Olive Does The City

Bringing Back the Weekend

May 20, 2013Comments: 2

So over the weekend I found a fountain and sat by it.

I convinced my brunch partner to toss in a penny and make a wish.

A wish that I would win the lottery…

Yeah, Olive did me a favor by chewing up that losing ticket…

I also decided to eat eggs by the fountain.

Only Eggs Benedict..

Then I decided, what is brunch without a cocktail? or two?

Which led to the natural debate of whether day drinking or cocktails at night is better…

Which side are you on?

And this is probably the most boring blog post ever. Please feel free to tell me this. It’s ok, I know.

How was your weekend?

Thursdays in College were THE days. THE night to go out, the night to combine beer and pizza, the night where the bars were packed, the streets were a maze and the pre-party occurred before night classes even got out…

Sometimes I miss those days….
So when Friend suggests checking out Estabrook Park, for the Beer Garden, on a Thursday…. of course I am in!

Could you pick a better spot to drink a beer?

So bring your pint glasses and your picnic basket…

If you have never been, go.

Just do it.

Happy Weekend

Brunch Class Anyone?

May 15, 2013Comments: 2

If you happen to know anything about my taste buds, you know I do not eat eggs. Well sort of. No scrambled eggs, no hard boiled eggs (gross) no omelets, no thank you. It is a texture thing…

Possibly a foodie sin?

But I will devour Eggs Benedict and take down a tray of deviled eggs. I will even eat a fried egg if I must. And I’ll eat the egg in fried rice…

Despite my illogical relationship with eggs, I adore this city’s fascination with Brunch, (mainly for the alcohol)…. So attending a Brunch Cooking Demonstration is right up my alley…. and another excuse to peruse the Public Market..

We were served a Garden Frittata, Crab Quiche, Brie Strata with Fruit Salsa, Grand Marnier Croissant and French Toast.

Mom can you believe I ate some of these dishes? I know, shock… eggs.

There were suppose to be mimosas on the menu, perhaps they got lost in the back?

The speed in which these women were able to get that many plates out, over that many courses was beyond impressive. Commendable. (perhaps it was the over eager audience members who decided to help out?)

I am dying to try a few other of the other classes, like the “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” or the “Paella Party”… If anyone would be willing to buy my ticket, I’ll gladly go as your date I’ll even allow you to say all the awful things you should never say on a date, that I talk about here… if you take me

Bringing Back the Weekend

May 13, 2013Comments: 2

After a weekend reliving my college days, followed by a week of work travel; I was beyond excited to spend this past weekend grocery shopping, doing laundry and low key bbqing….

I think this confirms I can no longer check the 18-26 box? Bye checked box, onto the next age bracket…

I may have gone a bit crazy in the produce section of Trader Joe’s…..

As well as the wine section….

I also spent the weekend missing Mom on Mother’s Day, as we are now in two different cities.

Who had a more exciting weekend that I can live vicariously through?

Jet Set: Fort Myers Beach

May 9, 2013Comments: 2

I woke up to this view for three beautiful days last weekend. And I’ve confirmed:

One day I will be a snowbird. You know, the type that lives in the Midwest yet spends the winter in the south. Yes, that will be me. One day. Until then it is the vacations, celebrations and bachelorette parties that draw me to the beach. Hello sun, cocktails and over eager 22 year old boys in bars.

I mean, doesn’t a bachelorette party call for a few antics? When you get about 13 girls on a beach, or dressed up for the night, reminiscing of college days gone by, you never know what will happen…. Throw in a party bus, mini bottles of champagne…

Maybe hide your cell phone, from yourself? Just saying….

And then post-antics recovery on the beach?

What could be better?

I could easily see my future vacation house down this road…. Couldn’t you?

The First Patio Day

April 29, 2013Comments: 5

It is a Midwest thing. if you enjoy 60 degree winters, you will never understand. But when the first real spring day hits; when the sun is actually out to play; the city comes back to life. This day, is the First Patio Day.

