A Tale of Two Taverns

Or when to listen to the little voices

Let’s call this story A Tale of Two Taverns, although one is not necessarily a tavern. It’s a restaurant. But hey…the alliteration makes me happy, so here we are.

It’s a Friday night in December, and Ricky and I want to go out for a cocktail and a nice dinner. Something festive to help us get into the holiday spirit, which I’ve been sorely lacking so far. We decide to head out at what I like to call “The Nanny and Paw Power Hour” ™ which is about 4:30. My reasoning is that, well…it’s a Friday night during the holiday season so we’d better get out ahead of the crowds to avoid long waits, office parties, people stopping for drinks after work and so on. 

The first restaurant we tried was closed for a private event, which explains how I got a parking place in Mountain Brook Village right in front of the door. Having to back up and punt, Ricky and I decided to try another place on our list – Civitas in English Village. We drive by it several times a week, look through the big windows at the white tablecloths on the tables and have often wondered what it was like. I had the impression that it was a semi-fine dining place, with sort of a southern flair since it was previously Bobby Carl’s Kitchen and Evelyn’s Southern Fare, but I haven’t heard any real buzz about it. I figured that maybe it was just a well-kept secret. 

It was a little before 5 when we arrived, and with the exception of 2 women at the bar, we were the only patrons. No after work drinkers, no Christmastime revelers, no office parties. We were ushered into the farthest dining area, which is actually a great window to the world because it overlooks the intersection of Cahaba Road and Fairway Avenue. There were Christmas lights and a beautiful sunset. And a steady stream of traffic as people rush home with their treasures.

What I want to say here is that I should pay attention to the little voices in my head, the one that notices things that make you go Hmmmm…

The first was that no matter what time we drove by the place, Civitas was never full or close to full. Really, we never saw more than three or four people in the windows. The second was that I had never read anything about it, heard a friend talk about it, or seen a picture of a cocktail or anything on the Instagerms – nothing. And finally, when I looked at the cocktail menu and there was (a) no gin drink (Not a one!! What the hell??) but (b) there was a Red Bull cocktail, alarm bells should have gone off. 

I promise I didn't wad it up; it came that way.

Y’all, I’ll be honest with you. The Hometown Tourists have not been batting a thousand lately (remember Ruby Sunshine?), but I don’t like to write negative reviews. So at this time, I think I’ll just mix some pictures in here, state the facts of our experience, and let you draw your own conclusions. 

We started with the civitas, the house cocktail that consists of tequila, tamarind, ginger, lime and rosemary. Our server described it as a “not-too-sweet margarita.” It was just fine. Neither of us got any rosemary flavor however, and I think if they’d stuck a Christmas-y little sprig in the drink, it would have gone a long way. 

As we enjoyed our drinks, we contemplated the Christmas decorations…

…and this evil, yella-eyed horse. 

We chose the deviled egg appetizer, which was the only gluten free option. It was described as “bacon, hot sauce, fresh dill” and priced at $12. This is what we got…

The plate had a divot out of the side that was almost as big as the divot out of one of the eggs. It almost looks like a bite, doesn’t it? But I figured if someone had taken a bite, they would have gotten some of the goody out of the middle. If there was bacon in there, it eluded us. Maybe the evil horse ate it. We did get the dill and the hot sauce, which I’m 99% sure was Louisiana Hot Sauce, which happens to be my favorite. 

As a statement of fact, let me just say that it’s hard to make a deviled egg that is just “meh.” I did like the clever way they anchored the eggs to the plate with little dabs of filling. Pure genius. 

I wanted to order the tomahawk chop (14 oz. pork chop w/ [sic.] succotash, fried corn, & grilled asparagus) but when I went to do so, I was told that of the six entrees offered, they were out of that one. Seems like one might mention that 1/6th of the menu was not available at the git-go, but maybe that’s just me. I then ordered the “fish of the day” which came with “rice purlough, & beurre blanc.” They said it was snapper fresh from the Gulf. Ricky ordered the “civitas steak 12oz. [sic.] new york strip served w/ creamy mashed potatoes, grilled asparagus, & demi-glace.”

As an aside, let me say that the whole menu is in lower caps. 

After a little while our server, who was very nice and earnest and also, we suspect, playing the role of bartender, came back and said he was told to tell us that they were “doing” potato wedges that night instead of mashed potatoes. Ricky said that was fine, he would “do” the wedges.

While we were waiting for our food, the server came and wiped off a vacant table and set another table for 6. And we heard another couple come in and be seated in the bar area. There was some Christmas music playing, and we watched the cars go by and contemplated the evil horse and the random pile of garland on the mantle. It was a little weird being the only people in the room, though, because now we were creeping up on 5:30. Where was the after work crowd? Where was the holiday rush?

