World Cup Fever

Have you heard about it? Apparently Patrick Sullivan's in the Old City didn't get the notice. I'm no soccer fan but I wanted to take in the USA vs. England match to experience the hype and hopefully see an exciting game at the highest level. King Randall The Insufferable and I decided to meet at a bar to watch the game, and naturally we waited until the last minute to choose our venue. The obvious downtown locations, Soccer Taco and Crown & Goose, were standing room only. I was already in the Old City and Sullivan's was open so I pressed my face to the window and saw a mostly empty bar. Great, problem solved.

It was only a few minutes until match time (kickoff?). The small TV behind the bar was tuned to something else and the large TV above wasn't even turned on. The single patron at the bar paid his tab and left. A soccer-seeking couple entered and left immediately, disappointed by the lack of soccer hooligans I suspect. So there I sat alone until KRTI strolled in. We had the game switched on the small TV. Eventually other patrons arrived and some were actual soccer fans there to watch the game, though not very many. The game was put on the big TV, a few more customers came in and the game turned out to be a dud, at least in my opinion. The USA earned a 1-1 draw on a lucky goal that was muffed by the English goal keeper. Overall it was a good time and the lack of soccer enthusiasm at Sullivan's didn't matter that much at all. The best part of the "experience" was a 4 -5 beer head start on the rest of the day.

Sign of the Times

“Icing”. It sounds cool but it isn’t. This isn’t cake decorating or a hockey foul. I’m talking about Smirnoff Ice, so that should be enough to let you know something is seriously wrong. A phenomenon is growing across the country and it may have already infected citizens in our own town – LVL has shown symptoms that cause concern for my own well being. I’d heard about icing before but it wasn’t until a couple of weeks ago when the guys at Kissing Suzy Kolber gave us a big taste of what this has become. (Go ahead and read it, I’ll wait)


Yeah, I think Darnell has the right idea, but not everyone is a huge NFL player that can knock the hell out of anybody trying to front an Ice. So here are the rules of engagement, straight from the dedicated Icing website: Bros Icing Bros. (Yes, there is an official website.) Go out in public at your own risk. My strategy is to avoid all frat parties, strip mall bars and anywhere else Smirnoff products are served. You’ve been warned.

Not all smiles und sunshine

Mackey's last post, coupled with a less than impressive trip to a local watering hole, has reminded me how fortunate I have been with the general quality of overall service I receive in this town. I'm not really even talking about places where I'm a regular, or even merely a familiar face for the most part. Just another thirsty hooligan in a new place, off the street like a common mendicant type stuff.

Some places around here fail because it was a bad idea, bad location, bad service, bad management...you name it. We as customers can bitch about a lot of things, and if you actually want the place to improve sometimes we need to speak with management right damn now. Constructive remarks delivered with a rational(and if you worked in the industry-sympathetic) tone can really help.

Recently, I've encountered two separate instances where service was both slow and apathetic. That's a rotten experience that will kill off a return customer pronto. I can overlook a lot of things like mechanical failures(shit happens) or being out of a beer/menu item. Hell, I even expect a small pour from time to time. You can talk with management without delivering a reprimand to the over-worked server or the short-handed kitchen. Many places that have a successful vision in place will welcome the chance to improve...if not, well then those joints aren't long for Knoxville in any case. Wade confidently into their midst and f'em.

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!