The First Patio brings out the city. And I mean the entire city. People are walking, the dogs are out, the motorcycles are back, the top is down.

Where has everyone been? Well hiding from the cold, silly. Hermiting and hiding under layers. Scarfs, hats and really attractive body length coats. Hiding in apartment parties at night; calling a taxi for an 8 min walk. Trust me, you would too.

But not today. Not on the First Patio Day. The streets are full… the restaurants are full.. its like a fight for an open table. In the sun.

Prepare for a wait, as even the servers are not use to the sun. The sun is a stranger, making his first appearance.

No one quite knows how to handle it. From shorts to dresses to an outfit that almost shows your unmentionables; we are not quite sure how to dress. It may have been approaching 70 degrees, but as happy hour draws to a close, so does the almost 70 degrees. But it is the First Patio, so we forgive those outfits not quite yet appropriate. And we’ve all been hiding under layers, so our ghost white skin is dying for some vitamin D. So we forgive and look away.

The First Patio is a Midwest phenomenon…

Even the new Thai Restaurant, that lacks a patio, celebrates the First Patio, with a beer on the doorsteps as you wait for takeout.

HAPPY FIRST PATIO DAY!!

Spicy, Salty and a Dash of Sweet

April 26, 2013No comments

Cheers to the weekend, weekend!

How do you plan to enjoy it?

Perhaps with a margarita, chips and some spicy salsa??

I recently checked out Botanas.

Seriously, wheel me out of here. I could not even eat my main course after devouring the chips.

And the spicy salsa was painfully spicy. Exactly what I wanted.

After two margaritas I wanted my bed. These will catch up with you! No longer 21….

Again, I encountered a food war. Everyone seems to have a strong loyalty here too!

Which place is your favorite Mexican or Spanish restaurant?

Claiming Italia

April 24, 2013Comments: 3

Italia is in my blood somewhere. Dad is 50 percent Italian and I feel like this gives me somewhat of a stronghold in this background. I can claim it. I am Italian. This side of my heritage calls to me. Whenever someone asks, I say I’m Italian. I leave every other piece of my background out.

I do not know why.

After living in Italy as a kid, I feel even stronger towards claiming this piece of my identity.

Something about this place, the culture, the history, the food, the beauty of the architecture in Florence, the entire country really; it calls to me.

I remember sitting in the villa gardens in our rented home; just taking it all in. Writing in my journal and never wanting to leave. The beauty of the hills, the random horses who wandered in and scared the gardeners half to death… chasing my cat out of the neighbor’s gated yard….

Ghost hunting in our friends home, the castle. Literally, they lived in a castle.

Devouring pizza to myself. Eating as much Pasta Carbonara as I could get my hands on.

I could never get enough.

Much to my delight, I discovered another Italian Market in my new city.

With shelves upon shelves of pasta….

And of course, my weakness, CHEESE.

Would it be weird if part of my food buget was just allocated to cheese?

What part of your background do you feel most connected to?

Bringing Back The Weekend

April 22, 2013Comments: 4

Lately the law library is just a distant memory……

A memory being pushed away with wine tastings….

Chased away with champagne….. and perhaps an indulgence in chocolate..

Yes that is a bacon chocolate bar! you too could Indulge here.

By sitting as close as you can get to an outdoor patio…..

By picking up a bunch of tulips and pretending spring showed up… (these were the last ones, so I wasn’t the only one attempting to fake spring)

How was your weekend? Can we bring it back already??

Burger v. Burger Part 1

April 17, 2013Comments: 7

Burger wars, what? Yes that’s right. Like every good city, we have a food battle going on. Some may say its over, the big networks have already covered it. Tough, it is new for me. The burger battle is still on my list of things to explore in this city. So off I go on my merry way to discover, taste and rate these burgers…

Burger v. Burger

First up, AJ Bombers: