New dining by the water options for Logan Martin and Neely Henry lakes
Story by Roxann Edsall Photos by Mackenzie Free
Lake residents often claim that if you live on Logan Martin, you’re lucky enough. Now residents and visitors alike can claim the luck of the Irish, too, as they celebrate the grand opening of a brand-new eatery pub establishment on Coosa Island.
In the location of the former Porky Pirates BBQ and Lakeside Grill, Oh Sherri Island Pub opened its doors just over a month ago. It is the second Oh Sherri location for owners Joel and Diana Wallace, whose original Moody location has been open for four years. A third location is set to open in Ohatchee in the next few weeks.
Blending the traditions of Irish cuisine and libations with the culture of the lakeside community, the new pub establishment will feature community-centered events, live Irish music and dance, and a variety of music by local artists from different genres.
Play games with friends while you wait for your food
“We will have essentially the same menu as our original location but will add a couple of specials for the lake, like shrimp, oysters or crab boil. And we’ll do Shepherd’s Pie, pulled pork sliders and Chicago or New York style hotdogs for boaters who want to get in and out fast,” says Joel. “We also plan to have a steam table with a hot bar where we can get you out quick, if that’s what you want.”
But the real beauty of a traditional Irish pub, the Wallaces say, is the no-rush atmosphere. “We want an atmosphere that if you want to you can just hang out,” says Joel.
Diana, a professor and director of first-year engineering curriculum at UAB, adds that they want their pub to be a place where you come to “decelerate from your day, meet new people, and go back to human interactions. Some restaurants want you to come in, eat, and go. We want you to spend time here.”
Maybe not everyone will know your name, but the Moody location regulars know they are welcome to stay, swap stories, relax and make new friends. New friendships created in the four years that location has been in business have resulted in four couples getting married after meeting each other there.
While that isn’t the model the Wallaces are necessarily going for, it speaks to their emphasis on relationship building through community and conversation.
The pub, which is accessible by water, offers a family-friendly atmosphere during the day and early evening, encouraging friends and families to play board games and cards around the table. Later evening hours are all about relaxing and enjoying the music with friends old and new. “It’s a place where you can come and relax and enjoy each other’s company,” says Joel.
The Wallaces are leasing the Coosa Island property from Matthew Kronen, who also owns the docks. The docks, which can accommodate 21 boats, are in the final stages of being completely rebuilt.
Owners Joel and Diana Wallace on deck at Oh Sherri’s
“We’ve fabricated the steel frames, added new wood and new posts,” says Kronen. “We’ve probably over-engineered it. But it should be ready well before the water comes up.” They’ve also simplified the docking process by removing the large boats and yachts that had previously been moored at the docks.
The Wallaces have renovated the inside, removed the oversized picnic tables and exchanged them for smaller, more intimate and flexible table arrangements. With a small army of volunteers and staff, they’ve redone the walls, seating areas and ceilings, making it feel warmer and more intimate. “We had a lot of help from a lot of people,” Joel said, adding that the goal was to create an authentic Irish pub feel.
Opening an Irish pub was the dream Joel’s dad, Frank Wallace, shared with him. Growing up in Chicago, Joel was close to his father and shared a love of sports, particularly the Chicago Bears. Having lost a sister when she was three years old and before he was born, Joel grew up hearing stories about Sherri, never having known her. When father and son talked about opening a pub, the plan was always to call it Oh Sherri (a nod to her impetuous behavior to which her parents would frequently respond with an exasperated “Oh, Sherri…”)
After coaching men’s soccer for 30 years, Joel opened the Moody pub and named it for his sister. “We’ve always believed that Sherri was our guardian angel,” Joel says. “Her picture will be on the wall of each of our locations.”
Because of his coaching background, Joel admits to running his businesses like a sports team. “We want to be organized and disciplined,” he says. “If things don’t go just right, you adjust as necessary and do the best you can. Honestly, it’s about just being really organized and being honest.”
Joel and Diana have a lot of practice being organized, as a blended family of 12. They have 10 children between them, with four grandchildren under the age of 6. “Speaking of family, we want to be a family-friendly, respectful place,” Joel says. “We know we’ll have to adjust our closing times for the lake. We put family first.”
The Ohatchee pub will be half a mile from Neely Henry dam at the corner of Highway 144 and Highway 77 at the former River Grill location. All three locations will be running St. Patrick’s Day specials throughout March.
A noted Irish Proverb says, “If you’re lucky enough to be Irish, you’re lucky enough.” This month, or any month for that matter, we can all be lucky enough to support the new pub on the lake. You can follow them on Facebook at Ohsherriislandpub.a lot of other folks, learn who they are and who their businesses are. If they haven’t been here before, come check us out. If they have, come back and see what’s new this year.”
Where there’s smoke, there’s championship barbecue. At least that’s the menu for April 3-4 at Smoke on the Falls Noccalula Barbecue Competition weekend.
Smoke on the Falls is back at the Noccalula Falls Campground in 2026 with the Kansas City Barbecue Society-certified barbecue contests pitting 60 plus teams through the Professional and Backyard division.
A children’s division is also a part of the competition.
It will be held at Noccalula Campground and is earning a national reputation through its affiliation with KCBS.
Cooking event an annual draw for Central Alabama and beyond
With names like Kickin’ Quail Quesadillas, Gobblin’ Turkey Taco Soup and Venison Bang Bang Chili, you know culinary creativity is at the pinnacle and tastebuds are sure to be tantalized.
That’s just what you would expect from the Alabama Wildlife Federation Wild Game Cook-Off. The regional cook-off in Talladega is set for Saturday, March 14 at 4 p.m., at Talladega Superspeedway. Tickets are $50 for up to two adults.
The Talladega cook-off is part of a statewide effort to support Alabama Wildlife Federation. Local AWF chapters host annual Wild Game Cook-Offs across the state and “everyone is invited to participate,” according to AWF. “These competitions are excellent ways for backyard chefs to show off their culinary skills and enjoy some good ‘ol fashion fun, fellowship and fabulous food.
Whether it’s fish, fowl or game, this cook-off has it all. There’s even a youth division.
If you would rather eat than compete, you can sample some of the best wild game dishes around. Previous winning creations in the past have included “Grilled Dove Breast,” “Smoked Venison with Cajun Wild Rice,” and “Flounder stuffed with Shrimp and Crab topped with a Butter Cream Sauce.”
Other activities and entertainment are part of the day’s festivities. Music, door prizes, raffles, and a silent auction that includes outdoor themed art prints and ladies’ items.
For more information, contact AWF at (334) 285-4550. To register your team or purchase a ticket online, go to: AlabamaWildlife.org.
At most houses on Logan Martin Lake, the view of the water is the most mesmerizing feature.
Guests to Harold and Virna Settle’s Cropwell home, however, are often greeted with such a spectacular sight in the front yard that they often forget to even look past it to the lake. In the spring, summer and fall, some 400 rosebushes, with thousands of blooms in a dazzling array of colors, create such a splendor that it can be difficult to notice anything else. “It’s just breathtaking,” Harold said.
Virna is a master when it comes to pottery
And when the flowers put on their show, the Settles have been known to put out a spread. “We want to invite people when our flowers are blooming,” Virna explained. As a result, “we have a big party every spring, and almost every weekend during the summer there are people here,” Harold added.
