The GreenvilleSCape Blog

The Upstate's Own Little Vineyard!

2012-01-28T12:04:00.002-05:00

Phew. I've been terrible about updating this blog lately, I know...but the good thing is, that's because we've been so busy experiencing more of what Greenville has to offer! I have at least three restaurant reviews to write, for instance. But first I want to talk about CityScape Winery in Pelzer!

This little vineyard is about a thirty or thirty-five minute drive from Greenville. Though the actual vineyard is a bit new, and though our South Carolina soil will really only produce one time of grape (that being muscadine), CityScape is currently aging, flavoring, and bottling their own wines - and doing a great job of it, I might add!

Though anyone over the age of 21 can drop by for a tasting, they don't have fixed hours and request that you call first - #864-329-0615. I actually scheduled a group tasting for Steve, myself and some friends on a Saturday afternoon in November - though I contacted them over a month in advance and they were almost fully booked for the day we requested! However, this was more because we had a large group (over a dozen people) than anything else, so if you just want to visit with a friend or two calling the morning of should be plenty of notice :)

The owners of CityScape are friendly and knowledgeable and above all willing to share that knowledge - to the point where you can even purchase a wine-making kit from them and they will give you detailed instructions on how to make your own wine!

Usually a tasting at CityScape costs $10 per person and includes a souvenir glass. Sometimes they will offer Groupon/Living Social deals though, so keep an eye out! Not only did we get glasses, but they served plenty of crackers and cheese and hummus and even some little cake bites to complement the 10-12 wines that we tasted.

Now, because they have to buy the juice from outside sources and age and flavor it themselves, in general the wine isn't going to be up your alley if you're used to extremely high quality wines or are very picky about wine - but I honestly enjoyed the majority of the ones we tried and in general it was just such a fun experience - and right in our own backyard, nonetheless - that I seriously can't suggest a visit to CityScape enough!

We were even able to go down to the outbuilding where they have the wine barrels and bottling supplies. As an extra plus, if you order wine from CityScape they will even help you design your own bottle labels - such as for weddings, birthday or anniversary parties and the like.

The CityScape store offers all of the wine types that they have in stock, of course, as well as fun gifts such as t-shirts, wine charms and the like. The great thing about participating in a tasting is that you can figure out which wines you want to go ahead and buy before heading home! Personally I enjoyed their Pineapple Reisling the most, so you know we bought a bottle of that :)

Although CityScape participates in a lot of upstate activities (in fact, they were present and doing a wine-making class and tasting at the Grown-Ups Night at the Children's Museum back in October), if you haven't been down to the actual vineyard for a visit and tasting, trust me when I say you're missing out! And don't forget to leave a little extra money in your bank account in order to purchase some bottles of their wine :)

Personal Event Recap: Roaring 20s Party at the Art Bar

2012-01-02T18:27:00.000-05:00

Phew! It has been a crazy, busy month for us and I have seriously slacked here at the GreenvilleSCape blog! The last time I posted I mentioned that we were having a private event at The Art Bar on Main, so I think it's only fitting that first things first I write about that party :)

We booked the Art Bar for this party about a month in advance. Thankfully they do not require any sort of deposit, just a minimum amount of sales that you need to make when holding a private event there - $1,000 total in the upstairs bar, to be exact. The room fits up to 60 people, so this is obviously an affordable amount...but I knew we'd be lucky to have 30 people show up and therefore decided on a menu of heavy hors d'oeuvres that would be included in a $10 per person "admission"/"cover charge".

The menu that the Art Bar created included all sorts of snacks - some of their delicious flat breads, merely cut in smaller slices; homemade hummus and pita chips, cookies, and more. For $10 per person it really was a great spread.

The only issue we really ran into was that the upstairs back bar really isn't big enough to hold a full range of liquors and mixers. The bartender also offered to have three specialty mixed drinks available for purchase upstairs, along with the usual beer and wine selections. We were back and forth a bit about what drinks to offer, and in the end he chose a Wassail (a warm spiced Christmas "punch"), Gin & Tonics and Godfathers (whiskey drinks). Originally I had mentioned a Planter's Punch (just as "20s" as the drinks that were chosen) and I do wish we had gone with that over the Godfather, only because that was a very strong drink made of whiskey and amaretto and it was a bit much, to be honest.

The Wassail...yum!

Now, we were able to get other mixed drinks and shots from the downstairs bar, but unfortunately only the single bartender was assigned to us. There was a waitress bringing the food and we were given the impression that she would be taking drink orders as well, but to be honest she was impossible to catch. At one point we had probably 35 people at the party and the bartender was definitely overwhelmed. Therefore my only suggestion to the Art Bar and anyone thinking about booking a private event there is to make sure that there are at least two employees for every 30 people, especially if one of those employees is going to be running back and forth getting mixed drinks from the downstairs bar.

In general, though, the venue was really great. The Art Bar's upstairs has it's own stereo system and you can bring your own iPod to hook up, which was an awesome option that we took full advantage of. It's a roomy yet cozy area and even when we had those 35-ish people up there it never really felt "too" crowded. And again, it was lovely to not have to deal with some sort of crazy/nonrefundable deposit. And we did end up making the minimum sales of $1,000, though just barely!

And of course the theme itself was a blast ;)

(Though as always some silly people did not dress up...::rolls eyes::)

Roaring 20s Holiday Party at the Art Bar

2011-12-03T16:19:00.001-05:00

Hi readers! (if any of you are out there, haha) I wanted to make a general announcement that NEXT Saturday - December 10th - GreenvilleSCape is hosting a "private" holiday party at the Art Bar. This event is being run through the Greenville Libation Lovers meetup group. It will have a Roaring 20s theme and we are encouraging everyone to dress the part! Flappers, gangsters and dappers all welcome :)

The cost for this event is $10 per person and that includes food. Of course, there will be specially chosen mixed drinks, wines and beers available for purchase as well.

If you're interested in attending this event, you can check it out its page with the Greenville Libation Lovers or email me at taralynne1213(at)gmail(dot)com. Though it is technically a "private" event, it will be a great way to have a fun different night out and meet some new people. However, you must sign up before the event in order to attend as spots are very limited.

Have a great rest of the weekend! We'll be back next week with a post about wine tasting at City Scape in Pelzer :)

Our First Road Warriors Game

2011-11-27T18:26:00.000-05:00

Last year was the first year that Greenville had a hockey team since the Grrrowl ceased operations in 2006, but unfortunately we had a packed fall and winter and weren't able to make a game. Still, we'd heard positive things and as soon as we had a free weekend this season I purchased tickets. We even splurged on very good seats when we attended the game on Saturday November 5th :)

The Road Warriors were playing the Florida Everglades this night. Parking around the Bi Lo Center was running just $5 (a far cry from the insane $20 that is charged when a popular concert comes to town), but we parked in the free Richardson garage and braved the chilly night and 10-15 minute walk rather than pay. Probably a good idea, as beers at the hockey games run $8 a pop :-/

The Road Warriors games have the usual three periods, but for whatever reason the "intermissions" are 20 minutes each rather than 10, which seemed a bit unnecessary to me. I understand that they want time for the zamboni to do its job and that they also want to entertain the people at the game, but unfortunately the entertainment is so reminiscent of that at the Greenville Drive games that it felt even less necessary than it would have otherwise.

Race between Sonic products rather than Bi Lo veggies ;)

The game was okay, though to be honest the Road Warriors - from what I can tell - aren't very good. Though they only lost by a couple of points, it was mainly because of questionable defense. I'm no hockey expert, but hey, I grew up in New England on the Whalers and the Wolf Pack, so I know a bit ;)

Of course we enjoyed ourselves, but between the price of decent seats and the cost of beer, I think it will be a while before we get back to a game. And unfortunately, apparently a lot of other people feel similarly - I doubt even a quarter of the seats at this game were filled. It was actually kind of sad to see how few people attended a Saturday night game :-/ I can only say that maybe the Bi Lo Center/the Road Warriors should consider lowering at least the cost of seats, and possibly the cost of seats and concessions. With a bit of advertising this would boost attendance and once that happened, we would probably have a better chance at keeping the Road Warriors in town rather than losing them the same way we lost the Grrrowl.

Dark Corner Distillery

2011-11-17T09:05:00.034-05:00

Greenville's very own aptly named distillery, the Dark Corner Distillery, opened recently on North Main Street - so you know we took the time to check it out as soon as possible. To be honest, I wasn't sure quite what to expect, but I will say this - I wish we had stopped by earlier, rather than 20 minutes before closing, and I wish we hadn't also been on our way to a hockey game - more on that in a moment ;)

When you first enter Dark Corner, you are in a little retail shop featuring some great upstate souvenirs - Dark Corner t-shirts, moonshine and shot glasses, mini age-your-own-whiskey barrels, books about the Greenville area and more. This is why I wish we hadn't been on our way to a Road Warriors game! I seriously would have bought out that store and yes, I do plan on going back for that very reason.

Through a door in the glass partition and you've basically entered the actual distilling area. Here is where they stock and sell their bottled moonshine, here is where you can see the stills where they make that moonshine, and here is where you can even taste their products. They sell their bottles for $38 each, but I definitely suggest taking the time to taste the moonshine before buying...if only to know what you're getting yourself into.

While I'm not sure that I personally could stomach more than the little taste I had of Dark Corner's moonshine, they do have a list of some interesting cocktails to try on their website, which is helpful. We tasted their whiskey as well while they discussed how they came to the decision to open Dark Corner. I only wish that we'd had more time to hang out and hear about this great new downtown business. I can say that we will definitely go back to pick up a bottle of our own moonshine and probably spend far too much money in their shop!

And of course, hopefully get some more tastes of the products they distill on site :)

Greer Oktoberfest, Take 2

2011-11-11T09:08:00.000-05:00

Last year we arrived at Greer Oktoberfest a little later in the day - sometime after 5 PM - and really enjoyed ourselves. This year, we decided to arrive a little earlier in hopes of shorter lines and the option to try more food. I had been hoping to meet some friends there, but it ended up just being Steve and I and that's probably for the best. Let's just say that the weather did not want to cooperate! Though it was sunny for Oktoberfest this year, it was also the South Carolina version of freezing. Especially for early October. And the wind!

Trying to keep warm at Oktoberfest

Needless to say, we didn't get as much time in at Oktoberfest as I would have hoped. We wandered around the shops, but unlike last year didn't see much to catch our eyes. We did enjoy a few beers, and I was happy that they again had some local brews from Thomas Creek along with the Spaten options.

We also watched a little bit of the traditional music and dancing, including seeing some locals (mostly children) get out there and dance. Probably to keep warm. It was really cute and had I not been so cold and had I had a couple more beers, I may have gotten out there to dance with them ;)

Dancing at the main stage

Unfortunately, we didn't make the best food choices. Steve had a good sausage on a roll type thing from the Bavarian Pretzel Factory. I picked up a pretzel from the same place, but it was cold and so hard I could barely bite into it. Disappointing, to say the least. Also, I think we were totally spoiled with schnitzel in Germany and Austria this past summer, too, because the schnitzel we had at Greer Oktoberfest was just awful. Really greasy/oily and the breading slipped right off the pork when we tried to eat it. Yuck. Whatever restaurant was selling this crap should be glad I don't remember their name.

Seriously disgusting schnitzel.

I will say that I regret not getting food from Ember, because whatever they were whipping up both looked and smelled delicious. Oh well...there's always next year!

We headed home fairly early because of the weather (I'm not kidding when I say I should have brought gloves!) but we'll be back again next year for another go. Greer Oktoberfest really is a fun little event and to be honest it's the one time of year we have good reason to drag ourselves up there ;)

Grown Ups Night at the Children's Museum

2011-11-06T13:03:00.000-05:00

Last month we finally got to check out Grown Ups Night at the Children's Museum! I was pretty excited about this because we missed the one they had earlier this year...obviously I don't have kids, so I never look at the Children's Museum website and I'm certainly not a "fan" of them on Facebook for that same reason. The Grown Ups Night event doesn't appear to have much advertising outside of these two mediums, so it's easy to miss out on. But who doesn't want to go eat good food and drink some wine and beer and act like a kid for a few hours?

"Found Object" Stegosaurus

We pre-purchased our tickets but arrived only to find that people who pre-purchased tickets had to wait in line to pick them up and get in...while people who were buying them that night got to walk right inside and buy their tickets! Other than a slight price difference ($15 each for pre-purchased; $20 each to buy at the door) there doesn't seem to be much incentive to buy your tickets online before the event. Especially if you're only one person buying one ticket and not part of a couple buying two...that extra $5 to not wait in line outside sounds good to me! That said, I do think there should be more incentive outside of a price difference for those who buy their tickets beforehand. Just sayin'.

There's a random pirate in the upside-down room!

I was actually pleasantly surprised at the many and varied food options offered at this event. There were wings, bread and dip, chips and dip, meatballs, fried mac-n-cheese balls, cupcakes, fried oreos, ice cream/gelato...the list goes on and on. Unfortunately, the drink options weren't as great. The fact that all food and one drink was included in the ticket price was great, but the fact that there were just a couple wine choices, a couple beer choices, and a hard cider that they ran out of within about an hour was disappointing to say the least. Some mixed drinks would have been nice, but if all they could have was beer and wine they should have had some better options! How about some local brews - Thomas Creek, RJ Rockers? Maybe try to feature regional wines?

Why is the asparagus so big and the eggplant so small?

We're excited about anything Star Wars

The Children's Museum is in fact really cool. And they had a great local DJ - DJ EZ - as entertainment. We got to play in the "Supermarket", climb in the suspended maze, experience the wind tunnel and pretend we were construction workers. We even considered going to the wine making seminar, which was unfortunately a disappointment - the room was really hot, the seminar lasted way too long, and the wine tasting at the end was sad. Just tiny little samples in tiny little plastic cups :-/ I guess that's why it was free, haha.

It's a good thing they time how long you use this magnet thing, or Steve would have hogged it all night

I hate that it sounds like I'm doing a lot of complaining about this event, because we really did have a good time. I think if they had had more/better drink options (especially at $4 a beer!) and it had been a bit less crowded, the event as a whole would have been ten times more enjoyable. We may give it another go in the future, and I do think that it's the type of event that everyone should make up their own minds about and therefore at least check out once :)

If only to climb in that suspended maze and play in the wind tunnel. For real.

Yay Greenville!

2011-10-31T11:59:00.003-04:00

Yahoo travel has named "America's Best Downtowns" and that's right, Greenville is on the list! With the likes of Chicago, San Antonio, Portland and Savannah, no less :)

With help from Frommer's and Livability, factors such as "attractiveness, accessibility, diversity of offerings, shops, restaurants, proximity of parks and cultural options" were considered. Greenville was one of the smaller towns listed and these places were picked for the list thanks to "easily navigable downtown areas and unparalleled attractiveness".

Go check out the list and see how our beautiful little city stacks up :)

Sippin' Safari, Take 2

2011-10-25T13:19:00.000-04:00

Last year's Sippin' Safari at the Greenville Zoo was plenty of fun, so of course we decided to hit it up again this year. Only this time, we didn't spring for VIP tickets...because last year we didn't feel as if they were worth it. The VIP section was shoved off in the back corner of the zoo, away from everything. They didn't really have that many extra wines to taste and the food was all of the cheese-and-cracker variety. We got cute little beanie flamingos but, well, we're grown-ups and don't need cute little beanie flamingos. VIP tickets are allowed entrance half an hour earlier, but Sippin' Safari is on a Friday night and us being grown-ups, we can't get there early enough to make that extra half hour truly count. Considering the difference in ticket price (literally double the cost - $30 for regular tickets vs. $60 for VIP), we simply couldn't justify it this year.

Of course, as luck would have it, this year they moved the VIP section to an area right smack in the middle of the zoo and were giving out nice-as tote bags rather than stupid beanie animals. But what can you do?

We arrived at about 6:20, ten minutes before the gates opened to all us "regular" people. I would say that we were inside by about 6:35 or so, even though the line was a bit long - they actually opened the gates a few minutes early. Now, last year we were shuffled to the left so that we could "experience" the VIP area - which means that I had no idea whatsoever that just off to the right are the Greenville Zoo's elephants!

After that we were of course free to wander, munch and sip on the great food and wine offerings presented by Bi-Lo!

Visiting our favorites...the Siamang Gibbons!

And our second favorite...the leopard! It always has good poses for us.

And of course...another good kitty.

Now...I have to take a moment to say one thing and one thing only: Dear Greenville Zoo & Bi-Lo, can you please have Sippin' Safari on a Saturday or Sunday? Because although the event lasts until 10 PM, by about 8:30 most (if not all) of the animals are away for the night...which takes away basically all of the atmosphere. Last year they left the reptile house open a bit later, and that helped, but this year it was locked by 8 PM! What's up with that???

To be honest, Sippin' Safari is fun. Especially if you've never been. As I said, you get to sample lots of tasty food and wine; doing it in a zoo just makes everything better. But now that we've been for two years in a row, we may just skip a year.

Unless of course they reschedule it for a Saturday or Sunday in 2012...then we're totally down. Just sayin'.

Fall for Greenville 2011: Some Thoughts.

2011-10-17T12:28:00.000-04:00

Fall for Greenville ended yesterday, and because I have a few timely thoughts on the festival I wanted to get my you-know-what together and write this post ASAP ;) You see, when we moved here in 2009 we missed FfG by two weeks...which led to my being extremely excited for it last year. Of course I was looking forward to it this year as well, but it wasn't until I heard that the Dirty Dozen Brass Band would be playing Saturday night that I allowed myself to get totally psyched up about it.

Dirty Dozen Brass Band - Wells Fargo Stage on Washington - Fall for Greenville 10/15/2011

Now don't get me wrong - last year it was definitely crowded when we attended FfG on Saturday evening. But this year it was so much worse. I mean, I could barely stand it. When I returned for a brief period yesterday to use up the last of my tickets, it wasn't even half as bad as it had been Saturday night - and yet it was still crowded. Which brings me to my first point - there really needs to be better tent placement and crowd control at this festival. Huge intersections with tents at opposing corners were entirely clogged with people waiting in line...why why WHY would you put a ticket tent and a beer tent across from each other like that? Those are the booths with the longest lines for the most amount of time.

Another thing I don't understand is why the tents don't have designated, roped off queue areas. This alone would keep large crowds of people waiting in line, for, say, food from the Sabroso tent (this tent was the most crowded food tent I saw all weekend. Constantly.) from blocking practically the entire road.

Last but not least in regards to my less positive notes - the beer. You see, last year a craft beer "cost" 6 tickets. This year they were 7 tickets. You buy FfG tickets in sheets of 8 for $5 a sheet, which means that each ticket is worth approximately 62 cents. That means that last year a beer was about $3.75, and this year that same beer would set you back about $4.37. That's a pretty big hike for a single year, folks. And on top of that, they completely changed the beer tasting option so that it was nothing short of a total rip off. Last year it cost 6 tickets for the tasting, and with those 6 tickets you could sample seven beers. Each sample was about 3-4 oz, so you were definitely getting your money's worth. This year, you had to pay 3 tickets for a sample cup, and then each 2 oz sample (and believe me, they only meted out 2 oz per sample) cost an additional two tickets. I realized after two samples that this was, as I already mentioned, a rip off. Too bad I had already wasted those tickets on the little sample mug.

Tired of the FfG beer prices...time for drinks at Rey's!

Now, I don't want it to sound as if I didn't have a good time - because even with the crowds and the sky-high beer prices, I did. There was some great music - including that from the band I went to see Saturday night - and some yummy food. I was able to sample the pulled pork sliders and lobster mac-and-cheese from Soby's, the doughnut burger with homemade chips from Grille 33, and the salted chocolate caramel cupcake from Chocolate Moose. On top of that, some friends and I agreed that the food portions were notably bigger this year - and that's always a plus :)

Also, I'm not sure if the city officials stepped in to make a difference or what, but parking was much more affordable this year. In 2007 we were forced to pay $20 to park two blocks off North Main. Last year we had my sister bring us and pick us up so that we wouldn't have to pay for parking or worry about driving. This year, the Richardson garage was free as always (though of course it filled up early, though I was able to park there yesterday afternoon) and all other parking was just $5. No matter how it happened that parking was capped at $5, I'm happy that it was!

All that said, yesterday was obviously far less crowded as a whole and I think next year Steve and I will make it a point to do our FfG day on Sunday :)

Lunch at P. Simpson's

2011-10-11T14:27:00.000-04:00

Recently my day job boss took me to P. Simpson's Hometown Grille in Simpsonville for a business lunch. Lunches like this don't happen very often, so it was nice to get out of the office and sit down for a real meal...on a weekday.

Now, I know that P. Simpson's isn't in Greenville, but close enough! Simpsonville is just 20-30 minutes from most parts of Greenville, and I had heard good things about P. Simpson's from friends. I was delighted to have a chance to try it out!

First things first...it's very dim in this restaurant. For whatever reason the ceiling and ~~most~~ some of the walls are painted black...this seems to be "the thing" nowadays, and I don't get it. But you know me...I was far more interested in the food ;)

P. Simpson's is known for using fresh local ingredients, and to be honest for a restaurant located in Simpsonville their prices reflect this. I think part of the problem is that I was there for lunch and was shocked that their lunch and dinner menus are, well, the same menu. I can and will certainly eat a big lunch once in a while; however, I can't help but shy away from paying an average of $20 for an entree. Thankfully, they do have a few sandwich options and some delicious looking small plates.

We shared the Fried Green Tomato & Chilled Fresh Lump Crab with Remoulade sauce as an appetizer and both decided on the P. Simpson's favorite Smoked Chicken Sandwich for our meals. And as promised the food was absolutely delicious - so much so that I would absolutely consider revisiting P. Simpson's for dinner, as their stuffed shrimp and beef tenderloin with red wine sauce sound extremely tempting.

As a whole, if you're looking for a light and inexpensive lunch I would say P. Simpson's isn't the place, but if you want a somewhat heavier meal comprised of delectable food, I say head on down (or over, or up, depending on where you live!) to Simpsonville and give P. Simpson's a try!

The Art Bar: Now Serving Liquor!

2011-10-07T11:21:00.000-04:00

Unfortunately, due to weather changes and allergies I missed the Art Bar's liquor launch party last week. I was disappointed because it looked like it would be such a good time...but I used missing it as an excuse to drag Steve out to Art Bar for some food and drinks over the weekend, instead :)

We shared a Croque Monsieur and the Artichoke & Goat Cheese French Bread, which were of course amazing. But what I really wanted to talk about is their drink menu!

First of all, putting together a mixed drink menu that is beyond the norm isn't the easiest thing ever. For instance, I love Smoke on the Water's "martini list" and Blue Ridge Brewing Company's selection of shooters. But most places just have the standards and don't try to veer from that.

Thankfully, Art Bar went that extra mile. You can of course order drinks not on the menu - an Old Fashioned, for example (with or without the muddled fruit), or a Gin & Tonic made with homemade quinine! But with their specialty cocktails - which they have dubbed "Artisan Cocktails" - you have some even more interesting choices. Art Bar plans on really going with the flow. The list will evolve to reflect the seasons of the year and the fresh ingredients that these seasons bring. For summer lovers there are options like the Georgia Peach (rum and peach puree, among other ingredients) and the very yummy Strawberry Fields (rum, fresh strawberries, etc.) At the moment they are also featuring fall-inspired drinks such as L'Automne 75, made with crabapple gin.

