If the recession is good for anything, it's good for creating deals at restaurants. This weekend I took my wife to lunch at Red Hook Brewery in Woodinville. The restaurant is called the Forecasters Pub and has incredible food items. We tend to lean towards the tried and true burgers, particularly the California Burger which is always tasty and delicious served with crispy bacon and avocado, of course. We also enjoy the salmon focaccia sandwich, generous chicken nachos and the meat and cheese sampler that often includes smoked trout and pickled caper berries. But on this visit we noticed a second menu on the table for Daily Specials. My wife was drawn to the $7.99 carne asada tacos while I went with the BBQ ribs marinated in Red Hook's famed ESB beer. By the tenderness the ribs appeared to be sloooooow cooked til the meat falls off the bone. Both great deals in a tight economy. I know, talk about food across the spectrum. But that's what Red Hook's Forecaster Pub offers.

Oh yeah, the beers. Yep, Red Hook makes a few. From the standard ESB and my favorite, Black Hook, to the seasonals Late Harvest, Winter Hook, and Cooper Hook, are all exceptional flavor and quality. However, I must encourage, no insist, you try their newest brew, Tripple Belgium Style Ale. A beautiful floral aroma with the distinct Belgium taste and absurdly high alcohol content. Man those Europeans know how to mix flavor and alcohol content masterfully. We were also introduced to a strange brew, a barley wine, that Red Hook is offering in the Forecasters only and not in retail. Be warned, their barley wine is no wine but a sweet, balanced beer similar to the Belgium with an equal high volume of alcohol.

Red Hook Forecasters Pub is a great addition to your day in Woodinville, before or after wine country, or perhaps as a reward for a long bike journey along the Burke Gilman Trail that connects the Sammamish Plateau, Lake Washington and Seattle.