Old Red Boots

Food Friday: Guantanamera

2013-05-17T10:52:00.002-05:00

I am always on the lookout for new Latin food places in Nashville. To my knowledge, we only have one Cuban restaurant in the whole city, Back to Cuba, which is good but due to its cafe feel, it doesn't really count as fine dining. When I heard of a new place on Nolensville Road thanks to the intrepid eating of Sean Maloney from the Nashville Scene, I knew I had to try it. Cuban food, arepas, and fried plantains? I'm there. Guantamera is a mix of Cuban, Peruvian, Venezuelan and Colombian food. While they don't offer a lot from each country, they do offer a nice sampling and there's something for everyone on the menu.

Guantanamera is located in the old La Hacienda building according to Steve, who used to live near there several years ago. The restaurant is clean and simple. The high ceilings and wood beams give the place a nice open feel. There is even a seating area to the right of the main door that has these really cool retro orange 70s style seats. Our servers were friendly and attentive, and even complemented me on my pronunciation of arepa. I totally blushed! I guess all those years of Spanish immersion paid off!

I was personally very excited when I found out they had Guanabana Juice. Guanabana was something I became obsessed with during the summer I lived in Costa Rica and I always get flooded with fond memories when I find it on a menu. (I'm drifting away just thinking about guanabana milkshakes!). To me it has the texture of a banana while tasting a bit more like a pineapple. I highly recommend it!

In a nice change of pace, Guantamera brought out buttered bread as an appitizer instead of the ubiquitous chips and salsa. This was fairly run-of-the-mill bread with butter- nothing special. But it was served warm and fresh, so points for that!

Steve ordered the Picada which came in this lovely bowl. It was a mixture of chorizo, blood sausage, yellow potatoes and fried pork loin with cassava chips on the side. This was a hearty meal of meat. A VERY MANLY MEAT MEAL. Their cassava was fried perfectly and was a great accompaniment to the heaviness of the sausage. Oh and those little golden potatoes were delicious.

We did have one slight issue with service which I would be remiss if I didn't mention. Our order was delivered to another table by mistake, and one person at the other table had also ordered the Picada and immediately dug right in. After the other table and the waitress figured out what happened, we had to wait a bit longer to get our food. While I wasn't a fan of the wait, this stuff happens. Plus, the staff was friendly and apologized for the mix up.

I went for the meal that screamed "This might be your last meal for a while so EAT UP!" This assortment of goodness is the Bandeja Piasa or "Hillbilly plate" which features an assortment of goodies including rice with a fried egg, red beans, chorizo, fried plantain, fried pork belly, and chicharron. Needless to say, I took home some leftovers. The egg was fried perfectly and the yolk covered the rice and the chicharrones. I have to say that their chicharron was my favorite part of the dish! I have never had this style of chicharron outside of a papusa and I was really happy to see how well it held up on its own! The fried plantains were heaven- but I'm sure you all knew that.

I think Guantamera will be a new staple of mine on Nolensville road. I'm planning on heading back to try their arepas next!

Sawyer Microscopy

2013-05-15T09:54:00.000-05:00

I have some really talented friends. My sweet friend Leah is a genius with a microscope. She shares her lovely photos on her blog, Sawyer Microscopy. I am so impressed with her work I thought I would share some of her pictures with you!
*** Check out Sawyer Microscopy***

Pastel Sherbert

2013-05-14T11:17:00.001-05:00

WARNING: This post has lots of photos. Sorry not sorry.

First off let me apologize for screwing with my posting schedule. Normally outfits appear every Monday like clockwork, but I was so sick yesterday that I couldn't even compose a blog post. Perhaps it was all the NyQuil that made me incoherent but I figure I would save you all the ramblings of a mad woman and write this post when I was more cognizant. So yesterday I spent all day on the couch watching House of Cards. It took me forever to get through an episode considering I kept falling asleep every twenty minutes. But I finished the show and I have to say I really enjoyed it! I'm not one for political thrillers but this one really sucked me in.

On Saturday Steve and I headed down to the Farmer's Market to pick up the rest of the starter plants for our garden. While we were down there we stopped at Bicentennial Mall to snap a few pictures. I got some very strange looks from tourists!

We picked up a bunch of tomato plants, okra, jalapenos, pimentos, basil and cucumbers and spent the rest of the afternoon planting the garden. I'm really hoping that the garden is way more successful this year than last year. Our tomato plants always grow and look pretty, but they rarely produce an actual tomato.

On Sunday Steve and I went for a little day trip to Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky. Our friends Lauren and Matt went there last week and had such a great time that we decided to copy them. We signed up for the Violet City Lantern Tour which was AMAZING. It was a 3 hour cave tour where you carry old fashioned lanterns and there's no artificial light. The idea is to see the caves in the same way as the first people who discovered them. Our guide was knowledgeable and funny, and really made the tour interesting. Unfortunately, due to the sequester, special tours like the lantern tours will be suspended throughout the summer. Bummer city! But there are still lots of other cool caves to explore, so we highly recommend it!

On to this outfit. Here I am pretending to be a melting pastel ice cream cone. I'm sherbert in the sun! When I first saw these leggings at Romwe I knew exactly what kind of outfit I would want to build around them. I'm happy that I ended up with pretty much the outfit I had in mind, without purchasing anything new. I'm trying to keep a smarter watch on my budget which means I can't just buy something to "complete" an outfit. I need a more practical wardrobe.

I have to say I'm still a big fan of Romwe tights. I have a whole mess of them now and I absolutely love them. I know that you aren't really supposed to wear leggings as pants but I guess I'm a big a offender of this fashion faux pas. I think as long as the top is long enough to cover your butt area, leggings can be pants! But, I know that this is highly controversial so I welcome debate.

In case you can't tell, this is one of my favorite outfits shoots of all time, ever.

This necklace was a great score at the Macy's sale rack. It's a Betsey Johnson necklace that was about 65% off retail. I wasn't in the market for any more jewelry, but I just couldn't pass up something so SHINY at such a good price. And I've found a lot of stuff I can wear this necklace with!

