Christie's Pub And Grill

I'd give this place a 5 if I were going to be the only one reading this review. However, if you don't like to sit around for 2 or more hours and small talk with strangers in a dimly lit tiny room, you won't dig this joint. The food, though, is amazing. Mom does a great job back there in the kitchen! The shrimp pasta is great, the fish fry is perfect, the pecan chicken is HUGE.

Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes!  Rarely do I walk out of what was just supposed to be dinner, on a life high, quite literally.
First, you have to find it, on a low key side street.  Walk in and cross your fingers for a seat at the bar.  The bartender/owner/server is a lovely gent, with a quirk or two.  He'll make you a real drink, encourage you to try something new, and do it with an ease you'd expect as if you were in your buddy's basement bar.  
He'll come by and walk you through the menu personally.  He will not take your order before the kitchen is ready to accept another order.  No one rushes mama (literally, it's his mama back there manning the grill).  The menu has staples, but the specials really are something special here.
Place your order and settle in.  You won't get your food for awhile now, mama has a lot to do back in the kitchen, considering everything is made from scratch, the way mamas and grandmamas were taught.  Watch as regulars come in and catch up with each other while they wait an hour or two for their favorite dishes.  Watch as unsuspecting newcomers are told matter-of-factly that the food wait could be an hour or two and witness the jaw-dropping.  Honesty is refreshing folks.
I'm not really sure how it happened, but an hour or two later, we were friends with 4 or 5 new couples, a friendly man and I shared a crossword puzzle, we learned about some local industry politics, and much sporting was debated.
You are brought a wooden tray that hooks on to the bar to make a more appropriate eating surface.  Then your food arrives. Both of the specials we ordered were fantastic.  No exaggeration whatsoever.  I was drooling over my food!  Even the mac and cheese was great.
When the night was over (3.5 hours later), we walked out, said goodbye to our new friends, received a few hugs and handshakes.  It just so happened it was a beautiful night out and we were just happy.  It was the best things about being up north at a supper club, or sitting at any low key bar with your oldest friends, or having your chef friend test out some recipes on you....all mixed up together.  
If you're in a rush, want linen napkins, or prefer to be 'seen', then go somewhere else.  However, you should have high expectations about Christie's.....it's a reminder of the good things in life.

I have been conflicted about reviewing Christie's because I have felt like the owner, Jason, would not want me to.  No way to sugar coat it, he hates Yelp and in theory that would mean he hates all Yelpers. However, he has never been anything but warm and welcoming to me on the many occasions I have frequented his establishment and he is well aware of my affiliation with the Y-word.  So last Saturday I asked for and was granted permission to review his bar. I would normally never ask for permission, but I REALLY like the guy and his bar is me and the hubs absolute FAVORITE in the area (stumbling distance from our house). But I am going to include some things I think Jason would like for people to know.  

Christie's is a fairly small bar, and your only option is to sit at the bar. It is a big wooden oval in the middle of the room and Jason stands in its midst.  There are 2 booths that are no longer available for patrons to use due to some very bad behavior by some very inebreated non-regular customers. These  incidents occurred during the height of Jason's fevered Yelp success. Bad stuff like damagingthe nice leather on the booth seats and trying to steal memorbelia off the walls. So, strike 1 for Yelpers.

But to me sitting at the bar here is a perk because I always meet people who are nice and great conversation ensues. Always. Every time.

I am not going to spend a lot of time reviewing the food, because everything said in previous reviews about how amazing the food is at Christie's is 100% accurate. Except for the one guy (Bobby G) that gave the place a bad review just cuz he got his panties in a wad over how long it took for the food to come out. Wussy. Strike 2 for Yelpers.

I am slowly working my way through every item on the menu and enjoying every frickin second of doing so. His mom is an amazing cook, wish she would come live with me. Since that is not gonna happen I will often order an extra item to take home and savor the next day. The food here is awesome, nuf said.

The thing to remember about Christie's is that it is a BAR. It is not a place to bring your kids, or your baby, or anyone who is whiney and not interested in having a good time .Apparently a lot of Yelpers brought their out of control children and/or screaming babies in carseats. This is simply not the place for that. Way too small and I personally don't want to come here and listen to anything other than the ice rattling around in my adult beverage and the adult conversation I am having with other adults. Strike 3 for Yelpers.

It is a family owned and run bar. Jason's mom is cooking by herself, Nana is washing the dishes. She can take as long as she wants to crank out those amazing meals. I always have someone fun to talk to while I wait.

The reason Jason is anti-yelp is because the positive reviews he received on Yelp pushed him into the "successful restaurant" category and his bar is just not set up for that. His place cannot handle "wait times" and "reservations" and the onslaught of a hungry mass of Yelper foodies.

It's a little local bar that also serves a somewhat limited menu of really great food. So he is resentful of the fact that Yelpers sort of control and at times overwhelm his business and there is nothing he can do about it. I still love all things Yelp, but I do see his point.

So if you go to Christie's and Jason asks you how you heard about the place, DO NOT say what I said on my first visit which was "I heard about you on Yelp". Unless you want to hear what he thinks about Yelp and if you love the Yelp then it is not a fun (albeit one way) conversation. Tell him a friend told you about it, use my name (but only if you are cool and are not going to make me look bad by complaining about the wait time :-)  

Cheers Yelp Peeps