86 Level 10

Ah, we hardly knew ye. According to a local media source Level 10 is no longer in business and doesn't plan to reopen. That location must be cursed because I don't know many businesses that last more than a year.

RIP Level 10.

In which I review, insult, and then review some more

Well, I'll be damned...a weekend without a drenching miserable downpour means a little time about town. In our parlance that means getting out and getting intoxicated while in public. While the uptight might frown on this time-honored behavior, we drunks will use it to explore some unfamiliar surroundings and spread our profane joy. First up, we visited a neat little Mexican Joint on Emory Road: Three Amigos. To be honest, this new restaurant is similar to many such places...common but very tasty fare, and a preponderance of drinks. Some grand like my sumbitchin' 32 oz beer:
For the record, the patrons did not care that I prefer Dos Equis. I, for the nonce, did not care for this...thing:

Every so often, Atlas will go out of his head and make a bizarre drink order...which in this case resulted in something wholly unmasculine. Reported to be a Blue Motorcycle(Jesus), this monstrosity was described by the manager as containing tequila, rum, vodka, and half a dozen other liquors/liquers before his voice trailed off. Personally I think he was just looking at the bar and rattling off what he saw. Feh. In good faith, I would like to point out that the staff at Three Amigos busts its collective ass so I will be going back for more of those huge ass beers and to heckle the shit out of anyone ordering a Blue Dandy. The rest of the weekend proper was a blur...

On Sunday Mackey, Tag, and yours truly went back to Latitude 35 for some lazy beers and a quick sammich. As Mackey has alluded to before, Lat 35 maintains a diverse menu ranging from familiar dishes with a twist- to the forgotten classics, and some unique appetizers to keep the modern drunkard sated. Service was great, as it has tended to be so far...and my Dagwood was superb.

Modestly priced and on the table within minutes. It was so good that I put the tomatoes back on the damn thing...and I'm not a fan of those bastards at all.

The next visit to Latitude 35 will mostly be a large scale drinking adventure...the wine list is begging to be explored. From what I've seen so far, Shiraz and Pinot reds are equally represented along with the more traditional Cabs and Merlot that one sees in run of the mill joints in K-town. I'll let you know how that potential disaster turns out.

Bearden Beer Market

Ok, I’m behind on this one but I’m glad to see these guys on the scene. Apparently the Bearden Beer Market was announced on the KNS blogs all the way back in January or February and it opened just a few weeks ago on Old Kingston Pike. I don’t know how I missed this one but I assume it was due to a drunken bender.

I made the inaugural visit last weekend to see what it’s all about. Let’s say it is still a work in progress but they are open for business and plan to improve on what they’ve started. The place is unique in Knoxville as far as I could tell. The focus is on beer, both small and large quantities including kegs at a good price. The guy I spoke with said they have the same prices as local grocery chains but with more selection including craft beer that may difficult to find. The cool thing is their beer garden where you can sit outdoors to enjoy your beer. They point out that it is English style, meaning no tipping required. It may take some getting used to but ok. They also sell a wide variety of snacks and high quality selections of cheese and deli meats. And I almost forgot to mention that they also have homebrew for sale on tap just like a mini brewery. I had the West Coast IPA and it was pretty good, a bit lighter than what I'm used to but still good.

The place still needs lots of work outside like adding restrooms and finishing the left behind nursery stalls in back but it definitely has potential. The Short-West location is convenient to campus and downtown, though parking is limited to 15 spaces for now so I don’t know how they plan to accommodate a crowd but they’re working on it. The staff was nice and knowledgeable about anything beer related, and there was a small gathering of customers sitting and talking about basically the same stuff but without all the beer snobiness you might expect. I plan to work them into the rotation whenever possible and wish them good luck as they grow their business. We need more beer options in this town.

It’s the Bearden Beer Market, go there!

Old City Revival

Spending more time in the Old City lately has led to good times and rediscoveries of some old favorite hangouts, primarily Manhattan’s but also their “cousins” across the street, Patrick Sullivan’s and Back Room BBQ. I think these places share ownership or at least management but either way they operate relaxing, easy-going establishments with pretty good food and (of course) drink.

There was a time not so long ago when going out for beer and wings was our group agenda. It happened 2-3 times per week and went on for years before finally losing favor for various reasons. Recently I’ve had wings more than usual and stumbled upon Manhattan’s smoked wings when out with some friends who had ordered them as an appetizer. They are fucking delicious! We had them dry (or naked, sauce on side) and these are my new favorite wings. I tried to replicate the order at both Sullivan’s and BR-BBQ on subsequent visits but they weren’t the same wings – they were out of the smoked wings one time, and the other time I think I messed up when ordering, so my fault.

