Farren’s Pub & Eatery

Had the Russell burger with onion rings. Husband had the same burger with fries. Food was excellent and service was fast.

Consistently the best burgers in town! Good beer selection and homemade sides. The ⁴⁄₅ is due to size. I get that it’s more controlled, but then causes longer waits or possibly eating elsewhere.

Good food and relaxed atmosphere! This is a great place for high quality food and a nice time. Their burgers are huge and they give you tons of fries. You won’t leave hungry. They have a small bar, but it’s not exactly a sports bar kind of place. If you want large portions of great food go here. If you want dim lighting, few distractions, and nice seating go here.

Man, were the truffle fries overhyped! The waiter made it sound like a piece of heaven sprinkled with ocean salt, when in reality it’s just chips. Other than the truffle disappointment, the burger was pretty good. Can’t complain too much about a burger joint… it is what it is.

Food: Amazing, as always. I got the Russell and the blue cheese sauce was delicious but on the saltier side. For people who do not like blue cheese it does not taste like blue cheese at all!
Substituted the chips for fries and the $ 1.50 was worth it. Portion size was big.
The Strawberry chicken salad was good too but did not have a lot of strawberries… hefty amount of chicken
Service: Great! Always checked up on the table.
Place: Small cozy pub

When I crave the best burger I can put my hands on in Urbana-​Champaign, I crave a Farren’s burger. The meat grind is high quality with enough seasoning and fat to deliver flavor — that’s the start of any good burger, and Farren’s has it down. The burgers are huge, the buns are sweet and fresh, and the toppings are simple and flavorful. Which burger you like best depends on your taste. My favorite is the Spiccoli, with bacon, sautéed mushrooms, sautéed onions, and choice of cheese (I go cheddar, but there’s also American, Swiss, pepperjack, habanero/​jalapeño, provolone, feta, and blue to choose from).
Order the house-​made fries for a side. Not only do they taste as fresh as they are, but they are also perfectly crispy outside while tender inside, cut to the ideal size for dipping and crunching (not string, not steak).
As for appetizers, we’ve tried the buffalo wings with blue cheese dressing. The dressing is fresh, with big chunks of blue cheese, and the wings are huge (we joked about the impossible size of those chickens). They’re seasoned and otherwise plain — not dunked in some cheap sauce — with a fresh chicken bite. So, so good. I’ve sworn to get this every time I go back. The fried cauliflower is good, too, but just not quite as good as the wings.
The only negative note we’ve ever had was that my partner ordered a veggie sandwich on one occasion (the spinach and mushroom, which includes grilled tomatoes and blue cheese). He found the spinach flavorless (after a taste test, I had to agree), really the whole sandwich underwhelming in flavor, and the overall gummy, slimy texture of the filling off-​putting. Of course, he’s the one who ordered a veggie sandwich at the best burger place there is. Really :) .
Back to the good, we like the atmosphere at Farren’s. It’s got a relaxed, grown-​up, neighborhood gastro-​pub feel. 80s music is often playing and Gen Xers like us seem to frequent Farren’s as much as the cool kids. Tables are decently spaced (you don’t feel like you are on top of other diners) and the waitstaff are attentive and friendly.
Even with ordering fries and other items on the side, the food is a good value given the carefully chosen ingredients and delicious preparation.
There’s no parking lot specifically for Farren’s. It’s a little hole-​in-​the-​wall place at basement level down an alleyway behind main street stores in downtown Champaign. But street parking is available and you can also use the lot across the street.

Had the fire burger medium rare at lunch today with fries. Off-​the-​charts! Not to spicy for me, and i could have doubled the peppers. I think I need to return and have the Russell.
Before 11:45 this place had a line at the door to be seated. It is not a huge place, but we’ll worth any wait.

Yup, I’m a fan. Solid burger, always cooked appropriately and always delicious. The truffle chips are good, usually a few under-​cooked ones that slip by. Not the greatest burger I’ve ever had and I’m not holding them up to that standard.
Mostly I’m motivated to write a review because the negative reviews here are hilarious. If you want a well done burger then go to burger king and stop crying about your overly meaty sandwich. If you want a fancy restaurant get the F out of a corn field. Servers are people too and sometimes aren’t perfectly attentive or perfectly cheery when you are a giant pain in their ass. After-​all this is a bar, in a basement, in a college town. They make good burgers.

