RSS

Category Archives: Travel

A Celebratory Weekend in Minneapolis

04 Oct

This past Friday became a bit of a milestone for us.  We closed on the sale of the building in Stevens Point, lifting a substantial amount of stress from our shoulders.

no longer our concern…

The next day we took off for a night in Minneapolis, feeling freer than we have in months.  And the weekend was pretty much as lovely as could be.  The weather was perfect for fall, sunny, bright, warm but with just the right amount of chill in the mornings and evenings.  We had such a fun dinner out on Friday.  We met up with my cousin Brian and his wife Melissa at HauteDish, where our cousin Mike is one of the chefs.  I brought chocolate sandwich cookies for Mike and the other chefs, and in return they sent out such a bounty of delicious food (a small sampling is pictured below).

Pretty much the best tomato soup I have ever had, served with an incredible little toasted cheese crouton and foie gras.

A fun, deliciously spicy pumpkin stew sent to our table from the kitchen.

Duck 4 Ways, plus kimchi and some incredible sauces.

HauteDish’s take on Apple Pie. Deep fried with cinnamon ice cream? A thousand times Yes!

We were also able to get tickets to the Ben Folds Five concert that was taking place at the Orpheum Theater.  We were very exited about this concert, as the group hasn’t released an album or toured together since we were in college.  I was also exited to see and hear the opening act, Kate Miller-Heidke, as our Aussie friend Mylo had introduced me to her music over a year ago.  Both sets were phenomenal, and these artists definitely know how to interact with the crowd.

Kate Miller-Heidke, easily winning over the Minneapolis crowd.

Ben Folds Five had the Main Floor crowd up on its feet for the majority of the show. We were glad we were up in the balcony with the normal(boring) people that stayed seated.

On Sunday morning, after spending a substantial amount of time in the hotel’s fitness center, we headed over to Edina to meet up with our friends Mark and Kerry and their boys for lunch at the Original Pancake House.  I’m pretty sure there is a picture of Riley and Logan in the dictionary next to the definition of “Energy” and it was fun to interact with them and catch up with Mark and Kerry.  From lunch we headed over to IKEA (went in for ONE thing and walked out with four, but in under 35 minutes, so that was counted as a victory) and then over to the Mall of America to waste some time.  We both decided we needed some quiet after a bit, so we headed over to Rustica for a piece of sugary bread and an espresso (for Justin) and a Chai latte (for me).  It was nice to relax and read a bit before dinner.  And because it had been 3 months and we were starting to suffer withdrawal symptoms, we knew we had to fit in supper at Piccolo.  I think Justin is putting up a link to see the pictures of all the dishes we enjoyed, but here are a few of my favorites from the evening.

Brioche and Foie Gras… Why yes, I would like a foie gras sandwich, thank you!

Acorn Squash Pasta, ham, and truffled cheese. Taking a picture was far from the first thing I thought of when this dish was set in front of me. Get in my belly!

Duck breast with Roman Gnocci and fig and pistachio mustard. Assembling a bite with each component was key – definitely equaled more than the sum of its parts!

We typically pass on the cheese plate at restaurants, but decided to go ahead with it for this meal. And we were so glad we did. The three cheeses, a goat’s milk cheese, and English Cheddar, and an Italian Taleggio were all phenomenal (though we both were partial to the taleggio) and the poached pears, fig jam, and fresh figs paired beautifully. Definitely worth giving up the precious space left in our tummies!

We arrived home late on Sunday night, with very full bellies and very happy hearts.  It is so nice to feel settled into this new routine of ours living in Wausau.  And it was so nice to celebrate the end of this time of transition with a short trip to one of our favorite cities.

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on October 4, 2012 in Building, Julie, Mini Getaways, Minneapolis, Restaurant Reviews

 

Minneapolis Weekend – days of fun and fine eating

31 Jul

On Sunday morning, Julie and I traveled over to Minneapolis for a couple of days of mini-vacation.  We ate at a couple nice restaurants, caught a Twins game, and even dealt with a somewhat flat tire and a trip to Ikea.

