Finleyville
Dairy Queen Grill Chill

Dairy Queen Grill Chill

PA 88, Finleyville, 15332, United States Of America

Cafés • Grill • Burgers • Fast Food


"Just another fast food chain store, right? Um, no, actually. I was working in the area, and had driven by this DQ all day, maybe 5 or 6 times. Totally nondescript, looks like a thoroughly modern Dairy Queen from the street, but, they have a large parking lot that can accommodate my truck, so, I figured I'd stop and grab a burger for lunch. Parked my truck, walked up to the door to what I assumed was the dining room, only to be greeted by a sign that reads Cake pickup Only . I'm like, man I can't fit in the drive thru, so I guess I'm going down the road. Upon further investigation, I realized this is no ordinary DQ, it's actually an old school building, hidden beneath a modern facade.There doesn't seem to be a dining room, and you order at the window in the front of the building, and there are picnic tables in the front and rear of the building outside. Imagine my surprise! What a treat. I didn't think there were any of these old school buildings left. Often times, the big chains will require their franchisees to replace their building with whatever the modern version may be. They all do it, restaurant chains, car dealers, etc. Sometimes there are holdouts, who refuse to tear down their building for whatever reason, and a good portion of them are then forced out, the chain will pull their franchise and leave the franchisee stuck with no business and a vacant building. Sometimes, I guess, they can get away with it and hold on to their franchise, kudos to these folks for keeping their old building. I'm a big fan.Anyway, enough of the nostalgic blabbering, let's get to the reason you're really here, that burger. It should really be criminal for a large chain to serve a burger that looks, and tastes this good. I was really impressed with the presentation. The veggies were crisp and cold, and the patties were cooked to perfection. A great big thank you to the staff, seriously. Thank you for caring enough to build a burger that was truly perfect. Thank you for taking pride in what you do, it doesn't go unnoticed, and it's greatly appreciated. My fries were golden and crispy, again, perfect. And, of course, I had to top it off with a cherry Dillie Bar.Look, I don't really make it a point to review a large chain in depth. We all know what to expect anytime we go to one of those places. But truly, this was one of the best burgers I've had in a while, and not just for a chain, I mean in general.For friendly service, a perfectly assembled burger, and a nostalgic atmosphere, take the trip to Finleyville and check out this awesome example of an all but forgotten time.Go check it out, you'll be glad you did!"

Brian's Barbecue

Brian's Barbecue

3532 Marion Ave, Finleyville, USA, United States

Meat • Cafés • Cheese • Chicken


"Barbecue is something that's hard to judge objectively. So much of it comes down to personal tastes. When you consider the differences in regional barbecue, the differences can be both drastic and nuanced.I've had barbecue all over the US. All over the world, in fact. There really isn't a type or style of bbq that I haven't had. Take that as some credentials if you're looking for them.We stopped by and got brisket, mac and cheese, cornbread and the potato salad. Dinner for two, super reasonable. Like $20 or so.My personal barbecue preference tends to be a brisket, lots of smoke flavor, heavy bark and an mustard based sauce. Something about that just works for me and is usually what I look for.Brian's brisket is almost exactly none of those things. Checking basically none of my check boxes. And...I'm giving it 4 stars none the less, because the food itself is delicious. Even if it's not my Weird Science perfect brisket, what it is works and it works well.The menu doesn't really say much about the brisket. If I had to bet, I can't help but think I taste coffee. So I don't know if it's a rub or if it's maybe entirely my imagination. Doesn't seem like a hickory (my favorite) or a mesquite (my least favorite) since the wood flavor doesn't really jump out like it does with those. So I'm guessing some fruit wood giving a mellow smoke flavor. That coffee, or whatever I'm tasting, actually does a great job of giving you some earthy and roasted flavor. So it kinda works to amp up the more subtle smoke flavor. The meat itself was very succulent and juicy. I think that might impact the bark a little, but you can absolutely still taste the rub. It's not hurting for seasoning.Whoever called the sauce glorified ketchup doesn't know what they're talking about. First off, standard BBQ sauce IS glorified ketchup. The red sauce everyone knows and loves is almost always, always, always made with ketchup. Your BBQ sauces tend to start with a whole condiment. There's those ketchup based sauces, mustard based sauces, there's vinegar based sauces... there's even mayonnaise based sauces in Alabama. It's more or less how all the sauces go.Brian's sauce seems to be built around crushed tomatoes. Which I've encountered previously, and tended not to like very much. Too often they wind up being like a marinara. To serve it up it has a certain spaghetti sauce consistency. I wasn't hopeful. That said, one taste and the spice and vinegar kick in. Kinda like a Carolina style sauce, but with the underlying tomato you'll totally see it's a BBQ sauce and a damned fine one at that.The sauce transforms the meat. When I had the brisket by itself, I was a little underwhelmed. It was tasty but it might have been pot roast, not having that big smoke taste. Adding the sauce, it takes on a whole new flavor. Totally delicious. 100% barbecue. Greater than the sum of it's parts, if ever I've encountered it.Mac and cheese was good, very reasonably priced. Wouldn't make a trip just for that but, lot of people out there making really good macaroni.And while I'm not a big potato salad guy, I have to admit this is one of the few ones out there that I had a second bite of. So, I can only imagine if you're into potato salad that this would be a good one for you.But that's basically it. Really good barbecue, reasonably priced. Not sure what else you'd want."