Boneheads brings it...

Dinner out with the hubby, parents, and one adorable baby:

 Have you tried Boneheads on Youree Drive yet?

The atmosphere is clean and nautical.

My favorite thing we ordered was the Boneheads Shrimp appetizer. The batter has the perfect crunch.

We also enjoyed all the sauce options. Welcome to Shreveport, Boneheads!

Celebrating at Fairfield Place Bed and Breakfast...

It seems unreal, but as of May 18th Tison and I have been married one year; and what a year it has been. Not everyone can say they became a wife and mother at the same time... We found out we were 5 weeks pregnant a mere 5 weeks after we were married. Talk about a short honeymoon- haha!

Newly married and pregnant had it's challenges and now with our sweet four and a half month old - Evangeline, marriage has brought on even more learning experiences. I would say we are handling our new marriage, house, and baby pretty well - but who doesn't deserve a night away from it all?

For my first night ever away from baby girl, Tison reserved a room for us to celebrate our first year anniversary at Fairfield Place Bed and Breakfast. It was like we had traveled to a new city with only a 10 minute drive from home. This house was built in 1870s and decorated in an elaborate and eclectic way. It is oozing with character and every room brings a new aspect but cohesive feeling to the B and B. I was in love with the whole thing.

Our room had a jacuzzi in the room and when we walked in- a bottle of bubbly was on ice for us! How thoughtful :)

We went to dinner at The Cub and of course had their steak and au gratin potatoes. I treated myself to a lemon drop :)

While we were at dinner at our favorite 'hidden gem' in town, my husband and I overheard another couple talking about RelayRides and how incredibly easy it was for them to use. I made a mental note to research this at a later time; maybe use it for a night to find another hidden gem in one of the surrounding areas. I find the quickly growing concept of the sharing economy so interesting and it is certainly making it easier for people to travel. Have you ever tried anything like RelayRides or couch surfing before?

After the Cub, we went to the local jaunt Bears to listen to some live music. It was about 11:15 when we both looked at each other and said- lets go back to Fairfield. I was dying to crawl into that comfy bed! Sleeping through the night without an interruption (or baby crying) was worth it's weight in gold. I woke up with a smile on my face.

The owner of the B and B runs The Cotton Boll Grill and catered our engagement party (people still talk to me about the food that night) so we knew the breakfast was going to be fantastic! I was blown away at the service and quality of the food. My mouth still waters thinking about those delicious grits. After having some coffee on the patio swing overlooking Fairfield Avenue and stuffing my pockets with the exotic chocolates that are on every table throughout the house, we headed back to reality recharged, refreshed, and ready to hug and kiss on that baby!

burgers, brews, and blues...Twisted Root Opening!

 Ann and Grant invited us (along with most of Shreveport) to the private opening of their new restaurant, Twisted Root, this weekend.

As the doors opened, I was struck by the industrial, yet homey feel--exposed ceilings, corrugated aluminum siding and unfinished plywood--these unexpected materials were visually interesting and I instantly felt at ease. The line was long with many recognizable faces from around the area ready to partake in their first hamburger or buffalo Twisted Root Burger. Each month they will feature a different type of meat to choose from such as: Venison, Elk, Lamb, Ostrich, Kangaroo, Emu, Boar, or Alligator. How exciting!

We first made our way to the bar that was decorated with old records and guitars. There were many choices of beers on tap, but considering my current condition, I chose the pecan root beer and made my way to the covered brick patio. Both the root beer and the patio were AMAZING! This patio might be my new favorite place to "tailgate" during football season.

 Lauren and David got in line and ordered for us. I chose The Western that was served with fried onion rings, bacon, pepperjack, and jalapanos! Tison had The Ranch Hand and said it was "the best burger I've ever had that I didn't make myself." This is definitely high praise. I couldn't have been happier with my choice either! You could seriously mix and match to get a different burger every time you go. Their choice of side sauces that are conveniently already at your table were also very tasty. I added the BBQ sauce to my western buffalo burger and it was right on the money. Lauren went with the fries instead of the sweet potato chips that it comes with. Order the fries every time people. They are delicious! I am so excited to see such a fun, new restaurant open in a different location that Youree Drive.