Since they both enjoy cooking, guests are treated to all kinds of cuisine. Virna, originally from Manila, Philippines is an expert in Filipino dishes. And after years of managing two Birmingham restaurants – La Dolce Vita and Amore Ristorante Italiano – with her former partner, she’s mastered Italian meals, as well.
“She’s really been working at it and she’s almost as good a cook as I am,” joked Harold, a retired cardiologist. Although he especially enjoys Cajun and Creole cooking, one of his specialties is a Spanish paella that feeds a crowd.
“We used to have contests,” Harold said. “We’d start with the same cuts of meat. She’d prepare it her way and I’d do mine. For some reason, I never seemed to win.”
Food is actually what brought the couple together. Harold and his former wife, Jean, first met Virna when they frequented her restaurants. Jean passed away from pancreatic cancer in 2010, and Harold and Virna reconnected about a year later. They will celebrate their 14th anniversary next month.
In addition to cooking, they share a love of wine and travel, but that’s not all they have in common. They’re both artists, as well. While Harold’s canvas is the yard, Virna is a painter and potter.
Discovering talents
Virna discovered her passion for art about 12 years ago when she went to a painting party with friends. Perhaps it’s appropriate that she painted a fish, because after the experience she was hooked. She began taking classes and experimenting with texture and color, acrylics and oils, and her hobby soon became much more. Her bold, bright paintings – often abstract impressionistic renderings of flowers and ladies – were well-received, and she began showing and selling her work. “Her color palette is outstanding,” Harold said. “She mixes colors beautifully.”
Her true calling, Virna said, is pottery, which she took up about six years ago. Interestingly, that journey started with fish, as well. After talking with a friend about ways to prepare it, Virna decided to get a palayok, an earthenware pot used to prepare Filipino dishes.
“I just decided to make my own,” Virna said, so she started looking around for someone to teach her how. It didn’t take her long to find renowned potter Tena Payne of Earthborn Pottery in Leeds. Virna began taking classes and discovered how much she enjoyed working with clay and coaxing it into shapes on the pottery wheel.
“It’s challenging,” she said. In addition to unleashing more creativity, the process of manipulating the clay has helped her in other ways, too. “I used to have carpal tunnel but since I’ve started doing the pottery, I don’t have it anymore.”
Virna especially enjoys creating dinnerware – plates, bowls, and mugs – and she also makes serving pieces including trays, chip and dip sets, and vases. Once the pieces are shaped and dried, the next step is bisque firing at a low temperature in the kiln to harden the clay.
Next, she glazes the items – Virna is drawn to shades of blue, green and brown – and the pieces are fired again at a higher temperature to fuse the glaze to the pottery. “It makes me feel good when people buy it,” Virna said of her pottery. She also enjoys using the pieces at home and gifting them to friends. Although she doesn’t have a website, her pottery is currently available for sale at The Fish Market Restaurant in Birmingham and The LakeLife Store in historic downtown Pell City.
While clay quickly became her favorite medium, Virna’s kiln is currently in the garage, which got chilly in the cold, winter days. That’s why Virna said she feels fortunate to have two artistic outlets. “When it’s cold, I can do my painting inside,” she said.
Outdoor artistry
The Settle House on Logan Martin Lake is framed through rose bushes
Although it was the lake that lured Harold to St. Clair County, he discovered that the peninsula where he built his home 32 years ago was a “gardener’s paradise.”
The site is nearly surrounded by water, which keeps the temperature several degrees warmer for a longer portion of the year, he explained. “We don’t have a hard, killing frost until the first of December, so the growing season is nine months out of the year,” he said. Plus, “the water is free. You just pump it out of the lake.”
Harold said he’s been gardening most of his life, and as an adult, he became fascinated by floral gardens. He grew up in Virginia, which he calls “a floral garden paradise” and went to medical school at the University of Virginia, with its pavilion gardens tucked away behind serpentine walls.
While in med school, there was a vacant lot next door, and “I dug that up and planted tomatoes.” He planted his first roses in the 1970s while he was living in Cincinnati, where he completed his residency and fellowship and eventually became chief of cardiology at Cincinnati VA Hospital.
After moving to Birmingham in 1979 and going into private practice, he had a house with four acres that allowed him to have a large garden. Still, “I’ve never had the perfect setting like I have here to do it.”
He found it after Dr. John Haynes of Pell City asked him to do some cardiology consultations for him. “When I’d get finished in the afternoons, I’d drive down to the lake and see what I could see.”
By that time, a friend had invited Harold to an afternoon of sailing, and he soon found himself in the market for a boat. “It was bitter cold, the wind was brutal, but it was fun,” he said. He bought a 22-foot sailboat and kept it at Pine Harbor Marina before upgrading to a 27-foot vessel he bought in 2000.
It was the early 1990s when Settle noticed some homes being built in the River Oaks subdivision. He bought a lot, but he didn’t build on it for two years.
When construction started, Settle made sure the brick beds near the street were the first things built. “I planted roses in those before the house had been bricked,” he said. He planted beds alongside the driveway the next year and followed up with a circular garden directly in the front of the home’s entrance the next.
More or Virna Settle’s pottery on display
He needed more space, however, so he bought the lot next door in 1999. “There was nothing but trash trees on it,” he said, adding that he cleared it completely. “I figured it would take me the rest of my life to plant it the way I wanted it. It took me three or four years.”
In addition to roses, Harold has planted 125 named varieties of Japanese maples, which provide a spectacular display of color in the fall. He and Virna have also planted everything from fig, persimmon and plum trees to blueberry bushes, vegetables, peppers, day lilies, hydrangeas, irises, camellias, and ginkgoes. “There’s nothing that I won’t try to grow,” he said.
The planting is the easy part, though. He and Virna, who also has come to love gardening, spend countless hours tending to and caring for the plants. Every spring, the rose bushes have to be pruned back to about a foot high. “I’ll do about 30 and she does 370,” Harold said with a laugh.
They consider it a labor of love, though, and they have countless trophies and ribbons from the Birmingham Botanical Gardens Annual Rose Show that attest to the beauty their hard work created. Harold has entered the show every year for the past 30 years.
This may be the last, however, as the Settles are planning a move to Daphne at the end of the summer. Although they are looking forward to the next chapter, leaving their oasis on the lake and the gardens they have so carefully cultivated will be bittersweet.
“I really hope someone who loves gardening buys it,” Harold said.
Virna Settle’s Pork and Chicken Rice Noodles
Ingredients:
½ cup pork belly or shoulder (I use belly)
½ cup chicken, thinly sliced
1 cup chicken or pork broth
3 tablespoons cooking oil
1 red onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1 carrot cut into thin strips
2 cups cabbage, sliced into strips
½ cup green beans, cut into diagonal
¼ cup Chinese celery, roughly chopped
6 tablespoons soy sauce
6 tablespoons oyster sauce
For garnish:
½ cup roasted, chopped garlic
½ cup chopped spring onions
Directions: Boil pork and chicken for 10-15 minutes or until the meat is tender. Add oil to pan and saute the pork and chicken until the color turns brown. Add onion and garlic to the pan and saute until tender Add carrots, cabbage, green beans, and Chinese celery and saute for 1 minute. Add the broth, soy sauce and oyster sauce. Mix well and let broth simmer. Drain the meat and vegetables from the stock and transfer to a bowl. Set aside. Add noodles in simmering stock and cook until tender. Stir occasionally. Once the noodles are tender, transfer to a serving platter and top with cooked meat and vegetables. Garnish with roasted garlic and spring onions.
