Bru Burger Bar

Came to Bru Burger Bar on a Friday night for a date. We were walking around downtown and needed a place to watch the Cavs-​Golden State game so my date opted for this place.
It was relatively calm for a Friday night, not too crowded at all and we took seats at the bar right away. I ordered white sangria which was good and we decided on the wings and fries to eat since neither of us was super hungry.
Our bartender was super nice and engaging which I appreciate. I hate when bartenders, especially downtown, are rude.
The food was ok. The wings were not my favorite but I suppose that’s what I get for ordering chicken wings at a burger place. They did come with this delicious salad tnat was probably the most memorable thing I had and it will guarantee that I will be back. I even asked our bartender about it and he offered me some of it to go. Fries were a little disappointing for a burger joint but, again, the little side salad made up for that.
I certainly will be back to have a burger here. It’s good to see a nice place here at this location downtown after so many flops. I can only hope it lasts.

I was in town for a conference for work. My co-​workers and I had walked to Bru Burger Bar from the hotel that the conference was being held at. We needed a quick bite to eat during our lunch break before we had to head back to the conference. I ordered the entrée size sriracha caesar salad topped with blackened mahi mahi. I would have to say, it was one of the best salads that I have had in a LONG time. Also, everything came out exactly as we had ordered it, and the experience was quick enough to get back to the conference with time to spare. If you are in Cincinnati for work or if you reside there, I highly recommend this restaurant! It was wonderful!

Gluten-​free bun option!!! I can eat burgers with a bun! Went here for my birthday, and service was great. Got to sit outside on the patio on a nice warm night. Burger meats were cooked to perfection. I had to have a bite from all my friend’s whom ordered different burgers, and which I let them have a bite of mine as well. All were pack full of flavor. It really just comes down to how messy you want to commit with your burger and the cheese options. Sides are extra $$$ on top of the burger price, but the fries are TOTALLY worth it. Their fries are so good! They also make all there condiments in-​house. So there ketchup, yep they made it! A little acidic then normal but totally was working for the tastebuds. Overall, Bru has got it going on!

I’ve eaten at Bru a couple times now and I think it deserves more than the 3 stars I originally gave it. I found a burger that I like a LOT — the provencal. It comes with mushrooms and onions, basil aioli, goat cheese. I love the aioli! The patio is covered and it’s super nice to sit out there! Service is great and they have good drafts.
The fries may have changed or I had a weird batch the first time in February, because they taste normal and good! The onion rings are HUGE but a bit too much batter/​grease for me so I’ll stick to the fries next time.

I had the opportunity to eat at Bru Burger Bar this past Saturday. In terms of the food, I have nothing negative to say. I had «The End» burger which has some horseradish havarti, fried egg, caramelized onions, to name a few of the toppings. The burger was perfectly prepared and the bun was phenomenal. As my side I got the onion rings. The rings were very big and perfect for dipping. Not too greasy either, which can often happen with onion rings. only complaint on the food and beverage side was that my Dr. Pepper was moderately flat.
The service was fine. Our waiter was good and helpful; however the hostess seemed peeved and confused when we asked to sit inside as opposed to outside. It was certainly odd to try and feel pressured to going outside. Nonetheless, it did not detract from my overall experience once we sat down.

Favorite burger spot!
I haven’t had a burger from here that I’ve not loved. Great service and ambiance.

I had heard countless ravings about this place, and I’m beyond glad I finally tried it today!
I came here for lunch with my co-​workers, and I was very pleased with the overall experience. We walked in and were greeted by dark, wooden décor and modern light fixtures — not what you’d expect from your typical burger place. But then again, Bru truly is something else! The service was fantastic — our waiter was friendly, and didn’t have to think twice when placing the dishes in front of their respective orderers.
I got the Mexicali burger, and I couldn’t have picked better — white queso, guac, and fried onions make for the ultimate combination. The fries were perfectly seasoned and rounded out the meal.
A 5-​star experience that will certainly have me coming back to conquer the rest of the menu!

