Simple, Inexpensive, Outstanding Food at Brownsville’s Mindfield Grill

I had been in Brownsville for the Fife Fest at the West Tennessee Delta Heritage Center, which broke up at 8 PM, and I was eager for dinner, and nervous, because the restaurant I wanted to eat at, the Mindfield Grill closed at 8:30. Numerous attempts to eat at the place in the past had failed because of their limited and rather quirky hours. It took me until 8:15 PM to make it there, but the employees were very gracious and more than willing to seat me. And what an amazing experience it was.
The Mindfield Grill takes its name from its next-door neighbor, the Mindfield, a massive outdoor art installation by artist Billy Tripp that covers several city blocks in downtown Brownsville. Tripp also owns the building where the grill is located, but he does not own the restaurant, which rents space from him. The menu is fairly straightforward, but remarkably varied, with everything from burgers to fried shrimp to steaks. I chose a burger with bacon and blue cheese and french fries ($5) that was superior to the $12 bacon-bleu cheese burgers in Memphis. There was nothing necessarily fancy about it, just delicious goodness. The fries were a beautiful golden-brown and crispy. Desserts I usually can do without, but the waitress explained that they had key lime pie, and, yes, it was made in-house. That I could not resist, and I didn’t! It was, like my burger and fries, absolutely delicious. When the bill came, I was still elated. Dessert and all, it only came to $11. If there is a disappointment, it is in the strangely-limited hours of the Mindfield Grill. They are open for lunch every day other than Saturday, that being one of the quirks that delayed me trying them for so long. They are open for dinner on Thursday, Friday and Saturday only, but even then, fairly limited hours, from 5 PM to 8:30 PM. Even so, make an intentional trip to Brownsville. You’ll enjoy the delicious food, and get a chance to view the Mindfield itself. It’s worth it.