Bub’s Burgers & Ice Cream

First let me start by saying the food was good. Beyond that it was extremely loud and I was very unhappy about having to wait for our food for over 50 minutes and having two climb two flights of stairs to get a table. We had too little children who were going into meltdown by the time we got our food. Honestly not worth going back. We had to yell at each other as did the waitress. Wouldn’t recommend it.

My boyfriend and I lived off of the Monon Trail and would stop by Bub’s every once in awhile. There burgers are pretty good and I love their milkshakes. This is definitely a great spot for a family dinner, but comfortable for anyone! The restaurant itself is not that large because it is a mom and pop type of restaurant. They typically have a wait on a warm spring/​summer day, but the food is worth the wait.
One day, we decided to attempt THE BIG UGLY. What is «the big ugly»? Well, it is a 1lb. burger after being cooked. 1 POUND OF MEAT accompanied by a HUGE bun! The rules are that you have to eat everything on the bun! Lettuce, tomato, pickles… everything! Nonetheless, we conquered the big ugly and have our picture posted on the wall in the hallway. It’s a great atmosphere… everyone in the restaurant was cheering us on as we completed the challenge!

You can get marshmallow fluff with your sweet potato fries. Let that sink in for a moment.
The burgers are pretty decent and it’s a lively little place. If the husband wanted to go there right now… I wouldn’t fight him.

Great place for a hamburger and there is a railway line next door it is called Monon Railline. We live in Northwest Indiana and there lots of railway because of the steel mills and refinery there’s two abandoned railway there’s the Erie Lackawanna and the EJ&E and the Monon Railroad

A casual place that looks like a cute house. There are good burgers, sandwiches and soup. The have different size burgers. They have a burger called the big ugly, if you eat it all you get your picture on the wall! After dinner you can walk across the hall and get ice cream, it is connected. It was delicious!

Quickie Review: A great place to stop on the Monon to eat all the calories you just burned off.
I’ve had the Big Ugly 3x and it never disappoints. I like that when choosing to eat here you can make an event out of it. When I’m not looking to eat my meal for the week, though, I get the chicken sandwich which is always consistent whereas the burger can vary depending on who makes it. The staff is always friendly and has a welcoming environment. The only negative is that I can’t ever resist getting the apple pie for dessert, ha. Although I will say that the last time I was there it didn’t taste as well as I remembered so I hope they didn’t change that.

Wow! We decided to try their 1# burger and weren’t disappointed.
We shared a burger here, but I’m not gonna lie, I probably could have handled the entire thing and had my picture taken for the wall.
It was busy and everyone was hustling the night we ate there.
We had ride our bikes from downtown up the Monon to eat there. I wouldn’t recommend doing that since you may become extremely full making the ride home a miserable one.
I will definitely go again soon.

I think this is another «institution» type place that you have to love. And was it bad, no. But it also didn’t change my world. That doesn’t make it bad, I just have to be realistic with the rating.
I went with the beef burger. I know elk is trendy, but those lean alternate meats like bison and elk tend to be really try, in my opinion. Maybe Bub’s is doing an amazing job with these, but I didn’t take the risk. I did add bleu cheese and bacon, and I went with a side of the waffle fries. The burger was good, but I would chalk a lot of that up to good seasoning and plenty of cheese, not to particularly flavorful beef. I wonder if some of the obscene large options they are pushing would be different — if the patties were thicker instead of just larger diameter, the beef might be a little more rare in the middle and potentially a little better tasting. Not sure. I do want to call out the fries, they were solid. Super crisp and well seasoned.
Service was slow, it took about 90 minutes for us to get seated, order, get served, and eat. But it was also a group of 10 people, so while that was a bit frustrating, I can understand it. Our waitress was super friendly… almost…a little pushy? I’m thinking she gets commission on every one of the big ugly burgers they sell. I’d come back, but I might be careful not to come with as much of a field trip, just to keep my working lunch hour a little more reasonable.

