Outlook Inn

916 Baxter Ave
Louisville, KY 40204
(502) 583-4661

What happened here? In my day, the Outlook Inn was a fun, divey little bar at the tail end of the Bardstown Rd/Baxter Ave drinkapalooza. It was the de facto meet up my for my friends & I during the holiday post-eating rituals we had with our families. It was a little dirty, low key and fun. Not anymore.

Imagine my surprise to find the Outlook filled - from doorguy (a bouncer at the Outlook??) to patron - with huge meatheads. Que? No no no. This isn't Molly Malone's. This is the Outlook. The only _____heads that should be here are "pot" or "crack."

With the change in clientele came a change in the music. I get it. I'm not 21 anymore. I shouldn't expect to hear The Pixies or the Beasties on the jukebox while some of my friends play pool and the others catch up on gossip and avoid people from high school. I know. But, I shouldn't be blasted out of my seat by whatever high decibel Garth Brooks/Gwar hellmeld that was playing. No, Outlook. Bad, Outlook.

Frightened by 'roidheads, deafened by the musical stylings of whatever that was, I attempted to get a drink. Nope. Person to my left. Served. Person to my right. Served. Person down the block at Cahoots. Served. Greatly annoyed and standing by myself, the bartender finally acknowledges me. "Oh. I didn't see you." Cannotstrangleherandgetarrested. Cannotstrangleherandgetarrested. Mmm, what? Oh. Sorry. That's my version of deep, cleansing breaths.

Scared? Strike one. Deafened? Strike two. Thirsty? Strike three. You're out and I'm out of here. I found out that the hipsters have fled the Outlook for Butcher/Smoke/Germantown. I can't say that I blame them. Oh, Outlook, what happened to you while I was gone? They paved paradise and put up a parking lot - and stuck a syringe full of steroids in its ass.

42 Degrees North Latitude

4500 N Lincoln Ave
Chicago, IL 60625
(773) 907-2226

I kept wanting to like this place more than I did. You've heard of seasonal beers? Well, this might be a seasonal restaurant.

The pros: great spring/summer location. Caught in the "V" made by Lincoln and Sunnyside, 42 Degrees has a bird's eye view of Welles park and the beautiful Lincoln Square homes. Yes, it will likely be empty inside but, rather than blaming foul smells as the reason for the empty dining room, simply trust that everyone wants to be outside and enjoy the weather and scenery. Great patio. Drinks: I like beer. I like house specialties and local bews. This place has great beer and I don't think you'll find a bad one on tap.

The cons: Menu items that don't list mayonnaise as an ingredient but - surprise, sucka - you're getting mayonnaise. Holla back, sneak attack! I purposefully chose around two otherwise tasty-sounding sandwiches because they had mayonnaise. I try not to special order as I feel it takes away from the chef's intention for the taste of the dish. If s/he intends mayo, so be it. I shan't eat it, but so be it. I compromised and selected the pork sandwich. It sounded decent enough. Pork, avocado, onion, pretzel roll. Ok. Fine. I took a bite and nearly spit it out. Mayo: my arch enemy [actually, I, like Batman and the Flash, have a Rogues Gallery]! My waitress, while very polite, didn't seem to view this secret ingredient as a big deal. She was mistaken. I ate my sandwich by taking a bite, swigging some beer and swallowing. Enjoyable? No. "Just getting through it" is not a mantra for a meal.

The mehs: The food, in general. Nothing was bad (except for the nasty globs of white fat that ruined my sandwich) but nothing made me or my dining companions flip out in gastronomical glee. Cheesy apps? Alright. Burger. Ok. Pasta? Fine. Pork sandwich with nasty™ mayo? An abomination before John William. Ok, ok, I'll let it go.

So, in review, I have been to worse (and barely survived the experience) but there was little about this place that made it a "must" return. With summer's warm caress soon to depart this Midwest land, I've gotta recommend that you check in next Spring, grab a seat outdoors and order leisurely from the beer menu. Between now and then? [shrug] I dunno. Do you like pork with mayo?