 It opens to the public today and if you don't have dinner plans yet, I highly suggest you go TONIGHT! I wish you the best of luck Ann and Grant- but I don't think you're gonna need it ;) xoxo

Blue Southern Comfort Foods...

Thanks to Chris Jay and his 20x49.com blog, Katie and I found out about the new restaurant Blue Southern Comfort Foods on Louisiana Avenue. I couldn't put it better than Chris, "Blue is small, off-the-beaten-path, and lacking in signage, but food lovers should make the effort to seek it out." And so we did -seek it out - that is. After passing the building the first time, we parked and made our way through the blue door into the tiny but quaint dining area.

Katie ordered the pulled pork over cheese grits with a side of broccoli casserole. Although the main dish was good, we both agreed it needed a sauce or gravy to make it great. 

 However, the Blue Burger is where it's at! A perfectly cooked patty topped with shredded gruyère and homemade bacon marmalade on a sour dough bun...i mean, come on! This combination was a perfect mesh between sweet and salty. I'm a fan. Gullo's may be Katie and my next food adventure!

What's your favorite burger place?

mud fest...err, I mean jazz fest weekend!

10 of my girlfriends traveled to New Orleans for Jazz Fest in honor of my Bachelorette party. It was a large, but enthusiastic #focusedbatch, ready to meet the weekend head on. Our road trip crew was separated into 3 different cars, so the first order of business was meeting up in our hotel rooms where gift backpacks were awaiting everyone. Thank you Emily, MC, and Rachael for your thoughtfulness! This was the PERFECT bag for the weekend. (who am i kidding- I'm bringing it on the honeymoon too) Across from the Renaissance Hotel we ate at Lucy's Retired Surfer Bar for dinner. Burgers were split, shots were had - and then we were off to Frenchman! Rebirth was playing at d.b.a.'s and we found a little nook in the bar that was made for us! We laughed, we drank, we took pictures, we listened to the band, we made new friends from Baltimore/Boston....Friday night was our fun night for sure!

Saturday (the day of Jazz Fest), we woke up for brunch and located about 1/2 a mile from our hotel was The Ruby Slipper, we walked the streets of Nola until we bumped into people waiting in line... bloody mary's held us over until we were seated an hour later with our entire #focusedbatch! Emily drove in from Baton Rouge and met us there! Neither of us could believe it had been at her wedding 2 years ago since we had seen each other. Time- she is a-flyin'. We trolleyed to City Park for Jazz Fest. (well...ahem, some of us had to stop at Family Dollar) We got to hear Norah Jones band, The Little Willies, play. Then Phoenix came on and Lauren and I swayed to the music. "They came all the way from Paris, France just to play for us!" We met up with the other half of the group at the Fleetwood Mac stage. When I tell you it was muddy- I mean liquid sewage sludge a football field length long that smelled A LOT like cow manure. What were we gonna do? NOT see Fleetwood Mac? I don't think so!

Even my sis, Laur with her flip flops on, trudged through the muck of it to hear Stevie Nicks. This was the last show of the day and I'll say exiting with 11 women that have to use the rest room and are tired and hungry is interesting. Oscar, the VERY attractive city transportation worker, assisted us in providing bus transport back to Harrahs, where we decided upon a dinner location, Gordon Biersch. Somewhere between our appetizers being served and our entrees arriving- a little rodent friend decided to poke it's head out and run around the room where we were seated. Never in my life. Sometimes you just gotta laugh to keep from crying.

Exausted but determined, the girls hosted a lingerie shower for me in the hotel room. I have such lovely friends.