Our entrees ultimately arrived. I’ll just say this: Here is the 12 oz. New York strip which Ricky ordered cooked to medium:

The first picture is exactly the way it arrived...haphazard placement at best.

I’m not saying it was not a New York strip, but I will say that we have never seen a New York strip that looked like this one did – flat, fatty, charred. Ok, I will say it. This was not a New York strip…not even close. This was more like a chuck steak, an overdone chuck steak. Did they run out of steaks too and have to make a run to the Pig? There was no sign of any sort of demi glace and there was no asparagus either. It’s a good thing we “did” the wedges, because they were hot and good.

Y’all…this is a $44 entree. 

My fish, whatever it was because now I’m suspicious, had some gratuitous grill marks and was as overcooked as the steak was. At one point Ricky and I wondered if our server was not only acting as bartender, but chef as well, bless his heart. I will say that the “rice purlough,” which had almond slivers, sultanas, celery and carrots in it, was the highlight. 

All in all, tax tag and title, we spent nearly $150 at Civitas and left feeling a little lonely and weird (only one other couple had come in the whole time we were there – about an hour and a half) and a lot fleeced. 

We wanted to restore our Christmas spirit, so we walked across the street to the new-ish Key Circle Commons, another place we’ve been meaning to try. Now this was the festive holiday scene we’d been searching for. 

A little after 6 on a Friday night it was jam up and jelly tight with happy holiday people. Upon walking in the door, I saw a woman at the bar wearing a stunning red sequined dress with a group of equally tricked out friends – these people were dressed up! 

The front of Key Circle Commons is all velvet sofas and leather club chairs. The lighting is low and the atmosphere is stratospheric. This is one beautiful bar. The actual bar runs down the left side of a long, narrow space, and there are more small tables and chairs on the right. An upright piano sits against the back wall just waiting for some Harry Connick Jr.-like person to tickle its ivories. 

We saw some folks leaving from one of the seating areas and made our move. A server who was there told us that another party was waiting for that particular sofa area he was clearing, but that if we went to the bar, he would find us when a seat became available. He was very nice about it, not at all harried or put out despite the large crowd. I really believe that he would have come for us had we not found a seat. 

We went to the end of the bar, which was completely full, to order a drink. While we waited, the man in the last seat offered it to me. Chivalry is not dead in Mountain Brook. He and his friend soon finished and went on to their next grand adventure, so we snagged that stool as well. We were brought glasses and a carafe of water along with a leather-bound drink menu. 

Key Circle Commons is mainly a bar, but they do have a few snacks you can get – charcuterie and what not. Since we had already had dinner of a sort, we just opted for drinks but we will defintely be back to try their food. As for drinks, I chose the Argonaut, “gin, lemon & rosemary cordial, cocchi americano, fennel syrup, lemon, club soda,” and Ricky chose the Mr. Wellington, “bourbon, lemon, black currant, bitters.” 

We watched the bartenders make the drinks and they use all fresh ingredients, house-made syrups, and Q brand mixers. No soda out of a soda gun here, folks. 

Both cocktails were outstanding, not to mention beautifully garnished – mine with fresh mint and a dried lemon slice and Ricky’s with a lemon peel. The atmosphere was festive but not overwhelmingly loud, busy but not should-to-shoulder. Christmas music played in the background, and laughter and happy conversation filled the air. 

It was almost the complete opposite of what we had experienced just across the street and not even a half hour earlier. And for under $50 including a generous holiday tip, our evening was saved. 

One has to wonder why, when Key Circle Commons is packed on a Friday night, when Chez Lulu is packed, Civitas is nearly empty. Even as we walked back to our car after 7, the place was still nearly vacant. I think the pictures tell the whole story. 

Here’s how we rated Civitas on a scale of 1 to 5 not-New York strip steaks, 1 being the worst and 5 being the best:

Atmosphere: 🥩🥩

Food: Ricky — 🥩

 Audrey — 🥩🥩

Service: 🥩🥩🥩

Bathrooms: 🥩🥩🥩🥩 (They actually have Aveda products in the bathroom because the owner apparently owns the Aveda salon next door.)

Here’s how we rated Key Circle Commons on a scale of 1 to 5 Mr. Wellingtons, 1 being the worst and 5 being the best:

Atmosphere: 🤵🤵🤵🤵🤵

Drinks: Ricky — 🤵🤵🤵🤵🤵

 Audrey — 🤵🤵🤵🤵🤵

Service: 🤵🤵🤵🤵🤵

Bathrooms: 🤵🤵🤵🤵

p.s. Did you know Ricky and I produce a monthly zine about music and cocktails? We pair one album with one drink then share facts and trivia about both. You can see them and other interesting things at our website PopskullStudios.com and in our store.