Experiencing Peace in Asheville

I'll admit that I wasn't too excited to drive to Asheville just 3 days after returning from my Pittsburgh/Cleveland and Charlotte trip.  Don't get me wrong, the mountains that surround the city are stunning, the city is so pedestrian friendly and walkable, and the food is amazing. But, I just didn't want to drive 4 hours each way, by myself.  I don't mind being in the car for long distances, or driving, but it is so nice to have someone in the car with me.  It's a shame Colin couldn't join me on my trip because of a work training he was expected to attend.

As expected, the only negative part of my trip was the drive.  On the way to Asheville, I managed to get caught in a few torrential rain storms.  It made the 4 hour drive closer to 4.5 hours.  And on the way back I had to drive 4 hours in the evening after conducting a training all day.  It made for a very long day.

But I cannot complain about my visit to Asheville, it was a wonderful experience. I seemed to immediately be at peace moments after checking into my hotel.  I had never stayed at Hotel Indigo before, but I was extremely impressed that a hotel that nice would allow dogs and take the state rate.  If Colin didn't have to attend training, I definitely would have brought him and Darwin with me! Asheville is also a dog-friendly city.

This was the first view of my room - I love the privacy screen.

I really appreciated the coffee/tea area at the entrance.

The decor was so modern and tranquil.

The entire hotel was clean and comfortable, with modern decor and tasteful artwork.  One of my favorite aspects of the room was the wood floors. It just feels so much more comfortable than carpet!

I also can't talk about Asheville without mentioning the amazing food.  Since I've been there several times, and I've eaten at some of the more popular eateries like Early Girl Eatery and Tupelo Honey, I wanted to try something different.  I trusted the advice of some coworkers and ate at Modesto Wood Fire Kitchen the first night and The Black Bird restaurant on the second night.  The owner of Modesto also owns a restaurant next door called Chorizo, which serves more Latin American inspired fare. Since I was in the mood for Italian, I opted Modesto and ordered the prosciutto, fig pizza.  It was delicious and so filling!

Indulging in the prosciutto, fig pizza at Modesto

On the second night in Asheville, I went for a 4.5 mile run with my colleague from the area.  Rebecca is such a sweet person, and was a joy to teach with all day. She loves to run, and took me through the lovely areas of Historic Montford, UNC-Asheville, Jackson Park, and Five Points.  It was certainly a challenge for me with the steep hills and us talking during the run!  But it was a beautiful evening with clear skies and temperatures in the mid-70s.  

After working up my appetite, I made my way through downtown to The Black Bird. I immediately loved the large open windows and modern look to the restaurant.  I didn't know how big the portions were, so I opted for a bowl of tomato soup and the soft shell crab appetizer.  I'm glad I didn't order an entree because the appetizer was huge! In retrospect, I should have only ordered the appetizer. While the soup was tasty, it paled in comparison to the crab with tomatoes and croutons, and I ended up feeling too full at the end of the meal.  To say the soft shell crab appetizer was delicious is an understatement.  The sauce and the saltiness were perfectly combined and I savored every bite of the dish.

My tomato soup, bread and butter

The soft-shell crab appetizer

Walking back to the hotel from the restaurant, I stopped in the French Broad Chocolate and considered ordering dessert before I realized I was too full.  I also considered taking something back to the room for the next day, but didn't see anything that really appealed to me.

Throughout the two days I was in Asheville, I felt at peace with the world.  I know part of it had to do with being in the mountains, but I also think it had to do with my colleague and our teaching experience.  It is such a joy to share with people the skills to manage their health.  The training we conducted taught community leaders how to teach this type of program to their community.  And my colleague is so compassionate and an experienced leader, which made the training flow so smoothly.

I'm glad I was able to go and experience the beauty and tranquility of the mountains and the experience.  It certainly more than negates the long, tedious drive each way.

What do you love about Asheville?

A Very Busy Monday Traveling from Ohio to Pittsburgh to Charlotte

On our way back to the Pittsburgh airport from Ohio, we had time for one more restaurant. Instead of grabbing something in the suburbs, we made a quick trip to the Strip District of the city to pick up some lunch to go from the Caribbean/S. American inspired restaurant Kaya.  We ate some of our lunch/dinner in the car and some at the airport. As a result, we didn't realize we missed the box of toppings for our burger until we had already eaten it!! Oops!

Very tasty black bean dip and tortilla chips

An almost completely eaten burger.

