Dinner & a Show on a Budget

Wanna feel all grown-up and go to dinner and a show, but on a budget?  In Columbia, you can.

We ate dinner last night at Gervais & Vine--it hasn't disappointed ever, not once--and then saw Avenue Q at Trustus Theatre.  The dinner was 3 courses; I had a smoked gouda/bacon/shrimp dip, then a petite filet with feta and balsamic reduction served with fingerling potatoes and asparagus, then white chocolate chip bread pudding and ice cream.  I mean, that's some seriously amazing food.  Can you guess what I paid for that food (tax, gratuity, drinks, not included)?  $15.  For real.

The ticket to Avenue Q is $30 (it's a musical) and for $15 extra dollars, I got that awesome meal at Gervais & Vine.  I almost felt bad, like I was stealing...  $45 each for dinner and a show.

Avenue Q was hysterical--and very well-performed.  I saw the off-Broadway version in NYC back in January, so I even had that to compare it to, and I think they did an amazing job.  You should go see it.  And do the dinner and a show deal. 

image via here

I also REALLY want to go see Moonrise Kingdom at The Nick--it's been held over for another week...

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NYC Food

Two weeks ago I traveled to NYC with my boss (and friend), Lila Anna, to attend a conference on child poverty & homelessness.  This is the promised post about what we ate:

Mexicana Mama front door

Mexicana Mama- West Village.  Amazingly nice owner spotted us "loitering" outside, waiting for it to open, and invited us in early...guess she could tell we weren't used to the cold!  We had some amazing guacamole, really yummy margaritas, (that kept me warm for the rest of the afternoon), and authentic, fresh, bomb-ass food.  I had the house specialty- fish tacos (pescadillos) & Lila Anna had a chile relleno. 

happiness

amazing, spicy pescadillos

If I lived in the West Village, I would probably eat here weekly.

 

Casellula Cheese & Wine Cafe- Clinton.  Small, dark, semi-casual and cozy spot for cheese and wine--yes please.  Probably my favorite meal of the trip (and the one I ate solo).  I enjoyed Prosecco, an endive salad with bleu cheese, pears and a sherry viniagrette, and then a plate of 3 cheeses.  They had over 40 cheeses to choose from, and each came with a "complement condiment."  I apologize that I don't remember the exact cheeses I had, but the complements included cherries, pickled fennel and caramel popcorn. 

cheese (sorry so dark-trying to covertly take a pic w/ my phone)

They also sent me on my way with a complimentary dessert- a goat cheese and hazelnut truffle- divine.  If you like cheese and you like wine, you will love this place.  Seriously, one of my favorite meals. Ever.

Co. Pizza- Chelsea.  This place is what I would call "trendy."  There were lots of NYC locals sharing pies at the communal tables--couples, singles, and groups of friends.  The rustic-feel of the decor and the communal tables made it a cozy space.  I kinda made a fool of myself when we were seated: I grabbed what I thought was a communal bottle of water and poured myself a glass, only to realize seconds later when our waiter asked (with a confused look on his face when he saw my water glass already filled), if he could get us some water...that it belonged to the gentleman seated next to me who was dining alone.  I apologized profusely and luckily he was very sweet about it, just laughed a bit and said I was welcome to his water.  (I did buy him another bottle, too).  Then and there I felt like a tourist.  And the waiter thought I was an idiot, but oh well.

The meal was great.  I had the Bibb lettuce salad with pumpkin seeds and butternut squash, and then Lila Anna and I shared a Popeye pie (pecorino, gruyère, mozzarella, spinach, black pepper, garlic) and a Flambe pie (béchamel, parmesan, mozzarella, caramelized onions, lardons).  The Popeye pie was our favorite--I am going to try making a pizza with those ingredients at home--so yummy.

Ruby Foo's- Times Square.  This was the only corporate place we ate the whole trip, but it was pretty good.  Our server was the sweetest guy--he told us his story of coming to NYC, being homeless for a while, but making it work to get out of Ohio.  His name was Trent.  I wish I knew his last name so I could Facebook-friend him...oh well.  Anyway-- the atmosphere is cool--it's a huge restaurant. 

We had goat cheese tempura (yum!) and a spicy tuna roll to start the meal, and then I had teriyaki chicken (not my favorite) and Lila Anna had some noodle dish--hers was much better then mine. 

cookies

For dessert I ordered some cookies and they wrapped them up for me to take to the theatre.  They were much-enjoyed as a complement to my $7 Amstel Light in a can later that evening...

Cafe Blossom- Upper West Side.  My traveling companion, Lila Anna, is vegan, so I made sure to include at least one vegan spot on our restaurant list.  We went here for brunch on a snowy Saturday morning- it was the perfect thing!  I had coffee, a mimosa, and vegan chocolate chip pancakes.  Lila Anna had a tofu scramble that was so good I almost ordered some for myself after trying hers. 