Add to all that other classic favorites such as Sazeracs and Sidecars, and I hope you can see why we were so impressed with the variety of Art Bar's new mixed drink menu. I highly suggest stopping by, chatting up the awesome bartender, and trying out some of these libations.

I know for sure that we'll be back!

Why we love being Greenville Drive Season Ticket Holders

2011-09-23T14:16:00.001-04:00

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you should know by now that we are huge fans of the Greenville Drive. And not just as baseball fans - as Greenville residents and people who appreciate the general awesomeness of the Drive experience.

After all, we did have our wedding reception in one of their suites. (Yes, during a game.)

My company had season tickets for the 2008 & 2009 seasons, but when 2010 rolled around they had to cut costs and reluctantly give them up. I knew that Steve and I couldn't afford $500+ per seat for full season tickets, but thankfully I checked out the site anyway. I had planned on longingly gazing at something I couldn't afford, but was instead rewarded with the knowledge that there were some much cheaper packages available - including one that was perfect for us, as it included mostly weekend games and cost less than $200 per seat.

Of course, the smaller packages include tickets to set games - some of which we won't be able to attend. But that's okay too, because when you purchase a season ticket package you are assigned a rep and all you have to do is email that rep prior to the game you can't attend. You can switch your tickets out to more tickets for another game you are already attending, or for the same amount of tickets to a different game entirely. You may not be sitting in your exact seats, of course, but there is no charge for this service and in the two years we've had our own season tickets, we've never had trouble switching out...sometimes even just a few days prior to a game! Honestly, we are probably the highest-maintenance weekend package ticket holders, but our rep Jeff C. is just beyond great to us. I can at least highly recommend him.

And of course, there are the other little perks that come with being a season ticket holder - namely, the gifts ;) Last year we received a little plus Green Monster and a replica statue of a Fluor Field chair; this year, the gifts were a Greenville Drive baseball and the chance to have our picture taken in front of the Green Monster wall. Just being out on the field waiting to have our picture taken was an experience in itself!

Hey look, our seats are over there somewhere! ;)

Add to this all of the other little events we get to attend during the year - the Hot Stove event, which happens in early spring and informs us about the upcoming season; batting practices in the fall; etc...and it's no wonder that we're such big supporters of the season ticket holder program. And as for the games themselves...let's just say that with a couple large $5 Yuenglings, a bag of peanuts and some silly entertainment between innings, they're the epitome of spring & summer fun :)

My Favorite Happy Hours

2011-09-06T11:10:00.000-04:00

I just wanted to take a moment to talk about two of my favorite happy hours here in Greenville.

First, my beloved Smoke on the Water. I love the atmosphere and the food and above all...the martini menu. So much that we had our post-ceremony, pre-reception cocktail hour here :) And their happy hour is stellar. I mean, really - half priced martinis? Who can beat that? Some of the more expensive ones will cost you close to $5 even during happy hour...such as this baby, the Milky Way:

However, there are plenty of $3.50 martinis on that list as well, and this is what makes Smoke on the Water my number one Greenville happy hour choice :)

That said, there are some great restaurants NOT located downtown, and while I haven't eaten at Papas & Beer on Haywood Road, I can speak highly of their happy hour! I was there just yesterday and my bill - for two margaritas and a 16 oz Dos Equis - came to a grand total of $6.87.

No, I'm not kidding. While the margaritas weren't amazing (Arizona Steakhouse still serves the best margarita in Greenville, in my opinion), they were also only $2.25 each. The beer? $1.65. You can bet I'll be back to Papas & Beer for some cheap drinks sooner rather than later!

Coffee Underground: Why didn't I know about the bar?

2011-08-31T20:22:00.001-04:00

As a self-proclaimed coffee aficionado, I am honestly appalled that I had to live here for nearly two years before ever visiting Coffee Underground. And honestly, I heard mostly good things about this place and had no reason not to go.

My first thought upon entering Coffee Underground was Why did no one tell me about the full bar?! And they have a great mixed drink menu to go with it! I honestly feel cheated by my fellow Greenvillites (Greenvillians?) who didn't share this very important bit of information ;)

Despite being in a basement (one of my pet peeves is the number of downtown Greenville bars located in creepy basements), the location is fairly spacious and the eclectic tables, chairs and couches are a great addition. It makes Coffee Underground feel cozy; homey, even.

I was actually visiting Coffee Underground for a day-long event and therefore was able to start my morning off with some of their house coffee (hot), continue with lunch, and round it all off with an iced cappuccino. Now, there was nothing amazing about the hot coffee, but it wasn't bad either. My veggie focaccia sandwich was delicious, but to be honest it was a bit small for what it cost. Where Coffee Underground really seemed to shine was - not surpisingly - their vast potential for specialized coffee drinks. And even though it was lunchtime, and they were fairly busy, they were willing to work with me to create something that wasn't quite on the menu - an iced cappuccino with just a dash of white chocolate flavoring, because I like a bit of sweet but don't care for syrupy coffee.

I think that if I had been at Coffee Underground by myself or with just a couple people, I would have thoroughly enjoyed my experience. However, I had heard that they aren't all that great with large groups and I believe this is a correct assessment. The photography class I was attending - a group of maybe 25-30 people - placed orders around 11 AM, and at 1 PM the majority of the orders were still not ready. Lunch rush is one thing, but two hours to put together some sandwiches seems a bit unnecessary.

That said, I will be back to Coffee Underground - and soon - if only to hang out and try some of those drinks at the bar I didn't know existed ;)

The Greenville Saturday Market

2011-08-23T10:32:00.000-04:00

Though we're closer to the end than the beginning of the Saturday Market season, I wanted to write about the single time we were able to pull ourselves out of bed and finally - nearly halfway through our second summer in this city - visit our farmer's market downtown!

Main Street was closed to all but foot traffic, from Court to Washington.This happens every Saturday from May to October, beginning as early as 8 am...so you can bet we'll be back again this summer!

We actually arrived later in the morning - around 10 AM - and spent most of the first half hour getting coffees at Liquid Highway. Still, we weren't looking for anything in particular and had a good time purchasing some potatoes, blueberries, goat cheeses...Steve even bought himself a jade plant!

Along with plenty of food, there were numerous craft booths selling local sheep wool yarn, gourd birdhouses, candles and much more.

My favorite purchase? Rosemary & Fig Chevre from Spinning Spider Creamery. Seriously, that cheese was beyond delicious.

A quick note - according to the website and word of mouth, dogs aren't allowed on the street while the market is set up; however, I did see people with dogs that definitely were not service dogs. Still, it can get a bit crowded and I wouldn't suggest bringing your pup with you even if that rule has changed.

Your Photo Safari, Greenville

2011-08-17T03:35:00.000-04:00

Back in June I sucked it up and bought a Groupon for Your Photo Safari, an approximately 7-hour-long class taught in downtown Greenville a handful of times throughout the year. I've always been interested in photography, but despite buying myself a [not so cheap] Canon DSLR for my birthday in December 2009 I had never gotten around to actually learning how to use the darn thing.

I finally had a chance to take this course toward the end of last month. It was a day packed with pretty basic information - all of which one needs to know, of course. We spent about two hours inside, listening to Gene Taylor talk about fun stuff like shutter speed and f/stops. This was followed by about 30-40 minutes outside with his assistant Megan Varone, during which we focused on shooting in...well to be honest it escapes me, but it was either Aperture or Program mode. We then took about a half hour long lunch and dove right back into the class until about 3:30 PM; once the lecture/Powerpoint presentation was finished we headed to Falls Park for some more outdoor shooting.

In general this class was very helpful. The one I attended was held at Coffee Underground, though, and the theater wasn't exactly the most convenient place for the lecture portion. This was mainly because we sat in wooden pew-like seats and had no desks or tables in front of us on which to sit our cameras or lay our booklets to take notes. However, we were notified that future classes would possibly be located in The Governor's School - both closer to Falls Park for the actual "safari" at the end of the class, and with tables/desks for the students' convenience.

If you have purchased a DSLR camera and want to actually get your money's worth from it, I definitely suggest checking out this class. Keep an eye on Groupon because lately they've been offering $89 classes through there every couple months or so :)

Finally, I'll leave you with a few shots that I took during the class! Some of them aren't so great but I promise they are an improvement over what I had been doing.

Practicing with the modes outside of Coffee Underground

Playing with shutter speeds to capture water movement

Close-ups!

Unfortunately not one of my better ones due to the washed out spot in the lower right, but I was practicing dealing with lighting issues.

Again, I'm no photographer but I did learn a lot - especially about f/stops, shutter speed, white balance...and now I'm off to practice Practice PRACTICE! :)

One final note - I don't suggest taking this class in the heat of summer, as I did. It made for a very uncomfortable "safari" portion of the day. Sad but true.

Ford's Oyster House & Cajun Kitchen: Great Food, but where are the Pimm's Cups?

2011-08-11T03:47:00.001-04:00

Ford's Oyster House is the lucky restaurant that picked up the empty space where Halfway to Habana used to be. This prime location was just itching for a longer-lasting restaurant and bar, and let's just say that we hope Ford's is it!

We dropped by here for an early lunch one Saturday, though we had already grabbed beers here after a Drive game a few weeks prior. The menu looked too good to pass up, especially as we're big fans of New Orleans-style food.

Up first - the New Orleans Style BBQ Shrimp! We had this dish in NOLA last year and loved it - my only issue is that Ford's uses the tiny shrimp and the classical style of this dish uses large shrimp with at least the tails still attached. Regardless, it was a yummy appetizer and I definitely suggest giving it a try.

In case you can't tell, I dug in before taking a picture. What can I say, it smelled good!

Unfortunately, Steve wasn't very hungry and my sister who was also with us isn't adventurous. She had the cheeseburger Po'Boy and he, a side of red beans and rice. I on the other hand had been dying to try one of their Hot Muffaletas!

Though my sandwich was neither cold nor hot (despite the name), it was delicious and reminded me very much of the one I had at Napoleon House in the French Quarter last year. If you're a sandwich person it's a must-try :)

Despite the fact that I was full and couldn't even finish my yummy sandwich and delicious french fries (seriously, I'm not a big french fry person and these were good), I had to order dessert. Because I'd been eying the Ford's menu and along with the muffaleta the Double Chocolate Bread Pudding was calling my name. I shared it with my sister and we both loved it!

Eat this. Seriously.

Needless to say, I'd already heard good things about Ford's and I was not disappointed. The only thing I really wish they would do? Embrace their New Orleans theme just a little more. I know, I know, what in the world am I talking about? One look at their menu and you see they have etoufe, gumbo, crawfish, oysters and po'boys along with the BBQ shrimp, red beans and rice and muffaletas.

But despite hearing live music here on our first stop, I haven't seen them feature a jazz or brass band yet. This is a niche that Greenville is sorely lacking in, as only the pricey Brown Street Club downtown features jazz music regularly. On top of that...the bartenders at Ford's either don't have the ingredients or the knowledge to make a Pimm's Cup or a Gin Fizz (though to be fair I didn't ask for a Hand Grenade or a Hurricane and they may make those). My motto for restaurant "theming" is Go Big or Go Home so what are you waiting for, Ford's? ;)

Introducing...Greenville Libation Lovers!

2011-08-02T15:30:00.000-04:00

Steve and I joined Meetup in January 2010, but I didn't admit that we were using a website to meet people until after we hosted a party for The Greenville Beer Meetup last summer. I'm not usually one to really worry about what other people think and honestly, Meetup has been such a blessing for us that I'm ashamed with myself for not writing about it before I did. Have we become BFF's with every person we've met through Meetup? Of course not. Have we totally, 100% enjoyed every single event we've attended through the site? Not quite. But whether you're using it to make friends in a new area or simply trying to keep tabs on great local activities, Meetup is honestly a really great resource.

That said, as I mentioned above we began hosting activities for The Greenville Beer Meetup last summer, and then earlier this year the former organizers stepped down (a new baby does take up a lot of one's free time). And when they stepped down, Steve and I - along with our friends John and Rhonda - stepped up. We took the helm of the group and have, at the very least, kept it fairly active with new get togethers.

Unfortunately, as the year wore on we had fewer and fewer ideas for these meetups. John and I looked ahead and saw a future of repetition, and we had already noticed that a lot of the old members hadn't been showing up as often - presumably because they had already attended numerous similar activities in the past (and I don't blame them for feeling that way, if that really was the case).

So the talks began. Would we keep trudging along? Would we leave the group? Or...would we re-brand it, in hopes that we wouldn't piss off too many of the original members while also having the chance to attract new ones?

In the end, re-branding it was! You see, Greenville has a wine meetup that is run by local restaurant group Table 301 - but they focus on the Table 301 restaurants (obviously) and mostly do wine dinners...many of which, while quality activities, can get a bit pricey. Between that and not thinking it would be a good decision to call ourselves the "Beer and Liquor" group, we decided to focus on libations in general. Quality ones. Our activities will also be limited in size - unless we are hosting or attending charity events, that is. We will host private parties, attend public (ticketed and non-ticketed) events, and visit local restaurants in bars for happy hours (to test out martini lists and wine and beer options, of course!). We'll continue with brewery tours and maybe try some nearby vineyards as well. Shoot, supposedly there is even a distillery opening in the Greenville area and you can bet we'll want to be some of the first to check it out!

We are... ::drumroll please:: The Greenville Libation Lovers! Come check us out...even if you just want to keep updated on great local activities :) It's free to join Meetup and as I said, this site and its local groups are really a great resource.

"I'll take the butter burger, please!" or, The Story of how One Woman Lost her Steak-n-Shake Virginity

2011-07-25T14:22:00.000-04:00

I'll admit it - I have a long history with Steak-n-Shake.

Not because I'd ever been there before, mind you. Because I refused to go there.

I'm not even sure how or why it started. I do know that in the summer of 2002, one of my best gal pals extolled the virtues of Steak-n-Shake to me and repeatedly attempted to convince me to go along with her as she grabbed numerous late-night meals there each and every week.

"No," I kept saying. "I just can't do it."

Something about Steak-n-Shake grossed me out. Was it the name? A little bit. Was it the fact that I didn't eat fast food, and wrongfully assumed that's what Steak-n-Shake was? Partly. It also didn't help that the only Steak-n-Shake in my area at the time was in the G H E T T O.

When I "met" my friend Marcy in late 2008 and realized that she had what can only be called "a Steak-n-Shake problem", I had been set in my ways for so long that at best I would ignore her stories about her numerous Steak-n-Shake visits; at worst I maybe poked fun of her about them (to her, not behind her back!). But when she started her quest - "Around the State in 70 Steaks. And Shakes." - I had to follow along.

Now, the idea to participate in said quest was something that came to me slowly but surely. Maybe it was that Marcy was going out of her way to visit every Steak-n-Shake in the state of Indiana...in the course of a single year. Maybe it was the mouth-watering pictures of burgers and milkshakes on the monthly Steak-n-Shake coupon page that kept finding its way into our mailbox. Or maybe it was the anagrams.

Okay, it was probably the anagrams.

But I digress.

Finally, one Sunday I pulled the Steak-n-Shake coupons out of our junk drawer (seriously, that's what we call it) and announced to my husband that we were going there for dinner.

"What the heck is Steak-n-Shake?" he asked - because he never lived anywhere other than Connecticut (until late 2009) and we don't have Steak-n-Shakes there.

"Err...I think it's sort of like Friendly's?" I explained (yes, with the inflection of a question. HA! rhyme.) "But with milkshakes instead of sundaes."

Husband wasn't sold, but he knows better than to say "no" to me and off we went.

The restaurant wasn't too busy when we arrived, but the hostess didn't seem to have any idea on God's green Earth where to sit us. Seriously, I couldn't tell if she just didn't want to be there or if she maybe wasn't intelligent enough to handle her job. We were finally shown to a booth and greeted by our waitress - who was the same age as the hostess (late high school? just graduated? an age that's so far in the past for me I can no longer tell exactly how old kids are when they're in that general range) but the exact opposite of her in personality. Her name was Mandie and although I think Husband scared her a bit with his anger over his placemat puzzle, she was absolutely great. Really friendly and engaging.

I, on the other hand, impressed her with how quickly I solved my anagram. I maintain that I did not use the picture of a stack of 32 pancakes as a hint. (Yes, we counted the pancakes, and there are 32 pictured.)

My meal was a Wisconsin Buttery Steakburger, fries, and a Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough milkshake with chocolate chip cookies on the side (!!!), which I just had to order after reading about it in one of Marcy's blog entries. Husband ordered a Pepperjack melt and a Peach milkshake.

The verdict?

::DRUMROLL PLEASE::

...it was all delicious! Though I'm not sure about the butter burger (a bit too greasy, but that should have been obvious) we both wolfed down our food, and when we were too full to finish the milkshakes there you bet your butt we took them home with us.

And - excitement abounds! - those coupons even came in handy! Albeit only for my burger and Husband's milkshake.

Our Very First Ever Steak-n-Shake visit was a rousing success. I think it helped that when we walked back outside, stuffed to the gills with burgers and fries and milkshakes, there was a gorgeous classic car parked right in front of the restaurant.

Dear Steak-n-Shake,

Though you may never replace Friendly's as my favorite burger-and-ice cream-joint, I will be back. Just keep sending those coupons. Thanks for being so good during my first time.

Yours, butter burger filled stomach and all,
Tara

First Girl's Pint Night Out at The Art Bar on Main

2011-07-22T11:20:00.000-04:00

The Art Bar on Main opened back in early May and I've been dying for a chance to check it out.

Enter a new Meetup group, Greenville's Girls Pint Out. Normally I'm not big on rushing downtown after a long day of work, but the first event they posted - a beer tasting with cheese pairings for only $10 - was right up my alley and I couldn't say no. Needless to say, I'm glad that I dragged myself out last night!

source

The Art Bar is above all a great concept. Located right on North Main downtown in a narrow three floor storefront, it is decorated with some truly interesting artwork by local artists (most of which, from what I could tell, was for sale). With eclectic - but not too big - beer and wine menus and a smattering of tapas-style food options (try the French-style flatbread with artichoke hearts, goat cheese spread and carmelized onions! it's amazing), the great thing about The Art Bar is that they aren't trying to hard. And yes, that's a good thing! They are doing what they do well rather than giving patrons too many average options.

Top all of that off with some amazing happy hour specials (half off bottles of wine and $2.50 quality beers such as Bavaria, Duck Rabbit and Thomas Creek - just to name a few), which run from 4 - 7 PM every day (even on Saturdays!) and all I can say is that I will be back.

As for the event itself - for $10 they started us off with a bottle of Bavaria and moved on to tastings of four different beers. The tastings were served in large shot glasses and paired with delicious cheeses, crackers, salami and chocolate from Whole Foods. And one of the best things about this event was that a portion of the proceeds went to Meals on Wheels Greenville! Pint Night Out lasted about two hours, but when it was over they announced that happy hour specials would continue all night long for those of us who had participated.

The proprietors of Art Bar were on hand to talk about their restaurant and chat with the customers, which added a truly friendly, open feel to the place. Let's just say that this is another great downtown establishment, so whether you stop in for happy hour or check out a future Pint Night Out I'm sure you won't be disappointed!

Mojo's is no Five Guys, but still worth a stop

2011-07-16T15:50:00.003-04:00

I'm not big on fast food, but personally I don't count restaurants like Five Guys Burgers & Fries and Mojo's as part of that category. They serve high quality meat and fresh-cut french fries, so really...who's going to argue with me?

My mom - a big burger fan - has been raving about Mojo's for quite some time now and I finally dragged Steve there on our way to the movies one day. The Greenville Mojo's is conveniently located in the Cherrydale area, a quarter mile at best from the Regal Cinemas there. It was a perfect stop for a quick meal before a matinee movie.

The restaurant is spartan in decor, perfect for a laid-back burger joint with black-topped tables and bright red chairs. Everything was spotlessly clean and the employees were friendly.

At Mojo's you order your food and they give you a number, which you take to a table to wait for them to bring your meal to you. They have baskets and peanuts available to snack on - for free - while you wait, which is always a plus. But don't snack too much, because they load you up with the food here! I ordered a Cheesy Haystack burger, Steve a hot dog, and we shared a large fry (big mistake, pardon the pun - we really only needed a small fry!) and a vanilla milkshake.

This entire meal cost us $15 and change and as you can see it was a lot of food for that amount of money. Everything was tasty and high quality and while I wouldn't say either the burger quality or fries were equal to Five Guys, I really love how Mojo's offers some great specialty burger options and the milkshake was one of the best I've ever had. Needless to say, we enjoyed our meal at Mojo's and we will be back!

We'll definitely be back to the Velo Fellow!

2011-07-09T14:28:00.002-04:00

The Velo Fellow opened about two months ago in the space below Mellow Mushroom at 1 Augusta downtown, and having heard good news about it we knew we had to get over there and check it out. So one night after a Drive game, looking for a beer other than Yuengling and a quick snack, we stopped in for what we thought would be just a quick drink and bite to eat.

There was a decent crowd and we could tell at first glance that the layout and decor were right up our alley. We approached the bar to order and the bartender was knowledgeable about their beers; although their selection is not as extensive as Barley's or the Trappe Door they have some great different taps and over two dozen bottles.If you're looking for Miller or Bud, this isn't the place to go, but if you enjoy craft beers and beers from the UK, I highly recommend checking out the list!

As for the food, we ordered a delicious brie & bacon sandwich and the fried green tomato appetizer. The pimiento cheese was some of the best I've ever tasted, but I wasn't so sure about the batter on the fried tomatoes - it was, to be honest, a bit too seasoned for my tastes.

When we arrived the background noise was just people talking, but a little while later a two man band took the floor. I think some actual background music - maybe Stones, Beatles and the like - would have been a great addition while waiting for the band, but at the same time it was nice to sit and wait for our food and have the ability to hold a conversation and hear each other.

Of course the title of this review says it all - we will be back to the Velo Fellow, to sample more of their menu offerings and hopefully a few new beers as well.

The Trappe Door has it all!

2011-07-02T11:48:00.001-04:00

(If amazing food and an awesome beer selection constitute "it all" for you like they do for us, that is)

We got together with a group of beer loving friends to check out The Trappe Door last weekend, and I can't emphasize enough how great the entire experience was. Although I do wish they had assigned our group of 14 two waiters, the one we had did a good job keeping up with us and was also extremely knowledgeable about the beer list and able to make some great suggestions.

The Trappe Door is a fairly new establishment located under Barley's Taproom, the main entrance being on West Washington between Barley's and Wild Wing Cafe. Personally I'm a bit tired of bars opening in basements in downtown Greenville - when they get crowded it gets a bit creepy and the bathrooms never work properly. But thankfully, The Trappe Door isn't trying to be more than exactly what it is - a Belgian themed restaurant and bar located in the exact place it should be, a basement with wood beams, dim lighting and sparse decor.