Harold Settle’s Paella
Ingredients
3.5 pounds yellow rice
8 cups chicken stock (I make my own, using chicken skin and bones)
2 large onions, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 large bell peppers, diced
1 cup Lima beans, cooked
1 cup English peas, cooked
8 plum tomatoes, diced
½ can (4 ounces) of tomato paste
1 ½ pounds large shrimp (feel free to add clams, calamari, prawns, or mussels)
2-3 pounds chicken thighs (Remove the skin and de-bone a few to make stock)
2 pounds chorizo sausage, sliced into 1-inch pieces
½ cup fresh parsley
2-3 tablespoons fresh thyme
½ tablespoons paprika
Rosemary
1 pinch fresh saffron
Olive oil
3 lemons, quartered
Directions
It’s best to have all of your ingredients prepared before you start cooking.
Microwave chicken thighs for about 10 minutes to make sure they are cooked throughout. Peel the shrimp, leaving only the tail, and salt them.
I always try to make my chicken stock from scratch (time permitting), using the skin and some bones from the chicken thighs. Add a bit of rosemary, a tiny pinch of saffron, and a bit of thyme. If you use bouillon, I’d recommend at least heating it up with these herbs and then straining before you start.
Keep your stock hot, but not boiling, as you cook. Coat the bottom of your paella pan with olive oil. Brown chorizo over high heat for 1-2 minutes. Do not fully cook, just get the outside well browned. Set aside. This will add a nice red color and flavor to your oil.
Brown the chicken for 2-3 minutes. It should not be fully cooked. Set aside. Brown garlic, onion, and bell pepper until softened, adding plum tomatoes shortly before mixture is finished.
Push the vegetables to one side of pan. On the other, add the half can of tomato paste. Caramelize it, flipping and spreading it until it begins to loosen (1-2 minutes over high heat).
Mix vegetables and meats together with the caramelized tomato paste, also adding the paprika, parsley and thyme. Add rice, mixing together and stirring as rice browns (1 to 1 ½ minutes). As rice browns, mix in the saffron. Make sure to break it between your fingers to release all those tasty oils.
When rice is slightly translucent, add enough chicken stock to cover the whole mixture. If it’s been kept warm, it will begin to boil almost immediately. Lower to a medium heat but keep it at a steady boil.
This is where paella is made and broken. I stir a few times in the first 5-10 minutes, adding broth as necessary to keep the rice fully covered. After this, you must let the paella SIT! Let it cook another 10-20 minutes (I find that this step takes longer on a stovetop), adding broth bit by bit to keep the rice submerged until the rice on the top is al dente. Don’t worry about the rice burning to the bottom. This part (called the soccarat) is a tasty delicacy.
Once you’ve stirred the paella for the last time and are letting it cook, when you have about 8 minutes left to cook, lay the cooked lima beans and peas and shrimp on top. Turn shrimp over after 2-4 minutes to cook on the other side.
When rice on top is still quite al dente, take paella off of heat and cover. Let sit for 15-20 minutes.
I’ve taken the lid off prematurely and ended up with a crunch mess. Patience is key.
Once you’re sure it’s ready, uncover, garnish with lemon wedges and enjoy!
If it’s a holiday or her father’s birthday, chances are Brooke Tollison is making a pie. An apple pie, to be precise, that’s baked in her grandparents’ cast-iron skillet.
Brooke shows off her cooking skills
They’ve developed quite a system. Once her dad has eaten his fill, “he gives the skillet back to me, all cleaned and seasoned and ready to go,” she said.
The fact that she and her parents, Gary and Lynn Williams, have houses next door to each other on Neely Henry Lake makes the process a little bit easier and a lot more fun. “I love that they are right there,” Brooke said. “Being next to my parents was a big selling point for me. My family has been on this part of the Coosa River for generations.”
That’s probably why, for Brooke, “lake” has always been synonymous with family.
As a child, it meant long summer days swimming with her cousins, learning to ski and kneeboard, and endless hours of boat rides and tubing. As an adult, it means drinking coffee or hot chocolate around the fire pit while watching the stars with her husband and kids on a crisp fall evening.
The one thing that has never changed is that “the lake” means Neely Henry. She and her husband, Jim, live and work in the Pell City area – she just opened The Brooke Tollison agency, an ALFA Independent Agency, and he is the regional manager for Alabama Farm Credit.
“Pell City has been so good to us,” she said. But in the 21 years they’ve lived there, Brooke said she’s only been to Logan Martin Lake three or four times.
“This is the lake I grew up on,” she said, standing at the water’s edge of the house they bought nearly two years ago. “I made so many wonderful memories here.”
Peaceful oasis
Brooke said she wasn’t actively looking for a lake house when the opportunity presented itself, but it had been in the back of her mind for a while, so she was keeping her eyes and ears open. “I knew I wanted a lake house for retirement,” she said. “I’ve still got 15 or 20 years to work, but I also had been watching prices appreciate.”
That’s why, when she learned that the 3-bedroom, 2-bath house on Palmetto Creek was hitting the market, she jumped at the chance. In addition to her parents, her uncle and several cousins have homes on Neely Henry, and she loved the idea of being close to her extended family. “I wanted my kids to have a similar experience to what I had growing up,” she said.
The perfect place to gather and watch the game
That means lazy days surrounded by family and friends. Brooke, who grew up in Hokes Bluff, gets nostalgic watching 16-year-old Claire and her friends having fun on the lily pad float because it reminds her of lake days with her own high school friends, who are frequent visitors to the lake house. Jim and their son, Jay, 19, love to fish, and Jay enjoys canoeing and kayaking, as well.
“This is the perfect spot for that,” she said, adding that the creek has smooth water and meanders about a mile past their house. Although there are several homes nearby, their area of the lake has a peaceful, secluded feel. “It’s private, but it’s not isolated,” she said.
Buying the lake house was kind of a full circle moment for Brooke. Her parents bought their house from her sister in the late ‘90s, and then they also bought the adjacent lot where her house now stands. Her father eventually sold the 3-acre lot to another family member, however, and it’s changed hands a couple of times since.
At some point, one of the owners built the house, and when Brooke bought it, the property became part of the family again. Since then, it’s been put to good use.
She’s helped her parents host a family reunion, and with two docks and two big yards, there was plenty of room for parking and for everyone to spread out. Last summer, she even hosted a wedding with 50 or 60 guests when a cousin exchanged vows by the water’s edge. “It was such a beautiful day,” Brooke said.
Let’s eat
Entertaining at the lake means lots of good food, so what’s on the menu when crowds gather?
“We live on a cattle farm, so we grill a lot,” Brooke said. “We’ll have steak or hamburgers, and my dad likes to smoke wings and briskets. When friends come, everybody brings sides, dips, cakes, potato salad and appetizers, and we all dig in. We love desserts, so there are always plenty of desserts.” Often, they include a tray of Brooke’s no-bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies.
When it’s just family, they usually take a more relaxed approach. “If we come up on a weekend, we go to Local Joe’s, get some food, eat on the pier, and then we go for a boat ride and watch the moon rise. And the stars – oh my gosh, the stars are fabulous,” Brooke said.
Relaxed getaway
Bedrooms let in plenty of natural light and are decorated in lakeside themes
Although the Tollisons escape to their getaway fairly often, Brooke has listed the home on Airbnb so that others can enjoy it when they can’t. So far, it’s been a great experience, she said, and she loves having the opportunity to help others fall in love with the lake that has meant so much to her and her family.
