like a gem.

h wants date night tonight.

what to do,

what to do?

i was browsing around some local richmond websites

style weekly

richmond good life

skirt

to find something interesting to do

since the byrd is playing

paranormal activity &

where the wild things are (bleh).

i found no good ideas for tonight.

but

i did find a fantabulous review

for a wondiferous restaurant

and a true gem

(no pun intended):

garnett's.

really.

if you haven't been there,

please go!

it's even better than what they say.

and even cuter than the pictures.

you absolutely must get a lemon nana.

 so...

any ideas for date night?

[long overdue] champaign/urbanna update.

i had the most wonderful food & friends experience last month in illinois. two restaurants in particular deserve some shout-outs - the courier cafe (photos above) in urbana & the red herring also in the urbana/champaign area. 

les & i went to the courier cafe for saturday breakfast. the decor was the cutest and the food was great! i had potato pancakes and les had a traditional eggs & potatoes breakfast with some dark chocolate coffee (mmmm...). 


just as she explained here, les started out telling me that the red herring was similar to our favorite college restaurant, the little grill in harrisonburg, virginia (just a peek at their website makes me wish i was there right now!), and honestly, she couldn't have been more right! les, machel & i went for lunch. it was a little different than the little grill, but the food was on par. if i could get the recipe for their falafel, i would be in heaven! 

i should also mention that les is the expert hostess! her apartment was super cute, equipped with the cutest decor. i loved her shabby chic bedroom rug & shower curtain (she always gets the best finds)!  

 

i love her style & loved hanging out & seeing her new location! bottom line: i can't wait to go back!

I swear, he did this on his own accord.

OMG!!  Faithful readers... I have the most amazing boyfriend alive!  He dressed up in my favorite khakis of his and shaved and brought me flowers and took me on a date tonight!!

Just kidding.  But not really.  This really is H.  And I did take Rachel on a date tonight.  I decided, from my small list of places approved by Rachel that were participating in Richmond's Restaurant Week, to go Stronghill Dining Company. But I didn't let her know ahead of time.

I remember now why I choose not to go to the fancy restaurants... and it just so happens to be the same reason I think Rachel really wanted me to go to a fancy restaurant... portion control.

The food at this place was pretty good but I don't think it was excellent but what do is I know I am not a holy crap-get-a-life-food critic from Top Chef.  My only real problem arises from the fact that I am a real man who LOVES to eat.  I strongly support venues that serve buffets from the sunrise to well after the sun goes down (places such as Golden Corral).  There really is nothing quite like a smorgasbord of delectable treats to get the senses tingling with excitement (and more bang-for-your-buck)!

Case in point - they served the very first course - an oyster mushroom and duck confit miso soup, in bowl-like dinner plates.  We had to swirl the soup to create a vortex and then move the spoon in the opposite direction to scoop up the fishy broth. And it was fishy.  There were easier methods such as tipping and slurping but again we were not at the Golden Corral.  I decided to order a new beer to go with the steak I ordered.  It was a very nice beer - Jefferson Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout.  It was pint size so I thought it would be perfect for the size of my steak.  Ohhh was I wrong.  I should have ordered a shot of beer instead. Dessert was a pumpkin apple pie. It was light and fluffy. Again a small portion on a giant plate with a giant mint leaf. Good, but nothing like those rich, creamy desserts you can get elsewhere.

My tiny steak and Rachel's two giant scallops. 

Out of a possible 45,692 points, Stronghill Dining Company received a total 27,656 points

But truth be told, in the end, I wouldn't trade a date night with Rachel, regardless of the location,  for anything because I am firm believer in its not where you are but who you are with - even if it was a date spent at a buffet.  That served pizza.

The end.

dear h:

please take me out for restaurant week (october 26 - november 1) in richmond. 3-course-meals for $25/person. plus they donate at least $2 to the central virginia food bank. plus the food (although you wouldn't know it different from pizza) is bangin'.

we could go to: delux, julep's, rowlands fine dining, six burner, stronghill dining co, or more.

please. 

love, 
your most lovely girlfriend. 

new lunch spot.

photo from palani drive's facebook page

one of my college housemates suggested we meet for lunch at palani drive in the westhampton/libbie neighborhood. what a great lunch spot (or after dinner beer stop)! wraps were decent size, about $6-7 each, and their frozen chai was delightful. i hear their yuengling drafts are $1.75!

