A Night Out: Best of MKE - Shepherd Express Style

A few weeks ago, I got an email that shared details about Shepherd Express' Best of Milwaukee event at the Intercontinetal Hotel. It was just $5 for a ticket and said it would have food and beverage samples, giveaways, services and more. My friend Tiffany and I are always looking for fun things to do in downtown and decided to check out this event.

I wasn't really sure what to expect to happen at the event, but we dressed up a little and drove into downtown. I scored an excellent spot just a few blocks away on Broadway and we walked on down to the event.

We were greeted by very friendly event staff and upon entering the room, were overwhelmed with the delicious smells and beautiful people of Milwaukee enjoying some eats. We did a lap around the room, got a Horny Goat and Captain Morgan Black sample and then decided to jump in line for food. We got there at just the perfect time because when I visited the ladies room, the line was down the stairs now.

I will admit off the bat that I was horrible at taking photos and remembering where I ate what from but I will do my best to describe it. From the website, here is an event description:

     Thousands voted in the 22nd annual Shepherd Express Best of Milwaukee readers’ choice awards, and some of the winners may surprise you. We’ll reveal them at this award ceremony and party at the downtown InterContinental hotel, which will feature complimentary food from more than a dozen Milwaukee restaurants and bakeries, including Shahrazad, Motor, Centro Café, Revolucion, Zaffiro’s, Miss Cupcake, Alterra, Zak’s Café, Tazino’s, Kiku, Jow Nai Fouquet and more. The event is open to the public. Admission is $5 in advance, $7 at the door, and the proceeds benefit St. Ben’s Scholarship Fund.

Food tables filled the outer three walls of the ballroom with a large bar in the middle and projection screens on the back wall. We decided to just jump in line and start filling our plates. We started at Shahrazad and had the Hommus (that I am a huge fan of lately) and Kashkeh-E-Bademjan with pita. I picked up a menu and saw they have a Sunday brunch and my menu offered me a $5 off coupon. SCORE! The Kashkeh-E-Bademjan is similar to a hommus dip but made with eggplant, whey and onions. This was absolutely delicious and I didn't grab enough pita, so I used a bun top to scoop up the rest. 

Best of Milwaukee food!

 We then tried some sushi from Kiku that I saw was the Best of Milwaukee winner in 2010 when I drove by their restaurant a few weeks ago. The California roll was super stuffed with avocado (double yum) and the other roll I tried that I thought was filled with mango, but ended up being something yellowish and crunchy was also really good. Sorry I don't know what was in it. 

The pork belly sandwich with crispy deep fried onions was really good from Motor. Tiffany and I split the wrap from Two Bucks which was chicken, peppers, lettuce and a lovely creamy ranch dipping sauce. 

I grabbed a plantain wrapped in wonton from ???? (help!) that was absolutely delicious. My foodie penpal last month introduced me to plantain chips and I am a big fan. This warm plantain "egg roll" was heavenly as an appetizer or a semi-savory dessert. 

We went out into the hallway to eat our findings. In the hallway was the door prize table, dessert tables, massages and photo booth. We registered for door prizes, but I don't think either of us won, however we didn't eat any desserts this night. We headed back into the hall for wine and this is when I caught a glimpse of one of my ex-boyfriends. About three minutes later, I spotted a guy that I went on a not-so-good date with. Funny that in the last week, I have had so much interaction with my past :) 

I grabbed a glass of wine, Tiff went back to get more of the delicious sushi and I waited for pizza from Tazino's. I tried their basil, mozzarella, tomato 'za - excellent. It was a little piece and I wish I grabbed two but I didn't want to be greedy. While munching on these, the awards started and we watched as each place was revealed. 

Ecco Domani Pinot Grigio - very refreshing in a warm room!

Some of the winners were ones that I picked, others I hadn't heard of and a few of the winners surprised me  - like At Random for most romantic bar??? Here is the complete list of winners. 

