Sunday, April 13, 2014

Milwaukee

Summer, J, Ben and I drove to Milwaukee this weekend for Suzanne's wedding! We left Ohio Thursday morning and our only stop was in West Lafayette, Indiana, for gas. While we were there we grabbed a bite to eat at this place called Triple XXX.



Despite the name, there were NO boobies. Just mostly hamburgers! I got a chicken sandwich because I figured it'd be easier on the stomach for a road trip. I'd never seen a chicken sandwich quite like this, the meat was super thin! It was good.



The food was fine, but the marshmallow milkshake that we got to go was phenomenal. MARSHMALLOW MILKSHAKE!!!!!!!! Yum.



When we got to Milwaukee, we checked into our hotel and then went out to meet Ellie and Dan! We went to one of their favorite restaurants in their neighborhood, Cafe Corazón. They already had delicious chips and guacamole waiting for us when we arrived.



For dinner, I ordered fish tacos. They were SO good! But the most unexpected thing on this platter was the rice. It was AMAZING. I have never had outstanding rice at a Mexican restaurant before. It's always just been rice, you know? But THIS rice was different. It was SO flavorful! I ate every bite!!



Ben got a wet burrito. For fillings he chose chicken, tofu AND chorizo!!! This burrito was the size of a human head!



Here are Ellie and Ben's heads for size comparison.



Hooray! Dinner at Cafe Corazón! We decided that Cafe Corazón reminded us of a Mexican version of Purple Chopstix in Athens. It was intimate and filled with funky art, and there was even a screened in back porch area!! We hope that Ellie and Dan will come and eat at Purple Chopstix with us some day.



After dinner, we headed back to our hotel. We stayed at the newly-opened Brewhouse Inn and Suites. It's located on the site of the former Pabst brewery. Look at those restored original copper kettles!



J, Summer and Ben peeking over the kettle!



They had these futuristic-looking chairs.



Beam me up, Scotty!



The atrium also features this massive stained-glass window from the late-1800s of the patron saint of brewing. There's Ben sitting below him in the same pose!



We started Friday morning off with continental breakfast. Look at the Pabst decor!



Out front of the Brewhouse Inn and Suites.



We took a tour of the historic Pabst mansion!



The building to the right was a little chapel, where we bought our tickets.



J, Summer and Ben in front of the mansion.






Summer and me!



There were no photos allowed inside the house. It was a really nice tour though!



After the tour, we headed to the riverwalk. It was the perfect day for it! Plenty of sunshine, perfect temperatures. Ben said these sculptures reminded him of dinosaur eggs!



River!



Summer and J strolling along the riverwalk.









Peeking through a statue.



Fierce mermaid statue!






RARRRR!!



At this point we were hungry for lunch, and we noticed a restaurant called Port of Call Bistro and Beer Garden. The patio area was empty except for a giant stack of furniture in one corner. We asked the hostess if we might be able to sit outside, and she happily set a table up for us! VIP patio seating!!!



I ordered cheese curds for an appetizer. They were SO GOOD. Beer battered and fried white cheddar curds. They hand dip them in batter and fry them fresh, and they were so light and crispy.



I was pretty excited about them!



Ben ordered a bowl of the soup special - a potato bacon. It was delicious!



Summer and I shared the Salmon BLT. It was awesome! It had blackened salmon with bacon, tomato, arugula, Port of Call slaw and roasted red repper sauce on toasted ciabatta.



Our sandwich came with fries, which we requested to be upgraded to the Parmesan Truffle Fries, an item on the starters menu. This was the best decision ever. THESE FRIES WERE AMAZING. I think they might be the best fries of my life?!?!?!? Delicious!



We scooted our table along with the sun.






After lunch, we continued our walk. Look at these cute duck statues!!



Then we found the Bronze Fonz! J, Summer and Fonz.



Me, Fonz and Ben!



Fonz & Summer.



Ben & Fonz.



This group of kids saw me taking a picture of the riverwalk (they are sitting under the mermaid statue we passed earlier!) and they all waved to me! So nice!



Then they gave me a little peep show!



Next up for our afternoon was a tour of Lakefront Brewery. We played euchre while we waited for our tour to start!






Tour!






The tour is pretty great because you get a generous number of samples of delicious beer!



Ben and J checking out the machinery.





Conveyor belt!



This is the famous bottling line from the opening credits of Laverne and Shirley! Lakefront Brewery tours have a tradition of playing the theme song for everyone to sing along to.



J and I got to be the ones to put the glove on the bottle!!!!!!



Video! It was very exciting!



After the tour, we enjoyed another beer and an order of fried sausage balls.



Bubbles! How could you not love this place?!



Next on our agenda was happy hour at Foundation Tiki Bar! We met up with Ellie, Amy and Mike. This place was so cool! Look at those light-up puffer fish!



Look at that selection of glassware!



Ben and Summer both ordered Royal Hawaiians, which come in a beautiful mermaid cup that you get to KEEP! The Royal Hawaiian has two rums, pineapple, orange and lime. The drink of Waikiki!



I ordered Ellie's favorite, the Missionary's Demise. That's it on the left. It had rum, peach, honey, lime, pineapple and fresh mint. Cheers!



We got to sit in a cool alcove with tiki lights.



Mood lighting.



Here's what we really look like. Flash!



After happy hour, we took some group photos outside by the mural.















After that, we went to Nessun Dorma, a little Italian restaurant, for dinner. Upon Ellie's recommendation, we started off with an order of artichoke dip that was REALLY good!! It was garlicky and had a little kick to it!