...but the conversation was unbeatable. glad she's back! ( :

new lunch fetish.

just discovered urfa tomato kabob (thanks ab!) in chinatown in dc. i couldn't find a website, but they have great lamb kabob, falafel, and tomato kabob (kabob with rich tomato sauce) sandwiches served on freshly made buns (a little thicker than pitas). a sandwich and fries or chips and a drink is between $8 and $10. i got the falafel sandwich- it was loaded with very moist falafel patties, hummus, tomatoes, onions and cucumber and had tahini sauce and hot sauce on the side. its behind the verizon center, so the street parking during lunchtime wasn't hard to find at all. if we weren't in such a rush, we would have munched outside under their awning. highly recommended! ( :

catching up.

whew. what a whirlwind weekend, and it's not even sunday night!

first, my trip back from aiken. thursday was a long (18+) hour day. you can ask h, i was not a pleasant person to be around when i got home at nearly 1 am. however, i was excited to share my coffee from moonbeans coffees-- i got 2 bags for jre (moondance, his favorite, and harvest, another similar medium roast blend) and a pound of big papa's blend for my lil sis. big papa's blend is their charity of the month roast, benefiting the national multiple sclerosis society, lil sis's new internship. there's a bag of bluegrass blend (my personal fave) that i need to pull out of my freezer. the roaster at moonbeans told me that you should never keep them in the freezer--beans should be kept whole until needed, and kept in an airtight container at room temperature. learn something new every day!

friday i worked from home--evaluated my new health insurance plan & did some tedious odds & ends & recovered from thursday. i had lunch with some girls from czc at leigh street bar & grill (1301 leigh street behind the siegel center in richmond--currently no website yet). leigh street used to be called the corner bar & grill... they've cleaned up a bit, but the food is still soulfoul & delicous. we got homemade potato chips w/ a creamy dip and grilled cheese sandwiches w/ tomato, mmm. i got mine with a side of collard greens (my fave), but the girls said the veggies were good too. they have a good beer list, and i can see it being a happening neighborhood bar on the weekends. if you happen by, make sure to tell austin the bartender we said hi ( :

then off to get my haircut. my friend k told me about her friend janis who works at karina's in carytown, and in a period of desperation (& anger towards my last hairdresser of nearly 3 years), i gave janis a try. she was wonderful! i remember my mom used to go to karina's when it opened in 1992. i'm pretty sure karina herself cut all of my mom's hair off before she had her second round of chemo. the receptionist said my name sounded familiar. "my mom used to come here a long, long time ago," felt really good to say. karina's has changed a lot- it's a great little space-very clean and very hip. they use bumble&bumble products, which i love, and who just came out with a whole new line for curls. i bought the defrizz, which i will use for curly&straight looks.

h&v&i drove back to dc for the weekend. we had dinner with my roommate n, and her bro, a at matchbox on barracks row in southeast dc. i had mentioned this restaurant to a friend coming to visit dc, telling him it was one of my favorites, then promptly got yelled at by h for never taking him to a, gasp, pizza restaurant (that kid loves the za)! matchbox pizza is amazing. not to mention their stellar beer selection (tried brooklyn brewery's brooklyner weiss, as my new thing is german beers--it was great)! h tried the flat iron pizza (like a cheesesteak, but on a pizza), i had shrimp&grits (amazing) and n&a shared the fire&smoke pizza (just the right amount of spice). then we skipped back across the river to eventide in clarendon, va. this drive went very fast for me, as i fell asleep in the 10-minute car ride as my boyfriend&roommate took embarassing pictures of me (i had had a long day)! boo.

but eventide was just what i needed to wake up- a great rooftop bar, with some great atmopshere & an evening of wonderful spring weather. i'd love to try their food downstairs, too (hint, hint), especially after reading the review in the washington post magazine this morning.