She wanted to create an inviting environment, so Brooke chose light colors and a mix of old and new furniture pieces to create the perfect oasis. There are some personal touches, as well. A family friend, Terry Lee, built the bed swing on the dock, and the artwork of two other friends, Jimmie Nell Miller and Shannon Abbott adorn the walls.
“I wanted it to feel like a lake house, a place that is comfy, welcoming and relaxing,” Brooke said. “Hopefully we achieved that.”
There’s plenty of things to entertain guests and friends who gather. Outdoor games like bocce ball and cornhole are favorites, and the Tollisons have a shed full of water toys like paddleboards, kayaks and a double canoe.
The area is a great spot for fishing, Brooke said, and the chances of spotting wildlife are pretty good. “We have ospreys here and the occasional bald eagle,” she said. “We’ve got bunny rabbits and deer. I grew up with creatures.”
It’s part of what makes lake life so special, she said. “This is my happy place, and I want everyone to love it as much as I do. Go kayaking, go paddleboarding, have a cup of coffee on the pier, sit in the sunshine, get some Vitamin D and just enjoy it. It’s a beautiful, beautiful spot.”
Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients
2 cups sugar
½ cup cocoa
½ cup milk
½ cup butter
¼ teaspoon salt
3-4 cups quick cooking oatmeal
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup crunchy peanut butter
Directions
Combine sugar, cocoa, milk, butter and salt in a boiler and bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Add peanut butter, vanilla and 3 cups of oatmeal. Mix thoroughly. Add more oatmeal for a thicker consistency. Drop onto wax paper and let cool.
Skillet Apple Pie
Ingredients
2 pounds Granny Smith apples
1 pound firm, red apples like Gala
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 stick butter
Pinch of salt
1 tablespoon milk
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 pie crusts
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place the brown sugar and ¾ of the stick of butter in a cast iron skillet (I use a 12-inch skillet) and melt them together. Peel and slice apples in ¼ inch pieces. Sprinkle with lemon juice to prevent browning. Add 1 cup of sugar minus 1 tablespoon to the peeled apples. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Add salt and vanilla to bowl. Mix to coat. Place one flat piece of crust in the skillet, on top of the brown sugar and butter mixture. Top with apple mixture. Put slices of remaining butter on top of apples. Top with second pie crust and slice vents in the crust. Brush milk across the top of the crust and sprinkle remaining sugar on top. Cover and bake until golden brown, about 45 minutes.
The path Erik and Erica Grieve followed to make their dream of living on Logan Martin Lake a reality is really a tale of two countries.
Moving to Central Mexico for Erik’s job helped them sock away enough money to make it happen, but after they fell in love with the life they created there, leaving it all behind when they returned to the United States and Pell City was harder than they imagined.
The lure of the water, though, was still a strong one, and the tranquility they’ve found at the lake was exactly what they needed. In the six years they’ve lived there, they’ve been treated to glorious sunsets, magical wildlife encounters and the peaceful calm that only life on the water can bring.
“We love our life here,” said Erica. “When we’re at home, and we walk out on the deck, we can just relax. We can find that peace we need to find.”
The lake provides the perfect backdrop for entertaining family and friends, including some they met during the years they lived abroad. It’s even more perfect for enjoying quiet evenings at home with their 16-year-old daughter, Sadie. “We love our homemade pizza nights,” Erica said.
Long-distance house hunt
The Grieves first moved to Pell City in 2010. The Calhoun County natives, who were introduced by mutual friends, had been married for four years, and Sadie had just turned a year old. They lived in Twin Oaks, and they could hear the boats on the lake, but they couldn’t see them. “We knew that if we ever got the chance, we wanted to live on the water.”
Cathedral ceilings show off home’s mid-century lines and a painting from Mexico
They weren’t sure it would happen, but then Erik’s supply chain job with Honda Manufacturing of Alabama took them to Central Mexico for several years. Because they had a housing allowance and the cost of living was lower there, the Grieves were able to put some money away in anticipation of their move back home. That came in fits and starts, however, because the family moved back and forth between Mexico and Pell City several times over the next few years.
They first moved to Celaya, about three hours northwest of Mexico City, in 2015. About two years later, Erik returned to Pell City on a business trip and did a little house-hunting while he was there. Their time in Mexico was coming to an end, and they had been looking at homes on Logan Martin online, so he checked out a few of their favorites while he was in town. When he got to the Skyline house they eventually bought, “I FaceTimed her from here during the walk through,” he said.
Erica loved the house and after seeing it in person, she only had one concern. “I’m not a big gardener,” she said, adding that the house sits on nearly two acres. “I said, ‘That’s a lot of yard to keep up. As long as you’re game, I’m in.’”
He was, they bought the house, and they started coordinating renovations from Mexico a short while later. In addition to updating the kitchen and primary bathroom, the Grieves replaced the existing roof and added a new one over the deck, changed the siding, got new paint and floors throughout the home, and built a new dock and boathouse. “We slowly kind of re-did everything from there,” Erica said.
The family moved back to Pell City in the fall of 2017 but had to live in a hotel for three months until the renovations were complete. They finally moved in just before Christmas 2017. “I told Erik if we can live at the Holiday Inn for 90 days with two adults and a child, we can get through anything,” Erica said with a laugh.
They got a chance to prove that theory because after enjoying their new home for about four months, they got word they needed to go back to Mexico. This time, Erica and Sadie stayed about a year before moving back to the lake for good in 2019 while Erik was back and forth until June of 2022.
“We’ll always look back on our time over there as some of the best times of our life,” Erica said. “God was working in our lives for sure during that time. We made some wonderful friends.” One family, in particular, served as their tour guides. “We got to experience so much more than we would have,” Erica said.
Mission-style dining room table and chairs
Their 4-bedroom, 3-bath home is filled with handmade furniture and artwork they collected while living in Mexico. “Almost every room has pieces from Mexico that we brought back,” Erica said. “We love mixing it in with our other pieces. It’s all part of our story.”
Peaceful, easy feeling
As much as they enjoyed Mexico, the Grieves love this chapter of their lives on Logan Martin, as well. They cook most nights and love being in the kitchen together. “We try to cook really healthy and still make it taste delicious” Erica said.
Veggie turkey burgers are a go-to, and they earn rave reviews from anyone who tastes them. “My mom would never normally eat something like that, but she loves them,” Erica said.
They eat a lot of fish, including red snapper and salmon, and Erik enjoys making fajitas on the Blackstone or cooking wings or chicken breasts on the smoker. Everyone’s favorite, however, is their homemade pizza nights.
“We do that almost every single week,” Erica said. “We have a playlist we listen to, we have a glass of wine and talk about the week. We love our pizza nights. It’s such a nice time to talk and connect.”
Daughter Sadie joins her parents at the front door
With a busy teenager in the house, the Grieves love any chance they get to be at home together. A junior at The Donoho School and a member of the band and jazz band, Sadie plays the piano, flute, guitar and drums. In addition to music lessons, she is in theater and participates in two plays a year, enjoys painting and drawing, and also juggles a part-time job.
Their crazy schedules make the simple things, like afternoon boat rides or time spent kayaking and paddle boarding, even more special. They love sitting on the deck at the farmhouse table Erik built and enjoying the view of Bird Island.
“The sunsets are unbelievable,” Erik said. “We see purples, pinks, blues, oranges, reds, every color you can imagine,” Erica added.