Best of Milwaukee Award Time

I'm planning to do a post about the winners that I have been to in the next week or so, but I have added so many new places to my ever-growing list, I don't know how I will ever get to all of them! I need to win the lottery and stop working, or grow a money tree but I seem to have misplaced the seeds for that :)

Waukesha Farmers' Market

Last weekend, my parents and I decided to get up early Saturday morning and head out to the Waukesha Farmers' Market. I had only been to it once before this season, so I was due for a trip. 

The farmers' market runs every Saturday from May to October, 8 am to noon on Riverfront Plaza. If you aren't familiar with the road, it is one block north of Main Street along the river. The road is now closed off completely on Saturdays due to the increased size of the market. If you can find the river in downtown, you found the market. 

We parked at my job because I had to drop off my bike for a bike/bar crawl later that night and just walked over. But if you park in the parking lots by the former antique malls, be ready to donate $1 to a great non-profit organization. Because the antique malls are no longer open, but the property is owned by a private company, they need to instill the parking codes still. Berg Management manages the lots and decided to offer up the lots to different organization to collect funds each weekend. High School activities and athletics have been fortunate to reap the benefits of this collection already. If you aren't willing to pay $1 to park, there is still plenty of free parking throughout downtown Waukesha, you may just have to walk a bit further. 

We started by visiting the two booths on the north side of the river. This leaves room for plenty of expansion for the market. One of these booths was the only booth at the market to have any fresh dill as we found out when my dad was asked by every person walking by where he got his dill. The other booth was a jewelry booth that makes really cool bracelets from license plates. You have to see them to understand but I hope to get one before the market is done this Fall.

Yummy mixes at the Waukesha Farmers' Market

 We crossed the river by Main Street Plaza and headed into the market. The market literally has everything - vegetables, fruit, plants, flowers, bread, meat, eggs, jewelry, soap, honey, clothing and more. And each week its a little different too.

Fresh produce at the Waukesha Farmer's Market

Jewelry at the Waukesha Farmers' Market

We stopped at Decatur Cheese first because I remember trying the cheese at the Fort Atkinson market and it was delicious. We bought some muenster and we found a cheese curd that my mom didn't mind - ranch flavored white cheddar curd. We didn't buy any but it went on the list.

Decatur Cheese at Waukesha Farmers' Market

I was on a mission to get some fresh local produce for a Greek dip (found via Pinterest) I was making for my MKEFoodies picnic the next day (more on that to come next week). I needed cucumbers, dill and red pepper. We found some gigantic cucumbers, mini peppers and of course the dill. My parents got tomatoes, the cheese, pickles, the dill and a mixed basket of onions. The pickles are currently sitting in a crock in the kitchen doing their pickle thing. I can hardly wait to have one!

Local produce at the Waukesha Farmers' Market

I also bought myself a spinach asiago mini bread and my mom got an oatmeal raisin cookie that we called breakfast. I got the bread after having a bite off my friend Carolyn's a few months prior at the market and it was heavenly. The cookie was gone after I was handed just one little piece so I'm guessing no complaints.

Beautiful quilt at the Waukesha Farmers' Market

Some of the local downtown restaurants and shops are setting up as part of the farmers' market as well and I find this a really smart idea. Montecito restaurant had plenty of ooey-gooey desserts that looked delicious, Oh What A Day Cupcakes had a small booth with some of their offerings, The Steaming Cup had tea and coffee available, the Record shop on Clinton brought out some of their CDs and DVDs to sell, Plowshare had a booth with baskets and Key Westconsin serves up breakfast seeing as they are on Riverview Plaza. There may have been others, I might have just missed them.

If you get a chance, I highly recommend checking out this market. On Sept. 8 is the annual Art Fest in Waukesha that closes down Main Street with local artisans on display. Come make a day of Waukesha, enjoy the farmer's market, some breakfast/brunch/lunch and then the Art Fest and come see what Waukesha is all about.

