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It was a blustery day. I bundled myself and braced myself for a walk downtown with my partner-in-crime. He muttered something about how this better be good, and I muttered something about how he needed to man up. We were going to a place with leather chairs, after all.

The cold wind pushed us back, but we still made it to our destination. Walking in, we immediately felt the warmth… the warmth temperature-wise and atmosphere-wise. We choose a table in the tasting room of Alexandria’s where we both had a good view of the football game going on at the moment. Two equally big screens were easily visible where we sat. He started cheering for his team, and I immediately became a fan of the other team. This is the only way to watch football.

Our waitress came over and gave us our menus, both beer and food. We both went to devouring the expansive beer menu. I settled quickly on the Great Lakes brew, as I am a big fan. My partner looked perplexed. I asked if I could help.

“No. I’ll figure it out,” he said with a bit of a scowl. I could tell immediately that the sheer number of choices had gotten to him. He didn’t know where to even begin.

Our waitress came over, and I quickly put in my order. He looked up and said, “I don’t know where to even begin.” I was shocked to hear this admittance come out of his mouth.

The waitress smiled sweetly and said, “Well, what kind of beer do you usually like?” After several exchanges, they found a beer that the waitress was sure would suit his tastes. Disaster averted!

We turned away from the beer menu and started devouring the food menu. The best way to describe the food is to say that it is upscale pub food. It is attainable enough for those that don’t like to try new things, but interesting enough for those that like a little something different in their lives. Our entrees were easy to find. There was a burger on the menu, and my partner always has a hankering for a burger. For me, I turn to a five year old with pigtails every time I see a grilled cheese on the menu, so that was definitely for me. I then took just a quick gander over to the appetizer side of the menu.

“They have salsa and chips.” This is something we can always agree on. “And they have a flight of salsas. I think we need to try that.”

A brief smile flashed across his face. “I think we need to too.”

Our waitress came back with our beers and collected our food orders. We settled back into the football game, with insults being traded back and forth.

As my partner took a deep, long drink of his beer, he looked thoughtful for a second. “Write the name of this beer down.” The waitress scored here, and that is very difficult.

Our waitress brought out the flight of salsas and explained each one. We had what you would normally think of when you think salsa, a roasted vegetable salsa and a mango salsa. We were both certain that we would be all over the “normal” salsa and just nibble at the other two, so we both dipped into that one first. Satisfying and exactly what we expected. Then we had to bite bullet and try something new. We went for the vegetable one. Whoa. This was perfect. I never thought potatoes could work in a salsa, but suddenly, it seemed so right. And then warm salsa that is spicy? HEAVEN. We then tried the mango salsa. It was fresh, light and sweet, but just a bit of salt to make it tasty. It made me happy. But it was clear, we would be fighting over the roasted vegetables, because it was awesome.

Our entrees came, as well as another round of beers. I inspected my sandwich and was pleasantly surprised to see chopped tomatoes throughout the ooey, gooey cheesiness. The golden brown on the outside told me that I was in for the perfect grilled cheese and that first crunch in my mouth confirmed it. I then threw one of the fries into my mouth, followed by a sip of the beer. Um, wait a second. The saltiness of the fries actually compliments the beer. I’ve never experienced this before, but I’m pretty sure that I’ll be demanding it from now on.

I checked in with my partner, and he complimented the burger as being one of his favorites. He then went back to hungrily devouring it. I, on the other hand, slowed myself down. Something this well put together deserves to be savored. But it did have to come to an end. As our dishes were being cleared, I prepared for the regular dash by my partner.

He put his hand on my arm and said quietly, “Let’s stay for awhile.” So we did. We ended up watching the rest of the game in our comfy chairs. And as we walked out, he said to me, “I liked that. Let’s go back sometime.”

Yes, we’ll definitely be back to Alexandria’s soon.

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