Along with a great setting, The Trappe Door offers over 150 beers, the majority being true Belgians with a short list of Belgian style beers brewed in the US and Canada. As previously mentioned, our waiter (I'm pretty sure his name was Eric) had tried many of the beers on the list and with just a bit of explanation about what beers we liked was able to give many of us perfect suggestions. My absolute favorite of the ones he gave me was Unibroue's Trois Pistoles - by far one of the best beers I've ever tasted!

Now, I was so hungry that I put away my food (and some of Steve's) before I could take pictures, but we tried the Lamburgers with beet relish and goat cheese, the Carbonades flamandes, and the Belgian waffle dessert. The Lamburgers were good as an appetizer, but to be honest for $9 I wish there had been more than just two of them. Also, the Belgian waffles could have used more ice cream (one tiny dollop of vanilla over three large portions of waffles just wasn't enough!) and maybe some more fresh fruit as well, but were otherwise delicious.

However, the Carbonade flamandes - a traditional Flemish beef stew - was possible the best beef stew I have ever tasted. It was worth every penny (at only $14) and I cannot recommend this dish enough.

A friend that was with us also tried one of the mussels dishes and ranted and raved about it; in fact not one of the 14 of us had complaints about any of our food or any of the beers suggested by our waiter.

All in all, The Trappe Door is a great experience and an awesome new hangout. Whether you just want to grab a great brew or have a tasty meal and the whole shebang, this is truly the place to go. Just keep in mind that you pay for what you get - although there are a handful of beers on the list that run $4-4.50, the majority are in the $7-9 price range...but worth every penny ;)

Portrait of a new Business: The Chocolate Moose

2011-06-27T12:08:00.000-04:00

Downtown Greenville has been hurting for a cupcakery, and apparently I'm not the only one with that in mind, as recently The Chocolate Moose was opened on North Main Street downtown!

Upon entering this little bakery, it's hard not to notice the tables set up both outside and inside, perfect for enjoying the yummy cupcakes and desserts you'll find within. Although actual decorations are a bit spartan, the ones that do exist are great at adding to the atmosphere of this small but open and friendly space.

Cupcake prices are $2.75 each, but buy a dozen for $30 and you'll save 25 cents per cupcake! And with so many different flavors, trust me when I say you won't have a hard time choosing twelve cupcakes to sample. They have the usual flavors - chocolate, vanilla, red velvet - and the night we stopped they also had options such as Peaches & Cream and Chocolate Peanut Butter.

The cupcakes themselves are light and moist with a generous dollop of frosting on top - but it's not the cheap stuff that you get on grocery store baked goods! I'm not a big frosting person, but my mom is, and both of us were seriously pleased with the quality of the Chocolate Moose cupcakes.

Other desserts offered at The Chocolate Moose include their secret recipe Tira-Moose Sue, cake pops and more! And believe me when I say that I can't get back to try some of these other offerings...as well as the Cookies & Cream, French Toast, Hot Chocolate, S'Mores, and Salted Caramel Chocolate cupcakes described on their website!

The Green Room Upstate: a great downtown option!

2011-06-19T11:39:00.001-04:00

The Green Room opened on North Main quite a few months ago, and after hearing numerous stellar reviews from friends we finally stopped by to check it out. We even wanted to make a full night of it - appetizers, entrees, drinks...maybe even dessert!

Our shared round of appetizers included the grilled artichokes over mozzarella slices, the bruschetta and the Ahi Tuna mini tacos.


Grilled Arthichokes over Mozzarella

Ahi Tuna Mini Tacos

While the bruschetta and the grilled artichokes were certainly tasty, it was the Ahi Tuna tacos that truly stole the show. If you're at The Green Room and just need a snack, or if you know you'll be ordering an appetizer, we highly recommend these!

Our group ordered numerous different entrees as well - a New York Strip that was on special, the Seared Scallops, the North Main Chicken, the pork chops, the seafood pasta and the TGR Meatloaf. We all enjoyed our meals immensely, but the real hits were the North Main Chicken and the scallops!

Seared Scallops over polenta with asparagus

TGR Meatloaf with jalapeno macaroni & cheese and creamed peas

The chicken was delicious and not at all boring as many restaurant chicken dishes can be. The scallops were large and succulent, cooked to perfection and somewhat surprisingly complemented by the simple side dishes of polenta and asparagus.

A note on the meatloaf - this was the dish that I personally ordered and while both it and the mac & cheese were extremely good, it is pretty darn spicy. I'm not big on spicy dishes and I still ate almost all of this meal, which attests to how delicious it was - but I do wish I'd had a bit more warning as to just how spicy this meal would be.

We also enjoyed some tasty drinks with our meal, and I can second a friend's opinion that the drink list here is well-rounded and that the bartenders know how to mix up a strong but still tasty drink. Unfortunately, when it came time to order dessert we were not offered any sort of menu but told they had just two options - pecan pie and cheesecake. Somewhat disappointing considering their online menu boasts such delicious sounding choices as blueberry bread pudding and "cookies and cream". My only real suggestion for The Green Room would be that they look into re-expanding their dessert menu :) Other than that, this restaurant is a great option for a somewhat affordable dinner out in downtown!

The Green Room

Walk on the Wild Side Charity Pub Crawl Recap :)

2011-06-13T11:08:00.000-04:00

This past Saturday was the big day for our safari-themed charity pub crawl in downtown Greenville. Of course I'm a bit biased, but I'd have to say that it went extremely well! In the end we had 41 people participate and we raised $365 for Greenville County Animal Care Services! And considering this first time event was pretty successful, we're definitely hoping to make it an annual occurrence :)

We started the evening at Mojitos on South Main, and they were gracious enough to offer us a special of any mojito for $5! It was a great kick off for a summer pub crawl, for sure.

Just after 7 PM, I blew my peacock call (borrowed from my father because I thought it would be funnier than a plain old whistle or air horn - and it was a big hit!) and we headed on to our second stop, Chicora Alley. Because we had planned on stopping everywhere for at least 45 minutes, everyone knew that they had time to order some of Chicora's yummy food as well as enjoy some great draft craft beers for only $3.25.

Our third stop was a Greenville staple - Connolly's - who is gracious enough to participate in basically any pub crawl that happens downtown, and even offer awesome specials such as $1.75 domestics and two-for-one car bombs!

Now, apparently we looked like we were having so much fun - or we just looked like so much fun - that we picked up four random people at Connolly's! They happily paid their $6 each and joined in with our shenanigans for the rest of the night.

Rey's was our fourth stop, and the only semi complaint that I have about the evening revolves around this. Despite having been in contact with the manager, the bartenders had no idea that a pub crawl would be stopping there. However, we still ended up attracting I two more people with our crawl and around 10 PM it was time to head over to Hoops and Hops!

Hoops and Hops was by far one of the easiest places to get in touch with when planning this crawl. They were happy to be involved and offered up a ton of great specials for us, including $5 Jagerbombs and $1 jello shots! We settled in here until about 11 PM, as they were still serving food and some of us wanted to snack a bit ;) And from there we moved on to our sixth and final stop, The Gathering Spot. They had a DJ that evening and us pub crawlers settled in to dance the rest of the night away!

All in all, we took what we felt were the best ideas from past pub crawls that we've been to in Greenville and combined them for one heck of a fun night. As I already mentioned, we raised $365 for GCACS and I hope to put on another Walk on the Wild Side pub crawl next summer and maybe raise even more money for a great cause!

Charter Amphitheater and Blues, Brews, BBQ

2011-06-07T12:12:00.001-04:00

Saturday June 4th marked our first venture down to Heritage Park in Simpsonville, period, and it was for a concert/festival at the Charter Amphitheater. The Blues, Brews & BBQ Festival featuring BB King, to be exact.

We had purchased general admission tickets for the festival, but splurged a bit on the $15 per person upgrade for tickets to the P Simpson's ~~VIP Tent~~ Hula Hut. Seriously, it was the "VIP Tent" when I bought the tickets and the "Hula Hut" when we arrived at the event. I didn't really understand their logic behind changing the name, other than that they had some paper lanterns and fake grass a la grass skirts hanging around the tent ::shrug::

Sunset at Charter Amphitheater/Heritage Park

Pluses about the Charter Amphitheater? Free parking. Fairly decent prices for good concerts (future shows include Willie Nelson and Miranda Lambert!). An extremely clean lawn area - cleaner than any lawn area I've experienced before. Water fountains (maybe not the best water ever, but at least they exist).

Cons? The only covered area is the P Simpson's tent - even the seats, which are obviously more expensive than general admission, have no shelter. And the stage looks like a giant box thrown into a field...just not very appealing.

Paper lanterns in the P Simpson's tent

As for the P Simpson's VIP Hut (or whatever it's called), I'm still not really sure that it was worth the extra $15 per person. Sure, it gets you closer to the stage for a much cheaper price than a seat, but the angle is terrible and you really can't see the stage well. Also, I was under the impression that there would be better food and drink for purchase in the tent - no can do. They had popcorn, that's it. There was a full liquor bar but the only beer offered in the tent was Budweiser, Bud Light and Bud Light Lime. I suppose if you don't mind the bad angle and want the access to a full bar, then the VIP Hut is for you, but otherwise I would say don't waste your money. I wish I had been able to find proper information on this offering before purchasing our tickets, to say the least.

Now, the festival itself? Another thing I could find next to no information for! A bit maddening, for sure. Of course we knew the line-up and were stoked to see Buddy Guy and BB King, especially, but I would have loved to know more about the "Brews & BBQ" portion of the event, because to be completely honest both were seriously disappointing. "Brews" consisted of a few places where you could get Bud and Bud Light, I think one Miller Lite tent, and three little trailers offering Fat Tire, Sam Adams and Blue Moon.

Buddy Guy in the crowd!

That's it.

I just don't think this festival has a right to call itself "Blues, BREWS, & BBQ" when it offers few small brewery selections and no microbreweries at all - not even local ones!

As for the food, there were a few tents selling snow cones and other such snacks, and a total of three BBQ vendors. We ate at Sonny's and while the food was good (well, the BBQ was good; the mac and cheese was okay at best) the line was horrendous. As were the lines for the other two vendors. Because there were thousands of people there. And to me it would have made sense to have more than three BBQ vendors at an event that touts itself as a BBQ event.

We arrived in time to basically just see Buddy Guy and BB King. Buddy Guy was great and even left the stage and performed in the crowd. As for BB, I have no complaints. He wasn't the greatest "performer", per se, but that's probably because the guy is in his 80s! I saw some sort of negative reviews of his more recent concerts before attending this event, and while his performance was certainly more laid back than Buddy Guy's, it was still amazing to see.

BB King

All in all, I'm glad we went for the music but again, I really don't think this festival has the right to tack "Brews & BBQ" on its name. As for the Charter Amphitheater, I'll be giving it a second chance in July when Miranda Lambert comes to town, and this time I'll have seats so we'll go from there ;)

Downtown Greenville is booming with business!

2011-05-31T16:42:00.000-04:00

We've seen many new businesses open in downtown Greenville since first moving here in October 2009, but WYFF has it right when they say that in the past 6 months things have really picked up.

We certainly can't claim to have visited all of the new restaurants and shops - which include such promising places as The Trappe Door and it's great beer list, The Art Bar on Main with it's different setting, The Chocolate Moose as our new cupcakery, and more. But it's a sign of the times in Greenville when so many businesses (according to WYFF, 14 in a 6 month period!) are planting roots in our beautiful city.

Personally, my concern lies in a the giant complex that will supposedly open downtown and feature box retailers like Anthropologie. Our city is what it is because it nurtures the small business. The best restaurants, bars, and shops downtown are ones owned by locals. We're crossing our fingers that these places won't be pushed off to the side to make room for skyscrapers that will shadow our streets and chains that will undercut their prices.

Announcement: Upcoming Charity Event!

2011-05-17T19:59:00.000-04:00

In case you read our blog and aren't a fan of GreenvilleSCape on Facebook, I wanted to make sure everyone knew about a great event that we are organizing!

Please spread the word...this is for a good cause!

On Saturday June 11th, starting at 6::30 PM at Mojito's on South Main, we are hosting a pub crawl in downtown Greenville with a safari/jungle theme. Don't dress up, or do. But you probably should. :) Crocodile Dundee, Steve Irwin, Teddy Roosevelt, a gorilla, a jungle cat...I really don't care what you wear, but let's be festive for this one :)

We will stop in at least 6 bars in downtown Greenville. We will spend approximately 45 minutes at each bar. As of 5/17/2011 the schedule is as follows, and you WILL need to prepay the $6 fee to get the drink specials:

1) Mojitos ($5 Mojitos, $2 domestic beers)
2) Chicora Alley (drink specials TBA)
3) Connolly's (drink specials TBA)
4) Rey's (drink specials TBA)
5) Hoops & Hops (drink specials TBA)
6) The Gathering Spot a.k.a. G Spot ($3 vodka drinks, $2 domestic beers; if they have a cover this night it will be waived for us)

Again, it's only $6 to participate and PLEASE pay ahead of time. You absolutely CAN give more than $6 per person though - EVERY SINGLE PENNY of "profit" from this fee/any additional money you pay will go to the Greenville County Animal Care Services. GCACS takes in many animals; they are often overcrowded and many times the animals they take in have health problems. They are always in need of extra funds!

Check out our event page on Facebook

And as always feel free to comment here on the blog or email me at the address listed on the Content and Contact Info page :)

(And if you can't go...we would certainly appreciate you sharing this event through your blogs/Facebook pages/Twitter pages/etc. if at all possible. I would love to raise a good chunk of money for GCACS!)

Portrait of a new Business: Fitness Shakers

2011-05-13T13:36:00.000-04:00

Last night I had the pleasure of experiencing one of Greenville's newest business - Fitness Shakers on Chick Springs Road. Located just minutes from downtown and just off Wade Hampton, Fitness Shakers focuses on Zumba classes but also offers hip hop classes for children and adults once a week.

The owner of Fitness Shakers is Deidre Robinson, a Greenville area native who left a career in the wireless phone industry to chase her Zumba passion. Deidre lost 155 pounds between early 2009 and now, mostly thanks to Zumba and a healthy diet and lifestyle. She is a true success story and it is largely due to her love of Zumba! You can truly see how much she enjoys instructing and helping others on their weight loss journeys.

Fitness Shakers offers a great class schedule that is perfect for those who work an eight to five job, and there are some great payment options - single classes are only $8 each, but you can buy an unlimited month of classes for $65 as well! A third option is the Shakers Pass; for just $40 you get 10 classes and can take them anytime you want. No contracts, no autodraft - just a customer-oriented business doing things the right way.

As for the Zumba class itself, I went to one of the "easier" classes (from what I was told) and I'd bet anything that I burned the 400+ calories Deidre mentioned we would likely burn. And yup, I was definitely eying some of that cute Zumba gear as I dragged my way out the door!

For my part, I will definitely be back at Fitness Shakers ASAP; probably with one of those Shakers Passes. I wish Deidre the best of luck as she obviously loves what she does and has an amazing idea and opportunity for Greenville area residents with this studio.

I took a deep breath, but I'm still upset at Guadalajara.

2011-05-10T14:59:00.000-04:00

I of all people understand that visiting a restaurant/bar on any major partying holiday is just asking for issues with service, but what happened to myself and two friends at Guadalajara on North Main Street in downtown Greenville on Cinco de Mayo was just beyond any bad experience I've ever had at a restaurant.

And I understand that telling this story in its entirety may mean that I look, well, a bit stubborn. But it just goes to show you that you should always, always make sure you receive an itemized receipt, because your story could be the opposite of mine. Just sayin'.

Let me preface this by saying that I'd been to Guadalajara once before, and while their food probably isn't the absolute best Mexican food in Greenville, it's one of the better Mexican places downtown. Their margaritas taste more like sour mix than anything else and you can get a better one at Arizona Steakhouse, but again...pretty good food and prices, a great location and decent service led me to believe I wasn't making a mistake in going back.

Myself and one other friend arrived at around 4 PM on Cinco de Mayo and the restaurant was completely empty. Another friend joined us a little over an hour later. We asked for our check around 6:30. In the time that we were there, we spent $85 (pre-tip) on food and alcohol. I feel it necessary to mention that our server was very attentive, even once things started getting busy (which was a little after 5 PM).

When we asked for our check, the last round of drinks we had ordered was already half finished. We probably hadn't ordered drinks in at least 15-20 minutes. The waiter brought the check and I paid it, but all he brought me was a copy with the total on it. Nothing showing what I had actually ordered. At this point I just wanted an itemized receipt for my own purposes; I didn't think they were trying to rip me off or anything. I asked for said receipt and when the waiter came back, he was suddenly claiming that the cashier had made a mistake and somehow left two drinks off my check. And that we needed to pay for them.

Considering we hadn't ordered for so long before even asking for the check, I politely explained that I had already paid for my food and drinks and would prefer to just be able to leave. The waiter said he would have to talk to a manager, which I expected, so of course I agreed. With a smile. At no point during this exchange was I rude or demanding. (Having worked in the restaurant industry for over 4 years, I know better than to act like that)

When the waiter returned, there was a woman with him who I assumed was the manager. She immediately shoved the bill for the two extra drinks at me and basically demanded that I pay it. I explained the situation to her, again as politely as possible. She went through the itemized bill and kept insisting that the two extra drinks were ours (one of them may have been but the other one definitely was not) and we had to pay the bill. At this point I decided to be a bit more firm in my insistence that I shouldn't have to pay for these extra drinks. Again, I'd already closed my tab and put the entire thing on my credit card. I had spent a very decent amount of money there, even by Cinco de Mayo standards. They had made a mistake on our bill; had I not asked for that itemized receipt this issue never would have been an issue in the first place.

Unfortunately, instead of doing what any restaurant manager would have done (that being, take a deep breath, suck it up and let us leave in hopes that we would actually return to their establishment in the future), this woman slammed the receipt down on the table and basically yelled, "If you won't pay you're bill, I'll call the cops. They're right outside, do you want me to go get them?"

I assumed she was bluffing. I could have been wrong. I told her, "Fine, go get the cops." I mean, I wasn't being ornery. I wasn't even drunk. The worst they could do is insist that I pay the bill. The woman stomped off and big surprise, did not go get the cops. She simply went back to her station...at the cash register.

That's right, this entire time I thought I was speaking to a manager, but really...I was dealing with a cashier. The same cashier who obviously made the mistake on our tab in the first place had pretended to be a manager and threatened to call the cops on me over a $15 bill that she couldn't even prove was totally mine in the first place.

So at this point, I was obviously even less happy. I grabbed the attention of the nearest waiter and told him that I needed to see a manager, a real manager, not the cashier. Immediately. He could tell I was angry and obviously didn't want to make me any more angry, so he agreed and said it may take him a few minutes, but he would find someone to help us out.

At this point, a bouncer approached our table. Because although the cashier hadn't called the cops, I guess she assumed the bouncer could make us pay our bill. He basically hovered over us and told us we had to pay the bill; I found myself re-explaining the situation to him. He replied, "Why don't you just pay the bill?"

My response? "Because she threatened to call the cops on me over a $15 bill that I'm not entirely sure is even mine. I paid the bill they brought me, I spent a lot of money here tonight, I just want to leave."

He just looked at me.

And stood there.

Eventually the bouncer got called away. He returned about 30 seconds later and told us to "just leave". I asked, "We can leave? Without paying this bill?" He nodded and said, "They just want you to leave."

Fine with me, that's what I wanted to do all along!

We got up to leave. My two friends made it to the door, but at this point the manager finally shows up! And he shows up to stop me and say, "Where are you going, you have to pay this bill!"

Seriously???

I explained that the bouncer had told us we could leave, and that I had already clarified that that meant we could leave without paying this ridiculous $15 bill. The manager insisted, again, that I had to pay it. I explained the entire situation yet again and told him that this issue was simply not my problem, it was theirs. He started to argue with me, stopped himself, and finally said, "Okay, just go."

"Go? Without paying this bill?"

"Yes."

So yes, I got to leave, but not without first making sure that the manager knew that this entire situation was completely and entirely the fault of the cashier, that our waiter had been a great server and shouldn't be penalized. Of course he likely didn't listen to me, but at least I tried.

As one of my friends said, I'm not really sure what is worse: that I didn't have to pay the bill, but now feel that I can never return to Guadalajara; or that if I had paid the bill, I wouldn't have wanted to ever go back there.

I guess it's up to you guys to decide, but I for one am glad I didn't back down in this situation. Lord knows there was enough price-gauging and money-making going on at that restaurant that night. And possibly a couple drinks showing up on people's tabs that were never ordered in the first place.

Just sayin'.

Lazy Goat: Decent Food, Bad Experience

2011-04-30T17:07:00.002-04:00

Last night we finally got to try Table 301's Lazy Goat restaurant, located behind the Hampton Inn on the river. The space itself has an interesting layout and great views; we ate outside and were even treated to live music from a jazz fest happening across the water.

Our reservation was for 8 PM but we arrived a few minutes late and were seated at about 8:20. We were able to order drinks right away - Steve and I shared a pitcher of the St. Germaine cocktail - but then we waited at least 20 more minutes before our waiter finally came back and took our dinner order. One of our friends tried to order the lobster risotto, but they were out of lobster. Thankfully the waiter was ready with the option for her to have the risotto with shrimp at a slightly lower price, and she accepted.

View from the Lazy Goat's patio seating

We had ordered numerous tapas for the table - the duck duck pizza, the fried goat cheese, the Moroccan lamb, and the garlic shrimp. Steve ordered the lazy paella and our other friend ordered the cuban pizza...only to have the manager approach our table about 10 minutes later and explain that they were out of something needed to make the cuban pizza, as well! Our friend changed his order to a different pizza, but at this point the situation had already been frustrating and did not bode well for the rest of our time at the Lazy Goat.

The yummy St. Germaine Cocktail...Pitcher

The tapas came out first, of course, and we munched away. Everything was tasty, thankfully - I especially enjoyed the garlic shrimp and the Moroccan lamb, though the lamb was only tops when served with the yogurt sauce on the pita bread (by itself it tasted a bit over-seasoned).

About the time we finished with the tapas, the waiter brought out Steve's paella. About ten minutes later he brought out our friend's pizza. The risotto never came. Eventually we approached the manager about this; he promised to rush it out but at this point our friend didn't even want it (understandably). The manager, George, was extremely apologetic and honestly handled everything very well; I absolutely have to give him props for that. Obviously we didn't have to pay for the entree that never arrived, but in the end I was charged for extra pita bread that I never received (and only didn't complain because everything had been such a mess and it was just $1) and we weren't really given anything but an apology for the slow service, the fact that they were out of two of the things we ordered, and just the general messiness of the entire experience.

The Lazy Paella

The friends that we ate with have been to Lazy Goat numerous times and said this was the first time they'd ever had anything other than an awesome dinner. I'm obviously inclined to believe them, but to be completely honest the whole experience left a bad taste in my mouth. There are so many awesome restaurants in downtown Greenville and when it comes down to it, even if we'd had a perfect meal I wasn't so impressed with the food, especially when considering the prices at Lazy Goat. Tapas-wise, I suggest Cazbah or Nose Dive; if you're looking for a nice meal in the $20-30 per entree range, you're better off at Sassafras or Soby's.