I love Farren’s burgers. I usually get The Russell burger and order it with bison instead of beef (sometimes they run out of the bison). Of course if you don’t like mushroom, then it’s not for you. I usually also go with the handcut fries, but some people love their truffle chips. I find them to be too salty. They also have good salads, if you want some lighter fare.

It’s a neighborhood pub, and they definitely embrace that title when it comes to the menu. Burgers, fries, more fried things; all the usual suspects are available with your drink here. Not that that makes them plain, by any stretch. But just understand, that’s their focus and what they do best.
It was good, too, to see that they mix things up with specials. Although I didn’t have it, I did see a Cuban sandwich arrive at our table, and that’s not something that’s seen too often around town. Thumbs up to them for trying new things.
Snappy service late one Friday night. Plenty of drinks, and my soft drink got refilled post haste. It’s not all ooey gooey warm, but I got about zero attitude, and food came out pretty quick.
It’s not much for ambiance, except it nails the neighborhood pub ambiance. The bar. The one, simple dining room. You get in, you get a drink, you get a burger, you catch up with your friends, and you’ve had the Farren’s experience.

After hearing a lot about their burgers I decided to give this place a try.
I was recommended as a starter the truffle chips, which were nothing more than a bowl of salty potato chips. I mean it wasn’t bad, but…
Now the burger. I had the ‘spicoli’. Completely overrated. The bun was dry, and cold. Oily top. The patty, I ordered medium rare, felt like a carpet in the mouth — dry dry dry dry and tough! The sauteed onion and mushroom were probably overcooked as they tasted of charcoal and were crisped.
Interesting.

Here’s hoping my brother doesn’t disown me for this review. He swears by this place.
The entrance is through an alley. You could miss it if you’re not paying attention. This would have stayed a «local gem» had it not been mentioned in a few articles touting its burgers. We usually order takeout. Lucky for us, this time around we beat the dinner rush, and were able to dine inside. Yes, the burgers are quite delectable. I do appreciate the fact that you are able to flag any of the servers to help you. Once the dinner rush hit, I must admit it was unsettling to have onlookers waiting to be seated gawk at those already seated, as if to visually urge them out the door. Personally, I’d stick to takeout, service can lag once the place is busy, and you don’t have onlookers drooling over your food.

Just been here 2 or 3 times but I probably won’t be going back.
I find the layout irritating: it feels like a cramped and poorly ventilated basement cafeteria.
Waiting a long time for service seems typical and on my last trip my friends and I waited about 10 minutes just to be recognized (I actually had to
flag down someone by waving and shouting) then another 15+ to be seated. They could at the very least greet their customers and let them know the
wait time. There were people behind us who were seated before us because they had fewer people in their group, but looking around, they could have
easily seated our group of 5 by moving some tables together (which they ended up doing anyways). Even after we were seated it took forever to get
something to drink (even after ordering drinks it took over 10 minutes).
Since you don’t actually have an assigned server, you can be assured that many of the things you ask for will be forgotten by whomever brings your
food, whenver they get around to bringing it.
Nothing particularly good to say about the food. It was fine, I guess, but why is it so expensive?
Location: kinda lousy, service: kinda lousy, food: kinda meh. Why bother?

I love the burgers. The staff is always hella attentive and even when it’s packed the line moves quickly. The ambiance is also set up so that the customers are relaxed enough to engage with one another (if you choose, too). If you are looking for a place where no one knows your name and has a good burger, this is the place.

So, it took 18 months but I finally gave Farren’s another shot. As it turns out, they weren’t as happy to see me as I was to see them. Or at least, their tall waitress with the red hair had a problem with me.
We walked in and asked for a table for two. Only four tables were occupied, but she motioned for us to take a two top table right between the order workstation and a loud table of about eight. I smiled and shook my head «No» — mostly because I’d twisted an ankle and didn’t want to walk across the restaurant (painful) only to ask her for another table. I also didn’t want to be in what I perceived as the loudest place in the restaurant — shoved up against the wall by the grill area and wait station with the loud group on the other side. Refusing the table apparently ticked her off: she looked seriously irritated and she showed us another table closer to the door, slammed the menus down so loudly that I jumped and then stormed behind the bar whereupon she made a less than kind remark (loud enough for me to hear) about my request to another coworker. I was astounded at her attitude. She didn’t bring us water or ask what we wanted to order so when she walked by again I stopped her and outright asked her if she had a problem waiting on us, I received no response — just a glower. Fortunately a pleasant young woman with long dark hair waited on us and our meal and drinks were fine, and I enjoyed them even though the tone of the evening was spoiled by the ugly behavior of big red, the waitress with the matching mood.
I live in LA and don’t get to Champaign as often as I’d like, but Farren’s was always a favorite. Lately though, some of the employees have spoiled it as one of my favorite places. Frankly, I’ll drive to Mahomet and JT’s from now on — it isn’t worth the negativity to go to Farren’s.

