Because most of my local social gatherings revolve around food, I've decided to blog more of my recent experiences so other people may want to try them out.

First off, thanks to calapurr  and justincheetah  for organizing a gathering where we got to a bunch of different wines and cheeses. Even Rruff and IndyPup traveled up to join some of the local furs. If anyone is curious about the wine I brought, it was a 2005 Franciscan Magnificat (and no, I didn't get it because of the "cat" in the name). 

But back to the restaurants.... 2 new ones, an old favorite, and one re-introduced place. I was hoping to introduce the out-of-towners to some local favorites.

The Bristol - A small one room restaurant that serves Mediterranean-influenced food. It has a fairly decent beer list (1/2 the size of the Publican). We got to try duck fat fries with homemade ketchup and artichoke stew with pickled tongue. It does not take reservations though. So its a nice place to try for some nouveau cuisine with a side of beer. They have two bars for those that want a quick drink only.

Jane's Restaurant - Another small neighborhood place that I just recently tried for brunch. It has a homemade-type atmosphere (the freshly baked scones were great!) compliments the generous portion. The menu is on the small side but the entrees are interesting variations of classics. 

The Publican - This is an old favorite. It's always good even when 3 of us went there at 10:45pm! It was still packed them. The highlights were a distilled German beer (tasted like vodka, served in a shot glass, and was 80 proof), a very tender pork tenderloin, and Belgium-style pommes frites with a fried egg.

Margie's Candies - An old time classic that I introduced to Rrruff and IndyPup. They wanted some dessert on late Sunday night and Margie's was still open (until midnight). So we quickly walked to it and ordered big 2-3 scoop sundaes with thick fudge sauce and a banana split. The dishes were about 5-6 bux each. How can you not love a place that has been around for 80 years and had The Beatles as customers?


Up next? Still trying to get into The Revolution which is a new brewery run by one of the guys from Three Floyds Brewery. But  4 hour wait when calling at 10pm is still too much.