"No Surf" City, from the Target's notebook.

You know they're either out surfin' or they got a party growin'. -Jan & Dean, Surf City
Where's the party? No surf zone, 66th and Holidays, 10/18/2018.

   I am waiting as night quickly descends. Tonight it did not matter that the Watts were running late, for the Atlantic was quiet. Upon arrival, Wattman quickly embarks from the Terrain as he had talked himself into putting on the rubber top only and eating the cold for dinner. Temps had dropped over the last few days. Maybe within those last few seconds Watt was hoping to snag a ride before total darkness fell. However, it does not matter. Tonight for the first time this season there was NO surf. What laid before us was a dead calm sea with not much more than a ripple lapping at the beach's edge. While there were no waves, we were able to appreciate the last moments of an incredible sunset as the light silently slipped below the horizon. 

   With no real time spent on the beach we headed over to our dinner destination. Upon arrival at Ironweed Ale Werks it was immediately apparent that this was a business in transition (OC Brewing Company...been there, done that), not to mention the off season as well. I spotted a total of eight people in the entire place. This was formerly the original ES Adkins Lumber Warehouse, cavernous, but with plenty of flatscreen TVs and even a dual indoor Cornhole court. Finding a place at the bar was no trouble at all. Our barkeep was the new GM of the Ironweed. As peeps departed, we became as entertaining to him as he was to us. Ironweed was in the process of taking over OC Brewing and due to all the legal and illegal mumbo jumbo involved, the procedure was full of editorial garbage...we will leave it at that for now.

Still, lots of beer on tap and we took the opportunity to sample a few before making a decision. I will go on the record now: Cucumber beer has no place anywhere in our society. It may have been the sole worst tasting beverage I had ever tried. Meanwhile, Wattman was having a great time sampling their brews, while I dropped back and went with the safe bet...an original Miller Lite. LWatt chose a Sour that we agreed wasn't as good as last weeks representative. From the ample menu we ordered the Brew House Pretzel with Spicy-Sweet Mustard and Beer Cheese to start. The pretzel was average, not much better that your store brought  freezer variety. However, the mustard had a great tang on the back-end we all liked. Our next selection was the Honey Old Bay Wings.

Anytime there's honey we've had a note of concern. It would be very easy to end up with a sticky mess. But these wings featured just the right amount of honey, although the dry-rub Old Bay should have been kicked up a notch. Finally, we split the Smash Burger, a 1/2lb. of angus with provolone and bacon. We have had just an outstanding run of good burgers lately were hoping it would continue. This was again a well prepared burger, good size, but it seemed to lack a pop. While I could not speak for the Watts, it left me wanting. At this point we were the only people left in the place as we continued our conversation with our barkeep. Seemed we had visited just in time as Ironweed would be closing the following week for major renovations and would not reopen 'til Spring. Thus, while it may not be possible to stop by again in 2018, we will definitely put it on the Patrol's list for next year. 

THE RATINGS - 

Brew House Pretzel: C+

Honey Old Bay Wings: B+

Smash Burger: B-

Beer: B+

Atmosphere: B

Value: C

Overall Score = 2.75