Thomas Creek Brewery Tour

2011-04-19T15:07:00.000-04:00

There happen to be a couple of great local breweries in the Greenville area, and because I'm an organizer for the Greenville Beer Meetup I took the opportunity to schedule a tour of Thomas Creek Brewery this past weekend. Paige at Thomas Creek was extremely helpful in scheduling the tour for 4 PM on a Saturday and allotting a good hour/hour and a half for us to wander around, hear about the facility, and sample some beer.

One of the best things about this tour was that they gave us samples as we took the tour. We toured RJ Rockers in Spartanburg last year and while there we toured first and sampled later, but it was really great to have the beer in hand and the brewer talking to us about it as we explored the brewery.

Thomas Creek is definitely a laid-back place, between the radio blasting and the resident pups - Porter and Nugget - wanting to lap up beer and play fetch. It was cool to basically get to "hang out" with the employees as they packaged up some six-packs for distribution...however...all of this activity meant that it was pretty hard to hear our tour guide. I myself missed a good portion of his explanation of Thomas Creek's brewing processes, which was a bit disappointing.

Still, it was nice to feel, well, almost "at home" here. The samples were flowing and many of us went home with cases, growlers, and t-shirts of our own. As buying a growler on premises is one of very few ways to get my favorite Thomas Creek beer, Stillwater Vanilla Ale, you bet we filled up on that ;o)

If you have some beer lovers coming to visit, or if you can gather up a small group of beer loving friends, give Thomas Creek a call and set yourself up a tour.

Just be prepared to share your samples with Nugget.

Mojitos: Something of a Hidden Gem

2011-04-12T21:05:00.002-04:00

I actually found Mojitos through restaurant.com and I can only say that it was one heck of a great find! Had it not been on the list of offered restaurants I have no idea when we would have stumbled on it, because despite being right on South Main Street downtown it's quite unassuming.

First things first, we of course ordered some mojitos! Fresh muddled mint, a decent amount of rum and a splash of mixer...they were great! Considering how many badly made mojitos are out there, I can at least say that you can get a good one at this particular restaurant/bar :)

Classic/Cuban Mojito

Ropa Vieja

Food-wise, we couldn't decide between the Cuban sandwich and the entrees...so we ordered both! Seriously, we each had a Cuban sandwich and we also ordered the Ropa Vieja to share. Although there was a bit more ham on my Cuban than I would prefer, otherwise the sandwiches were delicious. As for the Ropa Vieja (pulled beef brisket in a tomato-based sauce with onions, peppers and garlic)--served with white rice, black beans, and sweet plantains--it was cooked to perfection and the rice and sweet plantains complemented it especially well.

Mojitos in Greenville SC

My only note on the decor of Mojitos is that the high-top tables in the center of the restaurant have backless stools, which I personally don't feel are the most comfortable/best choice. However, the bar stools are fairly comfortable and not crowded on top of each other, and there are some great couches against one wall that would be great for a relaxing seating option where you can have a few drinks. They play music from bands such as Pochy Y Su Cocoband, Willie Colon, Celia Cruz, etc. but the music is there as great atmosphere/background music and isn't overpowering. There is a small stage as well where they do karaoke on Saturday nights, for those interested!

As a whole, Mojitos offers great Cuban food at affordable prices, with the right drinks to complement their menu. Other than some traditional Cuban dishes, you can also get more Americanized sandwiches and, not surprisingly, burgers. It's a short menu, to be sure, but there's no lack of variety. We will be returning!

Greenville Drive Opening Night, 4/7/2011

2011-04-09T13:46:00.000-04:00

Well folks, it's that time of year again--baseball season, of course--and if you've been reading our blog for a while you surely know that we are big fans of the Greenville Drive. Heck, we had our wedding reception at a game last August! We are also [partial] season ticket holders - we have the weekend package, which gets us tickets to I think 12 weekend games and 3 weekday games. Perfect for us as it's difficult for us to make the weekday games, and the Drive is also great with working with us if/when we need to switch out our weekend games as well!

Anyway, being the 8 to 6-ers that we are, we were a bit late for the game on Thursday. Boo. We arrived to pick up our season ticket package at 7:10 but were honestly surprised to hear that the game had already started...and it didn't help things that the will-call line was a good 20 people deep. It took us about another 10 minutes of waiting to pick up our package, but hey, it was only the bottom of the first at this point, so we sucked it up and didn't complain much about the line.

Unfortunately, when we entered the stadium we realized that the lines to get wristbands (which you need to purchase beer) were twice as long as the will-call line! I've been going to Drive games--mostly weekend ones, and this was my third opening game--since 2007, and I have never, ever seen the wristband line this long.

But of course we waited. And a good 10 minutes later, we finally had our wristbands. And we missed a couple awesome runs by the Drive. So at this point...we were not so happy.

The concessions line was only about 5 people deep but again led to quite a long wait. As such, it was every bit of 7:45 before we took our seats, $5 large Yuengling drafts in hand, and got to actually enjoy the game.

Thankfully, the Drive did not disappoint! They beat the Augusta Greenjackets a whopping 12 to 6, and at the end of the evening we were again quite pleased with our Drive experience ;)

We have yet to try out any of the new concessions; however, the new menus--which are on flat-screen TVs--were definitely a great addition (not surprisingly). We only hope that they work out the kinks with the lines, because as the night wore on and people took their seats this game didn't seem any more crowded than opening night last year, or any of the sold-out weekend games I've been to in the past. Hopefully they were just a bit slow on the uptake and things will improve. Regardless, we'll be attending plenty of games this season and you're sure to hear about our upcoming experiences. Until then...let's PLAY BALL!

St. Patty's Day at Fitzpatrick's

2011-03-30T10:24:00.002-04:00

After experiencing Fitzpatrick's once before and being pleased with the food and atmosphere, we decided it would be the perfect place to celebrate St. Patty's Day this year. We assumed it would be crowded and rushed over there as soon as we could, arriving about 6:40. There wasn't an empty table in sight (no surprise) - but on top of that it was a general madhouse...no host/hostess to take your name or anything. (And as the evening wore on it became more and more apparent that they were severely understaffed, which seems to me a bit like bad planning for a major Irish holiday at an Irish pub.)

We stood around for about 5 minutes, until I got tired of hoping someone would help us and approached three girls who were sitting at a large table. They had three empty chairs and I basically just asserted myself and asked if we could sit with them. Of course they said yes - after warning us that they had been there nearly 20 minutes and a waitress still hadn't come around. At this point I did us all a favor and approached a group of waitresses who were milling around at the back of the restaurant to ask if someone could help us. Within ten minutes we had drinks and were able to order food as well. Unfortunately they were serving a limited menu and had already run out of their Irish stew and Guinness cake! Again, poor planning.

To be completely honest, I'm fond of Fitzpatrick's. I like the dim lighting and the paneling and the [nearly] authentic feel of the place. As long as you stick with the Irish-inspired dishes on their menu (awesome fish and chips!), along with a couple other random options that I can vouch for as being delicious (their meat loaf sandwich is to die for, but their nachos are disgusting, avoid them at all costs), you'll be pleased with the food. The beer selection isn't the best in Greenville but better than most places in Fitzpatrick's general area (Laurens, Pleasantburg, and Haywood roads, for example). And the prices are great as well. I can imagine that had they been properly staffed and paying attention to new arrivals, St. Patrick's Day would have been a lot more fun there. In fact, the Irish band they had was great, but as they offer a live traditional Irish band on a regular basis it's not like one would have to go on St. Patrick's Day to get this experience.

Our conclusion? Service here is good if it's not insanely busy. (Good, but as a note - nothing spectacular, especially if you have a larger group, as we did the other time we went) Food is outstanding if as I said you stick to the Irish dishes or the dishes Fitzpatrick's is known for (again, the meat loaf sandwich! order it! and the "Bookmaker" is great as well). If you want a place with decent prices and drink options without going downtown, I also suggest checking out this bar. Don't be fooled by the blase exterior, either - because the inside is quaint and far more attractive than the gray square building it's housed in ;o)

A Return to Nose Dive

2011-03-21T13:58:00.001-04:00

Waaayyy back in January, I wrote about our great New Year's Eve experience at Greenville's new restaurant, Nose Dive. This celebration included a small taste of Nose Dive's menu, but when we were considering dinner out this past weekend I couldn't pass up the good things I'd heard about their full offerings. So Saturday evening we headed out to a real meal at Nose Dive, which touts itself as Greenville's first "true gastropub".

One thing I love about Nose Dive is how simple the menu is. And I don't mean simple in terms of offerings, because those are varied! I mean that it is broken up into a few different categories, and everything within those categories is priced exactly the same. Starters are $6, for instance; sandwiches and burgers are $8; true entrees are $14; etc. My parents were with us as well and my mom, much as I love her, is a notoriously picky eater. I mean, she'll try just about anything, but she's an amazing cook herself and she absolutely can and will pick apart a meal that is even, in her mind, slightly sub-par. So imagine my relief when we were all extremely pleased with our meals!

For starters, my dad and Steve split the Scotch egg and my mom and I shared the Trio of Fries. She preferred the porcini-dusted fries; I, the sweet potato. We both agreed that the aioli dip was absolutely amazing! My dad simply wouldn't shut up about the Scotch egg, either - he'd wanted something different, that's what he got, and he loved it.

My sandwich - the Nose Dive chicken sandwich - was also delicious. Pulled chicken, tomatoes, basil, mozzarella...I had nothing bad to say! I also loved how they give you a choice of fries (regular or sweet potato), cole slaw, or a salad (Caesar or House) with the sandwiches. Thank you for not making me pay a $1 or more upcharge for a healthy scoop of Caesar salad rather than a pile of french fries! Right?

The parents both had the steak and were similarly impressed. For $14 they got a nice serving of quality meat with potatoes on the side, and trust me when I say that if my mom isn't impressed with a steak she will send it back...no such thing happened at Nose Dive!

Steve took a chance on the shrimp and clams basket and thought it was quite funny that he was "eating gastropods at a gastropub" (ha, ha, ha). He enjoyed his choice as well, and even though we were all extremely full, none of us could pass up dessert!

Mom and dad had the apple crisp and were pleased - not to mention the fact that the portion was huge! Steve and I shared the bacon brownie, but to be completely honest I wish I'd tried the Krispy Kreme creme brulee instead. The brownie wasn't bad by any means; I supposed I just expected more of an assualt (a-ssalt?) on my taste buds. I think they should have gone sweeter with the brownie itself and not candied the bacon, personally.

As a side note, a trusted friend of mine also strongly suggests the Pasta Bolognese...I just wasn't in the mood for pasta on this fine evening ;)

These are just the current taps at Nose Dive! (Sample beer list)

The consensus? Not only are the prices right, but the food is great. At Nose Dive, you truly get more than what you pay for, and you can bet we'll be back!

(And in fact, we stayed afterward for a couple brews. The beer list here may not be as extensive as it is at other Greenville bars, but this is also no ordinary "Dive". And I was very happy to see that they carried my favorite, RJ Rockers Son of a Peach!)

Who's Your Paddy Pub Crawl: Not a Big Fan

2011-03-14T16:14:00.000-04:00

I love pub crawls.

Little Skirt, Big Skirt ;o)

And I love St. Patrick's Day.

And of course, I love Greenville.

One would think that the general conclusion on a St. Patrick's themed pub crawl to 5 Greenville bars would be summed up in the word AWESOME!

Unfortunately, that was not the case.

Remember how much fun we had during the 12 10 Bars of Christmas pub crawl back in December? Even though we didn't make it to 12 bars? Well, we figured 5 bars was definitely do-able for this "Who's Your Paddy" pub crawl, and as an added bonus it was a bus pub crawl! So we figured we'd end up at a couple bars outside of downtown. Maybe even some places we've never been to. I anxiously awaited the email that would notify me of the names of the five bars we were going to...but it never came. I'm not sure if they really were trying to keep this thing a secret, or if they were having trouble locking down bars that would agree to deal with a bunch of rowdy pub crawlers, or what.

On the party bus!

Still, I can deal with an air of mystery! Right? Right.

We at least knew that the crawl started at Sharkey's at 6:30 PM. Not a favorite place of ours due to a bad experience last spring, but this being a pub crawl, there can be some exceptions to our going out rules ;o)

Of course, we were already feeling a bit "eh" about the whole thing when we walked in and realized that there had never been a memo to dress crazy! Certainly, there were plenty of people who didn't even wear green, let alone a crazy costume...but we enjoy a good excuse to have some fun with our outfits and I wish there had been some sort of notification that anything would go for this pub crawl! Right on the heels of this issue came the fact that despite being "scheduled" to leave Sharkey's around 7:30, it was close to 8 PM before they blew the horn for us to board the bus. I suppose this wouldn't have been a big deal if we loved us some Sharkey's, but...you see where I'm going with this?

One long game of cornhole.

Next up was Connolly's, a bar that we do enjoy, but I suppose because our time at Sharkey's was prolonged that meant our time at Connolly's was cut short? Needless to say, we were not expecting to hear that horn blow about ten minutes to nine and had to rush to close a tab. Boo.

At this point we finally left downtown Greenville and I was hoping it would be for at least two stops. First we went to the Irish Pub, another place that's a-okay with us, and spent quite some time enjoying a couple games of cornhole and some free hot dogs. At this point there was no horn blown--not one that I heard anyway--and we had to "hear it through the grapevine" that it was time to go, which meant that we barely made the first round of buses (and yeah, I was tired of cornhole and wanted to see what our next stop would be!).

I was somewhat ho-hum to find that stop #4 was in fact back downtown -- On the Roxx, no less. But as this is yet another place that we enjoy, we took it in stride and hunkered down with some crazy Brits for the next hour. It wasn't until we got on the bus to head on to our last stop that things went seriously wrong - because we poured out of the bus (get it? heh) to find ourselves right in the doorway of Dixie's Tavern. Which, in case you haven't heard, we have good reason to downright loathe. Therefore we stuck it out for one drink, but as soon as the bar started really filling up we knew that it was time to bow out, and so we did.

Don't mess with my gin and tonics, for real. These nice ladies agreed.

All that said, our conclusion on this particular pub crawl? One big giant "EH". First, I'd originally heard that they would be capping this pub crawl at 80 people...only to arrive and find out that over 200 people had purchased tickets! Had this been a charity pub crawl, I could have let it slide, but none of the bars we went to were really built to handle a sudden influx of 200+ pub crawlers and it just made for one heck of a mess when it came to ordering drinks, paying tabs, going to the bathroom, etc. And again, I wish there had been more consensus on the "hey, it's not St Patrick's Day yet, but let's get crazy & creative with our outfits for this pub crawl!"

As for the buses? Completely unnecessary. It's March. The weather is decent. We only ended up visiting one bar outside of downtown anyway. The whole "get on the bus!" thing just became more of a hindrance than anything. When are they going to blow the horn? Are they even going to blow the horn? How long will I have to close my tab? Oh shit, I don't even know where we're going next because no one ever told me so if I miss the buses I guess I'm just out of luck!

See where I'm going with this?

Maybe next time we'll just schedule and orchestrate our own pub crawl ;o)

Stepping Up: Don't Dis the Drive.

2011-03-09T12:29:00.000-05:00

Okay.

Some time ago I was looking for pictures of Fluor Field, the minor-league baseball field here in Greenville. I Google imaged it and one of the pictures led me to this blog entry:

At the Ballpark - Fluor Field

Apparently this guy goes around to minor league stadiums and rates his experiences there, in terms of concessions, atmosphere, sight lines, parking, and the quality of the baseball. His grade for Fluor and the Greenville Drive? A 'D'.

Now, some of you have probably read my posts about the Drive. How much I love the field and the games and the experience. For instance, see this post from about a year ago. But as someone who has written both personal and professional reviews of restaurants, bars, entertainment, travel, etc., I completely understand that people have a right to and will post their own opinions.

My problem with this guy is that he doesn't want you to leave comments on his public blog. I honestly don't remember if his little "please email comments and questions to such-and-such address" bit was there when I read this particular entry. I honestly don't think it was, and after scanning through numerous random entries from 2007, 2008, and 2009, it appears that he puts that caveat in there pretty sporadically--probably whenever someone posts a comment/posts a comment he doesn't like, haha. He doesn't have commenting disabled, after all. My comment was posted and obviously abruptly deleted, as despite it's nice (for me!) nature, it is no longer there.

(Note: Quite recently I received an email notification that someone else had commented on this particular review. That comment is not mine and while true, is quite a bit more forceful than mine was. Yet it, along with "Brian's" prompt response, was allowed to remain on the entry. Hmmm.)

My comment truly was not rude or nasty or anything along those lines. It basically just said "hey, sorry you didn't care for Fluor Field and the Drive. I live here, go to games all the time, love the stadium, entertainment, team, etc. If you get a chance I definitely think you should give it another try!"

Seriously...I was probably way nicer than I should have been. He had three main negative points, the first being the fact that the game was too crowded, which meant that some people had to stand and their sight lines were blocked by poles. Whereas I'm sure this happens on occasion, I have been to probably two or more dozen games at Fluor Field--most of them weekend games, which always sell out--and have never seen the stadium as crowded as this guy describes it. I'm not saying he's lying, but I am saying that this is something that I've never even seen happen. I think he's exaggerating just a little bit.

The second issue he points out is the parking scenario. I completely agree that downtown Greenville is probably a bit confusing to navigate if you've never been there before, especially on weekends when portions of Main Street are blocked off to traffic. But I have a feeling that he didn't even look at the Drive website...because there are directions on there, as well as basic information about the free trolley service. Beyond that, downtown Greenville has parking lots--including free parking--in many different locations, all labeled with big, pretty 'P' signs and many within walking distance of the stadium. For someone who is supposedly used to traveling around and locating these ball fields, he doesn't seem very knowledgeable about, I don't know, doing his research and paying attention to signage.

Last but not least, he mentions the quality of the baseball and gives that a very low rating as well. Now, I'm no baseball aficionado, but I know enough to get myself by. Especially for a girl. I feel the need to point out that this is a class A minor league/farm team. The chances of these players making it pro, or even of many of them making it to a Triple-A team, are questionable at best. The blogger who rated this team went in 2008, which wasn't one of the Drive's best seasons...but could have been far, far worse. He mentions some errors and sub-par players...all I know is, I've been to a lot of Drive games (starting in 2007, mind you), and I remember seeing some crappy playing on their off days...but some damn good playing a lot of the time, as well.

I guess my point is that whether you are going to give something an absolutely perfect review or a completely awful review, maybe you should base it on more experience...or at least allow constructive comments/criticism of your review on your PUBLIC BLOG.

Funny thing was, he gave Lynchburg's City Stadium and the Hillcats a pretty damn good review. Unfortunately for him, this quote caught my eye: "The stadium has changed so much since I played there and frequented the facility". So obviously he knows the area, the stadium, the team, etc. Knows them as someone who has maybe lived there. Maybe he grew up there. Regardless, my first problem with this is that if you don't know that area, that stadium is absolute hell to get to. Case and point: no Interstate runs through or even near Lynchburg. And 29 is constantly under construction. As someone who lived in Lynchburg, but not by choice, my opinion is a bit skewed to the negative, but I will say that the opinions of people who have lived their by choice are, as always, skewed in a positive manner. This is even more clear when one notes the grades he gives to the different aspects of his experience at the Hillcats game. If you average them out, he should have given this experience a solid B...maybe a B+ to be extra nice. Instead...he gives it an A! Way to do your math, buddy.

And yes, I've been to Hillcats games. The team sucked; the entertainment bordered on weird, boring, and/or nonexistent. The stadium is on the edge of a bad area of the city (ha, most of Lynchburg's city areas are bad) and whereas the parking is owned by the stadium and very convenient/plentiful...the concessions were no better than those at Fluor (unless of course you want to shove copious amounts of fried food down your throat, as Mr. Attheballpark apparently did) and there is nothing else within a ten minute drive of the stadium...vs. Fluor, where there is a great bar just outside the gates and numerous other restaurants and bars within 5-10 minutes walking distance. Plus all of downtown Greenville is right there, and it's safe, clean, and fun. So yeah...Lynchburg, no bueno; Greenville, mucho bueno. Comprende?

Cosmos for Critters: Great Event, Great Cause!

2011-03-01T12:12:00.000-05:00

The "Clawsmopolitan"

This past Saturday a handful of Upstate South Carolina's animal rescue groups hosted the first annual "Cosmos for Critters" event at Zen on South Main Street.

One of the best things about the event was the range in ticket prices. A regular admission ticket ran only $28 per person--though until January 1, 2011 and for a few days around Valentine's Day they even dropped this rate to $20 per person! This included one special cosmopolitan as well as heavy hors d'oeuvres. For $35 per person you also got a souvenir glass; $50 per person got you a t-shirt and access to a special VIP area with private seating, a private bar and private restrooms.

Food/decorations layout

The theme for the night was a Mardi Gras style Masquerade ball, and we saw everything from full costumes, to people just wearing their best and sporting masks, to those who didn't really dress for the theme at all. I decided to go middle-of-the-road and wore a 50s-style getup complete with mask...though I was jealous of the one girl who wore a full pirate costume! Why didn't I think of that?

Though people did claim I looked like Gwen Stefani. All. Night. Long.

Showing off my mask!

The drinks were a bit pricey ($6-9 for a mixed drink, depending on whether you wanted house or top shelf liquor) and the food went fast, but the DJ was great and the silent auction offerings were more than worth a look. I heard tell throughout the night that this will be an annual event...well, one can only hope, and as soon as I get the official word I'll let everyone know. Because really, there's nothing better than helping those who can't help themselves.

Back home later that night and making sure my favorite dog knows how much I love her.

The Brown Street Club

2011-02-23T13:22:00.001-05:00

A couple of weeks ago we spent an evening at The Brown Street Club in downtown Greenville. This restaurant is conveniently located on Brown Street ;o) and we've wanted to check it out for months and months. They offer live music (usually jazz or jazz composite) most nights of the week...with no cover charge. Of course there is a two drink minimum and the drinks aren't exactly inexpensive...but I can now officially say that checking out Brown Street is more than worth it.

However. Although our meal wasn't awful and the wine list selection was large and varied, I can't say that I was significantly impressed with the menu as a whole and I'll start with the wine: $34 for a bottle of Chateau St. Michele Riesling is highway robbery. Of course I expect to pay far more for a bottle of wine at a restaurant than when I'm buying it at a grocery store, but having eaten at some very high-end restaurants (both in Greenville and elsewhere) I can still say that this is the first time I saw this particular type of wine for more than $28. a $6 difference doesn't sound like a lot but personally I believe that it is, especially if one would usually already be paying over twice the grocery store price for that bottle of wine.

As for the food, my main issue is that the selection and the dishes simply weren't inspired. With this restaurant being close to the price range of American Grocery, Devereaux's, and Northampton Wines, if you're looking for a menu with a wide range and some truly delicious food I'd say eat at one of those three restaurants and leave The Brown Street Club for entertainment purposes.

