Don't let your husband fiddle and fiddle with your iPhone camera, take picture after picture, all the while muttering, "I can't get it to work!" while you suck away on your straw, slowly sinking into drunken oblivion at the Food and Wine Festival.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
(Almost) Wordless Wednesday: Get Your Drink On at WDW
Do let your husband take a picture of you enjoying a refreshing Grand Marnier Slush.
Don't let your husband fiddle and fiddle with your iPhone camera, take picture after picture, all the while muttering, "I can't get it to work!" while you suck away on your straw, slowly sinking into drunken oblivion at the Food and Wine Festival.
Don't let your husband fiddle and fiddle with your iPhone camera, take picture after picture, all the while muttering, "I can't get it to work!" while you suck away on your straw, slowly sinking into drunken oblivion at the Food and Wine Festival.
Monday, February 6, 2012
Walt Disney World Treats
I've been to Walt Disney World a multitude of times; six times since 2003, the first time we took our daughters (at ages 11 and 13, perfect ages to take your kids). And one thing you learn very fast is that you could never go hungry there. Hell, if you want the biggest sugar rush in the world, you can get it there, too. WDW is chock full of treats. For our 20th anniversary, John and I went to WDW and stayed at the Pop Century Resort. Here are some scenes and treats from our October 2011 trip.
A tabletop in Club Cook at EPCOT:
Animal Kingdom cart:
Halloween marshmallow treats at Hollywood Studios. I had one-- couldn't pass up an evening sugary treat while John got his chocolate-covered strawberry on.
If you don't have this, you're either a teetotaler or just plain crazy. This is a Grand Marnier Slush, which is sold from a stand in France in EPCOT. It is heaven in a plastic 'glass'. During the Food and Wine Festival, John and I got dessert from the Boulangerie Patisserie (chocolate mousse for me) and our highly-anticipated Grand Marnier Slushes and ate while drunk-people watching. They were still as good as the last time I'd had one four years earlier.
Ghost cookies at Hollywood Studios (and everywhere else; you can find many of the same treats and foods in every park).
Mickey Coffee.
The biggest Mickey-head cookie you could ever eat for breakfast! Hey, so what if it was ten in the morning? I was on vacation: no standard rules apply. But I could NOT finish this. I ate the ears and tucked the rest into my bag.
Side view into one of the display cases at the Boulangerie Patisserie.
And lastly, the world-famous Tie-Dyed Cheesecake at the Pop Century Resort. Having read about it for years, I had to try it on our first day. What's the verdict? Meh. Too much cake, not enough cheesecake. And for stomach's sake, dial back the green food coloring!
A tabletop in Club Cook at EPCOT:
Animal Kingdom cart:
Halloween marshmallow treats at Hollywood Studios. I had one-- couldn't pass up an evening sugary treat while John got his chocolate-covered strawberry on.
If you don't have this, you're either a teetotaler or just plain crazy. This is a Grand Marnier Slush, which is sold from a stand in France in EPCOT. It is heaven in a plastic 'glass'. During the Food and Wine Festival, John and I got dessert from the Boulangerie Patisserie (chocolate mousse for me) and our highly-anticipated Grand Marnier Slushes and ate while drunk-people watching. They were still as good as the last time I'd had one four years earlier.
Ghost cookies at Hollywood Studios (and everywhere else; you can find many of the same treats and foods in every park).
Mickey Coffee.
The biggest Mickey-head cookie you could ever eat for breakfast! Hey, so what if it was ten in the morning? I was on vacation: no standard rules apply. But I could NOT finish this. I ate the ears and tucked the rest into my bag.
Side view into one of the display cases at the Boulangerie Patisserie.
And lastly, the world-famous Tie-Dyed Cheesecake at the Pop Century Resort. Having read about it for years, I had to try it on our first day. What's the verdict? Meh. Too much cake, not enough cheesecake. And for stomach's sake, dial back the green food coloring!
Friday, February 3, 2012
Off to Austin!
As you're reading this (if you're reading it on Friday, February 3rd), my husband and I will be on the road to Austin, Texas, to visit with (his) family, friends, and checking out neighborhoods and real estate. We'll also, of course, be checkin' out some (hopefully good) food.
I'll be putting up some posts in the meantime to keep this blog active and you entertained, but in the meantime, enjoy these pictures from our last trip to Austin in April of 2011, and our visit to the food trailer park on South Congress.
I'll be putting up some posts in the meantime to keep this blog active and you entertained, but in the meantime, enjoy these pictures from our last trip to Austin in April of 2011, and our visit to the food trailer park on South Congress.
