50 Favorite Appetizers & Cocktails 
Each fall we award the 50 Favorites, best restaurant dishes found by B-Metro magazine and BirminghamRestaurants.com's food writer, Jan Walsh. Categories include 50 Favorite Appetizers & Cocktails; Sandwiches; Soups & Salads; Entrees; Desserts, and All Time Favorites, which are tried and true, memorable dishes that are repeat favorites for many years.
Asian Almond Shrimp – Zea’s Rotisserie & Grill
A long row of golden and gorgeous Asian Almond Shrimp, and chopped almonds, line the middle of a rectangular platter. Each large shrimp is covered in a crisp, light crust is tender, succulent and enhanced by its soy ginger sauce and Asian chili glaze. Don’t miss this dish!
Baby Lobster Tails - Ocean & 26
I have a long held love affair with the nightly appetizer special of Baby Lobster Tails and have never failed to order them. On Monday evenings these baby tails are the special at Reis’ restaurant net door, 26. Aromas of the hickory wood and “The Love” (a special signature seasoning applied to every piece of grilled fish at Ocean) make their way to the table before the dish. They are served with butter, baby greens and half a lemon covered in cheesecloth. The succulent and sweet, grill-marked tails have a tasty touch of acidity, provided by The Love, which was brushed on the meat repeatedly while they cooked in their shells. I just can’t get enough of these babies.
Basket of Okra - Hot and Hot Fish Club
Hot and Hot’s local network of food purveyors keeps the menu seasonal and fresh nightly. What could be better than fried okra? My very own Basket of Okra at Hot and Hot. A mound of small, golden morsels rise from the white, linen napkin-lined basket. Each warm—crisp on the outside and moist on the inside—bite is dipped into a divine house made chive aioli. Divine!
Caviar Dip - Nabeel's Cafe & Market
Nabeel’s Café and Market’s Taramasalata dip is a Greek dip traditionally made with tarama—the roe of carp fish. The dip is served in the Café and available ready in half pound and one pound containers in the Market. It has a consistency similar to softly whipped cream but is firm enough to mound on their Pita Crunchies. And topping it off are Kalamata olives and a swirl extra virgin olive oil. Chefs' Secrets: John shares techniques and recipe.
Cheese Torta – GianMarco’s Restaurant
Marco’s Cheese Torta is GianMarco’s divine signature dish. The stack of red, white, and green layers of mascarpone, pesto, sun-dried tomatoes, balsam and evo makes a scrumptious spread for Marco’s crostini—but is also good enough to eat with a fork.
Chilled Seafood Tower - Fleming’s Steakhouse & Wine Bar
Set atop a copper stand, a tall mound of ice is dotted with succulent lobster tails and Alaskan King Crab Legs. Firm, cold jumbo shrimp and snow crab claws encircle this impressive dish. And small bowls of super lump, delicate crabmeat and a divine seafood ceviche—of scallops and squid—are nestled inside.
Crab Cakes - Ocean
Two golden Gulf Coast Crab Cakes filled with luscious lumps of delicate white crabmeat are complemented by yellow kernels of fresh, roasted corn and the acidity of a caramelized shallot relish with lemon dill tartar.
Crab Claws - Dyron’s Lowcountry
No need for a trip to the Gulf to satisfy my craving for fried crab claws. Executive chef Phillip Baio has this dish perfected. A light batter on these big meaty claws was fried to a golden crunch. The crab claws are served atop lovely lettuces with old-fashioned cocktail sauce.
Dreamsicle Martini & Dirty Martini - Shula's Steak House
The icy cold martinis and their cocktail napkins are placed atop our plates. This simple yet significant placement makes us relax and enjoy, rather than rush to order. “The Dreamsicle is golden in color with hints of flavors reminiscent of the Popsicle integrated with stronger—distinctly a martini—flavors. The Dirty Martini with three blue cheese stuffed olives lives up to the E. B. White’s relaxing description of a martini, as "the elixir of quietude.” 
