Beach, Wedding, Shrimp & Grits Bar

The title pretty much sums up the highlights of my weekend in Wilmington and perhaps the most perfect reception I've ever attended. The weather could not have been more wonderful, the married couple more beautiful, and the food, the band, the beach, all just... you get the point.

At the reception. Charles has kind of a goofy smile in this. That's why he didn't make the Facebook profile pic cut.

We stayed at the Red Roof Inn which was kind of a dump, but the price was right. I bought a bunch of snacks at Trader Joe's beforehand to have in the hotel room before the bar [tab that the couple provided] that night in Wrightsville at Red Dogs. We had crackers with cream cheese, smoked salmon, and capers. I also brought two cheese, Coulommiers [soft and brie-related] that was on special and some Havarti with dill. Some cherry peppers caught by eye too, but they were not as spicy and delicious as my beloved peperoncinis. And some olive tapenade. And my cucumbers in vinegar. And a rose that I found during a wine tasting afternoon at TJ's one time. Then of course something sweet, dark chocolate and almond cookies [a whole tub of them which I have since let get stale but kept on eating anyway].

Ok, it doesn't look that fancy, but it was compared to this hotel. At least it wasn't a smoking room.

We were going to go downtown to the riverfront to see the free concert series they have all summer on Fridays [Zac Brown cover band that night], but it was getting late and the beach bars would be a long drive [cab ride] from there. I would mention our dinner at Hieronymous Seafood as I took pictures, but it really just wasn't very good. The She Crab bisque, pretty good. The crab dip and baked oysters, not so much. We just went because it was literally across the parking lot from our hotel and it's ranked by a local magazine a good place for seafood. It was fine though, because we kind of filled ourselves up before we went. The draft beers were good?

The bar that night was a really good time and we saw lots of UNC people. The next day we went on the boat with a law school friend, Taylor, and his parents. They played bocce ball and I sat in a beach chair. I also floated some too. The weather was great and it was very hot, sunny, not a cloud in the sky. A great break from indoor studying.

I just supervise.

The wedding was in a church downtown at 6:00 that evening and the reception was at Landfall Country Club and was just fabulous. No expense was spared. Cocktail hour was outside with white tents and lights; it lasted until dark. Inside was a buffet of food from a pasta bar, pulled pork sliders, some station where you chose your ingredients and had the chef choose them [I didn't want to wait, so I skipped it], and a separate shrimp and grits station- possibly some of the best shrimp and grits I've ever had. The wedding cake was glorious, but for some mysterious reason, we never had any of it. After a lot of dancing and hearing the band, the waiters passed out ice cream with something chocolate and pretzel-y. Oh, oh, oh, and there was a Scotch and cigar bar. I may have participated in some cigar smoking before hitting the dance floor. There were feather-y masks to wear and flashing rings which I thought might give me a seizure. And confetti to throw of course. It was a great time.

Yeah. Perfect. Also, on the water.

Bartenders would just make up drinks for you.
We actually met a guy that worked at Landfall out the night before in Wrightsville.
"Yeah, somethin with vodka and grenadine... and throw a cherry in there too. Thanks."

Um, heaven. Red or regular grits [I've never even had red ones!]. Creamy saucy shrimp.
Toppings included biscuits, chorizo, white cheddar, TOMATO JAM, fried jalapenos, onion straws, and probably more I can't rememeber because I was overly excited.

My masterpiece.

Orecchiette with white cheddar sauce. Gnocchi with brown butter and pesto. These people must live in my dreams.

Pulled pork sliders. Sadly, I was too full to eat these. Charlie says they were good.

My gluttonous extravaganza.

Options. Even lovely boxes of matches with the bride and groom's names. Many people were just taking cigars "for later."

 

Is this even edible? Shiny...

And then this happened... After, getting the trolley [for guests] back to the beach hotel, we called our newly found favorite cab driver Mike to take us back to the Red Roof... which happened to be located next door to a Waffle House. Which we went to. In our fancy wedding clothes. And I asked for gravy on top of my Texas toast sandwich... I'm not proud.

Happy Wedding Day, Alex and Brent! Thanks for the good times. I love the beach. Now, back to reality: Constitutional Law. Great...

What to do/eat on Sunday

When you're not hungover on Sundays, it can really open up a wealth of possibilities. I finished those multiple choice questions I didn't get through on Friday, started the SECOND season of The Walking Dead, and went to the pool with a cooler of [what was left of the] Natural Light. Really enjoyed myself. Also, if you wanna get really crazy [lazy], you could even order Domino's pizza to the pool.

This got a lot of likes on Instagram, because really, what more could you want?
We even had a little Eric Church and Hal Ketchum Pandora radio playing.
And Charlie accidently put on my shimmer sunscreen. Great day.

I used my spare time to blog about yesterday, while Charlie went to the Carolina baseball game with his dad and Matt. I realllly thought I was gonna finish [start] watching that foundation course on real property, but that didn't happen at all. I just ate leftover pho, maybe some more pizza, and watched a few episodes of The League on Netflix. Couldn't have enjoyed myself more. Then I found out they had chicken and waffles at the baseball stadium... Um what?!