I wasn't in the mood for steak or chicken, so in the end I decided on a pasta dish. Unfortunately, said pasta dish is served with olives and I'm not a huge olives fan; when I ordered the pasta sans olives the waiter convinced me that if I didn't care for olives I may not care for this dish. I took his advice and instead settled on two appetizers--the Shrimp Bruschetta and the Pimiento Cheese Plate. Steve ordered a trout dish. The trout was pretty tasty and I was pleased with the Pimiento Cheese Plate but the Shrimp Bruschetta were barely passable. I am a big bruschetta fan and I expect the toppings to be fresh; however, the dish I was served at Brown Street was slathered in a thick sauce that was extremely garlicky. And coming from a huge garlic lover, for me to say that there was too much garlic in something is not really a good thing. I just felt as if they were trying to hide the flavor of the shrimp or something along those lines, because again, bruschetta is expected to have a more fresh taste about it, no?

As a whole, I can say that we will absolutely return to the Brown Street Club to check out the cocktail menu and the music...possibly even on a regular basis. But when it comes to food, I do feel that there are better menu selections and better tastes to be had (and at lower prices) in our fine city.

Fox Carolina Interview Video

2011-02-16T15:31:00.001-05:00

Just wanted to make sure that we shared the video of our interview on the blog that inspired it!

Thanks again to Fox Carolina, especially Margaret Burnquist, to Jerry and Betsy of Mosaic Manor where the interview was filmed, and to our friends who came out to support us that night!

Exciting Announcement #2 for the week :o)

2011-02-11T13:49:00.001-05:00

A couple of months ago, a little idea hatched in our heads. I wanted to announce it right then, but instead I spent a lot of time piecing it together...until it became much more than a "little idea". It blew up into a huge, nearly out-of-control idea that we're still working on. Still, I'm not the most patient person and I want to shout to the world that we are creating what will hopefully be Greenville's most comprehensive, easy-to-navigate what to do website:

GREENVILLEscape - Greenville's What to do Site for Locals & Tourists Alike

Now, please note that what you're seeing on the site at this moment (well, if you're looking at it before the end of February, anyway) isn't exactly the "finished product", if you will. We are still working on the design, the photo gallery, etc. And of course, the content will be constantly evolving as new restaurants, bars, and shops open and as new events are scheduled. This blog will still exist, of course, and it will still provide first-hand accounts of local activities, bars, and restaurants, but it will essentially be the GREENVILLEscape blog.

Don't get me wrong--there are a few Greenville sites that exist and give restaurant recommendations, lists of happy hour specials, information on local museums...but our website is, as I said, made to showcase the best things Greenville has to offer...and we're really, really excited about it!

As a side note, if you're on Twitter and live in the Greenville area, feel free to follow us!

We also have a GREENVILLEscape Facebook page , so go ahead and "like" us there as well :o)

Exciting Announcement #1 for the week :o)

2011-02-07T14:19:00.001-05:00

After months and months of sitting on what I'm about to tell you, I finally get to reveal something that has been in the works since I want to say October! I've been keeping it quiet because for the longest time I wasn't sure if anything would come of it at all; and then when something did come of it I was still concerned that things would fall apart last minute. But I think it's finally safe for me to announce that

STEVE AND I ARE GOING TO BE ON TV!

Taping my solo portion of the interview

To be honest, I'm still not really sure exactly how it happened, because I have yet to talk to the person who originally came across our blog. My educated guess is that someone from Fox Carolina (local Fox affiliate, of course) was browsing the web/Googling to look for local interest stories, and came across the blog entries we wrote for Hot Date Ideas. They contacted Dave, who runs that site, which is why I'm sure that our blog alone didn't garner this much attention. Still...exciting, no?

Steve geeking out with the camera girl

Of course, as I already mentioned this happened back in October. After initially having a few conversations via phone and email with the woman from the station, holiday season came and the whole thing was put on the back burner. I was actually kind of surprised when they contacted us after the New Year and wanted to set an official interview date...but we decided on Saturday, January 29th and that evening Fox Carolina co-anchor Margaret Burnquist met us at a friend's house to chat about our 10 Weeks, 10 Dates challenge!

The interview was honestly really easy. Very comfortable and conversational, though neither Steve or I really knew what to say when Margaret asked if the challenge changed our lives or the way we go out on dates or whatever. Because although doing those 10 dates certainly pulled us out of our comfort zone...more often than not we're still finding ourselves doing the same ol' same ol ;o) But hey, that's life when you're 30 and 28, right?

Anyway, if you're in the Greenville area or live somewhere nearby and get Fox Carolina, check out our interview--it will be on the 10 PM news Friday night, February 11th!

And stay tuned for another exciting announcement later this week ;o)

Steve and I with Margaret Burnquist, co-anchor of the Fox Carolina morning news!

The Greenville Drive Hot Stove Event

2011-02-04T12:26:00.000-05:00

On Wednesday February 2, the Greenville Drive held a free event for fans in the Peace Center's Huguenot Mill Loft. They dubbed it the "Hot Stove Event" and used it to introduce "The Year of the Fan". There was a table with Drive merchandise--including a peek at what's new in the Drive Team Store this year--and plenty of free food and drinks. Reedy Rip'it and other Drive streetmosphere characters were available for photo opportunities and two Red Sox players were there to sign autographs.

Unfortunately, being a working woman meant that I wasn't able to arrive until about 6:20 when the event actually started at 5:30; therefore, I missed the autograph signing as by this time they were running the discussion panel. However, there was still some great free food and drinks to be had as the Drive showcased some new options fans will have to choose from at Fluor Field. The usual hot dogs were available, but other choices included turkey legs, pulled pork, mozzarella sticks and a dessert bar with some great ice cream toppings and cotton candy. As for the drinks--of course there was soda and water, but they were offering up free beer and wine as well! Can't argue with that :)

The discussion panel consisted of Mike Hazen, the Director of Player Development for the Boston Red Sox; Ben Crockett, Boston's Assistant Director of Player Development; Greenville Drive Manager Billy McMillon; Josh Reddick, former Drive player and current Red Sox Outfielder; and Madison Younginer, former Mauldin High School student and current Red Sox Pitcher. After explaining some changes to Fluor--namely bigger and better TV's in the suites, as well as LCD screens replacing the menu boards at the concessions stands, the aforementioned different food options, etc. Billy McMillon also spoke at length regarding his hopes for the Drive's 2011 season.

Although I wasn't in attendance for the entire evening, they closed with a question and answer session and fans were encouraged to ask anything of the panelists. All in all, this event spoke volumes regarding the Drive's renewed goal to put the fans first and give them an amazing sixth season at Fluor Field. I know that I for one can't wait for April 7th!

A Great New Discovery: Save Yourself Some Money in the Upstate!

2011-01-28T12:58:00.000-05:00

So by now Groupon and LivingSocial are practically household names...but the upstate South Carolina actually has it's own special version of those sites. I know it has been around for a while because I've been hearing about it on the radio...and now I feel like an idiot for not checking it out sooner! Anyway, if you live in the upstate area (especially Greenville) get your booty over to

MYUPSTATEPERKS.COM

Seriously. Do it. Now. They have tons of great deals going on right this very minute, including $7 for 5 yoga classes at North Main Yoga, $10 for $20 worth of food at Brioso Fresh Pasta, and $25 for $50 worth of food and/or alcohol at Halfway to Habana (though the latter is nearly sold out)!

So GO GO GO!

And no, this post isn't sponsored by anyone. I'm just excited that on top of all the great Greenville deals I find on Groupon and LivingSocial, there is an entirely separate local site that offers awesome deals as well! My only complaint is that some of the certificates have to be mailed to you and they charge a pretty exorbitant fee for that (umm $4.25 to mail me a piece of paper? Really?)

Asheville's Winter Warmer Beer Festival

2011-01-24T14:08:00.001-05:00

This past Saturday was the Winter Warmer Beer Festival in Asheville. According to the site, this was the festival's fourth year. I had heard some rumors about how in the past it was held in some questionable places, things got too crowded, etc. As this is the first year we had the pleasure of attending, I certainly can't compare it to past experiences, but I can say that we did have a total blast. We also stayed overnight, booking our room at the Four Points by Sheraton for about $105 for the night (including taxes). We got that rate as AAA members but supposedly they were offering the same rate to Winter Warmer customers. However, when I called to book our room and mentioned the Winter Warmer festival the woman had no idea what I was talking about and until I mentioned that we were in AAA, claimed the best rate I could get was about $125 for the night. Not really sure what the miscommunication or issue was, but thank God for AAA!

A NC brewery named after Steve's distant relative!

Steve and I coughed up the extra $12 per ticket for the VIP treatment--we paid $50 per person and the "regular" tickets were $38. Having splurged for VIP tickets to Top of the Hops in Greenville last year (worth it), as well as for VIP tickets to Sippin' Safari at the Greenville Zoo back in September (not worth it), we figured it couldn't hurt to take our chances...and we were very pleased! We attended Winter Warmer with some friends who purchased just the regular admission tickets, and they had to wait about 30 minutes just to get in whereas we had no line at all. That, and we got t-shirts and a nifty little canvas bag. The t-shirts cost $10 on their own and you couldn't buy the bag, so between these goodies and the nonexistent line our VIP tickets were more than worth it.

The thing is, because this festival was a lot smaller than Top of the Hops--and all of the breweries were from North Carolina and surrounding states--I was forced to try some beers that I normally wouldn't bother with. Stouts and the like. I was actually--mostly--pleasantly surprised with my many samples. There was also live music, which was surprisingly really good. I honestly wasn't sure how I'd feel about a band named Brushfire Stankgrass ;o)

Playing trivia

A couple of local radio stations were in attendance as well, and one of them held little trivia contests throughout the afternoon...I had to drag Steve away after he had participated in these three or four times.

Of course, it did get a bit crowded but thankfully there were never really long lines for the beer samples--people were pretty good about spreading out and nearly every brewery had one or two crowd favorites, from what I could tell. The only time when the people became a bit too much for me was when the single bathroom (which had only four stalls!) had a line so long that I had to wait about 30 minutes to pee. No lie. Really not sure why there was only one women's bathroom open in the entire civic center, but we can only hope that next year they'll realize that you can't stuff that many woman into a big room full of free beer and not have more than one restroom option (or at least, not have only a single restroom with a mere four stalls available).

Another great thing about Winter Warmer is that all of the tickets included food, which was supplied by a local restaurant called Fiore's Ristorante Toscana. Unfortunately...the quality and quantity of said food was questionable at best. Not the worst food I've ever eaten, but it was pretty obvious that the stuff had been sitting in chafing dishes all day, and the portions were pretty darn meager. Granted, it was nice to have some food to fill our bellies a bit while we were downing all that free beer, but I guess what it comes down to is that Italian probably wasn't the best option they could have offered, and it would have been nice to receive more than a couple tiny appetizers and a little mound of pasta with sauce.

Yummy food at LAB!

We stayed at the festival until it ended, then hit up the hotel for a quick freshen-up before a night out on the town in Asheville. I was excited to see a little more of the city, as so many people have ranted and raved about how fun it is--but to be completely honest I far prefer Greenville. Sure, Asheville has that beautiful setting right at the base of the mountains, but the looks of downtown leave a lot to be desired and although a bit bigger than Greenville, nothing stuck out as being superior by any means. We stuck somewhat close to the hotel, stopping at a pretty sad little lounge with a one-word name and some rude tourists from Atlanta first, then heading to LAB on Lexington for some more craft brews and good food. Steve and I just shared some appetizers--the venison nachos and sweet potato gnocchi--but I was impressed. Although I think the nachos could have used a bit more flavor, they were still yummy and the gnocchi were to die for. Seriously. Everyone else who ordered food agreed that this place has some tasty dishes! It probably also helped that their "Whitey" ale and their Hefeweizen were both delish.

Once we were done eating, we headed around the corner to a sort of...basement bar. This place was seriously hidden, but they had pool tables and a jukebox. I'm not sure if it was officially a part of The Southern Kitchen (it was attached, but could have been a separate entity) but regardless, it was a great place to wind down after a long day of drinking and running around.

All in all, although I wouldn't necessarily make this festival a yearly occurrence (more because staying the night in Asheville makes for a not-so-cheap outing), I'm glad we went and I'm glad I can now say that I've actually been to Asheville (having only been up there to tour the Biltmore before). If only because now I can say that it's for sure not as awesome as Greenville ;o)

Table 301's Devereaux's, Courtesy of Restaurant Week

2011-01-16T12:31:00.002-05:00

It's that time of year again--Restaurant Week in Greenville! Unfortunately, this year our budget only allows us to go out once and we chose Deveraux's, which is probably Table 301's most high-end offering.

The Restaurant Week menu at Devereaux's was in our minds one of the more diverse and yet still only $30 for three courses; that, combined with the fact that we hadn't eaten here yet, is what sealed the deal on choosing this particular restaurant. We were not disappointed!

Before our appetizer choices were served, we enjoyed samples of a fennel soup enhanced with lemon juice that was absolutely delicious. The bread came next--a tasty cheddar and chive biscuit and what I think was a honey wheat roll or something of the sort. Unfortunately I found the latter a bit hard and dry for my taste.

For the first course Steve had the Rabbit Risotto and I chose the Butternut Squash soup. Please excuse the lack of photos--neither of these was a terribly photogenic dish, but I assure you that they were both amazing. It is easy to miscook rabbit or make a butternut squash dish that is too bland, but Devereaux's didn't have either of those problems.

Devereaux's Scottish Salmon

Our entrees were the Scottish Salmon and the Roasted Duck Breast. The salmon was served with a sort of watercress broth; personally I prefer my salmon with a thicker, sweeter sauce but the fish itself was at least high quality and cooked to perfection.

And the duck...oh, the duck! This dish was by far the best duck I have ever had. Also cooked to perfection and served with amazing compliments--basmati rice, sun dried cherries, carrots, etc--I simply couldn't get enough. I seriously could have ordered this dish times three and still wanted more! Not to mention the beautiful presentation:

Devereaux's Roasted Duck

Last but not least, usually my favorite course: dessert! Steve chose the Apple Bread Pudding with Maple Brown Sugar ice cream, which I of course got to sample; I was a bit more "adventurous" and had the Rosemary Funnel Cake with Pumpkin Crisp Ice Cream. Unfortunately, at this point my camera decided to quit working and I didn't get any pictures--but while the bread pudding probably looked more appetizing, I was more than pleasantly surprised with my funnel cake. This wasn't your county fair funnel cake, folks--it had a rich brown color and a mere dusting of confectioner's sugar, a crisper texture and the pumpkin ice cream was a perfect complement. If I ever return to Devereaux's, I at least know what I'm ordering for dessert!

We had also opted for the wine pairings, an additional $15. They served us a Chardonnay with our appetizers, a Merlot with our main course and a Port with dessert. I think a white wine would have been better paired with the salmon and a dessert wine rather than a port with our "sweets", but all three options were at least good of their own accord.

On a final note, despite the restaurant being very crowded (to the point where the hostess even commented as we were leaving that we should come back on a more "normal" night) the service was still good and the atmosphere pleasing. Devereaux's is a hit in my book--in fact, I'd rank it with American Grocery and I certainly think it was better than High Cotton, which are both supposedly in the Devereaux's "class" when it comes to downtown Greenville restaurants.

Regal Cinemas Hollywood 20: RPX

2011-01-13T16:49:00.000-05:00

Excuse me for posting back-to-back blogs about movie theaters, but it just so happens that we recently went to see Tron: Legacy at the Regal Hollywood 20 on Woodruff Road, and I have some thoughts to share.

Steve and I don't go to the movies that often. We go when there's something out that we absolutely must see immediately. In the past year, these movies have included Hot Tub Time Machine, Iron Man 2, Inception Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part One and the aforementioned Tron: Legacy. At one point I went to see Eat Pray Love with my mom. Okay, so maybe we go to the movies more than some people. Like, people with kids too young to go to movies. But I used to catch at least 10 flicks a year at the theater, so the past couple years have been dry ones for me. Whatever, this entry isn't about the phenomenon of me going to see movies in the theater, but rather a specific offering by Regal Hollywood 20.

That offering, folks, is the ***RPX*** theater! BAM! IN YOUR FACE! It stands for like, Regal Premium XTREME or something obnoxious along those lines. Basically, you pay a few more dollars for your ticket (it cost us close to $30 for two tickets to a matinee showing--seriously) and you're supposed to get a clearer picture and better sound. Oh, and leather seats, but they don't mention that when you buy the ticket and to be honest the leather seats are cold and slippery and loud.

Speaking of loud, the sound seemed not better, but louder, and louder doesn't necessarily mean better, capiche, Regal?

Picture from here

Yes, the screen is bigger and yes, there is a cool blue-lit sign that you get to walk by as you enter the RPX theater...but do I really think that this "experience" was worth the upcharge? I don't know. I'm not big on the whole 3D movie hype. A regular screening at the Regal Cinema runs you $10 per person; a 3-D screening is $13.50 and the ***RPX*** screening is $14.50. Personally I'd rather save the $1 and not have to sit in those awful leather seats or deal with too-loud sound reverberating in my ears; or even better, save the $4.50 or $3.50 and not have to wear those stupid 3D glasses...but to each his own I suppose.

Greenville's Regal Cinemas: Hollywood vs. Cherrydale

2011-01-06T12:30:00.001-05:00

I meant to write about this a little earlier, but I guess what time is better than now? Because I feel like introducing a new aspect to this blog right after I've announced its new and true focus on Greenville is probably for the best.

(You'll also notice that I've done away with the "chapters" idea, which made complete sense when I was telling the story of Steve and I but doesn't make as much sense now that this will be a lot of reviews and ideas for couples' activities.)

That said, back in November we "oops-ed" our way into seeing Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 at the wrong movie theater. (I know, ::gasp::, right?) To make a long story short...we thought that the Regal Hollywood 20 cinemas on Woodruff Road would be too crowded and decided to see it at the movie theater that's right around the corner from our house. That, and by the time we got around to buying our tickets, the showtimes we wanted were sold out at the Hollywood 20.

So we purchased tickets to the see the movie at Greenville's other Regal Cinemas...and about an hour and a half before showtime, as we left our house and I put the address into the maps feature on my iPhone, I realized that the movie theater around the corner is some rinky dink (and I think sort of ghetto) place that is decidedly not a Regal Cinema.

Oops.

Therefore, instead of a 5 minute commute to what is actually the Camelot Movie Theater, instead of a 10-12 minute commute to the Regal Hollywood 20, we drove about 20 minutes and ended up at the Regal Cherrydale 16. And yes, I was concerned. I'd heard that the Cherrydale movie theater wasn't as nice as the "newer" one on Woodruff Road...would that be the case?

As we pulled up, the first thing we noticed was the old-Hollywood feel about the signage. Not too shabby. We walked inside and the lobby was definitely smaller than the one at Regal's Hollywood cinemas, but everything was neat and clean. And did I mention that the tickets were less expensive? (yeah, a whole 25 cents less! haha)

Thankfully, the actual theaters at the Cherrydale 16 cinemas are also stadium seating and appear to look exactly like the theaters at Hollywood 20. Beyond that, they also have the snack carts that I've seen at Hollywood 20--except they make an announcement that if you want something that isn't on the cart, they can go get it for you. And they take credit cards at the cart. If this is the case at the Hollywood 20, I've never known, but we loved that little convenience! That, along with every other encounter we had on this particular evening, made our little "out of the way" jaunt to Cherrydale pretty darn impressive. I absolutely will not hesitate to visit this theater over Hollywood 20, if only when we go to see a movie on opening night and want to avoid the craziness of Woodruff Road/the crowds at the "better" movie theater ("better" in quotes because honestly, other than being closer to our house, the places seem to be the same). And if you are in Greenville and live closer to Cherrydale (or it's simply more convenient for you to get there than bother with Woodruff Road), don't hesitate to choose this theater over Hollywood 20 :o)

The only downside is that they didn't really have any sort of queue set up for our Harry Potter showing, which meant that people were kind of milling around and crowding the entrance to the theater before it was opened, but thankfully there really weren't enough people there so early that a queue would have been a necessity.

Just goes to show you that you can't know about something until you try it, right?

Chapter 108: In Case You Haven't Noticed...

2011-01-04T12:00:00.000-05:00

Back in October, I posted an entry regarding the fact that I wasn't sure where this blog was going. And yes, it has taken me this long to figure it out. Thus is life. But the fact of the matter is: I've changed the layout, changed the description, and over time my posts have evolved as well. This has become less couples' blog and more "what to do in Greenville" blog.

That's not to say that Connecticut Yankees will cease to post entries about couples' activities (and maybe even advice for couples) that will work for anyone, anywhere. We--I--won't. However, this blog has for some time had a pretty obvious focus on Greenville, and that's something I'm going to run with. And because most of our followers don't live in (or even anywhere near Greenville), I wanted to give a full-on "opt out" notification for those who have no desire to read about what will be mainly local activities.

Of course, I do have other options for you :) If you hadn't noticed, I never wrote about our honeymoon, and that was due to the fact that I was in the process of switching this blog over to a Greenville-centered/couples' activities blog and wanted to keep it centered as such. But if you've enjoyed reading about our travels, have no fear! I have relocated and revamped my travel blog and continue to post in it regularly, so if you don't care to read about Greenville South Carolina but would love to read about travel experiences and advice, please head on over to (and follow!) There and Back: A Traveler's Tales

And last but not least...as some of you know (but many of you may not!) I've had an online journal on LiveJournal for nearly seven years. However, current circumstances have led me to a decision: the things that I posted over there, all of them, will now be in a completely new (and hopefully fun!) blog here on Blogspot! I'm calling it A Serendipitous Life (One Woman's Quest to Grab [Everyday] Life by the Horns) and it will be a mashup of advice, exercise info, fashion, food posts/food porn and reviews of everything from books to hair styling tools. Basically, everything I've ever posted in locked entries in my LiveJournal is now out there for the world to see, which is both scary and exciting to me!

So again, I hope y'all don't completely abandon me. I totally understand if you have no desire to follow this particular blog, but I promise I have something out there that will interest you. Lots of love!

-Tara

Chapter 107: New Year, New Restaurant, Good Times!

2011-01-02T13:50:00.001-05:00

Last year, we went out for New Year's Eve and kind of wished we hadn't. Not that we didn't have a good time, but at the end of the night the idea of staying home with a bottle of champagne and some movies sounded a lot more relaxing than going downtown, finding parking, pushing our way into a crowded bar...you get the gist.

This year, we definitely entertained the idea of staying in--until an event with The Greenville Wine Meetup caught my attention. Apparently, Table 301--a Greenville restaurant company that owns some of the best places in town--is opening a new restaurant. And for $25 per person we would get a New Year's Eve party complete with heavy h'ordeuvres, live music and a champagne toast at midnight. On top of that, we would be the first people in Greenville to see the new restaurant and know its name! Needless to say, we couldn't pass up this opportunity. We bought our tickets and headed out on New Year's Eve for what we hoped would be a memorable night.

