For more than a decade, you’ve known ‘The Buck’—burgers and brew—in downtown St. Joseph.
Pretty simple, right? Well, not exactly.
If you want to take full advantage of one of the best and most wide-ranging menus in town, you owe it to yourself, your friends and family to go beyond just burgers when you visit The Buck. Particularly during the ‘off season’, the LOCAL season when Michigan’s Great Southwest has The Buck pretty much to itself. And that’s a special treat!
The man who created The Buck is Ken Kozminski, its proud, busy owner. Ken sat down with MoodyOnTheMarket.com to talk about ‘life in the off season’ at The Buck, and how important local customers are to him and other downtown St. Joseph bar and restaurant owners.
Ken says it’s a different business in the winter, and a different group of customers. So, he significantly changes the Buck menu, expanding the focus beyond burgers to include an entire page of specialty ‘comfort foods’—entrees that you wouldn’t normally expect in a burger bar.
“We’re not just a burger, sandwich, salad joint,” Ken says with a smile. “Although people do love our salads.”
And he highlights some of the Comfort Foods at The Buck:
“Our meatloaf is one of the highlights of our seasonal comfort food. We also have a pork steak ribeye. And, we’ve got horseradish encrusted salmon, which is one of my personal favorites. if you eat salmon, try it. It’s excellent. Excellent!”
Ken points out that The Buck operates what he calls ‘a scratch kitchen.’
“We operate a scratch kitchen, which means that almost all of our ingredients and all of our dishes that we serve are all made from scratch, including all of our sauces and soups.” Many restaurants utilize pre-made items from a couple of big food vendors—you’ve probably seen the trucks all over town. Not so at The Buck. Most menu items are created in-house, from scratch.
Kozminski invites local area residents to try the comfort foods menu and to take their time, enjoying The Buck’s friendly, easy-going atmosphere. No rush. There are plenty of tables on two levels at The Buck. It’s much larger than it appears from the outside at 412 State Street.
While spotlighting the comfort food menu featured in the off season, Ken proudly points to a full page of Buck Burgers that are always available and take center stage during the summer tourist season. Ken says The Buck’s signature seven-ounce beef patty is no ordinary burger:
“We make a tri-blend burger, which is not something you get everywhere else. It’s made up of chuck, short rib, and brisket. So, we blend those items together to create what’s called a tri-blend burger. It’s the burger that we used to sell at State Street Meats. People loved it… they even made chili and tacos with it. And now they love it in our burgers at The Buck!”
Ken takes great pride in his loyal and dedicated staff at The Buck, many of whom have been with him for years. And he has respect for everyone working in the hospitality industry, welcoming thousands of visitors, driving the economy here in Michigan’s Great Southwest. So, he honors those Industry People every Monday:
“On industry day, which is on Monday, people that work in the hospitality business can come in and mention that to their server and they’ll get 20% off their entire bill. And they can also use their VIP cards for an additional ten percent. So, it’s kind of like a double whammy on Mondays if you’re in the hospitality industry and come see us at The Buck!”
The Buck VIP Card is another way that Ken and his staff show their appreciation for local Southwest Michigan customers. Register with your server for a VIP Card and you’ll begin building points that can be used for future purchases or discounts, similar to a gift card. VIP card members get double bonus points every weekday 3-6 during The Buck Happy Hour.
Learn more about the VIP benefits from your server or visit www.EatAtTheBuck.com
Phone 269-281-0320 for questions or large group reservations or special events.
The Buck opens at 11:30 am daily, usually until 9 pm, 10 pm Saturdays & 8:30 Sundays. Closed Tuesdays.
By Gayle Olson, MOTM Contributor
