West First Wood Fired Pizza

Last night we thought we would go downtown to Hannah's for a wee bit of the blarney on St. Patrick's Day in Hendersonville. The streets are under renovation and the parking situation is a wee bit more difficult these days so by the time we found a spot we were down to 1st Avenue. 

We were long past Hannah's and several other fine dining establishments so we decided to pop in to West First Wood Fired Pizza. 

We have dined at West First several times with friends and family, we always enjoy it and tonight was another great experience due in large part to our super energetic, engaging and "Alarm"-ing hostess Marla. Alarm, as she explained it, is Marla rearranged. Marla was so entertaining, amusing and informative we gladly returned our beeper when our table was free, to have our dinner served at the bar.
I would describe West First as uptown urban chic in decor and atmosphere with a selection of incredible brick oven baked Italian dishes. One of my all time favorites is their Vegetarian ultra thin and crispy Pizza with Pistachio nuts and their Eggplant  Parmigiana – in herbed house bread crumbs with scratch marinara & mozzarella cheese atop fresh fettucini,  but tonight I returned to the Cheese Pizza with crushed tomato sauce & mozzarella. and house-made Italian sausage, while Tess got the House Salad – roasted pistachios, sundried cherries, local goat cheese, & house balsamic vinaigrette on organic mixed greens.
I asked Marla what she recommend to compliment a Baileys Irish Creme and she suggested a delicious craft brew of Duck-Rabbit Milk Stout. Mixing the two in your mouth created a flavor sensation reminiscent of the chocolate egg creme of yesteryear with a wee bit of Hop!

Jones Gap - The Bratwurst Experience @ Shock Top Ridge

This rock faced view point is very similar in terrain and view to Drawbar but it's in a different part of the Mountain Bridge Wilderness Area. We started in Jones Gap State Park, spent time on John Sloan and Pinnacle Pass Trail to this!

The View is Worth the Climb! That is the basic mantra behind every weekend hiking excursion. If you want a little adventure It would be so much easier just to watch Nat Geo but a better idea is to get up and go; so we do.

There is something about gathering the wood, breaking and arranging into a campfire pyramid and coaxing the initial sparks into a roaring flame that soothes the primal instincts. And then there is the ice cold Shock Top beer, the piping hot Johnsonville Brats, set against the rush of the stream, the roar of the wind and the heat of the sun in our face.
You can't get all this with a Remote!

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