We found the egg that belonged on the burger, just missed the lettuce, tomato, and pickles.

I forgot to take a picture of the fish tacos because I was distracted by trying to keep it all from falling apart. I thought they were really good, but Colin thought they had a strange taste to them.  He really enjoyed the burger and the black bean dip. I thought it was all delicious!

After a jam-packed 3 day trip, I had to get back on the road after our flight from Pittsburgh. So my Monday consisted of a 2 hour drive from Ohio to Pittsburgh, an hour flight to Raleigh, about an hour at home to unpack one bag and re-pack another bag, and then a 3-hour drive from Raleigh to Charlotte for a 2-day training! As you can imagine, it was an exhausting day. But, I was glad to see our friends in Pittsburgh and Ohio and meet their families!

Thankfully, the training in Charlotte was enjoyable and I met people from all over the country.  We ate a delicious dinner at the farm-to-fork restaurant Harvest Moon Grille. There were about 8-9 of us at dinner and most ordered something different off their always changing menu. I really enjoyed my pasta with vegetables and prosciutto. But the highlight of the dinner was the cheese platter with whey crackers and local red pepper jelly. The local cheeses, a brie and cheddar from Chapel Hill Creamery, and a blue cheese from a farm in western NC were AMAZING! Coupled with the red pepper jelly and the crackers, the combination was divine. Several of us at the table enjoyed it so much, and when we asked for a little more red pepper jelly to finish off the cheese, the wonderful server was so kind to have the kitchen add more cheese to our platter as well.  Overall, it was a very enjoyable dining experience which I highly recommend to anyone in Charlotte.  I didn't want to pull out the camera and take pictures, so you will have to imagine the beautiful display in addition to the delicious food.

The second day of training (Wednesday) ended a little early, providing me with some time to visit with my college roommate and friend, Michaela.  Her youngest child, 6-month-old Noelle was born around Thanksgiving and I had yet to meet her.  She was so precious, happy, and calm, even after getting her vaccinations at the doctor!  We all enjoyed a tortellini dinner, filled with story-telling and smiles. My favorite part was when we all got to share what we were thankful for.  I will always be grateful for my friendship with Michaela and the ability to visit with her and her family fairly often.

I was also thankful when I arrived back home Wednesday evening, after 5 days away.  I spent the next 3 days enjoying a somewhat normal routine before getting back on the road again!  More on that trip another day. Stay tuned!

What are your favorite restaurants in Pittsburgh and/or Charlotte, NC?

The Beginning of Many June Travels Starts With Pittsburgh!

I didn't purposely plan to travel so much this month, but fun opportunities were planned for the month that I couldn't resist.  And, a few last-minute trips were added to the mix - apparently I am in high demand! :)

On the agenda this month are 3 leisure trips and 2 work trips. The leisure trips include Pittsburgh, Rhode Island, and the Outer Banks of North Carolina.  Work trips include Charlotte and Asheville. Of the 30 days in June, I will be out of town 14 of those days!!

The first trip started on the 1st of June, with a quick (50 minute) flight from Raleigh to Pittsburgh. Colin had a work conference in the days leading up to the weekend, so I decided to meet up with him at the end of his conference.  One of my very good friends moved from Raleigh to State College, PA to pursue a PhD at Penn State last year, so tops on my agenda was some quality girl time.  We had so much to talk about since she is getting married this fall.  And, the first thing she did when I walked out of the airport into her embrace was to ask me to be her bridesmaid! I'm super excited since I've never been one before!!

We spent the early afternoon in Mt. Washington, catching up on school, work, and life before meeting up with her fiance's family. His family always gets together the same weekend in June so the guys can go to Canada on a fishing trip while the girls all hang out in Pittsburgh.

After enjoying a veggie wrap at The Grandview Saloon, my girlfriend and I went to walk around downtown a bit before heading to her future in-laws apartment.  I wish I took pictures of their place because it was gorgeous.  The apartment has very high ceilings, huge windows, and a very open feel.  It was nice to hang out, rest a bit, and get to know the family.

Though we were still full from lunch, we decided to go out to a local, sustainable restaurant for dinner once Colin got out of the conference.  We decided on the restaurant Habitat, located in the Fairmont Hotel. The elegant restaurant made me feel a little under-dressed in my jeans, but no one seemed to mind.

My salmon with brussels sprouts 

Colin's burger got cut off in the picture

I brought my really nice camera, but left the SD card in the laptop back in North Carolina. Instead of buying a new SD card, I just decided to take pictures with my phone all weekend.

