"After spending 4 days in the Boundary Waters canoeing and camping, and eating dehydrated foods, I asked the outfitter where there was real food in Ely, because we were dying for some. All employees at the outfitter suggested Stony Ridge for epic burgers. So off we went. The restaurant is a very unassuming place. On the outside, it looks like a tiny diner, but on the inside, it is all hardwood, floors, walls, and ceiling, with a huge amount of seating area both inside and out. Our waitress was super friendly and happy. The menu amazed me though. There were 50 different burger options. Fifty! And there were 2 pages of other non-burger menu items. I was literally amazed at the choices. It took us all a long time to order because we wanted to read through every single burger option. (and it seemed that since we were at a known burger establishment, we should all order burgers) And I've been on this kick lately trying cheese curds almost everywhere they are offered, so we ordered those as well. They also had an extensive alcoholic drink menu, which after a week of camping, I wanted to try every single one of them.... but settled for ice tea instead. The burgers that came out were really good. They weren't epic though, which was sad considering how expensive they were. My entire family really liked their burgers, but all agreed they had had better elsewhere. The cheese curds were ok (I don't think I have had cheese curds anywhere yet that have impressed me) In general, we had a great experience and one would think that I would have given them a 5-star review. But there were a couple negatives that I just couldn't get over, to give them a top rating. The cost of each burger was around $20. That is a LOT for a 1/4lb burger. Also, and though I like dogs, there were two large breed dogs freely entering the establishment, and roaming around. This didn't really bother me at all, until one of them stood by my table, begging for expensive food."
