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Posted by
yanti on Monday, September 7, 2015
Hope everyone had a great Labor Day, long weekend! And that you stayed hydrated in this heat! I am so glad summer weather came back, because the fall weather we were having recently was weighing on my mood... not because I don't like fall... but what comes after it. :/
Any time there is a long weekend, it seems like it centers around food. Okay... maybe all weekends center around food for a food blogger. :) We have been meaning to try Los Guachos as soon as we saw that the Food Networked ranked them as one of the top five tacos in the country (article here). I tried a chicken taco and the pork taco that they are famous for (and what ranked them number three by FN). The pork taco is kind of like a taco take on Hawaiian pizza. It was pretty good. The chicken was a little dry and not as flavorful as I was expecting... actually very similar to the chicken tacos I had in El Paso. Then my husband had the spicy shrimp tacos... I had a taste and it was sooo spicy! While we were eating, several Mexican-Americans were coming in ordering tacos, so I think the tacos are probably very authentic, but I prefer Local Cantina or Condado Tacos... perhaps they are a little more "Tex-Mex"?
Went to the Chocolate Cafe in Grandview with some work friends which I had never heard of before. While I thought by the name it would be chocolate only, kind of like the Chocolate Bar in Cleveland, but it was also true to the cafe name with sandwiches and soups as well. The martinis were on point and I took some brownies home to try later (also very tasty).
Did you know Alchemy Juice Cafe and Crest Gastropub are partners? You can get Alchemy juice mimosas at the Crest and they are delicious! My favorite was the Strawberry Chia... mmm. And we can't go to Clintonville without stopping at Pattycakes... I have a serious cookie addiction.
I finally got over to Grandview to try out Zest juices... their green smoothie (which is actually purple) tastes like a blueberry muffin and I always love a good orange + carrot juice. :) Finished off Saturday with pizza and drinks at Forno, which has become one of our food go-to's in the Short North, and some gallery hoppin'. That picture below is made out of crayons! So crazy!
The new Whole Foods opened at Easton this week. I have been waiting for this for sooooo long! We used to live across the street, literally within walking distance, to the Whole Foods in Dublin. But when you're just out of college and living in a tiny apartment, Meijer was more budget friendly for groceries. Now that I want (and can afford) all of those fun, different foods... it is such a loong drive from Reynoldsburg. This new location is definitely smaller than the Dublin one. And you could definitely tell it was opening weekend because it was CROWDED. Like, fire code might be breached, my foot was run over by carts, and playing human bumper cars kind of crowded. I wasn't looking to buy groceries, just a few items... like cheeses and tea cookies... some breads... quickly filled my basket and had to checkout because it was too heavy to carry. Oh, and a cold brewed coffee on nitro... just what we needed on our way back out into the heat.
Alright, it is a short week and we're getting ready to go on vacay... so the menu is simple and short.
summer veggie pizzafresh raviolis (from Whole Foods)steak tacos and corn on the cobjerk chicken with rice and beans
More about → Weekly Menu
Posted by
yanti on Tuesday, July 14, 2015
It wasn't raining last Saturday, so we spent the entire day outside since these days have been few and far between this summer. (If you need something to do when it's raining, check out this list.) One of the things on our list was just outside of Columbus that peaked our interest when we drove by a couple weeks ago... Slate Run Historical Farm.
We are avid users of our Ohio Metro Parks... but a farm?
It was pretty awesome! :) A great place to take children for them to see how a farm works and where their food comes from. I was particularly obsessed with taking pictures of the chickens (one day... I'll have a flock of my own). The baby piglets were adorable, although the mud around them was unbearably stinky, ick.
The farm includes cows, horses, sheep, chicken, turkey, bee hives, and pigs. There is a large garden of beans, squash, tomatoes, herbs, pickles, and peppers. Larger fields of corn and pumpkins. A smoke house and root cellar show how farmers preserve food. And inside the farm house there is usually something baking in the kitchen and demonstrations going on. Also several barns for making flour out of grain, making brooms, blacksmithing horse shoes, and more.
If you're looking for something fun to take kids to on a nice day, pack a picnic (there is a nice shady picnic area right at the farm entrance) and go down the farm!
Posted by
yanti on Friday, July 10, 2015
Lola and Giuseppe's is one of those hidden gems of a restaurant find... literally hidden! I have been driving by it for years and never noticed it. Then when looking on Urbanspoon (so sad that the app is gone) I noticed this 5-star rated Italian place near us.
Tucked back in a little shopping strip center, the restaurant is very inconspicuous. When you walk in, it's a tight fit... 12 tables max. Everyone seems to know everyone else and hugs are given out as you leave, likely with a pile of leftovers. Lola comes to everyone's table to make sure everything is perfect.
Too bad they do not take reservations, because if you don't time it right, you'll be waiting forever for a seat or may even be out of luck altogether (like the first time we attempted to eat at Lola's)!
The reason for such a long wait is that the food is excellent. Our first time actually getting a seat at Lola's was right after our trip to Europe, so we were in the mood for some real Italian food after getting a taste of it in Rome. This is as close as you'll get without leaving the country (maybe even better)!
Seafood, marinara, pancetta, noodles, cream sauce... you name it, doesn't matter the region, Lola has it on the menu. So come hungry because you'll want to eat everything! You can definitely smell, taste, and feel the Italian passion.
