This past weekend I was in need of getting out for a little while so after having one of the grandtwins overnight on Friday we decided to head up to Route 51 for appetizers and a couple beers on Saturday.  It's a really nice place and I got to check out the lights that our son told us about and we hadn't noticed the first time.  Lots of nice touches all around the place.  We both ended up getting their Irish Red and splitting an order of wings and pork rinds.  I've not been much of a fan of pork rinds since I ate them and then had gallbladder problems even though it was not the pork rinds fault.  These tasted surprisingly good.  We got the asian wings which were smoked but yet crisp.  They were ok but seemed to be lacking something plus they were somewhat expensive with six wings costing $8.
After we left there we stopped for one at Big Muddy Brewing where we both had Dunkeldogs.  I'd called ahead and asked to have a couple mugs put in the cooler but even with that the beer wasn't very cold.  I don't understand the current trend of serving beer slightly cool, I like cold beer and I like frosted mugs.
After there we headed to Brews Brothers for one that ended up turning into two.  The Glue had two Farmhouse and I had a Big Bison and then a Farmhouse, all of which are from Crown Valley.  I've been wanting to get pizza but have wanted something different than our normal Quatros, Cummares or IV's pizza.  We talked about a couple places and the Glue wanted to pick one up at Pags but I finally had to say I wasn't going to carbondale on polar bear weekend, no way.  We decided just to grab one next door at Cummares and it really hit the spot.
Yesterday we went down in the bottoms for a meet and greet chicken dinner at Bottoms Up for our old buddy and long time MBC member BBJ who is running for judge.  Even serving the large amount of chicken required Bottoms Up still put out some really good chicken.  While we were down there we got to see a lot of friends we don't see very often anymore which was really enjoyable, in fact we stayed longer than anticipated and got home too late to enjoy some veranda time.

Seems like this past week was Marion week as we went over there a couple times for something to eat.
After having a house full for three days because of snow days we needed a little away time on Wednesday.  After thinking about Gabby's or Brunzeez we decided to go to Union Street Pub in Marion where we'd had a beer a few weeks earlier.  I really like how the place is setup with what seems like a neighborhood pub type feel.  After debating between bangers and mash or fish and chips I decided to go with the fish.  The Glue went with a reuben.  I was disappointed in the fish as it was just ok as were the chips however the slaw was real good.  The Glue didn't really care for her reuben because it didn't have enough dressing on it however I thought it was fine.  All in all I'm glad we tried it and will probably go back but it wasn't as good as we hoped.  After we ate we walked over to Pookie's for one of their house Pils before heading home.
We'd both been wanting pizza for a while so last night we decided it was time to get one.  I wanted something different than our normal standby Quatros, Cummares or IV's pizza.  Since I had to pick up a chair in cdale we were looking at the Marion/Herrin area.  We finally got it narrowed down to Mackie's or Walt's and decided on Walt's because we've been to Mackie's some lately and have great memories of Walt's/Chez in Murphysboro plus they have draft beer.  The draft selection is limited and the first thing the Glue noticed was the price of a pitcher was $14 but we ordered a Blue Moon pitcher anyway.  We decided on a medium pepperoni and mushroom double decker.  The pizza ended up ok but it was disappointing probably because we had high expectations with our memories of having it in Murphysboro.  The pizza also seemed expensive and the atmosphere was just kind of blah.  It will probably be a while before we go back with so many other good options around.
All in all Marion went 0-2 on our food choices but that's life.

Sad day in our house this past weekend as our beloved Packer tree had to be taken down.  The tree was leaning pretty bad and decided to move on from it.  From looking at old pictures the tree has been up continuously since at least 2008.  We're not sure now if there will be a replacement Packer tree up full time or whether it will only be up during holidays or during the season. 