I don’t usually review things unless they’re really good or really bad, and I have to say the black bean burger tacos were PHENOMENAL. The only reason I gave ⁴⁄₅ stars is because the wait time for being seated/​food tends to be on the longer side, but it’s definitely worth the wait!

My brother convinced me to eat downtown instead of going out for Indian. Since I love burgers, he suggested that we go to Farren’s. I have heard a number of good things about Farren’s so I agreed. I was so surprised when we walked up to the building. I like holes in the wall, but boy is this one. There was a short line when we came in. There was no host in sight, but one came after a few minutes and we were seated quickly after that.
My brother ordered The Russell with toppings for The Fire Burger (jalapenos, red peppers, onions). I ordered The Spicoli without mushrooms and added the blue cheese topping. My brother mentioned that he heard that the chips with truffle sea salt were pretty good. We asked our waitress if we could get the truffle salt on the fries, as well, and she said yes. So that is what I ordered. The burger was very good, but needed more bacon. The truffle salt definitely made the fries better than the regular– I tasted my brother’s regular fries. They were a tad bit overcooked.
I do find the place to be a bit dirty. The floor just felt oily underneath my feet. The bathroom was ick. And worn. Advice: Eat quickly and get out.

Holy Burgers Batman!!!
I’m American, I love a good cheese burger… but Farren’s has taken this to the next level.
You might lie to yourself and say you will only eat half. haha. Good luck with that.
This is probably the best burger I have even had. And I don’t say that lightly.
You find yourself walking down a small driveway towards a little green building, inside is a narrow stairwell that you walk down. Now suddenly you are unsure you have found the right place, but as you round the corner there it is, packed full of people all waiting politely for even on a plate. The servers are running around and helping everyone at once. When you get a seat they bring you giant glasses of water and offer a bear menu along with your normal menu. Out server was super nice and very stylish to boot.
I had a Motherload. And oh it was. I hit the jackpot. a juicy beef patty on a golden bun smothered in blue-​cheese sauce, melted provolone and saluted mushrooms.
One bit in and I think I blacked out because I don’t remember the rest, just that I ate it all and unashamedly licked my fingers after.
Do yourself a favor and plan to not eat dinner and eat lunch here.

Farren’s is the DEFINITION of a hole in the wall restaurant in Champaign. Note: Your whole party has to be present in order to be seated. You cannot say, «Oh, they’re coming in 5 minutes». This is due to their limited space.
I came with a group of 6 and we had to wait about 10 minutes to be seated. Everyone got their food in about 15 minutes. I ordered the Veggie Burger and the homemade chips. I ate everything on my plate. They make the veggie burger taste like a real burger somehow; it’s the way the cook it.
The price is a little steep compared to other burger places. I believe that it is worth it. The noise level is higher than average because it is such a small place. Don’t let that stop you. Go to Farren’s! You won’t be disappointed.

We heard good things about Farren’s and even a rumor that they have some of the best burgers in the CU area.
Well, the rumor was certainly confirmed.
The location is a little hidden, it’s kind of in an alley and the restaurant is almost like a basement. It’s nothing fancy and probably doesn’t want to be. We didn’t have to wait to due a couple tables being open, but shortly after we were seated and as we were leaving a ~20 minute line formed.
Everyone ordered a burger and we got the homemade chips for an appetizer. These were good and a pretty large portion too. I got the Russell burger which came with bacon, mushrooms, and blue cheese. I opted for a side of fries which was an upcharge from the chips that normally come with it. The burger itself was large and very well put together. The toppings all complemented each other quite well, this was not your typical over-​hyped pub burger. French fries were really tasty, too!
My only minor qualm with the place is the service. We had ~3 different servers/​people who took our order, checked on us, brought our food out, etc. My beer was nowhere to be found after ordering it nearly 10 minutes ago, so I had to flag down somebody and remind them. This other server (maybe a manager?) had to re-​check my ID before bringing me the beer immediately and apologizing, not a big deal!
In the end though it was a good experience, the burgers met or exceeded expectations. I also liked how the whole menu was really straightforward, not overdone with 1000’s of random items slapped together like some bar menus can be.
Strongly recommend, ⁴⁄₅!