Fifth Friday Events

Young Professionals of Waukesha County

If you are a Young Professional in Waukesha County and haven't attended a Fifth Friday yet, you don't know what you are missing. The Young Professionals of Waukesha County is a group created by the Waukesha County Business Alliance (countywide chamber of commerce if you weren't aware). Young Professionals are those in their 20s and 30s that work in Waukesha County. (They don't check IDs at the door to make sure you qualify and truly all are welcome.)

Each month that has five Fridays in it allows for a bonus networking night for the young professionals. This event is informal and FREE to attend and usually has some great drink specials. In other words, a good time at a local pub with "new friends."

I have been attending Fifth Friday events for quite a few years. For a while they were held at House of Guinness, but in the last year, the group has ventured to locations throughout the county - Delafield Brewhaus, Sprizzo's, Thunder Bay (to name a few) and this Friday's will be at Meiji Cuisine. New locations sometimes mean that the group layout will change, but the dynamic never does. Sometimes the facility works best for us to break off into smaller groups, other times we are one large group or a bunch of medium groups. Regardless we are all able to meet, socialize and cheers hello. And I think we can all agree that we are glad it's finally Friday. No matter what, you will have no problem joining in and meeting some great people.

This month's event is held from 5 to 7 pm on Friday, Aug. 31, and if you haven't been to Meiji Cuisine in Waukesha yet, you need to! And what a perfect opportunity to come check the place out. I have been to Meiji one time before and it was a fantastic sushi experience. You can read about it here. Meiji is located by Target and Home Depot in Waukesha off of Hwy J.

Meiji has about five menus to choose from for food and specialty cocktails, so there is something to please everyone. Although the event officially ends at 7, some of us stay after to eat and enjoy additional adult beverages together. All are welcome to partake in the post 7 pm dinner. I'm already craving the Outstanding sushi roll and Wasabi Salsa appetizer.

So if you are free (yes I know it's Labor Day weekend), consider stopping into Meiji Cuisine and joining us for a libation or dinner. I hope to see you there.

A Night Out: Cafe Manna

It had been way too long since my friend Tiffany and I went out to dinner, so I pulled out the good 'ole CityTin and gave her some options. She had recently gone to an organic and vegan restaurant with some friends and suggested that I try it, so Cafe Manna was chosen.

Cafe Manna is located in the Sendik's Town Center shopping center on Capital and Brookfield Rd. in Brookfield. It is the at the end of one of the strip malls which allows for nice natural lighting from two walls of windows and outdoor dining. The entrance reminded me of a minimalist version of some "upscale" chain quick-serve dining options (They are going to hate that analogy). There is a counter with staff behind it to great you, light maple wood everywhere, and menus, napkins and cups are located behind the counter. Behind that area is the kitchen behind swinging doors. Cafe Manna is the first Certified Green Restaurant in Wisconsin, which really shows how environmentally focused they are. 

View of the dining room from our table in the back

We were sat at a cozy table for two off to the right and near the back of the dining room. If the restaurant would have filled up, we would have gotten to know our neighbors really well with how close the tables were to each other. The light fixtures, sconces and artwork is also minimalist but goes together great to pull the appearance together.

Table for Two

Pretty napkin folding

While we browsed the menu, our server brought over some hummus and crackers and told us about the daily special "Risotto Monday" and that the special risotto was wild mushroom. I wasn't done moseying through menu and the risotto didn't appeal to me so I passed. But because I had previewed the menu that afternoon, I did ask the server for (only THEbest wine in the world #IMO) a glass of Montinore Estate Pinot Noir. Tiffany decided on a glass of the Sokol Blosser Meditrina “The Goddess.” 

While we waited for our wine, we perused the menu and snacked on the hummus. It was pretty good. The crackers had a little sweet to them, which woke up my sweet/salty tasty buds and put them in a happy state. It was hard to stop eating but I knew I had to save room for more food. We had to decide on an appetizer. I heard from my #mkefoodies friends that we had to try the Guacamole Potato Skins, though once looking at everything, I debated between that and the Spanakopita Pie. Ultimately the potato skins won.

