the round up

by the way, some of the random goodness that has been happening:

We finally got a Chuy's!!! Seriously, I can't even explain how happy this made me -- delicious Tex-Mex finally to be had in North Carolina. I will eat all of their flour tortillas if you let me.  Also, look at that adorable caped corgi! I love this place. 

We won a cheese ball at trivia! We were at the Pinhook in Durham for awesome trivia and came in second and won a cheese ball! Can you even believe? Best trivia winnings ever.

Casey put both dogs in a box.  And they stood their like the good pups they are.  They weren't in time out or anything, just hanging out in a box...

 

Chloe was a party animal for Halloween.  Get it?! 

Jonathan made me many a feast, including this one -- eggplant parm, delicious! 

xoxo

passing

(Sweet notes from ashley)

So yes, most of the reason for my absence on the blog (and in life) was my dissertation proposal and gearing up for its defense. After I passed (holla!) much celebration was had.  

Immediately after, we went out to Kipos for lunch and drinks.  

Then the next day, Jonathan planned a little surprise for me, gathering our friends at my favorite brewery, Big Boss! 

I then had a few days to relax and prep for Christmas before heading to Cali to celebrate with my friends and family!

xoxo

trophy time

Trophy Brewing Co. just opened up in Raleigh and so of course we went to check it out.

And it's a winner.  

The bar is intimate and filled with trophies, of course.  

They are working on the restaurant section, which will expand the size.  

We started with a flight:

and then had the porter:

And it was all delicious.

We were actually really impressed with the beer, given they are so new.  We were afraid they would still be working out the kinks, but we really liked everything we had. 

Also, hands down, the best thing about this place: 

There is one TV in the bar, and what was it showing? 

No sports.

Nope.

Animal planet.  

Specifically, the show Too Cute!

Yes, the show that follows around puppies and kittens. 

Now this is my kind of audience.

Check plus Raleigh. 

xoxo

fiction kitchen

Fiction Kitchen is a new restaurant in Raleigh and, it's awesome. We have been in need of some new additions to our restaurant lineup and this one is definitely a keeper.

It's a vegetarian restaurant that offers plenty of vegan and gluten free options if you need it. There are a handful of veggie-restaurants around the Triangle but we don't tend to to go to them for various reasons.  But this meant we were quite surprised to walk in to a full restaurant that was 95% women.  Apparently this is the norm for these restaurants, but we had no idea.  Really boys? Why are you hating on your vegetables? 

But back to the important things. The food.  It's also really into local ingredients, which is always nice and they had a good looking beer and cocktail menu. It was pretty hilarious/precious watching Jonathan react to the menu.  I don't think he's ever been in a place with so many options. 

It took us a while but we finally made some decisions, I had the "Chicken" and Waffles with an arugula salad:

And Jonathan got the Pulled "Pork" Plate with Potatoes and Pickled Veggies:

He also thought it would be funny to take a picture of himself instead of his plate when I asked, so here you go:

Well yes, we did get dessert because how can I say no to a Chocolate Truffle Pie with Salted Caramel Sauce?? Obviously, I cannot:

Of course it was spectacular.  So very rich.  It was just like a pile of fabulous ganache with a crumb bottom and caramel top. Holy Moly.

It was all so good. We will be going back asap to try new things, and that pie again, because I just really need another slice to form a well-balanced opinion on it...

I highly recommend you stop by if you are around. Don't be afraid of the soy. It's quite tasty, I promise.

xoxo

big boss: raleigh's best

In my opinion, the Big Boss Taproom is one of the best things happening in Raleigh.

It is the bar attached to the Big Boss brewery, which makes some delicious beer.  The taproom offers Big Boss brews for a few bucks and many (free) games like darts, pool, and shuffleboard.



There are usually some food trucks hanging around too.  And once a month they do tours of the brewery with even cheaper prices on a few of their beers. An amazing deal people! 

It's a real gem in the triangle. I highly recommend it.

So drink up!

xoxo 

jake-attack

jake came to visit a couple of weekends ago. He got in late thursday night and then we were off to a solid weekend of fun and eating. 

On friday we took CH by storm and headed to Breadman's for lunch and then met up with the kids for some chill time at Sutton's and then froyo of course.  We did a driving tour of campus and then had dinner with Jonathan, Megan, and Mike at Buns! Later that night we had a night of Cards Against Humanity at the Standard, of course.

Saturday was a Raleigh day.  We started with biscuits from Sunrise and then headed east and grabbed Cook Out for lunch, a first for both Jake and I. 

Cook Out is ridiculous.  I'm not sure if in a good way though.  For a five dollar combo you get a sandwich (burger, chicken sandwich, bbq, etc.) and two sides.  But what can you get for sides? Well many things, including chicken nuggets or a corn dog! They are not even pretending to get  you a vegetable. Really, look at the menu and be disturbed, a little grossed out, and entirely intrigued. 

After gorging ourselves we headed to Big Boss to meet up with Ross, Yuna, and Kelly and enjoy the Brewery tour, which was less of a tour and more of a source for cheap beer (I'm not complaining).  Cool fact, the brewmaster that gave us our tour is the same guy that created Abita Purple Haze! NBD.  He also loves the Razorbacks, check plus. 

Yes, Yuna is Razorback red in this picture:

 

The crates were made in Canada! (just like Yuna)

After spending a few hours in the tap room we went to Beasley's for dinner, where for some reason they gave us twice as many waters as we needed.  Maybe they knew we needed hydration...

Delicious veggie plates for Jonathan and I:

We finished up the day around some bars and food trucks.

Sunday began with Crepes in Carrboro, and then an afternoon in Durham. 

Followed up with lunch at Vespa, and a pilgrimage to Southern Season. We then had a chill night before Jake left early Monday morning. 

It was a lovely visit. It's clearly time for Jake to move here.

Just saying.

xoxo

box cox-ing it at fox

So Jonathan took me here a while back and it was good time, as mentioned before, Fox Liquor Bar does good things with ice. 

We went back last weekend with Ashbash and Casey. So much goodness, so many types of ice and glass:

Casey had the Negroni with the giant ice cube:

Jonathan had the Greenpoint, no ice:

Ashley had the Champ, which tasted like a caramel apple pop, but not too sweet. 

And look at all that crushed ice!

Also note Ashley's lovely nails. 

Top shot of the ice

And I, shockingly, got a drink without gin, the Queen's Park Swizzle:

It was awesome, similar to a mojito.  

It was a good time of course, filled with economics, due to the high concentration of economists.

xoxo