We had a nice walk down the arts district to this spot right next to the Monon trial. The loud yellow building is easy to find as it will most likely be packed anytime day or night.
Our service was excellent and all the workers, kitchen especially seemed extremely busy but polite and professional.
I had the ‘not so ugly’ ½ lb burger, I had no desire to try the full ‘big ugly’ my burger was fresh and delicious, I will go back and try the elk burgers!
We didn’t get ice cream this time but the service, atmosphere and selection were nice and worth further investigation haha.
Try to get your picture on the wall take the big ugly challenge!!!

OK… I have said this before… I am not a huge burger person to begin with. So maybe that makes me a little biased. But I was willing to give Bub’s a try because I had heard from many Carmelites about how good they are. Well you aren’t missing much if you never try this place. In my opinion the burgers are a little overrated (even their infamous elk burger was rather lackluster.) I suppose when I’m looking to indulge on a burger, I would like it to have some interesting toppings more than just your typical American condiments, lettuce, and tomato. Even my husband, who is a burger connoisseur, had to agree that Bub’s didn’t really impress him. Furthermore, despite having a really Tivoli small menu, you still seem to pay caramel prices for most everything on there. And it seems like they wanted to charge you extra for little things like extra jalapeños and such.
I WILL SAY, however, their location along the Monon is prime real estate for people watching and they have outdoor seating if you want to enjoy your food in the sunshine.
If a burger is what you want in Carmel at «Carmel prices», I suggest going to The Pint Room instead.

Adorable little place in such a sweet town! Visit just for the atmosphere if nothing else!!!
The Food was OK! Kids meals were pricey! If memory recalls over 6 $ per kids meal … For what it is we thought it was high.
Super kid friendly which is a plus for my 4 kiddos!!!
The plain waffle fries were better than the sweet potato fries with the marshmallow sauce!!!
(we thought that was a bit yucky! The fries were over cooked and the marshmallow sauce was cold :/​)
All in all we were great to have visited this sweet town!!! But~ spending 65 $ to feed my family on burgers and fries… Was a bit high.
We also had dessert later after we walked around town which added another 12 $ to what we spent.

We love going to this one and enjoy the newer Zionsville outpost. It’s just a great place to take friends and family because we’ve never had a negative experience here. We’ve also never had an awesome experience, either, so there you go.
I’ve always thought their taste-​test of the chili move is brilliant on a couple levels — consuming it kick-​starts your appetite’s pilot light so you’re ready to rock when the food arrives. I don’t think most people assume a burger place has chili so in the winter it’s a great way to sell an extra product.
My wife loves their Ice Cream. It’s tough not to smile from beginning to end when you dine here. The wait staff are generally teens who seem to be 16 to early 20-​ish and are always friendly and genuinely seem to enjoy working there.

If you’re ever looking for a challenge and something delicious… and even some Hollywood notoriety to boot… BOOM you’ve got it right here in Carmel, IN, at Bub’s burgers. They have a burger that is as big as a plate, one pound (AFTER cooking), and they call it THE BIG UGLY BURGER. And even the T.V. show, Man VS. Food has been here, so you know it’s gotta be a challenge, right? Well, even without that bit of ego competition (that three young men have now beat his «fail», that’s what he called it now me) of eating 4 Big Uglies (OMG, why?), they have a menu item called the Not So Ugly, half pound burger, (smaller ones too) for those just drooling for a great burger. So, yay, wins all around. Speaking of wins and back to the challenge, yea I’m competitive, if you take the challenge and eat 1, you get your face on a 4X6 on the wall, 2 an 8X10, and 3 a poster. Now, if you think a pound of cooked meat sounds like no big deal get this, those Big Uglies also have ½ a pound of bun and a whole stick of butter per burger… Haha, YES! Diets be damned (hmmm can I say that on here?)! And, they’re yummy!
Bubs looks inviting outside and the atmosphere inside is cozy, both the ice cream parlor and the restaurant. The staff is great and bring you tastes of their soups to try and were super friendly both visits. On our first visit it was just my husband and I, and we ordered the large but not ugly burger and were stuffed. But, I remember that first bite still! It sent me into a burger heaven, while I let the burger juice drip down my face and I shamelessly let stay there and ate away. Yep, that good people, perfection. And, yes I know you’re dying to know, the second visit we took on the challenge and brought the kids with us. I forgot to mention earlier that when you order Big Uglies they bring you a bucket in case your stomach rejects your ambition’s decision to continue to feed your face (we thought it was hilarious, but once we started eating, very smart) and, yes, we all failed. I was about 2 bites away, ok 3, but had I finished those 3 bites (my daughter was terribly disappointed, like, 3 small bites, really?) I might have had my picture on the wall; but, I also might have been on a room full of cell-​phone cameras using those funny little buckets they gave us. Don’t worry folks try-​try again, three times a charm.

