5 Season's Westside

[totm]

The Full Nelson - an intersting take on a "single" hop beer.  Hops were grassy to me.

Slaughter House 5 (Poo-tee-weet?) IPA - a damn good IPA.  Ranks up with one of the best I've ever had.

[FlyinBrian]

We went a few months back.  I was hoping Crawford would resurrect his Dogwood IPA.

[totm]

SGDF beer washed cow's milk cheese (Sweet Grass Dairy soaked some of their cheese in 5 Seasons beer for weeks) - the beer isn't pronounced but adds a next complexity and dried the creamy cheese out.  Kind of like a mild not salty feta.  Yum.

Beer cheese soup - made with # Ale and (I think) British Mild, sharp cheddar and parmesan.  Unlike (and so much better than) any other beer cheese I've ever had.

Leave it to Chef Dave to put skate wing in his fish & chips.  Very fresh flavorful fish with a little lemon zest in the too thick breading.

They put their tour/tasting on Gropeon and had 2000+ sales.

The Full Nelson has mellowed into more of a grapefruit nose.

[Lorenzo]

I've tried quite a number of things on the menu here by now, but finally got around to trying the "organic Georgia" burger ($10).  It was smallish and way overcooked for medium-rare--no discernible pink whatsoever.  I knew better than to get the fries as my side, which although they call them "pommes frites" to evoke the Belgian style, never approach anything like that.  So I tried the cole slaw.  Meh, too.  I love the ambition of 5 Seasons' menu--antelope patty melt, organic brisket Reuben, tenderloin au poivre, whole grilled Maine lobster, etc.--but the execution just never seems to quite reach the expectations raised by the menu descriptions.

As for the beers, the IPA was good, but the "Saison du Bob" seemed too heavy in body/mouthfeel and lacked fruitiness and spiciness.  It also seemed on the high alcohol side of the spectrum for what I'm familiar with in saisons.  I would almost have guessed it was a Belgian triple--certainly had that deeper amber color.  There were only five beers on tap, I believe.  Is Crawford on vacation or something?

[jpellett251]

I finally made it here.  All the food at the table (burger, portobello sandwich, calamari, a few other things) was weirdly bland.  The burger was cooked how I asked (medium rare) but was probably the worst burger I've ever had.  Small, weird pale gray, not very juicy, falling apart, and completely unseasoned.  My saison wasn't great or really a saison, but to be fair, I think saison is a style that for some reason no American brewer has been able to successfully brew.  Too heavy and sweet...more like a bier de garde.  On the upside, Slaughterhouse 5 IPA was a very good IPA, and The Roots killed at the Tabernacle afterward.