Brother's Grill brings fresh, original menu to Grand River Ave.

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Replacing a campus favorite like BTB Burrito isn’t easy, but it’s not a concern for Eric Gunn, co-owner of Brother’s Grill, 403 E. Grand River Ave.

“It was a nice establishment and a lot of people ate there,” Gunn said. “We want to do our own legacy.”

Despite the lack of students on campus since Brother’s Grill opened Dec. 21 in the building that formerly housed BTB, business has been good, Gunn and his employees said. They said most of the business has come through word-of-mouth.

“It’s been pretty busy at times,” said Dave Hamlin, a former BTB employee who now works at Brother’s Grill. “Every day we do a little bit more business, more people hear about us and we’re just kind of getting prepared for students coming back from break.”

The restaurant’s customers have been a mix of students who stayed in East Lansing during winter break, full-time East Lansing residents and a few disgruntled BTB fans, Gunn said.

“It’s funny. Some people walk in and say, ‘Oh, the menu’s changed,’” he said. “Others walk right back out after they realize it’s not BTB. … There’s some people who walk out just because they’re hungry for a burrito.”

Gunn hopes the grill’s homemade feel sets the restaurant apart from others in the area. The restaurant makes many items, including sauces and sides, from scratch.

“All of (the food) gets made here,” Gunn said. “We don’t have a freezer, so it comes in and we have X amount of days to use it and it has to kick right back out.”

With the freshness comes originality, Gunn said. He has created a menu that reflects his travels and personality.

“(The menu is) all me. Just stuff from traveling around different locations,” he said. “Burgers are burgers and chicken is chicken, we just do a special spice rub on them. We’re just putting our spin on it.”

Despite the work put into each meal, Gunn is confident meals won’t take longer than a 15-minute wait.

So far, Gunn has done little advertising other than putting the restaurant’s profile on Campusfood.com.

Gunn said he has put his all into the restaurant for the past month and has good feelings about the future.

“I pretty much live here. It’s my responsibility, and I enjoy it here. Time goes by fast,” he said. “We have to get through the year, but we definitely want to do some football catering next year.”

For the most part, Brother’s Grill has garnered good reviews and students are curious.

“I’ve heard good things, so I just needed to try it,” communication junior Ray Podvin said. “People have said the burgers are the thing to get.”

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