surprises everywhere

I’m not going to lie, I didn’t have very high hopes for the culinary scene in Birmingham.  Or really, for Birmingham at all.  It’s in Alabama, and I might be a tad bit prejudiced against Alabama for the mere fact that it is, well…Alabama.  We wanted Greek food.  Like falafels and greek salads, and I really wanted potato salad atop my bed of greens.  If you haven’t had this, you need to.  We first stopped at Taziki, a regional chain with a Mediterranean flair.  After standing in line for a few minutes looking at menus, we decided that it really wasn’t for us.  It had nothing that really got us excited, so we went back to the car to try again.  Thanks to our trusty concierge, urbanspoon, we were ushered on to The Olive Branch, a mostly-Greek Mediterranean place.  When we drove up, we saw a sign that indicated they had Coca Cola products.  I wasn’t leaving.

We walked in and took our seats at the bar, a prime spot for viewing the goings on in the kitchen.  We quickly ordered sodas and decided to start with the grilled mushroom appetizer.  It was basically just button mushrooms that had been cooked on the flat top, but they were very tasty.  Savory and perfect with the complimentary pita bread.  I was excited.  Joellen was a tad nervous (they cooked the mushrooms next to some meat).  We both ordered the falafel lunch special and waited for what felt like an eternity to taste our fried chickpea deliciousness.  And deliciousness, it was.  Joellen ranks the falafel at Olive Branch in the Top 3 that she has had–ever.  That’s pretty big.  They were crisp on the outside and moist and flavorful on the inside.  Not an easy feat to accomplish.  Our falafel patties sat atop some awesome wild rice, and we were also given greek salads, pita and hummus.  We unfortunately dressed our salads with the house dressing, which looked really tasty but tasted like olives (no bueno), and it was all I could do to just scarf it down so that I would feel good about having some green.  Joellen didn’t even try.  She just gave up.  We couldn’t finish our falafel, leaving two each for left overs, and decided to split the walnut baklava and the pistachio baklava.  I was convinced that I’d prefer the pistachio, but the walnut was just stellar.  Sweet and flaky goodness.

After our lunch, we got in the car and made the short and easy drive to Nashville (I’m a little ashamed to say that I slept for a good part of the drive), and started on our next project: cooking dinner for Cindy and Kate.  Cindy is a friend of Joellen’s from college and she has a birthday this weekend, so to thank her and her partner, Kate, for letting us stay, and to celebrate her birthday, we decided to make them dinner.  Not wanting to do anything complicated, we decided to make vegetable lasagna with salad and a cake (from scratch).  Somehow things become a little bit bigger than we intend for them to, but I’d like to think we usually pull it off.

I started out by making the cake batter to get the most time consuming aspect out of the way.  I used Bobby Flay’s coconut cake recipe (just for the cake part–frosting was of our own creation) and was very hopeful about the results (I’ve used it once before and it came out really great).  Next, we started on the lasagna.  We cooked the noodles, roasted some yellow squash, sauteed spinach with garlic and onions and sauteed some mushrooms in the same fashion.  After making the ricotta-mozzarella-herb mix, all that was left was to puree the fire roasted tomatoes that had been doctored to our liking, in to a sauce.  After much laboring and the addition of more mozzarella and pecorino romano cheeses, the creation was complete.  To be fair, Joellen made the entire thing.  I just lent my hand in the seasoning of the sauce and the turning on of the burners.  We also roasted some beets and cut up different vegetables for a mini salad bar.  Joellen made a tangy honey dijon dressing with cider vinegar and I made a goat cheese dressing with shallots that got some mixed reviews (it was excellent with the beets, though).  I am determined to try and try again until I succeed with that one.  The cake came out looking great, although the strawberry cream cheese frosting lost its volume at the addition of the strawberries (which hardened the butter) and subsequent warm down (which melted the butter too much).  It was more like a thick glaze, but all diners were very generous with their reviews and nobody had a morsel of food on their plates.  I’d say it was a very successful foray back in to the kitchen for the two of us after such a long hiatus.

We’d like to thank Birmingham for surprising us, not only with the food that they host, but with some really friendly people.  We’d also like to thank Cindy and Kate for housing us and for lending us their kitchen to make a huge mess of.