We left early Sunday, parked the car at the hotel, and walked over to Target Field.  We met my parents there an hour or so before the game and walked over to a nearby pizza place for lunch.  If you are in the area, Black Sheep Pizza is a highly recommended spot.  Great pizza, perfect crust, and not at all expensive.

We then went over to the game and got baked in the sun for a few hours.  I have to start remembering that day games have extra considerations for seating vs. night games.  The Twins won, and I think everyone had a good time, so in that regard the game was a success.

Target Field

 

Mini-mascots helping with the T-Shirt cannon.

After the game, my parents went back to their campsite and we walked back to the hotel to check in.  I normally just get nice downtown hotels via Priceline, usually at ridiculously good prices.  This allows us to try all the different hotels in the area.  The W Hotel was definitely on the nicer end of where we’ve stayed.  The hotel was almost too hip for us – with giant pink lighting in the lobby and lots of dark paints in the room.  There was also a window from the bedroom into the shower, which was a little strange.  Overall though, the room was super comfortable, well laid out, and Julie says it had probably the best toiletries of just about any hotel we’ve stayed out.  It’s not a big hotel, with only about 10 rooms on each floor, but I’m hoping Priceline will come back with this one again on a future visit.

The outside of the hotel

Quite the mini-bar. There was a whole drawer full of snacks

Frosted window from the bedroom into the shower

After cleaning up, we headed over to the Bachelor Farmer for dinner.  They do a Sunday Supper, which is 3 courses, served family style.  They don’t accept reservations on Sunday, and you don’t really have a say in the food, unless there are dietary restrictions.  We had a similar meal at Niche when we were in St. Louis last year.  We found the restaurant just fine, and were impressed with the decor.  They did a great job of transforming what appears to have been a warehouse space into a very cool, comfortable restaurant.

The door to the restaurant

Me, waiting for food

Julie, waiting for food

 

The first course was fried squash blossoms with roasted zucchini and foraged chanterelle mushroom stuffing, Bibb lettuces and Champagne vinegar.  I wasn’t sure what to expect when they brought it out, but the stuffed squash blossoms were awesome, and the lettuce had a great flavor, even on its own with just the vinegar dressing.

Squash blossom and lettuce

The main course was whole roasted chicken, new potatoes, caramelized cauliflower, and basil-marinated cherry tomatoes.  Very simple, but everything was cooked and seasoned perfectly.  It was a lot of food, but we polished it off happily.  The bannock that came as the bread was one of our favorite things.  Super buttery and rich and it went amazingly well with the honey butter they provided.

Chicken and bannock

The last course was orange granita, crème fraîche ice cream, Cointreau strawberries, vanilla bean hardtack.  We didn’t seem to grab a picture of this, but it was a nice, refreshing finisher to the meal.

Overall, if you have a chance to go on a Sunday, or otherwise, we heartily recommend the Bachelor Farmer.

Monday, we decided to take it easy in the morning and headed over to the Midtown Global Market around 11:00 or so.  The market houses the Salty Tart bakery, which is one of my favorite bakeries (after A Dash of Delicious, of course).  We had a few items, but my favorite thing is always their pastry cream filled brioche.  Sweet brioche muffin, filled with pastry cream, and then rolled in sugar.  Nothing not to like.

Stuffing a pastry cream filled brioche into my face

We grabbed lunch at a very good Mexican restaurant in the market and then headed over to Ikea to pick up a few minor things on a list.  On our way there, we ended up going through some heavy construction and hit a pot hole with a huge amount of force.  I don’t know that I’ve ever felt a jolt quite like that in a car before.  We didn’t notice anything amiss, but when we got out at Ikea to inspect, I noticed that our right front tire had a pretty good size bubble / bulge in the sidewall.  I’d never seen anything like that before, but after a quick Google investigation, it turns out that this is not a good thing and requires the tire to be replaced.  Luckily the car was still drivable, so we called over to a Tires Plus and they got the tire in while we shopped at Ikea.  Replacing the tire took about 45 minutes and we were back in business.  Not an ideal situation, but it could have been much worse.  I take full responsibility for tempting fate since I was talking about making sure we get the spare tire checked before we drive to Montreal this fall.

