At Marjorie’s place
Rainbow Springs, “The Yearling” author’s cracker house, Blue Highway, Micanopy – “old Florida”
Filed under Florida
Cocoa Beach, New Smyrna Beach, JB’s Fish Camp and graffiti Junktion/Orlando
View from JB’s FIsh C amp
I had to return unexpectedly to the restaurant I ate at yesterday in Titusville (to pick up the credit card I left there) so decided to see a little more of what I believe is called the cape Canaveral Coast. First stop cocoa beach which has a rickety old ticky tacky pier and several surfers were out on a suddenly cold (50s) but suddenly clear and sunny morning. Fun Fact: I dream of Jeanne (the 1970s tv show) was set in cocoa beach (according to some history I read in a display on the pier). I also saw some enormous cruise ships, which I gather set sail (so to speak) from the area. My favorite high school name in the area was Astronaut High.
JB’s fish camp
After Titusville (with credit card now back in my wallet) I drove along Highway 1, mostly lined by green vegetation and surprisingly free of much development. This the Indian River area of citrus fame so I stopped for some OJ and bought a honey tangelo (a tangerine/grapefruit mix).
In New Smyrna Beach, I drove miles and miles on a narrow stretch of land bordered by apartment building and then beachfront homes (completely obscuring the view) to a cool place called JB’s Fish Camp, that looked like a cross between a fishing cabin and a tiki bar. On the edge of an marshy inlet/river, it has an old deck where I persisted (despite the cool temps)in eating at a picnic table (fortunately The sun was intense). I had a crabcake (a specialty of JB’s) that was memorably excellent and a piece of key lime pie (after confirming that it was white, not green…something my mother taught me as a kid when we’d search for the best key lime pie during trips to Florida). This was almost an ice cream consistency– frozen and cold and fantastic.
Filed under Florida
Thornton Park Farmers Market, Benjamin French Bakery, Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, Dixie crossing — near Orlando
Who says you have to go to theme parks in Orlando? Certainly not when there is an amazing place like Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, about an hour east on the coast. My sister in law Denise and I drove there, binoculars at the ready, and saw dozens of spectacular birds flying low across the marshes and pools– my favorite is the startlingly pink Roseate Spoonbill, which we saw many of, plus a reddish egret (which has a dusty grey-blue body and a multicolored bill of pink, purple and black). As we drove along the narrow dirt road that winds 7 miles through marshland, we saw egrets of all colors, herons, pelicans and that’s just the ones I recognized.
Afterwards we had excellent broiled rock shrimp, a local product, in the gloriously kitsch decor of Dixie Crossroads in the worn town to Titusville.
In Thornton Park
We began the day at the farmers market in Thornton Park, where I had some prerequisite fresh squeezed orange Juice and bought some very good locally made plaintain chips. It turned out to be good luck that this was the rare market without some breakfast pastries because we found the fabulous Benjamin French Bakery and Cafe in the shabby chic neighborhood where we had the best chocolate twist pastries and met an 11 month old Bernese puppy!
The neighborhood has lots of charming old bungalows and plantain style homes and cottages shaded by live oaks and bourganvia.
Filed under Florida
Puerto Rican food (twice), lakeshore stroll, celebration, winter park, Kissimmee — Orlando
Mofongo
We started our first day in the Orlando area walking my sister in-law Denise’s Boston terrier Violet along lakeshore drive in Kissimmee, along a little inlet bordering a lake that we couldn’t see because it was so foggy. We did see lot/s of egrets, blue herons and strange ducks with black bodies and red faces, a very brown and big rabbit, lots,of ornate spiderwebs, and my favorite, trees dripping with Spanish moss!
For lunch, we went to the popular tropica mofongo for my first Puerto Rican meal ever. Mofongo is mashed plantains (akin to mashed potatoes) which I had with pork cracklings mixed into the enormous mound and delicious chunks of fried pork with a special orange-colored sauce that even our waitress did not know the recipe for (top secret, she says.) Needless to say, we didn’t finish our meals. Denise’s three meat sandwich (akin to a Cuban sandwich) was freakishly large too.