Did a search of Man vs Food for locations that were filmed near Indianapolis, IN. This location was right on our way.
Saturday around noon and the place was busy, we had about a 10 min wait which wasn’t bad.
The walls are decorated with pictures of people that have successfully eaten at least 1 of the 1 lb burgers. There are only a few pictures of people who have managed to down 4 of the burgers in one sitting.
We both ordered the Elk burger. I got the ¼ lb and my wife got the ¹⁄₈ lb burger (slider size), and we also ordered a large basket of sweet potato fries and added marshmallow cream sauce.
The sweet potato waffle fries dipped in marshmallow was amazing! The burgers were super fresh, cooked perfectly, the bun was wonderful and it all tastes so good.
I would highly recommend this place as the service was excellent and the food was amazing.

Went here for lunch today after walking on the monon for 4 miles, and have been here a number of times before. We got here right at 11 so didn’t have to deal with the normal wait. The ac was blasting inside, which felt delightful.
I got the creole burger special. It was good and flavorful, but I am annoyed that they charge you extra for everything like the jalapeño peppers the server suggested was an extra dollar. The place is good, but not the best burger ever. They have a limited menu, do not take reservations, and typically are on a wait. But it’s good place to bring out of towns because it’s unique. You see a lot of history and character in the pictures on the wall.

After moving to Carmel, I found out quickly why Bub’s Burgers is considered a «Carmel staple.» It’s located in a charming yellow house right on Main Street, with a dog friendly patio area overlooking the Monon. Perfect for people watching. Be prepared for a wait either during lunch time or on a weekend evening.
As fellow Unilocaler, Tom, stated in his review… when you walk in a restaurant and see a bunch of high school/​college kids working there, you want to run. But not here. The staff here are well trained and friendly. I’ve never received bad service or food. One of the negatives is the food always takes awhile to come out. So stopping in for a quick lunch is impossible here, unless you have overan hour to spare.
Attached in front is a charming hand-​dipped ice cream shop, where friendly staff greet you upon walking in. Two regular size portions of ice cream in a cup was around $ 3.50 each and was more than enough, portion wise. You can sample all the flavors before ordering. Praline pecan is delicious and full of pecans and gooey caramel.
Two fantastic places rolled into one charming location. You can’t go wrong here.

I thought I’d give Bub’s another chance, thinking that maybe the day I visited was an off day, and wasn’t representative of the restaurant as a whole.
Nope.
For a restaurant with a limited menu that consists mainly of burgers, WHY is the service so slow? Are they butchering the cow back there to make the burgers? Is each bun handcrafted and made to order? I don’t get it. Our food took nearly 30 minutes — so long that we had to ask for it to go. People all around us were waiting for their orders, too.
Then, the food. The burgers have never been cooked to order — medium rare is rare, well done is medium rare. Why bother asking me how I want my burger if you’re just going to give me a surprise?
Lastly, the music. The music is too loud, Bub’s. Wait, you didn’t hear me over the loud strains of Kenny Chesney blaring over the speaker? I said, THE MUSIC IS TOO LOUD, BUB’S! I couldn’t even talk to the people at my table, and I had to shout to order.
So yeah, this is my last time eating at Bub’s.