saturday morning we were super lazy, barely making it to "brunch" at mexicali blues (maybe my new favorite bloody marys). we had plans to go to great falls, but laziness took the better of us, and we ended up going to the dog park in shirlington with v. it's right by a little creek, four-mile run, and we sat and waded in the water and played on the "beach" for nearly 2 hours. it was a perfect afternoon-just what we needed.

last night we went with some family friends to see our friend laura tsaggaris play at rock&roll hotel in northeast dc for her cd release party. if you haven't heard me rave about her, please go check out her music on myspace. she's doing amazing things!

h woke up early today to go back to richmond for a football game. i did a much-needed cleaning of the house & had bagels with the fam. auntie l & i went to get manis. she made fun of my color pick, accusing me that my fingers looked bruised. i don't care, i like it! ( ;

now i'm cleaning up & unwinding & remembering mom. what a beautiful day!

maplewood grill.

last night my roomie, n, & i went to her boyfriend's restaurant, maplewood grill, in vienna, va. maplewood grill is owned & operated by the kuchlers; it ran as le canard for several years until it's last day of buisness, january 1, 2009. this march, it reopened as maplewood grill, with a less "gourmet french," and a more "new american" feel. occassionally, there are trays of "tested" dishes at our apartment, but i had yet to go to the restuarant, so we made a date to go last night. with my traveling and n working the night shift (not to mention our needy boyfriends), we rarely get to see each other...

it wasn't incredibly busy at 6 pm (although as we were leaving it was getting busier), so paul made us up some appetizers to start- warm baked brie with pesto and seared scallops and mushrooms in a mushroom sauce. both delicious. i've noticed the entrees and dishes, although more modern than traditional french cuisine, still have that little french touch. the dishes are more saucy than creamy, and a little bit salty (but not too much). i had lobster ravioli (in a very light tomato sauce with crab and asparagus), and n had the mahi mahi special, served spanish style, with black beans and pinapple sauce. they were both wonderful. the portions weren't overbearing, although they weren't plain at all. n got apple crisp for dessert which was blazing hot, but smelled amazing! after a few beers (they have a few crazy beer selections, which is always fun) and a lot of chit chat, we went to visit the boys in kitchen. we HAD to find out how they got that apple crisp so hot!

it was really interesting to see how it all works in the kitchen. i never would have imagined how incredibly small the kitchen is!!! i have no idea how it all gets done!



maplewood grill is located in a strip mall shopping center at the corner of branch & maple (rt 123) in downtown vienna, virginia.

a sad goodbye.

today, on my way to work, i stopped by murky coffee, my favorite arlington institution. my coworker, rej, told me he had been by and read a note by the owner (on their website, too) announcing that they were closing. i'm going out of town again tomorrow, and since they haven't announced their closing date, i figured i'd better get a cappuccino-it could (sadly) be my last. there's just something about freshly ground, freshly pressed cappuccino. it's not fast, as the customer before me hastily pointed out, but it's good. if you want a fast coffee, you go to 7eleven. if you want a good coffee, you sit your butt down and wait.

i'll be sad to see murky renovated. it doesn't have central air, and the second floor is hot & sticky in the summer, but nothing an iced tea or coffee can't remedy. the windows are old, with undulating glass panes that magnify in spots. and the foamed milk. sigh. the foamed milk. the baristas are so good, they pour the milk into the drinks in patterns of hearts and shamrocks. i don't care if they're moving or i'm moving, i'm going to miss my weekly trips & pick-me-ups of the last few years.

date night.

as a thank-you for helping clean h's apt on friday, he took me to dinner at kitchen 64 off boulevard in richmond. we got seated fast & i promptly ordered my ginger mojito, mmm. it's like an upscale diner-all of the plates were reasonably priced ($10-15) and very large portions. i suggest the fish tacos. the only downside is it's not within walking distance from carytown.

ev-an-ston, revisited.