❤ Amy

reunited (and it feels so good)

We checked out of Hotel Monteleone at 12:15pm (I think you get the idea not expect anything else if you ever find yourself traveling with us). Also, is it alarming to know that you’re traveling with someone who can break the code of your hotel safe with one guess? A testament of how well we know each other, I suppose. Please advise if I need to call LifeLock sooner than later. We quickly made it our mission to be one with sought out bagel. We did some research (which included Amy calling places to make sure they did more than just sell a bagel and cream cheese). So glad she did this bit of research and found Surrey’s. Surrey’s is a small artsy café advertised as a juice bar, but with so much more. I think it could possibly be top on the list of “hidden gems” found on this trip. Amy’s friend, Nicole, had mentioned hearing of this place, but not yet having found it. Nicole, GO! There was an extensive breakfast and lunch menu that included homemade bagels and house-cured salmon (lox). Amy ordered two scrambled eggs, bacon, grits, and an onion bagel with cream cheese. She made and consumed about twelve perfect bites to reveal a clean plate (well, I think she left some bacon – a little shocking, actually). I had the lox plate with an onion bagel. I love lox, but mostly for the caper/cream cheese/bagel combination. They also served this with an avocado mash – which was such a nice touch. I ate every bite and am not ashamed of that at all. I also washed it down with some awesome coffee. I like to think that Surrey’s has it all figured out – those that know, go; those that think it’s Jamba Juice, don’t. Oh, elusive bagel – today you were finally ours.

After brunch, we circled many blocks looking for the post office. Glad I finally got the chance to pass through a metal detector on the way to mail some postcards…that’s now checked off the bucket list. We made our way out of the Vieux Carre (we’re pros now), crossed the Mississippi, and headed on to Birmingham. Today’s drive didn’t contain as many profound moments as the drive from Austin to New Orleans, but we managed to keep each other entertained for the six-hour drive. We arrived in Birmingham with enough time to change our clothes and meet Amy’s friend, Smith, for dinner. Smith lives and works in Birmingham and I was more than thrilled to get to meet another one of Amy’s dear friends. After seeing Smith’s house, we headed to the Mountain Brook area for dinner at Avo. We had scoped out the menu en route to Birmingham and we were excited to try to options. We started with the fried okra sticks accompanied by a lemon-caper aioli and the homemade pimento cheese spread. Both delicious starters. For my meal I ordered the grilled cheese and tomato soup. The cheese was light and it had avocado, but the star was the sourdough bread. So toasty and sourdough-y – I loved it to the last crunchy bite. Amy had the panko-crusted chicken on polenta and she was pleasantly surprised by her dish. (I could tell she had hesitations about the chicken breast being dry and lacking flavor.) I looked over and it was quite juicy and it just looked appealing. The polenta was nicely cooked. Smith ordered the roasted beet salad and the bacon mac and cheese. She approved of the dishes by not leaving any leftovers – which was something we all did. We indulged in a few alcoholic beverages and a lot of conversation before heading back to the car. We got back to Smith’s and returned to our hotel (Holiday Inn Express in Birmingham, I love you) for a full night’s rest.

Joellen

P.S. Is it wrong to title your blog post for your bagel reunion? No.

dryland

I love the days when we aren’t tied to anything specific and get to simply enjoy our destination point without any pressure. Today was one of those days. Austin played a perfect host. We started the day with a late lunch (meaning it was scheduled for 1pm and we were quite tardy). Amy, Emily, Helen and I met my college friend (Andi) and Amy’s cousin (Jenny) at Magnolia Café. I had been to this restaurant before, but fell in love with it. In fact, last time I was in town (the only time I was in Austin) I ate here twice. After some catching up and my prolonged indecisiveness, we place our orders and shortly thereafter received the goods. I ordered the LOVE Migas. It was a dish of eggs scrambled with butter, garlic, and serrano pepper, mixed with a chopped corn tortilla, red onion, and green peppers (I forgot to ask for no green peppers), then topped with cheese. Served with black beans and avocado on the side. Pretty much my dream meal. I ordered corn tortillas and potatoes on the side so I could assemble my favorite meal of breakfast tacos. There was no disappointment to be had on my end. I loved every single bite of it…except the last one. Why do good things always have to come to an end? Amy ordered the Chef Salad – she’s been craving something cold and green for a few days now and I think this hit the spot. Andi, Helen, and Emily all ordered the Black Bean entrée, which looks so good and was a close runner-up for me. Jenny had a chocolate chip pancake and a buttermilk pancake, which she seemed to enjoy. I love Magnolia Café and I plan to stop there every trip we make to Austin.

