The Buchanan Grill

Trying to find the history on this little drugstore/grill is nearly impossible. All I can find on their website is "step back in time" but I want more than that, I want to know exactly how far back into time I'm stepping and exactly who is Ransone? Well I still don't know who Ransone is but I did find out that this place is from the 30's and here's a little more that I found:


Botetourt County, Va.: Seven-Inch-tall Burger and a ‘55 AMI Jukebox

“Once you get ahold of it, you don’t turn loose unless you want to eat it with a fork.” That’s Eric Pelton’s advice on how to consume a Big E Burger at the Buchanan Grill in Buchanan, Va.

This flame-grilled wonder rises some seven inches above the plate. Consider the elements: six ounces of freshly ground beef, double cheese, grilled onions, bacon, horseradish, mushrooms, mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, raw onions, pickles, lettuce and tomato.

Pelton, a former truck driver who took over this Buchanan landmark in March of 2010, says most diners cut the Big E Burger in half or attack it with a fork. “And it’s surprising to me that more women order it than men,” he adds.

The restaurant also plates up what Pelton calls “good old Southern home cooking,” and the booths, counters and floors are original, from The Fountain Grill of the late 1930s. The 1955 AMI jukebox still plays 45-rpm records from the Elvis era, all free of charge to customers. Citizens of Buchanan once bowled in the basement of the building.

In this town on the James River, on the first weekend in April, the 1864 raid by Union General David Hunter is re-enacted, with shots ringing out right in front of the restaurant. The Buchanan Grill, in fact, is the only restaurant I’ve found that features video of a Civil War reenactment on its web page.

For customers visiting in the spring to experience the drama of the Civil War, kayakers floating on the James River, and the many locals whose orders Pelton can predict as they walk in the door, the Big E Burger at the Buchanan Grill on Main Street ranks as one of the Blue Ridge’s most memorable attractions.

Blue Ridge Country .

We ate there a few years back, after the Civil War Re-enactment and have to say that we were a bit disappointed in the fact that they have a soda fountain but we were served cokes from a can. Really? This was before the new owner so maybe they've fixed that now. I mean seriously, you're at a soda fountain, the big thrill is to get your cokes from the fountain! Oh, and they played old I Love Lucy re-runs while we were there, loved that!

The grill is across the street from the Buchanan Theater I showed you a couple of days ago :)

Linking up for the first time with