St. James Corner Restaurant and Irish Pub (Calgary, Alberta)

St. James Corner Restaurant & Irish Pub. 1219-1st Street SW, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. http://www.jamesnospubs.com/
A very nice and a very popular pub in downtown Calgary. When you enter the pub the main sit up bar is to your left and sits about 15 people and a very beautiful dark wood bar. There is seating to the right as you enter and also in front of the bar. They have a second level that over looks the bar with nice iron railings. The second leverl has mostly high bar stools and tables with vaqrious antique items on the walls. There are numerous TV's on the walls to catch the game. I have been here two times and both times it was very busy especially at lunch time. The first time I had the Irish Guinness Stew which was very good in deed. The second time I had the pizza which was again very good and it takes a very good pizza for me to make that statement. The pizza had local Spolumbo's sausage and mushroom with lots of cheese on a great crust! They don't short change on the service with lots of waitresses working. They took good care of us every time that we were there. The staff was well dressed and very neat. This place has a very good atmosphere and every one seemed to be enjoying them selves, except for the Toronto Maple Leaf fans who had to sit through another loss on TV!! There are 20 diufferent beer on tap as well as a good selection of bottled beer and wine. I give this place two thumbs up!

Bottlescrew Bill's Old English Pub (Calgary, Alberta)

Bottlescrew Bill's Old English Pub, 120-10 Avenue SW, Calgary Alberta, Canada. wwwbottlescrewbill.com This was voted Calgary's best bar n 2009. They boast 210 different types of beer from 80 different countries. There are 20 plus beer on tap. It is attached to the Buzzard Restaurant where you can take children if if you wish. The main part of Bottlescrew Bill's has an "L" shaped bar that sits about 10 people or so. There are 5 booths and the rest of the seating in this area is high bar stools and tables. You then walk in to a second room that had regular table and chairs and from that room you walk in to the third room. The third room has a pool table and more seating. There are numerous TV's for watching sports on. For dinner I had the Meatloaf wrapped in bacon with gravy, vegetables and garlic mashed potatoes. My friend the the Ravioli that was stuffed with butternut squash in a cream sauce. Both were very good. The service was good once they realized that we were there. They are in the downtown area and close to everything. You can't go wrong going here.

Drum & Monkey Public House (Calgary, Alberta)

Drum and Monkey Public House, 1201-1 st Street SW, Calgary, Alberta, Canada www.drumand monkey.ca. This is a cool bar in a redbrick building in downtown Calgary. It opened up in 1999 and is attached to the Bamboo Lounge. This place is popular for Glasgow Rangers Football fans. they love to come here and sit at the bar watching their favorite team. The sit up bar is agains the back wall and sits about 8-10 people depending on how cozy you want to get. We had aq great waitress, "Miranda" who looked after us and was very friendly. She sat down with us a couple of times and talked. She works here part time and mostly works for the social side of the business. She advised that most of the employees have been here a long time. Loads of locals come here and around 900-930 pm the university and college crowds comes in. They open the attached doors to the Bamboo lounge for dancing and the such. There are numerous old soccer and rugby pictues adorning the walls as well as several framed jerseys hanging high on the walls. The walls are a darker wood that give it a wram feel even though it was -23C out side!! They have several booths on the right side as you enter the pub. There are about 17-18 different types of beer on tap. The food here was very good as well. I had the Chicken breasat burger that came topped with tomato and melted swiss cheese. On the side I had the onion rings, could have had fries or salad (so I went healthy). The washrooms were clean and tidy. It is a very nice place so I suggest you give it a try. Say "Hi" to Miranda, I am sure she will take good care of you!!

Bob's Burgers and Brew (Lynden, Washington)

Bob's Burgers and Brew (Lynden), 8107 Guide Meridian, Lynden Washington, USA. www.bobsburgersandbrew.com. There are 11 locations through Washington State, predominately in the northern area of the State. Bob, the owner purchased the Ronde Voo Drive Inn (Lynden) in the 1970's and a few year later he purchased the Bunk's Drive Inn in Bellingham. In 1982 he founded Bob's Burgers and Brew. I have been to several of these places and they all have a restaurant and a separate bar attached to them. The Lynden location is small and cozy. The bar is off to the rear and to the right when you enter. It has a small sit up bar that seats 4 people. Along the north wall they have a long continuous bench which wraps around the west wall. This works well when there is a big game on TV as was evident when I was there. Everyone sat in the long bench with their backs to the wall so they can see the 2 TV's. This is a very popular place with the locals. I would guess that they can hold about 25-30 people in here. The service was very good and friendly. The food here is outstanding, they have over 20 gourmet burgers on their menu. I had the Squirrel Sandwich one of their famous signature sandwiches. No squirrel meat here. It is thinly sliced roast beef with Swiss cheese and tomatoes, and grilled. It was huge! It came with a choice of french fries, Jojo potatoes or salad. I had the fries which were good. My wife had the Chipolte chicken salad and she said that is was very good. My buddy had the patty melt and he couldn't finish it and had to take it home. A glass of wine is $4.00. They had several beer on tap and my buddy was drinking beer but I forgot to ask him about the beer as we were watching the Seattle Seahawks upset the New Orleans Saints in the first round of the NFL playoffs. Pretty good since they were the first team in NFL history to make the play offs with a loosing record. Bob himself was working in the restaurant when we were there. I did not get a chance to talk to him though! The washrooms were very clean and modern with grey slate tile floors. It was a very good experience here and I suggest that you try one of the 11 Bobs Burgers and Brew around the State. Apparently there are a couple more opening up.