We drove on a strip lined with ammo shops, buildings shaped like giant swirls of soft serve ice cream cones and hideous theme park-themed emporiums to the Disney planned community of Celebration. Sort of surreal. Very clean and pleasant and bland. Then onto the city of winter park which was packed with strolling people on the main shopping drag. The Tiffany glass museum may be worth a return visit and there was cool sculpture in the downtown park. Rollins college also looked Spanish-lovely. My favorite scene was hari Krishnas dancing and chanting in the park as a red Ferrari parked in front of them.
Tonight we had more Puerto Rican food (roast chicken and rice and beans for a very reasonable $4.99 a plate) at Maleo Bakery, which I had read about and just happened to be not far from the Hilton Orlando where we are staying with conventioneering farmers tonight.
In winter park
Filed under Florida
free T ride from the airport, The paramount, bar Lola — Boston
I really did try to pay for my T ride from Logan Airport to Beacon Hill but failed and was even admonished by a transit guy in the process. Outside Logan, I got on the Silver Line (which, oddly, is a bus not a subway) which was advertised as free. When I got off at South station to switch to the red line to Charles street I couldn’t find anywhere to pay. I even went through the exit, tied to figure out th self pay machine. When I explained to the transit guy what I was trying to do, he said “you shouldn’t have gone out. here just go back in” and he let me back through without laying.
“No wonder the T is losing money” at least two Bostonians exclaimed when I explained what happened. The same ging happened a day later when I unexpectedly found myself at the airport, needing to return to Back Bay where It had a great visit with my best friend from high school Polly and her husband Jamie.
I didn’t get time to explore the city (much of my time was spent at a work meeting in Worcester) but did get to Bar Lola for tapas (in back bay) and the great Paramount, a diner/ coffee shop(since 1937!) on Charles Street. And I got to see Charles street, which always reminded me of London when I lived in Boston in the mid 1980s. Pulling my roller bag along the brick sidewalks, making a loud rumble, I felt like a young traveler again. Sort of.
Filed under Boston
Angry donuts at Table 128 in Clive (suburban Des Moines)
We had to order the “angry donuts” at Table 128 in West Des Moines — the name alone grabbed us, as did the menu description and they turned out to be about the best thing we had for dinner just before Christmas. They were sort of like fritters – a bit bigger than a golf ball, cakey and warm inside, crispy on the outside, with jalapeno bits and sweet corn in the batter and dusted with “parmesan snow.” A sriracha aoili offered an added kick. Delicious. I also had a very good and not too heavy or creamy potato leak soup while N and D had a cold brussel sprout salad with shaved manchego cheese and bits of La Quercia prosciutto (an Iowa favorite).
the main sources were inventive – I’m not sure I’ve ever eaten pheasant but if this was my first, it was very good. Very flavorful and moist meat (although very small portion) served with potatoes, a vegetable pancake made with shaved squash and a teensy sliver of foie grois . N had the trout which he liked but wasn’t bowled over by; D had a pork shoulder concoction – also liked. For dessert we shared a deconstructed (it arrived in a jar) citrus cheesecake.
Definitely worth another visit!
Filed under Des Moines, DINING
New restaurants to try in Iowa City…
We are kind of stuck in our ways when it comes to dining in Iowa City but here are some places that may be worth trying accouting to “Bread & Butter: 2015 Dining Guide”:
- Leaf Kitchen (locally sourced food and freesh squeezed juice
- Nodo (fresh baskery items and Brew City fries, sandwich board
- Sushi Kitcchin
- Oyama – Japanese, chirashi suschi
- Clinton Street Social Club – pork belly
- Donnelly’s
- El Banditos – beef barbacoa taco, brunch
My own mansion for the night in Kansas City
I am the only guest tonight (no surprise for a Monday night in early December ) at the beautiful Oak Street Mansion, a lovely 1903 red brick mansion just north of the Nelson Atkins Museum. The place is a great mix of old world furnishings and contemporary art. The owner has filled the place with his father’s art collection and it’s quite something. his dad was acame here from Cuba and spent his early years in foster care but somenhow managed to start collecting art, starting with African art and moving into I am not exactly sure what (there is at least on Thomas hart Benton according to a book about this place).
The famous PLaza lights!
Anyway, beats the local Marriot and very close to where my work meeting is tomorrow morning and to a Gates BBQ outpost on Emmanuel Cleaver Rd. (I can’t return home without ribs wrapped to go!)
I had a nice dinner tonight with my lovely uncle-in-law Kenneth at Aixion, a nice little French place in the pretty Brookside area, another place I used to go during the brief stint I lived here in 1989/1990.