For my nails, I purchased the Red Carpet Manicure at home LED system a few months ago. I've been meaning to do a full review (and I still might) but right now I must say how much I love it! I have a few nail polish shades that I've collected and it really does last chip-free for 10 days. I love this product so much I gave one to my Mom for Mother's day!

Top: Old

Leggings: Romwe

Shoes: Anthropologie

Necklace: Betsey Johnson

Ice Cream Earring: Betsey Johnson

Hair clip: The BombPom

Food Friday: Viener Fest

2013-05-10T08:00:00.000-05:00

Steve and I headed over to Viener Fest early one Sunday afternoon. We went at an odd hour because the previous week we had tried to have dinner there, but the place was packed and the wait was 45 minutes. Since I was starving that night, we decided to eat somewhere else but vowed to come back. I'm glad we did, because it was the best German meal I've had in Nashville.

When we got there the inside was empty, which made sense on such a pretty day because Viener Fest has a really nice outdoor patio that overlooks Centennial park. Steve and I opted for an outdoor seat to enjoy the sunset.

Since we were hungry we wanted to start with an appetizer. I wanted to try their latkes because I consider myself an expert in the subject. I was truly disappointed when they told me they had a huge party the night before and they were out of latkes. I didn't even know how that could be possible. Could they not shred a few more potatoes? LET ME IN THE KITCHEN. I think as a peace offering they gave us complementary pretzel bites. I'm personally not a big pretzel fan and these didn't blow me away. I did like the mustard sauce that came with them though!

Viener Fest has a pretty decent beer list, but they do have a few German beers with which we were unfamiliar. When we asked our waitress about the beers she seemed a little unfamiliar with them. I always appreciate it when wait staff is knowledgeable about their drink menu. She did go back in to ask the manager for more info on the beer styles, but by the time she came back Steve had done some Googling and decided on a Kostritzer, while I stuck with an old favorite, the New Belgium Trippel with coriander. The Kostritzer was a dark lager that tastes surprisingly light and slightly sweet, like it has a touch of honey. Both of us we happy with our choices. When we were there they didn't have any beers on tap yet, but the staff let us know that the taps should be installed in a few weeks.

If we're at a place called Viener Fest, we are obviously going to order the Schnitzel. Since we couldn't make up our minds, Steve and I decided to order two different schnitzels. This lovely one above is the Holstein Schnitzel made with pork. It's covered in a lemon caper sauce and a fried egg. The egg was perfectly cooked with a nice thick runny yolk, just the way I like it. The lemon caper sauce had a nice tang to it and the meat was perfectly crisp.

The other one we tried was the Rahm Schnitzel, made with pork and covered in a Swiss cheese cream sauce. This was a decadent dish and the sauce was luscious. Gosh, who would have ever guessed I would fall so deeply in love with schnitzel! My only complaint is with the presentation. I feel like the plates were pretty empty and that one slice of lemon hardly counts as a garnish. I think they need to liven it up a bit! Put some German Potato salad on there, some parsley, or even get some brightly colored plates.

Our schnitzel dinner came with a choice of two sides. Steve and I both ordered the spinach spatzle. The spatzle itself was tasty, like gnocci's less attractive older cousin. Although we ordered it with spinach, neither Steve nor I saw much spinach in our dish. Perhaps they gave us the wrong thing, perhaps they don't put much spinach in their spatzle (try saying that 5 times fast). For my other side I had the braised red cabbage and boy was it SWEET. They sure used a lot of sugar! I mean, it was great, but I just couldn't get over thinking of how bad the cabbage was for me. CABBAGE SHOULD BE HEALTHY. Steve had the cucumber salad which was ok but kinda meh.

Overall, we really liked Viener Fest. The outside patio is lovely if you can snag a seat out there. The schnitzel will not disappoint and I'm very excited to come back again when they have some lovely German beers on tap!

Coffee Shop Casual

2013-05-06T12:28:00.002-05:00

Happy Monday everyone. This weekend was too rainy for me. This was two weekends of heavy rain in a row and I'm SO OVER IT. Weather, can you please rain during the week while I'm trapped inside? PLEASE. But despite the rain I had a pretty busy weekend. On Friday Leah and I went to see the Flaming Lips/Black Keys show. I think everyone I know and their mother attended this show. I always enjoy the Lips and I have to say, I think they have the best stage light show. I was completely mesmerized by all the blinking lights. The Lips were solid, but seeing the Black Keys (a two-man band) in a huge arena wasn't my favorite thing; it lost the intimate garage rock appeal. I'm so happy Leah took me as her date!

On Saturday Steve's band Scale Model was set to play the Sevier Park Fest, but due to rain all the musical performances were canceled. The rain strikes again! We took the opportunity to run some errands and do some shopping. Later in the day we stopped by the festival and Steve entered the mustache competition. There were some really impressive staches and unfortunately my man didn't win. Later that night we went to the Time after Time art show at Boheme Collectif and, like usual, ended up at Fran's for karaoke.

Sunday was bad weather once again. We celebrated Cinco de Mayo by going out to a local Mexican joint for a breakfast burrito. Later that day we headed over to Portland Brew to get some work done. Steve has been working on wedding and engagement photo sessions and I did some blog business and made a nice dent in God Emperor of Dune.

This is the outfit I wore to the coffee shop. See that lovely Betsey Johnson bag up top? I scored that at Ross on Saturday. I usually have the worst luck at Ross and leave with nothing, but this bag screamed at me from across the room. It's a great travel/laptop bag and I can't wait for it to be my carry-on the next time I travel. It's big enough to hold my laptop, my kindle, all of my regular purse contents plus there is a spot for a few changes of clothes. And, did I mention that I got it for 20% of the MSRP? YUP!

Since I loved the bag so much I wanted to make an outfit that matched the bag. If that makes me lame, oh well. I've had this red and blue sweater for a few years now and I love it. It has a really nice boxy-flowy shape but for some reason I don't feel like I'm swimming in it. I matched it with one of my grandma's necklaces and my favorite pair of jeans. Easy Peasy.

