As I took a nice sip of the root beer at Chattanooga’s Terminal Brewhouse, I kind of had that feeling that I sometimes get that Marie would be a little envious of me once she knew what I was drinking. The thought had occurred to me that I could very well have enjoyed six or seven more pints of their oatmeal stout – it had been a bad week, I was in a lousy mood, and the stout was very, very good – but I decided to be sensible and just follow up the beer with a house-brewed soda. It was magical. Continue reading “The Terminal Brewhouse, Chattanooga TN”
Tag: chattanooga
Good Dog, Chattanooga TN
In the previous chapter, I mentioned that David and the kids and I went up to Chattanooga to do a little book shopping. David was not really tempted by my suggestion of a visit to Zarzour’s Cafe, and so we went to Couch’s to try a new-to-us barbecue place. I did not want to go up there without also getting a snack from one of the city’s more popular restaurants, and so after we spent some time at McKay and at another wonderful store, The Book Company, where I found (I believe) all the remaining Harry Kemelman Rabbi novels that I have yet to read for about a buck and a quarter each, we drove downtown. Continue reading “Good Dog, Chattanooga TN”
Couch’s Barbecue, Ooltewah TN
So last week, I convinced David to leave the state. This has not happened in a while, as David doesn’t travel nearly as often as he should. It’s good for the soul, travel. My kids were on spring break and getting cabin fever and doing that really dumb thing that immature people do with money, which is to realize that they have some of it and must exchange it for something else immediately before they spontaneously combust. Continue reading “Couch’s Barbecue, Ooltewah TN”
Zarzour’s Cafe, Chattanooga TN
Here’s a really interesting restaurant that I supposed I would not get the chance to try. Zarzour’s Cafe opened in 1918 and has a wonderful reputation for their meat-and-three meals, but, sadly, the restaurant, for years, has only been open from 11 am to 2 in the afternoon, and only on weekdays. That’s not a very good window for out-of-town guests! Fortunately, they have elected to stay open a little bit longer each weekday – to the comparatively late hour of 3.30 – even though the kitchen itself still closes at 2. Guests in this last ninety minute window can still order some of their very famous burgers, grilled up by an exceptionally sassy lady who let us know how she drank her way out of college in Knoxville. Yes, this place is a dive in the finest possible sense of the word, and I love it absolutely. Continue reading “Zarzour’s Cafe, Chattanooga TN”
Aretha Frankenstein’s, Chattanooga TN
Last month, I mentioned that a regular at the Roadfood message board had come through with a recommendation for lunch in the town of Carnesville. I once again visited that forum for help finding breakfast this past Saturday in Chattanooga. The same guy, who goes by the handle “Littleman,” again came through with a heads-up on a tiny little place called Aretha Frankenstein’s that just drips with kitschy character and charm. That fellow’s batting a thousand, and if I can’t help you with suggestions about where to eat in any given destination, you should probably track him down. Continue reading “Aretha Frankenstein’s, Chattanooga TN”
Double Cola
I’m pretty sure – although I can’t swear to it specifically – that it was my dad who mentioned Double Cola to me. It’s the sort of drink where, if you didn’t know it was a really old beverage, dating back to the 1920s, you’d walk right past it in the convenience store, thinking it just another cheap knockoff. But my dad sold it to me as something really neat, and said, incorrectly, that you could only get it in its hometown of Chattanooga. Continue reading “Double Cola”
Sugar’s Ribs, Chattanooga TN
I started visiting friends up in Nashville a little over ten years ago now, and so I’ve seen a particular building off I-24 in Chattanooga on the way home many, many times. It was a breakfast place for ages, but in 2007, it became Sugar’s Ribs, and the combination of neon and a great big sign proclaiming the Big Time BBQ available therein made the place irresistible. Continue reading “Sugar’s Ribs, Chattanooga TN”
Marie, Let's Eat! 