Greensboro vs. Roanoke- Battle of the Sandwiches (5 of 6)

For starters, I want to thank everyone in Russia, where we are surprisingly popular, for coming to this blog. I was also pleased to see that we have had hits from Poland, Iraq and Germany today.

Of course, my hometown of Roanoke, Va., and my adopted city of Greensboro, NC, which are about 110 miles from each other are a long way from Baghdad, Moscow and Warsaw. Nevertheless, we continue with this 'highly controversial' series (there are people in both zip codes who may see my as a double agent) with a look at two famous beer and sandwich joints.

Natty Greene's Pub and Brewing Company, with locations in downtown Greensboro and Raleigh, was started by two former UNC-Greensboro classmates as Chris Lester and Kayne Fisher wanted to start their own brewing company. In 1996, they established the brewing business. And, in 2004, they opened the first of the two restaurants in the Hamburger Square section of Greensboro.

Last year, a second restaurant in Raleigh was opened.

The establishment offers burgers, such as The Ole Standby, The Cali and (of course) The Carolina while they have sandwiches, such as the Big Dawg and the Elm Street Philly. But, they are best known for their beer!

Macado's, not to be confused with Macadoo's Grille in Valdosta, Ga.,(with an extra O in their name) has 17 locations, including restaurants in Charlotte, NC, Beckley, WVa, and Bristol, Tenn. But, 10 of the 17 currently open restaurants (a new one is opening in Harrisonburg soon) are in Virginia. And, six of those establishments are in the Roanoke/New River Valley area.

Macado's is known for their great sandwiches with catchy pop culture names like The Honeymooners, The Bonnie and Clyde, The Hidenberger and the Boo Boo Boomer.

One of the problem with choosing which one is my preferance is that it will inevitably make the other one mad. And, it just so happens that Macado's is reportedly owned by an Armenian-American family (I am half-Turkish!), which really puts me in the pickle jar, no pun intended.

But, I will go with what my friend Ginger (pse) who has eaten at the Natty Greene's in Greensboro and several of the Macado's in Roanoke, and she prefers Natty Greene's!

50 Beers Around the World- Natty Greene's (Greensboro, NC's Local Brew)

Today, we take a short break from focusing on beers from all parts of the globe to examine the most popular local brew for Greensboro, NC, that is Natty Greene's.

The brewery also serves as a happening restaurant in downtown Greensboro and a few months ago, they opened up a second joint in Raleigh.

Currently, one can have the seasonal Red Nose White Ale, and other brands of Natty Greene's include The Guilford Golden Ale, Southern Pale Ale and Buckshot Amber Ale.

The Triad's brew can be found at many places in the Tarheel State, including the Backstreet Buzz Coffee House in nearby Reidsville, where the popular Greensboro band A Cup of Blues will be performing on Saturday night.

SIDEBAR: With today being Cyber Monday, I was looking around my mom's house over the weekend and wondering what we could hawk on E-Bay, which has turned out to quite profitable for my cousin Michael is South Carolina. I came across a box that had some old paperbacks, including the book version of "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," the Elmore Leonard novel "Bandits" and "Dave Barry's Greatest Hits," which since it was published 20 years ago seems a bit out of date.

But, Cyber Monday is a bit of a concern for local retailers. "The Charleston City Paper" in Charleston, SC, has a cover story this week focusing on the 'buy local' trend which aims to keep dollars in the community with the support of local businesses. Among the local businesses in the historic city that were featured in the article by Stephanie Barna were Wonder Works, a Charleston toy store, Remedy Market, a grocer focusing on local goods and Croghan's Jewel Box.

SIDEBAR TWO: We were saddened to hear of the death of comic actor Leslie Nielsen, who started as a dramatic actor in his long film career. But, his death, reminded me of a surreal incident which actually caused diplomatic tensions between Turkey and Iran in 1990. Iranian government officials were actually outraged that Nielsen's hit comedy film "The Naked Gun," which makes fun of the Ayatollah Khomeini, was being screened in Turkey, which neighbors Iran. This lead to an actual government investigation by authorities in Ankara, but the film continued to play in Turkey, and we gather it did fairly well there.

50 Beers Around the World- NewCastle (England/UK)

We continue our series 50 Beers Around the World with NewCastle, a beer that one can find just anywhere especially in England and The United States.

One of the most popular breweries and bars in our local Greensboro/Winston-Salem area is Natty Greene's (don't forget the 'e') located at 345 South Elm Street in downtown Greensboro.

While researching this piece, we discovered that Natty Greene's has opened up a second locale in Raleigh on 505 West Jones Street.

The brewery offers many specialty beers including the Guilford Golden Ale and the Buckshot Amber Ale. Many of these beers can be found throughout North Carolina and in other areas.

There also happens to be a bar in Dallas, Texas, called Lee Harvey's, located at 1807 Gould Street. It is open until 2 a.m. from Fridays-Sundays. One has to love their sense of humor!