ONCE AGAIN OMG THIS BAG IS AMAZING!

Shirt: Kensie (old)
Jeans: Paige

Necklace: Grandma's

Shoes: Old Pumas

Bag: Betsey Johnson

Food Friday: The Family Wash

2013-05-03T10:47:00.002-05:00

I'm really surprised that it has taken me this long to review one of my neighborhood favorites, The Family Wash. The Wash has been one of my favorites since I moved to the east side 3 or so years ago. This little place has great food, great beer and a nice rotating selection of local musical talent. Plus, every December they have a jazz group perform A Charlie Brown Christmas, which might be one of my favorite things ever. They get double points for that.

The Wash is fairly small with limited table and bar seating. I recently found out that they take reservations, which I highly encourage. The inside is a mish-mosh of thrift store finds, vinyl, Formica and twinkle lights. It feels more like you are hanging out in your friend's basement than at a dining establishment, which is a good thing.

The Family Wash has one of the absolute best deals in town: the $10 Pint and Pie night. Every Tuesday you can get one of their signature Shepherd's Pies along with a pint of beer. Since I'm rather frugal, I usually go to the Wash on Tuesdays. And the majority of the time they have a wonderful beer selection consisting of local favorites and solid craft breweries.

Just look at that golden bit of delicious! My favorite way to order a pie is the traditional meat pie with added garlic. They take roasted garlic, mash it up and put it in between the potatoes and the cheese. It's PURE heaven. The portion is really big and I always tell myself I'm only going to eat half and save the rest for later. But I'm delusional and most of the time I eat the entire thing. It's hard to have will power when something is just that good.

Honestly, growing up I didn't really like Shepard's pie. It was too homey and it reeked of school cafeteria. But one bite of the Wash's pie and I was hooked. Why weren't all Shepard's pies made like this?! Gosh, if the middle school pies were as good as these I would have been a member of the clean plate club.

The Family Wash is a great place to satisfy your comfort food cravings. Their house-made potato chips covered in Gorgonzola and bacon is decadent and drool worthy. Go on a cold day, you won't be disappointed.

Cheekwood Botanical Garden

2013-05-01T10:36:00.002-05:00

Here are some of the lovely photos that Steve took during our trip to Cheekwood. I'm always impressed with how beautiful his photos turn out. If you like these, you should check out Steve's Society6 and Instacanvas page!

Flower Garden Gal

2013-04-29T13:35:00.002-05:00

Oh Monday how you sneak up on me every week. I had a great weekend and I didn't want it to end! On Saturday I ran the Rock N' Roll Country Music 1/2 Marathon and finished it in 2:24, faster than my goal of 2:30. While this isn't fast, I'm very pumped about it. I'm coming to terms that running needs to be about personal goals rather than being faster than your friends. Growing up I was an indoor child so I'm pretty excited that I do any physical activity at all. I feel that I've totally caught the running bug and am planning to run two half-marathons in the fall. For the summer I'll probably stick to a few 5 and 10ks since it's so hot.

The race day weather was a bummer. It rained the whole time and I was soaked before I even crossed the start line. My shoes felt like they weighed 20 pounds but I couldn't complain. There were 30,000 other people just as crazy as I am doing the same thing. But honestly I was most impressed by the people who decided to come out in the pouring rain and cheer for strangers. The spectators this year were absolutely amazing! I would like to thank everyone that came out to watch. I would also like to thank all of the police officers who stood out there getting soaked in order to keep us safe. I know security was a big concern after the tragic events of Boston, but I felt safe and the whole environment was very positive.

Steve was so amazing. He got up with me at 5:30am and took me down to the start line. Then he waited in the rain to cheer me on at mile 8 and then he showed up at the finish. He was trying so hard to take pictures, but I think the rain and the crowds had other ideas. He even pulled the number one best boyfriend move ever: got me a massage after the race. That might be the most considerate present ever. I spent the rest of the weekend recovering and even got a pedicure courtesy of my awesome & supportive parents on Sunday. And somehow I also made time to go see the Protomen's 10th anniversary concert on Saturday night with Steve.

This is the outfit I wore on our trip to Cheekwood Botanical Garden last weekend. It's a remix of the jumper from this shoot last year. If I look a little chubby up top, its because of all the ruffles underneath my sweater. Ruffles sure do add volume! I'm still totally in love with this jumper from Lalamagic and I keep trying to mix it up so it doesn't look 100% the same. I figured this white sweater was a good addition. (I think I've had this sweater since high school.)

Jumper: Lalamagic

Sweater: Hella OLD

Scarf: Gradma's

Shoes: Blowfish

Earrings: Betsey Johnson

Food Friday: Red Bicycle Coffee and Crepes

2013-04-26T09:52:00.001-05:00

Breakfast is probably my favorite meal. If I could have breakfast for dinner every night of the week, I just might. When I heard that there was a new crepe place in Germantown that served savory and sweet crepes, I knew I had to try it. Steve, Rebecca and I went one Saturday morning after we finished the Purity Diary Dash 10K. I was hungry and ready to eat some breakfast!

The restaurant itself is really cute. It's located in what once was The Cocoa Tree (R.I.P.) and I was pretty amazed at how open the place felt. The Cocoa Tree was tight with limited seating, but Red Bicycle is open and has lots of places to park your tush. It has a calm, laid back coffee house feel. I dig it.

Steve and I decided to treat ourselves and get some fancy coffee drinks. Steve got the Nutty Latte which was made with mocha, almond and hazelnut. I had the Macaroon with almond milk which had white chocolate, hazelnut and coconut. While both were good, the Macaroon was the standout. It was so sweet and delicious- definitely not an every day drink.