Bru Burger was honestly a great experience. We had a great waitress, who sincerely enjoyed working for their company, and had great things to say about the management.
The décor is awesome, very warm and modern. We were able to enjoy the nice sized patio due to the nice weather.
The beer selection was awesome, and I love that they offer the option to do flights.
The burgers were both awesome! Definitely a little more unique/​gourmet than the standard burger joint. We split two burgers: 1) The Bourbon Burger — the horseradish havarti wasn’t as strong as I expected, which I was happy about! 2) The Garlic Three Cheese Burger — also really good, but would maybe do the truffle aioli on the side. Their burger buns are pretty great too. The onion rings were awesome, but we LOVED the fries! Similar to Penn Station’s.
Bonus points for having incredible in-​house made ketchup. I usually just like regular ketchup, but theirs was awesome.
I would definitely go back.

Found this place on Unilocal and decided to try it out for lunch. The food does not disappoint. The Melt Your Face Off burger is very flavorful and not overpowering. Our waiter, Jeremy, was super helpful and informative. He gave us an overview of the city and came back with a list of other restaurants he recommended.
I would definitely come back and recommend to others.

He found this place when he was walking downtown and wanted to take me out for burgers when I came to visit. The décor and atmosphere were inviting, and the reviews were good, so we thought we’d give it a shot. It was an early, casual date night dinner on a weeknight, but the after-​work crowd definitely prevailed. Of the three main seating areas in the restaurant not including the patio, (where we would have sat, but it was a bit chilly) two of them already had large (and loud) groups when we were seated. We asked to be seated in the third area which was a bit quieter, but before the end of our meal, a third large group had been seated in our area as well.
We started with a couple of cocktails. He had a Single Bulleit, and I had a Bru Buck. Both were well crafted, delicious, and went well with our Triple Dip appetizer. Yum. He ordered the Bru Burger with fries, and I had the Stilton Blue Cheese Burger with onion rings. Both burgers had a good presentation and were prepared correctly. Their buns are hearty, but moist and tasty, yet held up to the toppings on our burgers. Neither burger was mushy or undercooked. Overall, the burgers had excellent flavor, presentation, and structure. In other words, you didn’t need to eat it with a knife and fork because it was so messy. Fries and onion rings were both adequate and good accompaniments for the burgers, but nothing to write home about.
The Peach White Chocolate Bread Pudding caught his eye when he first read the menu, so we got a piece to share. It was delicious and comes with ice cream for just the right balance of warm and cold.
A shout out for great service to both EJ and Sarah. Thank you for accommodating our request for a quieter table and for friendly, efficient service. The food was great. We will be back. However, the after work crowd and the hard-​surfaces used in the décor amplified the volume to a level that was a bit much for a date night. We could have a good conversation, but unfortunately we also got to hear lots of other people’s conversations because they were so loud.

Let me start this review off with the fact we stopped after opening day. We were very cold and tired had a little to drink all day. The chili was good, could use a little more flavor. The basic burger had good flavor was fresh. The onion rings were the best part of the meal. In this day in age of flavored foods and burgers sometimes trying the basic tells you the base of the product. A good meat burger not covered with a lot of fancy sauces and flavors. Over all a decent experience will go back to try again.

Just Ok. Somewhere between and 2 and 3 but rounding down since they bill themselves as a burger restaurant. The burger really didn’t do it for me. The apps and the sides were pretty good. Service was good. We started with the Chicken Tenders and the pretzels. Awesome breading and juiciness for the chicken. Our server was great and gave us a sauce sampler. The BBQ and the black pepper aioli were rocking. Unfortunately it went down from there. Sides were good. Onion rings and fries were crispy and tasty. I had the snack burger and tried the blue cheese one. I was really disappointed by the flavor and texture of the patty. The toppings on the blue were so overpowering. Finished with sharing a milkshake. It was just ok. If I was really craving some chicken strips it’s a good choice. Otherwise I don’t think I’ll be returning.

Delicious, slightly fancy burgers meets trendy, dark but fancy-​pants bar décor. I give you, Bru «Burger Bar.»
I was really excited to see a new business open up in part of the old Cadillac Ranch establishment. Admittedly, I kind of expected anything opening in that space to fail because let’s face it… it usually does. However, after having a wonderful lunch at Bru Burger Bar, I believe and desperately hope that this place sticks around! Fancy steak burgers (you can really taste how fresh they are) and gigantic, deliciously crunchy onion rings filled me up. Though, I haven’t had the pleasure of trying out all of their extensive offerings, I can tell you that the different burgers I’ve sampled (Farmstead, Bourbon and Provencal) are all amazing in their own rights. They are all so good enough that I’ll probably never have a «usual order» here.
Also, if you’re not feeling or wanting a steak burger, you can sub chicken breast, turkey burger or veggie patty in any of the burgers/​sandwiches! And for the pescatarian Unilocalers, there are several seafood options: mahi mahi, cod and ahi tuna!
This is definitely a can’t miss and a burger blessing to downtown!

