I really enjoyed my experience.  Started the meal with the spinach artichoke jalapeño dip that was to die for. I want the recipe.  Since it was a Friday during Lent, I ordered the Fried Fish.  It was delicious.  I substituted the fries for sweet potatoes polenta that was really tasty. Â
Our party finished out the meal with the toffee pie. Â It was really rich but we all enjoyed it. Â I would definitely get it again
Service was pretty good as well. Â I'll definitely go back.
Probably the best brew pub I've ever been to, and that's saying something. The beer was excellent and they had a great selection of craft beers. But what really makes this place is the food. It was amazing. I had their burger, the duck, and a cinco de mayo chimichurri flank steak. They were all outstanding.
Plus we got some sweet swag!
Only downside: Loose that pinch-nosed brunette hostess. She was awful, rude and acted like she wanted to be somewhere else. Really really bad. I'm sure she'll be gone when we come back over X-mas, so I'm not worried. No excuse for being young.
But......... the good part.
Beer selection: BEYOND Awesome! I tried several beers that were heavenly! They have really tried to carry some truly unusual and fantastic brews at a great price no less! Even if you are only drinking at the bar, it's worth it.
Our waiter: Chill and perfectly attentive. He paid attention to what we said and made intelligent suggestions. Thanks, man.
Food: Very good with some unusual selections.
Atmosphere: Nice layout. It can get really really loud, so if that bugs you make sure and request one of the quieter spots in the restaurant.
Out-of-towers------- Hit this one for sure!
Good bar menu. Â Unique appetizers. Extensive beer menu. Â Ordered the orange chili olives, Â cheeseburger, Â and salted caramel chocolate ice cream. Beer flights are also available. Very reasonably priced. Casual atmosphere. The only complaint I have is that the waitress definitely messed up my beer flight and the beers were not in the order she said- but still delicious! The waitress told us that they are soon to be brewing their own beer. Will definitely have to return to check it out! I would highly recommend this establishment- one of the best I've visited in Alabama.
Review Source:After a brief struggle to find Below the Radar, my Girl's Nite Out group converged at Below the Radar (BTR). All of our Garmins, etc., led us farther west on Holmes Avenue to the location of Channel 19's TV station. Â Tip: If you don't include the "north east" in the address for BTR, you will not be guided by Siri or Garmin to BTR. Another tip, park on the street or in the **gravel** parking lot. The paved lot across from BTR is not for the restaurant and both the hostess and our server mentioned that "people DO get towed who part in the paved lot" - Soooo, the logistics out of the way, here's my take on the place:
1.THE GOOD: New and Clean with Friendly Staff and comfy chairs. I tried the blue cheese spinach dip which was served with tortilla chips, homemade "lemon thyme(?) potato chips, and a Creole (or was it Cajun?) crawfish cake appetizer (2 cakes) with remoulade and a tiny arugula "salad". Â Also good was the unoaked chardonnay. Location is interesting, since it is in (what I would consider historic) "Times Building" in downtown Huntsville. I enjoyed seeing the Belk Hudson Lofts which share the large Times Building block. Bathrooms nice and clean. Friends ordered the Onion Rings, which appeared to be house made, and looked amazing! [I didn't get a taste : -( Â ]. We sat at a 5 top with high back chairs in the front of the place, beneath a big screen tv. I saw one other room facing Holmes Avenue with dining tables (4-tops) so it does have several rooms.
2. THE NOT AS GOOD: Peel and Eat Gulf Shrimp, although HUGE and prawn like, didn't taste quiet as fresh as I like, but I only had one - maybe it was just that particular one. Â When asked what, if any, happy hour specials BTR offered, the server plainly stated "none" - it was a Tuesday at 4:00 PM ( and grew impressively crowded for a Tuesday as the evening progressed). He also did not mention the soup of the day, or the catch of the day, and we had to ask. Soup was a "Southern Veggie Mix" with a meat ingredient (don't remember what) and the catch was Snapper, which did sound great!!!!!
3.THE BAD: Nothing. at. all.
OK, it's noisy. And, after I called it a night, apparently they BTR has live music (this time it was a solo musician) who friends said made it "super loud" in the restaurant. Friends did complain that the menu was a bit "pricey."
TAKE AWAY: Since I'm not a "beer head" I won't seek out Below the Radar, but it is a nice off the beaten path  (not Providence or Bridge Street or any of the endless franchise establishments that Huntsville has) place to enjoy a glass of wine and people watch. Oh, and I'm glad to see the Chef from (now closed 801 Franklin) is the Chef here! YAY! And, I do believe this is a local place, which I love supporting. I hope Below the Radar does as well as I imagine they are doing. I like to see local places succeed. Give BTR a try, especially if you love beer, I'd love to see what you Yelp about it.
We're lucky enough to live above Below the Radar, and couldn't be happier that there is a gastro-pub below us where we can always find grub and spirits when we don't feel like cooking. Since moving in, we've been to Below the Radar and had some experiences better than others, but on the whole this is a place I dig. A few of the hits and misses --
Hits
-bacon wrapped fingerlings - perfectly crispy, love the dipping sauce - this is everything you want in pub food
-jalapeno poppers - these are only available once per week and are bacon wrapped -- these are the most authentic, delicious poppers I've ever had - lots of heat
-cheese and charcuterie plate - I always enjoy this and have ordered it several times -- I wish it came with more bread and that the accompaniments matched the cheese/meats better at times, but this is a thoughtful nosh
-herbed nuts - yum
-salads- all yum
Slight misses
-short rib gravy fries -- I have some beef with the fries here becuase they are always under seasoned -- this dish should be completely amazing - melting in your mouth with texture and seasoning, but it fell flat because both the gravy and fries were under seasoned
-some sandwiches to me tend to be a little overdone -- like one component should be removed - and the bread choice - often a think buttered bread doesn't work on sandwiches like a cuban
Some of the servers at BTR know everything about beer; some don't - depending on who you get, it can greatly contribute to the quality of your evening. The bartenders make great cocktails. Great addition to Huntsville.