More about → Lola and Giuseppe's Restaurant Review
Posted by
yanti on Tuesday, June 9, 2015
Snowville Creamery might be known best as one of the original cream suppliers for Jeni's Splendid ice creams. As it gained popularity in the Ohio dairy market for its grassfed cow goodness, most grocery stores started carrying many of their products including Whole Foods, Giant Eagle and Kroger. Snowville distributes milk and cream, obviously, as well as yogurt and creme fraiche... and I get all of mine delivered to my door through GreenBEAN.
Every year, Snowville opens their farm to their customers for a little free food, fun, and farm tour! Not far from Athens, the rolling hills are quite scenic as you approach the main farm. While the land may seem to go on forever, there are surprisingly very few structures that collect, process, and carton the milk we enjoy every week. The milking barn, pictured below, has room for only 18 cows to be milked at a time while the cows enjoy a little grain snack in the trough. The farmers are the ones down in the pit you see in the middle making sure everything is sanitary and the milk is flowing. The cows get milked twice a day and then ushered to a new pasture where they roam freely and munch on grass.
We tried some yogurt flavors I've been too nervous to get full cartons of like coffee-cardamom and gingamon. I'm still not sure what cardamom tastes like, but I really like coffee yogurts and ice creams, so I'll be getting the coffee yogurt again. The gingamon tastes a lot more like a greek yogurt with with a slight tang. Snowvillians were also handing out ice cream... churned using a bicycle!
We met some cute calves and their mamas... and this old Australian Shepard with beautiful blue eyes (even though she closed them went I went to take a picture after a long pet). If you enjoy daily reminders of where your milk comes from, Snowville posts daily doses of cute to their Facebook page, usually of cute calves or cows licking their noses. :)
Posted by
yanti on Wednesday, June 3, 2015
The summer festival season has officially kicked off here in Columbus! It really just wouldn't be summer without some of these staple events. When all of Columbus comes together to partake in the festivities, enjoy the weather and some good grub. So it's time for a festival roundup to make sure your calendars are marked...
JunePark Street Festival (12-13th) - local music, food trucks, and fun all nightColumbus Arts Fest (12-14th) - browse 100's of artists' booths with jewelry, paintings, sculptures, and moreDigFest (13th) - day drinking at its finest with local brewsPride Fest (19-21st) - come out and support our LGBTQ friends and listen to some good musicCreekside Blues & Jazz Festival (19-21st) - kick back and chill to the soothing sounds of blues and the Big Walnut Creek streaming by (plus Pigskin Brewery is there)ComFest (26-28th) - let your inner hippie out :) a festival just about coming together as a community
JulyRed, White, & BOOM (3rd) - largest fireworks display in the Midwest... and it's on a Friday this year... and we get that Friday off from work... what!?! Ohio Wine Festival (10-12th) - find a favorite local wine while strolling through North Market's wonderful vendorsJazz & Rib Fest (17-19th) - I don't always eat ribs, but when I do, I chow them down!Violet Festival (29-Aug 1st) - one of the smaller festivals on the list, but Pickerington is hosting Kansas this year
AugustOhio State Fair (Jul 29-Aug 9) - you're gonna need to do a lot of walking to walk off that deep-fried everything :)Dublin Irish Festival (Jul 31-Aug 2nd) - we're all a wee bit Irish, so let's celebrate with food, beer, and live musicFestival Latino (8-9th) - Latin music makes way for Latin dancing...All Ohio Balloon Festival (13-15th) - riding in a hot air balloon is definitely on my bucket list. watching one shaped like Yoda float along the skyline is up there tooSummer Beer Fest (14-15th) - calling all beer aficionados and novices alike, a great way to find new favoriteFood Truck Festival (14-16th) - what's not to like about a bunch of artisan food vendors lined up at a park?Reynoldsburg Tomato Festival (14-15th) - alright, this one makes the list solely because I live down the street from it ;)
SeptemberMillersport Sweet Corn Festival (2-5th) - a bit outside Columbus, but a lot of good country funGreek Festival (4-7th) - fun dancing and delicious food, OPA!FMMF (5-6th) - last year was the inaugural year for Fashion Meets Music Festival, and now that Cbus has been named the third largest fashion capital of the US, it's only going to get betterIndependents' Day Festival (19-20th) - the first central Ohio town puts on a celebration of artsNew Albany Classic (20th) - not exactly a fair, but definitely some family fun with world-famous horses and a teen-pop concert to dance around to on the Wexner's estateOktoberfest (25-27th) - cheers to a great summer of festivals with some bier... prost!
For more festivals around Ohio, check out the never-ending list here.
Posted by
yanti on Wednesday, April 29, 2015
If you haven't been to Forno yet in the Short North, what are you waiting for?! After the success of Pint House, the owners opened this restaurant down the street. Many of the menu items are local, and as the name suggests (forno=oven in Italian), many of the dishes are cooked in a wood-fired oven. Tons of daylight streaming in the large windows with fancy light fixtures and nice seating, but the prices are certainly reasonable. At around $11 for an appetizer and $14 for a pizza, dinner for two is just $25.
Now that I have been to Forno a few times, I have yet to try something that wasn't excellent. The warm ricotta with baked peaches was delicious, almost sweet enough to be a dessert. The arancini (risotto balls) were a lighter take on fried mozzarella. And every time we get the forno chicken pizza, because if it's good enough to put their name on it, it's good enough for me! :)
So, now that you're ready for pizza night at Forno, don't let the doors trick you... there are three doors, but use the one on the left (most southern)... the others do not open and you'll look kind of silly tugging on them.
