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Fish City Grill

October 7th, 2010

Fish City Grill

Macy’s Plaza

4740 South Broadway

Tyler, TX. 75703

(903) 266-9218

www.fishcitygrill.com

Hours: Monday thru Thursday 11:00am till 10:00pm

Friday and Saturday 11:00am till 11:00pm and Sunday 11:00am till 9:00pm

My wife and I recently came to Tyler and were looking for a good place to eat. My sister-in-law had mentioned that the Fish City Grill was good, so we decided to give it a shot.

The Fish City Grill is in the Macy’s Plaza on South Broadway. We went in, sat down, and placed our drink orders. For drinks you can choose from a frozen gold margarita, Bill’s Bloody Mary, iced tea, peach tea, sodas, pink lemonade, and Community Coffee. I ended up just getting a boring old Diet Coke. Several of the appetizers on the Fish City Grill menu sound really good. My wife was interested in getting an order of Coconut Shrimp but they cost $7.99 for five shrimp. Sure they’re jumbo shrimp, but they aren’t that jumbo. They also have Oyster Nachos, Maryland Crab Cake, Blue Crab Stuffed Mushrooms, Crispy Calamari, Raphael’s Mexican Shrimp Cocktail, Fried Dill Pickles, Honey Chipotle Shrimp, and other tempting options. I am sure the Oyster Nachos are fine, but I have to say that they sound disgusting. It is a little frightening to see the words “oysters” and “nachos” so close together.

There were two specials going on the night we ate at the Fish City Grill. They had all you can eat fried catfish, which was pretty tempting to me. But I was trying to eat healthy so I went with the second special, which was Blackened Tilapia. The Tilapia came with rice and mixed vegetables for $9.99, which I thought was a good deal. I was able to substitute new potatoes for the mixed vegetables at no extra charge. The Blackened Tilapia was very tasty and I was quite satisfied with my meal. My wife ordered the fish and chips which she really enjoyed. I tried one of her waffle fries. The seasoning on it was really good. She did say that they gave her way too many fries, though. Maybe they should call it Fish-N-Chips-N-More-Chips. My wife also got the apple cider slaw with her meal but she didn’t really care for it.

There are several other things to choose from on the Fish City Grill menu. Some Fish City Grill favorites include: Serafin’s Fish Tacos (fried catfish, tangy cabbage, pico de gallo, shredded cheese and bacon ranchero sauce grilled in a flour tortilla and served with chipotle tartar sauce), Mediterranean Pasta (sautéed veggies and feta cheese on bowtie pasta in white wine, garlic, and olive oil), Maryland Crab Cakes, Oyster Dinner, Shrimp Basket, and Cajun Pasta (shrimp or chicken in red chili cream sauce over penne pasta).

The Fish City Grill also has a combination seafood dinner option called Create Your Own Catch. You can choose from shrimp, fried oysters, or catfish served with apple cider slaw and waffle fries or rice.

The Fish City Grill’s Steamer Platters look really good, although they are also the most pricey items on the menu. The Steamer Platters come with Alaskan Snow Crab legs, andouille sausage, new potatoes, and corn on the cob.

The Fish City Grill doesn’t just have seafood though. They also have what they call “Things That Don’t Swim.” These non-swimming dishes include Red Beans and Rice, Hugo’s Louisiana Pot Roast, Chicken Breast Dinner, and Smothered BBQ Chicken.

Don’t forget about the soups, salads, and sandwiches at the Fish City Grill either. The soups at the Fish City Grill come in a cup for $3.99 or in a bowl for $5.99. There are three kinds available: Born on the Bayou Gumbo, Clam Chowder, and Cream of Roasted Jalapeno Soup. There are seven kinds of salad to choose from at the Fish City Grill. Shrimp or chicken can be substituted on any salad and there are several homemade salad dressings to choose from, such as Ranch, Creole Honey Mustard, or Thai Peanut Vinaigrette. The most interesting-sounding salad options are Grilled Salmon (grilled salmon with Asian noodles and capers over mixed greens), Pecan Crusted Shrimp (dried cranberries, feta cheese and honey pecans over spinach with raspberry vinaigrette), and Thai Coconut Shrimp (jumbo coconut shrimp over mixed greens served with Thai peanut vinaigrette).