After late lunch we headed to Zilker Park to pick up our wristbands for Austin City Limits (“ACL”) – our primary reason for being in Austin. ACL is one of the larger annual musical festivals held and Emily and I, after attending Bonnaroo last summer, had decided this festival was next on the list. We are so excited for tomorrow! The concerts go on for just about 12 hours each day, with about 130 bands playing over three days.

I waited exactly 381 words to complain about the heat. It’s hot in Austin. I think our arrival has coincided with a cold front moving in, where we’ll see temperatures in the 90s instead of the 100s. Bonus for us. The heat is bad, but the drought conditions are far worse here. All I can say about tomorrow is please hope for our sake that we can find some reprieve in a shaded area throughout the day. Wish us luck!

Once we picked up our wristbands, we headed to Andi and Bryan’s home in South Austin to visit with them and their three kids: Bug, Pepper, and Star. Bug is so grown up at five and a half (she wasn’t even three last time I was here). She was playing the role of big sister so well…it was adorable. Pepper, the lone boy, had the cutest things to say. We learned that his hair is very soft, though blue-green, that he may have a career in mixology, and that he is prone to random acts of acrobatics. Star is the baby and I can just see in her eyes that she is so very involved in taking everything in. I do think (and I shared this) that one day her mouth will open and full paragraphs will come out spouting her words of wisdom to her family (and the world). All of them are so special. It was also good the see Bryan. I feel so connected because of a photo blog he maintains daily, but it’s wonderful to get to hug the real thing and hear his voice – it’s been too long! I’m glad I got to spend giggly time with Andi and the family…they are near and dear to my heart. Saying goodbye was sad, but I know we’ll be back. Austin has too much to offer!

As dinnertime was upon us, we headed back to Lacey and Tom’s for a little grillin’ and chillin’. Lacey made some delicious appetizers of cheese (yes) and crackers, spanikopita, and chips/guacamole that were waiting our arrival. We prepped and Tom grilled. We had chicken (well, some of us did), halloumi, asparagus with truffle salt, and pineapple off the grill. Also, a nice salad rounded out the meal. All items were wonderful. This led to the chillin’ part where much wine and beer was consumed…great time had by all, I’d say. What great hosts we have here in Austin!

Joellen

another day

El Segundo, I love you. Not only because of the escape from the air pollution of Los Angeles interstates/freeways/highways, but because I finally reunited with my beloved iced coffee. Blue Butterfly Coffee, can we be friends forever?

(That was out of chronological order, but it was the best part of the day.)

We started the day today with one thing in mind. House. We met a realtor in Pasadena and we saw some houses that renewed our spirits about finding what we need. Maybe Pasadena is not the right place for us now, but we’re excited to explore it further and we were happy we had a positive experience.

Oh, apparently half of L.A. doesn’t work on Fridays. We spent more time in traffic today than I thought possible. I know everyone says it, but they really freaking mean it. Traffic in L.A. really sucks. It took us nearly 3 hours to drive to Pasadena, see 3 houses very close to each other, and drive to meet Cara for lunch in El Segundo. Good thing lunch was worth the drive. Cara was excited to take us to one of her favorite lunch spots, Farmstand. We got there kind of late (2:30ish) and walked in to a very empty restaurant. That can go in any direction, so glad this one took a right turn. We started with the baked Brie topped with apples, garlic, and pecans and Parmesan fries (why not?). The appetizers were taking a little longer than normal so we were gifted a small grilled watermelon salad with feta, basil, and balsamic. I enjoyed this the most of the three starters. The Brie was good. (Yes, I’m one of those that find Brie slightly overrated and a bit reminiscent of sweaty feet stench – keep in mind that I will always eat it, though.) The fries were good, but would have been much better with freshly grated Parmesan and a little truffle oil. We also had soft, warm bread accompanied by two oils (described as green and red). For our main courses Cara, Amy, and I had the Mediterranean Chicken Salad with avocado, Grilled Chicken Sandwich/Side Salad, and the Farmstand “Balanced” Soup/Tomato Avocado Salad, respectively. Cara loved her salad; she had ordered it before and was excited to have it again. Amy devoured her sandwich and liked it a lot. It came with sliced zucchini instead of pickles, which was a huge selling point for her. I enjoyed my lunch as well. The soup was a lentil-like soup with a yogurt and mint drizzle (I would skip the mint next time). The salad was amazing. I love avocadoes and to not enjoy at least one while in California would have been a crime. I also love balsamic, though an unnamed travel companion thinks it’s overused (maybe, but there’s a reason). All in all, a great experience. Did I mention that our late arrival meant that we got there for happy hour food prices? Bonus.

