Foster's Grille Gets Five Stars from Tough Food Critics

Name: Foster's Grille

Cuisines: American

Payment: Cash, all major Credit Cards

Alcohol:   Full Bar

Price: $

Address: 9417 West St., Manassas, VA 20110

Hours of Operation: Sunday-Thursday: 11 a.m.-9 p.m., Friday-Saturday: 11 a.m.-10 p.m.

Salt Says:

The sign above the restaurant calls Foster's, the home of the “charburger.” I wasn't quite sure what that meant when I walked through the door—but I sure did when I left.

I ordered a quarter-pound charburger with bacon, fries and a soda. The burger was absolutely perfect. On a cold fall night, it reminded me of the best summertime burger I've ever eaten. The charcoal flavor permeates through the burger, but it doesn't take away from the flavor of the meat. It's also one of the juiciest grilled burgers I've had in a long time. The fries were surprisingly good. They had the perfect amount of crunch, but were still soft inside. I don't have a bad word to say about the restaurant.

To me, Foster's is everything a restaurant and bar should be. A huge bar takes up most of the space in the front of Foster's, but there are plenty of tables in the back, and the atmosphere is light enough to be the perfect place to enjoy a quiet drink with a few friends, or a fun meal with your family. During my visit, there were plenty of people doing both. The staff is incredibly friendly and helpful.

Aside from my delicious meal, for me the best part about my visit to Fosters was leaving, and I don't mean that in a bad way. Unfortunately, when writing this column, more times than not  I find myself anxious to leave an establishment. Usually when that happens, the owners and servers are more than anxious to see me go. Not at Foster's. Even though everyone was busy waiting on people, cooking, and cleaning, my server said to me, “see you next time” and smiled at me as I headed to the door. A waitress cleaning the tables did the same.

I felt more welcome here than I have at many places. Coupled with this and the delicious food, Foster's will probably quickly become one of my favorite restaurants in Old Town Manassas.  I would recommend this restaurant to anyone looking to have a good meal in good company.

Pepper Says:

For some reason, I thought Foster’s was an American style, run-of-the-mill chain restaurant. Turns out, it’s another hidden gem.

It reminds me of Fuddruckers in that the menu is simple, so making a decision didn’t take very long. I had to try this charburger they boasted about. It was also, tellingly, the burger everyone else sitting at the barordered.

The staff don’t ask you how you want the meat cooked, which made me worry that I was going to end up with a dried-up burger. But to my surprise, it was one of the best burgers I've had. If I had a bigger appetite that day, I would of definitely tried the chili fries, too.

My burger was with lettuce, tomato, provolone and onions, and took about 10-15 minutes, but it was definitely worth it. The burger was nice and juicy, the veggies were fresh, and the provolone perfectly melted.

The atmosphere is very laid back, and the place is interestingly decorated with random signs and license plates. I originally thought the place was small because I only saw the 10-person bar and a few tables. Well I was wrong, because there is an entire section in the back that‘s not really initially noticeable. There are also a few games back there.

The staff members were young, cheery and very friendly. They were all so eager to be of service, but not too overwhelmingly mindful, like some of the other places where they stare at you while you stare at the menu.

I will definitely return to this place—no doubt to put up a little take out from there. I definitely want to check out the wings, chili fries and most of all, their shakes. I would recommend this place to anyone looking for a good burger.