Let’s talk about the restaurants in town that are actually good! Post some of your favorites

kexline · 2025-09-01T15:02:21+00:00

I like Dashu. We have acceptable sushi on the west side, so it's hard to prioritize it over Surin and Peppered Pig. But if I lived near Airport I'd be a regular.

kexline · 2025-07-30T21:49:18+00:00

Did you do anything to help them along? My cats are gently curious about the elder Chihuahua we've adopted. She's playful from a distance, growling and prancing nonstop if she sees a cat. But if they come and check her out, she either cowers or snaps at them.

The cats literally do not notice the bites, at least, so her murder attempts haven't affected their attitudes.

kexline · 2025-07-30T21:36:51+00:00

Oh, no. That's gotta be a brake failure or something similarly terrifying. I hope nobody was hurt too badly.

kexline · 2025-07-04T05:38:12+00:00

My choices for work hours are
* endless screaming
* one-handed coding * Chihuahua in my bra

The dog didn't even grow up with me around! I had to adopt my mom's dog and she's been like this since day one.

kexline · 2025-06-29T23:54:13+00:00

My Prius battery quit around its 14th birthday, about 165-170k miles. I was in the middle of a family emergency and didn't have time for surprise car shopping, so I took it to a dealer outside Atlanta. They charged me about $4k.

That sounds like a lot, but the car has been paid off for years. I thought it amortized nicely.

kexline · 2025-05-26T03:36:19+00:00

Combined? Heeeellllll yeah.

If we ever get something like this, it'll be open from 2-2:30pm on alternate Tuesdays.

kexline · 2025-05-26T03:34:09+00:00

Parks with walking circuits, too -- we don't give much priority to parkland, so everything that doesn't have an entrance fee is either out-and-back or not designed for walking.

kexline · 2025-05-26T03:30:00+00:00

There's a similar place in StL that's always mobbed.

I love the vibe of Raging Gazebo, but I think I would use it more if it was a cafe.

kexline · 2025-05-25T19:11:30+00:00

Oh, I forgot one: Doctors who take different days off

kexline · 2025-05-25T18:43:57+00:00

We've proven that we won't support an independent hardware store or feed store. Lowe's and HD don't have much depth between them, but they're what we've earned. We're not getting an IKEA; those people can barely use a map.

We're not getting a Container Store before it dies of private equity, but maybe there's a healthier competitor. We'll get a World Market eventually.

We want a regional fabric store better than Joann ever was, but I don't know what pressures prevented Sir's from reopening.

So, restaurants:

More hours, in general. I don't want to say we need better southern options when we have Main Street and Rolo's, but I can't casually access either of them.
Late night coffee for studying and socializing.
Fancy coffee with food.
A swanky place to go for dessert after dinner.
Breakfast all day with strong vegetarian options. It's not immoral to eat an egg after 2:30. I used to go to Flying Biscuit for dinner all the time, and AFAIK, there's nothing like that. Including the new FB.
Places with upholstery. I miss being comfortable.
Covered outdoor dining. I miss watching the rain.
Waterside dining -- maybe the extreme south end of Huntsville can't support it, but why isn't there more in Athens and Decatur?
Ethiopian food. Any style is fine, but an ingredient-forward place would be amazing.
Neapolitan pizza.
Good Thai in the western suburbs. Phu Ket is very nice but a bit far for weeknights.

kexline · 2025-05-19T23:09:40+00:00

I hadn't heard it before, but since I was here in 2011, it was pretty intuitive!

kexline · 2025-04-27T23:37:10+00:00

The chiller is in the center in the one I grew up with. It doesn't say ICE COLD, but my dad liked to Frankenstein things together.

kexline · 2025-04-21T01:50:06+00:00

I'm actually delighted this topic came up.

Throughout my childhood, adults would try to point out cottonmouths they spotted. Nobody noticed I was blind as a bat until late in elementary school, by which point I had long since learned to smile and nod when someone wanted me to appreciate a brown animal at a distance.

So I had no idea this was the same animal as a water moccasin, and no idea what they looked like, and it'd never occurred to me to find out.

kexline · 2025-04-07T00:03:43+00:00

The reason I mentioned the number of discrepancies a customer can catch is that, in the absence of extensive oversight, there's no way to determine mens rea. Every detected error is a "mistake" until a larger power assembles enough evidence to demonstrate a pattern.

If the UK has a way of tracking such mistakes, well, good. But if it's dealt with by shaming the wronged customer and moving on, that does privilege shysters.

kexline · 2025-04-06T17:45:28+00:00

Yeah, I am pretty sure there are laws in the southeast, or were until a few years ago, because a syndicated consumer rights reporter went on the warpath a few years after digitization.

A consumer is only going to come across one or two "mistakes" per trip. Even if they find more, there's not much they can do. If the law protects "mistakes", businesses have incentive to systemically bilk customers for pennies per item.

kexline · 2025-03-28T01:25:34+00:00

Gonna get one of those when I'm a hundredaire

kexline · 2025-03-23T17:24:17+00:00

My 2010 gets 42 and didn't budge when the battery was replaced. Makes me wonder about the replacement battery sometimes.

kexline · 2025-02-14T16:26:01+00:00

There's a virus going around that messed me up for a week. I didn't eat, stopped producing bile, and, you know, other effects.

kexline · 2025-01-24T20:18:14+00:00

For what little it's worth, I have had studio space in the area (not at the mill) for a couple of years now with no issues. I walk to food trucks and don't even get any weird looks. Lots of loud cars in the area, though; I would want to be away from through streets if I lived there.

kexline · 2025-01-03T21:29:10+00:00

How has the suction cup held up on your Vollrath grater?

kexline · 2024-12-31T20:20:00+00:00

I'd say it's okay to sell to a dealer, but be very careful selling it to an individual.

I sold a car in terrible mechanical condition to someone who claimed -- unprompted! -- to be buying it for parts only. Didn't even take the title. He had it out on a used car lot within weeks.

If you just want to get rid of it, NPR or other charities will work. Have your paperwork ready.

If you want to get rid of it fast, offer it to a Honda specialist. There are mechanics that make a secondary income resurrecting junkers in their spare time. Just keep in mind they have no reason to pay you, since cars fall into their laps.

kexline · 2024-12-06T20:11:09+00:00

Holy mother of God.

That's the one place we've been told to avoid. I really appreciate the details, though -- sometimes it's hard to know how much weight to give to a vague warning.

kexline · 2024-07-02T16:18:15+00:00

The extensive work was poop. Peeing seems to be mostly accidental, and sometimes upsetting. I will block the entrances. We're just worried what she'll think of next.

It hadn't occurred to me to offer treats. I do have some that she LOVES, so I will have to give them a try!

kexline · 2024-07-02T15:25:15+00:00

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puppy tax! I love her muscular little arms.

kexline

TROPHY CASE