Highly recommended, even if you're not vegan!

So, that's it.  One of my great pleasures in life is experiencing a city through its restaurants and food, so this trip was a dream. 
Post about what we did (other than eat) while in NYC coming soon...

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NYC Here We Come

And by "we," I not only mean myself and my friend/boss who I'm traveling with, I also mean my appetite.  I have only been to New York City once before, when I was in 10th grade.  Back then I was more interested in shopping and hitting the "touristy" spots, like the Statue of Liberty, FAO Schwartz, Times Square, etc.

This go-round, I am most excited about the food.  I am actually going to the city to attend a conference: Beyond Housing: A National Conversation on Child Homelessness and Poverty.  I work with homeless families and children, so the conference should be informative for my work, plus Jonathan Kozol, an author who I read when I was in school for social work years ago, is the keynote speaker.  Kozol has been a voice for homeless families as well as the inequities in the American education system for years, and his work is inspiring. 

I plan on writing a few posts about the conference and the other fun NYC-things we do (we're going to see Avenue Q and to see a comedy show at the Upright Citizens Brigade!), but this anticipatory post is dedicated to the food...

Here's where we have planned to go, mostly by way of recommendations from friends:

Co. Pane

1) Co. Pane (pronounced 'Company')- recommended by 2 of my favorite bloggers (A Cup of Jo and Rockstar Diaries).  In their own words: "Co. celebrates the communal dining experience with bread as the centerpiece of the meal. Our menu features a variety of toasts, soup, salads, artisanal meat and cheese selections - and, of course, pizza."

Mexicana Mama

2)  Mexicana Mama- recommended by one of my best friends.  She had me at: "they make fresh guacamole tableside."  It's also listed in the New York Magazine Restaurant Guide.

3) Rai Rai Ken- I asked my Facebook friends to recommend a place for good noodles in NYC.  A high school friend who I haven't heard from in probably 10 years messaged me this: "Best noodles in the world. Rai Rai Ken in East Village. I swear to god. Really small, really good. Also, hey! How are you?"  If this is the first thing he has to tell me after 10 years, then it must be good.

momofuku noodle bar

4) momofuku noodle bar- A vegetarian (and foodie) friend recommended this place--it's supposedly "trendy," so we'll probably have to wait a while to try it, but the menu is pretty amazing.

Cafe Blossom

5) Cafe Blossom- My traveling companion is vegan.  As long as I can have cheese at every other meal of the trip, I'm not opposed to dining veganese for one meal.  This place has gotten great reviews and the menu has things like Root Vegetable Phyllo Pastry and Homestyle Pancakes with Chocolate Chips that sound pretty amazing, vegan or not.

Also recommended that we're contemplating: Jane, Angelica Kitchen (vegan), Lodge (for Saturday brunch), Mesa Grill...where should we go? 
Any recommendations for sushi and/or Thai food in NYC?

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A Random Thursday Post

My week has been crazy.  We're still battling a stomach bug in the Hill house--momma and daddy got it first, and now baby has it--yuck!  On top of that, we are planning to leave the babe with his grandparents for 2 nights this weekend so we can attend a wedding in Spartanburg, SC- (yay, Kaley & Drew!).  I am a bit nervous about leaving him, especially now that he's not feeling well...hopefully he'll be better tomorrow.

I haven't even begun to pack for that trip, and then when I get back I have two days to do laundry and pack for my trip to NYC!  I am beyond excited about this trip, but I'm a little nervous that my wardrobe may not be prepared for the weather...but oh well, I'll worry about that next week...one trip at a time, right?

So, now for the randomness--I bought these cord shorts for Jones on major sale this week:

image via here

So cute, right!?  And FREE shipping from Zara, you can't beat that.

And, instead of doing laundry and packing, this week I've been working on some handmade items for Jones' first birthday party--which is 2 weeks away!  Crazy.  I'm making a crown for the birthday boy and a bunting for his cake--similar to the one below. 

image via here

So, sorry for the lack of posts this week, and don't expect much for next week, but I'll be back soon with posts about the wedding, the NYC trip, and the birthday party!  Whew.
Happy January!

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No Pants 2K10

Agent Todd instructing those with no pants

image via here

On Sunday, January 10th, 2010 over 5,000 people took off their pants on subways in 44 cities
around the world. In New York, the 9th Annual No Pants! Subway Ride had over 3,000 participants.

Did anyone witness this event in New York or elsewhere this year? Did you know that the improv genius behind this event was born and raised in Columbia, SC? His name is Charlie Todd, or 'Agent Todd' as he calls himself when doing Improv Everywhere missions. He is famous the world over for his funny and surprising improv stunts; (Justin Timberlake even tweeted about his excitement for this year's event!) And I went to Junior prom with him...(Charlie, not Justin).

Check out the video of the latest No Pants! Subway Ride in NYC:


Well done, Charlie--and all of you with no pants!

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