Skip's: A Restaurant Review

There's a group of single guys from church that I take a meal with every other week. There are usually 5 of us in attendance. It's a great time for a bit of fellowship and good food. We've become a sort of eating club, dining at area restaurants, but we have gotten in a bit of a rut because we eat at Skip's now almost all the time. There is a reason for that.

Skip's is located on Fleur Drive near the airport in what was once a house. For years before I ate there I thought it might be a funeral home. It definitely looks like one. Fortunately it's not. The food is good, moderately priced, something available for all pocketbooks, a comfortable and welcoming atmosphere and of course, our favorite waitress...Jodi. Jodi has been known to sit down and enjoy an adult beverage with us at the end of the evening. It's a nice personal touch and she is very conversational.

Back to the food. I have tried most of their beef entrees, their walleye and the lemon garlic shrimp over linguine. All were always cooked properly, very tasty and made fresh. The steaks are hand cut. They have something called a pork shank over rice that I have been tempted to try, but it has a bone in it. I hate paying for something I can't eat. Cod, tuna steak, tilapia and Salmon, all prepared in interesting ways, are also available. There is a wide range of chicken and pasta dishes too and tonight may be the night for Chicken Jalapeno or maybe Cavetelli. I'm not sure yet. My favorite sides to go with my entree are roasted asparagus and a salad. I have tried the rice pilaf. It was good, but not great. I am told that the garlic mashed potatoes are also a winner.

Appetizers. I like Skip's onion rings, I have had the Shrimp Diablo (shrimp sauteed in red pepper garlic butter) and it was excellent, but expensive. The other guys in the group enjoy the Bruschetta. I do not for reasons I will not go into except to say it has to do with me being a picky ass eater.  I would like to try the Calamari and I might order that tonight with the onion rings. We always get the large order of onion rings since there are 5 of us. That might be too much for a smaller group. Think the half order.

Desserts. We do not always get dessert, but in the past I have tried their chocolate cake, key lime pie and also the creme brullet. All of them were excellent meal toppers, but my favorite was the key lime pie, both sweet and tart and very smooth.

They also have a nice, very efficient bar. Specialty drinks are available at a premium. I had a dreamsicle martini one night. It was $9.00. It was very good, but it was so not worth it. They make a good Moscow Mule if you like such things They also have all the popular and local craft beers and a short but good wine list. If you want to bring your own vino, you can. There is no corkage fee.

If there are drawbacks to Skip's or negatives, I would say they are minimal. They do not take reservations, so you might have to wait 30 or 40 minutes, unless you arrive early, between 5 and 6 PM. If the place is packed, the noise level can be high. It's also very dark inside, but I think that's more of a personal problem. No one else seems to mind.

So....Skip's gets a 4.5 star rating from me. I like it, but really guys, shouldn't we try some other places?