Rock Bottom Brewery This story comes out of the Rocky Mountains. But unlike the prospectors of old, the owners of The Rock Bottom Brewery hit the motherlode with beer not gold. The idea started in Boulder several years ago and was so successful a chain was born and quickly mushroomed to Denver, Portland, Minneapolis, Houston, and Addison. I liked it instantly when it first opened in 1995. It’s a comfortable place and very inviting. They offer substantial portions of well-prepared food and some great handcrafted ale. And yes, right in the middle, for your viewing pleasure are the brew kettles and serving vessels where the tasty home brews are made Starters are quite good. They call ‘em beerginnings, since beer makes it way into most of the recipes. Crawfish quesadilla ($6.75) is a home run. Smoked shrimp bruschetta ($6.95) is a good choice. The Asiago cheese dip ($6.75) is a real crowd-pleaser. It’s filled with scallion, mushroom and sun-dried tomato and served piping hot with homemade beer bread. Barbecue ribs (pork) are fall-off-the-bone-tender ($14.75/half order $10.75). They’re served with a great Brewery slaw--no mayo--it's drizzled with vinaigrette. The center cut pork chop ($14.95) is out of this world. It’s a thick, tender hunk stuffed with fontina cheese and fresh sage, then grilled and served over white cheddar mashed potatoes and gravy. Quicker, lighter lunches come from the Express Lunch Menu. These values range from a respectable chicken Caesar salad ($5.25) and tasty smoked chicken enchiladas ($5.25), to a Rocky Mountain high version of fish and chips. It’s cold, smoked beer batter salmon with fries and remoulade sauce ($5.90)-umm-um! You’ll also find great brick oven pizzas for about $8.00. Spicy Thai chicken or the Woodland mushroom varieties are very good. If you wonder about the name; when the restaurant opened in Denver it was on the first floor of the Prudential Building, called “The Rock”. Thus, Rock bottom. I was looking for some mining connection, too. Rock Bottom Brewery 4050 Beltline Road (972) 404-7456 Send me an Email: jwdineline@aol.com