There are also four kinds of sandwiches at the Fish City Grill and several kinds of Po Boys. Po Boys are served on a baguette with remoulade, lettuce, and tomato with fries or coleslaw, and they all cost $6.99.

Finally, if you find yourself at the Fish City Grill you might want to consider getting one of their Down Home Desserts. Our server told us that their best dessert was the Homemade Bread Pudding (with caramel whiskey sauce). Unfortunately, they were out of it the night we ate there. I guess I’ll have to try that the next time I eat at the Fish City Grill. That, and the Alaska Crab Platter, Buffalo Shrimp Po Boy, and Pecan Crusted Shrimp. Ok, maybe I’ll have to go back a few more times.

My wife and I liked the Fish City Grill in Tyler. It seemed simple and unpretentious and had good food. I would recommend to anyone who is into tasty, affordable seafood.

AT&T Cell Phone Service in Tyler Texas

September 10th, 2010

AT&T Cell Phone Company

Website: www.att.com

6004 S Broadway, Suite 100, Tyler – (903) 561-9393

5393 S Broadway Ave, Tyler – (903) 324-1117

4601 South Broadway Avenue, Tyler – (903) 939-1808

We have been having so many problems communicating with AT&T. Our cell phone bills in Tyler Texas have been higher than they should be. We decided that we should go up to the store and talk to them about lowering our bill. When we had gone up to the store we had explained that we are thinking about cancelling one of your phones. After we had expressed that the bills were more expensive than we had originally agreed on, they told us that we only had to pay less than half of what was on the bill. They had also told us that we would be getting $150 back on our next bill.

When we got our next month’s bill it was twice as much as the month before, and it stated that we had not paid the month before. We have been having a lot of issues like this one. The issues started to happen when we got the package deal. We got internet, direct TV, and two cell phones on one bill. Although this deal saves some money, it is really stressful that AT&T keeps on messing up our bills. It is really frustrating that when we go to the store they tell us one thing but then when we get our bill in the mail it states something completely different.

When we bought our phones we had got them from the Tyler Wal-Mart. We went up to the Wal-Mart phone section and talked to the guy that worked for the electronics. We had told him that we wanted to cancel our phone. He told us that soon AT&T will not be offering the unlimited internet package and that if we decide to cancel or switch phones we will lose the unlimited internet. He explained to us that soon other companies that Tyler Wal-Mart sells phones for are soon going to offer unlimited internet, text messaging, and phone calls. Soon we will be moving our cell phone service over to this smart phone, because we are tired of having to talk to so many different confused people about the problems on our phone bills.

Halloween Costumes

August 30th, 2010

Voodoo Halloween

Voodoo Halloween over by South Broadway Wal-Mart

About a month before Halloween you will see a couple different Halloween costume stores open up in Tyler.

One of these costume stores will be quite a bit cheaper than the other one. I recommend doing a little price comparison before settling on a costume to save a bundle.

I also noticed that there are quite a few Halloween costumes over by Super 1 Foods in the Dollar General Card and Party store.

The two Halloween stores show up at different spots each year based on what large square footage area is available for rent.

Last year the old Linens and Things building by Ross was used for one of these Halloween stores. What you see a lot of in both stores are the bedroom costumes.

What I mean by bedroom costumes are the catholic school girl outfits, the skimpy nurse, the mens extra short shorts UPS worker outfit, and the list goes on and on.

It can be pretty funny during the Halloween holiday as you see the teeny boppers walking around town in these bedroom outfits.

These kids “try to hard parents buy these costumes” for their kids sometimes so just maybe they will be seen as the “cool parent”. It’s amazing what parents will do to be accepted by their children these days.

This year rather than buying a bedroom costume for your already confused teenager I recommend giving them some face paint and have them decorate some of their old clothes.

If you want to buy a Halloween mask in Tyler Texas I recommend buying it online rather than purchasing in the store as it may come with some little kid boogers.