After getting the tire fixed up, we headed over to Piccolo for our normal, spectacular Minneapolis dinner (the highlights of which are below) and then drove home.  Couldn’t ask for a better 2 day getaway.

Chilled sweet corn soup with buttered popcorn, hearts of palm, and cornsilk

Watermelon “gazpacho” with chevre, radishes, chervil, and olive oil jelly (a favorite of the night)

Burrata with compressed oranges, celery, wild fennel pollen, and chili oil

Slow cooked veal heart with canned Italian tuna, lardo, and capers

Scrambled brown eggs with pickled pig’s feet, truffle butter, and Parmigiano

Potato gnocchi with Swiss chard, anchovies, and soft cooked duck egg

Spanish octopus with heirloom tomatoes, squid ink tortellini, black olives, and dill

Hamachi poached in ham hock stock with squash blossom, zucchini, and bay leaf gel

Callistor Farms chicken, veal brans with spruce pain perdu, fennel, and fig and lemon jam

Quail with pickled cherries, tarragon bread pudding, San Marzano tomatoes, and pistachio puree

Lamb breast with watercress, caramelized lemon, artichoke puree, and chèvre

Duroc pork belly with asparagus, green apple puree, and parmesan pudding

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on July 31, 2012 in Justin, Mini Getaways, Minneapolis

 

There and Back.

18 May

On last Thursday morning we packed up the car with a couple of bags and the above cookies and headed down towards Florida for Maria and Heath’s wedding.

After about 19 hours on the road and an overnight stay south of Nashville we arrived in Panama City Beach.  In less than an hour we were changed into our swimsuits and enjoying some beach time and swimming in the Gulf.

We connected with Maria and Heath, Shannon and Derek, and Mom and Paul and spent the evening having dinner at The Shrimp Boat restaurant with a number of family members and friends that were in town for the wedding as well.  The next morning we hit the (rainy!) ground running and the ladies spent the day at the salon getting hair and makeup down for the ceremony, complete with mimosas.

There was a bit of stress getting everyone through the salon in time, and a triathlon causing roads to be closed didn’t help in that regard!  Thankfully, by the afternoon the skies had cleared and soon Maria was walking down the sandy aisle on the arms of her mom and dad.  The ceremony was elegant and sweet, and a more comfortable, beautiful setting could not be imagined.

Paul had asked me to take charge of his fancy camera during the ceremony (which I loved, by the way!) so I’m waiting until they return from their Florida travels to get more ceremony shots.  Justin grabbed a few on his iPhone, and I kinda like this shot of me taking a picture of Shannon.

After the ceremony, a reception and dinner were held at the Boatyard restaurant.  The room and setting were comfortable and a good size for the group, and the appetizers and dinner food were exceptional.  Roasted oysters, seared rare tuna, lime shrimp, veggies and salads, prime rib, pastas, shrimp and grits, roasted mahi mahi and other options were all part of the incredible spread.  Plus, the sugar cookie favors seemed to be well received as well.  While Maria and Heath made the rounds and tried to visit with all their guests, we enjoyed visiting with Shannon and Derek (who traveled to Florida from San Francisco).

Early the next morning we were packed up and headed back north again, though we choose a slightly different route to utilize the Interstates a bit more and fit in a short visit with some of Justin’s family.  Our plan came undone rather quickly though, as just north of Nashville and south of Louisville, there were two MAJOR accidents, and the Interstate was completely blocked.  We spent over two hours winding our way through the (very pretty) backroads of Kentucky, trying to avoid the backed up traffic in all directions.  We later found out that people died in both accidents, and our inconvenient delay pales in comparison to what others were going through.

After the long day in the car the day before, we enjoyed sitting down for breakfast with Justin’s Uncle Mike, Aunt Shelley, and cousins Abby and Adam and their little ones, Mason and Ruby.  This was our first time meeting Ruby, and I loved her smiles and chatter.  We don’t get to see these great relatives as often as we like, so it was fun to connect with them for a bit on our way home.