Upon arrival at the new restaurant, we immediately received a pamphlet about the new restaurant, which is apparently named Nose Dive. And I have to be honest, we're not too keen on the name. However, everything else about this place seems to be on the up-and-up. To wit:

-The location. Smack dab in the central area of downtown, right next to the Westin Poinsett on South Main. Enough said.

-The decor and layout. Simple to the point of being spartan, but in a sleek way that foretells this becoming another success for Table 301. I hope that the table layout downstairs remains similar as it was nice to not be crowded in a somewhat small space. The fact that there are bars both upstairs and down is a huge plus as well, and I cannot say enough good things about the booths that they installed upstairs. Red cushioned booths, intimate enough on their own, but with the added plus of curtains that I'm guessing can be drawn to give one even more privacy, if desired.

-The drink menu. Nose Dive promises both a good wine selection and a decent beer selection. Maybe not long lists of either, but a good mix of small-batch brews and both reasonably priced and higher-end wines are combinations that many restaurants lack.

-The food. Now, we only had h'ordeuvres, but if the selection and quality they offered on New Year's Eve foretells what will be on the menu, this is a definite winner. Table 301 is referring to Nose Dive as a "gastropub", and between the gourmet mini-burgers, Reuben sandwiches, duck with a sort of apple confit, and amazing cheese selection they were offering the other night, we absolutely cannot wait to experience the full menu. It's about time Greenville had some true pub fare, especially when that fare is slightly higher-end.

-The service. The bartenders were kept busy all night, but when they needed extra help it was there and we never waited more than five minutes or so to order a drink. Busboys were a constant, quietly coming round to pick up empty glasses and napkins as needed. And that champagne toast at midnight? They brought the drinks out right on time and emptied trays quite efficiently. As far as I could tell, anyone who wanted a glass of champagne had one (or more!) by 11:55 or so, and as we left we were given more incentive to come back in the form of invitations to join their wine club and great Nose Dive t-shirts.

All in all, not only was this a great, different way to spend our New Year's Eve, but it made us all the more excited for this new Table 301 restaurant and as per the usual, was yet another notch in the belt for how much we love Greenville.

Happy New Year from your favorite Southern Yankees ;o)

Chapter 106: Steve & Tara's Christmas Adventure

2010-12-28T20:17:00.000-05:00

Yes, I know it has been a while since I've posted, but there are two good reasons for that: one is that we've been insanely busy, the other is that I will soon be announcing a revamp of this blog. But in the meantime...I bring you the story of our, err, excellent (or not so much) Christmas adventure!

Boston Cream Pie at Finale

Chrismotron 5000

This was the first Christmas that Steve and I spent entirely together. Our plan was to fly out of Charlotte late on the 23rd, arrive in Boston and spend the night there with a friend, after which we would all drive to Connecticut together on Christmas Eve. This portion actually went off without a hitch, really. Our flight was on time, we called it a night, got up the next morning and met another friend for brunch at Finale in Cambridge (YUM to the fullest extent of the word). We didn't even hit traffic on the way out of Boston and it was a quick hour and a half drive to Steve's parents' house in Ellington. We spent a laid-back evening including a steak dinner, plenty of wine and some last-minute present wrapping and even slept in until about 10 AM on Christmas day!

After much successful present-unwrapping (including the substitute of a few of Steve's presents with some old popoids of his, as some of his gifts were sent directly to our house) the four of us (Steve and I and his parents, I mean) piled into the car for Christmas dinner in Rhode Island. Although it was cold, the weather really wasn't that bad and at this point we were patting ourselves on the back for having such a successful trip. We had plans the next day to visit my dad's parents as well as have some friends over for drinks...what could go wrong?

A nor'easter, that's what.

Snowed in in Connecticut

Although we thankfully made it to visit my dad's parents on Sunday morning, by the time friends were supposed to be visiting the roads were crap and we were snowed in at Steve's parents' house. It honestly sucked big time that we went all the way to Connecticut and missed seeing many of our close friends, but we did have a fun Sunday evening eating a big chicken dinner, drinking champagne and watching movies.

Of course when Monday dawned and it was still snowing, we had a decision to make. Would we drive all the way to Boston with the good chance that we would get stuck there? Because if they canceled our flight we could tell by looking at the next few days' worth of flights that we would be lucky to get home by the end of the year (heh).

Soooo we took a chance. We gave up our seats (for a full refund) and rented a car instead. This gave us time to visit with my mom's parents as well as spend more time with Steve's parents, and in the end we left Ellington at about 7:15 last night and drove through the night, arriving back in Greenville (after dropping the rental car off and picking my car up in Charlotte) at about 10:45 this morning. It was a long, exhausting drive, and in the end the flight we were supposed to be on was delayed by about two hours but not canceled (which means if we'd taken it, we would have gotten home at about 1 AM). Still, as tired as we are after much discussion we made the most educated choice we could. And hey, two extremely lucky people who had probably been stuck in Boston since Sunday night got our seats :o)

Not exactly the most relaxing first real Christmas together...but thanks to the fact that we thought out our options and made a decision together, I think we did all right for being newlyweds in a bit of a bind.

(And yes, we are very, VERY glad to be back home in Greenville.)

Chapter 105: How many bars of Christmas? (A Pub Crawl Story)

2010-12-13T13:30:00.000-05:00

Last year about this time, Steve and I headed downtown on a cold Friday night to grab a couple beers at Blue Ridge Brewing Company. While we were there, a very rowdy crowd of people wearing garish t-shirts stumbled in. Their shirts proclaimed that they were part of the "12 Bars of Christmas" pub crawl, and all we could say was, "how did we not know about this?"

At On the Roxx

I immediately Google searched the pub crawl and happened upon their Facebook page...and so it was that a year later, we came to be not just idle passers-by but actual 12 Bars of Christmas participants. We purchased our shirts and donned our Christmas colors this past Saturday, arriving at bar #1--Liberty Tap Room--just before 6 PM for the start of the crawl.

I don't think I need to detail every stop that we made. I will say that although the beer prices on the specials list were good, it was a bit disappointing that there weren't some better liquor specials, especially considering the number of people participating in the crawl. Also, it sucked that the third bar we were supposed to stop at--a place called Crossroads--apparently closed recently without notifying the pub crawl organizers. C'est la vie, and that brings us from 12 bars to 11 for the night.

It was at Connolly's, an Irish-pub/hole-in-the-wall type bar, that our pub crawl ran into another (and much smaller, mind you!) pub crawl. This one was some sort of Santa Claus crawl, but either there weren't many people participating or not many of the participants chose to dress up. Still, we did see some great (for lack of a better word) costumes, including Ralphie from A Christmas Story, Cousin Eddie from Christmas Vacation, and my personal favorite--Buddy the Elf from Elf! (best Christmas movie ever, don't bother arguing with me)

I'm in love, can't you tell by the look on my face?

We made it to Liberty Tap Room, On the Roxx, Connolly's, Wild Wing Cafe, Barley's, and Rey's, but about the time we were supposed to hit up Hoops & Hops some sorta something set in...and I lost Steve. After numerous confusing phone calls, he finally realized that he was supposed to be at Hoops & Hops and arrived in time to guzzle the beer I'd bought him before we had to head across the street to stop #8--Corner Pocket. We had yet to visit Corner Pocket but we truthfully weren't impressed. I know they were having to deal with a hell of a lot of people that night, but they had known about this beforehand and didn't have enough bartenders or enough good bartenders (seriously, I don't know if I've ever been ignored that long at a bar in Vegas!). One quick drink and we decided to hit up the next stop, Sharkey's, in hopes of having a bit more luck.

Oh hey, decent beer! (at Barley's)

Our friends Sara, Mike and Damien who were participating in the crawl with us were able to find a table at Sharkey's (!!!). They were going to order food, but apparently the kitchen was closed? Not sure what was up with that, as it was only about ten PM? I could have sworn I've ordered food there that late. They were doing karaoke (!!!) but--and I can't believe I'm saying this--I was far too drunk to participate. I had to hold Steve back from putting my name in, and it was about this time that I suggested moving on to City Tavern.

Except that City Tavern is a small bar, and we could tell just by a glance that there was no point going in. At this point we just walked over to the last bar on the list--The Gathering Spot (or, more affectionately, the G-Spot)--and therefore the 12 bars became 10.

My "I didn't even drink this crap in college" face

I honestly have no idea how we even made it to G-Spot or managed to have a beer there. I have no idea how we can easily make our way all the way around the world at EPCOT (11 countries, drinking everything from margaritas to wine to daiquiris to beer), but we could barely handle the mere 10 bars we made it to Saturday night.

Are we just getting old? Sigh.

We made it! Well...sorta.

In the end, we had an absolute blast and we will participate in the crawl again next year, if only because it was fun to have reason to be bar-hopping while wearing hideous t-shirts.

Chapter 104: Greenville's Tree Lighting

2010-12-10T11:47:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday we put on our warm clothes and headed downtown for Greenville's Christmas tree lighting. The Greenville chorale was performing Christmas carols, and there was even a parade starting not long after the lighting! Unfortunately, we didn't check the weather. Oops. Because it was misting when we left the house, and it continued to do so (as well as be just awfully cold) the entire time we were downtown.

I mean, the idea sounded great: let's go downtown, grab a drink, listen to some Christmas music, watch a tree-lighting and parade. I even donned my hideous Santa Claus Christmas sweater for the occasion!

We stopped in Soby's first, as it was located just across from where the tree sits in front of the court house. We each had one drink, then we took a deep breath and dove back outside. I popped open my little umbrella and we positioned ourselves directly across Main Street from the tree.

And waited.

And waited.

Despite being told that the lighting was to be at 5, the chorale didn't even start until maybe 5:15. Even though the parade wasn't scheduled until six, I told Steve we would wait until 5:30 to hopefully see the tree get lit, bu then we could go home.

It's official, by the way: our blood has thinned. I doubt it was much colder than 40 degrees that evening and we couldn't even stand that. Sure, the rain didn't help, but we were raised on Connecticut winters! Go figure.

I have to admit, I was counting down the minutes to 5:30, and when it hit I heaved a sigh and gave in to the awful weather. Of course, as we were walking away, someone started speaking. We couldn't hear much of what was said, but we decided to stick it out for just a few more minutes...and after some blah blah blahs and some hoopla about sponsors, there was a 10 second countdown (likely unnecessary) and BAM! the tree was lit (finally). I took a couple quick pictures and then we rushed back to the car, and then home for some hot spiced wine and snacks.

Had the weather been nice[r], yes, I would have forced Steve to stay for the parade ;o) But despite wanting to experience all Greenville has to offer, I just didn't think catching an awful cold from the wet chilly air would be worth it. Maybe next year!

On that note, I do have one small "complaint"--they had an unnecessary number of generators running right in front of the courthouse. Four of them, to be exact. And they were huge. I know they were to keep the spotlights on, but come on. We could barely even hear the chorale's performance, these things were so loud! (And we tried moving a couple times--but it was either be too far away and not be able to hear the singing, or be close and not be able to hear it over the damn generators. Go figure.) Beyond that, the spotlights took away from the ambiance of the tree lighting. You've heard it here, city of Greenville--next year, go green with the tree lighting and I guarantee it will be a much better experience for us viewers!

Chapter 103: An Epic Thanksgiving Weekend (Game Day Saturday!)

2010-12-06T13:47:00.000-05:00

Saturday of Thanksgiving weekend was Melissa's and Adrian's last day in Greenville. They left late that afternoon to go back to Jacksonville, but not before we took them downtown one last time for some shopping, food, and general meanderings :o)

We began the day at the Mast General Store, a great place for South Carolina merchandise and all those things you never knew you needed. We then wandered up and down Main Street and showed Adrian the site of our wedding ceremony (as he missed it due to being deployed at the time). He even braved rolling down the hill at Falls Park after seeing a bunch of kiddos doing it!

Finally, we grabbed a late lunch at Barley's Tap Room. Steve and I had been to Barley's before, but for drinks only--and as Adrian was craving pizza and I'd heard good things about Barley's pizzas, we figured it was the perfect place to stop. Ahhh, if only. After trying both the Caribbean Jerk Chicken pizza and the Greek pizza, it appears that mine and Steve's search for the good stuff remains unfinished (don't get me wrong, we love Mellow Mushroom, but I'm talking plain ol' tasty cheese pizza, not crazy specialty pizzas). The menu and prices at Barley's were really no better than those at Mellow Mushroom, and the pizza itself was nowhere near as tasty.

I did, however, have a "Sunny Day" beer sampler. $12 for six 6-oz glasses of quality beer? Yes please! And the only one that I didn't care for (and therefore passed on to Steve, who liked it just fine) was the Victory Braumeister Harvest Plus. Honestly...it tasted like grass. Yuck.

We parted ways after "lunch" and Steve and I went home to get ready for the big Clemson vs. USC game! This included making some awful-for-you Buffalo Chicken Dip (as seen in this entry) and breaking out the beer. We were going to try having a big tailgating party, but it being Thanksgiving weekend many people were busy or out of town...so we just hung out with our friends Nick and Annie and enjoyed a rousing defeat of Clemson by the Gamecocks (yay!) while munching on greasy dip and tipping back some seasonal brews. It was actually a somewhat early night for us, but as our crazy Thanksgiving weekend was coming to a close it was just what we needed :o)

Chapter 102: An Epic Thanksgiving Weekend (Black Friday)

2010-12-03T14:17:00.002-05:00

Black Friday is Black for Steve and I in very different ways.

Me, I do the shopping thing. Not at 4 AM, mind you, but I always get out and try to catch some deals. This year...eh. But that's really another story, because Steve isn't a part of my Black Friday shopping...as he has to work. Yes, unfortunately Steve is an engineer at a factory that is, for all intents and purposes, open 24/7, and if he works Black Friday he sort of...gets an extra vacation day some other time throughout the year. Which suits us both very well ;o)

So after dragging Adrian and Melissa around shopping with me, we settled back at the house to watch a bit of football, eat giant plates of leftover Thanksgiving food, and wait for Steve to come home. This also involved us watching a movie, but as this movie (Post Grad) was just plain awful, there's no point in re-living our experience with it.

Once Steve finally arrived home and ate his own plate of Thanksgiving leftovers, we split up again to go shopping. You see, we decided that we wanted to mix egg nog drinks--which meant we needed liquor. And more egg nog. And just in case...beer. (not for mixing)

After mixing a usual egg nog and rum, we got a bit creative and put together the following drink...which was [surprisingly?] delicious. We call it

GINGERBREAD GROG

Eggnog

1/2 of a shot (1 oz) of ginger liqueur, such as Stirrings

1 shot (2 oz) white Creme de Cacao

1 shot (2 oz) dark rum, such as Myer's Dark or Gosling's Black Seal

A pinch of ground clove

A few sprinkles ground cinnamon

-Pour all the liquor into a glass (with one or two ice cubes--but no more!--if needed). Top off with eggnog (make sure to fill the glass or it will likely be too strong). Sprinkle the clove and cinnamon on top and stir well. Yum!

And yes, we know how weird it sounds. We were unsure ourselves. But it tastes like gingerbread!

Now that we had perfected our drinks, it was on to bigger and better things...sort of. This included watching YouTube videos on our TV (thanks to TiVo). For two hours. I'm not kidding--once we'd found the wafflepwn channel, we just couldn't stop. We didn't care if every single one of the Greatest Freakouts posted there was fake--they were hilarious.

Eventually, though, they had to end...which meant boardgame time! Steve and I used to play board games constantly, but for whatever reason we've been slacking off. For a really long time. So we broke out an old favorite--90s Trivial Pursuit--and had a rousing game that also lasted close to two hours. Melissa and Adrian took an early lead, but in the end we caught up and for a while it was neck and neck. In the end, Steve and I won...all thanks to a question about our favorite musical genius of all time...

Jimmy Buffet.

(Okay, that was complete and utter sarcasm; neither one of us can stand Jimmy Buffett. Which made the fact that we won by answering a question about him far funnier than it should have been.)

Exhausted but triumphant, we called it bedtime around I think 1 AM...but don't worry, our weekend isn't over yet!

Chapter 101: An Epic Thanksgiving Weekend (What's Thanksgiving, Among Friends?)

2010-11-30T15:37:00.000-05:00

Our holiday was a small affair this year. We were happy to be housing Adrian and Melissa, and we took them to my parents' house in the country for the big meal. My sister Christy was there as well, but that was it--just the seven of us. Still, we had Thanksgiving dinner with all the fixin's: turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potato casserole, jellied salad, broccoli casserole, rolls, stuffing (or as they call it here in South Carolina, "dressing"), cranberry sauce...

Despite such a great meal ahead of us, though, I had to drag myself out of bed on Thanksgiving...in every sense of the word. Five hours of sleep, a pounding headache, and I had a broccoli casserole and a dessert (Nutella swirl pound cake) to make! Needless to say, it was not the most pleasant of mornings ;o) That, combined with the fact that my exhaustion and hangover made for not a few mix-ups in the kitchen made us about 45 minutes late to my parents' house. Oops.

At least my "Perfect Broccoli Casserole" came out great...even if I had to fix a few minor glitches at the last minute! And just to be nice...I'll share the recipe. Note that this recipe is sort of my own creation...last year my mom gave me the task of making the broccoli casserole, but I couldn't find one single recipe that I liked...so I combined elements of a couple different casseroles, and threw in a "secret ingredient" of my own ;o)

PERFECT BROCCOLI CASSEROLE

2 (10 oz) packages frozen broccoli cuts, steamed according to package directions

6 eggs

1 cup Miracle Whip (you can use regular mayo, but I find that MW gives it a little something extra)

2 small white onions, chopped

1 ½ cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (I shred this myself, no bagged cheese for this girl!)

1 sleeve Ritz crackers, crushed

2 ½ tablespoons butter, melted

1 teaspoon dried dill weed

Salt and Pepper

-Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x13 casserole dish.

-Whisk together eggs and mayonnaise; add broccoli, onion, cheese, and dill. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Spread in the casserole dish.

-Top the broccoli mixture with the crushed Ritz crackers and drizzle the melted butter over the crackers. Bake 40 minutes.

Once we'd stuffed ourselves with dinner and picked at dessert (my disastrous Nutella Swirl pound cake, which I'm still annoyed about because I almost never mess up when I bake or cook, a pumpkin mousse pie and some frosted brownie bites), it was time to go home. My parents loaded us up with basically all of the leftovers and away we went...to laze on the couch and watch movies (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World and Tron, to be exact)! And one by one we marched off to bed for lights out by 11 PM, no thanks to our late night on "Black[out] Wednesday" (which, yes, is a name for that day, although after googling it I've realized it's apparently not well-known and could be something I made up or that was garnered from conversation with friends).

Chapter 100: An Epic Thanksgiving Weekend (Black[out] Wednesday)

2010-11-29T14:32:00.002-05:00

Last Wednesday, we received the news we had been waiting for--our friends Adrian and Melissa were coming for Thanksgiving! They had been planning on doing so for weeks, but thanks to some confusion regarding his job we weren't sure until then that it would definitely happen. Needless to say, we were excited--since we moved to Greenville, our house guests have been few and far between...and Adrian had never been here at all.

This meant that of course we went out for "Black Wednesday", and we did a nice little tour of some downtown bars. Our first stop was Wild Wing Cafe, to check out the 80s cover band that was playing. The music was great, there were a few drink specials, and Adrian even got up on stage and danced! Still, after an hour and a half or so we were ready for other options and Melissa suggested City Tavern, which had been one of our stops during my bachelorette party. At this point our friends Nick and Annie had come 'round as well, and we all paraded over to City Tavern for more drinks and live music.

Unfortunately, the "live music" there was just a guy on a guitar and he wasn't playing anything of note. We had one drink each, Nick and Annie called it a night, and Steve, myself, Adrian and Melissa decided to try one more place--a bar that is named "The Gathering Spot" but called "The G-Spot".

Yeah. I know.

I'm still not sure how I feel about their, err, "head dresses"

Anyway, I've only ever been to the G-Spot when they've had a DJ, so I was a bit unsure of the fact that tonight they had--you guessed it--live music! ;o) The band was...well, they weren't anything special, but they weren't awful, and after downing some red-headed sluts and ordering some beers we made the best of it. We ended up staying almost until closing time, but despite getting home sometime around 2 AM we didn't go to bed until a few hours later. After all, first there were the much-needed drunk munchies (Steve makes some amazing late-night snacks that at times include eggs in a window or omelets, but this night turned out to be scrambled eggs mixed with a variety of cheeses and spices as well as capers) and then there was the usual catching up with people we only see every few months at best.

All I know is that when we collapsed into bed I thought, "damn, I'm only getting five hours of sleep tonight."

To be continued...

Chapter 99: The Morning After.

2010-11-24T14:42:00.000-05:00

Here it is, folks. Finally. The last chapter in our little wedding weekend saga. And hey, it took me less than three months to finish writing these posts! ;o)

This one is going to be short and sweet. Basically, it was a somewhat last-minute decision (as in, sometime within a week before the wedding itself) to do a morning-after brunch with our guests. At this point I don't even remember the catalyst for this decision, and it wasn't even included in our giant wedding weekend info packet! (I know, what slackers we are, right?) But we made a general announcement to our out-of-town guests that we would meet at the Blue Ridge Brewing Company at 11 AM on Sunday, August 29th for a Mimosa brunch. It was pay-your-own-way, as we'd decided on it so late, but thankfully Blue Ridge's brunches are affordable and include a free Mimosa with purchase of an entree!

Besides Steve and I, close to a dozen of our out-of-town-guests showed for the brunch, and we spent a good hour and a half chatting, eating, and attempting to drink away our hangovers. The food was great--I think the only complaint anyone had was that the OJ used for the Mimosas had far too much pulp in it ;o)

Sadly, many of our guests had to rush on to the airport or to hours-long drives home. But at this point, we were exhausted from a weekend full to the brim with activities, fun, friends, and love...and we spent the rest of the day after lounging on the couch.

Chapter 98: Our First Trader Joe's Adventure

2010-11-22T21:08:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, I received a card in the mail telling me that a Trader Joe's was opening in Greenville. Having had numerous friends wax reminiscent on the wonders of Trader Joe's over the years, I figured it would be worth checking out. I even thought about going opening weekend, but as luck would have it I didn't get that chance.

Instead, on Saturday evening, as Steve and I prepared to go to a Thanksgiving-themed wine tasting party (you know, everyone dresses nice and there's turkey with all the fixins...plus upwards of a dozen bottles of wine to try), we decided to make Trader Joe's our one stop shop for the wine and snacks we were required to bring.

Wine came first (did you ever doubt that would be the case, with us?) and we settled for a trusty fallback, Liebfraumilch Qualitatswein (there appear to be a few different brands, all I know is that the one we can find around here is not the St. Christopher brand). This wine isn't super high quality (obvious by the fact that it runs $4-6 a bottle), but it's inexpensive and has the slightly sweet taste that I like. It's similar to Reislings, if a bit more crisp/dry.

Look at me, pretending I know anything about wines ;o)

Anyway, we also chose a Portuguese wine that [I think] was called something like Vinho Verde. It's also white, also somewhat sweet, but it's sort of...sparkling. I say sort of, because it isn't champagne (as it's not from the Champagne region of France) and it's not as sparkling as the stuff we normally call champagne. It has just enough bubbles and for $4-5, it's delicious. We will be buying again!