Our short experience at Below the Radar was a good one. Â We arrived at 3:30 on the Sunday before Christmas, when they were closing at 4pm. Â Consequently, the kitchen was closed, so we didn't even bother to look at the menu.
But we were there for the bear anyway. Â The list is a good mix of local brews and craft favorites on tap. Â They had about a half dozen Christmas seasonals. Â As someone said, the selection isn't quite that of the Nook, but the presentation is shiny and new, and seemingly more accessible.
I had the Old Black Bear Roaming Bear Porter. Â (OBB, Yellowhammer, and Straight to Ale are all Huntsville breweries). Â Jimmy had the Back Forty Naked Pig Pale Ale. Â (Back Forty, Avondale Brewing and others are also Alabama breweries). Â As we enjoyed our beers and watched some of the NFL game that was finishing, we were discussing the trip that we're planning to the UK. Â When the bartender heard us mention Scotch, he brought over the liquor and wine menu.
The place itself is a nice addition to downtown. Â Lots of tables in 3 separate rooms, paintings of downtown Huntsville at different time periods, plenty of TVs, and even more signs from craft breweries, particularly Huntsvillian, Alabaman, and Southern breweries. Â
I recommend for local beer.
Food: They have a good selection of craft beers. It's a bit expensive for me, but my hubby said it's worth it because it's high gravity beer ($9 per glass). The food was delicious! Which I'm surprise since this place is more informal and bar-ish (smoke-free woohoo!). I had the duck dish. It was extremely crispy (love love), but a bit dry. Hubby got the pork shank. It was so tender! Ordered some bar finger food and they were a hit for the table as well.
Service:  One of the hostess was rude but the other one was extremely nice and made up  for it. Also, wish we had a better waitress. She gave us wrong type of beer and did correct the mistake after some questionings. It tickled me that she actually took away the wrong beer heh xD
Overall: I'm extremely and pleasantly surprised at this place. Will probably give them many more visits in the future unless their service take a dive or something.
After two meals here the food hasn't really spoken to me and the beer selection hasn't knocked my socks off, but I like the atmosphere and LOVE that it is a nonsmoking establishment. One thing I've always hated about going out in Huntsville is having to breathe stale, smokey air and come home smelling like a filthy ash tray. So this place gets an extra star for helping me avoid that. It's also a good place to watch sports and the service is pretty good and the girls working here are pretty.
Review Source:My boyfriend stumbled upon this place and decided to take me there for a date night. Â When we first walked in I was a little skeptical of its date qualities, because the front room is a normal bar type area. Â But, as we found out, they also have two other rooms with just dining tables. Â The separate rooms do make you feel closed off from the other areas of the bar, but that can be a good thing if you're looking for less of a bar feel. Â They have TVs for sports watchers but also a good variety of local art on the walls.
I really loved the food. Â They have a lot of variety for such a small menu from shrimp and grits to duck confit and everything we ordered was delicious. Â They also have a good beer and wine selection. Â They didn't have their brewing permit when we went, but it was supposed to be coming soon so that they could brew their own beer on location. Â Our server was great for it being our first time, lots of good suggestions. She also helped choose good beers to follow others, so the tastes didn't end up conflicting. It is a little on the expensive side, but I ended up feeling like we got our money's worth.
Now, BTR doesn't have a shot at comparing the amount of beers they serve to places like The Nook, but what they do serve is world-class brews. Â They are in the process of brewing their own beer, making them a bonafide brewpub. Â
The thing I liked the most about BTR is that their staff is as open and adventurous as we are! Â For instance, we decided we wanted to mix a couple beers together (Back Forty Freckle Belly IPA & Founders Breakfast Stout). Â Waitress got it for us, no problem. Â Then we started thinking about how different IPAs would match up with different stouts. Â Our waitress brought us a sample of every weird concoction we came up with! Â The girl at the bar even complimented us for thinking outside the box!
Great atmosphere, great food, great service, and great beer. Â We WILL be back soon.
Wow. Service was TERRIBLE! We went with a group (for which we made a reservation many days in advance) and they were absolutely not able to handle a larger group. Â Our food took forever to come, and most of the orders were wrong. The food could have been okay if it were prepared as ordered. Â We couldn't get refills, utensils, etc. Â It took me more than 45 minutes (from the time I got my check,) to be able to pay and leave the restaurant. Â Ridiculous
.
This place has gotten off to a great start and has the potential to be a major draw for downtown HSV. Â Lots of local craft brews on tap, and soon they will be brewing on the premises. Â Lots of seating, but the place is so hot that you might have a hard time finding a place to sit during peak hours. Â Go anyway, and support the revitalization of downtown HSV.
Review Source:So glad this is finally open! After rumors of their opening for weeks, BTR is officially here. Went on their first night - the staff was knowledgeable and professional. You would never have known it was their first night - service was fast & efficient. Excellent draft beer selection. Looking forward to their brews in a few months.
Now, on to the food. BTR's chef is the former chef from my favorite long-gone haunt, 801 Franklin. If you frequented 801, you'll see old faves on the menu - corn fritters, crab cakes & steaks. Great variety & good price point - around 10-12 for apps & a bit more for entrees. Overall great experience, we were lucky to meet the owner & jump on an impromptu tour of the facility. Everyone there is passionate about this business & its success. New fave, will be back soon!
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