I'm going to be brutally honest, our food took FOREVER. The Red Bicycle wasn't packed and it looked like they had a good amount of people in the kitchen. But man, were they SLOW. I think it took us around 45 minutes to get our crepes. Now, if anyone has ever been to Paris and ordered a crepe on the street it takes about 3 minutes. They do it right in front of you- BOOM BOOM. Just like that. I even had to go up to the counter to ask on our order, afraid they forgot about us. I was starving post-race and was getting HANGRY. But we weren't the only people whose food took a long time. A guy behind us ordered one crepe to go. He sat there twiddling his fingers, playing on his cell phone and giving the staff nasty looks. He had to go ask on his food as well- and when he finally got it he stormed out of the place shaking his head. I really think that the Red Bicycle needs to work on their kitchen efficiency.

Rebecca ordered the Hamilton which contained chicken, cheese, tomatoes, bacon and ranch dressing. Rebecca doesn't really like ranch, so she asked for them to put it on very lightly. Unfortunately, I don't think they paid attention because when I took a bite it was smothered in ranch. Steve and both I thought it was good, but it wasn't what my friend ordered.

Steve ordered the mexi-crepe which had chorizo, cheese, and some other all around Mexican goodness. This was quite good and Steve really liked it. I love the combination of sour cream and salsa dripped on top- is that not beautiful? This one was probably my favorite of the three I tried.

I ordered the Florantine and added bacon. It had eggs, cheese mushrooms and spinach. My crepe was huge and packed to the brim. I honestly think it could have fed at least 2 people. My only issue was that the eggs were cooked too long for my liking. They were pretty firm, while I like mine softer. But let's talk about the crepe batter itself for a second. It was amazing! When I could no longer eat any more eggs I picked my crepe apart and just ate the batter. SO GOOD.

Overall, the food at Red Bicycle is really good but the wait was just too darn long. AIN'T NO ONE GOT TIME FOR THAT. Plus, right now they have a really good deal on Scout Mob for $4 off your order, so it's a good time to go and try something new. I really want to go back and try their sweet crepes (BANANA NUTELLA FOR THE WIN) but I'll be sure to go when I'm not hungry and have a decent amount of free time.

So I guess I love sewing now... (A Fabric Round Up)

2013-04-24T09:33:00.002-05:00

If you couldn't tell, I'm really into sewing now. I'm still pretty terrible at it but I absolutely love doing it! After work I run, shower, eat dinner and then move to my craft room for an hour. If I can get a full hour in to work on my sewing, I'm ecstatic (Most of that hour is usually unpicking seams that I sewed wrong- oops!) Because of my new found love I'm constantly trolling for awesome fabric. Here are some of my most recent favorites.
Lately I've been obsessed with African Fabrics. I absolutely love the wax print variety, and love the color of this print. Can you just imagine a maxi dress in this? TO DIE FOR.
Of course CATS! I love this print and I think it would be perfect for a tote bag! Or, maybe a bowtie to be worn by one of my cats.
Yes that is buffalo chicken wing fabric and yes, I love this. I actually have big plans for this print in the future. (and it is not an apron...).
I'm totally bummed because I wanted to by this print so bad but it's out of stock. I'm tempted to stalk the internet to find this pattern somewhere else. It's SO PERFECT for me. It has SPACE CATS. Are any of you internet sleuths able to take on this challenge? It's a Michael Miller if that helps.

This fox fabric is just lovely. I love the mix of pastels. This would make an adorable bubble skirt!

This is a lot of inspiration. I guess I have to get moving.....

Ahoy! (I made this skirt)

2013-04-22T11:01:00.004-05:00

Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a nice weekend and got to enjoy this lovely weather. This weekend was pretty much perfect. Nice, but not too hot and there are no bugs out yet. I like spring/summer up until the mosquitoes start popping out and biting me all over. I'm a magnet for them. I can be outside with a bunch of friends and I'll be the only person to get bitten. Means I'm made of sugar, right?

On Saturday I had my last long run before the half marathon next week. We ran 8 miles of the actual course and I'm feeling really good for race day. After running I met up with some of my favorite ladies for a craft-sewing-extravaganza (Lladybird Lauren, Jen, Jenna, Sarah and Aubrey). I'm working on my first ever dress (SQUEE!). I also made my first ever muslin Friday night and I was super giddy. I feel like I'm learning so much- but it's mostly because Lladybird Lauren is an amazing friend and talented teacher. She is my sewing zen master. On Sunday Steve and I headed to Cheekwood botanical garden for a much needed day of quality time. It was possibly the best day ever.

SO HOW ABOUT THIS SKIRT?! It's the Miette skirt from Tilly and the Buttons. I First saw this skirt when Lladybird Lauren showed up for lunch wearing her version. When she told me that I COULD MAKE IT myself I downloaded the pattern and got to planning. This is an excellent beginner skirt because you don't have to fiddle with zippers or buttons. Plus, it is the best type of wrap skirt, one with a back flap, so there is no chance of accidental flashing. I highly recommend this pattern (and Tilly's blog overall) for someone who wants to start sewing garments. I mean, I'm a beginner and I think mine came out pretty fancy.

I opted to go with a nautical theme for this skirt. I had this really pretty blue cotton and one yard of this little red, white, and blue anchor pattern. I decided to make the pockets with the fun loud pattern to give the skirt some pizazz. (Do people even say pizazz anymore?) The whole thing took me about a week (on & off) to finish. I'm pretty sure I could have knocked it out in one afternoon if I had a nice block of time.

Did you know there is a fake seaside dock in Nashville? Apparently up in Metrocenter there is! Steve found it while he was wandering around during my race last weekend. A perfect spot for some maritime pictures. But this place can't even touch any of the beaches back home on Long Island.

Skirt: Made By Me/Miette pattern

Top: Forever 21

Shoes: Old Brown Boots

Necklace: Bestsey Johnson

Scarf: Grandma's

Food Friday: El Jalicience

2013-04-19T10:29:00.000-05:00

I have overlooked El Jalicience for years. I pass it multiple times per week, as it's on Gallatin Road, but just passed it off as another Mexican market that served some food. It's proximity to the local Radio Shack and train tracks weren't helping. My friends Lauren and Matt told me that they love this place, they eat there at least once a week, and you can't beat the prices. Well, the secret is now out and I deem El Jaliciense as the jam for Mexican food outside of Nolensville Road.

