Magnolia
So last Friday, I mentioned that we went to the famous Magnolia Grill. It’s closing at the end of the month, and it’s THE restaurant that put farm-to-fork southern cooking on the map. We had a gift card…I knew we had to go.
The restaurant was packed to the brim, but we were seated at a small two-top in the corner of the bar. The waitress rushed over to us several times while we were looking over it to inform us that multiple appetizers and entrees had run out. When we realized how quickly food was disappearing, we just picked three things and got our order in as quickly as possible.
First, we had the signature twice baked grit soufflé with wild mushroom ragout, aged sherry mushroom emulsion, and shaved confit foie gras. Talk about different! The mushrooms were fantastic and the sauce so unique. I wasn’t crazy about the texture of the soufflé (too egg-like), but the flavor was so awesome that I still loved the dish.
Probably our favorite dish of the night was the grilled confit pork belly on Carolina rice grits with warm butterbean salad, cider and creole mustard glaze, and watermelon rind pickle. WOW. Who knew this combination would work so well? The warm sauce, fatty meat, and cold sweet salad were PERFECT together.
Our entree was the spice-crusted Trout in spring onion pesto sauce on creamy lemon grits (I know – grits three times!) and field peas with shrimp, apple bacon, and local pea tendrils. The lemon grits and bacon were by far my favorite part!
Dessert ended up stealing the show, though, because Matt and I love fruit crisps! This one was enormous! It was a pear crisp with vanilla ice cream and a salted caramel drizzle. Luckily, the dessert was so big we didn’t have to fight over it, but I could tell we were a bit competitive while eating this:)
This meal was obviously heavenly and I feel so lucky that we got to eat at Magnolia Grill before it’s doors are closed. Thanks so much to our friends Lauren and Evan for the gift card that pushed us to get there!! I still salivate just thinking about it.
And that was Friday, which was wayy more exciting than my Monday. Typical:)
Read MoreTwo Amazing Fishes + One Mysterious Wedge
I have lots to share from our travels to Charlottesville and VA wine country! Too much for one post and since Ecto would probably have a heart attack with all the pictures, I’ll have to split it up, starting with last night’s dinner – easily the highlight of the trip!
Kath & Kanz live in a walkable neighborhood, so we hit the sidewalk to get to our dinner destination: the famous Commonwealth restaurant and it’s rooftop Skybar. Every time Kath eats at Commonwealth, I get virtual food envy, so I’ve been requesting dinner here for quite some time!
There was a bit of controversy over dessert because we ordered a chocolate and peanut butter tart [well I won't take responsibility bc I was in the bathroom:)] and this chocolate wedge with fruit sauce arrived. We were all confused because we didn’t taste peanut butter and didn’t really care for the idea of peanut butter with a sweet fruit sauce anyway. As we continued to eat it though, we concluded that the menu had probably said torte instead of tart and that the peanut butter was just really subtle.
Revolution Recap
Can you tell these guys are pumped to be on spring break? I went to Target today and the store was full of cute beach bags and bathing suits. I want to go to the beach! Good thing we’re on the verge of spring down here – lots of flowers are popping up!
So this picture is from Friday’s happy hour with some of Matt’s classmates. We went to beer heaven Tyler’s Tap, and I had a refreshing Bell’s Sparkling Ale (a Belgian Triple). It was warm on Friday and my taste buds were no longer in the mood for anything dark!
Kath’s MIL, Karen, gave Matt and I a gift card to the fabulous Revolution in Durham. And since Matt’s going be pretty busy with a consulting practicum for the next two weeks, we decided a date night was in order. Oh what a date night it was (Thanks Karen!)
I started with a mojito – it was extra spicy!
We decided to sit at the bar and share a few things to save a little money. We took our time and enjoyed three courses over two hours. We split the shrimp hush puppies to start. These puppies were tasty and I loved the dill and basil cream sauce.
Mmmm.
Matt and I shared a glass of wine to go with our entree. The bartender was awesome and let us try almost every red that they offered by the glass before making a decision. We ended up with the Firehouse Red from Tamarack Cellars.
Our entree, despite appearing a bit strange, was awesome. This was a monkfish stuffed with rock shrimp and wrapped in pork belly!!!! It was in some kind of coconut broth, making it nice and sweet!
Dessert was the malted peanut butter tart with banana compote. After hearing about this dessert on Sarah’s blog, I knew I had to have it! And it was just a heavenly as it sounds.
On Saturday, I went with Matt to Duke to wait with him in the graduate student line for the game. Sadly, I didn’t have a ticket, so I ended up watching the game at a bar with friends. Not only did the game end badly, but the whole bar lost interest in watching and started playing some annoying games involving a punching bag right next to me. It wasn’t the best experience, but my night did involve an unexpected piece of birthday cake, which made for a sweet ending.
That is all!
Read MoreChicken & Honey
Hello,
This weekend felt surprisingly long. Probably because I didn’t have to work on Friday. It felt so amazing on Thursday evening when I remembered! I feel very lucky to be on this little detour in my career path right now:)
Saturday evening was the highlight of my weekend. My parents took us to Raleigh for dinner and we tried the new Beasley’s Chicken & Honey. It was a cold and rainy night, perfect for some southern food. The atmosphere was simple, but urban and awesome, and I loved the menu. I’m excited that inexpensive, casual, urban nooks seem to be very trendy right now.
Matt and I split the Highland Winter Ale (fabulous!!) and Lonerider Deadeye Jack Porter over the course of the evening. The table shared an order of fried black-eyed peas to start – these were so strange, but good! Almost like popcorn.
Since my stomach seems to hate chicken skin, I avoided the fried chicken options and went with the sides sampler. Above is the biscuits with honey, sweet potatoes with brown butter, and pimento macaroni and cheese. Oh my goodness – this was the best thing I’ve had in a loong time.
The biscuits were perfect and the mac and cheese was simply to-die-for. I’ve got to go back and try the other sides!!! And, I’ve got to try the sister burger restaurant. I’m obsessed.
Today has been very cold and dreary, but for some reason I’ve kind of enjoyed it. We haven’t really had a winter here, so an occasional cold day is nice. I’ve been working on finding another part-time job, but haven’t secured anything yet, so my week is wide open. I’m pumped to catch up on laundry, cook something (!), and finally try to establish a routine with the new job.
Any news out there?
Read MorePhotos from Fernandina
A crystal clear sunset to a dark and stormy drink. Heavenly.
The crab bruschetta and the lobster & escargot with sweet peas, mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes over a puff pastry cake in an herb cream sauce. Extraordinary.
A day on the beach. Refreshing.
Games by the fire and a nap in a big arm chair. Relaxing.
A beer with a breathtaking view. Phenomenal.
A break from the real world. Fabulous
Read More
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?