros: A lot of food for your money. Cons: Neglectful, uncaring, unprofessional service. more

Thurmans serves the best burgers around! It's a small place so if you go during a typical lunch or dinner hours expect to wait at least and hour. Parking is also hard to find but if all else fails you can park at Schiller Park and walk, its only about a block and a half away. Believe me it is well worth the wait the food is awesome! I'm there at least twice a month and I try to avoid the rush. Pros: Great food, friendly staff Cons: long wait more

I have been to Thurman's before and have had to wait for a while-something you just have to expect-but once we were sat, it all went downhill. We were sat before two other tables of which one got drinks first and both got meals first-even though one ordered after us. We were continuously ignored and had to wait forever for our check. We have never dined and ditched, but it was tempting just because of having to wait for an excessive amount of time. The only reason I gave them 2 stars instead of was because the food was so good and it's not the A-1 Burger's fault our service was abysmal. Recommendation -SIT AT THE BAR. Even if the bartender/servers are slow, the GM will step in and help. Pros: Excellent burgers Cons: Horrible service more