Grapefruit Gimlet - Bottega Cafe
When the Blood Red Grapefruit are in season, I don't miss this refreshing cocktail. It makes the perfect Saturday cocktail, pink in color, acidic yet balanced with salt on the rim, and my own shaker to refill my glass.
Margaritas, Martini Style - Sol Y Luna
Tequilas are an integral part of the house drinks at Sol Y Luna, which are margaritas served straight up, on the rocks or martini style. The Perfect and the Puerto Vallarta—martini style. Perfect is the perfect name for this cocktail. It is golden in color with Sauza, Commemorativo, and Contreau in
tegrated with hints of orange and lime—smooth, not too citrusy. The Puerto Vallarta is the color of tea and has luscious layers of richness in this mix of Sauza Conmemorativo Anejo, Grand Mariner and Tamarind Pulp.
Oysters & Okra – Café Dupont
Café Dupont’s golden oysters and vegetables rest in a Cayenne Butter Sauce with horseradish creme fraiche and soy glaze. With or without the sauce, each crisp bite of this dish is perfection. Executive chef Chris Dupont’s deepfried, Apalachicola oysters and fried whole pod of okra are irresistible. The thin coat of batter adheres to the half pod—without an air pocket developing between the crust and the okra—until golden brown.
Chefs' Secrets: View video of Chef Chris Dupont cooking oysters and okra and sharing the recipe.
Rootbeer Float - Jackson's Bar & Bistro
Unlike the foamy and overly sweet floats I enjoyed as a kid, this float is for serious grown ups. Three Olives Root Beer Vodka—a blend of imported English vodka with flavors of root beer—is the foundation of this drink. Served in a lowball, the drink is dark on bottom and white on top. The root beer flavored vodka is mixed with Coke. And it is topped with a mountain of creamy vanilla foam.
Seafood Tower - Highlands Bar & Grill
The Seafood Tower is a seafood lover’s delight and an artistic feat, with layers of delicate jumbo lump crabmeat, succulent Gulf shrimp, fresh avocado and marinated crab claws meld in each sensational bite.
Seared Scallops - Veranda on Highland
Chef Robey's Seared Scallops, with bacon braised shallots, apple smoked bacon and horseradish cream, are served in a delightful shell plate. Perfection in both the variety of interesting flavors and contrasting textures are achieved here. I never fail to order it when I find it on the Veranda's menu.
Sol Y Luna Sampler - Sol Y Luna
The basket includes a variety of crisp and colorful, house made chips: chile vinegar, sweet potato chips, and corn chips. And the centerpiece of this sampler is the bowl of refreshing, tasty guacamole, with avocado flavors and textures shining through.
Shrimp Cocktail – Shula’s Steakhouse Due to the enormous size of the shrimp, the Shrimp Cocktail is
served curled into the curve of a plate—rather than hanging over a stemmed glass or small
bowl. The firm, delicious shrimp are chilled to
perfection and accompanied by Shula’s famous cocktail sauce, which is rich and complex with touch of a tangy heat. If there is a better
shrimp cocktail anywhere, I have not found it.
Strawberry Blueberry & KoalaTinis - The Silvertron Cafe
The Strawberry-Blueberry Tini is light in body and neither tart nor sweet, with the fresh fruit flavors shining through. The Koala Tini is golden in color and foamy on top. It is an awesome elixir with rich, complex flavors of butterscotch and vanilla—while maintaining balance rather than sweetness.
Tuscan Tasters - Brio Tuscan Grill
One of the best deals in town is Brio Tuscan Grille’s Tuscan Tasters $2.95 menu. Served on weekdays, the Tuscan Tasters menu is available from 3:00 until 7:00 and from 9:00 until close, in
the bar or on the front patio. Pair this menu
with their $5 Martinis on Wednesdays for an incredible food and beverage value. We pair our tasters with Bellini Martinis, and make out with a “dinner” of three dishes and two cocktails for less than $20!