i spent the weekend with buz relaxing in evanston. we had big plants to visit the jelly belly factory and go outlet shopping, but got sidetracked. ( :

on friday night we went to the bean at cloud gate, and then tried out a tapas restaurant, cafe iberico on the north side, that apparently everyone and their brother wanted to go to! the food was typical spanish tapas, nothing extraordinarily exciting and creative, but not super pricey either. we split an entire pitcher of sangria, which i drank way too much of before eating ( ;

saturday was spent shopping & relaxing. we spent nearly 3 hours at the mexican shop, a little boutique with everything from jewelry to small home decor from the cheapy cheapy to moderately priced. they don't have a website, but they do have some write-ups on yelp.com. the people who own it spend half the year traveling the globe aquiring their treasures. i can't help myself at ayla's bead shop either!

after a quick lunch at my favorite evanston restaurant, blind faith cafe (i got amazing eggs mornay), we got facials from students at the local beauty school, pivot point. my facial was amazing (i had erica), and with a coupon from the internet (50% off), i spent a whopping $17. then i was convinced to buy some of their products, the twice daily bar from bioelements (definitely worth it)!!

we took an afternoon nap & then did a little bar hopping in downtown evanston. first to prairie moon where we had some shitake quesadillas & specialty beer (scrimshaw pilsner-excellent), then to buz's favorite, tommy nevin's, an irish pub where they were STILL serving green miller lites!

sunday morning was brunch w/ all of buz's local friends at golden olympic... she has met some really cool people here! we got lazy because of the rain and decided to forgo any exciting plans we had to visit museums and travel, and go see 17 again. this was followed by at least an hour of oggling over zac efron's pictures online. disclaimer: he is 21 years old. it's not that bad, right?

then i had my second catholic mass experience. living in italy, i've spent more collective hours in catholic churches than any other places of worship combined. but my first full mass (i passed out during one when i was 15) was with buz and her family last christmas. buz's friends were getting confirmed at a beautiful church, madonna della strada, at loyola university on sunday night, so we all went. i really enjoy the mass- especially the beautiful singing & the organ!

...and now i'm off to pennsylvania for a few days before heading to north carolina and back to richmond at the end of the week! bon voyage!

paris, tennessee.

this is the land of fish frys, eiffel tower replicas near the city swimmin' hole, cheap beer, good barbeque, friendly (albiet nosey) folk, and the best rolls & lemon ice box cake you could ever imagine...

we started out at whitt's barbeque in nashville (i was DYIN' for some sweet tea), and round about the time we got to paris it was nearly dinner time. we had a lovely meal at the fresh market where their draft pints are $1.95. yes. ONE NINETY FIVE. what do they do for happy hour?

every day we had lunch downtown at paulettes--a small little cafe that serves spectacular rolls and pies (we tried peanut butter pie & lemon ice box). mmmm. we had to take some of the rolls home they were so good! we found a little paris gift shop with everything you can think of with eiffel towers on it! they had these wonderful little candles by heirloom that was a moisturizer for your hands and feet. you allegedly burn the candle for a litte bit, and then pour the hot oil onto your fingers or toes. the best scent is wedding cake, for sure. the ones the had in the store were gift sets made from cup&saucers, but they aren't available online.

dinner on night #2, the hotel (to remain unnamed) staff recommended this little mexican restaurant where the owners used to be mexican and the food was good but then they got deported and the food sucked, but now they're back & the food is great again. yes. true story.

and, as it turns out, the president (on the tv show 24) is from paris, tennessee!

it was a good trip--a few pics to come... now it's off to chicago to visit buzby! ( :

april showers bring may flowers.

sorry for the delay--work has been crazy busy and there have been weddings galore! this weekend was absolutely amazing. one of those weekends that goes by so fast that you forgot you didn't take any pictures (shame)!