Seriously have never seen this before at a baseball stadium.
Told Charlie if he took a decent pic, he could maybe make the blog. You know, quality control.

Tomorrow, we continue contracts! I can hardly wait.

Durham FOOD TOUR!

Matt has had gift certificates for two Taste Carolina Food Tours for over a year now. We finally got around to going this weekend, took Charlie with us, and some great food, drinks, and photos were had by all. Although they do several cities, we did the downtown Durham tour and it was pretty fantastic. I know all people really care about is seeing pictures of the food we ate [or maybe that's all I care about], so I took about 100 photos... and maybe a few great shots of us good-looking people too.

Told you. Just FYI, my dress is a skirt from the Salvation Army with a safety pin in it and a belt on top.

We met up at the Pinhook [not open, but it was our starting point] at 1:30 Saturday afternoon and of course we were late, but our tour guide called us and they waited. So nice. First we walked to Loaf, a local bakery. The owner gave us some [long-ish] info about how he got started, the farmer's market, and how they built and operated this enormous brick oven there. They do several loaves of bread (European style), wheat and rye, and also french pastries based on the heat of the oven throughout the day. They don't have any seating, but people pick up bread, coffee, and other treats before and after work. They are open from 7am to 6pm. Hard work.

Bread Oven.

Looked like they had a lot of other good things too.

After finally being rewarded for our patience and listening skills, we received this chocolate-filled croissant. Dang, they were good. I think one of us [Charles] may have gotten seconds...

This was our food sample for this stop. Holy cow, butter. Way better than anything you buy in the grocery store.
As Charlie said, "Man those had been sitting there for so long before he finally gave 'em to us and they still tasted all warm and gooey in the middle."

Next stop was Piedmont. The new chef there, Ben, goes to the farmer's market to collect supplies and their menu changes DAILY. This was probably the single best dish we got to sample all day. A snapper on top of South Carolina rice with sweet potato puree. I knew this was going to be good when my friend Maggie [who went to Duke unfortunately, but knows about Durham] recommended this spot for my birthday dinner. They also handed us a drink menu and gave us half-off the NC brews. Mine was delicious and the name of the beer apt.

Good looking place. I would eat here again... I hear they are participating in Triangle Restaurant Week.
$30 dinners. Starts Monday. Yeah, I'll be back.

Something on the menu said it tasted like bananas, something, something, delicious and 5.8% alcohol, can't go wrong.

I wish I could make you understand the greatness of this dish. I can't believe they actually voluntarily decided to serve this to so many of us on a food tour. It was SO GOOD. I could've eaten eight of them. Maybe just give me a whole fish next time and a soup bowl of the sweet potato puree.

They think they're bad ass.

Despondently leaving and chugging our beers so we could go to the next spot, DaisyCakes next door did not disappoint. They told us a story about how the business was started in an airstream trailor they bought in Newport, NC. It was a cute spot with good lunch options and tonnnssss of desserts.

DaisyCakes

They gave us a savory dish first, a super delicious sandwich and pasta salad. It had bacon, avocado, and carmelized onions. There might have been some aioli too, I think I blacked out. And there was a taste of pasta salad.

But I know there was definitely bacon.

The guy that worked at Daisy Cakes probably did the best job of greeting, talking to, and serving the crowd. We got a brief history, a warm welcome, friendly attitude, and quick access to the food! He's from Cali.

I'd be smiling too if I were holding all these desserts. Our tour guide is on the left.

We then got our hands on the actual desserts. A macaroon and a rich fudge brownie. At this point, Matt said, "It just keeps getting better in my mouth."

Macaroon and Brownie

Just wanted to have a pic of the inside. So good.

"Hey Matt, pretend like you're looking at the stuff!"

And then Charlie bought one of these. It was their last one. There are no pictures for a reason.

Next, we walked some more and got a little tour guide info on the history of Durham and its tobacco beginnings. It was hot. We next arrived at Bull City Burger where we got a lecture on the necessity of eating grass-fed pasture-raised beef. Sorry, he called it a sermon. Which it was. Whatever, the burger was crazy good and it came with pickle chips. They make EVERYTHING in house- the bread, mayo, mustard, everything. Except the ketchup, which he explained they go through so much of that it's not practical. Instead they use Simply Heinz which uses only basic ingredients and is made without corn syrup. The owner then taught us how to taste beer and gave us about 2 shot glasses worth from the brewery across the street. I don't like to swish my beer around in my mouth, but I was grateful for the lesson and the beer.

Bull City Burger. Dining Room.

Photogenic

Served on beat up pie tins. I mean, so good.
Even our tour guide who had lived in Austin said, "Now that's a good burger."

They had us fill out our names, email addresses and birthdays because they give you a free burger during your birthday month. Unfortunately, my birthday is in May. In March, they do exotic burger month were they do crazy meat burgers, like iguana and scorpion. I'd be down for that.