They also enjoy watching the birds – everything from herons to hummingbirds, red birds and blue birds – and other wildlife. “We’ve got a family of foxes that lives here,” Erik said. “Just about every morning, they’re rolling and playing on the hill in the yard.”
And that’s why Erik and Erica said they are thrilled they were able to make their dream of living on the water come true. “We love it here,” Erik said. “It’s even better than we imagined.”
Veggie Turkey Burgers
Ingredients
2 lbs. lean ground turkey
1 small zucchini, grated and excess liquid squeezed out
3 baby portobello mushrooms, finely minced
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp Allegro Honey Garlic Marinade
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
⅕ tsp salt (or a scant ¼ tsp)
¼ tsp black pepper
Panko breadcrumbs, as needed
Brioche buns
Cheese slices of your choice
Directions
In a large bowl, combine ground turkey, zucchini, mushrooms, Worcestershire, marinade, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Mix gently with your hands until just combined – do not overmix.
If the mixture is too sticky to form patties, add 1-2 tablespoons of breadcrumbs. Continue adding a little at a time until the mixture holds together.
Shape into 8-12 patties, depending on desired size, and place them on a wax paper–lined baking sheet. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to firm up.
Preheat a Blackstone grill (or griddle) to medium-high heat (375–400°F). Lightly oil the surface with avocado oil to prevent sticking.
Place patties on the hot griddle and press lightly with a grill press for even cooking. Cook 4–5 minutes per side, flipping once, until golden brown.
Check doneness with a meat thermometer: the internal temperature should reach 165°F. (Tip: remove at 158°F; the burgers will rise to 165°F as they rest.)
During the last minute of cooking, top each burger with cheese if desired. Cover with a dome lid to melt.
Toast buns cut-side down on the griddle for 1–2 minutes until lightly golden.
Assemble burgers with your favorite toppings and serve hot.
The Grieve Signature White
Ingredients
1 Publix Parmesan pizza dough (bakery section)
6-7 Tbsp Alfredo sauce of your choice
1 Tbsp Epicurean Specialty Truffle Parmesan Black Garlic Seasoning
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
½ cup goat cheese, crumbled
1 cup sliced mushrooms
¾ cup roasted red bell pepper strips, chopped
⅓ cup sun-dried tomatoes
2 cups chopped fresh spinach
Directions
Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray.
Stretch or roll pizza dough to desired thickness and place on the prepared baking sheet.
Spread Alfredo sauce evenly over the dough.
Sprinkle seasoning over the sauce, then add 1½ cups shredded mozzarella as the base layer of cheese.
Layer on mushrooms, roasted red bell peppers, sun-dried tomatoes, goat cheese and spinach. Top with the remaining ½ cup mozzarella.
Bake for about 15 minutes, rotating halfway through for even cooking, until the crust is golden and the cheese is bubbling.
Remove from oven, let rest 2-3 minutes, then slice and serve.
The home is decorated with a mix of antiques and new pieces
For most folks living on the water, entertaining large crowds of family and friends is part of summertime fun. For Lauren and Jason Ayres, who live on Neely Henry Lake in Southside, it’s just everyday life.
The couple has seven children, a son-in-law, and a grandchild on the way, so feeding big groups of people is nothing out of the ordinary. “We cook just about every meal we eat,” Lauren said. “They love to eat whatever we cook.”
The fact that some of the kids have dietary restrictions, coupled with the family’s desire to spend as much time outdoors as possible, means that mealtime can have a few challenges.
“We try to cook big on Friday, Saturday and Sunday so we can have leftovers during the work week,” said Jason, a doctor at Southside Family Medicine. “As our boys get bigger, though, that’s harder and harder to do.”
Dealing with logistics, however, is the couple’s specialty. Lauren has always homeschooled the kids, who now range in age from 13 to 25, and even though there are desks upstairs, a lot of schoolwork has always been done around the kitchen table. “I’ve learned to stay close to the kitchen,” she said. “There’s always something to cook or clean up, and there’s plenty of laundry to do.”
That’s why it’s a good thing the couple makes a good team. “We’ve learned in our house that it’s divide and conquer,” Jason said. “The kids have their chores, and Lauren and I just figure out what works best for us and get it done. Otherwise, we’d never get to sit down.”
Party of 10
It’s a system they’ve had plenty of time to perfect. Lauren and Jason both grew up in Gadsden, and the high school sweethearts have been together since she was 14 and he was 15. They got married after graduating from Auburn University, and they lived in Birmingham while he attended medical school and completed his residency.
Interior French doors work well with the home’s mixed decor
Although they didn’t necessarily plan to move back home, life has a way of working out for the best. “The hospital here called and offered us a job, and 22 years later, we’re still here,” Jason said. “This is where we felt like God was leading us.”
The lure of being near family was a strong one, especially as theirs was growing – sometimes pretty quickly. As their first four children – Maggie, Rebecca, Janie and Porter – got a little older, Lauren and Jason adopted their youngest three – Davidson, John and Patrick – from China over a two-year period from 2012 to 2014.
Even though the girls have left home now (Maggie, now 25, is married and living in Birmingham; Rebecca, 24, is in veterinary school at Mississippi State University; and 18-year-old Janie just started her freshman year at Mississippi State), there are still plenty of mouths to feed each day. Some of the four boys must have gluten-free diets, so Lauren and Jason have adapted recipes to meet their needs.
“Summer food is easy because Jason grills a lot, and we do a ton of fruits and salads,” Lauren said. The boys loved grilled hots dogs by the pool, so Jason uses the outdoor kitchen for that and for making rotisserie chickens, as well. Tilapia tacos and smoked chicken wings are summertime favorites, too.
Salads are even better with blackberries from their three bushes and tomatoes that they grow in containers on the deck. “Our plants were still full of them in October or November of last year,” Jason said. “They wouldn’t ever turn red, so we had a lot of fried green tomatoes. We figured out how to make them gluten-free.”
Homemade ice cream is another family favorite, and there’s always a batch being made or stashed in the freezer. One of their easiest recipes, made from cocoa, whipping cream and condensed milk, is a favorite and a go-to for church gatherings. “Everyone always wants us to bring this because it tastes just like a Wendy’s Frosty,” Jason said.
The boys (Porter is 15, Davidson and John are both 14, and Patrick is 13) love to paddle board and ride tubes in the afternoon, so the family’s meal prep philosophy is “the quicker the better.” As a result, the Crock-Pot gets called in to service fairly often.
“On the weekends we’ll stick stuff in the Crock-Pot so we can go sit by the pool or go out on the boat,” Jason said. “We spend hours out here, so when we come back in, dinner’s ready,” Lauren added.
Water time lasts well into the fall, so it doesn’t get a rest once summer’s over. “Last November we were out in the backyard with swimsuits on,” Lauren said. As the weather turns cooler, the meals get a little heartier, but the focus is still quick and easy meals. “In the fall and winter, we like lots and lots of soup,” Jason said. “The boys love soup.”
Creating a home
Sharing all those meals requires lots of dishes, but Lauren has got it covered. She loves china, especially the cabbageware she collects in pink, blue and green. When they moved into their waterfront home two years ago, she had a custom cabinet built between the kitchen and dining room to help house her dishes.
Everything you need to entertain by the pool
The rest is stored in buffets, china cabinets and other furniture pieces she has collected, largely from estate sales and antique stores. “I used to go to antique stores with my father, and he would always say that if you bought something at an antique store, you don’t pay a markup, and it will never lose its value,” Lauren said.
