Savannah.

More about Savannah.... mostly the food!

We stayed a new hotel in Savannah called AVIA. It was lovely. Only having been open for about a year it was nice and clean and very modern (with a slightly Asian feel). Our room had floor to ceiling windows that overlooked one of the squares. It was perfectly located for walking almost anywhere.

http://www.aviahotels.com/hotels/savannah/

For lunch we decided to walk over to the Olde Pink House - yum! This is an old mansion that was converted into a restaurant. It has over 14 dining rooms and each one is decorated differently. We had a wide assortment of delicious treats- lemonade mixed with vodka and grenadine, oysters, grit chips with local cheeses, shrimp and grits and everything was wonderful. It is a bit pricey, but it was fun.

http://www.americascuisine.com/georgia/savannah/TheOldePinkHouse.aspx

Between lunch and dinner we walked around, drank, and walked, and drank and ended up in the hotel bar- which is nice and comfortable. We ordered drinks (shocker) and a cheese tray. It was a nice light snack to hold us over to dinner (and to keep us from getting to liquored up).

Dinner was pickup from Vinnie Van Gogo's- arguably some of the best pizza I have ever had. We did cheese and jalapeno/pepperoni. We sat out on the back patio of the hotel right by the pool.

http://www.vinnievangogo.com/

The next morning we walked down to Breakfast at B Matthews. Beau and I discovered this plan last year when we were there for the wedding. They have amazing food and the atmosphere is charming. It is small place but they have indoor and outdoor seating which is nice. They make their own biscuits- who can turn that down. The biscuits were in the oven when we were there so they gave us some hot ones to take away.

http://www.bmatthewseatery.com/

Another gem we discovered when we were there last time was BD Burgers. Seriously, the BEST BURGER EVAH!!! People, they make their own buns!! FRESH! Check out the website for some burger porn. There is always a wait, but there are a ton of stores around there to poke around in while you wait.

http://www.bdburgers.net/

Dinner on our last night was by far the best meal we had. The hotel where the wedding had been held also has a fantastic restaurant, 45 Bistro. The bistro had catered the wedding and the food was really wonderful- but let me tell you, it was sooooo much better to eat off the menu! We started off with drinks and attacked the appetizers with zeal. We had carpaccio and escargot. Both were well seasoned and delicious. The salads were also fresh and tasty. For an entree I enjoyed the quinoa encrusted grouper (seriously the best fish I have ever had). The duck prepared two ways was great (and I am not a duck fan). Beau played it safe getting the steak. Although the steak was good, he enjoyed the other dishes more. Dessert rounded out the meal and left us all totally stuffed....but happy.
http://www.marshallhouse.com/dining_45bistro.shtml

The morning we left, we decided to try the breakfast buffet at the hotel. It was Easter Sunday so we were concerned about crowds elsewhere. The buffet was surprisingly good. Usually hotel buffets are dry toast and picked over pastries, but this was amazing. Cooked to order omelets, eggs, french toast, pancakes, shrimp and grits, and waffles. Fresh smoked salmon complete with capers, red onions and cream cheese. There were a ton of pastries selections as well as cheeses, fruits, cereal and other wonderful treats.

And get this, all the walking we didn't gain a pound while there. Shocking, no?

Amelie's.

I am a francophile. I always have been. I love the french language, french cooking, french toast, french anything. So, when I found out about the new french bakery in town I was a little excited (truth be told I jumped up and down.) Beau and I made it up there a few weeks back and sampled some of their pastries, which were DELICIOUS, but I fell in love again this past week when I ate lunch there.


Suz and I had a BFF day (more on that later) and I convinced her we should eat at Amelie's, not that it took that much convincing. :)


When you first step into the building, you can't help but immediately press your nose up against the two glass cases full of the most beautiful pastries, macaroons and mini cakes.

Once you stop salivating like Pavlov's dogs, you notice the menu with wonderful things like fresh soups, salads and tartines. Do not be afraid of the french word "tartine"...it is the equivalent of an open sandwich.


Both Suz and I settled on a tartine and a cup of the tomato and crab soup. I ordered the portobello and leek tartine (below), while she had the ham and Gruyere.
Although we were mid sentence when they placed our food in front of us, we didn't speak another syllable until our plates were clean. IT WAS THAT GOOD! I swear, my mouth is watering just thinking about that meal.


*drool*



Sorry, let me get back to the story.
The soup was wonderful and full of unexpected touches. Crab in tomato soup is a bit unusual by itself, but they combined it with lemon zest and capers. The zest added a real brightness and the capers were briny and very well matched with the rest of the soup.

We, of course, also got some sweet treats to-go that were so good we almost got into multiple accidents while Suz tried to shift her car AND eat.

Aside from the wonderfully classic yet creative food, the decor in Amelie's is worth seeing. I suppose it is best described as Parisian Flea Market. Lots of fabulous re-purposed stuff. And, for any of you cooks/bakers out there, you will lust after the main chandelier. It is a collection of stainless steel utensils and totally amazing.


So, moral of the story?
GO! GO NOW...especially since they are open 24x7. Yes, ALL DAY EVERY DAY! Hooray!

Booze and Bowling.

Last night I went out with my BFF (Flooze) her husband (the Chad...as seen in the big wood photo on the right) and Beau. We had a great time at the Epicenter in uptown Charlotte. As per usual the festivities were kicked off with booze and food. We tried a new restaurant called BlackFin and were very happy with the "dining experience" (Nenny- insert root bear experience voice here).

We started with the booze...

Which was quickly consumed.

So, we moved on to dinner.

I had Lemon chicken with spinach and rice, Beau had prime rib with FANTASTIC garlic mashed taters. Flooze was the winner with a Jalapeno grouper over cheesy grits. The Chad had beef tips with maple glazed carrots.

Before:

After:
After dinner we moseyed over to Strikers, the bowling alley in the Epicenter. Well, it was everything Beau had said he wanted in a bowling alley- smoke free and full of yuppies. I was the suck for both games. Flooze was the big winner...but I don't count that since she used to be in a league.

Although we all liked the bowling alley they wanted one AND ONLY ONE of your shoes in return for a pair of bowling shoes. It was amusing to watch people trying to demand they take both or neither of their street shoes.

Overall it was a very fun night which we hope to repeat soon.