Sometimes...You Get What You Need, notes from the Target

   Can you remember the first time?  First beer.  First hangover.  How about the first time you grabbed a stick shift and put the pedal to the floor?  The first ride is like that.  Our return to the water.  66th street, Holiday Inn.  Mid 50's onshore winds.  Water a nippy 48F.  Beach was completely empty. But, it's like that the first time every year.  While the session was short, the surf sectioned and chopped, the first time back has it's stoke.

Short rides, 4/25.

   After DWatt let his head thaw out, we decided to steer the Journey in the direction of the Crabcake Factory.  Okay, we've heard it... why go to a restaurant known for Maryland crab cakes to get wings?  Same reason we went went to a lobster shanty... for wings!  Our Tapstress was a constantly smiling young woman who seemed to enjoy everyone in that came in.   She even offered us samples of the craft brews on tap.  As we settled on our choices the beer was brought cold, but in plastic cups. Plastic indoors? Really?  The wing choices were few; Old Bay, Spicy Buffalo, BBQ.  We went with the Spicy and the BBQ.  Arrived breaded. Breaded, yeah.  The BBQ wasn't even sauced, it was drizzled.  But our disappointment was replaced with pleasant surprise.  The meat was literally falling off the bone, juicy, well cooked, and a nice blend of seasonings.  The Buffalo was decently spiced with a nice front end kick.  We had the NFL Draft on the big screen.  A nice 10 strong crowd... classic bar crowd.  We had the middle aged couple getting plastered trying every drink concoction on the menu. The retired dude reminiscing about the  football teams of the70's and 80's. And, a birthday celebration... shots for everyone!  This is what makes a local dive a great place to hang in the offseason.   Everyone is friends.  The wings, beer, people- all a great time.  As Mick Jagger says, "you can't always get what you want, but sometimes you get what you need."  This evening, we got what we needed.

THE RATINGS-
Spicy Buffalo Wings: B+
BBQ Wings: B-
Beer (Plastic cups? C'mon Man!): C
Atmosphere:  A-
Overall Score =  2.93