As for the snacks, I refuse to be the person who brings dessert (why does everyone always want to bring the dessert?), so after a bit of discussion we settled on a green olive Tapenade, a container of three-layer hummus, and some stone ground wheat crackers for dipping. Personally, I'm not big on olives--but I tried the tapenade and yes, it was pretty damn good. The three-layer hummus, on the other hand, was downright amazing--we'll go back to TJ's just to pick up more of that :o)

Of course, TJ's is much like Whole Foods to us...we apparently couldn't walk out with a few unplanned purchases. I eyed a jar of their pumpkin butter for quite some time (thanks to another in-person and blogger friend), but in the end was able to walk away...only to discover that Steve hadn't been quite so strong-willed.

Admittedly, the giant bar of Swiss Milk Chocolate (with WHOLE hazelnuts!) was a last minute throw-in by yours truly. But the Orangina and roasted seaweed are all Steve. I've never been a big fan of Orangina, and I tried the seaweed but I prefer it, err, fresh. Apparently.

Still, that giant bar of chocolate was quite delicious and yes, a worthy purchase.

Chapter 97: Everything is better with BACON!

2010-11-20T12:50:00.000-05:00

Let me preface this with the fact that I can pretty much get Steve to eat anything. He's like a goat. But that also means that he eats a lot. Therefore, when I suggested a new recipe--Pear Brie cups--for dinner, he was willing to try them.

So long as there was an addition, preferably of some sort of meat.

Thankfully, between my background in the food industry and his vast chemistry knowledge (which, yes, does help with cooking)...we're pretty darn good at tweaking recipes.

Honestly, it didn't take much effort to come up with a meat to add to the mix--because as per the subject of this entry, everything is better with bacon!

Really, bacon was the first thing that came to mind because the very salty taste of it could, in our minds, only mesh well with the sweetness of the pears and the sauce in this recipe, not to mention helping to tone down the strength of the brie. Needless to say, we were right.

I suppose we could have cooked the bacon, chopped it up and added it to the cups--but we preferred to bake the cups and have the bacon as a side item. More control over how much bacon we threw into the mix ;o) We just used regular old bacon...Hormel or something similar, probably. As for the Pear Brie cups, here's the recipe! Just cook the bacon as you normally would (we had about four slices each) and eat along with the cups.

1 can Pillsbury refrigerated crescent rolls (8 oz)

1 large pear, peeled and finally chopped

1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

1/8 teaspoon ground Cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon honey (note that we used all-natural local honey...it's just better!)

1 round (8 oz) Brie cheese, rind removed, cut into 36 equal wedges

24 pecans

-Heat oven to 375. Grease a 12 cup muffin pan. Unroll the crescent roll dough and pinch seams to seal, then press into an approximately 12 by 8 inch rectangle. Cut into 4 rows by 3 rows to make 12 squares.

-Gently press the squares into the muffin cups--the dough will not completely cover/fill the inside of the cups, don't press too much)

-In a small bowl, mix the chopped pear, brown sugar, red pepper and honey until the pear bites are all completely covered in the mixture.

-Place 2-3 slices of the brie in each cup--cross them over each other so that when melted the cheese will be even throughout. Top with 1 heaping tablespoon of the pear mixture.

-Break up 2 pecans per cup and sprinkle over the pear chunks.

-Bake 20 minutes, cool five minutes, and remove from muffin pans. Serve immediately.

And again...don't forget the bacon on the side to liven it up a bit! Hope everyone enjoys :o)

Chapter 96: Backlogged!

2010-11-18T16:32:00.003-05:00

I've meant to post every day this week and just haven't had the time! Between designing our 50 free holiday cards from Shutterfly (they came out wonderful, by the way, and we can't wait to send them), trying to put together our travel plans for next year (some really exciting things on the horizon!), trying to figure out when and how we'll catch up on here (we're still not done with the wedding weekend entries, ugh), and dealing with our troublesome male cats (I really can't even get into that right now)...there's just no time! Which means we're skipping Things We Love Thursday, because we haven't had the energy to come up with something to write about this week.

I do want to give a shoutout to a new blogger friend of mine, Smiling is Good for your Teeth. She bestowed the following award on us:

There were questions that went along with it, but as this is a couples' blog they are sort of difficult to answer without just ending up giving my own opinions and ignoring Steve's entirely (which I do quite often enough, thankyouverymuch--haha). Therefore, this entry is just going to be a quick no-we're-not-on-vacation-again-nor-have-we-disappeared-off-the-face-of-the-Earth blurb ;o)

Soon--very soon, hopefully--I will write the last of our wedding weekend updates and expound on our honeymoon experience. That is if I can drag myself away from revamping my travel blog (shameless plug, follow me now that I'm on blogspot!) and re-watching every single episode of X Files, beginning to end (yes, we're doing that).

At least I have a motivator--the fact that I want to catch up on this backlog before we officially enter the holiday season. Ugh.

With that, I'll leave you with a story :o) Last night Christy had Savannah sleep over our house. I can tell you that I have babysat Savannah on my own once--and this was long before I was with Steve. And although she was Christy's responsibility last night, you bet your ass she wanted to hang out with Auntie Tara and Uncle Steve. From the moment I walked through the door, it was "Where's Steve? When is Steve coming home? I'm going to help you make dinner. I heard you're making brownies!" (You know she just wanted to lick the bowl)

My sister Jenni--Savannah's mom--has requested that I keep pictures or videos of her to a bare minimum in a public forum such as this, or else I would also be sharing the video of her pacing our living room, microphone in hand, proclaiming that she is an "Obama robot" (no, I don't have any idea what that's about)

It was definitely fun watching her and Steve bond last night, though. She was very excited when he came home, and when she donned a giant sweatshirt of Christy's to help us walk the dog (we put Christy on a leash and let Savannah pretend that she was a dog, as no way could Savannah handle Wendy or Rigby) he proclaimed that she looked like a Jawa and started teaching her lines from Star Wars. She was still calling out "OOTINI!" this morning ;o)

So this has been our crazy week and again, hopefully I'll catch up with the meat and potatoes of this blog soon!

Chapter 95: Sunday Funday...sort of.

2010-11-15T16:15:00.003-05:00

The Urban Dictionary defines Sunday Funday as "By celebrating the "Sunday Funday" you can extend your weekend festivities just a little longer before hanging up your party pants. This day typically starts out with mimosas or bloody marys aka hair of the dog. It then typically continues through out the day until you find yourself wasted by about 6:30ish. Since the "Funday" ends early enough, you can rest assured that you will go to bed aka pass out early enough to be perfectly refreshed for work on monday morning."

Let me be very clear about one thing: it is very rare that Steve and I participate in Sunday Funday festivities. Because we're old and junk, and drinking on a Sunday while on vacation or having Monday off due to holiday doesn't count.

That said, yesterday was one of those few-and-far-betweens for us. I had tickets to the Lady Antebellum concert at Furman University, and we had a gift certificate for Soby's downtown that was begging to be used. Brunch and mimosas? Yes please, and it was all delicious :)

We returned home and followed brunch with more mimosas, a couple episodes of X Files, and a brisk walk with the dogs before leaving for the concert. And trust me on this, we hadn't had enough mimosas to be by any means drunk--but yes, I was looking forward to having a beer or two while listening to some great newfangled country music!

Only...no can do. Furman was, for a very long time, a dry campus. Supposedly as of more recent times, it is a wet campus...but apparently the concessions at Timmons haven't caught on, because there was no beer in sight. And although Steve and I certainly don't have to get drunk to enjoy a concert (most times I've gone completely dry at the concerts I've attended; since we've been together the highest number of beers either one of us has had at a show is three)...yes, I was severely disappointed that I didn't have a cold one to sip while listening to Lady A.

That said, we arrived for the last two or three songs by the opening act--a kid named David Nail, never heard of him but he wasn't half bad--and stayed through just over an hour of Lady A's set. The only song I missed that I wanted to hear was "Need You Now", but no big deal--I could tell that by quarter to ten, Steve was getting a bit antsy. Plus, having skipped any sort of dinner, I was hungry and so it was that we ended up at Bailey's on Laurens Road, just around the corner from our house!

We had stopped into Bailey's for beers once before, but it was late at night and pretty dead at the time...it was a whole different world last night, thanks to the Pats vs. Steelers game! We ordered some brews (from a surprisingly decent selection) and an appetizer sampler (which was surprisingly delicious) while we watched the end of the second quarter and the entire third quarter of the game. By 10:45 we were ready to go, but our waitress had taken to spending her evening flirting with the Most Eligible Bachelors in the room (neither of whom I would have given a second glance even in my most pudgy and unattractive days, but I digress) and it took us forever to flag her down. I was none too pleased with this, as all I wanted was home and bed...this situation and the scarcity of beer at the concert added up to the somewhat disappointing end of our Sunday Funday. I tried to stay up to finish the game, but once my head hit that pillow and Steve climbed into bed next to me just before midnight, we were out.

Chapter 94: Shutterfly, Our New Found Love

2010-11-12T13:09:00.006-05:00

I wanted to take a moment to expound on our love for Shutterfly.

Of course, I can't pretend that I'm writing this entirely out of the goodness of my heart, because right now Shutterfly is offering 50 free holiday cards to those of us who blog about their awesome selection.

First, for those of you still in the wedding planning stages: Rather than purchasing and having to develop a bunch of disposable cameras, we used Shutterfly to set up a free account and then passed out our username and password to our guests after the wedding. This allowed them to easily share their photos with us and our other guests. Yay technology!

Second, we know what we'll be using these 50 free holiday cards for! For those of you who got married earlier this year, what better way to share a wedding picture with those who couldn't make it than putting it on one of Shutterfly's holiday cards? We were planning on doing this anyway, but after planning and paying for a wedding just a couple of months ago, these 50 free cards will certainly help ;o)

As anyone who truly knows us can see, we like to keep things simple. That, along with the fact that we are sending all of our Yankee friends Warm Wishes from South Carolina, are probably the biggest reasons why our favorite Shutterfly cards are the Warmest Wishes card:
And the Peppermint Palms Card:

Third, I feel that Shutterfly's photo books deserve an honorable mention. As a special thank you gift for a few people, we put together a beautiful 8 x 8 photo book to hand out. The quality of Shutterfly's photo books is great and they are almost always running some sort of promotion for the books. They make it easy to get creative and put together a beautiful project!

Chapter 93: Things We Love Thursday, Walt Disney World!

2010-11-11T15:51:00.005-05:00

Although we did not name Walt Disney World as one of our "Things We Love Travel Destinations", that's more because we love it too much rather than not enough. Since we started dating, we have visited Disney three times--once every year--and as we already have a trip planned there for next year, that tradition isn't likely to end anytime soon.

But why do we love Walt Disney World so much? We aren't really theme park junkies. The other tourists can definitely get on our nerves. And my word, can it be hot in the summer! Still, there are a few things that keep dragging us back...

In case you haven't noticed, we're part of that group of Foodies who love to eat and love food in many, many forms. We are not food snobs...which means we can appreciate a thrown-together casserole (so long as it includes a few choice favorite ingredients) just as much as a $40-ish gourmet main course at a fancy restaurant. And Disney offers so much for people like us: The Earl of Sandwich at Downtown Disney, the German chocolate cake in the Germany pavilion at EPCOT, the Dole Whips at the Magic Kingdom, and the entire freaking meal at the Polynesian Resort's O'Hana.

None of this is food we can get at home. Most of it is food you can't get anywhere else. And for that, a trip to Walt Disney World is practically priceless.

Another thing that Disney is good for is bringing people together. Having lived there in my not-so-distant (or maybe much-too-distant?) past, I still have friends down there...and even though many of them have moved away, most of those people are willing to travel back to visit. To visit Disney, to visit mutual friends, to visit their own friends. And on top of all that, I know very few people who would turn down a trip to Disney, whether it's part of their past life or not. Walt Disney World has absolutely made it far easier for us to keep up with many of our friends. How could we not love that about this place?

Finally, no trip to Disney is complete without DATW. That's Drinking Around the World to those of you who aren't privy to our numerous Disney acronyms ;o) I have never had a bad time Drinking Around the World. Yes, it's best with a large group. Sure, it's much more fun when the weather is in the 90+ degree range (all that sweat means you can drink more!). And holidays (Halloween, for example) and special events (Food and Wine Festival, mainly) also add to the experience. But spending an afternoon "sampling" alcoholic beverages from 11 countries around the world--with some of your best friends--is definitely one of Orlando's top draws for us. (And if you didn't notice...both the "friends" picture and the "DATW" picture are, in fact, from different DATW trips. Go figure.)

Chapter 92: After the Show it's the After Party...

2010-11-09T10:13:00.003-05:00

Well, we've been married for over two months and have finally gone on our honeymoon...but I've realized that I never finished writing about our wedding weekend!

Let's see...when I last wrote, it was regarding our reception--which was, of course, a total blast :) And I mentioned that, us being...well, us...we had an after party planned for our guests. The first stop was one of our favorite Greenville bars, Rey's, but only after a walk that was just over a mile long and took us from the back side of the ball park (Field Street) past Falls Park and up South, then North Main to the bar.

Thank God I was wearing [somewhat] comfortable shoes!

And yes, we absolutely could have hired a limo or caught a cab...but our little parade of bride, groom, wedding party and guests was far more interesting and fun ;)

We arrived at Rey's before most of our guests and waited for everyone to show up. We grabbed a table and enjoyed a few drinks, but the bar was a bit crowded and our group of nearly 20 people was only making it worse. When we decided to relocate, a few people dropped off for an early bedtime--but about a dozen of us made our way to Dixie's Tavern for what proved to be an eventful time.

Let me preface this by saying that I'd been to Dixie's a few times, and never really had any issues with the place. It's not amazing, sure, but the DJ is decent, it's right downtown, drink prices are average, and there's no cover charge.

It just figures that everything would change the very night we decide to use it as an after party location for our wedding :-/

Really, we were all drinking, dancing, having fun. None of us did anything wrong. It just so happened that a fight broke out just a couple feet from where we were standing, that fight encroached into our personal space, one of my friends got elbowed in the head...but all was fine and dandy when they kicked the perpetrator out of the club.

Until they let the guy back in.

Yeah, real smart of them, right?

Needless to say, the fight re-broke out, and this time a beer bottle shattered on the floor right under us and some of the pieces ended up in my friend's hair.

Yes, we sure know how to throw a classy after-party, right?

At this point we figured that things had just gotten to be a bit too much and decided to continue our evening back at our wedding's flagship hotel, the Westin Poinsett. At this time a few more people headed off to bed, but we still partied 'till the wee hours of the morning in the best man's hotel room and didn't grab a cab home and stumble into bed until sometime after 4 AM.

All in all, even with the drama at Dixie's (and mind you, we will not be going there again--ever) our after party was, well, one hell of a party. It gave us that much more time with our guests and both of us are completely happy that we chose to continue our night out rather than run back home to be together. Of course...I guess we've, err, "been together" long enough that doing that seemed a bit redundant, anyway ;)

^Yes, there is a lot wrong with this picture, but I had to include it because...well, it's kind of hilarious. (Come on, I'm in theshoe-shine chair in the lobby of a 4-diamond Westin)

Chapter 91: Things we love Thursday, [Affordable] Downtown Greenville Restaurants

2010-10-28T13:53:00.004-04:00

Although Steve and I rarely eat out (seriously, once a month? twice if we're lucky)--and when we do, we do our best to try new places as much as possible--there are a few downtown Greenville restaurants that truly are staples to us. When people come to visit, these are the places we tout as must-visits...as much for their reasonable prices as their delicious food (and in two of the three cases, delicious drinks as well!). Sure, we love Mellow Mushroom and Wild Wings, but they belong to chains. And Cazbah is great as well, but their beer list leaves a lot to be desired. American Grocery? Absolutely amazing, but unfortunately it's a wallet-abuser. Therefore, our downtown Greenville favorites are as follows:

Grille 33 @ the Channel. Pictured is their cheddar stuffed cheeseburger...on a glazed donut. This is probably one of the messiest and most unhealthy things I've ever eaten--but it was beyond delicious. In general, they have a great menu--a wide variety of burgers and chicken sandwiches, as well as fish and chips, baked potatoes, etc. Prices are very reasonable and the employees are helpful and friendly. This place is just great for a quick drop-in meal!

Blue Ridge Brewing Company! I apologize for the low quality of the picture, but hey, at least it's of the last time we ate there ;o) This was actually taken the morning after our wedding--we met some of our out-of-town guests for a post wedding brunch, and Blue Ridge was our top choice. The brunch was as good as any lunch or dinner we've had there--and trust me, those have always been delicious. Not to mention the awesome beers BRBC offers, all brewed on premises! They even have a pretty lengthy shooter list, but beware--some of the shooter names aren't for the faint of heart (or for anyone not old enough to go see an R-rated movie in the theater).

Last but not least, the place that is our most favorite downtown Greenville haunt...Smoke on the Water! This is another place where I've never had a bad meal, they have a handful of sauces made on site that are all delicious, the prices are right and the martini list (particularly the Angel's Breath and the Milky Way) is to die for. Even better? Incredible happy hour specials...i.e. half off those awesome martinis! (Seriously, how can a $3.50 martini not make you happy?)

Of course, this list in no way shape or form covers the scope of awesome restaurants that exist in downtown Greenville...but for some inexpensive not-chain-restaurant burgers, an awesome pub-style menu, or some good ol' Southern cookin'...with Grille 33, BRBC, and Smoke on the Water, you just can't go wrong!

Chapter 90: Where do we go from here?

2010-10-24T14:57:00.003-04:00

Today marks the one-year anniversary of the date when both Steve and I had moved to South Carolina. We were talking just the other day about how we couldn't believe that a year had already passed, and how much has happened in that time. We picked up a fourth cat, bought a house, adopted a second dog, met new friends, got engaged, got married, threw a bunch of theme parties, and traveled a lot.

But most importantly, we continually discovered great things about our new home, and truly fell in love with Greenville.

The thing is, I started this blog to chronicle our adventures moving from New England to the South, to write about the adventures that ensued. Over time it had to become a little more than that, because once 2009 ended we had pretty much settled into our house and the moving aspect was over, anyway. But now we've not only settled in, we've made this our home in so many ways. Therefore, I'm not sure I know where to go from here. Do I keep things the way they are? Do I make this blog about more than just us being two Yankees living in the South?

So here is where my readers come in :) I'm going to steal something that my friend Kim over at Fashion Momma posted. Because I'm too lazy to write up something that would be similar to her entry anyway, and hopefully she won't mind me stealing this ;) But even if you have never commented on here before, I ask that you please look through the following and help me out with, well, where to go from here:

- Ask me a question that you'd like answered on the blog

- Suggest some themes or challenge ideas

- Last, what would you like to see more of?

Less of?

Some of that you've never seen before?

I look forward to hearing from everyone!!!

Chapter 89: Things We Love Thursday, Dinner Sandwiches!

2010-10-21T14:22:00.007-04:00

Let's get this straight: there is a big difference between a sandwich you would pack for lunch and a sandwich you would eat for dinner. Or at least there should be ;o) Regardless, I am far more of a "sandwich nut" than Steve is, but thankfully he'll eat just about anything. Even for dinner. So about once a month or so (sometimes more often, sometimes less) we have a nice hearty sandwich dinner of what I deem "dinner sandwiches". I would say that our top three (in no particular order, and mind you...while we try to use organic foods as much as possible, and eat somewhat healthy...I can't vouch that any of these are low calorie or low carb or low fat or whatever...that "taste" thing is more important to us!)
Grilled cheese, of course! Usually eaten with a nice bowl of tomato soup (any sort of soup, but if you buy one that you have to mix use milk, not water, if possible!), our version of grilled cheese is as follows:

We use wheat bread
We cook it in a pan on the stovetop with real butter.
For cheese, we spread a thin layer of Laughing Cow Light French Onion cheese spread (depending on your idea of a "thin layer", use anywhere from 1/2 of a wedge to a full wedge per sandwich) and then use slices of cheddar or Swiss. Steve prefers Swiss, I prefer cheddar, and I suppose you could even use American if you're not as adventurous as us ;o)

And if you don't know how to cook a grilled cheese...well, you're probably far beyond my help!

On to our next favorite--tuna melts! Again, I have no exact amounts on these because I just make them how Steve's mom makes them...by memory, sort of, and that's how he likes them. But the general gist is:

Use English muffins for the base; halve them, each half is one melt.
Mix Solid White Albacore Tuna with regular mayonnaise and chopped-up [fresh, obviously] celery. Put the desired amount of tuna mix on the English muffins.
Top the tuna with freshly shredded cheddar. That's right--no bagged crap! Buy a block of cheese (and a shredder, if you don't have one) and shred the stuff yourself. Trust me.
Set the melts on a baking sheet; bake for a few minutes at 350 and then turn on the broiler and broil until the cheese just starts to brown.

And finally, an actual recipe. I took this recipe from the Rachael Ray magazine and altered it slightly, because sometimes...well, sometimes she makes things more of a pain in the ass than they need to be. But these sandwiches--Beefy Tomato Sandwiches--are absolutely delicious. In fact, they turned Steve on to sun-dried tomatoes! (Note: this recipe makes a LOT of sandwiches, so if you're only cooking for 2 or 3 people I suggest you halve it)

12 slices bacon
One 10 oz jar sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 teaspoon pepper
8 kaiser rolls, split
2 pounds deli-sliced roast beef
8 slices provolone cheese

In a large skillet, cook the bacon over medium heat until crisp, about 8 minutes; drain on paper towels. Break each piece in half.
Meanwhile, using a blender puree the tomatoes with their oil until mostly smooth. In a medium bowl, mix the tomato puree with the mayo and pepper.
Spread half of the sauce on the roll bottoms. Top with the roast beef, 3 half-pieces of bacon and a slice of provolone
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the sandwiches and the roll tops on a baking pan, cover lightly with foil and cook until the rolls are toasted and the meat is heated through, about 5 minutes. Slather the roll tops with the reserved sauce and place on the sandwiches.

Basically, it's a heck of a lot faster and easier to throw together some of these yummy sandwiches after a long day of work...rather than a casserole or a meal with a bunch of sides. But they're still tasty and filling...and better than fast food.

Chapter 88: A Laid-Back Anniversary

2010-10-20T12:37:00.004-04:00

Okay. Our two-year [dating] anniversary was a month ago today, but I was so busy at the time that I forgot to write about it! And then I figured that I might as well wait until the 20th of the next month (as in, today) to post about it.

Unfortunately, our anniversary fell on a Monday this year, and because of the wedding and our delayed honeymoon, there was no celebrating it with a big vacation. In fact, we almost didn't do anything at all...but then I decided to take Steve out to dinner.

Because I'd been craving Melting Pot. And I still wanted to try out the option of ordering just cheese and dessert fondues, rather than The Big Night Out. So this still wasn't a "big night out" for us, anyway. We did, however, share the Feng Shui cheese fondue, and we each ordered a Caesar salad...but Steve didn't want his pine nuts! Blasphemy. And of course we needed our chocolate fix, so we had the Flaming Turtle chocolate fondue.
The thing is, between all that food and a bottle of wine, not only was our meal far less expensive than the Big Night Out, but we were still stuffed full and practically had to roll ourselves out the door. Again. This time, it wasn't too much fondue, but just enough.

