Ah...279. This place has come quite a way from when it used to be Donelley's Pub. I don't actually remember how many years 279 has been in business, but they now have themselves a good following, and consistency that is lacking at a lot of other places. I liked the changes I saw happen over time with the inside, although the outside is a bit unassuming, yet still inviting. Clean inside, with many seating choices... you can sit at the high or low side of the bar, a high top table, a lower table towards the middle of the floor, or even booths that looks like they seat up to 8. Pretty cozy all around. Plenty of TVs for sports. Live entertainment or karaoke on certain nights. Staff is always great, friendly... now about the goods... if you want a gooood espresso martini, here's where to go. No foofy garnishes on them, but the flavor says it all. You'll have to wait for the espresso to actually get done, but that's why they're worth it! There are a few other specialty cocktails listed, many beers, decent whiskey selection, among others. The menu is worth a look, they've got your fried staples...fries, rings, tofu, mozzarella. Burgers with the fixins, salads, a few seafood items, soups, wings. The menu shrunk a bit I believe, I was disappointed that the cauliflower crust pizza was gone, they actually had a good one! I settled on the crab stuffed pretzel, added a side of hot honey garlic sauce(it IS a pretzel after all), and decided to try the French onion soup. The soup was great, perfect amount of cheese broiled on top, and the best part was that it wasn't overwhelmed by salt, nice beefy oniony broth. The pretzel was pretty good too, but not the best imo because of the consistency. I had a hard time figuring out where the crab topping stopped and where the pretzel began in the middle, it was kind of wet doughy, mushy. I know they're popular, but I'll grab something else more than likely, I had 2 cooked the same on 2 different occasions. The sauce that accompanied was ok, but let's talk about this hot honey garlic, they aren't messin' around! Pretty nippy, and if you know the bite of fresh garlic, oof! I even had a whole little clove at the bottom, pungent and tasty! Maybe some wings next time?! Lastly, it can be lively and noisy here, partially the acoustics, but I forgot how loud pairs of imbibing excited women can be, so be prepared. Party on, ladies. And if you're early and beat any potential crowd you may snag a parking spot in their actual lot to the right of the building. If not you can head across the street near the bakery and not worry about being towed. But please be careful when playing Frogger, people tend to speed through this area! Until next time :-)