What a crazy month it has been! I mean, August is always our busiest time of the year, with schools starting up again and all, but this month may have been the busiest yet! After the workshops, though, you know I have to finding something interesting to see or good to eat. So with that being said, here are a few of the highlights from the past month.
Fort Myers, FL
My friend/coworker Rob was also in town so we met up at this restaurant he recommended called Ford's Garage. This cool little automotive-themed burger bar that has a selection of beers that rivals Yard House (I went with the Blue Point Blueberry) and an eclectic selection of burgers. For dinner, I chose the the Lobster Mac and Cheese as an appetizer and the Ford's Signature Burger (with bacon, cheese, and barbeque sauce) for my entree. Good call Rob! Definitely planning on coming here again.
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| Ford's Signature Burger |
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| Awesome sinks |
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| Blue Point Blueberry |
Pembroke Pines/Sebastian, FL
Somewhere between Pembroke Pines and Sebastian, in the little town of Green Acres, is Kersmon Carribean Restaurant, the very definition of a hole-in-the-wall. Believe me, it doesn't look like much from the outside, but what a find this was! Althea, the owner, is this incredibly sweet Jamaican woman who will strike up a conversation with you while she is cooking, talk with you as if you were a longtime family friend, and tell you what you want to eat. Apparently I wanted the Spicy Chicken. When I asked her what seasonings were in it, she gave me a reassuring smile and said in her thick Jamaican accent "All good things." She was right, it was amazing. When I told her that I was enjoying the dish, she actually went back into the kitchen and made me extra! You don't see that every day.
Cathedral City, CA
In all the years that I lived in California, I never made it out to Palm Springs, which is where one of my favorite singers, Frank Sinatra, lived for much of his adult life. If I ever get back out here again, I would love to see his original estate, which is now a museum. However, after doing a little research, I was able to find another way to pay tribute to Ol' Blue Eyes in nearby Cathedral City.
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| "The Best Is Yet To Come" |
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| Mahi Mahi |
Lexington, KY
Although I was only in Lexington for a short amount of time, I had to make sure to get a few things in, being that it was my first time in Kentucky and all. So I took a short drive down a scenic byway off of the main highway where I drove through acres and acres of rolling hills and numerous farms where race horses were bred and trained. Also along the highway, In the other direction, is Castle Post, an impressive structure that used to be somebody's home, but is now a luxury hotel. For dinner, if you are in the southeast part of town, I highly recommend a pizza restaurant called Crust. Try the 'Sunny Side' pizza, which included fior di latte and pecorino cheeses, and yes, a sunny side up egg on top. Just for good measure, I also decided to add prosciutto.
Boston, MA
I absolutely LOVE Boston! There is just so much to see and do here. If you are a history buff or simply love lobster, Boston has to be on your to-do list. The only other time that I went here was in 2006, when Aly and I had first started dating. It was fun walking around the city and recalling several of the things we saw during that trip, such as the Beantown Pub, Boston Common, and Boston University. For dinner, I met up Paula, a friend of ours at The Gallows, located in "Southie". The menu here always changes, so if you go, prepare to be surprised, but not disappointed. We opted to order several appetizers, somewhat tapas-style, because so many things sounded, well, "wicked awesome". (Do I sound like one of the locals yet?) I wasn't able to fly home until the next day, so I decided to take this as an opportunity to take a morning run to prepare for the 10k and half-marathon I would be running on Saturday and Sunday. And what a great chance to soak in the beauty of Boston.
So there you go. My month in a nutshell. Hopefully, some of these stories or pictures will inspire you to visit a few of these places or at least give you a few new recipe ideas. Before I log-off though, I would like to take a moment to say thank you to all of the teachers out there and good luck in the upcoming year. I hope it is a stress-free and successful one.
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| Boston Common |
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| Boston Public Garden |
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| "Where Everybody Knows Your Name" |
