Up For Grabs

Anyone who gives Up for Grabs a bad review is not doing it right. It’s a dive bar meets a dive restaurant and should be reviewed as such. Oh… And it’s amazing.
The ambiance is great, and in my book, that’s half the battle. Dimly lit, nice booths in the bar area, cool old wooden bar.
As far as food, I’d recommend sticking with what they do best — burgers. Honestly one of the best I’ve ever had.
Go here, grab a beer and a burger, maybe an appetizer, keep it simple, enjoy. It’s really a great spot.

Thee best burgers in the area. I love these burgers!!!

I really want to like this restaurant. It is within walking distance to my house.
Unfortunately, I have been to this restaurant twice. The first experience was not great. Service was extremely slow, even though my husband and I were the only two people in the place for lunch.
Second visit was even worse. Service was horrible at dinner time. Waitresses acted as if they had better things to do than wait on our table. Multiple requests had to be made for simple things like lemon for the iced tea or drink refills. Silverware was dirty. Food was merely okay. Edible but that’s it.
Prices are high for the small portions of mediocre food. Wait staff is just pitiful.
It’s a shame. The restaurant itself is in an old house that has been converted and decorated in the Victorian style. It has a lovely, charming ambience for a romantic evening out.
Simply not worth the aggravation, though.

Went yesterday for dinner. Ya its a dive but its got careitor. Nephew had a burger and said it was just OK. Dad and I had the lake perch. I had a cup of french onion soup that came with my dinner and a lot of hot bread and butter. The perch and boiled potatoes were very good[to me better than Tiebols] but there were not very many and they were not swimming in butter. I am glad I had the bread so I was full. My father thought the bill was very reasonable. I would go again.

The place has gone non-​smoking, as of about October 2012. The burgers are still great. I had the sauteed perch this time, and while good, there was way too much butter and it would have been better for a younger and healthier me.

Up For Grabs is a townie dive bar with decent food. Stopped in for lunch after reading a couple reviews. Although I didn’t try their «GREAT» burgers, my counterparts jumped right in. There review… it’s a good burger… that’s it. From my viewpoint, all the dressings looked fresh, huge pretzel bun, and a thick beef patty layered with cheese… usually that’s enough to garner some recognition. Not to say they weren’t happy, but they were far from blown away. I went the vegetarian route which, on their menu, was very slim pickings. Settled on the «grilled portabello mushrooms» appetizer, which was easily modified to accommodate my diet (no bleu cheese, no bacon… yikes!). The dish was not at all what I expected. Two chopped portabellos, sauteed in a ton of cooking oil or butter. It was a greasy mess, forcing me to drain the oil onto a separate dish. That, or suffer an immediate clogged artery and/​or heart attack. Everything tasted alright, but after soaking up all that oil in a napkin, it seemed apparent their recipe needed some updating. Service was friendly throughout, and food and drinks were fairly prompt. The bar advertises «smoke-​free», but the stale smell of after-​hours cigarette smoking drives hard once you enter. Didn’t have much to complain about, but had just as little to brag about. As stated earlier, it’s a townie DIVE BAR with decent food. That’s it.

Despite the disapointment of finding out that Up For Grabs is not a candy shoppe as I believed it was for 26 years, the bar and restaurant met my expectations for charm. With seating for about twelve at thd bar, limited booths, dim lighting, and dark wood details, it possesses an atmosphere that reminds one of an early twenthieth century steak house/​speakeasy. A good choice when compared to other Whiting haunts, especially for filet mignon (2 out of 3 times this is an exceptional entrée, I hear).
Tip: Don’t go on Monday nights when The Dancing with the Stars episodes blaring from the bar TV ruin the mystique.

Quaint is the best word I can use to describe this small restaurant. If you walk into the front door there is a bar area (smoking section of course, you are in Indiana) with a non-​smoking dining area in the rear. You can also walk in through the rear parking lot which leads straight to the restaurant area. The dining area has about 8 tables and it is rather cozy. I have been there during the week and never had to wait.
They have a wide range of meals-​burgers, steaks, and sandwiches. I love their bacon cheddar burger as it is probably the best I have had. What makes this excellent is the fact that they serve it on a pretzel roll. The meat tends to be tender and juicy and the pretzel roll is thick enough not to get soggy. They use generous portions of cheese and bacon which help balance out all the flavors. Their fries are also excellent, also my favorite fries of all time. We also had the «Up for Grab» appetizer which is a compilation of fried foods. Ours was cauliflower, zucchini, onion rings and cheese sticks. All were fried to perfection.

We’ve been here a few times and they truly do have a GREAT burger.
I would have given the place 4 stars because the burgers are just so damn good That being said, the last time we ate there I ordered off the specials. Although the tuna steak was done perfectly, the side of spinach tasted like someone dumped half a jar of garlic salt into it and the mashed potatoes had a chunk of rotten potato in them. Granted it could have been an off night but the waitress (might have been the owner) didn’t even offer to discount the bill.
If you want a burger that compares to Moody’s Pub I’d recommend this place — but not for anything else.
UPDATE: I assume they’ve changed cooks. The last few times we’ve been here they over cook the hell out of our burgers. We even told them RARE just so we might get them medium. Nope — still came to our table WELL DONE. We wont be going back.

Hello, Food Snob here. I only tried this place once, and I MUST go back. I was shocked that a Bar like place would have perch just as good as Tiebles. Thats right. And the butter boiled potatoes that that came with it, as Rachel Ray would say «YUMMO». Its like good old fashion comfort food. COZY bar and dinning area. Good place to sit at the bar and EAT. This place has been here a long time so that usually tells you its good. GOOD quality food here.

I don’t suggest the bar part of Up For Grabs as a hangout, because it’s just pretty boring. The restaurant part however is good. They have pretty tasty appetizers, and some tasty encores.