Overall, spending 40+ hours in the car is not the best way to spend a weekend, but the reward of seeing and spending a bit of time with family and getting a bit of Florida sun was well worth it.

 
1 Comment

Posted by on May 18, 2012 in Family, Florida, Julie, Travel

 

Tags: , , , ,

Gorgeous.

17 May

This past weekend my stepsister Maria had a beautiful wedding ceremony in Panama City Beach, Florida.  Kind of a nice spot.

I had some issues getting pictures from my phone, but now that I’ve got ‘em, I’ll write up a full blog post tomorrow!

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on May 17, 2012 in Family, Florida, Julie, Travel

 

Tags: , , ,

Getting our Fill of Minneapolis

27 Apr

We had been looking forward to this week for quite awhile.  Back in January we were able to get tickets for Snow Patrol‘s North America tour, and I had just recently found out that Ed Sheeran was touring with and opening for them.  Being able to catch great British bands is pretty rare here in the Midwest, so we were looking forward to the opportunity to see these musicians live.

And the concert certainly did not disappoint.  Ed Sheeran is still a relative new comer to America’s music scene (his album doesn’t even release until next month), but he is a fantastic performer and a very talented musician.  A lot of the comments around us transformed from  ”Who is this guy? I’ve never heard of him,” to “This is great!  I love this guy!”

And Snow Patrol was a treat to see live.  Apparently the lead singer, Gary Lightbody, is having issues with his voice and throat and he wasn’t able to sing a number of the songs planned for their set, but they really made up for it by playing more of the songs from their older albums, which I thoroughly enjoyed.  Hopefully his voice will recover as the tour progresses, it would be sad if they had to cancel any of the future shows.

Plus, an evening in Minneapolis is always going to mean a good meal out, and as my cousin Mike recently joined the team of chefs at HauteDish we were looking forward to reconnecting with him over a good meal.  I had some fun making these silly HauteDish pig cookies for him to share with the staff.  Mike actually had the evening off work, so he and his girlfriend Jen were able to sit down and join us for the meal, rather than preparing it.  We had such a good time talking “shop” with them, about restaurants, food preparations, cookbooks, great meals, etc.  And we really had our socks blown off by the incredible food that found its way to our table.  We had enjoyed a meal here last year with Trav and Emily, but the exceptionally skilled staff is really starting to show off (in a good way!).

Mike ordered off the menu for us, plus the kitchen sent out a few extra dishes for us to try and enjoy.  The starter salad was a take on a classic wedge salad, but was super fresh and crisp, with the best bleu cheese and french dressings ever.  He also requested the Char-Cuts plate, but the chef definitely went overboard and sent out the most impressive 2 foot long board of charcuterie we have ever seen.  There were even a few items on the board that Mike hadn’t seen yet.  We all devoured it, exclaiming over different bites as we went.  HauteDish definitely deserves its title as the best place in Minneapolis for charcuterie.

The kitchen then sent out a few warm appetizers, Green Noodles (pictured above) and Peas and Toast.  The homemade noodles married beautifully with the ricotta salata spheres, which burst open with the pressure of your fork, oozing the milkiness through the noodles, similar to a poached egg.  And never have mashed peas on a piece of toast tasted like what they prepare at HauteDish.  Granted, I can swear to you that I have never thought mashed peas on anything would be considered “good,” but these fresh, super sweet green peas were excellent with asparagus, pecorino cheese and foam, and house-smoked sturgeon on a slice of toasted brioche bread.

Mike had also ordered us two entrees to share, knowing the size of these dished would be impossible to tackle on one’s own.  And wow-za!  These two plates nearly took up the width of the table!  Mike and Jen shared the Rabbit and Carrots (and made sure we tried a few bites as well!) and Justin and I shared the Colorado Lamb Three Ways.  Mike had been telling us this was the best lamb he had ever had, and after taking a bite, we were quick to agree.  The meat on the chops was like the finest filet mignon we’ve had, except the fact that it wasn’t beef!  The care and attention that is going into all of the components of these dishes is really remarkable.  We had to pass on dessert for two reasons, yes, we had a concert to go to, but also because our stomachs might have exploded.  HauteDish doesn’t promise you an easy, light meal.  But a dinner that is uber rich, spectacularly delicious, and pushing the boundaries of what “classic Midwestern fare” is?  Absolutely.

