What a shiny breath of fresh air!

It seems to me that every new bar in town is either a gastropub with a complicated menu, a craft beer bar, or a fancy cocktail bar where mixologists spend 20 minutes muddling berries before you get a flim-flam drink.

BUT, hear the good news, Johnny's Gold Brick is just a bar! A fantastic neighborhood bar. Simple, delicious cocktails, ample beers in cans or bottles (also, 2 draft taps) and wine.

We sat at the bar on a quiet Monday night and were able to chat with the bartenders and get quick yummy drinks. The Moscow Mule was classic and perfect. The frozen margarita came from a machine, but without the chemical taste and a bonus Big Red soda float. So delicious.

It feels like a place where people become regulars quickly. The small room is friendly and welcoming. They consciously don't have TVs so you actually will have to talk to your friends or the bartenders which is surprisingly refreshing. If you live in the Heights or Heights adjacent you should hit this place up ASAP! Wonderful addition to the neighborhood.

How to MEASURE the WEIGHT of this meal? If you love bread, if you aren't paleo, or don't think gluten is a four letter word...then you will love W + M.

We ate a lot of bread. Start with a bread course, of course. We chose the pea and parmesan bread and it was delicious and quite possibly the best thing we ate that evening. Warm and mildly sweet and reasonably priced. Perfect. We also snagged some meatballs (with more bread) and a delicious salad to start.

For entrees I continued on the bread train and chose the margarita pizza. Thin with a great chew (mmmmm....gluten), but with minimal toppings. I would have liked more of everything sauce, cheese, basil. The husband chose the pork chop special and it was HUGE and delicious.

Of course we finished with sugar and...wait for it...bread, selecting the doughknots. They were on the beignet side of doughnuts and just as delicious.

The service was good. The cocktails were nice, but following the trend of over-wrought and labor intensive for not significant return. The decor is what I would call Austin-chic, but that comes from a suppressed inferiority complex with our smaller neighbor to the north, they don't have a trademark on mid-century mod. Stupid, Austin.

Do you want me to lei it on you? Do you want the lei low-down? Do you want me to lei off the lei puns?

As you wish.

I was anxiously awaiting the opening of this bar. The buzz was thick and as a cousin to D&T I knew I wanted to check it out quickly after opening. I would drive down N. Main with my eyes peeled searching the horizon for the beacon of rum and...I could not find it. Could not see where on earth a Tiki bar was supposed to be located at this address? It isn't just hard to find, it is darn near impossible to find. We had to call and chat it up with one of the sweet bartenders. As it turns out, it is in a tucked away in the corner of the strip center with the Stop at Joe's convenience store, which incidentally could be an amazing stroke of luck as rum gives me the munchies and this bar is without. There is no sign, although the Tiki mural should give it away. The signage is lacking, but there is a small neon word over the door telling you everything you need to know: Rum.

My group of six grabbed the semicircle booth near the back of the dimly lit room. We then ordered just about every drink on the menu or at least it felt that way. We shared and sampled many of the delights. My favorites were the Shipwrecked which featured buttered rum and a slushy type that was sweet, but not too sweet. The drinks also came with the four F's of garnish: foliage, fruit, flowers, and FIRE. The presentation of most of the drinks in itself was worth the visit.

Very fun, very unique, very worth another visit.

I hope I didn't lei it on too thick and you don't lei into me about all the lei puns.

Shop local and grow together!

Whether it was our craftsmen inspired outdoor deck lights or our just right bathroom replacement light, Heights Lights and Things can help you find the right light! It is a showroom that has examples of a variety of lighting options, but if you can't find what you want they have books and books of lights you can order. For our bathroom fixture I found the style I wanted on the showroom wall but it was too long. The owner helped me find the same style number but with the length I needed. The customer service is good and I'm happy to give my money to HL&T over Home Depot any day.

It is a little hard to find and seems almost like a house, but walk in and give a hello. Someone will greet you! Don't be scared.