Daniel B.
Yelp
George's is a restaurant and bar known for its burgers. No, it's not a Holeman & Finch or one of those trendy burger joints (e.g. Flip, Farm, Yeah). On the contrary -- George's has been open in Virginia-Highland since 1961. After reading about this place on Yelp and wanting to come here for a few years, I finally made the trip for dinner and had a burger. I am pleased to report the burger was very good! I guess they haven't been open for 50+ years for nothing.
This is an old-fashioned bar with TVs aplenty. I wouldn't necessarily classify George's as a sports bar. However, this isn't a bad spot to catch a game. They even carry premium sports channels like NBA TV. Patio seating is available. In the wintertime, the patio is enclosed.
The restaurant offers a dozen different varieties of burgers in 5 or 8 ounce patties. 5 ounce burgers are no more than $8.25 per and 8 ounce burgers are no more than $9.50 per. The burgers are hand-pattied and charbroiled and come inside a whole wheat bun. If you're not interested in a burger, you can order from a limited selection of soups, salads, sandwiches, wraps, and hot dogs.
I ordered the Bacon & Jack burger. This burger was once featured on the cover of Atlanta Magazine. It came with three small, extra crispy strips of bacon and Monterey Jack cheese. The burger also came with lettuce, tomato, red onion, and a pickle spear. The veggies were fresh. I added a bit of ketchup, mustard, and mayo and chowed down. The burger was delicious. I had the beef cooked medium. The beef was hearty, sufficiently juicy, and chock full of flavor. The whole wheat bun, lightly grilled, was soft and fluffy.
One of my tablemates ordered the Mushroom & Swiss burger. It looked more appealing than my Bacon & Jack burger. Next time I come back to George's, I will be ordering the Mushroom & Swiss burger.
I tried four of the restaurant's sides: potato salad, onion rings, tater tots, and French fries. The potato salad was cold, salty, and too vinegary/soggy. I don't know if the potato salad had been sitting out too long or what, but it didn't taste fresh nor very good. It was the only food item I tried that I didn't like.
The onion rings were excellent. I could taste the beer-battered flavor in them. They were appetizingly crispy, as were the tater tots. I recommend both the onion rings and tater tots as sides. They're not too greasy or oily, either. The fries were fries. They weren't bad, but there wasn't anything special about them.
Service was great.
George's is located in the heart of Virginia-Highland. Free (parallel) parking is available along many of the neighborhood side streets.
Fun fact: There are celebrity name plates of many of the tables. It's a record of all the famous people who have eaten here. I ate at the table where Justin Timberlake ate at when he was in town filming the movie "Trouble with the Curve" (2012).