Filed under b&b, DINING, Kansas City
NYC — the ribbon, Russ and daughters (the restaurant!), grand central holiday market
talk about a good day. On a sunny fall Monday, I got to spend the morning with my son, on his 24th birthday no less (we ate at the deli PJ bernsteins on 3rd avenue, near 69th, then I got to spend the rest of the day with my dear friend Myra (we had a terrific lunch at the new Russ and daughters restaurant on Orchard street, and rambled around the lower east side, NoLIta and outer soho into Greenwich village and bought ourselves “statement necklaces” at the holiday craft market in Grand Central) and at night I got to babysit my sweet 3-year-niece Lucy.
On Tuesday, more cherished Lucy time (and cherished time with her parents) then I schlepped to Chelsea to visit a friend temping at Martha Stewart Living (where I got a short tour.) Then I hopped onto a nearly deserted High Line (it was raining) and walked around Chelsea Market (where I was pleased to find a fat witch brownie store that had gift packages of brownies, perfect for a guest gift when I visited a friend for dinner a day later.) Tuesday night was dinner with a dear “fake” aunt at our usual spot Bella blu on the upper east side.( salad with grilled artichokes and parmesan; pasta with duck ragu and olives!)
Sunday night after thanksgiving was a family outing to T he Ribbon, a welcoming place on west 72nd that is perfect for families. it was fried chicken night!
Filed under DINING, New York City
Unexpected ticket to Broadway’s hottest musical: Hamilton
I had hopes but no expectations of snagging a ticket to “Hamilton” but on a rainy Wednesday, having found myself near Times Square (while visiting a friend at the Hearst building on 8th avenue) and with a free afternoon until dinner with another friend, I sauntered over to TKTS. No matinee Hamilton tickets, as expected.
Then I remembered reading about a ticket lottery at the theater on 46th where Hamilton is running. At 10:45 am a line was already forming and when I learned the slips for the lottery would be available at 11:30, with the drawing at noon for the 2 pm matinee, I decided “why not?” Very minor time commitment and it was fun talking to other people in line including a couple from the Twin Cities. By 11:30, as promised, the line was now about 300-400 people long and soon after dropping my slip in a bucket, I started making other plans for the day. With 20 tix available, and winners able to claim up to 2 tix each, It was a long shot.
Still, it was great to be in the crowd as a guy drew slips out of the bucket and shouted them out with a bullhorn. Excited winners screamed and the crowd cheered them on. After the first 20 tix ($10 front row seats) were gone, the bullhorn guy announced an unexpected treat…10 standing room tix, $40 each.
For a brief moment, I tried to imagine what it would be like to hear my name through that bullhorn. And then suddenly, I heard “Betsy” and then some variation of my last name. I was stunned. I don’t remember raising my hand (as winners are supposed to do to indicate if they want one or two tix) but the crowd pushed me forward (I was way in the back) and sure enough, there was my scrawl on one of the slips the bullhorn guy held. WOW! About 15 “winners” collected and paid for tickets and then we left to grab a quick lunch before the show. (I found a decent tuna sandwich nearby.) Must admit it was really cool to unexpectedly feel lucky. Kind of felt like Mary Tyler Moore when she throws her hat up in the air.
At 1:30 I was back in line to get into the theater with regular tix holders including three women from Vermont and New Hampshire who bought their tix last May for $190 each. The standing room slots were behind the mezzanine, center aisle, each numbered and assigned by ticket. I stood next to a sweet young woman from Massachusetts who knew the Hamilton score by heart and was thrilled. We were all thrilled. Standing for 3 hours with my iffy back wasn’t a big problem. We could lean into the half wall in front of us. And we had plenty of room to dance to the hip hop score. Kind of like a classy mosh pit. We couldn’t see the upper balcony of the set unless we rushed a few feet to the aisle and bent on our knees, which was a strange way to see a show but seemed sort of right, given how I got my ticket.
I loved loved loved the show, the music ( catchy hip hop and beyond), the dancing, the story, the staging. Who knew Hamilton was so interesting? (This college history major didn’t.) Now I want to read the Hamilton bio and of course, get the Hamilton CD. I also really appreciated the Hamilton folks doing this for us little people. What fun it would be to be the bullhorn guy.
Filed under New York City, theater
TakeBetsywithyou 