Montinore Estate Pinot Noir on the Left, The Goddess on the right

She returned with the wine in stemless glassware, very smart for such tiny tables - less chance of splattering anyone with hand-guesture-talking. We cheers'ed and then I smelt, swirled, smelt and took a sip. It was just as I remembered - Pinot Noir perfection. This winery is very small and doesn't always produce enough to ship to Wisconsin, but I am so glad that someone is still placing orders for it. I tried Tiffany's The Goddess and it was pretty good, but nothing was topping my glass of wine. I savored it until the end of the meal and was sad when it was gone. 

For my entree, I debated between the Pizza Rustico, Raw Lasagna or Polenta Florentine. I am an uber-fan of The Chew on ABC and Michael Symon was talking about polenta on a recent episode and I realized that I don't think I've ever had it grilled or fried. That swayed me in the polenta direction. Tiffany chose the Peace Bowl which was rice and veggies in a coconut curry sauce with cashews.

Our appetizer came out a short time later and looked sooooo good. The guacamole was piled high on the potato skins with a little pico on top of that. We each took one and savored them. The potato was cooked to perfection - crispy on the outside, soft potato inside. The guacamole was mild, just how I like it. Who would have thought potato + guac would make such a terrific combination. (Look for this appetizer in a blog in the near future for Packer Season) I had the server wrap the 3rd tater skin and took it to work the next day. I reheated the potato and plopped the guac back on top and it was fantastic. 

Pepita Guacamole Potato Skins from Cafe Manna

Then the entrees came. They both smelt heavenly and I could hardly wait to jump in, but pictures were needed first. After just a few shots, I got what I wanted and dug in. The polenta had perfect grill marks on it which made for crispy edges and a soft center. I grabbed a grape tomato slice, mushroom and some sauce for the polenta and took a big bite. It was a different texture than I was expecting, not bad, just different. Being that I always heard polenta was so creamy, I was expecting more of a mashed potato and less of a rice texture, but regardless, it was pretty yummy. There was a balsamic sauce on the bottom of the plate (I believe) that the veggies were sauteed in and then a creamy bechamel sauce was drizzled over the veggies, polenta and arugula. It was very good, but way too large of a portion with the appetizer and hummus. I took more than half of it to go. 

Polenta Florentine from Cafe Manna

I did snag a bite of Tiffany's dish and being that I have had limited experience with curry, (and mostly bad at that) I didn't have high hopes for this plate either. Boy was I mistaken! The coconut curry sauce with the quinoa and cashews was divine. I really enjoyed the slightly sweet taste of it, mellowed by the rice. I would definitely suggest that meal to anyone looking for something filling and different. 

Peace Bowl from Cafe Manna

We didn't do dessert because we were full to the brim from our wonderful meal. I would suggest this place to anyone that is looking to try Vegan cuisine and I don't think anyone would be disappointed. For my wallet it was a bit pricey (even the wine, but I knew that going in). I would say this is a restaurant for special occasions and wouldn't be added to my go-to repertoire. But I will highly recommend it to anyone looking for eats in the Brookfield area. 

Tiffany had a few comments to add as well. The food was excellent and she was a member of the clean plate dinner club, however, she is thinking that the restaurant as a whole was missing more ambiance. She wanted something more on the tables, but with the size of them, that may not have worked. And for the price that she paid for her meal and drinks, she would have liked a bit more....something. She couldn't pin it down, but wanted something more. 

Has anyone else tried Vegan restaurants in the Milwaukee area and want to give me more suggestions? I don't think that I would ever become a vegan, but the food options really open my eyes and are drool-worthy. Until my next meal, Happy Eating. 

A Night Out: Rumpus Room

Rumpus Room entrance with menu located outside

Last month my friend Tiffany and I got the opportunity to check out Bartolotta’s Rumpus Room as part of the #mkefoodies group. I have heard great things about this place and that the ambiance is casual sheik with hearty, manly food options.