The first one of these Halloween costume stores in Tyler we have seen just popped up over by South Broadway Wal-Mart and it is called Voodoo Halloween. Go by and check it out.

Tyler TX Halloween stores typically open around Labor Day. (also Labour Day in Canada), but this varies by a week or two in either direction…4 September 2010

If your looking for a traditional type of haunted house in Tyler check out Terror Nights

Traditions Restaurant in Tyler Texas

July 23rd, 2010

As young man traveling abroad, with my folks and as a student, I took to heart the adage that to find the best food, find out where the locals eat. The Tyler community has a really incredible food culture and some great local eateries and institutions.

From Stanley’s to the Purple Pig, Don Juan’s, Jake’s, Rick’s, Bruno’s, Villa Montez, the list goes on and on and covers a variety of dining experiences both fine and casual. With this fact in mind, I am continually surprised by the success, and in some cases, the renown of some pretty blasé restaurants in town.

One such is Traditions on South Broadway. Now I’ve eaten at traditions on several occasions, and it’s not that the food is bad, but (in my opinion) the restaurant is nothing to write home about. In spite of this, their catering business is very successful, and services some exceptionally high class venues.

I am willing to concede that the special attention a catered event requires has probably helped to set the establishment apart from their area competition. In terms of the restaurant proper however, I remain underwhelmed. The cafeteria style pay at the end of the line makes me think of an upscale Luby’s or Ryan’s.

Traditions is a good place to bring quests who are generally more interested in getting the tip exactly right and less interested in sampling unique local cuisine. For those of us for whom meat and potatoes defines the perfect meal, Traditions is ideal. We took my visiting grandparents a couple of years ago, and they had a great time.

It never occurred to them that there were great places to eat that would more enrich their visit to Tyler. I guess that’s what I find lacking in Traditions. While the food is fine, visiting is not the event that a stop at my local favs like Stanley’s or Don Juan’s is for me. I’m not a foodie and I’m not continually trying to make a statement with every dining choice.

To paraphrase Sigmound, sometimes a burger is just a burger. But I also enjoy discovering new foods and new places to eat. If you’re like me in this respect you’ll not be hugely enamored of this eatery. Personally I’d give Traditions a three, out of five stars.

But don’t take my word for it, take an evening and judge for yourself. For more information, check out their website at http://www.traditionstyler.com/restaurant.shtml. For reservations, or speak to someone about having your event catered, call (903)534-1111.

Brides & Belles in Tyler Texas

May 20th, 2010

3524 South Broadway Avenue
Tyler, TX 75701
(903) 581-8211

It is nice to have a small bridal dress store in Tyler. Brides and Belles has all different wedding dresses, bride’s maid dresses, and prom dresses for sale. They started the store in 1986 here in Tyler. The owners and management has been the same since the beginning of the store opening, but the store stock has expanded and now the even rent out tuxedos. All tuxedos are from the styles of Jim’s Formal Wear.

I bought my wedding dress from Brides and Belles here in Tyler. I shopped at many different wedding dress stores before I found a dress that was right for me and in my low price range. When I came into Brides and Belles I was greeted by experienced sales women. They tried to help me really find the dress for my big day. The store has big sales that sells dresses up to 75% off. I got my $1000 dress for less than $400. The ladies were extremely helpful. The dress had make up on the collar due to the fact of other ladies trying on that dress. The store steam cleaned the dress for free for me and had it perfectly prepared for the wedding. You can find all different bride’s maids dresses. The selection is not as large as other stores such as David’s Bridal or other chain stores, but it still has a great selection of beautiful dresses.

If you are preparing for prom Brides and Belles has all the newest fashions of dresses. It seems like dresses are getting brighter, puffier, and shorter. I don’t get how some girls can spend so much money on a prom dress at a lot of bridal stores. Here you can get a beautiful fashionable dress in a reasonable price range.

I think that Brides and Belles is one of the better bridal shops in East Texas. It is always nice to shop at stores that are locally owned and are treated with such respect. The sales women at Brides and Belles really know what customer service means and are willing to answer questions and put you in the dress that you always dreamed of. After almost 25 years of serving the women of East Texas they know what women want and need to feel special and beautiful.