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Brick House Tavern + Tap

4900 W Park Blvd, at Preston Road; Plano; 972.596.0916

Speaking of throwing caution to the wind, the guys behind Brick House Tavern + Tap did just exactly that...

Following the excellent trend of opening in an ex-Bennigan's, Brick's a sports resto-bar from the Houston-based founders of Joe's Crab Shack, whose goal here is to "dispense happiness to the common man" via uber-bachelor digs (a "Rec Room" with plasmas dedicated to individual leather loungers, a sweet brick-walled bar with signage like "Tap That Glass", an awe-inspiring fireplace open on three sides...) and, because tavern food's awesome, an all-babe waitstaff clad in black zip-front stretch tops and denim miniskirts is classic urban.

Meanwhile in the kitchen, the unabashedly meaty menu's anchored by six signature 1/3-to-full-pound Brick Burgers (the bleu cheese/Cajun-seasoned "Black & Bleu"; the Dijon mayo/fried egg "Gun Show"), sammies (the "Hog Wild" sausage & provolone hoagie), and mix-&-match meat and potatoes entrees: pair c-f steak/BBQ ribs/chicken/mahi mahi, etc, with fries, tots, or cheesy forked potatoes, which will never know the erotic comfort of being spooned potatoes.

Let us not forget the light side, which runs from "Roughage" salads ("Brick Wedge": tomatoes, bacon, onion strings, chunky bleu cheese), to desserts ("Double D" cup cakes awesome and could be a meal), to break-fasts (French toast & bacon, steak & eggs...) collectively known as "The Cure" -- served all day, just like Heaven.

As for the prime initiative (beer), the bar slings 16 drafts (Long Hammer IPA/Yuengling/Widmer Hefeweizen), around 50 bottles (Prima Pils/Golden Monkey/Pete's Wicked to Fuller's ESB/Estrella Damm/Moosehead), and canned PBR, as well as 10 brew-'tails, hand-pulled cask pours, and Heineken/Grolsch/Warsteiner/EKU Pils microkegs brought to your table -- polish one off, and your sudsy mind will create the illusion that shaving could not.

Back that cask up at http://www.BrickHouseTavernAndTap.com