I love that it wasn't well done. DELICIOUS.

Then we walked a little farther to Old Havana, a great sandwich shot with an owner who talked to us about how he just wanted to show people Cuban culture. They display artwork from Cuban artists and also do Salsa dancing lessons once at week at the restaurant. Pretty cool. And here I made my first critical error- I ate almost all of my sandwich before I took a picture of it. I had to snatch Charlie's from his hand and take multiple pictures of it before giving it back. He was not pleased rather irritated. It had ham, pulled pork, pickles, cheese, and mustard on it. Grilled almost like a panini. So good. It was served with a fried plantain which unfortunately did not make the picture. Their hot sauce was a watery yellow spicy liquid in an unlabeled glass bottle. And yes, it was very hot, but also really good. I even liked the sketchy looks of it. I'd go back here too [duh].

Check out the other sandwiches



The remnants. I hate myself. This is what was left of the Havana when I remembered to photograph.

Nice Cuban owner, great accent.
Our tour guide-in-training is in the background. He is also a comedian who we may need to go watch soon. He seemed pretty funny. I got his twitter handle.

These are all over the ground downtown. Just to remind you where you are.

Our final stop was Alley Twenty-Six. It's a pretty new liquor bar and it is very swanky. The head bartender there told us that the culture of drinking spirits is just now getting back to where it was in the 1920's so, needless to say, we felt like the Gatsbys while hanging out here drinking out of our shallow glasses with the lovely tiled floors and vintage ambiance. They gave us snacks and two drinks here.

The first cocktail listed is one that we sampled, the Southern Gin Cocktail.
It's what the bartender referred to as a "spirit forward" drink.

The place just makes you feel cool.

Crusty buttery bread with pimento cheese (not mayonnaise-y) and pepper jelly.
They also offer a cheese plate.

Another action shot

Sometimes I impress myself with my iPhone photography skills. Don't worry, he said that the bad stuff is only in the yolk. Also, everybody was doing it. The egg provides a silky texture, he said. I've always wanted to try a drink like this.

Clover Club
Strawberry syrup, NC gin, and eggwhites. They change the flavor based on what's in season. Sometimes it's beets.

Southern Gin Cocktail- Gin, bitters, orange liqueur, lemon.
Charlie: "I'm a spirit-forward kind of guy." Matt: "I'm a stomach-forward kind of guy."

Seriously, we just time travelled.

The tour was great. Our guides were great. The food and drinks were great. We were all full and sleepy and wanted naps afterward. It was a lovely day and I would highly recommend Taste Carolina tours. They even do one in Carrboro in Chapel Hill that involves tapas and drinks. Great way to spend a Saturday exploring somewhere you already live close to. Some of the people in our group even lived in Durham. Literally did not taste anything that wasn't delicious. Fun times.

As promised... Results of Ground Beef Gyros

After a day of studying and looking forward to dinner, I made the ground beef gryos I found on Pinterest via the blog passionate homemaking. And yes, her pictures are a lot more beautiful than mine, but these were great. The boyfriend liked them too. Not difficult, and I even took a study break to make the greek yogurt tzatziki with my little Cuisinart mini food processor [invest in one, it will change your life]. I watched a couple episodes of the League on Netflix while I did this and made the beef patties.

I followed the blog's recipes exactly, and I used lean ground beef to make the patties and only spray olive oil to cook them. Imagine how dank they would be had I used 80-20 beef instead. Also, after slicing the patties, I seared them a little more in the pan to brown them, as I didn't think the pink in the middle of a hamburger that I usually would be a good fit for gyros. The oregano, onion powder, and garlic powder really gave the meat good flavor. Also, the tza was fantastic and healthy since it was yogurt. I bet a spoonful of mayo would've been a real nice addition too. I used Trader Joe's fat free feta to top them.



I keep forgetting to style my food I get so hungry- Should've done a dramatic sprinkling of feta.

They turned out fantastic and took me back to my days of waiting tables at the delicious and not-so-fancy No Name Pizza of Beaufort [seriously that place is magnificent]. I kind of wish I was still living at the beach and making those tips now...


Unfortunately Aldi did not have pitas, so I used some "Fit & Active" flatbreads



 So maybe I went overboard with the pictures. It could be a lot worse and I could've just ended up with a picture of three bites of pita and smeared tzatziki all over the plate.

 

Another angle, just in case you can't get enough. I wanted to make sure I got a good one.



Showing you how to eat one... Don't you love my beachy orange nail polish?

And then I was still a little bit hungry/didn't want the meal to be over yet but I wanted to have leftovers for lunch tomorrow [I know, decisions, decisions] so I made a plate of...



Seconds... a little Mediterranean nachos?

The good news is I'm going out to eat on Friday. Maybe a little dinner and a movie? Maybe a little sushi and sake? I'm excited. Too bad I heard the new Hangover was awful and not funny. Dammit.
In other news, I JUST started watching the Walking Dead tonight after dinner. Great timing for studying. How many seasons are there? Pretty sure I'm hooked.