Bru Burger really surprised me, as I’m very skeptical of chains (even small chains, as I think opening 3 or 4 locations of even excellent restaurants can start to water down the quality). I’m also very leery of the bad juju with this location because I’ve been around long enough to see at least 3 bar/​restaurants fail badly here. But — it’s such a prime location and I have hoped for years that someone would figure out what to do with it, and Bru Burger might just be the perfect fit! First off, to anyone familiar with the area, the space has been cut in half, and Bru Burger fills just one part of the footprint formerly occupied by Cadillac Ranch. Smart!
More importantly, the food is really good, fairly priced, and fills a niche that central downtown needed — a spot where families, tourists, sports fans and business travelers will feel comfortable on nights they don’t feel like spending a lot of money and just want a good burger.
We came on a busy weekend night during the holiday season, and despite only having been open for about a month, service, timing and food quality was very good. I had «The End» burger, and it’s now in my top 3 for specialty burgers around town, because I love horseradish and egg on burgers, and even with all of the burger places around playing with various combinations of toppings, I rarely see this combo and it was delicious! Others in group had the «Melt Your Face» (he wished it had been even spicier) and the lamb burger (he said it was excellent).
I’m glad Bru Burger is here.

A win for burgers in Cincinnati.
More and more burger joints are popping up in Cincinnati lately, but for a while there my boyfriend and I joked that downtown was someone of a burger desert. You couldn’t really get a good one, and if you did it was super fancy steak burger for $ 18. Although BB does offer creative options, we love super simple, uncomplicated, delicious, somewhat greasy burgers and Bru Burger offers what is now one of my favorites:
The End Burger —
HORSERADISH HAVARTI, OVER EASY EGG,
CARAMELIZED ONIONS, LETTUCE, TOMATO, AND TRUFFLE AIOLI for $ 11.
Why I love this burger — brioche bun, because DUH. The horseradish harvarti adds a spicy kick. (Next time you’re at the deli, grab a ½ lb of this and add it to your prime rib sammies — delish!) The patty is juicy and ours was cooked perfectly. There are hints of pepper and it is seasoned well. There is nothing worse than a dry burger with no flavor juice running out of it. The bun to beef ratio is perfect IMO, and something that a lot of places just can’t seem to get right.
We also opted for a side of fries, and although they appeared to be hand cut, they were cold, and just blah, and thus the reason for the –1 star. A good burger needs it’s partner in crime.
Pro tip: get a side of their black pepper mayo, it will change your life.
Bru Burger is now at the top of my list for comfort food, and rotating burger options downtown. Can’t wait to come try the patio out this spring!

Really nice addition to downtown. On the first visit I went with the Bru Burger and fries. The burger was phenomenal, perfectly cooked medium with fresh toppings (esp. enjoyed the tomato jam). It’s definitely in my top 5 in the downtown/​OTR area. The menu has a wide selection of beef, lamb, turkey, chicken, tuna and veggie burgers with a wide array of toppings. They all feature wine on tap and several craft beers. This building has gone through many restaurants over the past few years but I feel like this place will be here awhile.

Since I didn’t actually eat anything at Bru Burger (thanks, Brian, my sub English teacher), but rather just went with some co-​workers after we stole away from the office just a leeeetle bit early (hey! T’was the season!), this review is based just on the ambiance and adult liquid refreshment. One co-​worker has been pining to go there and try a burger, but I was a complete buzzkill and ate my brownbagged lunch while still at the office before meeting up with everyone later.
However, I thoroughly enjoyed the cozy and tasteful environment of BBB. The staff were very friendly, and my fizzy little cocktail (can’t remember what it was called…) was cheerful and delicious.
The food looked GOOD, too. I would absolutely try eating there soon. My co-​worker ate every crumb on his plate and declared that the burger was «every bit as good as Salazar’s». Since I haven’t yet tried Salazar’s either, I’m assuming this is a very high compliment. And the plates of onion rings that were being toted out of the kitchen looked amazing.
A good burger is one of my weaknesses in life, and throw in some GOOD onion rings (not those dinky little circles of pre-​crumbed, nasty frozen things) and I will be back to eat next time.

