brass tacks

it was another fun and memorable night out with the hubby.  dinner at brass tacks and then some bowling at roxbury lanes.  brass tacks has an awesome happy hour so we each started off with a $5 old fashioned.  for food we ordered the jerk chicken and the poutine from the dinner menu but we also got the candied bacon and artichoke and arugula salad from the happy hour menu.  i liked the feel of the place and hope to eat there again.  the food was decent and my favorite dish was the poutine because i have a thing for cheese curds.  the salad was a little plain and light on the vinaigrette but balanced out the bacon and poutine well.  they also have live music on certain nights which we would have stayed for, but roxbury lanes was waiting.  there's something about bowling that brings out my competitive spirit.  its very rare for me to get a strike or spare but what a good feeling when i do.  they had cosmic bowling which i've never done.  i liked the special lighting and wished we could have stayed longer.  we bowled two games and i didn't do very well but i had a blast!

great atmosphere with live music i believe most nights. innovative cocktail menu although the drinks seemed to not be very strong. we shared several dishes... most things seem to be small plates. as a vegetarian i wish there were a few more hearty veggie dishes but the artichoke salad was very tasty and so were the cheese fries. would definitely go back.

we stopped in for a quick lunch. arrive early as it fills up with workers from around georgetown by 12:15. the burger is insanely good. cooked to your liking (medium for me), it has a smoky bbq flavor, homemade pickles and mayo that makes it special from the other $14 burgers out there. the atmosphere is really coolt. makes you feel like an episode of deadwood, but it has a verticle garden and lots of light so you know you're not in deadwood. there's a sweet private room in the back for you and 8 of your friends.

pleasant staff, cool environment but the food is subpar. mac n cheese was slop, fried chicken oily....nuf said

bad service, unbearably cold temperature. it was 38 degrees outside and no more than 55 inside brass tacks. it was so cold that everybody, and i mean everybody, was wearing full winter gear (50-75 patrons), hoodies, beanies, scarves and winter coats. everybody inside was wearing full winter gear. i asked if the heat could be turned up and over an hour later it was still just as freezing inside. in addition, we were seated at a table (group of six) for almost two hours and not once, not once were we approached by a waitress. absolutely unacceptable for the price you pay for food and drink at a place like this.
will not be returning and will warn others away.

an eating and drinking hole that’s somewhere between an upscale roadhouse and gastropub. and that decor! an old piano, twisted bits of metal and welded alien statues and a cigar-smoking one-legged baby doll pole dancing in a cage.

brass tacks, good food, a bit spendy. finally i made it to brass tacks! i have heard about this place for a long time and finally the opportunity arose to go here! when we walked in it was during the week and was not busy at all so that was a huge advantage!
the service is good at brass tacks and the atmosphere is interesting and quirky, something steven and i both love. there is local art for sale on the walls which add more character to the place.
steve and i were not too terribly hungry but wanted something regardless to eat. it was probably a good thing we did not come here starving because the portions at brass tacks are not necessarily on the large end. but that by no means that the food here is not filling because it is!
i got the macaroni and cheese with brisket which was very good! the mac was perfect and beef added a nice robust taste to the overall dish and i was pretty full by the time it was all said and done.
steve got an appetizer, the jerk chicken which was excellent and was more than enough for him as well but we both managed to finish what we ordered...somehow.
i also got an italian soda which was very good. the kind i had had creme in it which was a departure for me from pitalian sodas of my past but it was good! no complaints!
brass tacks is a little bit spendy but it is worth the experience and the food is worth the extra price!

let’s get to the brass tacks here. the first thing i spied when walking in was a predator. a baby one. like in the movie, only wrought from metal, sitting on an end table by the door. the second thing that caught my eye was the shuffleboard table. i felt so much at home that i was trying to figure out where to put my bed. and i hadn’t even made it to a table or looked at the menu yet.
the massive bar full of bottles further enhanced my feelings of wanting to move in.
by the time the menu arrived, i was fully settled in. it is short, twenty or so items, yet diverse. that’s great for me; my brain can only handle seven or so choices before deploying mechanisms.
the tables are nice; they were made from material salvaged from the site during restaurant construction. i was halfway trying to figure out how to make them for myself at home when i remembered that i was moving in here and continued looking around for a place to put my bed.
i got an excellent venison sausage with sauerkraut. the latter was bavarian influenced, not the northern style we are accustomed to in the stores. they complemented each other nicely, yet i would happily eat either on their own.
we also got a charcuterie platter with two meats, one lean, the other richer and spicier. again, nice complementary flavors. two cheeses; one blue, the other rich and mellower were also on the platter along with contrasting pickles; carrots, cucumber and a white vegetable. a deep dark rich apple butter and a generous portion of bread rounded out the platter.
my second visit was for breakfast. coffee was good, fresh, not overly roasted. i opted for the bacon version of the bloody mary, which arrived with bacon salt around the rim and a piece of bacon added to the garnish. with or without the bacon, the bloody mary is a sound investment.
i was thinking, “if my bed were just over there, i would have breakfast in bed right about...now.
the chicken and waffles arrived, along with the poutine. i got two legs and a thigh. happily, not a breast.
chicken two legs and a thigh. thankfully not a breast. it came across like an unbattered buttermilk brined southern style. the waffle was somewhat bready and moist, perfect for wrapping around the chicken. if the waffle is the foil for the syrup, it was marvelous because the bourbon infused syrup
waffle could have been better – crispier, less bready would halve been better. if the waffle is the foil for the syrup, the bready is marvelous because the bourbon infused syrup was flipping delicious. it is complex, maple and bourbon on par with each other.
finest aspect of that dish is the finishing salt; large flakes that are light bright briny and clean. my favorite bite includes waffle, chicken, and syrup. a nearly perfect flavor and texture combo.
the fries in the poutine are great; russets, plenty of gravy, plenty of cheese. it is a faithful rendition of this dish that is on par with anything quebec could throw at you. and yes, that can be delivered straight to my bed, too.
chicken, waffles, and poutine. in one dish. now you’re talking.
the background music is at a comfortable level; you can hear conversations at your table without overhearing conversations at other tables.
unisex bathrooms are always a plus in my book. now, if only they had a shower.

another great georgetown lunch spot. we typically hit the georgetown restaurants for lunch. brass tacks is a great addition.

fun and interesting space and decor. lots to look at, including the open kitchen. the skylights really light up the place, even on a cloudy day.

menu is really different - in a good way. and the portions are large. we shared the charred romain salad and the mac 'n cheese between the two of us and left food on our plates. very rich, very satisfying.

looking forward to returning and sampling other dished on their menu.

our entrees were tasteless and what wasn't burned was something a grocery store deli could make.

absolutely fantastic joint! great atmosphere, un-presuming, pleasant serving staff. fabulous open kitchen! 5 star food and extremely reasonable prices. finest dining in the south metro!