Lunch at Marv's Drive in.

After the Rugby game, I had a very late lunch at a new restaurant in Saint George, Marv's Drive-in.  I wondered if this might be a franchise that I haven't yet heard of.  I guess it is.....sort of.  There are two Marv's drive-ins and this is the second one.  The original is in Enterprise Utah, about 37 miles away.   

When you walk in, you are greeted with this sign that promises freshness and a throwback experience to the 1950. 

I ordered a pepper jack cheeseburger and fries.  I then had a look around while I waited for my food.  The owners had definitely put some cash into giving the place a look of the 1950's.

A checkerboard floor, very typical of 1950's style restaurant decor.

An retro looking front counter and old style menu board lists the food and prices

I wish I would have timed their cooking.  The sign promises 10 minutes average but it seemed like it was more than that.  Maybe it was.  Average doesn't mean exactly 10 minutes.  It could be 12 minutes.   Anyway, it wasn't an excessively long wait but it did seem slightly longer than my usual wait time for food.  But they do promise fresh food and part of the price of that is you have to wait.

I don't know if the checkered pattern of the bun was retro but it was certainly unusual.  It's been ages since I've had a pepper jack cheeseburger.  Wendy's occasionally offers one and I like getting them when they are available.  I think Marv's offers them as a permanent menu item and I commend them for that.

I do have a few criticisms of Marv's drive-in.  First of all, it's not a drive-in.    A drive-in restaurant is a place where you can park your car and sit there while someone walks out and takes your order.   Some drive-ins make you get out of your car and walk up to a window to place your order but what is implied is that you sit in your car and eat your food there.  There are no car hops at Marv's and there is plenty of seating space on the inside.  The strip mall where it's located, isn't even designed to accommodate anything like that.  Marv's does have a "drive-through" but that's not a drive-in.

The other problem is with the decor itself.  Even though the attempt to create a 50's style restaurant was commendable,  I felt a sense of "modern" in the atmosphere a lot more that I felt a retro vibe.  Even the food didn't seem like a blast from the past.  In fact, it tasted rather modern.

That being said, I don't know if it really matters.  If I had to choose between Marv's and another place that did feel retro but served only average food, I would choose Marv's.  The Pepper jack cheeseburger was excellent and the fresh cut fries were well above the fast food standard.    I'm not in Saint George too much but I'd definitely go back to Marv's for another Pepper jack cheeseburger.  Like I said - They aren't easy to find.

A view of  Red Mountain from Marv's parking lot.