Arena Tavern, Duluth GA

The Arena Tavern is a bar that does plenty of business with sports talk radio. Advertisements and promotions with the local radio stations are a major parts of this small chain’s identity. And when I saw the 790 the Zone truck in front of the bar, I changed plans (even after lunch) and stuck my nose inside.

Yes, I’ll go inside if a local radio station is talking with bar customers.

This bar and Marlow’s Tavern are close by, and “the book” on these two is that the Arena is a better place to watch a game and Marlow’s has the better menu and food. My experience here suggests that might not be as clear cut a choice as in the past.

Catfish Bites. These things were fantastic. If I was blinded and told these came from a high end traditional all you can eat catfish spot, I’d have believed you. Tender, moist, perfect crust and flavorful.

Some of the best crust on cheese sticks I’ve seen in a long, long time.

I only ordered appetizers because I had already eaten, and besides, the rep for Arena was that it was the lesser of the two large taverns for food. And what I received were two of the best appetizers I’ve had in a long long time.

Crusts on the catfish bites were really good. Crust on the cheese sticks was about as good as any I’ve ever had. The cheese sticks alone are better than anything I’ve ever had at a classic wings n sports chain, and reason enough to drop the wings n sports chains and come here. That doesn’t count the catfish bites, which were as good a bit of catfish I’ve had in ages.

The beer selection is large, not huge, but there is plenty of most things for most tastes. There were good craft beers, good Georgia craft beers, good English, Irish and German brew, and plenty of American light lagers. Dozens of beers were on tap, and dozens more in bottles.

Having said all that, the Arena a roomy bar with plenty of wide screen TVs, with large roomy tables on which to watch those televisions. Yes, it’s a spot to watch games, and listen to sports talk. Further, Arena has rather surprising appetizers. Consequently, the culinary competition between this restaurant and Marlow’s is closer than the generic consensus suggests.

Arena Tavern
2000 Satellite Boulevard
Duluth, GA 30097
(770) 623-4585

Update: fixed typos.

 

Italian sausage sandwich at Summit’s Tavern, Snellville GA

Sausage month is over at Summit’s Tavern, but the memories and a photo remain:

 

The large house salad at Clay’s

Large. Filling. I was told this salad was large, but it wasn’t till I had one myself I knew how big it was.

nom nom nom .

Clay’s Sports Cafe
6518 Roswell Road
Atlanta, GA 30328
(404) 843-1233

 

March specials at Summits Tavern, Snellville GA

During March, Summit’s Tavern has a Carnivale menu that includes, among other things, muffalettas.

That’s a half muffy in the photo above. If you take off that large chunk of bread on top, the olive salad is a little hard to secure, as it’s built from such large pieces.

Other items are available as well, such as shrimp and crawfish po boys and étouffée.

On the 26th Summit’s in Snellville will culminate with a crawfish boil, all you can eat for $24.99 (2-9pm).

Summit’s Wayside Tavern
3334-A Stone Mountain Highway (Highway 78)
Snellville, GA 30078
(770) 736-1333

 

Steak salad at Summit’s Wayside Tavern, Snellville GA

Summits has the best selection of beer in Snellville, and generally any place east of the Brick Store Pub. It also has a fine collection of big screens and decent food as well. Witness their steak salad.

Summit’s Wayside Tavern
3334-A Stone Mountain Highway (Highway 78)
Snellville, GA 30078
(770) 736-1333

Note: reviews of Summits are here and here.

 

Ten good reasons to eat at Clay’s Sports Cafe

Clay’s Sports Cafe is an eatery we’ve spoken about before, and as it has a really good salad, good sandwiches and convenient hours, it gets used often. Clay’s wings are popular.

Clays uses, I’m told, a 4 pepper blend in their hot sauce. Yes, those flavors do come through. You get the aromatic flavors of black pepper, the burn of the red stuff. It has more complexity than a pure jalapeno sauce. The celery isn’t bad either.

Clay’s Sports Cafe
6518 Roswell Road
Atlanta, GA 30328-3168
(404) 843-1233

 

Parma Tavern, Buford GA

Parma Tavern. Drive north on I-85 and exit towards Mall of  Georgia. Keep going past the first couple mall entrances. In a nondescript strip mall on the left lies this eatery. Though a decent sized establishment, it is impossible to see from the road. You’ll need to watch signs carefully to find it.

Inside, pretty and graceful. A functional bar anchors the eatery on the right as you enter. That’s where I sat. The beer selection is smaller but well thought out. Everything from stock American beers to good draft beers to craft brews can be had. Food? Smaller selection, but with an emphasis on quality.

The people who put  this place together also did Hearth Pizza Tavern, so it’s a group that knows how to present food. Of the two, I like this place better. More down to earth, not as large, more intimate and homey. Perhaps it was just the bartender, who was talkative that day. No, some of the appeal has to be written off as intangibles, just things that aren’t quantifiable that I liked. Frosted glass windows, does that count?

Parma Tavern
3350 Buford Drive #200
Buford, GA 30519
(678) 541-0908

 

A second look at..

Jimmy, of Eat It Atlanta, suggested that Clay’s wings, of Clay’s Sports Cafe, were good. I’m here to say I tried them and yes, they are.

Maya Fresh Grill now has a menu. It’s a good looking menu, with an enticing list of smaller items. Things like takkos, quesadillas, salads, and more regional ethnic fare dot the menu. I had their rainbow salad, which was delicious. So I have to say to foodies in the Snellville area, and perhaps Chloe (if she trends out this far east): go now. Go before this place changes. It’s delightful right now, with owners in love with their craft. And if my experiences with gifted small owners is any indication, often a restaurant will grow popular and the owner disappears, or the restaurant dies and the owner is no longer around. So go. This place is worth a stop on the way from Snellville into Duluth.

 

Clay’s Sports Cafe, Sandy Springs GA

Clay’s Sports Cafe is a small inconspicuous bar, easily missed, on Roswell Road. Several booths and a few tables fill a tiny space in a cramped small strip mall along Roswell Road. The quality of the seating is modest. 2-3 televisions dot the area, perhaps 2 people were working when I arrived. Sometimes, though, size doesn’t matter, nor do expensive, trendy ingredients. All that matters are deft culinary skills with the means at hand.

Staff here are open and up front about their opinions. When I mentioned I wanted a burger, I was told that it was good, but that it came on a hoagie roll and it would take 20 minutes to prepare. When I tried to order a salad, I was steered to Clay’s “small”. “The large one is huge,” I was told.

The small salad, which came out quickly, was indeed a generous bed of crunchy romaine. No, hardly the organic baby lettuce of Farm Burger or Yeah!, but crisp and pleasing. The salad made the time to the burger seem very short.

The burger looks a little plain, but there is a ton of taste in this modest looking bit of meat. Juicy and flavorful, I ate half of it and doggie bagged the rest. People at work talk about Clay’s, and they do so in terms that are genuinely respectful. In terms of flavor bang for the buck, it’s an exceptional little eatery.

Verdict: Plain looking store that serves simple foods made extremely well. Highly recommended.

Clay’s Sports Cafe
6518 Roswell Road
Atlanta, GA 30328-3168
(404) 843-1233

 

Kobe beef burgers at Summits Tavern (Snellville)

Rich and buttery.

The meat is so marbled, the fat content so awesome, that the burger has a creamy buttery texture that no other burger has. Summits is on Highway 78 just a block or so south of the Highway 78-Highpoint Road intersection and on Sundays they show every NFL game. It’s a good stop, and the fans are, for the most part, civil with each other.

Oh yes, before I step out, the infamous wall of taps at Summit. And this photo can’t encompass all of it.