Sunday morning we departed the hotel for Baton Rouge, where Emily selected Beausoleil for us. It couldn't have been a more quaint spot for our brunch. As if they knew the running theme of the weekend, an acoustic guitarist serenaded us throughout the meal playing songs we all knew by heart. Instead of say bread or chips, an unexpected table food was served in a basket - cracklin'- and it was yummy! As Lauren recently said to me, "weekends like this are unforgettable, they are stamped in your mind forever." I consider myself a lucky lady to have such thoughtful, fun, and beautiful friends & sisters.

a little date at bistro to go...

Sometimes you just need a little lunch date to remind each other that dating is fun and even though you have been in a relationship for a long time, gosh darn it, it is important, too! I have picked up Bistro To Go's famous strawberry salad to go, but I had yet to eat inside until this holiday season. I can't tell you how many times I thought about going before we actually sat down and ate in their dining room, but it wasn't soon enough.

We all know the feeling of going somewhere- ordering something- and thinking "well, I could have made this at home." How disappointing is that?!  Bistro To Go is not, I repeat - NOT - this kind of restaurant; it is the opposite side of the coin. Their flavors from the seemingly simple strawberry salad topped with addictive dressing, the tomato basil soup, to the creamy stuffed chicken with capers are so complex and mouth wateringly delicious that even after I finished the last bite on my plate I wondered what everything else on the menu tasted like! This will be a repeat restaurant for me for sure.

Have you tried Bistro To Go? What do you recommend?

The Big Easy...

During a recent work related trip to New Orleans with Katie, I stayed in one of the nicer hotels I have ever been in, Windsor Court. We were surprised to learn upon arrival that we had been upgraded to the club level suites. (a perk of planning an upcoming meeting at their establishment)

I took pictures of every inch of the room. I plan to some day decorate my home in this color scheme.

The meeting space is exquisite. I told Katie that had I not already put down deposits for my wedding in Shreveport, we would be relocating to Windsor Court as our reception venue.

 Notice the painting that Katie is displaying for you. Care to guess what it's value is? I'll just go ahead and tell you. It is a 1.5 million dollar Van Dyck. The hotel itself is basically an art museum!

Their 4-star chef recently left the hotel restaurant, so what did they do? Hire a 5-star chef! This will be the chef de cuisine for our conference in January and I can-not-wait.

In the lobby they serve high tea every day. Unfortunately we missed it, but after our tour ended we hit the road toward Luke on St. Charles Avenue for a late lunch.

A flamenkuche is basically a pizza on uber thin crust with thick cut sweet bacon topped with cheese and onion. Filling and delicious. Katie and I both agree that the pork pâté is interesting on toasted bread with side options to top it with watermelon, pickles, mustard & gelée. I have definitely never seen it on a menu before. Props, John.

We walked around stopping in a few local shops, meandering through the colorful streets of NOLA until we found ourselves at the Green Goddess. Katie appropriately ordered "The Katie" and I got the "Glory for your salvation" - cucumbers muddled in ginger syrup, Pimm's No. 1, Koval Jasmine liqueur, Creme de Cassis, Flor de Cana 7-year aged Nicaraguan rum, Hibiscus liqueur, Orchard Apricot liqueur, fresh lime juice, and topped with ginger beer. Yep, that is all in that white cup I am holding there. Lizette did her thing, and I did mine ;) After taking a breather at the hotel for a bit, we hit up the complimentary club level lounge. I was most definitely feeling like a princess at this point.

Then we meet up with Griff and Alex and taxied to Magazine Street for our night out on the town.

Before leaving NOLA for the LSU game in Baton Rouge, we had to stop at the Rum House for their famous Caribbean inspired tacos. Check out this menu for their combo options. (We both ordered the Two Dat which allowed us to pick 2 types of tacos and 2 different sides) If you haven't been in the Rum House, RUN to the Rum House!!!

{next up- our day spent at Tiger Stadium}