Okay, maybe it was still a little too much. But I'm glad that I was able to visit the Melting Pot and not leave feeling sick over how much I'd eaten. And I didn't feel like we caught any sort of attitude from our waiter for not ordering another $40 or more worth of food we didn't need to eat (which I was concerned about, to be completely honest).
After our big dinner, we spent the rest of the night relaxing at home with our pets--I cuddled on the couch with Miss Wendy and Rigby while Steve teased Stitch and Ducky with one of those rubber cause bracelets. We didn't turn on the TV or anything. It certainly wasn't as exciting an anniversary as we had last year (we spent that one--our one year--in Disney World!), but it just goes to show that you don't have to go all-out to just spend a wonderful evening with your significant other :o) Or at least...you shouldn't have to go all-out.

Chapter 87: Ride 'em, Cowboy! OR Hot Date #10

2010-10-19T13:23:00.002-04:00

Well folks…we have come to the end of our 10 Weeks, 10 Dates challenge.

Which actually took us about 13 weeks to complete…but considering we had a wedding and some circumstances out of our control thrown in there, I think we’ll call this one a draw ;o)

And anyway, this last date was definitely one worth waiting for! Because Steve threw on some clothes he didn’t care about, I dug out my old boots—and we went horseback riding. Now, depending on where you live, this type of date could be done many ways…horseback riding lessons, trail rides, etc. In our case, we don’t really live near public ranches that do trail rides…and I have been riding since I was 8, so I don’t exactly need lessons.

Steve, on the other hand…

So we packed ourselves up and drove thirty-five minutes to the family farm, where the one ride-able horse, Cheyenne, was tacked up and waiting for us. I was up first, mostly to make sure that Cheyenne would be nice and tired before Steve tried riding. He had only been on a horse once before, and that was over a year ago! Seriously, he’s obviously very deprived.

The good thing about riding separately is that we were able to take pictures of each other. This date was definitely one to document, although more for Steve’s sake than mine. Also, as a more experienced rider I wasn’t being held back.

Wait, I didn’t just say that.

Anyway. After taking my turn, I helped Steve up onto Cheyenne and tried to give him some pointers. You know, sit up straight, heels down, here’s how you hold the reigns…thankfully, unlike many men, he’s good at taking orders.

Kidding, again. Really.

Seriously though, for only his second time on a horse—and his first time on one as young as Cheyenne, who is only 5 years old—Steve did really well. He actually rode her longer than I did, although mostly I think he let her just walk wherever she wanted. But he swore he wasn’t nervous at all, and that’s something!

When our rides were over and we handed Cheyenne back, though, Steve noticed another horse—a mini horse—and while he was petting it asked if maybe next time, he could ride this one. I told him (with plenty of sarcasm) that he was absolutely hilarious…as he could probably stand directly over that pony with his feet still touching the ground.

We walked away (thankfully!) from our afternoon of horseback riding a bit hot, a bit tired and a bit sore. Although we had a decent enough time, neither one of us was too fond of this as a date…per se. In our case it wasn’t costly, we could arrive and take as much or as little time as we wanted, etc…but in most cases one wouldn’t have those luxuries. As dates go I’d give this maybe a 4 out of 10…but other factors that could have come into play would probably drop it by a couple of points. For instance, if you were to do a trail riding date you may have to drive upwards of an hour, pay an exorbitant amount of money, and be stuck riding for an hour or two or even an entire afternoon…plus you’re throwing 1,000+ pound unpredictable animals in the mix…and you don’t come out of it smelling very good, which doesn’t exactly make for a romantic follow-up ;o)

And so we come to the end of our Hot Dates challenge with not only more knowledge as to what makes a great date, but with a great site to reference once we get bored of resting up at home and decide that it’s once again time for a hot dating spree.

Chapter 86: Things We Love Thursday, Just Hanging Out

2010-10-14T14:15:00.005-04:00

Considering this blog mostly follows our totally interesting and awesome times out on the town (either in Greenville or on our travels), it may surprise some of you to know that the thing we probably love most of all is just hanging out together...at home. To be completely honest, we're perfectly content eating our dinner, walking the dogs and settling in for an evening of reading, playing on our respective computers, or watching TV episodes. But there are a few more interesting things that we love doing at home together...

First, we love preparing/cooking meals together :) I love to cook, period, and Steve likes playing around with recipes (more so than I do)--so we're a match made in heaven! Plus, standing around the kitchen chopping veggies and frying chicken and mixing ingredients together makes for some great quality time. Even if you or your significant other doesn't much care for cooking or baking as a whole, there are usually plenty of different activities to do while putting together a meal, and having four hands makes short[er] work!

Hanging out on our screened-in porch, talking about any and everything...but mainly home improvements...and bird-watching! Steve purchased some bird feeders (including the hummingbird feeder pictured above) this past spring, and there have been days we've lost track of ourselves and sat out there for over an hour watching the birds come and go. It's definitely a relaxing way to spend a lazy weekend afternoon ;)

And finally (and probably most important!)...movie marathons! Not just any movie marathons, either--to date we've done two all-day marathons and one half-day marathon. Approximately 13 hours of Star Wars movies (yes, all six of them), about 12 hours of Lord of the Rings movies (the extended editions), and over 7 hours of Pirates of the Caribbean movies. Of course, you know us...we can't just sit on our bums and watch movies all day without plenty of yummy homemade snacks (everything from homemade dips to homemade lasagna) and of course...plenty of beer. The only thing we insist is that these marathons be saved for colder weather...because who wants to spend the entirety of a beautiful late spring, summer, or early fall day inside?

Chapter 85: We've been tagged!

2010-10-13T13:16:00.004-04:00

Lauren over at That 22 yr old Housewife tagged me to answer 8 questions. But...because this is a couples' blog...I'm going to try to keep the answers true to both myself and Steve :)

1) Why do you blog? I blog because it's a way to get my writing out there; as for this particular blog, it was an idea that popped into my head when Steve and I first started making plans to move from Connecticut to South Carolina. When it was finally set in stone that the move would actually be happening, I presented the idea to him and he jumped on it. Of course, at first he was excited to write about all the amusing differences he saw between North and South...but getting him to write in this thing is like pulling teeth and therefore hasn't happened yet ;)

2) What is your favorite blog out there? Why? Well, out of the blogs on my friends list there are a few that really stand out; people whose entries I always look forward to seeing/reading. As Steve doesn't read blogs (he rarely even uses Facebook--mostly he peruses Digg and that's about it), this answer is entirely my own and if I had to pick a favorite from the list of Bloggers that I follow, it would have to be my friend Kim over at Fashion Momma in Training. I probably got more attached to her blog because (a) I know her in person, (b) she was one of the first Bloggers I started following last year, and (c) her blog is a great mix of personal anecdotes and wearable, "everyday" fashion. And anyway, Steve should love that I follow her blog because doing so has absolutely led me to be a little more fashion-conscious, which means I look better for him!

3) What is your favorite season and why? Summer! I think Steve was nervous about his first summer here in South Carolina--it does get quite a bit hotter here than in Connecticut, and stays so for much longer. But summer means so many great things and has in the past been an important time of year for us as a "couple" (in quotes because the times when summer was truly important, we weren't technically a couple...yet). And now that our wedding anniversary is in the summer (albeit at the tail end of that season), it's pretty much fixed as an important time of year for us.

4) If you were to pick one actress that is most like you (looks wise) who would it be? Well, having been told that I look like Hillary Duff, Ashley Tisdale (blonde, post-nose job), Sharon Stone, and numerous other actresses...I think mostly I look like Sharon Stone (when she was young--hopefully):
Now Steve is a bit easier to place, although this person was a singer and not an actor. Still, come on, the resemblance is uncanny!

5) Cats or dogs? Why? Well. We have four cats and two dogs, and I know that while Steve loves our dogs (especially his girl Miss Wendy)...he is more of a cat person. And if I'm completely honest, so am I. They're just so much less of a hassle and easier to care for, really, and although they don't show a devotion level quite like that of dogs...they can be--or at least, our cats are--quite a bit more devoted to a person than they're usually credited with.

6) What is your all time favorite TV show? There are plenty of shows that Steve and I love, both together and separately, but this is a question I honestly don't know how to answer. The best I can do while still keeping this in tune with both our opinions is refer you to our Things we love Thursday: TV Show Edition entry :)

7) If you could recommend one place to vacation where would it be? Weeelll...this is another questionable question! Steve's gut reaction would probably be "camping in the Berkshires" whereas mine would be to stumble over the names of a half-dozen of my favorites and never be able to give you a straight answer ;) So yet again I will beg off answering this the way I probably should (by giving you just one place name or even one specific trip) and refer to the blog entry we collaborated on regarding our favorite places we've gone together.

8) &&& Finally, How was it that you became a follower of this blog? Weeelll...in my past life I actually was a 22 year old housewife (sans children), so when I saw Lauren's blog on Kim's blog I decided to check it out...and here we are!

Now...rules are that I'm supposed to tag a bunch of people...but I don't really like calling anyone specific out on these things (strange, I know, as I don't mind being called out myself). So if you read this and want to answer my "questions"...please-do-and-here-they-are! Do it in your blog, or reply to it here, I don't care :)

1) Do you think you're a good cook? Why or why not?
2) Regardless of your answer to the above question, share a recipe with me :)
3) Do you feel as if crime shows such as the Law & Order series or Criminal Minds scare you or make you hypervigilant?
4) Where was the last place you went on vacation?
5) In regards to the above question...did you enjoy yourself? What was your favorite part?
6) Name anywhere from one to three of your favorite stores. They can be anything from grocery stores to shoe stores!
7) What was the best pet you ever had? Cat, dog, guinea pig, I don't care! What was its name, what did you love about it, etc. :)
8) Now share a [preferably personal, as in yours and not a random one from the internet] picture! Either of something you've cooked, from the vacation mentioned above, or of that favorite pet you just wrote about :)

Chapter 84: Fall for Greenville, Take 1

2010-10-11T11:44:00.005-04:00

I've been waiting for Fall for Greenville since we moved here, and this weekend it finally happened! We missed it last year by about two weeks, and even though I brushed it off at the time...I was disappointed! I knew that Steve would have to love Greenville (and living here) if he experienced this awesome festival...alas, it was not to be. Until this past Saturday :)

My awesome sister agreed to cart us downtown (and she even came and picked us up later!) to save on cab fare (no way were we going to drive, pay for parking, and end up having to cab it home anyway). Once there, we purchased our wristbands and tickets and wandered down North Main toward the beer garden. Of course, first things first, we had to eat! And the great thing about Fall for Greenville are the over three dozen restaurants who have booths featuring some of their menu favorites.

Our first stop was the Brown Street Club booth, where Steve sampled the crab fritters and I had the Flatbread Brisket Sandwich. My choice was exceptional but I think Steve was a bit disappointed with his fritters--more because of the quantity than the quality. He was still hungry, so we also grabbed a piece of pizza from the Barley's booth. We'd heard great things about Barley's pizza...thankfully the piece we had was hot and fresh, but to be completely honest we still aren't falling all over ourselves for what Southerners call "good pizza".

And then it was Beer Garden time! There were over a dozen small-batch breweries featured in the Beer Garden, so we each had a couple of beers and enjoyed some live music before heading down South Main to check out the rest of the goings-on. One thing I will say about Fall for Greenville is that I wish it wasn't so completely food-oriented--although I absolutely love that about this festival, there was still plenty of room for craft booths and the like and I wish these browsing options had existed.

We walked all the way down to the stage at the entrance to Falls Park, where we listened for a few minutes to a band that had far too many members (seriously, there were like four guys on guitar, a drummer, a singer, and someone playing tambourine? it was all just too much) and then decided to head back to the Beer Garden. We even ran into some acquaintances who tipped us off on the Beer Sampler! For 6 tickets--the same "price" as a craft beer--you could sample seven beers. These seven samples probably added up to just a few more ounces than one cup of beer, but it was still a great option and led to us tasting far more beers than we would have otherwise (after all, RJ Rockers was there with their Son of a Peach, and we all know I can't pass that up!). I think our overall favorites were Abita's Andygator and Magic Hat's Odd Notion.

Unfortunately, it was after 8 PM at this point and that meant that the booths were beginning to shut down (or at least, the Beer Garden booths were). We had caught up with some friends at this point and decided to check out an as-yet undiscovered restaurant (to Steve and I, anyway). A group of us made our way to the West End, where we climbed some indiscriminate stairs to Chicora Alley. This bar/restaurant wasn't very crowded and didn't have any music, but the prices were right, the menu had a wide selection, and the food we tasted (sweet potato fries and fried mac and cheese) was delicious. Definitely a place we will return to!

After scarfing down our food (between a small-ish early "dinner" and all that beer we drank, we were starving!) and having a beer each, our group had decided to relocate back to North Main. We don't much care for the bar they decided on (Sharkey's) so when my sister called asking if we wanted a ride home, we took her up on that. This was probably a good idea anyway, as we were exhausted--it was only about 11 PM, but those first beers we'd enjoyed were at 5:30...and well, we're getting old. So it was an "early" night for us, but we definitely had an awesome time. Between the great prices (food samples ranged from $2.50 to $3.25 each; craft beers were $3.75), the huge selection of snacks and drinks, and the live music every couple of blocks, it was basically impossible to not Fall for Greenville :)

Chapter 83: Things We Love Thursday, TV Show Edition

2010-10-07T14:27:00.003-04:00

There are many TV shows that Steve and I love separately, and probably half a dozen that we love (or loved, in the case of those now defunct) together. Of course, this being a couples' blog...it's best to write about ones we both enjoy. And in regards to my lack of free time, to keep the list down to three shows. Two of which are still on the air...one of which was wrapped up a few years ago.

I've never been one for "crime shows", and as far as I know, neither has Steve. But both of our mothers love Criminal Minds, and after stumbling onto re-runs on A&E one day a few weeks ago, we were hooked. At the moment we are in the process of watching the show from the beginning...needless to say, as we've been watching random re-runs from as late as [I think] the fourth or fifth season, it's interesting to see how the plot lines and characters have developed. Especially as crime shows aren't especially known for these types of development ;o) Regardless, suddenly we can't wait to settle down for the night and get in a few episodes!

Ahh, Gilmore Girls. Despite Steve's scoffing at this show when I first insisted adding the season pass to our TiVo, he has slowly but surely fallen for it. The witty banter, the pop culture references, the Connecticut that it portrays (not very well, might I add)...what's not to love? Well, the fact that it's no longer on the air :-/ However, thanks to ABC Family, we have a constant influx of this show, and as we're only on the first or second season, Steve is still gearing up for when Paris will "get hers".

Okay. I had to choose the above picture to portray our final choice, because it is a play on the promo shot for Lost, a show that almost-but-not-quite made this list. You see, we loved Lost...or rather, Steve loved it. I had a love/hate relationship with that show, and neither one of us was too fond of the ending. Therefore, The Office, in all of its hilarity, bumped Lost off the list. Not only do we wait for new episodes of this show every week, but we can watch and re-watch re-runs of it on TBS without ever getting bored. You can never see the "Bears, Beets, Battlestar Galactica" scene too many times!

Chapter 82: Fall Festival Madness!, OR Hot Date #9

2010-10-05T14:58:00.005-04:00

What, oh what, were we thinking when we decided to spend our Saturday carousing all over Upstate South Carolina?

The truth is, I really enjoy attending fairs and festivals. Probably more festivals than fairs, as I can’t imagine rides that are dismantled and re-assembled constantly being especially safe. Unfortunately, what with moving last year, we missed out on Festival Prime Time, which meant that this year we felt the need to make it all up. At once. Add to that the fact that there were two great festivals being held this weekend, in two cities we had yet to really explore…it was like one big conundrum.

So, armed with our trusty GPS unit and dressed in our fall best, we headed out early Saturday afternoon to partake in everything these Upstate South Carolina festivals had to offer. Our first stop: the Spartanburg International Festival at Barnet Park.

We had planned on arriving around 2:30, which would give us two full hours before heading on to our next festival. But we got a late start, and then we couldn’t find any sort of address to the Park—which led to us driving in circles around Spartanburg (knowing that the festival was in downtown, at least) until we saw the road blocks and found a parking garage. This left us with just enough time for food, a quick walk around the booths representing the many different countries, and some glances at the belly and South American folk dances on the two stages.

I’m disappointed that I wasn’t hungrier, anyway. Because the variety of food at this festival—especially for a festival in the Upstate, and even more especially for one in Spartanburg—was astounding. Everything from Indian to Dominican to Slovakian! Steve and I settled on lamb and falafel platters from the Sahara Mediterranean Grill, which were absolutely delicious. However, as previously mentioned, thanks to our unreliable GSP system (and the fact that our first stop was 30+ minutes from home, our second stop another 30 minutes from our first stop) our time at the International Festival was cut a bit short. No matter, though, as we were ready to make our way to the Greer Station Oktoberfest Festival for beer, German crafts, and live Oompah bands!

Although only five years old (a baby in the way of Oktoberfest celebrations around the world), the Greer Station Oktoberfest is hailed as one of the best small-town festivals in South Carolina…and after just a couple hours there, we could see why! The stores and bars lining the streets of “downtown” Greer had their doors swung open and their festival specials well advertised. Everywhere we looked there were guys and gals in lederhosen and dirndls. The authentic bands playing on stages at either end of the closed-off street were talented and fun. Spaten was one of the main sponsors, but I was also pleased to see that a local brewery, Thomas Creek, had a booth—I’m a big fan of their Stillwater Vanilla Cream Ale.

The only disappointment? Steve’s insistence that despite the many booths selling brats, pretzels, and German chocolate cake…he wanted shrimp and rice from the booth of a local Japanese restaurant. I insisted that this was some sort of mortal sin and refused to partake in his extremely non-Oktoberfest dish. Come on, about the only thing Germany and Japan have in common is World War II!

When the day was over, we were hot and tired and our feet hurt…plus we had another 25-minute drive home. However, that doesn’t mean that we didn’t enjoy ourselves! In fact, quite the opposite. Although by doing two festivals in one day, we limited our time at each of them, planning an afternoon like this was a great way for us to discover new places in our adopted home. A suggestion on our part would be to research festivals in your area and simply give them a chance! Guys, maybe even use this as a surprise date. Tell your lady to dress comfortably and pack a camera and spend a day visiting two or three of the festivals that you find…because this time of year, there are bound to be plenty of them to experience! Regardless of how you do it, with the fun food and the cold beers and the interesting things you’ll inevitably get to do and see, a fall fairs & festivals date rates another 8/10 in our book.

Chapter 81: Things We Love Thursday, Beer Edition

2010-09-30T10:54:00.006-04:00

In honor of the fact that it's still Oktoberfest "season", what better theme for our Things We Love Thursday than one of our biggest loves...a nice cold beer!

Steve and I are fairly adventurous when it comes to trying new kinds of beer; him even more so than me, probably. We each have our special favorites (him, a Czech beer that we can't ever seem to find; me, almost any kind of small batch brewery wheat beer i.e. RJ Rockers Son of a Peach from nearby Spartanburg), but we also have some usual favorite fall-backs. As in, when we go to the grocery store we almost always pick up a six- or twelve-pack of one of these, to have around the house...

Yuengling has long been a favorite of mine, but Steve had the misfortune of living in Connecticut for so long that he rarely had access to it. Yes, for some reason that we can't fathom, you can buy a Pennsylvania beer all the way down here in South Carolina...but you cannot buy said beer in Connecticut. Let's just say that a lot of people were happy about the giant tub of Yuengling that we provided for our wedding guests! Not only that, but you can pick it up at the grocery store--no bothering with going out of the way to a specialty store. Point, South Carolina.

Ahh, Stella. This is a beer I grew to love; at first I thought it was just okay, but it was something I only ever drank at EPCOT. Steve sort of re-introduced me to it about two years ago (after tiring of me buying Miller Lite all the time) and I've never looked back!

Ahh, Magic Hat. This beer was truly and completely introduced to me by Steve. I'd simply never heard of the stuff...probably mainly because I've spent the vast majority of my adult years in the South, and it's a Vermont-brewed beer. That said...we went through a huge Magic Hat phase in early 2009, but tired of it a bit by the middle of that year. Still, we were shocked and pleased to find that this is yet another beer available at pretty much any supermarket here in the Greenville area. We weren't expecting this, and after a pretty lengthy hiatus from #9, we have recently become re-addicted to it. Too bad it's only available at supermarkets and specialty stores, though...whereas you can get Yuengling at any old gas station. Always a downside, huh? ;)

And so ends our tale of the beers we love...but hey, if you're a beer lover too, suggestions always welcome!

Chapter 80: Oktoberfest

2010-09-27T15:47:00.002-04:00

This past weekend, Steve and I tried our hand at an Oktoberfest party! This is one theme we hadn't had a chance to do yet, thanks to moving last year and being in the beginning stages of our relationship the year before. And this time around, I didn't have the time, money, or energy to take on the entire menu myself--which meant that we made it a sort of pot luck night. In the end, that was the best idea. The amount and variety of the food we had was amazing!

First, you know that Steve and I had to dress up. This is the first party we had where no one else dressed for the occasion. Sad, but I guess you can't expect everyone to have the trappings for beer maid and German gentleman just laying around the house ;)

I made my famous Beef & Beer stew, as well as a German cheese fondue for dipping. The fondue was good, but I used a sort of German Swiss cheese that was a bit too strong for my liking. If I ever make a German cheese dip again, I will stick to Muenster and Butterkase and I'm sure it will be delicious! We had pretzels and rye bread for dipping. Fellow party-goers brought plenty of red cabbage, soft pretzels, bratwurst & sauerkraut, and German chocolate cake!

But as we all know, the most important part of Oktoberfest is...THE BEER! And we had so much to choose from that I never did get to sample every type. Franziskaner, St. Pauli Girl, Kronenburg 1664, Hoegaarden, Abita Pecan Harvest Ale, Dog Fish Head PUNK Pumpkin Ale, Fischer...plus a few more that I can't remember. Not all German, obviously, but close enough ;) And on top of that, somehow Steve already owned a couple albums of "authentic" German music, so that completed the scene.

As food and drink selections go, I think this was by far the best theme party we've thrown...certainly in a while, possibly ever.

And because I'm keeping my stew recipe a secret for now (and also because it's extremely time-consuming to make and also yields a very large amount of stew), here's my German cheese fondue recipe for ya:

Oktoberfest Fondue

1/2 pound Muenster cheese, shredded
1/2 pound Butterkase cheese, shredded
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup Franziskaner or similar German beer
1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt

-Toss the shredded cheese with the flour in a large bowl, until well mixed
-Add the beer and the salt to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat
-Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the shredded cheese 1/2 cup at a time, stirring constantly, until the cheese is melted and the mixture is smooth
-Serve immediately with toasted rye or pumpernickel bread cubes, hard and/or soft pretzels