We said goodbye to Cara as she returned to work and we got on the road to Las Vegas (after a brief beach stop – I couldn’t leave L.A. without putting my feet in the sand). You know those people that don’t work on Fridays in L.A.? Well, the other half go to Vegas on the weekends when they do get off. Our bad for waiting until 4:15 to get on the road west, but there really wasn’t too much of a choice at that time. It took us 3 hours to get out of L.A. I’m not going to say any more about that at this time. Or ever. When we finally got out of the gridlock (not to be confused with just regular L.A. traffic), we stopped at In and Out Burger for another L.A. experience. We ordered some fries, animal style, and got back on the road. In case you’re wondering, no wallet left behind.

Driving to Vegas from L.A. proved to be quite the experience. It’s unbelievable how many cars were en route to the City of Sin. Once the sun went down, all we could see was the taillights in one steady stream. For three hours. We stopped somewhere along the Mojave for a bio break and some fuel (gasoline and dark chocolate honeycombs). While there we saw a blonde in a BMW blasting her rap music and putting on makeup (red bull and vodka, please), three young guys in a minivan housing some subs (Hangover re-enactors), and an older couple enjoying an ice cream sandwich (Hoover Dam). A Vegas postcard for sure. I wonder what they were thinking about us?

The last of the drive really flew by and sooner than later we were knocking on the front door belonging to Amy’s best friend, Alana. Alana and Steve were kind enough to wait up for us and even had ingredients to put together a couple of homemade pizzas. One pizza was pepperoni, mushroom, fresh tomato, and roasted yellow pepper topped with Monterey Jack cheese and a little garlic. I can’t report directly, but Amy said it was very tasty (if you’re keeping score, that’s one for roasted peppers). The other pizza was veggie (yay) and was loaded with mushrooms and artichoke hearts atop a carefully crafted and wonderfully seasoned ricotta base with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes and also topped with the MJ cheese. Amy even seasoned the crust with salt and roasted garlic. Nice touches all around. I’m so lucky. Amy and Alana popped a cork, Steve and I cracked a beer, and we settled in for some catch-up/get-to-know-you talk. After about two hours (and delicious homemade pizza consumption) we hit the sack. Recharge needed.

Joellen

when it’s good (l.a. day 1)

I think I can speak for both of us when I say thank goodness for 75-degree weather. However, I know we’ll be reminiscing about the cool days in the Pacific Northwest when we’re in Austin next week. Today was our first full day in Los Angeles. I’m pretty sure this place has been anxiously awaiting our arrival.

We’ve already learned so much about L.A. – like when they mean no parking, they mean it. I’ll soon be putting my persuasive writing skills the test to contest an assessed fine. It was late and reading the sign just wasn’t in my best interest. So, the day started off a little rocky (and pricy), but I had access to multiple washers and dryers…life could only get better from there. I’m a compulsive launderer. It’s routine, warm, and it smells good. I’ll never apologize for it. Needless to say, not having unlimited access has been a personal challenge. I think taking the time to do that this morning was a Top 10 Road Trip win so far. I felt so accomplished that I took a little nap that turned into 90 minutes (power napping powers have long since faded…oh, college). Amy and I make great partners. I did the laundry while she slept in and she repacked while I napped.

After sitting around (read: procrastinating) for a while, we decided one thing was necessary: food. Margaret mentioned food trucks last night and planted the seed. We had to do it. And we did. It was later, so some of the trucks where we stopped were packed up and leaving. We did find one that looked to have some interesting items. Sort of a Korean/Mexican fusion type place. Not “the place” that you’ve seen on TV, but an acceptable alternative for sure. We shared the kimchi quesadilla (surprisingly yum), I had a tofu taco, and Amy had a spicy pork taco. A great stop and a true L.A. moment for us.

Retrospectively, eating before a trip to Rodeo Drive wasn’t our best choice. Actually, it seems that food and most of the people (sans tourists) shopping Rodeo Drive aren’t really friends. Our stop was blissfully brief.