We luckily found close parking right on Water Street in front of Coyote Ugly and walked a block over. Walking to Rumpus Room, we walked past the large outdoor patio area that is completely covered but still allows diners to enjoy the view of Water Street. We walked in the front door and the end of the large bar stood in front of us. It had a library ladder that can roll down the wall to get at different bottles which I find very cool. Bel Air Cantina has one for their tequila library. The bar ran a long ways down the wall with pub tables across from it. Beyond that were some dining tables. Just to the right of the entrance was the Charcuterie area that our group was in.

We were then welcomed by the ever-friendly Lori and Pete who organize our lovely events. We filled out our name tags and joined the group. Low benches lined two walls and mini-flat wagons were used as tables. The ceiling is dark tin and the wooden floors give the place an intimate feel. We saw that there were some appetizers available for us to try, so Tiffany grabbed a plate and put some devilled eggs, nuts and pickles on the plate. We grabbed a sample of the Firkin beer which was New Belgium’s Somersault. I had had this beer before, but coming fresh from the Firkin, it was delicious.

Charcuterie area with cute wagon tables

View of bar from Charcuterie area

Love the ceiling

We sat on one of the benches and looked at the lengthy drink menu divided by liquor. We were quickly greeted by a friendly server who explained some of the beers to me that I wasn’t sure of. I decided on G. Schneider & Sohn Avenitus Weizenbock from Germany with an ABV of 8.2%. It was absolutely summery and delicious. After checking it in on Untappd, I realized that I knew of the beer from my time at Sentry Liquor. It tried the deviled egg and it was nice and creamy with a little taste of vinegar that added extra zip. The nuts had a bit too much spice on them for me and I left the pickles for Tiffany. She loved them.

Deviled eggs, pickles and nuts

We were treated to a Charcuterie demonstration by the chefs where they explained the meats that they slice for sandwiches and plates to enjoy with cocktails. The slicer that they use is a hand-cranked slicer that can get meats slices as thin as tissue paper. To get a slicer like this in your collection, you need to have about $5,000 on hand. We then got to sample one of the meats that they sliced. Excuse my layman terms as I don’t remember exactly which meat we tried but it was some sort of cured salami. It was absolutely delicious with just enough spice and I know that I will be coming back for some cheese, charcuterie and a cocktail if nothing else.

The $5,000 slicer

Cured meat that was sliced paper thin for us.

Lunch menu items

Next they demonstrated how they make their Barrel AgedCocktails: Polly Gonna Say and El Viejo. I tried a tasting of the El Viejo and it extremely smooth and delicious but I think the ¼ ounce that I got was enough for me. I am not a dark liquor fan and the base is an Armagnac.

 

Tiffany trying El Viejo

Me with my El Viejo tasting

Tiffany ordered the Polly Gonna Say as her next cocktail and I went with a Lakefront Summertime. I had had it in a bottle but it was on tap, and of course it was very refreshing. We were then treated to bacon-wrapped water chestnuts, chicken wings and a basil flatbread. The chestnut was quarter sized with a nice piece of bacon on it. It had a nice crunch to it and plenty of smoky flavor. The wing was too spicy for me even with their scrumptious blue cheese crème fraiche. I gave the rest to Tiffany. She said they were perfectly seasoned. I loved the flatbread with EVOO, tomatoes, basil and mozzarella. This was my favorite. The basil was finely chopped into thin strands and cooked to a crisp and the crust was soft on the top and crispy on the bottom.

Spicy chicken wing with blue cheese creme fraiche

Amazing flatbread

The chefs then brought out some of their cheeses they offer and I saw that they had the cheddar with the stripe of blue cheese that I had at Melthouse Bistro and I told Tiffany she had to try it. She isn’t a big fan of a lot of blue cheese but she agreed that this cheese is divine.

As we were getting ready to leave, Bartolotta’s thanked us for coming and surprised us with swag bags that included Rumpus Room shirts, a coaster, info about their restaurants and a coupon for a free beer at our next visit. I’m not sure if I would come back for the food unless I came with a few people and we shared plates. The dinner menu does seem a  bit heavy and rich so I would want to just try a bite or two of a few things. It is a bit above the price range that I can afford for dinner at the moment too, but I highly recommend people to check this out for a cocktail or charcuterie alone!

