Nickie "Rockstar" G.'s Profile

So in all honesty the memory of my Wanna B's visit is hazy thanks to liberal doses of vodka sodas but I'm pretty sure it was fun.

We walked in and got drinks first off.  Apparently why my memory is hazy.  We easily got a table because it was fairly dead early on Saturday night.  So we went up to the DJ/KJ booth and put in some songs.  And tipped since clearly that's how you are going to get your song up there.  I sang a couple of songs and then let others entertain me since it started to get more and more busy.  The stage is way elevated sooo be careful when you are up there if you've had one too many.  But it is the perfect elevation for making sure every single person in there sees you as you belt out your song.  Bonus!

I prefer karaoke in divey bars where anything goes and no one is there trying to be "discovered" by some record exec who turns out to be a producer of cheap pornos.  I like my karaoke like my boys...bad and a bit dirty.  So Wanna B's was ok but will probably stick to the dives in the future.

I finally tried Jamaicaway at the Farmers Market a few weeks ago and can't figure out why it took me so long.

When you come in you get in line and order from the people by the counter.  The food is out like a cafeteria line so you pick your meat and sides and they hand it to you.  Don't forget your tray and silverware or you'll have to push through the crowd and get it later.  Ooops.

I tried the spicy jerk chicken with fried plantains and greens.  God I love greens and they were great.  the jerk chicken was spicy but not too spicy and was tasty.  Watch out though because there's some weird gristly/chewy parts in there.  Fried plantains were perfect - I don't get a lot of opportunities to eat plantains so I had to have them.  The Johnny cakes soaked up all the tasty sauce from the jerk chicken and made me full and stuffed.

Good place to eat lunch when you are at the Farmers Market - just be prepared to be uber-stuffed and needing a nap afterwards!

So I haven't had Indian food in over a year and that was in Dallas....and I miss it.  No one I know likes Indian food so I have to just dream of delicious buffets. I guess I could go by myself because I'm good with that, but something about buffet and eating by myself seems like I'd turn into a sad chick eating her feelings or something!  However, I may not mind after trying Bombay Palace.

I suggested to my lunch "date" that we go have Indian food and she suggested Bombay Palace.  It is right on West End so the parking in front seems a bit treacherous since you have to back out in West End traffic when you leave but they also have parking in the back!

Inside the place is small and gaudily painted but it smelled like spice.  Mmmm!  We were seated and hit up the buffet as soon as we got our drinks.  Small buffet compared to some places I've been but large on flavor and quality.  They had a chef's special (chicken and peppers), a salad bar, some desserts, and an array of hot foods. My favorite was the chicken tikka masala mainly because the sauce was rich and spicy.  I also enjoyed the chicken tandoori and the chicken madras.  The chicken madras had some good heat without being too hot.  They also had saag and some other vegetable dishes that were all great!  They brought bread to the table for you to sop up all that spicy, delicious sauce.  No shame in my game, I got it all off the plate, trust me.  Too bad I didn't read the reviews for the garlic naan before I came...I'll have to go back and get me some of that because it sounds heavenly.  

Lunch buffet is until 2:30 but they were seating people after that and they were eating so I guess it is kind of a loose end time?  They also serve dinner off menu and I hear it is really great.  Must. Find. Dinner. Friend.

Give this place a try for lunch (or perhaps for dinner) - it will satisfy all your spicy Indian food cravings.

Bud's gets a lot of my business because it is the closest liquor store to my apartment.  There is NOTHING WRONG with a liquor store a block away from your front door.

They have a decent selection of liquor in large and small sized bottles.  Wines are arranged by type.  Champagne is separate.  And there's a cooler in the back to get pre-cooled white or champagne.  What I don't like is the ridiculous liquor laws in TN that do not allow regular beer to be sold at the same place or packs of smokes.  WTF Tennessee - get out of the 1800s already.  In TX I could buy wine at the gas station for God's sake.  I digress.

The greatest thing about this place is the people are actually very happy to work here - they will carry your purchases to the car, they will help you pick out some expensive champagne, they will call you "urban explorer" when you walk over with a backpack to carry your purchases instead of calling you a "hobo" (thanks), and sometimes they will even card me so I feel like a young lady not quite old enough to drink yet.  Thank God I am though and thank God Bud's is nearby!!

