The J. Clyde is not only the best pub in Birmingham, it’s one of the best pubs I’ve ever visited. Now, with the inclusion of Seattle and Olympia beers on this week’s rotation, it got infinitely better.

(Side note: For those Seattle residents reading, it’s on par with Brouwer’s… one of the Top 10 pubs in the world.)

We hit a team goal last night, so my boss took us to Seattle to celebrate with one of the most high-felutant dinners, ever: Raw Oysters, Escargot, Foie Gras, Tarte Flambé, Salmon Coulibiac, Mini Croissant au Jambon, Moules Marinière, Belgium Fries, Goat Cheese and Garlic Mousse, Fromagère, and Fermiére.

Enjoy your Googling.

Ok, Jasper folks. Tell me about this restaurant. God knows that any business with down home cooking and an uneccesary misspelled name has great potential.

An item on the drink menu at Mo Bar in Capitol Hill. (Sorry for the poor quality.)

Skittles Shot, $6
Skittles infused with vodka.

Drew Thornley over at Man Up BBQ had what might be the most beautiful BBQ plate I’ve ever seen. Take a gander.

Per my update… best meal I’ve ever had.

[Appetizer]
Columbia City Bread, nicoise olives & butter

[Entrees]
Copper River Sockeye Salmon
lentil salad, walnuts, pickled shallots & chervil

Oregon Country Ribeye Steak
roasted in a skillet with oil cured olive tapenade, grilled Walla Walla onion & roasted potato

[Wine]
Domaine de la Petite Cassagne, Costieres de Nimes Rose, France, 2007

[major props to Jody Gambrell & Jennifer Carlton]

#1? Chick.

Between the breakfast and lunch menus, there are only two entrées at Chick-Fil-A that break 500 calories, a rare feat in the fast-food world. What this means is that you can’t possibly do too much harm—especially if you stick to the chicken. And unlike the typical fast-food chain, Chick-Fil-A offers a list of sides that goes beyond breaded and fried potatoes and onions. (Just beware the large cole slaw, which adds an extra 600 calories to your daily intake!) That’s why we dub the Atlanta-based chicken shack one of our all-time favorite fast-food restaurants.

I understand that a Popeye’s Chicken opened in Jasper on Monday?

Details.

McDonald’s opened a “quarter-pounder only” store in Japan.

Is it stupid to drive 2 1/2 hours to Portland just to eat at Buffalo Wild Wings? That’s exactly what we did over the weekend with our friend Kim and Colin who were craving the wingsbeersports as much as we were.

For all that Seattle has in unique, can’t-get-them-anywhere-else-in-the-world food, it lacks in chain eateries beloved by the majority of Americans (see: Chick-fil-A, Waffler House, Cracker Barrel, Sonic) as well as Buffalo Wild Wings.

Seeing the BWW was a staple in my weekly diet during college (weird that Mississippi has something Seattle doesn’t… silly treehuggers and their tofu) it’s been pretty difficult to live without for the past 26 months. So when we discussed the fact that Portland has three (3!) in their metro area, the weekend road trip was inevitable.

God bless Buffalo Wild Wings.

Jasper: The Kiwanis Pancake Supper is this Friday night.

Best pregame meal, ever.

Lunch menus from Jasper, AL this week.

(I randomly saw it on the DME website and decided to post it for old times’ sake.)

Am I not surprised to see over the weekend that Jasper has added another Chinese restaurant to the mix. This time it occupies the space at the Jasper Mall which formerly housed CVS Pharmacy (Big Bee).

I saw the name though I cannot recall it… I was too depressed at witnessing another shady wok-house invading my old city.

Besides… we all know The Phoenix is still the best joint in town.

Yes… the Jasper Mall has a website.

Big props to Ernest for the great link recommendation yesterday. (Just in case you missed our in-depth coverage of the push from McDonald’s to present a cheap imitation of the almighty Chick-fil-A. )

I’ve tried it. It’s not good. I’m still a long way from a Chick-fil-A.

We ran into a situation over the weekend that most of you run into ever-so-often: a bad waiter/waitress. I won’t go through the whole scenario, though I will state that it was our favorite Mexican restaurant in Seattle:
- My cerveza was warm.
- It took us 30 minutes to get chips and salsa.
- I asked for pico de gallo with our chips and salsa… never came.
- Chelsea was charged $1.50 for a thimble-full of guacamole.
- The waitress just didn’t seem to care, except when she slapped on her fake smile every 15 minutes when swung by the table during our 45 minute stay.

I tipped her $2.00 total (Chelsea and I were on the same bill) and I regret tipping her that much. I wanted to get your thoughts about tipping. My understanding (based on conversations with a few of you former super servers at Archestratus Grill) has always been that 15% is the minimum you should tip… 20% for good service.

Do you have your own tipping chart you keep hidden in the part of you brain right next to Saved By The Bell facts and

My tipping chart is as follows:
- Great job: 25-30%
- Good job: 15-20%
- Pretty bad: $1.00
- Terrible job: no tip*

*I’ve not tipped 3 times in my life. All three times I left a note on the receipt explaining (politely) as to why. I’ve been told this could come off a little condescending. Eh.

Thoughts?

Yikes… check this out.

Salad: On the Border Grande Taco Salad with Taco Beef: 102 grams of fat and 2,410 mg of sodium

Better run for the border to burn off those thighs.