Jujube Take 2
Matt and I had plans to dine with friends at The Lantern yesterday, but it was closed for a private function! I was bummed because it was a spot I really wanted to get back to, but we went to the next best modern Asian restaurant – Jujube! Our dinner dates were into sharing too, so we split a bunch of small plates and then Matt and I shared an entree:
warm kale salad with mangoes,
pork belly dumplings,
pineapple, basil, and green curry mussels,
fish fritters with summer veggies,
And our entree was the pan-fried crab and shrimp cake with sweet potato in green curry – this was so awesome and a great entree to split because it came with two big cakes and chunks of sweet potato. The mussels were my second favorite, but everything was so flavorful. Love this place!
After dinner, we sat around sipping wine and chatting. It was so nice to just relax on a week night and enjoy the balmy night. It’s finally hit me this week that I am almost finished with this school year and there is lots of relaxing on summer nights to come. I’m so pumped for everything!!
Read MoreExploring Dallas
Howdy,
Sorry for being MIA – Matt and I got hit with a bug as soon as we got home from Dallas. I made it to work for a good 20 minutes on Monday before driving home and getting in bed, where I couldn’t move for 12 hours. Weird. When I woke up this morning and felt normal, I was in the best mood of my life because I was so happy it was over.
Anyway, thanks for your sweet comments on our move. I’m even more excited after spending a few days looking for apartments in Dallas. We didn’t exactly find ‘the one,’ but we saw so many options that I’m sure we’ll find something good.
In between stops, we ate at some pretty awesome restaurants and hung out with my friend Liz, and Matt’s friend, Chris and his family.
The food is top notch and right up my alley – casual, modern, reasonably-priced, and eclectic. Some highlights:
Lunch in a squash at Dream Cafe.
Mambo Taxis at Mi Cocina.
Trying local beer at the Katy Trail Ice House.
A huge make-your-own sandwich at Eatzi’s
A mint julep with a delicious southern meal at Sissy’s: squash dogs, fried catfish, and ribs with brussels.
And a lovely brunch with little William and a ridiculous potato breakfast casserole at Breadwinners.
I’m actually super excited to get back to work and back into a routine. See ya!
Read MoreJujube
Happy Easter!!
I thought I was beating Matt’s cold, but it has gotten the best of me today:( I wasn’t able to go to church or brunch, but my parents were nice enough to order us a pizza and come over for the Duke game.
I really thought I was on the up-and-up Saturday, and attempted a date night. I figured beer is the best medicine (only in the moment…)
Matt and I stopped at Milltown in Chapel Hill and had a drink at the bar – this dubbel was fantastic!!!
I hate how having a stuffy nose affects your taste buds! I figured Asian food might stand out, so we checked out the bar at Jujube, a fusion restaurant with Chinese and Vietnamese influences in Chapel Hill. We decided just to share a cocktail and were blown away by the Hot Date – jujube [date] preserves, bourbon, cayenne, and lemon. Hot and sweet and oh so perfect.
These were melt-in-your-mouth pillows, and again, the sauce made this dish outstanding.
Crispy beef short rib and goat cheese wontons with hot pepper-basil jam arrived next, and while the insides of these were good, I tasted just a little too much of the fried shell and didn’t ever taste any goat cheese Can’t complain about the hot pepper sauce though!
Everything we tried was so unique and flavorful that we decided to just look at the dessert menu. Yeah right. We simply had to try the fried apple-goat cheese dumplings with vanilla-bourbon ice cream and black vinegar caramel. Basically my dream, fried into a pocket.
There were four dumplings under there, and we quickly discovered that the goat cheese was lurking in the corners. Absolutely to-die-for!
I’m so glad we tried something off the beaten path!
And now, my friends, I’m not gonna go to bed; because even though I feel lousy I’m on spring break and I’m gonna stay up past my bedtime watching random tv!!
Read MoreDurham + Raleigh Bar Bites
Hello friends. What a glorious spring weekend! Aren’t you so excited that it’s here? Matt and I had a rare weekend with no plans. While the spring weather made me want to eat lots of healthy fruits and salads, I somehow ended up having beer, meat, and fries both nights.
I got my wish for a burger! Friday night, we met some friends at Fullsteam Brewery for a drink and then grabbed dinner at Bull City Burger. I had the pimento cheese burger, and it was better than any I’ve ever had there before. It was thick and perfectly [under] cooked. I tried the British IPA, extra special bitters, and the barleywine. All were pretty typical brewpub beers – good but nothing spectacular.