After a misunderstanding (or a ball-dropping) by the dude at Buffalo Billiards, I needed to reserve a karaoke DJ in a quickness.  My birthday party was December 10 and it was currently early in November.  Given the number of Christmas parties and other things going on in December I was pretty desperate to lock someone down because I wanted karaoke for my birthday party damn it and I intended to get it.

After an unhelpful shout out to local yelpers (no responses..booo!), I used the google to find some local places.  I finally settled on Nashville Party Authority because a) the price was lower than the other and b) Blair really talked to me about songs that would be available and c) he made me feel comfortable that he would be there and knew how to lead a party.

True to his word, Blair was there with a DJ in training and were already set up by 8pm.  He assured me that they would play awesome dance music until people got up enough liquid courage to sing and would advertise the karaoke so that people could get their guts up.  He had most every song we wanted to sing (very few were not available) and played music in between when I was opening gifts and when people weren't signed up to sing.  There was no actual SIGNING up either, just walk up and tell him and you are UP NEXT or put in exact order as signing up.  Since it was a private party with only 40ish guests it wasn't hard to sing whatever you want.  He had half of my party dancing their asses off in between songs too so he knows how to get people feeling festive.  By the way, so does alcohol!!

They bring the sound, the books for jogging your memory on songs, microphones (two), the TV with words, everything you need except a bunch of singers to get your groove on.  Cost was also reasonable for the time of year, Saturday night party, and the relatively late booking.

I intend to keep this guy in my mental rolodex to use again next time I want to have a fun party.  You should keep them in your mental rolodex too!!

Hrrrm, maybe I'm turning into a real food snob or maybe I just ordered the wrong thing because this place was just OK to me.

I met my parents and my brother here for a birthday night dinner since my dad and I were both celebrating birthdays!  Yay!  The atmosphere is nice with a dimly lit room, swank decor - definitely felt more upscale casual.  It actually reminded me a bit of a lesser Houston's.

The menu also reminded me of Houston's (btw OH HOW I MISS YOU HOUSTON'S).  Steaks were prominent on the menu, huge salad entree options, fish and chicken dishes for the people who don't like steak, and decadent desserts.  I was kind of excited since you can't go wrong with this kind of menu.

But it wasn't quite Houston's.  I got the steak Maui because I thought, hey, maybe it is like the Hawaiian steak at the aforementioned establishment.  It was a ribeye (I think) and cooked perfect medium rare.  However, I found the steak kind of chewy and stringy as well as too fatty (which I know is par for the course with that cut).  I liked the marinade and the flavor but I just wasn't in LOVE with it.  The BF had a steak also and had very similar comments.

Desserts were a treat!  Chocolate cake with ice cream - HUGE and decadent.  The carrot cake was interesting - more dense than usual carrot cake I've had and warm with melty sugary icing on top.  There was literally NOTHING wrong with this.  For once I actually took something home in a leftover box and ate the rest of that bad boy later in the night.  Hey, twas my birthday, I can eat if I want to!!

Overall an A-OK joint and I really think I need to go back and try something else to give it a fair shot.  I'm not giving up on you J. Alexander's!!

I am not one to go to cheesy tourist spots like Margaritaville.  We have one here in Nashville that I've never once been to.  But when you are tired, need a beverage, and it is right across the street, you might consider stopping here.

The place is huge inside with a bar in the front, a bar in the back, and apparently a bar upstairs with swings for seats.  We sat in the back bar where there was a stage set up for some live music and the TVs were on football.  I ordered a top shelf margarita because I find top shelf makes it taste WAY better than their less expensive counterparts.  Plus, more liquor!  I occupied myself with alternately watching football and reading the snippits from the life of Jimmy Buffet on the wall.  Not sure if he already has a book but if he does, I should buy it because I was very interested.  Soon after beginning our drinking festival, a trio of men started playing.  The guitar player was great, the singer had that raspy blues voice, and they even sang some Christmas tunes soooo it added to the festiveness.

Overall not a bad place to waste an afternoon drinking when you have no where else to go and nothing else to do.