first i had a hot date at comfort in downtown richmond. it's everything it appears to be & more. great beer (i was drunk off a bell's oberon & a german canned beer that was wonderful). you choose your meat (i got pork tenderloin & h got mahi, but they had everything from fish to fried quail to venison), and then your sides! i tried thier braised greens, a little spicy for my liking, but everything looked good. the best part was we got to sit right in the front on the corner of broad & jefferson and watch the people go by. i felt like the world was flying by--so many people were out b/c the weather was beautiful and it was first fridays. followed by my first game of kings (i'm not very good at it) & me falling asleep mid-conversation w/ h's housemate ( :

saturday we ran errands, i gave h a mohawk, and then buzzed it all off & we got ready for j's wedding. she's a great friend of mine since grade school, so it was almost surreal to see her get married! she was a beautiful bride!

sunday was h's football game where v tried her hardest to run into the field as they were playing. i'm just glad we didn't get kicked out for v crying so loud! then we went to h's dad's for some smoked chicken & i met the cutest yorkie-poo ever, izzy! then we ran home to watch slumdog millionaire with some friends at the byrd.

now it's half-way thru the week! hopefully the weather will hold out for el's bday camping trip on friday. we have lots to celebrate!! ( ;

(my hot date! w/ a hair cut!)

smalltownville with a great beer list.

while i was in milwaukee, buz & met up in between her town & mine for a quick bite at firkin in libertyville, illinois. first off, libertyville was super cute, even in the pouring rain, with bricked sidewalks and cute shops everywhere (albeit in the middle of nowhere, next to the six flags).

we started off with the fried asparagus with chipolte sauce and then we both had the delicious fish tacos. i had a glass of affligem blonde, a sweet, highly carbonated belgium beer, and buz had a red eye, a coffee-infused rich porter. quite impressed with small-town illinois. ( :

a gourmet tour of milwaukee.

there are some days when i wish i could be a foodie for the travel channel--i'd let them send me wherever they wish, and i'd fully investigate the food in whatever city i'm traveling to. in a way, my job is kind of like that. we make mental notes of good places for lunch, dinner, drinks, coffee and pass it on to our coworkers. we get fixated on little things like the bluegrass blend from aiken, south carolina's moonbeans coffee (guilty as charged) or raw oysters & chicken-fried chicken from maxie's in ithaca, new york (guilty, again). and then there's the times when you go to an unknown city. say, milwaukee, and you find out bits and pieces as you go. we all know wisconsin is famous for cheese, but apparantly milwaukee is famous for beer, custard, beer, german food, and more beer. there's lakefront, sprecher, miller, stonefly, leinenkugal, and more... i've been trying to do my best to try them all. here's today's activity:

• lunch at beans & barley: sprecher ginger beer and sweet potato black bean burger w/ lime sour cream (amazing). i also picked up some peruvian coffee (rej's fave) for office enjoyment--whole beans only, obviously; and a replacement lunch bag as mine was recently lost. also, i found organic poptarts. probably the highlight of the trip.
• snacktime at the milwaukee public market: blue point (va) and gold band (la) raw oysters and a taste of lakefront's ipa at st. paul's fish company. sniffing some spices at the spice house. and a taste of some beer cheddar cheese (wisconsin's finest) from west allis cheese.
• we walked all the way from the market and trendy new shops in the third ward to german bars & restaurants in old world third street and back again. milwaukee is a neat city, although there weren't many people out, and, well, it is in the midwest. ( ;
• dinner at mo's. not the best service, but the food was okay. i am usually a fan of butter, but their specialty cajun butter tasted like wax. the waiter was pushy, and collected our checks as to get rush us out. i got a filet and a sprecher mai bock--i'd order the beer again any day.

on the list for tomorrow is some custard! i can't wait! if only our project would push forward instead of me waiting here exploring food options through friday...

kickboxing+carbs=delish.

okay. g & i did kickboxing tonight @ the gym. it was great!

then i came home and had "dinner." dinner consisted of potatoes au gratin from the chefs at the new maplewood grill in vienna (formerly le canard, opening march 2). let's just say that chef paul happens to be a good "friend" of the girls on 21st road. ( ; dinner also consisted of chili-lime tequila popcorn. sinful. i tried to redeem myself with some grapefruit.

h told me that you should eat 30 minutes after you work out. so i did. i ate a lot. of carbs. they told me it was okay......!!! time for some girl scout cookies (hehehe).