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on April 27, 2012 in Activities, Family, Food, Julie, Mini Getaways, Minneapolis, Restaurant Reviews, Travel

 

Tags: , , , , ,

Back in Stevens Point

02 Apr

We made it back to Stevens Point last night at around 11.  We left Kansas City at about 9 and started towards Minneapolis, where we had dinner reservations at Piccolo.  We arrived early, and I had coincidentally seen on Facebook that the chef Piccolo was competing at the Mall of America in the finals of the annual Minnesota Monthly Local Chef Challenge, so we dropped by to check it out.  It was super interesting to watch the two chefs compete at a dessert challenge with malted barley syrup, philo dough, dried blueberries, and Thai basil.  Chef Flicker from Piccolo won, taking home a giant check (literally) for $10,000, and we headed off to his restaurant for dinner before coming home.

Competing

Dinner at Piccolo was amazing, as usual.  Standouts for me were the razor clam chowder, the camembert and apple tortelloni, and the bone marrow rice pudding.  Julie’s favorites were the cauliflower terrine and the pork jowls.  The desserts, especially the pine needle panna cotta were exceptional as well.

Once dinner was done, we headed straight home and fell into bed.

In my happy place

Razor clam chowder with compressed celery, crispy sweetbreads, and tapioca

Cauliflower terrine with golden raisins, asparagus, and Marcona almonds

Burrata with fresh hearts of palm, lardo, miner's lettuce, and chili oil

Duck gizzard "braunschweiger" with radishes, watercress, and rhubarb

Camembert and apple tortelloni, with rabbit "pancetta", spring onions, and sorrel

Scrambled brown eggs with pickled pig's feet, truffle butter, and Parmigiano

White shrimp with kumquats, baby fennel, wild salad greens, and ginger

Monkfish and crab roulade with poached egg, asparagus, and arugula

Callistor Farms chicken with spring onions, potato, beech mushrooms, buttermilk and chicory (and crispy skin on top)

Veal breast with tarragon, radishes, peas, and bone marrow rice pudding

Lam shoulder with black olives, cardamom bread, chevre oil emulsion and Pedro Ximenez vinegar. (I forgot to take a picture and took a bite first)

Smoked pork jowls with boiled peanuts, ramps, ham and celery root

Pine needle panna cotta with pine nut brittle and mugolio

Marcona almod Rice Krispy bar with sea salt meringue and apple butter

Chocolate pound cake with blood orange, medjool date, and cocoa nibs

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on April 2, 2012 in Justin, Restaurant Reviews, Travel

 

Packing and Peace.

30 Mar

My organizational brain is in overdrive today.  Trying to figure out how to fit three months worth of clothing into these few bags is just as tricky as a thousand-piece jigsaw puzzle, though I think it may just come down to sheer force.  I’m already thinking that packing the car with everything later this evening will be less of a struggle than packing each individual bag!

But amidst the craziness that is the apartment (and my mind) we took some time out this afternoon to visit the Japanese Tea Garden, near the San Antonio Zoo.  It really is a tranquil, beautiful little park, especially when there are less than a dozen other people sharing the space with you.

All the stonework is intricate and quite impressive.  The bridges and pathways gently meander through the ponds and gardens.  The Koi fish in the ponds are substantial, but not overwhelming (unlike the stinky feeding fish in practically every body of water at the Zoo!).

The large main canopy at the entrance provides an abundance of shade, and I am sure the unique space can be seen in all sorts of wedding, engagement, and graduation pictures!

The garden isn’t a huge space, and it doesn’t take all that much time to wander over the paths, but it was just the right size to get outside, enjoy the warm sun and fresh air, and find a few minutes of peace before jumping back into the land of Packing.