So we met a lovely lady on a night at Johnny White's sports bar and she said she works at the Old Coffee Pot.  She told us to come in and ask for Wilhelmina (sorry about butchering the spelling on that one).  We woke and were looking for a great place to eat and remembered she told us to come and ask for her.  Sooooo we did and man, was I glad!

This place is cozy and quaint and looks like an old house with very closely placed tables.  Not a good place for a breakup talk but a good place to get to know your neighbors sitting around you.  We asked for our newly found friend and she came from behind the bar to wait on us.  She did not disappoint with one of the best bloody marys ever: complete with plenty of spice and pickled green beans.

So the menu is almost too much to wrap your hungover brain around.  We were there when you could order either breakfast OR lunch.  OMG too many choices.  Just read the menu carefully and then order up a feast for trying.  

Crab balls: have you ever wanted a crab cake but not really the ENTIRE ENTREE?  Well these are little balls of crab cake and they were perfect little crab cake snacks.  Every restaurant should immediately start serving these because I LOVE THEM.

Callas cakes: apparently spices and rice formed into a ball and deep fried and dusted in powdered sugar.  Then you dump as little or as much syrup on them.  We got a side order of this just to try and I thought they were AWESOME.  The ball is thicker in consistency which makes it more hearty than pancakes but still just as good a sweet treat.  HIGHLY recommend trying these.

Eggs creole: eggs, onions, pimentos, and mushrooms covered in a creole sauce.  This was good but I think I should have branched out a little more and gotten the egg dish with the chicken livers or even the one with the creamed spinach underneath.  Next time, next time.

Service is going to be NOLA style - a little slow and a lot friendly so don't come here if you are in a hurry or in  a grumpy mood and you should be fine.  But DO come here otherwise because you will leave fat and happy and full of some damn good breakfast.

Irish pub that seems pretty divey?  I'm in.

Went here after eating at the Crescent City Brewhouse.  Not too packed, snagged a table in the back near the stage.  No wait service, but bartenders were quick to wait on you when you went up to the bar.  Bathrooms had tons of fun graffiti to read and weren't as dirty as you might think.

So it appears that Tuesday nights are an open mic night with country music on the agenda.  Two or three guys pretty much rotated the entire night.  One guy was entirely sassy, he basically was heckling us and eavesdropping on our conversations the entire night.  Pretty funny guy plus some good old classic country tunes.  The other guys were also good and - btw - if you know a song and they know how to play it you can get on the mic for your own personal live karaoke.

Verdict: nuthin wrong with this place - give it a go on Tuesday and cry a tear in your beer to the old country tunes.

I met a group of people at the Crescent City Brewhouse for some dinner and drinks.  If you have a big group, this place is big enough to handle it.  Plus it appeared there was an upstairs too.  So all y'all can eat together no problem.

The four of us at the end of the table just wanted to munch so we decided on an appetizer buffet to share.  That means we chose a bunch of appetizers and split them.

Baked brie with apple chutney and roasted garlic - OK I love roasted garlic and I love sweet with cheese so this was pretty damn good.  You can eat it with the bread or just shove it in your mouth straight up.

Baked oysters three ways - these were good and one of the renditions was pleasantly spicy but it wasn't as good as the Bourbon House's oysters.

Seafood cheesecake - I was scared of this because I don't like dessert cheesecake and I wasn't sure exactly what was going to come out.  This was made with crawfish, shrimp, and cheeses made into a big "cake" and topped with shrimp and crab meat in a red pepper mayo.  I also don't usually like mayo but all of this together freakin worked.  It was really good but definitely split it because it was rich...and heavenly.

Louisiana crab cake - good, standard crab cake with a good sauce on top

Acadian egg roll - crawfish and pork with usual type veggies. Meh, I don't like egg rolls very much (I know, I'm weird) and these weren't an exception.  Do without.

Vodka soda - always refreshing!

Service was good and our lady was friendly but seemed stressed (probably because the place was packed out and she had huge tables full of people).  But unless you clearly mark that you can't run 4 cards then you shouldn't say "I'll be back in an hour with these" under your breath.  Doesn't make me want to leave you any extra above that tip you know?  But I did anyway because she was working hard so I let the attitude slide.

Overall an A-OK place to grab food, beer or drinks, and hang out with your friends.