Restaurants in Gainesville

Cheeseburger Bobby’s serves gourmet burgers, fries, and rich frozen custard in a family-friendly atmosphere. Its hamburgers, like all the best American Idol contestants, are fresh, never frozen, and prepared by hand. Bobby’s classic cheeseburgers ($3.99) are always cooked to order. Select your hamburger’s make and model, and then truss it up at the condiment bar, choosing from a variety of fresh veggies. The crispy and crunchy french fries are fresh-cut from Idaho’s finest twice each day. This cabin of comestibles expands potential meatsperiences with options such as the Bobby's BBQ chicken sandwich ($5.39) or jumbo beef hot dog ($2.99). Herbivores can enjoy veggie burgers ($4.89) with fries ($2.39) or onion rings ($2.69).

Helmed by a brew-happy band of college comrades, Toasted &Tapped dishes up American fare and handcrafted beers in a communal, homespun brewpub. Guests can sample each of the nine beers currently on draft when boarding a beer flight ($7), or bolster biceps with a full glass of the new Rufus the Red Hulk, a hoppy Belgian amber brew that doesn't need to advertise its incredibility ($6).

When customizing a frozen dessert with toppings, many people reach for chocolate chips, sprinkles, or a barrel of whipped cream. Swirlin Twirlin has those classic add-ons in spades—but its toppings selection ventures into unexpectedly gourmet territory, as well. Pomegranates dipped in dark chocolate, bites of cheesecake, and Andes mints join the lineup alongside chilled blackberries, mangos, and watermelon. All of the fresh fruit and crumbled candies are cut daily, and taste-tested by the staff themselves before being added to the bar, which offers more than 50 topping choices.

These add-ons require a foundation, of course. Swirlin Twirlin houses a wall of self-serve machines that fill cups with frozen yogurt in a variety of low-fat, non-fat, and non-dairy flavors. The sweet spirals range from original tart to red velvet, and contain probiotics that aid the "friendly" bacteria that already exist in the digestive system. There are even no-sugar-added flavors, including mango and chocolate, which offer delicious bites without the addition of sucrose.

The galleys at Joe’s to Goes garner gastronomically satisfied grins by housing a menu of handheld hunger stavers. Like a mom-piloted spoon-airplane, two toasted sesame-seed buns shepherd the half pound of ground beef, plus lettuce, tomato, pickle, onion, mayonnaise, mustard, and ketchup cargo, inside Joe's original hamburger ($4.99) to eager cuisine landing zones. There is an additional charge for cheese, bacon, and extra toppings. The low-carb half-pound bacon cheeseburger, meanwhile, flavorfies the palate with gooey cheese melted over crispy bacon ($4.69). A troop of thick-cut steak fries shimmering in special seasonings rallies starving stomachs or buttresses burger-based hunger quenching, and a refreshing soft drink washes away all memories of previous meat deprivation and can be used as drinkable ink for napkin notes written with a fry.

The resident chefs at Azar's Mediterranean Cafe channel Greek, Lebanese, and Italian culinary traditions to craft a diverse menu of Mediterranean specialties. Prime chomping muscles with stuffed grape leaves ($2.25), which cradle rice and Mediterranean spices. Ground beef mingles with herbs and onions on the kafta platter ($9.95) and chicken shish taouk platters ($8.95) skewer garlic chicken, marinated to achieve perfect tenderness. Falafel platters ($9.95) anoint palates with meatless offerings of flash-fried chickpea spheres and grape leaves. Diners can wash down savory flavors or accidentally ingested plates with a variety of refreshing beverages, including mint iced tea and Lebanese coffee.