the gin joint

good drinks and great food. i had a jamaican old fashioned to drink which was quite good. had some of the clams and andouille sausage (great taste, comes with grilled bread, too little andouille though, put some more in). the soft pretzels are thick and salty, the sriachacheesesauce that comes with them is a good compliment to the pretzels. i did try the shrimp and grit fritters, they come out super hot (thanks grits!) but overall not one of my favorites, not very flavorful. their grilledcheeseis amazing, i loved it. next time i go there i'll order that first thing. the sandwich has bentons country ham forcemeat in it and then it is grilled with the two cheeses to create a crunchycheeseshell much like a taco shell surrounding the sandwich, this comes with a sauce that tastes great with the sandwich.

ok drinks but really really slow service. we ordered drinks 20mincheeseplate 45 min. really long wait.

make sure you have time to spare. the drinks were great but make sure you have time to spare as they take a long time to arrive. i have been several times and always felt that the drinks take a little longer than they should getting to the table. i understand the drinks are detailed and unique and i can respect that. however, 4 of us went again this past tuesday for drinks and an appetizer before dinner elsewhere and were there for nearly 2 hours, with just 2 rounds of drinks, and our food never came. there was 1 other table and 2 people at the bar when we arrived. the drinks were wonderful and the server was helpful in guiding us through the menu. however, we ordered 2 cheeses to go with our drinks and after about 40 minutes, when we ordered our 2nd round of drinks, we asked about thecheeseplate, which our server obviously had forgotten about. she said she didn't know why it hadn't come out yet. then she proceeds to stand at the front of the restaurant and text in between serving 2 other tables that came in. when the other tables ordered food, she immediately brought them plates, napkins and silver. we never got plates, napkins or silver in anticipation of ourcheeseplate so it was apparent that even with a reminder, she forgot about ourcheeseplate again. she did not however, forget about whomever she was texting. when i asked for the bill and said, please don't charge us for the cheese, again she said, "i don't know why it never came out!" she never took responsibilty for forgetting it, just acted like it was supposed to appear on the table without her bringing it or checking on it. two hours, 7 cocktails, and nocheeseplate later, we left with a $70 tab. annoyed!

we enjoyed a delightful round of drinks and tasty treats tonight on the gin joint patio at 182 east bay street. east bay street seemed more relaxing tonight than normal - maybe there were fewer bachelorette party goers trying to find there way to and from wet willies? if you love vodka or beer, you may not enjoy the gin joint (no vodka and only 2 beers available). if you enjoy gin, whisk(e)y or just about any other type of liquor, you should grab a drink there next time you are downtown. they have plenty of cocktails to choose from, all made from fresh ingredients (no pre-made packaged mixers, fresh squeezed fruit). the gin joint is also a great place to grab a bite to eat. some of our favorites: korean pork buns pad thai popcorn fingerling potatoes giant ricotta stuffed meatballscheeseplate atmospheric notes: their drink menu is a thick stack of printed sheets collected on a clipboard (so they can change out often) and their napkins look like they were cut from dentist office spit b