I’m really happy with this new addition to downtown, particularly the fact that they have THREE different vegetarian burgers — which is basically unheard of in Cincinnati. I had the vegan burger which was really good and it came with a nice side salad that had huge chunks of portobellos and avocado.
They do beer flights there, which are always my favorite, for $ 7 and they have a pretty decent beer selection.
My husband had the turkey burger and said it was really good as well. The only complaint was that it didn’t come with any sort of side.
They could still use a bit of work on their service, but I think that’s to be expected with any new restaurant. I hope it works out for them, since that space seems to be semi-​doomed.

I’m hoping that this place lasts seeing as it isn’t awful, and is in a building which has had a handful of failure businesses in it.
We went and check this place out. Nice atmosphere, really loud. I ordered a Beginning Burger (cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, onion, ketchup, and mustard). My boyfriend got the Bru Burger (Taleggio Cheese, Bacon, Tomato Jam, Caramelized Onions, Lettuce, Mayo.) as suggested by our server. He didn’t finish his burger because he wasn’t crazy about it. I thought mine was pretty good, but nothing amazing. We both asked for Medium cooked burgers and they were more like Medium Well.
My onion rings on the hand were easily the best onion rings I have ever had. The french fries weren’t anything special. Just semi-​soggy steak fries like the ones at Keystone if you’re familiar with them.
Their appetizers looked pretty legit. When I go back I’m going to try a couple of them. This couple sitting at the bar ordered some nachos, and they looked amazing.
They have a full bar. A decent beer list of both draft and bottled. I wasn’t too impressed with what they had on tap, a nice local assortment which is awesome but nothing special. They had a better bottled selection. More of a variety, some imported beers.
They also have a dessert menu that looks pretty good. Smores Cake? Yes, Please.
I think their prices are a bit much. My normal burger was $ 8, but for a side of onion rings, it was $ 3 for four onion rings. That’s a little ridiculous. Most of the specialty burgers were $ 10 — $ 12 just for a burger.
The server was pretty bad. He mumbled, talked way too fast. When we asked him what he like he went and thought about it for a minute and said «The Bru Burger» without any confidence. I asked him to tell us about the burgers, he could only tell us the weight of them. I’m sorry, but if you have people working for you, you shouldn’t put them on the floor until they know your menu. I’ve served at a handful of places and some places I wasn’t even hired until I knew the menu. This menu at Bru Burger isn’t even a large menu. It’s one front side page menu.
Our server was a nice guy, but he just was a really crappy server. He took twenty minutes in between every time we saw him, it made it really long dinner of mostly just sitting around and waiting. He got me a diet Pepsi as a refill of my Pepsi, and some other server who was super nice came and brought us our food, asked if we needed anything else, and he apologized and went and got me a normal Pepsi. Also, later on, the woman who was taking our dishes, had to go ask our server to bring us our check. All the other servers I encountered acted like they knew what they were doing. If he would have just been more present, it would not have been a big deal at all.
I’m not going to write them off, they just opened. Hopefully, they get everything figured out. I think this place is for sure worth going and checking out. It would be a great place to take family or friends visiting who may be on the picky side of eating. Both of our stomachs are hurting currently and I feel gross (I feel grease coming out of my pores.) SO, I don’t think we’re going to rush back anytime soon, though.

When I went to Indy a few months ago, a friend recommended BRU Burger Mass Ave. We went, we really liked it, and we were told by our server that one would be opening in Cincinnati in the former Cadillac Ranch space. (We also became VIP members on the spot, but that’s neither here nor there.)
More burgers! Less bars likely to go out of business! So much yes!
Unlike its predecessor, BRU Burger Bar occupies the space so well, which is only half of the space that Cadillac Ranch once occupied (I realize its size was likely the problem).
The décor is nice, the beer selection is pretty good (mostly locals on draft), and the food didn’t disappoint. In fact, I loved it. Our service wasn’t half bad either.
I cannot wait for warmer weather so that we can enjoy delicious burgers, good beer, and outdoor space with the garage doors up. I imagine this will be a great place to go before and after Reds games starting this spring.
I really liked my first tryst with BRU Burger’s Cincinnati location — no real evidence of growing pains given it just opened within the week — and I’m glad it’s here. Will definitely be back.