Bagger Dave’s Burger Tavern

Haven’t been 2 Bagger Dave’s in several years. Placed an online order 2day for 2 «Train Wreck» bergers & a Malt, cost $ 33 & change. I arrived @ 5:45 however, order wasn’t ready as they indicated it would be. After another ten minute wait, they finally brought it out. I asked if the malt was in the bag, the young man replied he was new there. When I asked again, he looked & said no but he could find someone 2 make it. He asked 2 different co-​workers if they’d make it & Both said they didn’t have time. I told the young man, just take it off the bill because I was now in a hurry & didn’t want the food to get cold. He then replied again, he was new & the Mgr would have 2 do it. The Mgr finally showed up, did her magic with the register & I paid the bill. A little miffed that the order wasn’t ready when stated, no malt was made to go with the order. However, was really disappointed when I got home only to find the bergers were not made as ordered, the food appeared 2 be thrown into the bag, the fries were soggy and the $ 12.00 bergers were over cooked and the buns were well steamed, I guess they wanted the buns to match the fries. Won’t go back. If I wanted food like that, I’d have gone to one of the fast food berger joints in town. Yuck!

I love Bagger Dave’s and greatly enjoy their burgers and sweet potato fries. Everything tastes fantastic, and they are able to give me a juicy medium burger, which is rare for my experiences (I prefer medium rare, but the company disallows it). There are a couple of issues that prevent me from giving it my full five stars, however.
1) The AC is a bit much (I was fine, but other guests were cold). In no way should the AC be blowing people’s hair and napkins.
2) The craft beer menu should be expanded. They offer a good variety of styles, but only a few options overall.
3) I love big sloppy burgers on occasion, but these were tough to eat at times (especially with our elderly guests).
I’d be back all the time if it wasn’t for being an hour away!

Excellent, unique craft sodas. Really interesting variety of burgers, wish I was hungry enough for multiples. :) The Mahi-​mahi burger was great! And my goddaughter really liked the bacon cheeseburger, it had a massive cheese crisp in the middle which she loved. The fries are really good, so I’m not sure what the other reviews were talking about.
My goddaughter thought the train was really fun too.

Never seem to write bad reviews but I am going out of my way to say the service sux here. Avoid it at all costs.

When this place opened, we didn’t go, because it was another East Lansing pub/​bar and we have kids now. And we still didn’t go, and we still didn’t go, and then we went.
We had made a mistake waiting to go. This place is actually great for kids, they have a train (a train!) that travels around near the ceiling. The kid’s menu prices are really good and portions large, easily feeding a 10 year old+, and able to be split by two in the 5 age range (the kid’s pizza especially).
For us adults? Best burger in East Lansing. Of course, here you design your burger from scratch, there are probably thousands of possible permutations, so you can get what you want and what makes you happy, and the burgers have always made me happy (but I know what I like). Reasonable prices too.
I’ve never ordered anything other than a burger. Other people we have taken here have, I recall them being happy. Service has always been good. For a good family place on the Grand River strip I think it fills a void.
I see some people saying it is overpriced. I lay on the toppings on my burger, I’m getting like a $ 15 or something burger in the end, I think its worth it. Down the road at Hopcat they have a $ 17 burger that is crap. Yes, it is more than a Big Mac, but it is also better.

I have eaten at this restaurant twice. The burgers are good. The fries are amazing! They have nice drinks menu that includes lots of options local to MI.
The have cupcakes from taste of love. That is my number one reason for visiting. The cupcakes are worth every penny.
I will definitely be back for more.

I used to frequent Bagger Dave’s, but I no longer do– the burgers are decent, but it should be left at that, if you’re lucky. They have highly customizable burgers, but the meat doesn’t seem to quite to the trick for me. They have plenty of good sodas and the service is good, but again, for a burger joint, the food begins to lack.

I will never spend my money at this establishment. I was planning on meeting my sister for lunch here and my friend and I showed up a little early and waited in our car in the parking lot. We were driving my older car, which looks somewhat like a beater as I am having work done on my daily driver. My friend was smoking a cigarette INSIDE our car and we were parked nowhere near anyone else as we waited. Ten minutes after my friend finished her cigarette, an employee walks up to our car and asks what we are doing and if we can please leave because someone complained that we were smoking. It is obvious that we were being judged for appearing poor and I find it unconscionable to support an establishment which stands for such discrimination.

Previous reviews were Not good, I was worried but I tried it and LOVED it!!! I got the Bloody Mary it was delicious!!, rare find. I built my own burger, Loved it!!, fried were GOOD… Mac n cheese was the only thing i could have done w/​o. I’ll be Back For Sure. They turned it around into a great burger joint!!!

The food is overpriced. They offer variety, but lack the skill to execute. The chicken in the chicken burger I got was rubbery and over cooked. The macaroni and cheese side was small, under spiced, and half garnish (bread crumbs). The best part was a beer, which sells for cheaper elsewhere.
Not worth your time or money.

I’ve been here many times, get something different every time with the build your own burger sheets and I honesty can’t get enough. Impeccable service and food. Highly recommend.