Next we decided to do a little house hunting in the area. We traveled to Santa Monica beach area to look at a home listed on Craigslist. If you don’t know this already, Amy and I are taking the plunge (aka moving to Southern California). The house was not for us, but we tried. Because I have two dogs the places we can look at are limited. We drove a little more in S.M. and then ventured to Culver City. I like Culver City – it’s a little artsy and seems to have a good mix of people. We’ll keep that on the list of potential living spots for sure.

I think by now it’s safe to say that Amy has realized that my coffee addiction and my crankiness are not mutually exclusive. I’m glad she still talks to me anyway. Thank you Starbucks for the crappy Iced Americano that saved the afternoon. (Why do they hate regular iced coffee???) We relaxed there for about an hour and decided to head back to Margaret’s before dinner.

Oh, dinner, where do I even begin? We are big Top Chef fans and we particularly both liked Chef Susan Feniger from the Masters edition of the show (Season 2). After catching something on Food Network or Cooking Channel about Susan Feniger’s restaurant STREET, I put it on the list of thing to do while in L.A. I’m so glad I did. We were joined by Margaret and Cara and started with a drink from the bar. Chef Feniger was behind the bar and greeted us with a kind smile (her personality and love of Mexican food sold me instantly on Top Chef). It’s not often that you find a celebrity chef/owner on site, but from what I hear she is quite active at the restaurant. In fact, we were greeted tableside after being seated. It was lovely. And the food was amazing. Amazing. We started with the Kaya Toast (which was recommended in most reviews and by Amy’s friend Maria). It was a perfect way to start out the meal.

From the menu:

KAYA TOAST 
a uniquely STREET experience; toasted bread spread thick with coconut jam; 
served with a soft fried egg drizzled in dark soy and white pepper

Next we ordered the cheese grits (so creamy, cheddary, and well salted), the spinach varenyky (my personal favorite – a dumpling filled with spinach and cheese, pan fried, and topped with a delicious lemon marmalade and sour cream), saag panner & dal (we love our Indian food), and shitakes stuffed with shrimp (which got a thumbs up). Our first round was so delightful. The staff gifted us an extra order of the grits because the first order didn’t come out hot (we didn’t really notice, but appreciated the extra grits). Second round was sautéed calamari (Greek style), kale (which I found quite tasty), and nopales relleno (cactus – this wasn’t my favorite because the texture is a little off, but the taste was good). After all of the food, we had no room for dessert – reason to come back soon! This was one of my top food experiences of the trip…small plates are the way to go. We all got a good taste of all of our choices. For more accurate descriptions of the food, please see the menu…or ask just Amy.

We finished the night with Margaret and our mutual friends, beer and wine, atop her apartment building’s rooftop terrace. We had great talks, some laughs, and a gorgeous nighttime view of the city. We’ll be back soon!

i’m so hood

We did something pretty freaking incredible yesterday.  I will leave you in suspense for as long as possible while I tell our story:

We woke up on the earlier side (in the realm of 8:30–go us!), packed up the car and headed toward Moss Landing for a very special adventure.  One thing I was not expecting about coastal California is the massive amount of fog and the cooler temperatures (this is obviously not so much the case for southern Cal, but northern and central are quite chilly).  And by cooler, I mean freezing…at least that’s what 60 degrees feels like to two Florida girls.  So we bundled (I wore three jackets with all of the hoods up) and packed our little bag and headed out on a boat in the cold, cold fog yesterday morning in search of something magical.  For a good long while, we waited and waited and waited.  It was so cold.  I prayed for either sunlight or the magic, but if we were not going to get either, I just prayed to go home.  Nobody likes sitting in the middle of an indiscernible body of water in the cold fog waiting for nothing.  It kind of sucks.  Then, just as I was falling asleep, something magical happened: a blow hole appeared and exhaled beautiful, wonderful whale breath.  Yes, we went whale watching yesterday, folks, and it was absolutely incredible.  Like, really, seriously, one-of-a-kind experience awesome.  So, recap: it’s cold and foggy and the sun is trying so hard to peek through the thick layer of fog, and all of the sudden a whale breathes near us.  So cool.