My wife and I visited on Saturday, May 16^th, for an early dinner. Arrived at 5pm and the place was already swamped. Years ago I visited Bub’s a couple times and was excited to go back. I’m sorry to say this visit was a relative disappointment. I was going to give 3 stars, but recalled a comment from my wife, «I can think of several burgers I’ve had that were better.» That pretty much sums up a 2 star on Unilocal,and I feel exactly the same way, including having had a couple great burgers in Indy in the past 2 months.
I ordered a quarter pound elk burger, medium rare, steak and eggs style (that meant bacon and an over easy egg added to the burger). Unfortunately my medium rare burger was cooked well done. Just a bit off the mark there… The egg and bacon add on was delicious, the yoke added some much needed juice to the burger. The bun was delicious, the elk meat was good but had a slight breakfast sausage type flavor to it that I found a little off putting. I had a side of waffle fries as well (a small side is very small) and they were disappointing at best, no better than what would come out of my home freezer.
My wife had a quarter pound beef burger. She said it was fine (see her comments in first paragraph). She ordered a side of potato salad and for ~$ 2.50, you get nothing. Just a little stingy, comes in a cup the same size as what your tartar sauce would come in for fish and chips. We did each have a milk shake and they were fantastic. Further, service was fantastic.
One the whole, though, mediocre, not properly cooked burgers with mediocre/​low quantity sides makes it tough to warrant saying anything more than I’ve had better. We live very close so I will give them one more shot; a second experience close to the first and I will take my business elsewhere for sure going forward.

A great place for a cheeseburger and a chocolate shake. Our family loves coming here. The staff is super friendly. The only draw back was the wait. It took nearly 40 minutes for a table. But it’s was worth the wait. My wife and I shared the BIG UGLY and it was yummy! I was getting entertained by the people taking the challenge.
After your dinner, you can head right next door for their ice cream.
A nice place to bring your kids. Enjoy! #SeñorFood

Sigh. I really wanted to start off a new year of reviews with a glowing 5 star review. I’ve wanted to try Bub’s for what feels like years, so it seemed like a good choice to ring in the new year. Unfortunately, the experience fell far short of 5 stars.
I arrived for a lunch with friends around 12:15 on January 2. There were a decent number of customers, but not enough to cause a wait for a table of 4. At 12:35, we finally got to put in our order. Everyone ordered different Elk burgers: 2 half pound and 2 quarter pound. 3 were medium, 1 (mine) was to be medium rare. When I ordered pepper jack cheese, I was asked if I also wanted jalapeños. Sounds great, I said. Later, when teh bill came, I learned that my tiny cup of jarred jalapeños was a $ 1 up-charge…on top of my $ 14.75 Elk Burger.
About 20 minutes later the burgers finally came out. The burgers are oddly round and fairly thin, leading me to believe that they may be formed by a burger press and then frozen. I cut mine in half and to my surprise, found a medium well burger. Everyone else cut theirs to reveal burgers on the low side of medium. How is it that you miss the mark so badly on the burger that was supposed to be the most rare? When the waitress stopped by for about 2 seconds to ask how everything was, one of my friends quickly said «good» and she swept away before I could even open my mouth to inform her of the burger. That was the general theme for service for our visit, pop in to refill your drink but not really take proper care of the table.
Bottom line: it cost me $ 25 with tip for an overcooked elk burger with jalapeños, a side salad, and a water. That’s a premium price for a sub par burger and sub par service.

Netter American Diner mit XXL Burgern im Angebot nennt sich auch «Big Ugly Burger»
Das sind die verschiedenen Größen die zur Auswahl stehen
The Big Ugly™ One Pound — *Eat this and you get your picture on the wall!
The Not so Ugly™ Half Pound
The Settle for Less Ugly™ Quarter Pound
Hier habe ich meinen ersten Elch Burger gegessen und muss sagen … lecker, aber wenn ich es nicht gewusst hätte wäre es auch als Rindfleich durchgegangen, bisschen fettarmer vielleicht aber der Geschmack ist zum verwechseln ähnlich.
Zum amerikanischen Service braucht man glaube ich nicht viel sagen um so schneller abgeräumt werden kann um so besser, das gehört zum guten amerikanischen Standard.
Essen: lecker
Service: schnell schneller am schnellsten
Ambiente: laut (gut besucht)
Preis/​Leistung: super
Lohnt sich für das schnelle Dinner am Abend