Several of us drunkards met at Manhattan’s last weekend and devoured dozens of these little bastards with beer, bloody marys and shots. I ate all but 2 of my wings without hot sauce or dressing, just plain smoky goodness and dry rub seasoning. These are the wings I was craving and will go back for. It feels good to have a go-to place in the Old City again, and spending time and money at those places plus some of the newer joints is a nice change of pace from my regular haunts. All this “old is new again” reminiscing makes me nervous I’ll have Canadian and Samoan visitors soon and we’ll return to our 24/7 diets of pizza, wings, beer and bourbon. Please, no!

Pic Dump

Time to clear out the never used pics from my cell phone. Most of these were taken at some point while on the way to drink, drinking or coming home from drinks.

I noticed the Hilton was having their garage painted one night last week. I assume it is supposed to match the hotel pilsner glass design.

It appears a tad too orange now but I think it will fade and blend in after a while. Looking good.

LVL mysteriously produces a bottle of Blanton's.

Fish.

A very fruity drink at FKA (aka the tiki bar). Vodka & ruby red.

Backroom bar, been spending time there lately.

1 wing. This single wing has a story behind it but in short it was a sample to see if it was the same delicious smoked wings from Manhattan's a couple of weeks ago and it wasn't. However it was also delicious so I ordered a dozen more. I think I was looking for dry or naked wings.

The missing side grits from L35 Southern Breakfast:

Wall Street classic updated

Fleta Fest

Here is a weekend option if you're willing to face the rainy weather, humidity and even worse, patchouli. A brief description of the fest is available here. Enjoy!

Latitude 35 – Food & Yuengling

Latitude 35 has been open a couple of weeks now and I’ve managed to visit a few times to sample their menu. Nothing major or over the top mind you, so far I’ve tried an appetizer, a sandwich and breakfast. All have been good and go down well with Yuengling, the only beer I’ve had there for some reason.

Kobe Beef Sausage Rolls (not pictured)

I had these tasty nuggets during Rossini Festival a couple of weeks ago amongst a hoard of drunks at the large table. They were good but don’t be fooled by the name. These are “high-end” pigs in blankets, nothing more, yet still good enough that I ate every one, though I may have actually shared some that day. Honestly, I don’t remember because we were on the downside of the evening at that point.

Black Angus Burger (with cheese & bacon) and Sweet Potato Fries

This beast was extremely good. I say beast because it took me 45 minutes to finish but I believe the unique pretzel roll it is served on had a lot to do with that. The roll is very tasty but it is filling and takes extra chews to work your way through, so be ready for that. The meat was grilled perfectly (med) and still moist at the end of my meal. Thick bacon slices and smoked cheddar cheese topped it off. I had the sweet potato fries with my burger and they were also very tasty, and sweet enough that ketchup wasn’t necessary but I did anyway.

Southern Breakfast w/Grits

Just last weekend I was awake early Saturday with no food at home so I went downtown specifically for breakfast. I’ve tried Pete’s, Mkt. Square Kitchen and even Crown and Goose in the past but I had to give the new guys a chance and they lit it up. No, they BLEW it up, as in portion size. I was expecting a modest piece of ham with my breakfast but they bought out an entire steak! A thin, griddle fried ham steak that took up half my plate. The only thing missing was red eye gravy but I was so distracted by the size I didn’t think to ask if they offer it. Anyway it was salty and delicious, and maybe a tad tough. The eggs were dwarfed in comparison but lightly scrambled and nicely seasoned. I was disappointed by the skillet potatoes mainly because they were bland but they also appeared to be prepackaged and weren’t the hand cut, home style taters I’m partial to. I didn’t have room for all that food yet there was still a side of grits to consider. Oh yeah, I ate most of them out of gluttony but couldn’t finish due to carb overload. That was an ordering mistake I’ll have to pay attention to next time.

So there it is, my brief review of a few menu items from Latitude 35. All were good. All were affordable. And all go well paired with a Yuengling lager. Cheers!

Jefferson Mint Tea Julep

Check this out, over the weekend we watched the Kentucky Derby and enjoyed adult beverages as usual. No news there but we did try Jefferson’s Bourbon and I have to admit I’d not heard of it before. It was very, very good though and I see it becoming part of our standard rotation.
Tag Berauscht procured this product with intentions of making mint juleps, the exact mint juleps listed below, except subbing the Jefferson’s for the Makers Mark. Well, we adjusted the recipe a tad but ended up with a pretty good alternative. For some reason we decided not to have classic mint juleps and opted to use tea instead (I heard it was from a Rachel Ray recipe but don’t tell anybody). I think it basically ended up as a mint tea ice pick but with the addition of the simple syrup/mint extract.

Hell, I don’t know exactly but it turned out pretty good. We all enjoyed our single beverage and then started drinking straight for the bottle, natch. Jefferson’s is a smooth, easy-drinking bourbon that isn’t too complex or harsh. At 82 proof it won’t burn you down and has an even balance of spice and mellow flavors like vanilla and caramel. It’s worth a try next time you’re shopping for something new and don’t want to break the bank, it sells for less than $25.