Saturday night Colin and I stayed in a brand new Hyatt Hotel in the South side section of Pittsburgh. The entire area where the hotel was located looked brand new, not just the hotel.  We checked in pretty late Saturday night and left around 11am the next day, so we didn't get to enjoy some of the best features - like the full kitchen in each room, grills out on the deck, and cushioned seating and a fire pit on the deck!  I did manage to get a run in along the Monongahela River Sunday morning when Colin attended his last conference session.

Full kitchen in our hotel room

Nice, clean, IKEA decor throughout

Beautiful location with a greenway along the river - perfect for a 5k run!

On Sunday, we decided to take a trip to the outskirts of Cleveland (aka Amish Country) to visit with Colin's law school friend and his family.  They live just under 2 hours from Pittsburgh, so it was an easy journey.  I didn't do a good job taking pictures at all!  We were too busy enjoying catching up with our friends and running around with their 3 year old and 15-month-old to stop and take pictures.

I did manage to get this pictures of the Amish kids riding their horse 

and buggy to their "hang out area" while we were waiting for our friends.

As we were told, the kids have a few years they are allowed to "rebel" and not follow any rules before they "settle down and join the church."  It was interesting to see the horses racing down the street and many had their music blaring!

It was also my second experience riding in the "trunk" of a station wagon. I lost my bearings because I couldn't even remember the name of the delicious and beautiful restaurant where we had dinner Sunday night!  I ended up looking at our credit card bill to find out that it was called the Welshfield Inn.  They had a steak special with horseradish sauce that gave the entree some bite!  Overall we had a very pleasant dining experience on the back patio thanks to two well-behaved kids, enjoyable conversation, delicious food, and a beautiful day. Coupled with the amazing hospitality we received from our friends, we had a delightful visit.

Stay tuned for details about our last day in Ohio/Pittsburgh and my trip to Charlotte - yes they were back-to-back.  And, I'm traveling now (again for work), but I will try to keep the blog updated!  Thanks for your patience.

Have you ever ridden in the very back part of a station wagon before?

The first time I did was when a large group of us when to a ski cabin for a weekend in college. This time it's because there were too many car seats in the back seat!

A Darwin Update

I haven't done an update on our little guy in awhile, so I figured it was time to take a break from food to post about him.

Darwin had his 2 year old visit this past winter and did fantastic! His issues with Red Mange are long gone and his stomach issues seem under control.  Turns out the grain-free food we fed him was just too much for his stomach. He's saving us a bunch of money now that we are using the regular stuff!!  Every now and then he still has an upset stomach - but we can't always prevent him from chewing on things in the back yard or drinking water out of puddles.

Our vet was so proud of us at his visit. Six months before the most recent one, he weighed about 60-62 pounds and the vet thought that was a little too high.  So, we cut his food back a little and now he's perfect at 55-57 pounds!

Here are some of my favorite recent pictures...

Darwin trying to make himself a chocolate lab by rolling in the dirt

Sniffing something in the air

Relaxing and enjoying the sun on the deck

Sporting his new green reflective collar and leash

Making himself comfortable on the couch

He's been doing great with his commands. The only exception is that he doesn't always come when called - especially if he's distracted (like today when he had to alert the whole neighborhood that there was a baby possum in the yard). He's still frequently shy around new people, and some things make him a bit nervous (like kids). He doesn't always greet us when we walk in the house cause he's too busy in the backyard, sunbathing, or relaxing, but he has brought us great joy often.  My favorite is when he cuddles with me on the couch - which he did a lot during this cold winter!

We are still working on making the car enjoyable - taking him on short trips to day camp - which he loves.  But, sometimes he still shivers because he's scared to go for a ride. We've realized he is better in one car than the other.

He is such a sweet dog and a really good boy.  And, I'm probably biased, but I think he's pretty good looking too!  We are so glad we went to the Petsmart Adoption event 2 years ago and I look forward to many wonderful memories together.

Downtown Raleigh's Food Truck Rodeo May 12, 2013

Spring has FINALLY arrived here in Raleigh after a VERY long winter! This has only been my 3rd spring in the area, and I was spoiled the first two years with spring-like weather arriving in early March.  Not that this year has been typical. I've heard that the month of March was colder than January, which is not how it's supposed to be.

