The Icarus Grill
5775 Beckley Road #649There’s a Facebook group in Battle Creek that has really opened my eyes to some place to eat in Calhoun County. It was started during the pandemic’s early days and it’s called The Carryout Club. The goal was simple. Support local businesses during the shutdown.
The shutdown is over but restaurants are still struggling. This Facebook group continues to post pictures and provides a place for local restaurants to showcase their specialties.
I’ve always had a little bit of a harder time finding places to eat in Battle Creek. This Facebook group has opened my eyes to several new places. I just don’t get over there enough to get to everything I want.
I worked a long day last Friday and between morning and evening parts of my shift, I was in Battle Creek. There’s a number of places I’ve been wanting to try but I was out by the mall…and there’s a restaurant there that I’ve been reading a lot about.
The Icarus Grill is inside the Lakeview Square Mall. I haven’t been in this mall in years so I didn’t really know where to go. I assumed it would be near the other food options so I parked near Buffalo Wild Wings and entered the mall through those doors on the south side off Beckley Road.
It has been a really long times since I have been in Lakeview Square Mall and I was honestly surprised that it wasn’t as abandoned as I think I assumed it was. The restrooms near the food court were closed so I had to walk all the way through the mall to find another one and there were people shopping and walking around. It’s not as full as the heyday of malls would have been but there’s more there than I imagined there would be.
The food court is right inside the doors between Buffalo Wild Wings and Applebees. There are only two spaces occupied right now. There’s a Japanese place and the one I was there for, The Icarus Grill.
The Icarus Grill is a typical mall food court shop. There’s a walk up counter with a chalkboard with their menu. The menu is really simple. It’s chicken. You pick the size and the flavoring…but chicken is the only main course on the menu.
I ordered the Heavy box with Cajun seasoning and baked fries as my side. The lone person working said it would take a little longer for the fries to bake but I wasn’t in a hurry so I said it was fine.
It took maybe fifteen minutes for my food to come up. When it did, it was bagged up and I paid the $10 bill. There is seating in the food court but I just headed back out to my car and ate on the way to my next job assignment.
I didn’t really know what to expect from the chicken. How was it being served? The chicken is really juicy tender chunks of grilled chicken tossed in the dry rub. The chicken was pretty flavorful on it’s own. The Cajun rub added a little bit of heat but nothing that was overpowering. I just used my hands to eat because I’m a caveman but this is chicken probably best eaten with a fork.
The Oven Baked Fries were much better than I figured they were going to be. I make baked fries at home and while they’re good, they’re not as good as fried. These fries were nice and crispy and dusted heavily in a seasoning. I don’t typically use dipping sauces anyway but these fries didn’t need anything. They were tasty on their own and really blew me away with how good baked fries can be.
The Icarus Grill is interesting. It’s a really simple concept nestled in to a place I never would think to look for a local restaurant. There are still reasons to go to Lakeview Square Mall an if you do, there’s a great, local place to grab a bite to eat….heck, if you want something different, The Icarus Grill is a reason in it’s own to go to the Mall.
SW Michigan Dining 