Merv’s delivers on burger promise in Soddy-Daisy

I keep finding myself in Soddy-Daisy for one reason or another. Living in Hixson, it’s a quick jump up the road for me and an obvious meeting place for all the folks I left behind in Dayton when I moved recently.

Typically, if I’m in town and needing something to quiet my hunger pangs, I’ll opt for one of the chain restaurants I know. But one recent day, I decided instead to pop in the newest Merv’s location (which opened in February) on Dayton Pike.

So there I sat, in a corner booth tucked near the front door with the restaurant’s big, single- panel menu in hand, pretending to look for something to order, while knowing in my heart why I was there: the Merv’s burger.

Here’s how went, roughly.

I ate a big, delicious hamburger while watching top- class world athletes compete at the Olympics on TV. I paid extra for onion rings. Then I fought bag contentment to make room for a fried apple pie. I left Merv’s stuffed. But I didn’t leave Merv’s feeling like I’d just won a gold medal in dining. that visit

THE FOOD

The food is exactly what I hoped it would be. It’s Soddy-Daisy good.

That is to say — for those uninitiated out there — that Merv’s delivers a fat piece of hamburger meat piled high with frills I don’t particularly care for (like vegetables) sandwiched between bread.

You know, Jesus said man cannot live on bread alone, and I think Merv got that message loud and clear. The self-titled Merv burger came with lettuce, onion, tomato, mustard and pickle. Pause. We need to talk about these pickles. These are no arrived-last-week-on-a-boxtruck condiments. These are thick- sliced, sweet rounds of pickles, the likes of which I don’t know I’ve had more than a handful of

If you go

What: Merv’s. Where: 8968 Dayton Pike, Soddy- Daisy, Tenn.

Price range: $6.50 for a burger, $9 for hamburger steak dinner plate.

When: 11 a. m.- 9 p. m., Monday-Saturday; 11 a. m.3 p. m., Sunday.

Contact: 423- 451-3033 or www. mervsburgers.com.

Alcohol: Yes.