Grill

I can’t believe its closed! I only get out to AZ every 3 – 4 years, but I always make a pilgrimage here! Where else can you get a giant order of tots, Bowl of Cap’n Crunch, and a Haystack with eggs?

Sweet vibe. Kinda hip but totally cool. Mr. Free and the Satellite Freakout provided the tunes. Dollar High Life ain’t bad either. I dig Tuscon.

CLOSED
RIP semi-​worthwhile 24hour dive diner/​red room that never had enuf tater tots but had plenty of Tucson zombie ‘tude & sometimes tasty whispered talk & torrid times.
«Outta food» sez the sign. *sigh*

The Grill is one of the first places I’ve gone to sober up. It’s dependable and perfect for that, and for a lot more.
I’ve been enjoying the Grill since 1990. It’s a nice place. I forget about it a lot of the time, and it’s not the greatest food in town nor is it bad. The menu is wide and surprising.
Red vinyl booths are cool. The atmosphere is just cool. The service always good everytime I go, and they seem attentive to refilling drinks. I enjoyed a half pound burger the other day and it was delicious, cooked medium rare as requested, with the famous and excellent tater tots a perfect side dish. You can get breakfast any day or night of the week, so have it for dinner or have it at 3 AM.
The sandwiches use Boar’s Head meat. Yummy. Order a bowl of tots if you like. You can eat a bowl of Cap’t Crunch. Steak or portobello mushrooms. Listen to live music in the redroom.
Never had any bad incidents here and food is always good. Prices are quite decent considering it’s downtown, you can get away very cheap here. Great place for late night coffee and I hear the pie is delicious.

Math problem:
Grill rating when drunk: 5 stars
+
Grill rating when sober: 2 stars

(divide by 2)
— — — — — — — -
Average: 3.5 stars

I refuse to round up: P

Well, I used this place for thefree wi– Fi when I needed it. I thought that I’d grab a daiquiri and a couple margaritas while working on the computer with friends. But… I was highly dis-​satisfied with what was delivered. I think the «period tradition style» drinks leave much to be desired but… If you’d like a drink prepared as it would have been 100 years ago… You’ll digg this.
I did not eat here as a friend with me had a nail jab him in the leg from under the booth we sat in so I cannot tell you anything about the food. I did see other people seeming to enjoy diner style offerings.

Its 2am, Im starving, and not willing to cook for myself. Time to find a 24-​hour eatery on Unilocal.Stumbled across Grill and remembered that Ive been wanting to try this place for a while and never really had the opportunity. Looks like tonight’s the night!
The place at first glance looks trendy and divey – which I totally dig. Just my kinda place. At second glance, the place looks absolutely filthy. The glass that lines half the booths is splattered with some sort of now-​dried liquid, I dont want to know what. The tables do not seem wiped down. Oily finger prints, smudges, and stains galore. When I sat down, I was one of two customers in the place.
My server was clearly having a really bad day, and were it not for my experience with him I probably would have given this place at least another star. He first brought me a paper menu by tossing it onto my table as he walked by. I didnt think too much of it at the time, but I was about to figure out what was going on. He then brought me a glass of water and almost slammed the thing on the table, and it spilled a little. I said thank you, and rather than a «you’re welcome» or even a «yeah», I received a glare that distinctly said, «whatever, asshole.»
The guy comes and takes my order after several minutes, and I ordered the ‘freaking awesome tortellini’ and an iced tea. Guy brings my tea and sets it on my table with the same force as was placed my glass of water. Another ‘thank you’ and another glare. At around this time, I notice that the server is literally stomping around the restaurant like a 5 year old does during a temper tantrum. Im starting to question my decision to come here.
This next paragraph is by no means the fault of Grill or their staff, but pissed me off to no end. So as I said before, I was one of two customers when I walked in. The first group was sitting towards the front of the restaurant. I purposefully sat in the rear in one of the probably 10 booths back there, because frankly I didnt want to be bothered by anyone. Two girls walk in and beeline for the booth right next to mine that shares a bench with me. When the girl sits down, some rigid metal object pokes me in the back and a few moments later I cant stand it anymore and switch to the other side of my booth. Really, people? You have probably 20 tables to choose from and you gotta pick the one that shares a bench with me? Assholes.
The one amusing thing to come from my seemingly suicidal server I observed a few moments later while these dumb bitches mulled over the menu. The server came and asked them if they were ready to order. What they should have said was «Not yet, could we get a few more minutes?» What they actually said was «Yeah, I think so. hmmmmm i dont know. What are you getting? Oh you dont know either. Well I think ill get the… hmmm…noooo…hmmm…» etc. at which point the server sat down at the adjacent booth, listened to them prattle on for a moment or two, and then just got up and walked away leaving them somewhat astonished but no more ready to order. Good for him, I suppose.
OK THE FOOD, FINALLY! It actually didnt take very long to arrive, but with all the other things going on it felt like a lifetime of waiting. I feel stupid saying this, because the purpose of a restaurant is food, but THE ONLY GOOD THING ABOUT THIS PLACE IS THE FOOD! Its great, actually. The garlic cream sauce on the tortellini is fantastic with roasted garlic chunks, spinach and a nice rich flavor of parmesean, butter, and heavy cream. It honestly rivals some sauces Ive had at 4 and 5 star restaurants. The tortellinis themselves are well cooked. It comes with a little bread which was lightly toasted. The portion is large and appropriate for the price. I have leftovers.
The place has a 4 star potential, I think, provided they find a server whose not at the end of his rope, wipe down a table or two, and fix whatever metal bar hit me in the back inside their booth seating. Unfortunately, Tucson has really limited 24-​hour options, especially close to me. As a result, its likely that I will be back eventually. However, there will undoubtedly be two or three times between now and then when Ill say to myself at 2 in the morning, «I should go get some food» but then ill remember what a crappy experience I had here, and wind up at Nico’s or the like instead.