Steve, Leah and I went on a random weeknight and the place was fairly busy. There was one waitress and she was doing the best she could. There was also a fair amount of take-out orders picked up while we were there. While the decor is nothing fancy and the tables and chairs are pretty standard, the place is filled with bright colors, murals and a little bit of kitsch.

This lady was looking at me the whole time. How cute is she?

When I told my buddy Lauren that we were finally going to try out El Jalicience she told me that I had to get their guacamole. AND OH MY GOD BEST GUACAMOLE EVER. It was basically a bunch of avocados that were smashed up with a bit with cilantro, lime and tomatoes; it was clearly made fresh when we ordered it. Plus, it was only about $3.50.

Leah ordered a Michelada and let me have a sip. This might've been my first ever Michelada and I really liked it. It reminded me of a bloody mary- which I loved. I have a feeling this might be my new go-to summer drink.

For dinner I ordered an assortment of tacos: tripe, tongue, and barbacoa. The tongue taco might be my favorite tongue taco I've had in Nashville. The meat was cut in large chunks, it was super tender and the flavor was amazing. The tripe and the barbacoa were solid choices. Plus, at about $1.50 a taco, you can't go wrong.

See that massive thing on the left? That is the chicken burrito Steve ordered. The waitress was really confused when he ordered two tacos and a burrito. She tried to tell him that the burrito was HUGE and that was a lot of food. Steve said he was hungry and stuck with his original order. When the burrito arrived it was bigger than we imagined and covered with sour cream, pico and avocado. While Steve said the burrito itself was just standard, it was a tasty filling meal for less than $5. Steve highly recommends their chorizo taco, but Steve will always recommend anything that has chorizo in it. ;-)

The market part of El Jalicience is really small; basically one aisle of products. But if you are in need of some fresh queso or some jarritos, this can be your place.

Overall, I really liked El Jalicience. The food was super tasty and it was a great value. The staff was friendly and attentive and the place just has a really comfortable vibe. I'm happy to know I don't have to go all the way across town the next time I want a tongue taco.

Cat makes out with a vacuum

2013-04-18T13:09:00.000-05:00

I don't know about you, but I can sure use a cute cat video right now. Why are there so many good cat videos from Russia these days?!

Boston, You're My Home

2013-04-16T10:23:00.002-05:00

Source

I spent a good chunk of my adolescence in Boston. I went to college there and lived there for a year after. The city was historic, cold, and grumpy and I loved it dearly. I loved my Porter Square neighborhood despite the fact that I was miles away from a supermarket and I didn't have a car. I even loved the way people would put lawn chairs in the parking spaces they dug out from a blizzard. Yesterday's tragic events at the most historic marathon hit me hard. This was my city- I know Copley Square so well, I even worked in one of the buildings along the race route. This was also my sport- I'm a runner. I'm not elite and I've never run anything longer than a half-marathon, but still, these are my people.

Source

I'll be running the Music City Half-Marathon in two weeks. Yesterday I was supposed to go on a training run with my friend, but I just couldn't do it. My heart wasn't in it and lacing up my shoes felt strange. I opted to go home and watch the news instead. But much like the city of Boston itself, I need to be surly and resilient. I need to put on my shoes and go running. Every runner needs to get out there and run with Boston in their hearts. Run with all the innocent spectators and participants in their minds, taking them along with you at every step.
Adam, Me, Matt and Rachel- Senior year of college cruise along the Charles River

Boston, I love you. You gave me the best college experience and the best friends a girl could ask for. Buzzfeed has a really good list of reasons why you should love Boston. I highly recommend reading it.

Channeling Joan Harris (née Holloway)

2013-04-15T10:12:00.004-05:00

Happy Monday y'all! I don't know about you, but I am so happy spring has finally sprung. I was able to wear skirts all weekend long, with no tights. I love this time of year! Friday night was fairly lazy, but I was able to finish up my 3rd skirt. I'm very proud of this one! Expect pictures soon.

On Saturday morning I ran the Moosic City Dairy Dash 10k. I was doing it in preparation for the half-marathon I'll be running in two weeks (EEP! SO NOT READY). I was very proud of myself on this one. I was certainly no where near the fastest person on the course, but I was happy with my time. I'm concentrating really hard on just running for me. This race was a real confidence booster. I'm just worried if it's a little deceptive because this course was really flat, and the half-marathon course is anything but. I guess I need to get some major hill training in this week. After the race Steve and I stopped by the farmer's market and picked up a bunch of starter plants and then worked on our garden. We turned over both beds and planted one. That was a very successful afternoon! On Sunday we spent the day shooting engagement photos for my friends Lauren and Matt. They are so hilarious and their pictures turned out amazing. If you are in need of some kick ass photos, Steve is always available!

Now for this outfit; it was something I wore to work last week! I feel like I was channeling Joan Harris in this look (or perhaps a filthy librarian). I won this dress in a Shabby Apple giveaway (I'm not sure as to which blog, as I feel I've entered hundreds of these). This dress is great for work since it's fairly tame. I like the fabric of the dress and love the fact that it's fully lined. The one thing I am not a big fan of is how BOXY it is in the middle. I have a shape, you just can't see it. Also, the pockets stick out so I'm pretty sure I will have to sew them down so they stop curling outward.

Perhaps I need bigger boobs for this dress? I don't really fill it out...

Oh, and the Cherry Blossoms were in full effect in Tennessee last week. I love how they make everything so pretty. We had one day of REALLY strong rain and all the petals are now gone. It's sad how quickly they disappear. Bummer city.

Dress: Shabby Apple

Necklace: Betsey Johnson

Shoes: Anthropolgie

Food Friday: Royal Thai

2013-04-12T10:29:00.001-05:00

DISCLAIMER: This is NOT a recommendation of Royal Thai. This is a story about how Royal Thai destroyed date night and prevented me from going ice skating.