- Gouden Carolus Triple Mechelen Belgium
- Cottonwood Frostbite Black Ale
- Mystery Brewing Jings me Crivens Wee Heavy
- The Bruery Rye Ale
Wedding Wirlwind
My dad had his heart set on seeing the sunset over the ocean, so even though it was in the 40′s outside we had a picnic style cocktail hour.
We didn’t think we would be able to see much with the cloudy skies…
but we still enjoyed some wine and then the sun emerged from under a cloud!
It descended from the cloud and we instantly felt warm…
and then it quickly disappeared again. What a neat sunset!
I think the highlight of the weekend was the wine tasting we did on Saturday night. We’re having the rehearsal dinner at the golf club and the bartender was nice enough to give us very generous pours of all the house wines. We were impressed!
Mazen showed his ID but it wasn’t accepted.
After lots of wine and a Duke win (!), we were so ready to eat!
My sister and I split the fresh catch with bourbon glaze over a grit cake as well as the fish tacos.
And we shared the most divine cobbler for dessert! Mixed berry with a scone crumble on top. I swear I blinked and it was gone:)
Sunday was the reception tasting! I never get tired of the view from our venue. Palm trees + ocean = wedding paradise.
We tasted a ton of different stuff. The good news is that we liked almost everything. The bad news is that we can’t make up our minds on anything!
I know I want these crab cakes for sure.
We want the menu to be balanced and well-rounded, so we’re going to see if the chef can do variations on some of the dishes. I’m pumped for the food!
After the tasting, we went into Wilmington to meet with our wedding coordinator and florist at Kickstand Events. She is awesome and we had so much to talk about that 2.5 hours flew by. I’m so glad we decided to use Kickstand and I’m thrilled with how things are coming along.
By the time we finally got home, it was nearing 9 and we went straight to Whole Foods to satisfy a pizza craving. I think I went to bed within 30 seconds of finishing my last slice. It was a wonderful whirlwind of a weekend and I’m smiling from ear to ear. With less than 3 months to go, I’m getting nervous and excited at the same time.
Read MoreIced In
A holiday and a half day due to ice made last week fly by…and now we’re almost in February. I can’t say I’m too sad that January is almost over:)
We had plans to head to Duke for our weekly Fuqua Friday, but because of the icy conditions, it was cancelled. Matt swung by the grocery store and picked up a package of bacon and a hunk of pizza dough and a beautiful pie was born. We declared this the best pizza we’ve ever made! Dates, blue cheese, white cheddar, olive oil, and bacon. We pre-cooked the dough so it was perfect and the dates got crispy and caramelized.
We also popped open these two monsters:
The bourbon barrel porter was fabulous, but the barley wine was a bit too hoppy for my taste.
Since Netflix appeared to be down, we dug into my very small dvd collection and watched Notting Hill – such a nice movie.
Since I got the laundry out of the way on Friday, I didn’t do much of anything on Saturday. The morning classes were cancelled at the gym, so I just took a mile walk and later browsed some stores, and called it a day. It was nice.
Matt and I had grand plans to meet friends in Chapel Hill for drinks, and try a new restaurant, but when it came time to get off the couch, we were too cozy! I’m such a wuss when the weather is cold. We made bourbon + bitters instead, and then finally ventured out to the local bar around the corner for dinner.
Black bean veggie sliders for me.
Duck confit poutine for Matt!
And because there had been some confusion earlier about a pork belly taco special that we really wanted and was no longer available, our waitress sent us home with a mysterious peanut butter dessert. We never asked what it was, but it involved heavenly crust, peanut butter fluff, a possible cream cheese icing, and chocolate sauce. Needless to say, I was quite happy with this end to our evening.
Today? Sunday brunch!
We met friends at the Nasher Cafe and I had a lovely Asian shrimp salad with cashews. Brunch is always such a great way to catch up with friends. I think because restaurants are generally quieter during the day and no drinking is involved, it makes for good conversation:)
Tonight was the free community class at the Sync studio and my legs are still aching!
PS: Just found out we are on a three hour delay due to freezing rain in the AM. Hooray for sleep!!
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Welcome to TBT!
I've created this blog because I'm in a bit of a quarter life crisis. Since graduating from college in 2008 and earning an advanced degree in school psychology in May, I still don't know what career path to follow. All I know is that time is moving way too fast and I find myself living only for the weekends. Bear with me as I attempt to reclaim my twenties by finding pleasure and balance in the work week and incorporating my passions of food, fashion, fitness, and fun into everyday life. 
She said what?