Swag Bag!

Back of t-shirt

Front of shirt

Again, it was another great #mkefoodies event with great food conversation, food, drinks and amazing service. I can’t thank Lori and Pete enough for all the work they put in to make these events happen and I can’t wait until the next one. Until then, Happy Eating!

A Night Out: Firefly, Wauwatosa

Ok - this is long overdue, but I will use the excuse that I moved in the last month and I am finally settled in....for now. So I am going to work ahead and have things to hopefully post to you, my wonderful readers, more regularly. Not to mention with the addition of Pinterest into my life, I have had so many cooking ideas, that I so excited to try. This should be a fun summer. I finally have a full-sized kitchen, with proper equipment and a wonderfully working stove (and very forgiving parents if I make a mess) to cook and bake in.

But this post isn't about one of my cooking or baking experiments; this is about my monthly dinner out with my great friend Kathy.

My friend Kathy and I have decided that we are going to meet about once a month for dinner and drinks to catch up. We are also going to be in a book club together that will meet every 6 weeks and so I'll be able to share some food and wine from that as well. Kathy and I have known each other since Freshman year 2nd period Math with Mr. Staude. We have been thru the ups and downs of life together, but we have always remained friends and because we both knew that we were really starting to get too distant for either of our likings, we decided to start these monthly dinners :)

Logo from Firefly-Grill.com

I first found out about Firefly in Wauwatosa about 4 years ago from a former coworker that lived in the Tosa area. Although I never heard of her coming here, the place has stayed on my radar since then. I went to Cafe Hollander in Wauwatosa for a chamber event last year, and that's when I found out where Firefly was exactly located. So Kathy and I set up our February "date" for a Wednesday night there.

Firefly is a really cute, small restaurant and bar. The front two rooms are dining rooms that I snuck a quick glimpse at while waiting for Kathy to arrive. The room on the right was blocked off with a curtain and dimly lit so it seemed like a good sized room for a small, intimate event. The room on the left was brightly lit with cream colors. I'm not sure how to describe the room exactly. It looks very formal at first, but with further observations, it has casual accents. I didn't snap any shots of this area, oops! The host stand and waiting area is in the middle of the restaurant and beyond that is the bar and lounge room that is dimly lit and has a black ceiling.

When Kathy arrived, we chose to start in the bar and see how things go. We were politely greeted by a bartender and she told us about the happy hour food and drink specials that go until 6:30 as well as it was Wino Wednesday and all bottles of wine were $10 off. We each ordered one of the signature happy hour cocktails for $5. I chose the Strawberry Basil Sangria and Kathy chose the "Firefly" which was a mojito.

While we decided on what to do for dinner, a large group of professionals came into the bar and scooped up both of the bartenders attention. When we finally were able to flag one of the girls down, we got our our happy hour appetizers in just before the deal came up. She did apologize for the wait, which we appreciated.

We chatted and enjoyed our cocktails. I never thought of strawberry and herbs together until last fall I had a strawberry lemonade infused with herbs at Divino Gelato in downtown Waukesha. It had a strong rosemary taste in the aftertaste but was really refreshing. The same goes for this drink. The basil really helped leave a refreshing taste in my mouth. It wasn't overly sweet and they make it in-house and have the huge container of it sitting on the bar. Kathy's mojito was hand-muddled too! I hate when I see a bar use mixes to make a drink quickly. We also watched a bartender begin to make homemade Lemoncello behind the bar while we were enjoying dinner. That is a perfect after-meal cordial on a hot summer night!

The food came out at just the right time. We had finished our drinks and decided to take them up on the Wino Wednesday deal. After trying a sample of the R Collection Merlot, we got a bottle because it was pretty smooth and would go with everything we ordered. We ordered chicken lettuce wraps and the lettuce was really skinny pieces that made it hard to "wrap." Also the Red Chimichurri sauce to me tasted almost a little like buffalo wing sauce, so I didn't get the Asian flavor that typically accompanies lettuce wraps. But they were good in their own way.