Royal Thai is located just off of West End Ave surrounded by offices. I guess it's mostly a lunch place, but we went for dinner. We were planning on going to the 7:30-10pm open skate at the local ice rink afterward for date night. We hadn't really had much good quality time together that week so we were both really looking forward to this. Royal Thai was located near the rink and they had a deal on Scout Mob for 50% off. Steve went there a few years ago when he lived in the area and said we should try it. Why not? Below, I'll explain the reasons why you should never visit Royal Thai.

I'll give it up for the decorator, the inside of Royal Thai is pretty cute. They have nice floor-to-ceiling murals and lots of kitsch and character. If you were to judge a place on decor, you would expect this place to be the bee's knees. But this is just another lesson in "don't judge a book by its cover." (Or more precisely, don't judge a Thai Restaurant by its murals.)

Look at the lovely portable heater just hanging out in the corner. It really adds to the ambiance.

When we arrived there were 3 other people in the restaurant. By the time we got our menus everyone was gone and we were the only people there. At 7:30 on a Friday night we were the only people in this place. Not a good sign. The worst part was that the place was completely silent. Eerily silent. No background music, no chatter, nothing. Every word I said bounced off the walls and I'm sure our waiter could hear everything (and maybe even the kitchen staff). I was so put-off by the silence that we decided to take matters into our own hands. We opened up Spotify on my phone and started DJing our table. I would normally NEVER EVER do this, but there was no one else there so I was 100% sure that we were not pissing anyone off.

I kept thinking about how terrible of a place Royal Thai would be for a first date. It was so empty and creepy silent that if someone took me here I would be afraid that the date would end with me being abducted. I could see myself texting girlfriends from the bathroom asking them to get me out of this situation.

We were hungry so we ordered the pork spring rolls. They came to the table fairly quickly which was a plus. The roasted pork inside the spring roll had good flavor, and the dipping sauce was good. Unfortunately the spring roll was mostly lettuce and cabbage and the normal delicious ratio was off. They were also really cold which made me think that they were pre-made and just chilling in the refrigerator. How hard is it to roll some spring rolls to order?

Steve ordered a Thai Ice Tea. It was typical, but a little too sweet for me. Steve liked it.

At this point I guess our waiter was totally bored so he decided to take a break. He got his own Thai ice tea and sat down at the table across from us. He took out his cell phone and I guess he was checking facebook/texting/anything that wasn't his actual job. Good to know that the ONE STAFF MEMBER feels totally comfortable to just kick-back on the job. At least go to the kitchen area or something.

Steve ordered the duck curry which was supposed to be roasted duck in red curry. What arrived was not duck curry at all, but a totally different dish, roasted duck. When we both looked very confused, the waiter realized what was wrong and said something like, "yah, that isn't what you ordered...umm...I can take it back." But Steve was hungry and decided to just eat what they gave him. I would totally pass this off as a normal mistake, but honestly, how?! We were the only people there so they weren't busy. This is just total incompetence. The duck itself tasted like it was made ages ago and defrosted. The brown sauce it was covered in was pretty salty, probably to cover up the freezer burn.

This is the plate of rice that accompanied the duck dish. No really, this is how it arrived. Completely mangled like someone already took a bite out of it. If you aren't going to plate the rice nicely, just serve it in a bowl as one giant scoop.

I ordered the Pad Woon Sen with beef. The description said it was "Bean Thread Noodles stir fried with our house Soy Base Sauce" but didn't say it came with any vegetables. All of the other noodle dishes on the menu listed the vegetables that were in the dish, so I asked the waiter if it came with veggies because I didn't want noodles only. The waiter was unsure if this dish had vegetables (WTF?) and went to ask the kitchen. He came back and listed off a bunch of good stuff so I went ahead and ordered it.

What I received was not Pad Woon Sen, but a pile of mushy brown stuff that was inedible. It was so salty I could feel the salt crystals burning into my lips, cheeks and tongue. This dish was hurting me! I asked Steve to try it because I know that I'm more sensitive than average to salt, but even he agreed with me that the dish was just too salty.

So I sat their pouting, feeling really bad. I was upset because I couldn't eat dinner and that our nice date-night out wasn't going as planned. The waiter looked in our direction and noticed that I wasn't eating and asked what was wrong. I told him that the dish was just way too salty and inedible. While he said they could re-make it, I was so pissed off at this point that we just asked for a bunch of to-go boxes. Steve and I packed up our food without eating it.

While we did get the Scout Mob discount, we got no money off the check and no apology for the quality of the food or our experience. I guess it's a common thing at Royal Thai that patrons immediately leave after their food hits the table. Since we didn't really get to eat dinner #1, we had to come up with an option for dinner #2.

So Steve and I went to our favorite Indian place Woodlands where we knew that we would get excellent food and service. I mean, look at my face! AM SO HAPPY FOR SAAG PANEER. But because dinner #1 was an EPIC FAIL and we had to have dinner #2, we missed ice skating. I guess the moral of the story is: If you want to eat at Royal Thai and plan on doing something after, make sure you leave enough time for eating your real dinner somewhere else.

After 4 years of living in Nashville, Royal Thai gets the prize for the worst dining experience. It's definitely the worst Thai Food I ever had and it's pretty high on the list of not-so-great customer service experiences. The prices for dishes were also way too expensive for what you got. If I'm paying $15 for duck curry, I would like the duck to not taste like the back of your deep freezer. For that much money I could go to whole foods and get myself a whole damn duck and roast it to perfection.

Royal Thai? More like Plebian Thai. Just don't go.

Mad Men Yourself

2013-04-11T09:57:00.002-05:00

I don't know about you, but I'm super excited that Mad Men is back on the air. While I wasn't completely blown away by the season opener this past Sunday, I still really love the show. The late 60s fashions are amazing, plus most of the dudes have facial hair! Hooray!

A few seasons back Mad Men offered the option to Mad Men Yourself and I love this little toy. While they haven't updated it with the '67-'68 fashions (Please do this AMC!) you can still play around and make yourself look fabulous. Here I am wearing some crazy print dress, cat eye glasses and drinking a coffee by a pool. Totally like real life.