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Monday, January 30, 2012
Athena Eats at... The Nashville Biscuit House
EATERS: Athena, John (husband)
WHO: The Nashville Biscuit House
WHAT: “Good Country Style Cooking” meat & three, with breakfast and lunch every day.
WHEN: Eat Date: January 28, 2012 (and many times before).
WHERE: located at 805 Gallatin Avenue, Nashville, Tennessee (East Nashville area). Look for the small unassuming building; a big sign with “The Nashville Biscuit House” and a crossed knife and fork looms before it.
WHY: We’ve been coming to this place since 2009, when it was Sylvan Park East, and it’s our favorite place in town to nosh on breakfast.
THE PLACE: A small seat-yourself place, with two dining rooms separated by a partition. Ordinary tables and booths are packed into the space, and on busy mornings-- busier and busier as the place becomes more popular-- the front door area is clogged with parties waiting to grab a table. The walls are cluttered with reproduction tin signs, photographs, and Nashville nostalgia.
THE CLIENTELE: Anyone- the clientele is eclectic, although on Titans game days, the place fills up fast with fans wanting a bite to eat before heading over to LP Field.
SERVICE: We’ve never had a problem with service here. Generally, there are always at least three servers on the floor, and within a minute or two we’re always asked if we want coffee or something else to drink. It’s friendly, fast, and efficient, but don’t expect a lot of homey chatter when it‘s a busy Saturday morning- they get your order and run it back to the kitchen straightaway. But if you’re a regular like we are, you’re recognized, and that’s always appreciated.
THE OFFERINGS: Breakfast and lunch every day, with daily lunch specials. The breakfast menu includes platters, pancakes, omelets, biscuit sandwiches, and yes, burgers. If you venture there for lunch, you can choose from their daily specials like broccoli chicken casserole, hamburger steak or fried chicken, sandwiches, baskets, and burgers. If you can manage it, try the Big John: a one-pound burger with two buns. Eat it all, and you get your picture on the wall.
THE EATS:
Athena: The Nashvillian: two eggs over medium, bacon, home fries, and toast. I also ordered a side of sausage gravy.
John: Two eggs over easy, home fries, grits, and a BLT.
THE OPINION:
Athena: I am an extremely picky egg eater, and this is pretty much the only place in town that has always gotten my eggs right. The bacon, three slices, is thick and smoky, and while the home fries-- small squares-- are unseasoned, a little bit of salt and pepper perks them right up. My only quibble this time was that the sausage gravy was thick and clumpy and sat as globs on my plate after I scooped it out of its bowl. As it’s usually creamier, I’m hoping this was just an off day in the kitchen.
John: He thinks the Biscuit House offers the best BLTs in town, and he was just as happy with his sandwich as he was the first time he ate one. In his opinion, the bacon and lightly toasted bread make the difference. Just as mine were, his eggs were cooked perfectly, and the grits were grits, with a pat of melted butter in the middle. He didn’t care for the unseasoned home fries, which he doesn’t smother in gravy like I do mine, and he didn’t finish his.
THE AFTERMATH: Oh, we’ll be back. I’m not being mean when I say that it’s nothing special, but it’s certainly good and homey, and the prices-- The Nashvillian is $5.45-- can’t be beat.
(THIS REVIEWER’S EXCLUSIVE RATING): (five out of five chocolates)
ADDITIONAL INFO:
Hours: Monday-Saturday 6:30 a.m.-2 p.m.; Sunday 7:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m.
Website: http://www.nashvillebiscuithouse.com/
Phone: 615-228-4504
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Wanderland FEASTival
Saturday, January 14th, 2012, the clan and I (John, daughters Chelsea and Cady, and Cady's boyfriend Taylor) headed down to Germantown in Nashville for the Wanderland FEASTival, a gathering of some of Nashville's food trucks. You know that we've only ever gotten food from one food truck in this town? Not for lack of seeing them or liking the menus we've read; we've just never stopped to stand in line. That Saturday, though, we wanted to try something different for what has become Saturday Lunch with the Girls.
This was the (partial) scene after we parked at Rite Aid and crossed the street to the parking lot at the corner of Rosa Parks Blvd. and Jefferson Street. Food! All that glorious food!
The fun thing about food trucks-- besides the variety-- is how they trick out and dress up their trucks. You really can't mistake them for anything else, can you?
I follow the Grilled Cheeserie on Facebook, but seeing as their line was about thirty deep, and it was about forty degrees that day, we wandered around to choose some other yumminess (without the long line).