These days, she and Jason enjoy hitting the sales together. “It’s fun for me, too,” he said. “She has a system. If she sees something (online) that she likes, she’ll take a screenshot, and we make a run for it.”
Their home is a beautiful mix of antiques – some they’ve painted and some with the original finishes – paired with newer pieces from one of her favorite stores, Ballard Designs. Over the years, they’ve found a number of Henry Link chests and cabinets, most of which they have painted in colors ranging from a bright Kelly green, navy and salmon to a robin’s egg blue.
The pink, green and blue colors are carried throughout the house, and are most evident in the kitchen, which features navy steel appliances and light blue cabinets. “I’ve had the blue color of the cabinets picked out for years,” she said.
Before moving to their current home, they built a house in Whorton’s Bend, where they lived for 12 years. She wanted to have blue cabinets there, but everyone talked her out of it. “Everyone said to go neutral, so I did, and the people who bought the house painted the cabinets blue, just like I wanted to.”
She followed her heart when they moved to this house, just as she did when she selected the many treasures that make up the rest of her collections. She loves the Andrea by Sadek Fishnet porcelain figurines, and she has cats, bears, a kangaroo, frog and rabbits in the pattern. She also collects chinoiserie pieces, including groupings of blue and white ginger jars, colorful vases, as well as Chinese porcelain planters. Like her furniture, they are a mixture of antiques and new pieces.
One of her favorite collections is her Staffordshire dog figurines. “I bought my first set when I was 22,” she said, pointing at a pair of porcelain dogs on a shelf in a stairwell. “It was my first big girl purchase,” she added with a laugh. Others are perched in cabinets and on shelves and furniture throughout the home.
Although it’s been said that kids today don’t want their parents’ stuff, Lauren said that isn’t the case in their family. “My girls love all of this, too,” she said. In fact, it has become something of a running joke that they write their names on the bottom of things they like with a Sharpie marker.
“When Janie was about 13, she was putting up Christmas decorations and saw something she really liked,” Lauren remembered. “She said, ‘I’m Sharpie-ing that,’ and wrote her name on the bottom. Ever since then, the other kids will say, ‘Has Janie already Sharpied that, because I want it.”
Lauren said she occasionally sells things on Facebook when her collections grow too large. “I’ll post things on Facebook, and one of my girls will call and say, “I wanted that,’ so I’ll have to delete it off my page,” she said.
The treasures will soon be moving with them to a home 15 houses away. While they love the home they’re in the process of selling, Lauren and Jason found one with a layout that works better for married children and grandchildren.
There was never any question they’d be staying on the water, though. “Once you’ve lived on the water you can’t ever go back to not being on the water,” Lauren said. “We have the best sunsets here, and we just love sitting out on the deck and having lunch or dinner with a view of the water.”
There’s a peace about it that has become a vital part of their lives, Jason said. “The biggest boat traffic we have in here is people coming to fish,” he said. “After being at work all day, it’s so nice to come home and just be able to walk out the door and get on the boat. It’s just calming.”
Blackberry Salad
Romaine and green leaf lettuce
Cooked bacon, crumbled
Fresh blackberries. Home grown are the best!
Goat cheese crumbles
Sliced almonds
Dressing
1/3 cup of olive oil
1/3 cup of balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
Season with basil or cinnamon to taste
Steak
We prefer thick filets.
Let meat come to room temperature and season on all sides. We use Kinder’s Seasoning, The Blend (salt, pepper, and garlic).
Place a small amount of low smoke point oil in a cast iron skillet and heat to just the point of smoking. Sear the edges first for one minute each.
Sear the first side for 3 minutes and the second for two. Place several pats of butter and some minced garlic on the steak and place in a preheated 450-degree oven.
We prefer medium, so we cook to 130 degrees and then remove and place on a plate and let rest for 5-10 minutes. Slice and serve with your choice of sides!!
Smoked Cream Cheese
1 block of cream cheese scored slightly on the top
Cover on all sides with seasoning of choice. We use Kinder’s Seasoning, The Blend (salt, pepper, and garlic).
Place cream cheese block on cast iron or grill-safe pan Smoke at 250 degrees for 2 hours
Cover with pepper jelly of your liking
Enjoy with crackers or chips.
No Churn Chocolate Ice Cream
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 can condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
Whip the whipping cream with a stand or hand mixer until the cream has stiff peaks.
Add milk, vanilla and cocoa powder and mix until combined.
Story by Roxann Edsall Photos by Mackenzie Free Submitted Photos
Even as summer winds down, families are enjoying making memories on Logan Martin Lake. Boats pulling tubes of squealing children pass by, personal watercrafts bounce on the waves, finding air off the wakes of larger boats. Pontoons filled to the brim with friends and family cruise along, tunes heralding their passing.
Can it get any better? Why, yes, it can!
Enjoying ice cream from the bow of a pontoon boat on a hot summer day
The children are usually the first to see it. Even those too young to read can recognize the signature lime green pontoon boat with a flag that reads two happy words – Ice Cream. Hopping up and down, they frantically wave their arms to let him know they’re screaming for ice cream. The Ice Cream Man on the Lake pilots his sweet ride to within arm’s reach of the crowd, and the ordering begins.
Somehow, ice cream seems to be a leveling agent. No matter what age or maturity level, people just seem happier, and certainly cooler, with an ice cream in hand, especially if they’re also in or around the lake. It’s a treat that would be hard to transport on the water, which makes the delivery to one’s boat even more of a memory-making event.
Pelham and Angie Smith have made many happy memories with their children that include the Ice Cream Man on the Lake. “We get it pretty often,” says Pelham. “This is the first time in the last couple of years, though.” Their 5-, 6-, and 7-year-old children aboard give the experience an enthusiastic thumbs up.
This is the fifth summer that Keith O’Neal, along with his wife, Elaine, have operated the ice cream boat on Logan Martin Lake. When they bought the boat from a friend, they did it with the idea of having some kind of food service boat on the lake. Their first idea of a hotdog and hamburger boat was rejected after assessing the challenges associated with cooking food on a boat. Then they heard from a friend about an ice cream boat operated on Harris Lake in Wedowee and decided to bring the idea to life on Logan Martin Lake.
O’Neal, who owns and operates six other businesses, says they don’t do this for money. “We do it for the fun,” says O’Neal. “It’s seeing children happy. We make sure everyone who wants to buy one gets one. And if a child doesn’t have the money, we’re not going to leave them out.
“We take care of people,” O’Neal goes on. “If they don’t have the money with them, we’ll give them the ice cream, and we’ve had them track us down months later to bring the money.” They offer 24 items and, to keep everything simple, all items are $4 each. They take cash, Cash App and Venmo, but no debit or credit cards.
Greg and Amy Stinson had cash in hand when they cruised up to the boat for an ice cream sandwich and a Snicker’s ice cream bar.
“We pulled up to the boat on our jet ski and they used a pole to pull us in position to order,” said Amy. “They were both very friendly, and the ice cream bars were a refreshing treat on a hot day.”
Refreshing and wonderful is just how Audrey and her three kids described their experience with the Ice Cream Man on the Lake. They’re gathered with friends and fellow boaters at Fireball Flatts. Half the crowd are in the water trying to cool off on this scorching summer afternoon. The other half are in the boats in the shade of their Biminis. The sight of the ice cream boat had the children going crazy to flag him down.
