by neelie r. on Exactly what I expected. Clean, basic bar in a funkyish 'hood. $6 beer. Was here for a special event in the mid-afternoon which was fairly crowded ($5 admission). Not my thing, but I can see the appeal.
by Gordon Scarset on We went to Top Flr last night for an early dinner. Since it was a nice day, we chose to sit outside, on one of the four ikea-ish tables that were lined on the sidewalk. It was nice, I got to see a lot of people walking their dogs, and my date found entertainment in making fun of the size of people walking in and out of Mary Mac's. (It really did look like they gained twenty pounds between walking in and waddling to their cars. Good ole southern cooking!) We didn't order drinks, since I wasn't feeling like wine and they didn't have any kind of cocktail list to choose from. (though they did have absinthe on the menu, which I have been meaning to try. I know I won't see any green fairies, but I would still like to have some.) We placed our order: Hummus to start, duck pizza, pork tenderloin, bacon roasted potatoes, and macaroni and cheese. The hummus came out, and I honestly could not stop eating it. The chili oil on top was so good, and the flatbread it was served with was wonderful, with the perfect doughy to crunchy ratio. We happily accepted when our server offered extra flatbread, even though it was just to take home with the leftover portion. We had to save room! Next came our entrees and sides. My pork tenderloin was amazing. The Vadalia jus on top was so flavorful, sweet and rich. The duck pizza marked the reappearance of the flatbread, this time topped with pesto, mushrooms, cheese and duck. It was a huge portion, and also perfectly done. The roasted potatoes tasted like potato skin appetizers you find at any chain, and I mean that in a good way. The potatoes were infused with the bacon flavor, but still maintained some of their potato integrity. The macaroni and cheese....was bad. The noodles were soggy, and the whole dish tasted like oil, yeast and sugar, nothing else. That misstep was big for me, considering how much I love mac and cheese, but the other dishes were so good that I just pushed the macaroni to the side and forged on. After all of our leftovers were boxed up (There was a lot to box, believe me.) we ordered dessert to go. One bad part of this is that all they have to put to go food in is cardboard boxes, which meant we could either get something without the ice cream or get one of the few that had no scream to speak of. We ordered the flourless chocolate cake without the tobacco ice cream, but out waitress recommended we get the bitter chocolate topped with lemon oil and served with a cookie, instead. Of course I dug into the dessert box within half an hour of getting home. It was all right, though I didn't really like the lemon mixed with the rich chocolate and the salty cookie. I would much rather have the chocolate bruschetta at Krog Bar for the salt/chocolate combo. Instead of finishing the dessert, I went back for another potato wedge (or two). All in all, this was a good dining experience. We spent a little under sixty dollars (before tip), and have enough for leftovers for the next two days. Duck pizza for breakfast? Yes please.
by g g. on Phenomenal -- without question, the best Chinese food I've ever had. I can't give the place five stars in good conscience, since I've never actually set foot inside the establishment, but from my takeout experience I've been nothing but impressed. It is definitely pricey, but you can get around that if you order a larger portion of your food and split it with a friend. As far as the food goes...their crab rangoons are AMAZING. I've never had them with actual crab! I'm not even joking. Not a trace of cream cheese in those suckers. The brown rice is delightful, and it makes me sad because I can never replicate its awesomeness when I make brown rice at home. The pad thai was awesome, not overloaded in sugary goo, and their spicy tofu also rocks. I'll definitely be visiting in the near future.
