Wednesday, October 21, 2009

I ♥ Springfield: Fins Drive In.

People of Eugene, I have a confession: I heart Springfield.


Sure, Downtown Springfield sometimes looks like a page off of People of Walmart, but what it lacks in form it makes up for in function.  Home prices are cheaper than in Eugene, property taxes are WAY lower, we have a beautiful new hospital, there are less pot holes, and we have $1.50 movies: I seriously do love this town.


So, even though this blog is titled the "Eugene" Burger Blog, it's really a Lane County burger blog.  There are burgers to be eaten in Springfield, and someone needs to eat them: preferably me.



Fins Drive In is out on 40th and Main Street in Springfield, and I knew as soon as I drove up that I was going to love the place.  Between the awesome neon, the '59 Caddy sticking out the front of the building, and the old school drive in parking spots Fins has all the charm it needs.


The inside is small, and was surprisingly packed on a Thursday night;  there were a few spots left at the U-shaped bar, but every booth in the place was taken.  


While I was genuinely sad to see that Fins doesn't serve beer, they make up for it with a home-made root beer.  I don't really know what to say about it, other than that it tasted very little like a commercial root beer, and it was really good.  I also tried the chocolate milk shake, and have to say that it is mediocre at best: order the root beer.


The burgers are all named after classic cars: The Impala, The Mustang, The Eldorado, etc...  The patties are made from locally farmed beef, and are hand-made daily.  


I ordered the Bel Air: a 1/4 lb. patty with your choice of cheese (american, pepper jack, cheddar or swiss), bacon, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickle, and special sauce all for $5.50.


The burger was awesome. I got the american as usual.  The beef was delicious, and the patty was generous (not the skimpy crap some restaurants try to pass off as a 1/4 lb.). The veggies were fresh, and perfectly proportioned.  The bacon was a little crispier than I prefer, but still bacon.  Finally, the special sauce tasted to me like thousand island dressing, so... maybe not so special, but still plenty tasty.


The fries were an extra $1.25, and unfortunately the worst part of the meal. They were over-cooked, and not very fresh.  Fries are one of those things that, at some restaurants, are different depending on what time you go, on what day, and on who is in the kitchen, so I certainly wouldn't rule the fries out in the future, but it was the low-point of this meal. 



The onion rings on the other hand were delicious.  they are home-made, and were super fresh (maybe at the expense of MY fries). they are $2.25, and totally worth it if onion rings are your thing.


Bottom line: Fins is good eats.  It's cheap, the servers are friendly, and it has a great atmosphere.  


Fins Drive In 
4090 Main St.
Springfield, OR 97478


541 741 3467    




Bookmark and Share  Fins Drive In on Urbanspoon


5 comments:

  1. I heard this place is closed and converted to a different format now. Too bad I never got a chance to try it out.

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  2. In what is maybe the biggest coincidence in my blogging career, I was sitting down to eat a burger, when this comment showed up in my email inbox. A burger from Fins Drive In.

    I am happy to say that you heard wrong. Good thing you're not Mr. Springfieldified.

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  3. Correction: Fin's is still open. I ate their yesterday and it's pretty good. Sorry for the incorrect info. Someone on Urbanspoon gave me some faulty info.

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  4. Oops, our comments got crossed! I ate there yesterday also. Did you see me? I was the guy with the big E on my forehead (for Eugenified, of course!). I ordered a burger and fries, and Mrs. E ordered breakfast.

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  5. I ordered my burger without the "special sauce". Later I noticed on the check that the waitress had written "Fins Classic minus 1000". So you are right...The "special sauce" is in fact non-special Thousand Island dressing.

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