This is the food truck we've eaten from: Jonbalaya Catering. John built their website, so of course we've had to try what they make, right? Bar-be-que. And really good barbeque, at that.
Rollin' & Smokin': "Goremade Southern Cuisine"
Hoss' Loaded Burgers
Chelsea decided to try the Belgian Waffles from Riffs Fine Street Food.
Here's the waffle, topped with "Rutella". Four bucks is a good price, but I still thought it was on the small side. Her verdict? Tasty, and she loved the "rutella".
The rest of us ended up in line at Just Like Nannie Fixed It. I know, I know: all those different cuisines in one parking lot, and we went for plain old American food? When it's cold and windy, sometimes the only thing that will hit the spot is good and hot comfort food.
Our food was fixed and served quickly (about ten minutes; same amount of time it took Chelsea to get her Belgian waffle), and we walked over to the farmer's market next door to find a table inside and eat. Taylor chose the meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and broccoli with cheese sauce. All our meals came with fried cornbread.
John can never pass up chicken 'n dumplins, and he got the same sides as Taylor.
Cady chose the Sweet and Spicy BBQ Chicken, and, as you can tell, she's a mac 'n cheese fool. She was the only one of us to get a roll as a side.
And I got the Salisbury steak...
...and I couldn't pass up the chance to try their Ooey Gooey Butter Cake. I make this at home about once a year, because with all that butter, it really IS a Heart Attack Cake.
Our verdict? It was good. I can't say we all exclaimed and couldn't stop saying, "Oh, God, this is EXCELLENT" or "omnomnom" in between every bite, but it did the trick and everything except the broccoli with cheese sauce was cooked well (John and Taylor said it was undercooked). All the food was real (every place that uses instant mashed potatoes, I'm talkin' 'bout you) and cooked from scratch, and that's something you can definitely appreciate nowadays.
Every box from Nannie's comes with a sticker with a Biblical passage. Here's mine:
In two weeks, John and I will be heading down to Austin, Texas, another food truck mecca. You bet I'll be hunting down more food trucks to sample from!
This was the (partial) scene after we parked at Rite Aid and crossed the street to the parking lot at the corner of Rosa Parks Blvd. and Jefferson Street. Food! All that glorious food!
The fun thing about food trucks-- besides the variety-- is how they trick out and dress up their trucks. You really can't mistake them for anything else, can you?
I follow the Grilled Cheeserie on Facebook, but seeing as their line was about thirty deep, and it was about forty degrees that day, we wandered around to choose some other yumminess (without the long line).
This is the food truck we've eaten from: Jonbalaya Catering. John built their website, so of course we've had to try what they make, right? Bar-be-que. And really good barbeque, at that.
Rollin' & Smokin': "Goremade Southern Cuisine"
Hoss' Loaded Burgers
Chelsea decided to try the Belgian Waffles from Riffs Fine Street Food.
Here's the waffle, topped with "Rutella". Four bucks is a good price, but I still thought it was on the small side. Her verdict? Tasty, and she loved the "rutella".
The rest of us ended up in line at Just Like Nannie Fixed It. I know, I know: all those different cuisines in one parking lot, and we went for plain old American food? When it's cold and windy, sometimes the only thing that will hit the spot is good and hot comfort food.
Our food was fixed and served quickly (about ten minutes; same amount of time it took Chelsea to get her Belgian waffle), and we walked over to the farmer's market next door to find a table inside and eat. Taylor chose the meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and broccoli with cheese sauce. All our meals came with fried cornbread.
John can never pass up chicken 'n dumplins, and he got the same sides as Taylor.
Cady chose the Sweet and Spicy BBQ Chicken, and, as you can tell, she's a mac 'n cheese fool. She was the only one of us to get a roll as a side.
And I got the Salisbury steak...
...and I couldn't pass up the chance to try their Ooey Gooey Butter Cake. I make this at home about once a year, because with all that butter, it really IS a Heart Attack Cake.
Our verdict? It was good. I can't say we all exclaimed and couldn't stop saying, "Oh, God, this is EXCELLENT" or "omnomnom" in between every bite, but it did the trick and everything except the broccoli with cheese sauce was cooked well (John and Taylor said it was undercooked). All the food was real (every place that uses instant mashed potatoes, I'm talkin' 'bout you) and cooked from scratch, and that's something you can definitely appreciate nowadays.
Every box from Nannie's comes with a sticker with a Biblical passage. Here's mine:
In two weeks, John and I will be heading down to Austin, Texas, another food truck mecca. You bet I'll be hunting down more food trucks to sample from!
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)