We had some glimpses of spring a few weeks in April, and then had about 10 days of cloudiness and rain. Of course, it happened to be when my family was visiting!!  Oh well, it's finally nice out and we have some travel planned for May, June, and July, so stay tuned for lots more blogging.  I'll have to admit that I got sick of posting about restaurants all winter - so I needed a break from the blog.

But, in my first post in a few weeks, I am excited to share our experience at downtown Raleigh's Food Truck Rodeo this past weekend.  The weather was a perfect, sunny, 70-degree day. I realize this is another food post, but it's different because we walked around downtown, checked out all the trucks, and ate our food outside with all the other festival attendees.

Here's a recap of our experience...

Lots of hipsters - young and old - enjoying the food trucks

First stop - Blue Sky Dining

Blue Sky's Interesting Menu

Our DELICIOUS sweet potato stuffed burger -

the highlight from the day (or maybe we were just super hungry when we arrived)

Waiting in a very long line at Pie Pushers

It was difficult deciding on the specialty slices

We went with a cheese (Colin's always gotta compare it to NYC pizza) 

and a pesto sausage slice

We also tried a pesto garlic knot

The long line at Pie Pushers was not indicative of quality. The cheese slice was not that great.  It just didn't taste like the sauce was high quality.  I liked the pesto sausage - but I really enjoy goat cheese on almost anything.  The garlic knot was not worth the $1.

Then we went to the ladies in the southern cooking Chick-N-Que truck

We planned to get chicken or barbeque, but couldn't resist trying an ostrich burger

The bread was terrible, but the ostrich meat was very tasty. 

The little extra spice it had ground into the meat added some nice flavor.

Since we still hadn't eaten any BBQ, we went to Stoke and Smoke for our last stop

Since all three previous meals were heavy on the dough/bread, 

we decided to try one of the plates

The meal was a huge letdown. The meat was soggy and tasted dull 

and both the coleslaw and beans lacked flavor

Once we started eating the BBQ, we realized it might have been a food truck we previously tried at a festival in Apex last fall. That added to our disappointment that we didn't pick a better place with all the choices at the event.  This added to the need to blog about the event. I had to write about it so we wouldn't forget what we tried at the next Rodeo. Thankfully there are three more this summer and fall.

We made one last attempt at a food truck, hoping to get some ice cream from the Chapel Hill creamery, but it was getting late in the day and the line was too long.  Instead, we decided to head home so we could catch a few hours of sun at the neighborhood pool.  Did I mention that I'm SO EXCITED for summer weather!  

For those that have experienced the Triangle's food trucks before - what truck do we have to visit next time?

For everyone else - any big plans this summer?

Celebrating A Birthday

During our first two spring seasons in North Carolina, we were blessed with wonderful weather during the month of March. Unfortunately, the weather has been lousy for at least 2-3 months now, leaving us kind of down.  March has not been a kind month on several counts, but with April approaching and the forecast looking like spring might finally be in our future, we are ready to emerge from hibernating.  While we've been to a few new restaurants (which I will post about soon), the highlight of month was my birthday.  

Just before the big day, I received several cards from my family, beautiful flowers from my brother, and lillies to plant in the yard from Colin.

Birthday cards and flowers

Then, on my actual birthday we were blessed with a beautiful day (the only one we've really had all month!). The forecast was for temperatures to reach the 70's and it was going to be sunny and windy. We decided to get out of Raleigh and take a trip to the beach.  The closest one is Wrightsville Beach, but we rarely go there because they don't allow dogs during peak season. Since it was still off season, we decided to check it out.

Enjoying the sun on Wrightsville Beach

The temperature was warm and reached into the mid 60's, but there was a strong breeze off the water that made it cool to just sit around.  Thankfully, I had a sweatshirt and pants with me, which allowed me to be more comfortable.  Darwin and Colin seemed to enjoy the day and the view.  One of my favorite sights is watching Darwin's ears flop in the wind.

After spending the peak warm hours beachfront, we decided to head inland to Wilmington to try a highly reviewed restaurant called Flaming Amy's Burrito Bar.  There were lots of people eating there when we arrived, which we took to be a good sign. Unfortunately, they don't really have a website, but the name of the restaurant told us what to expect.

Colin opted for their special, spicy burrito, while I went more basic with a chicken burrito with typical toppings (guacamole, tomatoes, cheese sour cream, etc).  We were each given a huge burrito that was filled to the max along with a hearty portion of tortilla chips.  The chips were pretty bland (not salty like usual) and we ended up giving most to Darwin, who joined us out on the patio.  Colin's spicy burrito was very flavorful (but a bit too spicy for me). It was also packed with lots of meat and beans. My burrito preparer didn't do that great a job, and apparently I started eating the end with the toppings. It wasn't until I got halfway into the burrito that I reached the chicken.  Thankfully, the burrito itself was very tasty, and the bottom half was packed with chicken, which quickly filled me up.