Grill is an awesome, awesome place. Sure, the food and service are completely dependent on who is working both the front and back of house, but you go to Grill because you love Grill, period. The Turkey on Rye is phenomenal (I like to add bacon) and the Spinach Ravioli in herbed pink sauce is once of the best entrees in Tucson. We’re lucky to still have Grill around here in Tucson and I hope they continue doing what they do for a long time.
For a really rare treat, check out Dmitri the bartender on Saturday afternoons, he makes a mean Clover Club.

I ended up at Grill because a friend begged me to accompany him to a social gathering of his business peers. I told him I had ZERO interest in setting foot inside the place, having seen a story about them on Channel 12. «Self-​induced eating disorders…» was more than enough for me to hear to know I wouldn’t give them a dollar of mine. But, since I’m a good friend I relented and went inside…
You know how you’ll see a particularly trashy looking girl and she’ll have too much make-​up on, a cheap outfit and smell kinda like a baby hooker and you’ll think to yourself «I bet if I bumped into her she’d be sticky for some reason.» Well, that’s how I felt as I stepped inside. I didn’t want to touch anything and I didn’t want to order anything and I really, really didn’t want to be there.
I sat in a booth and watched as other people dealt with the discourteous wait staff and smiled to myself for not ordering anything. Then I watched as nauseating looking food appeared at the table at a glacial pace. I said to my friend «…and this is better than, say, Denny’s, Taco Bell, or anything else that’s open this late at night?» He made a face and picked at his food. Then he said «…at least at Taco Bell I wouldn’t be worried about food poisoning.» Exactly.
The meal lasted for what seemed like forever and when it finally ended I couldn’t get out of there fast enough. I can’t imagine that Grill stays in business for any other reason beyond location and hours. It can’t possibly be the food or the ambiance or the wait staff or the menu or the design or… You get the point. I suppose if one is trying very very hard to be cool they’d enjoy themselves but I’ll just go ahead and never go near this place again.

Sadly (or not) «late night after-​drinking munchies» are a thing of the past for us, but we did stumble in here for breakfast one Saturday. The omelet was very good. The plate-​sized pancakes… not so much. Loved the greasy spoon-​with an attitude vibe. I read the militant tongue-​in-​cheek «fine print» on the back of the menu start to finish.
«Chew your food before swallowing. Don’t talk with your mouth fill. Don’t talk to a big man’s girlfriend. Don’t eat off the floor. Put the lid down and lavese sus manos.» Got it.
Just don’t look too close at the décor. The place is literally falling apart. Our waitress was in a zone (maybe recovering from her own late night binge?). But the other waitress (with a perky smile and hot pink pixie) was delighted to pitch in.
My husband says he has no desire to go back. And my hipster sensibilities have gotten a little more uptown over the years. But secretly? My 25-​year-​old self pines for a big bowl of Cap’n Crunch to stave off the inevitable hangover after a night on the town. (Ah, memories.)

I Love their french fries!

