KosherCritic

Professional, unbiased reviews of all kosher restaurants located in the State of Maryland and the District of Columbia.

Tuesday, January 02, 2007

Max's - 8.5/10 Hamburgers

Ben and a friend ate at Max’s which has been a staple of the Jewish community for a over a decade now. Prior to Max’s, there was a toy store in that location. Max’s is conveniently located on University Blvd. in Wheaton which is a 7 mile drive from Rockville, and an even closer drive from Kemp Mill. Max’s has been a favorite of many for good reason.

Food Quality: Max’s is arguably one of the best-tasting kosher places to eat in the area and certainly in Montgomery County. Their schwarma is second to none this side of the Atlantic as they use real lamb meat versus chicken or other beef. They have many options ranging from the typical Mediterranean fare, to the classic American hamburger. Their falafel is quite delicious with the balls being not too coarse and not too soft. You will find that Max’s gives you nice sized portions as they give you an entire pita filled to the brim with over 10 different toppings of your choice. The chili could be better as it seems a bit sparse in texture and flavoring
but goes down the throat with a soothing warmth. Despite having quite a variety, you will find that Max’s really does deliver on their food overall. 9 Hamburgers.

Service: What I really like about Max’s is that you can custom order your food without a problem and the wait isn’t too long. They do have a rather unique way of doing it though. Typically, you will find yourself paying for your food prior to eating it, as Max’s does not try to present itself as a traditional sit-down restaurant. You will find that it can get pretty busy
at times but if you’re willing to wait in line for 5 minutes at most, your food will be hand delivered to you with a smile. The layout of the condiments and other necessities is not ideal but serves its purposes. 9 Hamburgers.

Cleanliness: The restaurant is usually clean but because of the large numbers of families with young children it serves, it can at times get a bit messy on the tables and seats. During the time I was there I did not observe any food on the floors but there were some trays left on tables and
a few leftover food products on the table. 8 Hamburgers.

Atmosphere: The restaurant is an informal place to go to when you don’t feel like cooking at home and wish to grab a fairly quick bite. The seats are booth style with some chairs and tables scattered around. Kids love this place as they have various arcade games available to play and at times it can get a bit noisy. I was not impressed with seeing some heavily used containers, which seemed a bit dirty, being used to transport water from the sink to the water dispenser for consumption. You will find that Max's has a very sociable atmosphere, as everyone seems to know each other. This helps to brighten the mood further when one walks in. Max's is, in essence, the neighborhood hangout place. 8 Hamburgers

Price: The prices are reasonable overall with most items available under $10 which plays very nicely into the hands of the typical Jewish family. 8.5 Hamburgers.