We found out the identity of the whale, a humpback whose name is Stinky.  S/he and a companion (unfortunately this whale is not cool enough to be named by the boat’s captain and marine biologist yet) went from mysterious water creatures to our best friends in no time.  It was so cool to see them playing with one another and logging so close to each other.  Another cool thing was that they were surrounded by sea lions, so even if they went under the water for a bit, we always kept pretty good tabs on them because of the sea lions frolicking all around.  It’s really difficult to describe how amazing it all was.  And of course, pictures just do not do it any justice.  You need to do this for yourselves some day.  It was truly not to be missed.  Thank you, Sanctuary Cruises for such an incredible experience.

After our adventure, we went to a small Mexican place in Moss Landing that Joellen’s parents recommended.  The Whole Enchilada did not disappoint.  We ordered the steamed artichoke (after all, we were in artichoke country), and it was SO GOOD; Joellen had the mole cheese enchiladas and enjoyed them and I had a seafood soup, which was just alright, but hit the spot since I really just wanted something warm (in fairness, I don’t really like shrimp but needed something brothy to warm me up).  It was just what we needed to revamp and get back on the road for the trek down to Los Angeles.

The drive was so beautiful.  Again, if you ever have a chance to drive the Pacific Coast Highway, or PCH as us cool Californians like to call it, you should.  We stopped a few times to take pictures of the fog, the Pacific, the cliffs and the sunset.  The beauty was so unreal, and of course, the pictures don’t even show the half of it.  Gorgeous.

We arrived in LA late last night and have been doing various housekeeping things this morning–laundry, emails, repacking, organizing, etc.  Definitely necessary, even after just a few days on the road.  We feel great and ready for our first LA day.  So many more adventures to be had!

❤ Amy

visitin’ the vegans’ paradise

We try to be prompt people.  We really, really do.  But it just doesn’t work out for us.  This is pretty much a constant problem for the two of us.  And you would think that perhaps we would influence each other to be more on time because the two of us being together would make us hyper-aware of the lateness situation.  This has not happened yet.  So, when we leave hotel rooms, we more often than not call and ask if we can have one more hour.  Luckily, no calls had to be made in Seattle.  Nobody was set to be in the studio directly after us, so we had a lovely, leisurely morning today getting out of the studio, and it was so nice.  We woke up later than I’d care to admit and set to re-packing and re-configuring the car.  If you know me, you’ll know how exciting this was for me.  I really like organizing and it was great to take everything out of the car and repack before heading back on the road.  We finished our leftover Indian food from the night before last and then went off to Portland.  The drive was easy, and we got here right around time to start planning for dinner (naturally, we pretty much plan our lives around meals).

We got to McMenamin’s Kennedy School and were absolutely amazed.  This is such an incredibly cool hotel, I can not even begin to describe how much I love it here.  So the McMenamin brothers started renovating old buildings to keep them from being demolished and now have a virtual kingdom of awesome hotels, brew pubs and concert venues.  This company is just so unique and awesome, and in a way, I think has a really noble way of running their business.  So we got here and got settled just in time for my first college roommate and good friend, Lauren to arrive, ready to lead us around Portland in search of the perfect meal.  We first had drinks at the Boiler Room Bar in our hotel and then headed over to Alberta Street to find somewhere to eat.  After walking a few blocks (yes, we walked to dinner, very Portland of us), we landed at Vita Cafe, a vegetarian and vegan restaurant (with a few meat options) that boasted everything from thai noodles to a burger with bacon and egg.  Joellen and I shared the club sandwich (fully vegan, with vegan mayo, vegan bacon and vegan turkey) and the vegan mac and cheese, and we shared the vegan nachos as a group.  I was really surprised at how much I liked everything.  As a meat and cheese lover, I was a little skeptical, and although I will happily eat a vegetarian meal most all of the time, I am still unsure about vegan cuisine.  Not gonna lie, I almost ordered the one meat option: a burger.  But I didn’t.  I decided to dive in head-first and have a totally vegan meal.  And you know what?  It was actually really good.  The sandwich was my favorite part–absolutely delicious, with a delightfully salty, smoky flavor and a nice, meaty texture.  I give that dish two thumbs way up.  The mac and cheese with faux cheese was also really tasty, with a creamy, garlicky sauce; I had a hard time putting down the fork.

We walked back to the hotel and stopped at one of the restaurants for another drink.  We befriended some guys and I shamelessly plugged our blog and road trip and told them upwards of a dozen times that they should really check it out.  Overall, I’d say that we had a great introductory evening to Portland.  I can’t wait for all that tomorrow promises–good food with good friends in a great city.

❤ Amy