UPDATE, May 12, 2009: Laci’s is now a cafe and burger joint, with a much more extensive menu and eat-in dining!
Back to the original post:
The other day we stopped in at Laci’s Burger Joint in Eastwood and were left with an overall positive impression. The menu is almost completely burgers, so you know they’d better be good! Dave had the Hot Mama Burger, which has jalapeños, pepper jack cheese, onion, lettuce and tomato. He said it was very good. Understand that Dave likes fairly spicy-hot food. I had the Empire Burger, with its apples, brie cheese, lettuce and tomato. The burger was large, cooked to order, and tasty. It was not the best burger I’ve ever had, but this may be in part due to the fact that I probably needed something with stronger flavors. The apples were an interesting addition but the brie got lost under the burger. And I was pretty much baffled by the combination of apple and tomato. It would have been better with cheddar and a chipotle mayonnaise instead.
There are nine kinds of burgers. All of them come with waffle fries, or you can have their sweet potato fries or onion rings for a buck extra. Spend that dollar – the sweet potato fries are out of this world.
The overall experience was one you’d expect on opening day: earnest cooks, a few elements that you hope will be improved, and enough going right that you really, really want this business to succeed. I hope that, as time goes by, they’re able to figure out how to get seating in there. They’re going to need it to keep people paying $6.95 for a burger and fries. This is not an outrageous price, but we’re so accustomed to paying less for inferior burgers, it might be a tough sell unless the experience of enjoying a burger out is part of the deal. I don’t know what the laws are about having accessible bathrooms, but by gum, that place used to have a counter (and maybe a couple booths?). The old bathroom door is decidedly not wide enough for today’s standards. Could an exception be made for an historic building?
Here’s what we saw inside Laci’s:
Here’s what the inside could look like, remarkably similar to what it used to look like (taken from this page on White Towers). Notice it has the same tile floor!
We wish Laci’s Burger Joint all the luck. With a few warm afternoons left to us, we should be able to sit down at a table on the patio. Come winter, I’d dearly love to sit at a counter, watch the grillman create my burger, and maybe even bump into some of my neighbors.
Laci’s Burger Joint, 2700 James Street, Syracuse, NY 13206
phone 315.399.4446
fax 315.399.4449
Open 11am to 7pm
Monday – Saturday
your blog is great and thanks for the info about laci’s. it looks great and i’ll have to check it out
I tried out Laci’s last week. Considering myself to be an extreme “Burger-phile”, I was sort of disappointed.
I ordered the Blue Burger (blue cheese, carameled onions, letuce and tomato). The pluses were the presentation including the handy carrying box and colorful black/white wrappers, the high-quality bun, and my surprise to receive REAL fries (Texas style cut)instead of waffle fries as advertised. The negatives were the extruded burger itself which may have had extenders added and would have preferred the bun toasted. Overall, I’ve gotta give Laci’s a C+.
I tried Laci’s for the first time last night and thought the burger was first rate. For what I got, I didn’t think $6.95 was bad at all. If you by a comparable size burger at McD’s or Wendy’s and add the fries – you’ve spent almost that much for now where near the quality!
Laci’s has added some stools and a narrow counter that looks out the front windows so there’s definitely a place to sit if you want – perhaps a new addition since Lonnie visited.
They’ve come up with some pretty creative burgers but you can always try the Diva burger to get it made “your way”!
Definitely worth a return visit!
We had the Blue burgers tonight and got an Eastwood for our toddler (a kids meal would be nice!). The burgers were pretty tasty. I thought the Blue could have used some mayo…it was a little dry. The sweet potato fries were yummy. I think adding a drink to the meal would help with the price. How much could a drink add to their cost? We’ll probably get burgers there again.
Today was our first visit since Lacy’s opened. We have had meals from the previous occupants (Lotsa Pasta, etc) and were always happy that this location was occupied and running as a restaurant/takeout establishment. While there we reminisced about the old Tri-R Diner, and exchanged memories with the owner. Quality, quantity, presentation were great. It is VERY tough to find a good local burger joint in this area – and its great knowing this location, along with its owner, is there to set a new standard.