Show me what you look like when you're all Mad Men!

April: What I've Been Listening To

2013-04-10T09:03:00.002-05:00

IO Echo// Ministry of Love

James Blake//Overgrown

Telekinesis//Dormarion

Efterklang//Piramida

Mazes//Ores & Minerals

Chvrches//Recover EP

Springtime Kittens and a little DIY

2013-04-08T09:40:00.001-05:00

I am one incredibly happy camper. Why do I have such a happy face? Because spring has come to Nashville! All of the cherry trees in my neighborhood are blooming and everything smells like fresh cut grass. I have been waiting for this for so long! I did a nice long 8 mile training run on Saturday morning with some of my favorite East Nastys and I think it was my best run yet because the weather was so accommodating. That run was a big confidence booster!

This weekend was super special. Myself, Lladybird Lauren and Elle from Jam + Toast took a trip out to the country to celebrate Kaelah's birthday! We had so much fun hanging out at Kaelah's awesome new digs, gabbing and hanging out around a fire pit. We even went to a local bar where we sang karaoke (Total Eclipse of the Heart), danced and played pool. Kaelah's husband Mike was so sweet and cooked us the most amazing breakfast. Those girls are amazing and I'm so happy I got to spend a weekend with them!

So, this outfit is super special. Why you ask? BECAUSE I MADE THIS SKIRT, Y'ALL. This is my first ever sewing project and I'm crazy happy with how it turned out. I really have the talented Lauren to thank, as she spent an afternoon teaching me how to sew. I also followed along at home with the circle skirt tutorial from Casey's Elegant Musings. This was such a fun skirt to make! I've already finished another, and even started a different type of skirt.

I'm going to brag on this skirt for a bit. I love how big and twirly it is. It's super full and I think the fullness makes my butt look really good (BONUS!). I also love that I put pockets in it; they're the perfect size to hold my cell phone and keys.

Plus, the fabric! I fell in love with this kitty paint by numbers fabric the second I saw it- I knew I had to make something out it. I love this print and I feel like I should make a dress out of it as well. Does anyone know a place where I can get more cute fabric like this? More kittens please!

CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF THE KITTENS!

Skirt: Made by Me

T-Shirt: Gift from Jen

Belt: Super Old!

Earrings and Ring: Honeybean

Necklace: Vivi Dot

Shoes: Old Red Boots

Food Friday: Mesob

2013-04-05T12:11:00.000-05:00

Here is a little known fact about why I chose to settle in Nashville: They had an Ethiopian restaurant. When I was making my way across the country visiting grad schools I would take myself out on a "date night" to see if I could live in whatever city I happened to be in. My night in Nashville consisted of dinner at an Ethiopian place close to campus (which is no longer in business) and visiting the Frist museum. Culture and ethnic food in the south? I was so ready for Nashville. Since I moved here more Ethiopian restaurants have opened (or they're just new to me). My favorite will always be Addis Red Sea in Boston, but Mesob in Nashville comes fairly close!

Located a little out of the way from my usual dining circle in a tiny strip mall, Mesob is a no-fuss type of place. The decor consists of what appears to be old banquet dining tables and chairs mixed in with cheery paintings and artifacts from Ethiopia. I was hoping that a restaurant named Mesob (after the traditional Ethiopian table) would actually have them for seating. But they didn't, and that was tad bit disappointing.

What surprised me is that this restaurant also appears to become a pool hall and bar later at night, which explains why their Yelp page says they're open till 3am on the weekends. When we were there around dinner time the bar and pool tables were empty. I'd like to stop back here for a cocktail and some snacks late one night.

We started out with the Beef Sambusa, which to me was the Ethiopian version of an empanada. They were nicely fried and had a crisp flaky outer shell with some spiced meat inside. They were really good and didn't last long. Did I mention we went when we were VERY hungry?

My favorite thing to order at any Ethiopian place is the veggie combination platter. I feel it gives you a nice variety and the option to try what the restaurant thinks is their best dishes. Now, forgive me, but I have a hard time remembering exactly what each little dish was called, so I'll just describe them by color. My favorite is always the cabbage and Mesob's cabbage was tasty. It was soft and buttery just the way I like it. Their collard greens were OK and could have used a tad bit more spice for my palate. The beets were also great! But I think my favorite thing on the plate was the brown/reddish dollop on the left hand side. I think it was the Yemisir Kike We’t (red lentils in a spicy berbere sauce) but don't hold me to that. It had the absolute best flavor and texture.

Steve was feeling more carnivorous and went with the Qey Wot, which was beef cubes in the berbere sauce. I think he ordered this because it came with Ethiopian cottage cheese to sprinkle on top. The beef was really tender and the sauce was thick and flavorful. When you combined the cheese with the meat, you couldn't really taste it. But, when you tried it by itself it had an earthy, smokey flavor to it. I wish I knew where I could buy this cheese on the regular. That would get me some major bonus points with the Steve. Oh, and the injera bread? It was very tasty. It had that nice light sour taste to it and our waiter kept bringing out more!

Overall, I really liked Mesob. The service was great and we got our food rather quickly. I was really impressed by this because a HUGE group (maybe 30 people, 75% of which were kids under 10) arrived at the same time we did. Our waiters didn't overlook us to take care of the big table, a problem I have often. The owner was sweet and even stopped by to say hello and introduce himself. I highly recommend Mesob for your next Ethiopian food adventure.

Ms. Rhythm and Blues Kickstarter

2013-04-02T08:47:00.002-05:00

Gosh, I have some incredibly talented friends. My friend Catie just finished her novel, Ms. Rhythm & Blues and she plans to self-publish it, funded via a Kickstarter campaign. It is a novel about music, romance and Nashville- my 3 favorite things. Steve even helped Catie film the video below:

I just supported her project at the $25 level, where I get a signed hard copy of the book! If you are interested in helping out an aspiring writer you should check out the giving levels and some of the awesome incentives (books, cookies, t-shirts, PRIVATE CONCERTS!). Check out her Kickstarter page and consider helping out a talented young writer!