As a person with Celiac Disease, I’m VERY limited on places I trust to safely eat. The last few times I’ve been here, I’ve had ZERO reactions to potential cross contamination of gluten. The options are vast compared to other restaurants and the portions are VERY generous. A GF burger option turns into a «bowl» which mimics a salad. It’s BRILLIANT, really. Other places would simply leave the bun out and you’d still be hungry. Not here! Mystery drinks are fun, too… and MUST do the sweet chips. Nachos are on appetizer list, but CLEARLY is a meal by itself.

This place isn’t really even good. It is the Kardashian of burger places, all looks no talent. I did the make your burger with their «prime rib recipe,» but really it was a greasy pile of tasteless slop. Their fries are expensive and soggy. Their beer selection is weak. Their «craft» taste like a generic soda stream pop. The service was bad. This is my second time going. I had a similar experience my first time around about two years, I guess something’s don’t change.

Overpriced mediocre burgers… even if you build it yourself, it’s greasy… And all the sides cost extra… except for a thin pickle… Not much of a beer selection… Crunchy’s has a better selection… Wait staff doesn’t care… And if you must go, eat in the back where the train doesn’t sound like it’s raining on a tin roof…
Just got a comment from Bagger Daves… After reading other such replies, it’s sounds like a robo reply…“sorry it didn’t meet your expectations” and «let the kitchen staff know»… Yes, nice that they reply, but I’ve been to this place other times and now I know that nothing will change… You either like them or not… And if you give them only 3 stars, they might give you a free meal…

Ate here on a whim… wow…we have gone back four or five times… love the build a burger… no matter what ive ordered never been disappointed… fresh…fresh…fresh…go recommend chili eith extra heat

I found out Bagger Dave’s is a chain after going in. The founder went to U of Dayton near my hometown of Cincinnati, and I think Bagger Dave’s would really be appreciated there now.
I ordered a custom built burger with a few (or more) toppings. I have to say that it was crafted well. Flavorful and juicy without being greasy. The burger was seasoned well and with the jalapenos was –just– hot enough for a chilly Sunday afternoon.
I also nabbed some fresh fries which were great. These weren’t pre-​seasoned like at a Red Robin or Five Guy’s and they were fresh cut, fresh fried delicious!
In addition I tried a few of their house cola’s including a root-​beer float which is always a favorite. What better way to satiate a bit of homesickness than with a perfectly comforting float eh?

We were in EL moving our son onto campus and decided on lunch at Bagger Daves. We had never been any of the locations and we decided to try it.
So Sunday afternoon at about 2:00 we waited 5 minutes for a hostess, she sat us us, we waited 5 Minutes for someone to take our drink order, and another 5 to get water and iced tea. I think the bartender was waiting on us and he took our order for 4 burgers. Now we waited over 30 minutes for overpriced tasteless burgers.
The restaurant was not busy at the time, tables had not been cleared and the service was horribly slow. I have a ton of patience with restaurant staff and service but this was beyond unacceptable and way overpriced.
Thanks for lesson Dave.

Bagger Dave’s is my favorite Build-​a-​Burger chain, even topping the Counter in Los Angeles for me, so today on my last night in Michigan in 5 months, I was sure this was where I wanted to eat.
I went to the first Bagger Dave’s I’d tried, where I’d gotten perfect medium burgers before, but I was disappointed today and also on the previous visit. Last time our burgers and fries came out cold as if they’d been sitting for a bit. This time the burger was warm, but it was well done rather than medium. Also the pumpkin shake I ordered was just slightly thicker than cold milk. Finally, their beer menu didn’t match what was on tap.
Despite these issues if I had tonight to redo, I would eat here again because I love the combination of toppings (and the train!), but it was a bit of a disappointing experience.

Overpriced and overhyped.
Food: Burgers are definitely «elevated» but not enough to justify prices ($ 8 basic burger with no sides). Topping combinations are inventive, but the patties are bland and dry. Sides are extra, and small side of fries was an exorbitant $ 3, bringing the price for an okay burger and fries to $ 11.
Drinks: Full bar, but the place bills itself as a beer joint. That selection is rather small, and isn’t particularly diverse. Way too many IPAs for such a short list. A pint (maybe 20oz?) from a local brewer ran nearly $ 7.
Service/​Atmosphere: Nicely decorated, for a slick chain, but was almost completely empty when I dined. Service at the bar was solid, but a little slow. Sitting at the bar gave me to opportunity to observe servers as they cashed out and talked with bartenders — way too conversation about which table tipped how much within earshot of a customer.
Overall, I paid $ 18 before tax & tip for a mediocre burger and beer experience at a place that markets itself on burgers and beer. I could, and should, have gone up the road to the Peanut Barrel, Dagwood’s, or Crunchy’s for a more authentic meal.

I tried going here for dinner last week, and when the waiter came by and asked for our drink orders, we asked for coffee. He explained that their coffee machine was broken, so we asked for tea. He explained to us that they don’t have tea either.
First off, I’m a little worried that your restaurant isn’t capable of making hot water. Second, I used to work at a chain restaurant, and if the coffee machine broke, and a customer wanted coffee, our manager would’ve gone to the store, bought a Mr. Coffee, and given them whatever they wanted.
If you’re looking for burgers and craft beer in East Lansing, don’t bother with Bagger Dave’s– head down the street to Crunchy’s where they have consistently good food, craft beer, helpful staff, and coffee AND tea.