Our hearty burritos and chips

Digging into Colin's spicy burrito (left) and 

my chicken burrito - before I got to the meat (right)

After dinner, we made our way back home.  While I love being at the beach and enjoying the sun, sand, and water, at the end of the day, I really enjoy a nice shower and my own bed.  We were a little bummed that we missed temperatures in the 70's back in Raleigh and the forecast changed to indicate it would not be as windy at the beach the following day, but hindsight is always 20-20 and it was still nice to get away for the day.

My birthday celebration weekend ended with a nice 2-mile walk to one of the Triangle's best bakeries for brunch on Sunday. It was a lovely morning and Colin, Darwin, and I built up our appetite during the walk and enjoyed the delicious food on the covered patio.  Overall, the weekend was a wonderful way to celebrate my birthday.

Watts Grocery

Last week we made our way to the well-known and highly rated Watts Grocery in Durham.  The restaurant has come highly recommended to us by several people and offers sustainable fair from local farms.  Colin was really excited when he saw they had chess pie on the dessert menu online, so we decided against an appetizer so we could save room for dessert.

We were a bit worried that we would need reservations, since the restaurant seems to be very popular, but when we called there was only an opportunity to leave a message. We took our chances, hoping that a 5:45pm dinner on a Wednesday night would not be a popular time.  Upon arrival, there were very few people dining and plenty of open tables. The space was larger than I anticipated with quite a few tables and a bar area.

Shortly after we ordered, we were presented with four very basic dinner rolls and butter. I'm guessing the butter was local and maybe the bread was baked in-house, but Colin was expecting more.  He commented on expecting who grain rolls, or some sesame seeds, and maybe some olive oil and vinegar, or chive-butter.  The dinner rolls did not match our expectations for a pricey, sustainable restaurant.

Since the restaurant sourced it's meat locally, we decided to try the steak and the chicken.  The Pan Roasted Chicken Confit came with yellow grits and butterbean and pea succotash.  I had to go back to the menu to know what the butterbeans were because they were so soft and very rich. Originally, I thought they were pork fat.  The dish was very flavorful, maybe a little too rich and flavorful.  After a few bites, I was already full (well, saving a little room for dessert).

The Grilled Hand-Cut Angus Ribeye came on smoked tomato and bacon braised collard, and with broccoli and Four Leaf Farm pea shoot butter.  It's too bad we didn't have the butter for the bread! Neither of us used the butter with the steak dish, which was also very flavorful. The meat was very tender and cooked perfectly to Colin's liking (medium-rare).  The collards, in their smoked tomato and bacon sauce were a bit too rich for me, but Colin was a huge fan.  While the steak did not beat his favorites in NYC (The Post House, Strip House and Angelo Maxies) or the amazing steaks we ate in Aruba, he thought the meat was the best we've had in the Triangle.  His highest marks went to the collards, which he'll likely try to replicate at home.

Both entrees tasted amazing as leftovers (especially since I could cook the steak a little more to my liking)!

Pan-Roasted Chicken Confit

Grilled Hand-Cut Angus Ribeye

Once Colin got his heart set on the chess pie, he had me convinced we had to get it for dessert. So when the waitress came over to ask if we were finished, and we requested a box to pack up our leftovers, Colin immediately ordered the chess pie.  Imagine the letdown when the waitress explained that the dessert menu had not been updated online in awhile!  Oh boy were we disappointed.  It pretty much ruined the whole experience for Colin.  We were brought the updated menu and couldn't find anything on it that remotely resembled the chess pie, so we paid for our bill and left.  

On our way out of Durham, we stopped to get dessert at Dulce Cafe.  There were only a few varieties of desserts to choose from (but had lots of each dessert).  We had been preparing for chocolate so we went with the chocolate cake filled with a cherry filling and a chocolate/chocolate cupcake.  We brought it home to enjoy in the comfort of our sweatpants!  The desserts were good, but certainly nothing to rave about. I doubt we will make a trip out there for desserts again.

Chocolate cake with cherry filling (L) and chocolate cupcake (R)

Where can we get amazing chess pie in the area?  

Now we just can't seem to let it go!