I would leave 0 stars if Unilocal would let me. I’ve never had a good experience at the Grill. I stopped going after the 3^rd AWFUL experience.
The service is IMMENSELY rude. I had a menu thrown down hard enough to spill my water on my lap once BY THE WAITER. And called a crackhead. For having the audacity to ask for cheese on my tots. Yes, it says they don’t add cheese to potatoes in the menu. In the middle of a full page of pt. 6 font. I’m sorry, I didn’t realize I had to read an epic poem to get my drunk snacks at 2:30 am.
The food is… passable. Nothing to write home about, though. And overpriced.
Last but not least, the last (and final) visit I paid to the Grill, a cockroach the size of a yacht scuttled right past my plate.
NEVER AGAIN. NEVER EVER. I don’t care how cool you think you are, The Grill. I’ll just go the extra mile and eat at the Broadway Diner.

The Grill is one of the only joints serving food downtown after the witching hour, but the menu, heavily weighted in favor of those with a serious case of the munchies, does offer something for almost everyone. Deep-​fried ravioli? Got ‘em. Kap’n Krunch? Check. Tots, open-​faced sandwiches, meatloaf, oh yeah. Nothing on the menu stands out as exceptional, but the marinara sauce is tangy and rich and the sausage gravy is chunky. Subtle flavors aren’t the point — the Grill is for settling the stomach, checking out vintage fashions, and listening to a dude in a velvet jacket rasping out his best Tom Waits. The service is competent and more than friendly.
The restroom is cramped and noisy with a disturbingly flimsy door.
After midnight, the Red Room (separated from The Grill by an accordion partition) comes alive with hipsters. Don’t be blinded by the paisley — The Grill books talented acts and the jam session atmosphere is welcoming and relaxed. The Red Room sports a tiny but well-​stocked bar in the corner. More creative facial hair cannot be found in the greater Southwest region. Don’t change a thang here, except the bathroom door.

Once the bars close, the Grill is THE place to be in downtown Tucson.
It’s not pretty, the waitresses aren’t always the nicest, and the people sitting at the booth next to you may smell funky… But where else can you get a big ass bowl of Cap’n Crunch at 2 am? The bagels are great for soaking up booze as well.
Don’t go in with super high expectations and it’s impossible to leave disappointed… Remember — This isn’t a gourmet eating establishment. It’s a café in downtown Tucson for crying out loud!

TRUE GRIT.
There’s no getting around it. Tucson’s Grill is punk as fuck, and there’s not one thing wrong with that.
What other place do you know of that has a manifesto on every menu? And that’s open 24 hours (does Denny’s have a manifesto, i wonder)? One time there was a guy juggling knives out front… after we made our order the waitress had to go outside to retrieve him – he was the cook! I’m real jealous that there is NOWHERE this cool in Phoenix.
There’s awesome beers right next door, the coffee is good, and there’s RC Cola at the fountain! The food is amazingly good. On our most recent visit we had the meatloaf with requisite tater tots and grilled veggies, and the portabello mushroom with hummus sandwich. The meatloaf was flavorful, MASSIVE (I’d love to see the size of the actual loaf it was cut from), and the mushroom gravy on top was so thick and delicious that I could dip my tots in it and it still wouldn’t slide down to the plate. My wife did not put her portabello sandwich down once she picked it up, and she devoured it so fast it was like someone was gonna steal it from her. Everyone always raves about the tots and while some may think that they’re easy to make, I’ll instead say that they’re easy to screw up. They are awesome and no visit to the Grill is complete without them.
People say that the place is filthy, and in disrepair, but that’s part of it’s charm. I guarantee if they were worried about the décor then the food would not be as good as it is. People complain about the service, but I’ve always thought that you get what you give, especially when it’s 2am and there’s only one waitress on staff. I’ve never felt insulted, but I’ve also felt that my patience has always paid off. It’s not elegant, it’s REAL. If you don’t get places like this, please stay away. I’m not afraid of gritty restaurants, and I could see how the less adventurous could be turned off, but it’s seriously worth it.

«If you like it then you shoulda put a tot on it»
«If you wanna be my lover, gotta get with my tots»
«I gotta feeling, that tonight’s gonna be a tot night»
When you’re sitting at the Grill, coming up with all of the lyrics for which you can sub in the word tot, the possibilities seem endless! The music is indescribable, the waitstaff rotates faster than an old 45, and the food isn’t going to win an culinary awards this year. But you can’t beat sitting around with a few friends, noshing on fried tater tots, rewriting classic pop hits: That’s what the Grill is made of.
It doesn’t matter how hard you partied beforehand, how early you need to be up tomorrow, or how you don’t really need a hamburger at 1AM, all is forgiven and forgotten when you walk into the Grill. Everybody is in the same boat, and they don’t care much about you or your table because they’re coming up with things like, «I run for tots,» and «We built this city on rocks and tots» at their table.
I’ve been at the Grill when I should have probably gone to bed. I’ve eaten a hamburger when I should have realized what obscene hour it really was. I’ve sat at the Grill when it was my turn to drive the group home, and I wasn’t in the same ‘spirits’ as the rest. And I have to say, every single one of those times has been a blast. The burger isn’t half bad. Get it with some grilled onions and mushrooms to round out the flavor and add depth. More importantly, the service has been great, and that’s what keeps me going back. It’s a downtown restaurant icon. And if you can get past the strange tunes, odd décor, and just decent diner grub, you’ll find a glimmer of something special that will make it so you go back more than once. And if you do, you might see me. The waitresses call me, «That tot guy!»

