First pic in a few days: One of my favorite vegetables is broccolini. Usually sautéed or steamed, but roasted is highly underrated. It is more delicate than broccoli to begin with, so when adding olive oil, salt, cracked pepper, and crushed red pepper and roasting at a high heat, it becomes elevated. I roast it to the point of charred/blistered. A wonderful accompaniment tonight to chicken and mashed potatoes.
Last night was a near-replica of last Sunday’s meal: grilled chicken (instead of fried cutlets), sautéed broccoli rabe, and fresh mozzarella on crusty seeded bread. No pics.
A little late on this but realized I never shared the pics: BF and I celebrated our anniversary over the weekend. Went away for the night and staying in such close proximity to so many bars and restaurants meant we could hop around. Drinks and snacks it was.
First stop: fancy old hotel bar. Old Fashioned with Old Forester Prohibition Bourbon for me, local IPA for him. We shared a cheese plate with four delicious local cheeses.
Last stop (before the casino which we Ubered to-- no, we didn’t strike it rich): a strange bar/restaurant that was Greek in name but ended up being American/classic. I had an Old Fashioned with a homemade maple infused simple syrup, and yes, a piece of bacon! He had an Espresso Martini.
We’ve been shlepping around town with several visitors in tow these last few days (and thank goodness for that, considering the insane amounts of food we’ve been shoveling into our gullets).
Dinner Sunday was Italian apps at a beer garden near us, then Japanese tapas at the nabe izakaya.
Yesterday was fantastic Turkish food: mezze for ONE (!!) split between the four of us & still couldn’t finish it, very good salad & fabulous meat platter (lamb chops, shish kebab, chicken). The shish was the star of the night, even though I’m usually not crazy about the minced meat skewers. The seasoning made it.
I actually don’t miss it. DH continues with his wine and cocktails. I just feel so much better not drinking. I have several health issues that cause chronic fatigue. So for me, slowing my body down with alcohol just adds to the problems…and my appetite has picked back up. I enjoy seeing everyone’s dinners here.
What’s not to like about Waffle House? Actually I was going to make a separate thread about it. Their prices are insanely low. I don’t know how they do it, actually. BF and I each had a waffle with add-ons (pecans for me, blueberry nougat for him) and we shared a breakfast special of two eggs, four strips of bacon, toast, and a double portion of hash browns. Doubling up added 50 cents! All that plus a cup of coffee was $18. Would have been at least $30 where I live in Jersey as breakfast/brunch places have gone over the top with their prices, even before Covid.
All veggies and bread for dinner last night. It was very satisfying. AF Garlic Bread Sticks, IP Green Beans, Green Onions, Grape Tomatoes, AF Sweet Potato Fries.
Seriously. My first encounter was on a trip to the skyline drive and Shenandoah Caverns. The Waffle House appeared before us and if my SO had not turned the wheel immediately I might have turned it for him. Pecan Waffle and hash browns. Later we moved to Raleigh for a time and once the waitress bestowed an extra pecan waffle on my SO that was accidentally made. It was like the universe smiled on us. I also lived in Trenton for awhile and loved going out for breakfast before bed at those huge fancy diners back in the day. At that late hour they were hopping. Even saw a whole wedding party at a big table in back once. I refused to stare but they were very quiet because they were all signing to each other with enthusiasm and lightning speed.
4 Likes
ChristinaM
(Hungry in Asheville, NC (still plenty to offer tourists post Hurricane))
237
Yep. We three had breakfast there a few weeks ago and the total was $22. AND the server made us a fresh pot of decaf and the eggs were cooked properly. If only they served real butter and good jam.
3 Likes
ChristinaM
(Hungry in Asheville, NC (still plenty to offer tourists post Hurricane))
238
Tonight was meatballs stroganoff repurposing the leftover pot roast gravy as the base. Pretty tasty. Garden chard with orange zest, oo, red pepper flake, dried cranberries, aged balsamic, and sauteed red onion.
Tonight’s dinner was a tomato carpaccio and chicken and asparagus stirfry with egg noodles. Next time I will serve the chicken with rice to mop up the sauce.
IHOP is dreadful. Then again, I have not dined there earlier than midnight since I was a child. I guess they don’t exactly have their A-team on overnights.
Ironically enough, both of my last two visits (pre-Covid), I witnessed the cops be called on a customer.
I do paranormal investigating as a hobby, and after a scary investigation on Halloween years ago, we ended up at IHOP. 2 AM. Dining with every drunk and stoned Halloween partier within 10 miles. All still costumed.
