Sleep 'til you're hungry, eat 'til you're sleepy. ~Author Unknown

Here it is blogosphere--my very first restaurant review! I've learned quite a bit tonight about being a food critic, and I'm so FULL!
1. Don't LOOK like a food critic. I kept catching the waiters'/waitresses' eyes all night and it made them all tense and nervous...and they kept calling me ma'am! Really!?
2. Don't try to review a restaurant before its' grand opening, regardless of  the fact that they've been open "informally" for 3weeks! They just use it as an excuse when something goes wrong, i.e. no appetizer plates and only 1 menu for 2 people.
3. Don't EVER be in a hurry at a new restaurant. Even if your appetizers arrive on-time, your food will take FOREVER!

So that leads me into my full discussion of our meal. At 6:30 pm, with our stomachs growling, Chris and I made the long 2 mile journey from our casa to the new hot spot in town. As we entered we were greeted warmly. The crowd was mostly 20 and 30 somethings. The hostess asked if we would be okay with sitting "in the cocktail area," which we agreed to because the place was packed. Upon seating us, she informed us that they were short on menus, so could we share? Of course we said yes, but come on, really? It took our waitress, who doubled as a bartendress, about 5 minutes to come to our table and offer us drinks. She brought us our water quickly, and re-filled it often. We started our meal with Shiner Bock Battered Onion Rings.

The onion rings were salty and delightful...the sauce that accompanied them was way too rich when combined with the onion rings. We opted for plain ole ketchup instead.

For our meals, Chris ordered the Jalapeno Cheeseburger, and I opted for the Monte Cristo--made with cornflake encrusted French toast, not deep fried, and served with raspberry preserves. Deeelish! We were very pleased with the taste and presentation of the food, though it took almost 30 minutes for them to deliver it. The only true disappointment was that they served my meal with these weird fry/chip things, and Chris' with more onion rings because they ran out of French fries. Again, the waitress pointed out that they weren't "officially" open for business yet...though they've been serving customers for 3-4 weeks now? On a side note, I caught a glimpse of several of their salads and they looked amazing.

Jalapeno Cheeseburger

Monte Cristo

Last, no meal (for us anyway) is complete without dessert! I let Chris pick this one because I knew he would LOVE the Pineapple Upside Down Cake...and he did! As did I. It was decadent and fantastic. It was served warm with ice cream, and came to our table very quickly. There was absolutely nothing wrong with this dish!

Pineapple Upside Down Cake (with a few bites missing!)

 So, what is the overall conclusion of this long-winded attempt at sounding like a sophisticated foodie? The food was delicious, the service was fair, and we will definitely go back...in about 2 months after they've worked out the kinks. We were told that the grand opening is February 4th, they'll start happy hour specials the week after, and they have plans for special drinks, etc. for Valentine's Day. We're looking forward to sitting out on their beautiful patio this summer and enjoying the weather.The owner says they have plans for live music and drink specials.

We give it 3 Stars! (Out of 5)