SECRET DINER Unassuming awesomeness

By Bill Roseberry Big Z Media

This neighborhood restaurant and pub in western Madison County is a definite staple. It has been a part of the community since the late 1970s, so it’s earned its loyal customer base.

I always love getting a chance to visit this joint. Pull into the paved parking lot across the street, or park along a side street near the restaurant. The brick structure pops up quickly as you’re driving through town. It’s unassuming stature fits its unassuming awesomeness perfectly. Walk in through a small vestibule at the front of the building and open into a hallway. You will immediately find a door on the left for the bar and the first dining room on the right. If you continue down the hallway a larger dining area appears on the right with a more open setting. There are wooden booths with high backs along the outside walls and round tables sprinkled through the middle of the room. A second entrance into the bar is available on the left.

Continue down the hallway and you’ll find the restrooms along the back wall. Then take a hard right and you’re led to a private dining room area in the back of the building, saved for meetings and large groups. This whole building is much bigger than it appears from the outside. For my visit I was there with a group of friends and we sat in the first dining room near the entrance. A little more brightly colored than the main dining room and bar, there are tables situated in this room and it commonly houses larger groups and meetings, too.

One cool newer amenity to the front dining room is half garage doors on the outer wall to turn it into a patio dining area during the warmer months.

It’s always fun to pony up to the bar here too, which is separated from the dining patrons, though you can get food there, too. There are always TVs airing sporting events and you can plop down at the bar or at one of the few tables along the wall. While the atmosphere is an endearing trait of this place, the food is the main event and why I was here. I steered away from my normal order on this visit, which is never disappointing. You can’t go wrong with a monster breaded pork tenderloin sandwich and an order of onion rings here. You’ll have enough food to eat for days and it is unbelievably delicious, but I wanted to dare to be different on this visit.

I turned my attention to one of the horseshoes on the menu this time. I went with the golden horseshoe with roasted turkey. This open

Arrive

Overall:

Cleanliness: faced monstrosity featured Texas Toast piled high with crinkle cut French fries, turkey and was finished off with a golden, creamy cheese sauce. The fries here are thick cut and a perfect vehicle for the horseshoe, never becoming soggy under the avalanche of cheese. I especially loved the touch of the turkey. It made the whole dish lighter than most horseshoes I’ve had featuring things like burgers or chicken strips. I didn’t feel stuffed when I was done. Between the sweet, creaminess of the cheese, the saltiness of the fries and the hearty taste of the turkey, it offered plenty and was super delicious. Hamburger, smoked ham, roast beef and chicken strips are also meat options for their horseshoes.

To wash it all down I went with an Oberon American wheat ale from Bell’s. It’s a lighter beer, featuring a touch of orange and citrus in the flavor.

There are plenty of other food and drink options here of course; even daily food specials for lunch and dinner. The menu even boasts

Service:

Food:

Price: having the best Bloody Mary in the universe.

Any idea of the name of this restaurant? Check the puzzle solutions to see if you are right.

Some other great food choices here are the pizzas. With a 12-inch pie featuring a plethora of topping options, you can’t go wrong. Ask about the pizza of the month, too. With fried chicken, steaks, pork chops, pastas, burgers and a slew of sandwiches, salads and appetizers, there are plenty of selections for everyone. This is just a great place to bring the family, or enjoy a fun night out with friends.

This is a simple substitution cipher in which each letter used stands for another. If you think that X equals O, it will equal O throughout the puzzle. Solution is accomplished by trial and error.

MON

TUE

WED

THU

SAT

SUN

Pizza Specials

Word Scrambler

•Adam Sinclair•Seth Moore

•Beth Emmons•Britny Hill

Weekly

•Scott Gage•Andy Ruyle

•Ashlyn Robinson•Kevin Smith

Where do bad rainbows go?

Prism. It’s a pretty light sentence.

Do you know what a stormtrooper’s favorite store is?

The one next to Target.

Why does Waldo only wear stripes?

He doesn’t want to be spotted.

Geology rocks but,

Geography is where it’s at. I accidentally drank a bottle of disappearing ink.

Now I’m sitting in the ER waiting to be seen.

Bought a wig for 25 cents.

It was a small price toupée.

A whole lot of books just fell on my head.

I have only my shelf to blame.

You should never call people “average.”

That is really mean.

Dad Jokes.

DIFFICULTY H H

By Mick Harper

1. What time is the train in BTO’s “Takin’ Care of Business”?

2. Which song was Barry

Unscramble the letters within each rectangle to form four ordinary words. Then rearrange the boxed letters to form the mystery word, which will complete the gag!

Flashback

Gibb’s first try at falsetto?

3. Name the band that released albums titled “Equinox” (1975), “Crystal Ball” (1976) and “The Grand

Illusion” (1977).

4. What was Bobby Vinton’s “Mr. Lonely” about?

5. Name the song that contains this lyric: “Darling, look both ways before you cross me, You’re headed for the danger zone.” 3 (answers in puzzle solutions)

What’s The Difference?

Find

Place a number in the empty boxes in such a way that each row across, each column down and each small 9-box square contains all of the numbers from one to nine.