We also ordered the Roasted Vegetable pizza.. It was absolutely heavenly! Peppers, zucchini, mushrooms, red onions and feta cheese on a thin pizza crust made with beer. There was no sauce and just a little olive oil on the crust. The roasted vegetables were able to shine in all their yummy-ness without drowning in a sauce or cheese. I was very excited when I got to take the leftovers of this home.

Our last appetizer we ordered was a cheese fondue. It was smoked Gouda and cheddar cheese melted together and served in a mini fondue pot over a tea light. Granny smith apples and sourdough bread pieces were served with it. Kathy loved the fondue. I let her dip her little heart out and I stuck to the pizza. I would say that our least favorite was the lettuce wraps, but again they weren't bad, just not what we were expecting. But these three appetizers filled us up with leftovers so we were very content.

By the time we finished eating and chatting, we were invited to stay and play trivia. There was a decent crowd, but the announcer told us that we could play as long or as little as we wanted too. We decided to stay in for the long haul and go for it. I had never played before so we called our team the "First Timers" and its amazing how both of us pulled answers out of nowhere that were right. In the end I think we tied for last place, but it was so fun and I can't wait to play again. I never realized how addicting it is. I see that bars in Waukesha have trivia too on certain nights, so maybe I will have to get a team together and check it out.

I would definitely come back to Firefly and get dinner or drinks. The place is very shabby-sheik, I think that is a good word to use. I think it would be a cute date place or a for a girls night. Either way, I know that I will return.

FirstWatch

 Image from FirstWatch.com

FirstWatch - The Daytime Cafe has been on my radar for a few months and an early morning shopping trip with my mom proved to be just the right time to try it. I had driven by a few times as I frequent TJ Maxx and Metro Market on a monthly basis, but I never got a good look inside.

When I suggested this place to my mom, she was fine with it, looking for something light, but filling enough to get us through our shopping trip without needing to refuel. (We can get ornery if we don't have food in us - ok I mainly do!)

We walked in and I realized that it wasn't at all what I thought. I was going with it being a Panera-type place where you order at a counter, but this was more like a breakfast cafe with very cheery colors and decor. You wait to be seated by the host and the servers wear khakis and bright colored polo shirts and everyone was smiling.

We were seated at a table right by the kitchen, but with all the cooking they were doing on a busy Saturday morning, I had no problem conversing with my mom or the server at all. You can see into the kitchen and it was very organized and very clean. I knew I had picked a great place.

A large chalkboard on the back wall lists the specials of the day. We read through the entire menu of breakfast and light lunch specials and both of us found something right away. My mom asked about the size of the pancakes and we were informed they are the size of a dinner plate. Luckily you can order just 1 and not have 3 huge pancakes that you can't finish staring at you. She chose 1 cranberry nut pancake and I went with the fresh fruit filled crepes with organic strawberry yogurt over the top. It also came with granola and a muffin.

We waited just about 10 minutes and our food came out. Presentation is definitely something they focus on. The butter was placed very delicately on top of my mom's pancake and she thought this would be a new pancake she might attempt at home sometime. My crepes were filled with large pieces of strawberries and bananas with the melon pieces on top of the yogurt. The crepes were light and airy. I have never had yogurt on crepes before and that is a much heathier option than the cream or ricotta that I have had before. That's granola in the cup and check out the size of that muffin.

We both agreed that this was a solid breakfast for both of us to shop on but yet neither of us felt stuffed. I saved the muffin for a late lunch snack and didn't eat all the granola. We were both extremely satisfied with the food and my mom wants to take my dad there very soon. They usually go to different little breakfast joints and this will be another one that my mom is sure my dad will like.

 Check out the fun details on the napkin wrappers! 

I signed up for their FirstWatch club and received a buy one, get one breakfast just for signing up. Then with my birthday just this week, I received an email for a free entree! I'll take that as a great club already. I wonder what else they will give out throughout the year!