Righteously snarfable grubble. Emphasis on the tots. They sling you a whole messa tots.
Waiting for the train at the nearby Amtrak station, I grabbed me a reuben here. It was served on marble rye. Hit the spo’. Crunched down on the tater tots they filled the remainder of the plate with. Oh dem tots!
Someone was pounding away on the piano in the adjoining Red Room. This seems like the kinda place where you could really pull off a ridiculous Tom Waits song and it would be perfectly in character, since the whole restaurant and lounge are kinda janky and retro.
Paraphrased from Tom Waits’ «The Piano Has Been Drinking»:
The piano has been drinking
my necktie is asleep
and the combo went back to New York
the jukebox has to take a leak
and the carpet needs a haircut
and the spotlight looks like a prison break
cause the telephone’s out of cigarettes
and the balcony’s on the make
and the piano has been drinking
the piano has been drinking… not me.

«Grill» often referred to as «The Grill» (because it kind of is a one-​and-​only type place), is a STAPLE of downtown Tucson culture. If you haven’t stumbled into Grill at 1:45am and ordered a $ 1 Miller Highlife and tots, you haven’t really lived Tucson.
Unlike most restaurants where the atmosphere is pretty much constant from open to close, the feel and «look» of Grill seems to change depending on when you go in, and that’s the beauty of it. You can go on a date with someone there (This can easily be one of your deal-​breakers) and watch the sun rise. Or you can go in for a late breakfast. The way the sun bounces off the «tall» downtown buildings and into Grill is perfect. It’s kind of quiet and swanky, in a trashy sort of way. You could go into the Red Room and admire the décor while sipping on Jameson on the rocks. You can go at night and watch the piano man while eating steak and eggs. I mean, there are SO many options here!
Beware! If you’re stuck up or were hoping for a 5-​star service, you can forget about it. If you’re planning on getting your food (this mostly applies to the nighttime crowd) in less than an hour, forget about it. Read the menu. They pride themselves in their «We really don’t give a shit» attitude. It’s what makes them so charming!
Also beware! Late night visits can sometimes result in the tiny bathroom stall filled with vomit. If you’re cultured, you’ll see it as an opportunity for a great story. :)
This place MAKES Tucson.

I love that The Grill is one of those places that embodies everything I love about the South. With it’s rock-​n-​roll soundtrack and Devil-​may-​care waitstaff– You could pick it up and transport it to party-​friendly Athens GA, Austin, TX or New Orleans, LA and no one would blink. It is one of those places that is so effortlessly cool (and slightly grimy) that you know it’s gotta be delish. It’s an older diner, offering a more modern take on traditional diner «comfort» foods.
Plenty of veggie Options and a central downtown location make this a great choice for getting your grub on, whether it be in the middle of the afternoon (laaaaaid back, but not inattentive) or at bar time (which I have never done, but I hear things can get pretty wily). I have eaten here on a few occasions, and I’m always leaving stuffed and happy for a very minimal price. For ultimate comfort, I command you to eat the tots.
What sells me though is the visuals, There are fantastic little quirks everywhere. I love everything from the molded ceiling tiles to the vinyl booths, to the band stickers to the manager’s crows nest. Mirrors and bright blue hues everywhere. It’s a real trip, man.
I also like that there is a photo booth – which may or may not be in operation. It’s livelihood had been sporadic upon my visits.

Faced with hunger, I just happened to spot this place as I cruised through downtown. The restaurant’s neon signage just barely caught my eye as I cruised past it. Grill is a funky diner with good dose of personality. Read the back of the menu if you are in the mood to be sassed.
So the menu was more complex than I had anticipated, which was a welcome surprise. I went with a portabello mushroom sandwich. It was put together quite spectacularly using hummus. Pleased I was! If you are expecting straight up diner food – it might be on the menu, but I think it’s a shame to waste Grill’s creativity by not trying their other items.
My favorite part of diner was the crazy, hip, cool, street – anti-​Obama graffiti in the men’s bathroom. Welcome to the strange Southwest!