Coach Saban Comments on Closing of Brew Pub

(Montgomery)--The Montgomery Brew Pub has "temporarily" closed, according to owner/manager/chef Chris Ellis. See article in The Montgomery Advertiser. We at Lunch in the Gump are extremely disappointed and hope he is not kidding about reopening soon with pool tables, dart boards and "Jenga." When Coach Saban was asked by some wag if he knew of the closing at his press conference following the unfortunate South Carolina Gamecock game, he said this:

What do I think about the Brewpub closed!?!? You've got to be %$*&#ing @#*!ing me!!!

We at LITG apologize for Coach Saban's potty mouth. We will probably get some e-mails and letters about this, and we should. But it was a dumb question.

Martinis, Chicken Salad and Scotch: A Gentleman at Lunch

[Ed. Note: The Montgomery Brewing Company is "closed for rennovations." However, it does not look llike any work is going on there and we are beginning to doubt the "See You Soon" sign after two months of outward non-activity.]

No Toby, you can't have any you old sot!

With the market in the crapper, oil spoiling beach vacations and investment portfolios all askew, a gentleman must adapt to his decaying circumstances--at least with respect to lunch. In lieu of pork loin and truffles,  bangers and mash at the local public house may have to be considered.  However, I say a gentleman can eat and drink well on a reduced budget if one has some imagination (and a bottle of 18-year-old Scotch in the office).  Wednesday, for example, yours truly was able to enjoy a fine lunch and get slightly banjaxed at the same time for a reasonable ("sustainable") price.  The secret is to order the "Mama Netties" chicken salad from The Montgomery Brewing Co. and to chase it with some fine Glenlivet.http://www.theglenlivet.com/  You can order the salad as a sandwhich but I prefer it on a bed of fresh greens with a roll and fruit. Very good for remaining fit and trim.  Of course, the secret is the quality of the scotch (I usually prerfer my Jameson) which also numbs the hunger pangs and allows one to avoid the bread with empty calories.

With a slight buzz about your work may suffer but if you cap off the evening with Chophouse VY martinis from their crackerjack bar staff you will wake up with a headache but a few pounds lighter. Probably bad for the liver though. Despite being a little sharp set, sipping a fine martini and bantering with the late crowd that often fills the quaint little Chophouse bar (including Bud Skinner and Ben the chef) creates a mellow mood and conversational tone where most of the problems of the world can be quickly solved with the flick of an olive.

A civilised luncheon. Cheers!

Incidentally, I have noticed that more and more Gumpers are paying attention to the World Cup football being broadcast at this time. At my office I thought a major deal had been closed from all the screaming the other day. Come to find out it was just a few chaps in an office watching the U.S. score a goal to tie a match at the 92nd minute. You would have thought they were English football fans the way they caterwauled in the hallway.  Very refreshing.  Hope it portends a growth in football popularity in the states as opposed to the armored wankerball one sees everywhere in the fall.

Along those lines, I hope the popularity of my Momma Netties Chicken Salad and Scotch lunch special catches on.  Just tell Chris Ellis (the friendly proprietor) that Lunch in the Gump sent you and you want the barely legal Scotch.

Cheers!

CNA, MP

Gump on the Go: Pub Pokes Pollo with Pike

Sure the LITG mob dissed the Brew-Pub a month ago with a less than glowing rating. But they didn't clear it with the Shadow Pup. As a guardian of what is right and fair, I speak in their defense. For years I have eaten and ordered take-out from the Brew Pub and I must say that they have consistently made the best Chicken Piccata I have ever eaten. It's not cheap at $8.50 but it is served with linguine pasta topped with a white wine caper cream sauce and plenty of Parmesan cheese and has just a touch of garlic. I have tried the same dish at dozens of restaurants and never found one close to as good as the Brew Pub Piccata. By the way, the word "piccata" in Italian means to poke with a stick (pike). So literal translation would be "Poked Pollo".

The Good Stuff

Today, however, I ponied up another quarter and ordered a take-out version of their Pasta and Olive Oil with added grilled chicken strips. ($8.75) It was very good. Not Piccata great but very good. Dr. Lector says it goes great with some fava beans and a nice Chianti.

On most days, however, I just get the club sandwich with fries. The take away styro must weigh a pound and a half when I receive it. Good basic fare. If you have time to go there and want lunch fast, just sit at the bar and watch them clean the vats and ask the brewmaster about the dangers of breathing the carbon dioxide that accumulates in the bottom of the vats. If you order something off the lunch menu and don't get too picky ("I want you to remove all the little green seeds [capers]" or "Could I get gumbo with no crab meat, please?") they will bring your lunch before you have time to Twitter.

For those newbies unfamiliar with the Gump, The Brew Pub is a microbrewery located on 12 West Jefferson Street (the back windows of the place look over hallowed Riverwalk Stadium--home of the Biscuits) which serves lunch 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. M-F.

Did I say they make their own beer?

The Piccata and Pasta w/Olive Oil gets 4 of 5 capers.

The Shadow knows!

Montgomery Brewing Company (ho-hum)

[Ed Note: In October 2010, the Montgomery Brewing Company announced they were closing for renovations.  Since then, no work has apparently been done.  It is now December 21, 2010 and it appears the MBC is finito.  Perhaps the following blog foretold the problem....]

I think the LITG crowd was underwhelmed by the Brew Pub. You folks better get off your butt.

I ordered a "Brew Pub Club," with a cup of gumbo, which, according to the menu, was supposed to be $8.50 http://www.montgomerybrewpub.com/Lunch.html . They got the gumbo out real quick (good), but I had to ask for tabasco & crackers (bad). The gumbo itself was flavorful, but the consistency of jello, so it came out of the cup in two bites. I didn't find a shrimp in there, but then again I didn't look real hard to begin with. Then my "Brew Pub Club" comes out. It was pretty much like anybody else's club: no better, no worse. Maybe a tad soggier. There were some non-extraordinary fries. All-in-all, about what you'd expect for $8.50, plus I'm thinking maybe $1.50 for the weak unsweet tea, tax & tip.

This ordinary lunch should've been about $13.00 bucks total, BUT NO! Apparently I wasn't specific enough that I wanted the club sandwich/cup of gumbo COMBO! Because of the aforesaid non-extraordinary fries, I got the Brew Pub Club ($7.50, but with fries!), plus a couple bites of tasty but pasty gumbo ($3.95), plus tea ($1.50... oops, sorry... not so fast! $2.25!!!) for a total of $15.07 pre-tip.

I'm no whiner, so I ponied up, left a $2.93 tip, or 21.4% of the pre-tax check (our service was real good, and LITG never stiffs hard-working waitpersons). So anyway, that was $18.00 for lunch... the WORST bang for the buck in LITG history (with the exception of that new hotel, maybe). The last time I spent so much for lunch in Montgomery was at Nancy Paterson's and I left there very satisfied.

$18.00 lunch = 30 shares of CNB common as of 7/20/09

Food = 2.5 biscuits
Service = 3 biscuits
Value = 1 biscuit