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on March 30, 2012 in Activities, Garden, Julie, San Antonio, Travel

 

Tags: , , , ,

San Antonio Zoo – Two Thumbs Up!

28 Mar

Justin makes a new friend in the Butterfly exhibit!

Justin and I decided to check out the San Antonio Zoo this afternoon, and we’re so glad we did!  We were very impressed with the huge variety and sheer numbers of animals in the Zoo’s collection.  And while it was a very very large zoo (3rd largest in the country) it was laid out nicely and was very easy to meander through and see everything in a few hours.  We would highly recommend anyone visiting the San Antonio area to check out the zoo, and if you can get in during an off time, such as a the middle of the week, there aren’t quite so many strollers to navigate around.

An Okapi, the legs of a zebra, the body of a deer, and the head of a giraffe!

The elusive white rhino...

The zoo had multiple varieties of flamingos, all very active!

A small cuttlefish in the aquarium exhibit.

A very camouflaged chameleon. We called him Peeta from The Hunger Games.

There were hundreds of butterflies in the butterfly enclosure. It was crazy to see so many different varieties all just inches away!

Speaking of inches away...

Snow Cone time! Justin went with "Tiger's Blood".

And I choose pineapple.

A Lory. One thing that we were impressed by was how interactive many of the exhibits were. You could get so close to some of the animals and birds, and even feed some nectar or pellets.

A 4 year old Komodo Dragon.

Up close and personal with this Leaf-tail Gecko.

Another lizard giving Justin the stink-eye.

Quite the interesting colors on this bird!

Another close, interesting-looking bird.

There were hundreds of species of birds at the zoo. This zoo definitely had so much more than your typical lions, tigers, and apes. So many animals that we had never seen before!

 
Leave a comment

Posted by on March 28, 2012 in Activities, Julie, San Antonio, Travel

 

Tags: , , ,

A Maze of a Museum

27 Mar

Justin and I just returned from the San Antonio Museum of Art.  We were surprised at how massive it was, though the gallery rooms were quite small, connected by a maze of stairwells and hallways.

They do have an extensive collection of ancient Egyptian artifacts which was very interesting.  It really is astounding that anything still exists from 3000 B.C.  Buddy was duly impressed.

I liked this ginormous painting of toucans.  Though now I am craving a bowl of Fruit Loops. :)

 
1 Comment

Posted by on March 27, 2012 in Buddy, Julie, San Antonio, Travel

 

Tags: , , , ,

This and That.

26 Mar

We’ll be home a week from now.  Excited to be home in a week, though it still seems far away.  Looking forward to seeing friends, celebrating Easter with family, and baking in my kitchen.  Definitely going to miss this relaxed pace, homemade tortillas, and sun in the winter.

Speaking of which, it has been HOT lately.  Over 80 every day it seems.  And because of (or in spite of?) the heat and sun, we’ve been going for multiple walks through the city and along the River Walk each day.  Soaking in as much Vitamin D as we possibly can, which seems quite literal as we come back soaked in sweat.  Pleasant, I know.

Speaking of pleasant, we ate lunch at Whataburger today.  We’ve been seeing Whataburger locations all over Texas as we’ve been driving around, and as there is one near the RiverWalk, we decided to give it a shot.

We enjoyed the burgers (and the fancy new Coke dispenser) and were surprised how large the sandwiches were – almost 5 inches in diameter!  The lettuce and tomatoes were super fresh and added a good crunch and flavor.  We both agreed that it wasn’t quite 5 Guys though.  The burger lacked that great char and crust that 5 Guys does so well, and the fries here were pretty standard fast food sticks, just shy of hot.

Other than that, we don’t really have too much to cram into our last week here.  Checking out the San Antonio  Museum of Art tomorrow (it is free on Tuesday evenings) and heading back to our favorite restaurant spots (Taco Taco and Mi Tierra).  And walking and sweating some more, we have that down pat!

 
2 Comments

Posted by on March 26, 2012 in Julie, Random Life, Restaurant Reviews, San Antonio, Travel

 

Tags: , , ,

← Older posts
 
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 26 other followers