The Color Run (Again)

2013-04-01T09:02:00.001-05:00

You may remember that way back in October I participated in my first Color Run. I had such an amazing time that when I found out the event would be coming back to Nashville I quickly signed up. I was joined by a bunch of my favorite people and we spent the morning hula hooping and throwing colored powder in each others faces. The best part for me was that Steve decided to participate this year rather than just taking pictures from the sidelines. But you can't stop the man from being a photographer, so here are some wonderful snapshots he captured during the race.

The Faces of East Nashville Beer Festival 2013

2013-03-29T09:03:00.002-05:00

Spring Fling Giveaway!

2013-03-27T09:36:00.001-05:00

I'm participating in a great giveaway over on GypsyBeee! There are tons of great prizes to win!

Head on over HERE to enter!

East Nashville Beer Fest 2013

2013-03-26T14:14:00.001-05:00

Shawn, Jeff, Me and Jen waiting in Line to enter

The East Nashville Beer Festival is probably one of my top five favorite days of the whole year. When I attended last year, it was my first beer festival ever. I surprised myself by how much fun I had. This year was no different. In fact, I enjoyed this year even more. Why? Because in the past year I learned a lot more about beer. I learned what goes into making it, what the different varieties are, and what I actually like. I was more focused about my tasting priorities this year and even more adventurous!

The first tent we went to had most of our local favorites. I really enjoy going to Jackalope brewery and my favorite is the Bearwalker maple brown ale. But, they didn't have that on tap so I went with the Bourbon barrel aged Rompo red rye ale. Let me just say that the Rompo is probably my least favorite of all the Jackalope offerings, but I loved the barrel aged version. The barrel flavor smoothed out the bitter hoppiness I normally find offensive. I hope this becomes a year round beer.

Yazoo is the hometown favorite and my personal go-to local drink. I tried their Beacon "high-tax ale" which ia a collaboration with other Tennessee brewery Calfkiller. This beer's purpose is to raise awareness of and protest the incredibly RIDICULOUSLY high beer tax in Tennessee. I recommend going to Fix the Beer Tax to find out why you should support this movement. I thought the beacon was a middle of the road easy drinking Ale. I did try their Embrace the Funk, which I found a little too funky for my own taste.

The other Tennessee local beer that I love is Calfkiller. My friend Jeff is certifiably obsessed with them and exclusively orders their offerings at most local bars. They were the only brewery that had a huge line the whole time. And honestly, I understand why. They offer consistent amazing beers. They had a few classics on tap as well as some specials. My favorite was the Classic Spider which was a barrel aged mixture of their stout and brown recluse. I think most people in my group agreed that this was one of their favorites of the day. Another tasty offering was the Coffee Whiskey J. which was a woody J. Henry Mild with coffee beans and aged in a whiskey barrel. This was strong and delicious. I wasn't a big fan of their Cerveza de Jesus, which is a beer made with all the grains in the bible and aged in scotch barrels. There was too much going on in this beer I couldn't wrap my head around it. I would be remiss if I didn't mention Jen's love of the Scorched Hooker- her favorite go-to beer.

Rivertown gets the award for "Brewery that I never heard of but I loved the most." These guys know their beer. Their Roebling Porter was one of the best porters of the day. Heavy on espresso and chocolate notes while being thick and filling. I love porters, but I generally despise blueberry beers. Whelp, Rivertown showed me I was wrong. Their blueberry lager was possibly the best blueberry beer I have ever had. It's a beer I would actually pick up at the store and drink.

I've been enjoying Huntsville's Straight to Ale brewing since I first tasted them at the fest last year. I'm a sucker for their kitschy space-age marketing and their flavorful beers. Steve went to the Straight to Ale tasting at Craft Brewed for Craft Beer Week and brought me home the lovely Laika Russian Imperial Stout. At the fest I tried their Hellfire Quadruple. Jen and I loved it and thought it was delicious, smooth and yummy. This was probably my favorite Belgian-style ale not from Belgium of the whole festival.

I have a soft spot for the He'Brew beers from Schmaltz. Last year, the Funky Jewbilation was my favorite beer of the entire festival. I knew that they were having a special tasting of the 2013 version at 2pm and I was lucky enough to eek out the last glass. This is the beer to end all beers- a mixture of 6 ales and lagers aged in bourbon and rye whiskey barrels. This beer will put hair on your chest and make you feel like a manly man. For such a loud beer, it is positively delicious and still one of my favorites. L'chaim, He'brew!

Left Hand Brewing from Colorado makes my favorite drinkable stouts. We tried their Smokejumper which is a smoked imperial porter. It was a little too "campfire" for me and tasted more like liquid smoke than anything else. I'll stick to their milk stout.

A big shout out to Rhizome productions for doubling the amount of port-o-john's this year. There were always plenty of available toilets. I didn't have to wait more than 2 minutes for the facilities, and at a festival designed around drinking this is key. Things were great on the potty front.

This fine guy is Sean and he works at Craft Brewed, a new local tap room and bottle shop. Craft Brewed hosted a bunch of the Craft Beer Week festivities and it's one of Steve's favorite new hang outs. If you haven't been, I highly recommend stopping by for a tasty brew.

Here is a run down of some of our favorites:

Starr Hill Brewery: Psycho Kilter Wee Heavy

He'Brew: Funky Jewbilation

Calfkiller: Classic Spider and the Coffee Whisky J.

Rivertown: Roebling Porter and Blueberry Lager

Crispin: As You Wish Cider

Kentucky Ale: Bourbon Barrel Ale

Our not so favorites:

Green Flash: Park West Porter

Red Brick: Brick Layer Ale

New Belgium: La Folie Quad

Lazy Magnolia: Southern Pecan in a Pinot Noir Barrel

Clearly, we had an amazing time. Can't wait for next year! I also can't wait to brag about all the awesome beers I got to sample.

*Disclaimer: While I received free tickets to this event, my opinions are wholly my own. I would like to thank Matt from Rhizome Productions for taking a shot on a local blogger with a major love of beer.