Ben and I shared some tomato soup for dinner.



We also shared an amazing Italian Deli panini. This restaurant was fantastic!



After dinner, we headed back to our room. Our room was #420. Obligatory 420 photo. Huh huhuhuhuhuh.



The rooms were awesome! All rooms came with a little kitchenette! This would be a great place to stay for an extended trip!



Saturday morning we headed to Wolf Peach for brunch. This is one of Ellie's favorite restaurants. Ellie really hit the spot with all of her recommendations!! I wish she lived in every city in the world so she could always tell me where to eat when I travel!






Summer ordered a fresh grapefruit juice mimosa. LOOK at how refreshing that looks!



I had the slow-poached egg wood-fired pizza with brussels sprouts, red onion jam, guanciale and pecorino. It was amazing!!! The red onion jam was particularly delicious.



Ben got fried chicken and waffles! It came with hazelnut butter and sausage gravy. He let me have a bite and it was fantastic. This restaurant was superb!



After brunch, we headed to Delafield. Suzanne's wedding was at the Delafield Hotel, which is where we stayed. Our room was gigantic!



TELEVISION IN THE BATHROOM! Fancy!!!!!



Gift bags, whee! Summer and I both squealed when we were handed these upon check-in. I just love gift bags!



Then it was time for the wedding! Look at how gorgeous Suzanne looked!!!!!! What a classic beauty!



Summer, Ellie, Amy, Jane and me!



Ellie, Amy, Jane, me and Holly! Message board friends!



Cheers! Suzanne had two delicious specialty cocktails. An iced tea concoction and a punch!



Summer modeling the lovely table decor!



In Milwaukee, they drink Old Fashioneds with brandy instead of bourbon! When in Rome, right? Brandy Old Fashioned! It was yum.



The food was incredible!! There were turkey and beef carving stations, where you could make little sandwiches on these AMAZING little rolls. These rolls were definitely a 10. Crusty and perfect. Then there was a mashed potato bar!!! With so many delicious toppings! Broccoli, caramelized onions, bacon, cheddar, sour cream, and more. Then there were also mashed sweet potatoes with candied pecans and marshmallow!!! Then later in the night they brought out amazing smelling pizzas. My only regret of the night was that this delicious dinner filled me up so much that I was too full for pizza later. TOO FULL FOR PIZZA. Sadness!



Mike, Yumi and Summer.



Bouquet toss!



Summer, Amy and I didn't get to play bouquet toss because we are married. See?






Amy!



Dance party!










Dancing video.





Sunday morning we got up early and drove back to Athens. We had a wonderful time in Milwaukee, and I feel like we really got to do a lot in a short amount of time! Congratulations, Suzanne and Nate!

Sunday, March 30, 2014

Happy Birthday, Ben!

We had a carnitas taco bar for Ben's birthday! MMM!



Look at that giant vat of carnitas. And I made homemade refries!



The dads in line for their tacos.



Mmm.



Ben requested Mom's Texas sheet cake. YAY!!! The best.



Ben set up a Nerf shooting range in the basement for an after-dinner activity.



Derrick and Ben nerfing it up!



Pew pew pew!



Derrick and Ben talk strategy while Kayla loads up some ammo.



Pew pew pew!

Saturday, March 22, 2014

Taste Test Cooking Club

Summer hosted a taste test edition of cooking club this month! We were allowed to make whatever we wanted, but we had to be able to incorporate it into a taste test somehow. Summer started things off with homemade egg rolls, baked vs. fried. Here are the baked:



And here are the fried. The ingredients were the same otherwise. They were both delicious! I preferred the baked ones, because they were less greasy. They also held up better over time!



Yumi experimented with making her own falafel vs. some made with a store-bought mix. The store-bought mix SUCKED!!! We each only had a tiny bite of those, for science. Yumi's were freaking amazing though. And she brought a delicious spread to make little sandwiches with them!



Mmm, look at that delicious, homemade falafel ball!



Since Ben and I eat tostadas on a weekly basis, and therefore consume many cans of refried beans, I wanted to try my hand at homemade refries. I used the crockpot to make some slow-cooked, fat-free refried beans. The ones on the left are my homemade ones, and the ones on the right are from a can.



The crock-pot beans turned out great!! They had delicious chunks of bean, and were much cheaper and more delicious than the can. Also healthier! 



Valerie made homemade Olive Garden minestrone soup. We all voted that she did not have to drive to Parkersburg to get the real deal for the taste test, since we've all tasted it many times. Her version was so much better!!! It wasn't overloaded with salt like the OG one, and the veggies were fresh and delicious tasting. Plus her parm was fancier. "Just say when!"



Look at Brisby, Friday and Milo being so GOOD.



Time for a treat!



Cheers.



Nancy made brownies! The taste test was regular brownies vs. brownies with a secret ingredient. BLACK BEANS! The ones in the front row with the chocolate chips are the black bean ones. Verdict: both brownies were delicious. The black bean ones were a bit fluffier, like cake. And the classic brownies were rich and naughty. If we had to award a prize, the classic brownies would be the ultimate champion. But the black bean ones definitely held their own!



Summer's taste test was ice cream! She made the cognac ice cream from the Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams at Home cookbook.



The taste test element was that she used cognac for one and bourbon for the other.



Both were AMAZING. I liked the bourbon one a little bit more because it tasted boozier. She also served some toasted buttered pecans and roasted cherries to enjoy as toppings.



And THEN we added some of Nancy's brownies because well, why not??? The resulting treat was the most delicious ice cream sundae ever. What an amazing night!