The purchase of a Batman cherry-flavored ice cream and a Ninja Turtle ice cream on a stick brought smiles to the faces of the younger children. An original Bomb Pop was the choice for some of the older kids, while a more mature Snicker’s ice cream bar was chosen by an adult in the group.
While O’Neal says they do this for the fun of it, the venture represents a considerable amount of work. “We spend thousands of dollars on product from the distributor and load the freezers and generator on the truck, which, thankfully, we have a crane to do,” says O’Neal. “This is all before we bring the boat to the water to launch. And most of the time, we have people who want ice cream before we can even get on the water.”
It also takes a lot of work to keep both the ice cream boat and the customers’ boats from bouncing off each other with the waves.
That’s the job of one of at least two people aboard. Depending on the weekend, they have as many as six people working on the boat. “We have four bumpers on the sides of our boat all the time,” explains O’Neal. “But the boats still hit.”
O’Neal says they want to deliver the ice cream safely, so they watch the weather closely. “If the weather forecast calls for 50% chance of rain or higher, we don’t go out,” O’Neal says. “The freezers and generator don’t need to be in the bad weather and neither do the people.”
Peanuts! Get your peanuts!
The ice cream boat is not the only snack boat on the lake. Two summers ago, they were joined by a second snack boat afloat, the peanut boat by Lakeside Peanut and Concessions. Scott and Shandi Martin own and run the company and are on the water nearly every weekend of the summer selling three flavors of boiled peanuts.
Selling peanuts to a passing boat
Scott prepares the peanuts at home, a process that takes two days. He then loads them on the boat in the morning before heading out. They typically sell three flavors – original, Kickin’ Cajun and Dill Pickle, occasionally adding specialty flavors like The Logan (steakhouse flavor) and Garlic Lemon Pepper. They’re even considering a Ghost Pepper flavor for Boo Bash on Logan Martin.
They also offer Shandi’s specialty flavored lemonades and fresh fried pork skins. Lemonade is $5 for a 16-ounce cup. Peanuts are eight dollars for a 32-ounce cup and pork skins are $10 for a gallon bag.
Martin refers to his wife as “the brains of the operation.” Shandi, he says, does everything but the cooking. She does the labeling, ordering and the “going and getting.” His days are already busy with his full-time truck driving job. The couple also plans to reopen their Lakeside Peanuts and Concessions land-based food truck in October.
Carrying peanuts
back to waiting crowd
Meanwhile, Martin says they sell out almost every time they go out on the water. They cater more to the adults, who, he says, like to have peanuts with their “cold beverages.” “We even get messages from people when we’re not able to get out asking where we are,” he says. “Some of the same people come week after week.”
Wendy Farmer is a huge fan of the peanut boat. She and her husband, Jeff, recently found the boat north of the I-20 bridge. They had some friends onboard their boat who had never tried boiled peanuts, so Wendy insisted they get some. “When the owners heard that our friends had never even heard of boiled peanuts, they gave us a cup of Cajun flavored ones for free,” Wendy recounts.
“Our daughter, Atley, ate the regular ones and loved them,” added Wendy, “and she’s a picky eater. And Jack, our son, literally ate them for breakfast the next two days.” The family also considers it a lucky day to find the ice cream boat afloat.
Both the peanut boat and the ice cream boat have Facebook pages. Both Martin and O’Neal post to their pages before they head out each weekend to let fans know what section of the lake they can be found on a given day. Check them out on their pages – Lakeside Peanuts and Concessions and The Ice Cream Man on the Lake.
Scott refers to his customers as his “Awesome Peanut Fam.” “We’re all family,” he says, “straight up.” Every weekend, then, is just a family reunion. Nuts included.
When you’re an ophthalmologist in the business of helping your patients see better, it goes without saying that a clear, beautiful view is always the main focus.
Open great room and kitchen with expansive view from windows produces ‘wow factor’ the minute you walk in
It’s even more important when you’re also in the market for a house on the water. The good news is that David Lewis and his wife, Wendy, got exactly what they were looking for when they found their home near Stemley Bridge on Logan Martin Lake a year and a half ago. And these days, they enjoy captivating sights as far as the eye can see.
Whether they’re watching Fred, one of the two herons that regularly hold court on their dock, cheering for a child learning to wakeboard, or enjoying the antics of a family of geese, there’s always something that grabs their attention. If that weren’t enough, they get to enjoy both sunrises and sunsets from their vantage point.
“I can just get lost looking out the window,” Wendy said. “You never know what you’re going to see.”
They almost missed out on it all. “We passed on this house the first time we came through. It was dark, and we didn’t get to see all this,” Wendy said, gesturing to the great room’s wall of picture windows overlooking the sparkling water.
“We decided to come back one more time, and this time we came back during the day,” she said. “The second we opened the door, we were like, ‘This is it.’ It’s just so peaceful here. We have enjoyed it so much.”
The 3-bedroom, 3 ½-bath house is perfect for hosting family and friends with its open floor plan, expansive views, and outdoor living spaces that include a pergola and an atrium with a hot tub. David is an avid hunter and fisherman, so he keeps the freezer stocked with venison and fish, which makes entertaining easy.
“The Traeger is the best investment I ever made,” David said of his wood pellet grill. “You can just set the temperature, throw something on, and it does what it’s supposed to do.”
Making a house their home
The Lewises were living in Anniston when David decided in late 2023 to take a job with Alabama Vision Center in Pell City. They were excited for the career opportunity as well as for the chance to live on Logan Martin full-time.
The atrium features hot tub and breathtaking view
“We’re water people,” Wendy said, adding that they have a place in Gulf Shores as well as a cabin in the woods in Heflin that’s on a private lake with property where David hunts and fishes. “Both of our families had places around Riverside, so we had a connection to the water and this lake.”
Although the Lewises did some renovations before moving in, the house had already been added onto a few times before they bought it. The house, originally a small guest cabin for the house next door, has come a long way since its humble beginnings.
It started out as a single-story home with two bedrooms and one bath, but the next owners built a two-story addition that includes the master bedroom and bath, the great room and a larger kitchen, as well as a shop, office and bonus room downstairs. They also added a porch off the kitchen. After that couple sold the house, the new owners enclosed the porch, making it a sunroom, and converted the downstairs shop into a Man Cave.
When Wendy and David bought the home in December 2023, they focused on cosmetic changes, replacing flooring and lighting throughout the house, brightening things up with paint, and remodeling a bathroom. They raised the roof on the house’s front porch and added beams and a tongue-and-groove ceiling to make it feel more like a lake home. Landscaping by OnPoint Land Management was the perfect complement, Wendy said.
They also updated the kitchen with new granite countertops and moved the doorway that connected the kitchen to the sunroom to the other side of the island so they could add double ovens where the door once stood. Removing a wall in the great room opened up the room even more, making hosting a crowd easier.
“This house is great for entertaining, and it’s made it a whole lot easier to host a fair number of people,” David said. Their house in Annison had a smaller kitchen, and the only seating area was the dining room table. Now, they have lots more counter space, bar stools at the island, plenty of seating in the great room, as well as tables in the dining room, sunroom and outside.
What’s cooking?
Open floor plan lends itself to cooking and entertaining
Although the Lewises love creating great meals together, their cooking approaches are a little different. “My husband is the better cook,” Wendy said. “He can go look and say, ‘I’ve got this, this, and this, so I can whip this up.’ I have to plan what I’ll cook, make my grocery list and go to the store.”
David said he mastered the basics in Boy Scouts, where “I learned to put food over fire,” and he later followed his mother’s example of “adding a pinch of this and two fingers of that.” He also picked up some skills during the nine years he lived in New Orleans while completing his internship and residency and working at his first job.
