My boyfriend and i are spending this Friday and Saturday in Newport and would love some restaurant recommendations. We have breakfast plans for Saturday, but we still need:
- 2 lunches
- somewhere cool for pre-dinner cocktails
- 1 dinner - can be upscale (but doesn't have to be)

We'll try anything - dive, diner, seafood, or steakhouse - as long as it's good and not too stuffy (we're both 25)! We'll have a car, so getting around is not a problem. Thanks!

The best BBQ in Mobile is The Brick Pit (on Old Shell Rd). It's about 10 minutes off I-10. Hole-in-the-wall, been-around-forever kind of place (but in a nice area), closed Mondays & sometimes Tuesdays. Get the following: Pulled pork sandwich, sauce, sides, and the best banana pudding you will ever taste. I have never had any complaints!

Get off at the Dauphin St exit, cross over the interstate & take a right onto the service rd. At the next light, take a left (this is Old Shell Rd). Follow Old Shell for a few miles (maybe 3? check Google for exact), and the Pit will be a small white house with a smoker out front, on your right. Enjoy!

Though the OP has long since moved on, here are my recommendations as a born&bred Mobilian:
- BBQ: The Brick Pit on Old Shell is some of the finest BBQ I have ever had. It stands up to anything I've tried at Rendezvous or western NC. Dreamland is all right for ribs, but the locals go to Brick Pit. Worth going for the banana pudding alone.
- Seafood: NanSea's is a bit of a hike, but worth it. Bay views, reasonable prices. Oysterellas is also fantastic - it's right off the I-10 Bayway (down the road from the Battleship). If fried seafood & large portions are more your thing, try Ed's or Felix's.
**If you want to buy some crawfish, go to Mudbugs (aka DIP Seafood) on Dauphin Island Parkway. Not a restaurant, but where we go to pick up 15, 50, or 100 pounds of boiled & delicious crawfish.
- Sushi: Liquid Lounge downtown is your best bet.
- Upscale/New American: True (in Springhill) has the best food & wine in the city, IMO, but NoJa (downtown) is also a good option and it's in a nicer location.
- Soul Food: John & Linda's. Cheap and delicious - great lunch spot. Fried chicken to die for.
- Greek/middle eastern: Jerusalem Cafe or Shiraz are both good options. Shiraz rates higher for atmosphere/location. Also for a quick bite try the Food Pak on Old Shell (down the street from Brick Pit). Great gyros and cheapie cheap!

The above are all on the western side of the bay. If you're staying downtown, you'll need a car to get to most of them. Bon appetit!