Best moment - birth of the grandtwins,
runner up - opening day in Lambeau.
Best bocce moment - winning summer league towel,
runner up - winning the flag day tournament.
Best Packer moment - beating the Seahawks with us in attendance,
runner up - beating the bears twice.
Best local beer - Paducah Beer Werks Irish Red,
runner up - Katy O'ferrells Irish Red.
Best big brewery beer - Spotted Cow,
runner up - Abita Amber and Alaskan Amber.
Best burger - Jacks, Hickory Ridge and The Pilot House,
honorable mention - Krolls, Fat Patties.
Best pizza - Quatros,
runner up - Cummares.
Best ribs  - Hicks,
runner up - Bandanas (can't think of any other place I had ribs).
Best rueben - Jacks,
runner up - Quatros.
Best wings - Thai Taste,
runner up - 4204 Mainstreet Brewery and Titletown Brewery.
Best fried chicken - Bottoms Up,
runner up - K Town Sports Bar.
Best Cajun - Broussard's,
runner up - The Bayou.
Best Italian - Cummares,
runner up - ???.
Best Asian - Thai Taste,
runner up - New China.

This past week we went to one of our long time favorites, Gabby's.  Both me and the Glue got the fried chicken, all white.  One of the rare instances where it was disappointing, the chicken was kind of dry.  Usually it's very good.
On Friday I met a couple of guys I used to work with at Dale's Burger Shack in Murdale Shopping Center.  It was the first time any of us had been there.  I went with a double and fries and the others went with a chicago dog and fries and one also got chili.  The burger was ok and the fries were good but not very hot.  Both other guys said the chicago dog was good but the one guy said he didn't care for the chili.  Worst part about the experience is that it was cold in the place, I'm guessing in the low 50's at best and every time the door open we got a blast of very cold air.  For burgers my favorites are Jack's, Hickory Ridge or Fat Patties and Pookies is also better than Dale's.  I'll give it another try though.
Then on Friday night we went to Crazy Joe's for the first time in quite a while.  I  had the white fish and the Glue had the cajun crawfish.  The fish could have used just a little longer cooking time but the crawdads were spot on.  The Joe's fries were great as always and with a name like Joe's how could they be anything else but great, also the slaw was a lot better then what we remember.  The Joe's sauce also was a great dipping sauce for the crawdads.
On Saturday we went to the Frenchman's Widow for the first time in a while.  I had the rueben and the Glue went with the french dip.  Both were very good and the onion rings were very good but very heavy.  Downside was that all the beers they had on tap were too hoppy for us but the Shiner Bock in bottles hit the spot.

This past Saturday we met at Pookies in Marion with Herbster, Clutch and their daughter Abbey.  Our main reason for going there was to check out the bocce courts there but we decided to eat first since none of us had lunch yet.  Of course drinks were required and me, Herbster and the Glue tried out the Pookie Pils which was real solid.  I went with the creole burger with no jalapenos and provolone instead of pepper cheese, sadly can't handle the heat anymore.  The Glue went with the soup of the day.  The burger was solid and the Glue said the soup was just ok and she should have gone a different direction.  I probably should have gone with the salameat sandwich which Herbster said was excellent.
After eating it was time to roll a few games on one of their three bocce courts.  Me and Clutch took on the Glue, Herbster and Abbey with Herbster and Abbey throwing two balls a piece against me.  Abbey couldn't wait to change to the girls end for the second game with her and the Glue throwing two each.  It didn't matter as me and Clutch swept both games. 
The courts were bouncy and the balls slowed down quick.  Overall I really liked the courts and wish we could have them for our courts, mainly for the consistency and the reduced maintenance.  I have to say the brick dust looks better when freshly groomed and kind of represents Murphysboro's past.  President Herbster was also very intrigue by the courts but no way they would be feasible for here with cost and probably of being tore up.
After staying a while we decided to walk across the parking lot to check out Union Street Pub.  The place is setup to kind of mimic a British pub but seems like more a restaurant then a drinking establishment.  It was a nice place and I'd like to get back over and eat sometime.  Keep in mind that Great Britain and Ireland are separate islands, right Glue? 
After a drink there we headed back to our old standby Brews Brothers for a couple beers The other four also had a couple shots, I had a drink of the first one and didn't really care for it which was good since I try to avoid doing shots.  As always Brews Brothers was great and we got to have the pleasure of having a conversation with a guy who needed a lighter.   He was hard to understand and got to take a trip to the sidewalk but a guy at the bar eventually brought him back in.
All in all a fun day but it made for a short New Years Eve the next night.