“Everybody cooks down there, and I got a little better,” he said. “I’m not a gourmet chef or anything, but I can put stuff together.”
In the summer, they cook a lot of fish, and they especially like blackened red snapper. “We like to cook in an iron skillet,” Wendy said. “That really helps with the blackening of the fish. And he can just come up with a sauce right off the top of his head, so he’ll figure out the sauce, and I’ll figure out which vegetable to put with it.”
Roasted potatoes are a favorite. “They’re so easy to do,” Wendy said. “I just dice them up, drizzle them with olive oil and put Cavender’s (seasoning) on it. You’ve got to be generous with your flavors.
Wendy and Logan, the dog who adopted them
In the colder months, they do a lot of venison burgers, as well as a dish that has become a favorite. “We call it Spicy Creamy Deer Pig,” David said with a laugh. “Roll up (venison) cube steak with cream cheese and jalapenos and wrap it in bacon.”
Being able to have the whole family over for the holidays, host a gathering for David’s office, or have friends over on a football Saturday is what the Lewises have loved most about their life on the water.
They also enjoy the quieter moments. “It’s just so relaxing,” David said. “We’ll take the boat out when I get home from work, and we just enjoy watching all the birds and schools of fish.”
Wendy said she couldn’t be happier with their decision to move to the lake full-time. “There’s not just one best day here,” she said. “Every day is the best day.” Add cheese to top and return to oven until cheese is melted.
Blackened Red Snapper with Dave Sauce
Ingredients:
1 small onion, diced
2 cups mushrooms
¾ of a bell pepper, diced
1 medium tomato, diced
½ to ¾ cups red wine
1 cup beef or chicken stock
Salt
Pepper
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Oregano
2 tsp corn starch
Red Snapper fillets
Butter
Blackening seasoning
Directions: To make the sauce, saute onions, mushrooms and bell pepper for 7-8 minutes on medium/high heat. Add tomato, and after 3 minutes, add the wine. Let it reduce by half, then add stock. Season to taste with salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and oregano. Add corn starch. Turn down to simmer while cooking the fish. Add blackening seasoning to fish and cook in a skillet with butter on higher heat for 3 minutes on each side, or until flaky. We like to serve fish with roasted Brussels sprouts and couscous.
Cajun Cream Sauce
Serve over Blackened Red Snapper atop a bed of asparagus
Ingredients:
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 Roma tomatoes, diced
1 onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, copped.
4 cloves garlic, diced
½ cup chicken stock
1/3 cup white wine
½ cup heavy cream
Cajun seasoning to taste
2 tbsp fresh parsley
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
Directions: Cook tomatoes in olive oil over medium/high heat. Add the onions and bell pepper and cook until onions are translucent. Add garlic and chicken stock and allow it to slightly cook down. Add white wine and allow to reduce by half. Stir in cream and let it simmer while you add your favorite Cajun seasoning to taste. Add parsley and parmesan cheese.
Rectifier Cocktail
Irish Whiskey
Baileys Irish Cream
Kahlua
Add equal parts of each to a lowball. Stir well and serve with a sprig of mint or shaved chocolate.
Story by Carol Pappas Photos by Graham Hadley Submitted photos
Beyond the typically Southern fare of barbecue, fried fish and chicken comes a new contender to stake a claim on a piece of the dining landscape around Logan Martin and Pell City.
In relatively short order, Kami Thai, Sushi and Asian Fusion has opened and expanded to accommodate a growing fan base.
Monalisa preparing a shrimp tempura appetizer
Located inside a storefront across from Publix, Kami – Japanese for divine being – is becoming a culinary destination point that marries flavors and traditions together in a celebration for the senses.
Much like Asian fusion cooking itself – one can only expect the unexpected. Technique, imagination, cultures and innovation combine to create this culinary adventure.
You might say the experience is a reflection of the Monalisa Gibson’s own journey from native Bali, Indonesia, all the way to a home in Alabama. She married a Clay Countian, Bobby Gibson, whom she met through friends.
She has been working in the restaurant industry for 20 years as sous chef and pastry chef, having been involved in the start-ups of other restaurants, including eight years at Shiki Thai and Sushi in Birmingham. “I supported three restaurants, and I wanted to do my own.”
She finally decided with the encouragement of friends and family that it was her turn to be the entrepreneur along with her business partner, Kadek Ani Tresna Dewi, she opened Kami. Her husband works in Pell City, and they and their family live nearby, so they decided on Pell City as the place to open this new venture.
It was the right choice, she said. “The people in Pell City have been so welcoming. It’s something new. They don’t have Thai, so I thought we would open here and give them something new.”
It’s a sharp departure from the typical Southern menu. “We use more spices” and different methods of cooking, she said. “Here, everything is fried.”
Her favorite to make is “Fusion Beef Rendang – beef stew cooked for hours with coconut milk and aromatic yellow rice.” With a nod to the South, there’s a Thai catfish on the menu – a mix of southern fried catfish with a Thai sauce.
Spicy Thai beef salad
On the menu, you’ll find “the best of Japan, Thailand, Indonesia and beyond. Indulge in fresh sushi, soul-warming ramen, bold Thai curries, rich Indonesian specialties and Asian-inspired cocktails.”
Dig a little deeper and find appetizers like Panang Curry Pot Stickers, vegetable and pork dumplings served with a panang sauce, and Crab Angels, crab and cheese-stuffed deep friend wontons with Thai sweet creamy sauce.
Try one of the coconut soups. There’s chicken, shrimp and tofu to choose from.
Noodles and rice are prepared in varying ways as are the entrees and Ramen.
A vast array of Sushi, popular Japanese dishes that feature raw fish are prepared nigiri and sashimi style. What’s the difference? Nigiri combines sushi rice with the fish, while sashimi presents thin slices of raw fish or other seafood without rice, served with wasabi and soy sauces.
Kami’s famous cinnamon bread pudding topped with ice-cream and chocolate, another local favorite
The choices for rolls are abundant. A roll is wrapped in sushi rice and with the seafood as the filling.
For the less adventurous, there are cooked rolls as well, like the popular California Roll. Some even have a familiar ring to them even if the ingredients might not – the Logan Martin Roll is cream cheese, fried shrimp tempura, topped with crab stick, eel sauce, cream spicy sauce, Smelt roe and green onion.
On the other side of that culinary coin, Gibson has her own American favorites, more specifically, Cajun: “Shrimp Po’ Boy and Gumbo,” she said without hesitation. But a Southern staple, Peach Cobbler, ranks up there as well.
The restaurant had its soft opening in March in a smaller space and was able to expand next door before having a grand opening for both in May. “I don’t want to disappoint,” Gibson said. “I want people to enjoy themselves. I don’t want them to wait a long time to sit.”
Creamy Crab Angel wontons
So, when Celeste Boutique closed next door, Kami was able to claim that space, expand the bar and offer a more spacious dining area to seat 70-80 people. “It was a good sign when the space next door opened up.” But after investing so much in the initial renovation and opening – the kitchen was built from scratch to enable preparation of the expansive menu – “it took faith to make it happen.”
But, she concluded, “Things happen for a reason.” As she gestures toward the new dining room and bar, she notes, “it was a good opportunity. It felt so good for people to be comfortable and have space to sit down and enjoy their food.”
Her desire is that “when people come here, I want them to feel at home.”
