Spring Break Part one

The month of March finally came which means three things...March Madness, spring break, and more importantly my birthday. However, to this blog's purpose the second is the only one that truly matters. For this year's spring break my family headed out to Cali for a trip to Napa Valley and San Francisco. Now if you know anything about my family, you know that we had everything planned out to a T. I mean my dad emailed each of us excel sheets (and then printed them out for us) of each of the events we had per day...I kid you not. With that said, there is a lot to cover so lets get to it. 

First stop: NAPA NAPA NAPA

Well...not really, we took a pit stop at Cal Berkley for lunch. We walked around a bit and took a walk through the farmer's market. 

The Berkley view 

Farmer's Market

Some cookies I couldn't just walk by...I was staring so long that the guy handed me a piece. They didn't disappoint 

 We headed out to Jupiter for some food. I started off with an amber ale and ended with a touch of a sunburn...but I wasn't about to shy away from any sun that I could get.

Garlic chicken wings were a starter. Let me go ahead and say that garlic was a major theme of this whole entire trip. The wings were really good...but they were nothing in comparison to my pie. 

I went with the Gaia Pizza that was roasted chicken, shrooms, spinach, mozzarella, ricotta (oh so creamy), and once again garlic. And yes those are massive cloves of garlic, I lent a few to the fam but needless to say I am glad that I was riding solo after eating this meal. 

Back in the car to get to our hotel in Napa and get ready for the night at Jessup Cellars.

View of our mini movie "theatre"

The agenda and menu 

The night was filled with wine and gourmet popcorn, but also this cheese, meat, and cracker platter. They had some goat cheese (in the middle) and salami that was to die for and I couldn't get enough of. Like I have said before, goat cheese is one of my vices. It is just so creamy and salty and ugh oh so good. 

Now day two...

 

Started off with a hike, where we found a swing. Needless to say I was pretty excited about it. But there was no time because we had our first two wineries of the trip!

Dutch Henry's vineyard, which was a very simple visit-a good start to the trip. 

Frank's Family. This was definitely the most insightful winery we visited, I couldn't even start to regurgitate all of the information we received. 

After all the boozin' it was time to get some dinner so we headed out to Zuzu's for some tapas. 

Confit Salad

My hidden gem favorite: beef tartar with a raw egg and aioli underneath with some thin crisps. 

chicken croquettes 

tortilla (this tasted like a twice bake potato...so needless to say I was in heaven)

iron skirt steak

steamed asparagus

Day three: one of my favorite days of the trip 

Hike number two. We found another swing and a cool tree ledge with handprints...this was higher than it looks I promise. 

First winery stop was Groth, it had a gorgeous view we got an interested tour with terminology such as: hard prune and bud break. 

Then it was time to head to Paloma, we had no idea what to expect from this winery since it was in a woman's house. It didn't start off so great with a treacherous drive up the steepest and curviest road I have ever been on. We were then greeted by this little old woman named Barbara, who we nicknamed Babs. Although the wine wasn't my favorite, it was such a unique experience listening to her story and learning about the history of her vineyard. 

Then it was time to celebrate my birthday (you had to have known I was gonna slide that in there somewhere). We went to Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen, which was one of my favorite meals we had on this trip...ahh amazing. 

For starters...this bread though. So crunchy on the outside and doughy and warm on the inside. The butter just melted right on it and then you top it off with a little salt...

Mussels are a new fav:
Coconut curry mussels with kaffir lime,
ginger and cilantro. 

And then you get some of that
bread and dip it in the sauce...

Corned beef and cabbage- which I had no clue what to expect but it was surprisingly delicious 

Then it was obviously time for my main course and I went with Ahi tuna...which is my second love right now right behind a good piece of salmon 

This may have been one of the best ahi tuna dishes I've had and that goes to the show stopper: buckwheat noodles and the miso glaze. I honestly don't know how to describe this flavor other than a great combination of sweet and savory and one of my favorite meals...everr. 

Day four: another favorite (two back to back great days was hard to compare)

Now don't worry if you know us Bedells, then you know we went for another hike. 

First winery stop was Hess, which was completely different than the rest. It was an art gallery combined with a winery, and you got to choose the wines you wanted to taste. I gotta say this was probably my least favorite of the trip, but they had some stiff competition. 

Saintsbury may have been my favorite winery we hit. They had an unfair advantage though because we couldn't even get out of the car before a pup jumped in, and if you know me then you know pups are the key to my heart (...and food obvi). This winery had us sitting outside in the sun and we had the best host, Galen. We also had the opportunity to meet one of the owners, Dave who quizzed us on sports and was a complete hoot...yes I just said hoot. We got voted Dave's favorite family, we were pretty excited. Another note, we learned that Saint Arnold Brewing Company receives the Chardonnay barrels from Saintsbury to brew their Bishops Barrel No. 2 

Then it was dinner time. We ended the night by heading to Oxbow public market, which is pretty much a high scale food court where everything and anything sounded and looked amazing. The family decided to take a little breather for a hour or so and we went our separate ways. Sister and I share the strong passion for pizza, so we couldn't help but take a seat at the pizza place Ca' Momi. 

Now I am a sucker for all pizza, but this place was unreal. Sister and I got two different pizzas: 

Top: Bufala-house:made porchetta, sauteeed organic spinach and mozzarella di bufala 
Bottom: Stella Alpnia: organic arugula, mascarpone, and parmigiano reggiano 

Let me tell you, I could have probably polished off both of these pizzas on my own if I didn't have a care in the world...or if I hadn't already eaten my weight in food the past three days. The Bufala was just so porky (best description we could come up with) but the flavor was divine and the Stella Alpnia was simplistic but the mascarpone was so gooey, and I can't even start on the crust. It was perfectly fired and doughey... mouth is watering. But don't you worry I saved room for a little ice cream place (ate it too fast for a picture) and one of the flavors I got tasted exactlyyy like the lemon girl scout cookies. I was in love. 

That polishes off Napa portion of this trip, San Fran will be coming up shortly!  

A little bit of Indy

I had one of the best opportunities to head out to Indianapolis this past weekend to cover the Women's Big Ten Tourney for Daily Iowan TV. On Wednesday, myself and four other Daily Iowan peeps piled everything into a mini van headed out to Indy. I was a little nervous at first because I was going with one of my best girls Taylor and then three people I didn't know, but we had the best group ever and had a blast. Needless to say it was an amazing experience that was filled with lack of sleep, hilarious moments, a little stress, and a lott of good food. I made it known from the beginning that I am such a food snob and that we were not going to any major boring chains, luckily enough the whole car was in agreement. 

 I'm also gonna post the link to the post game features we did after every day! Enjoy 

day one: started and it was a long one. We woke up early and headed downtown to get some footage from the Indy scene. 

The Crew at Monumental Circle 

Gorgeous View

My credentials…and the first time I realized I hate the way my name looks without that extra "a". 

Tay and I at halftime on press row. 

After much excitement and a Hawkeye win we were exhausted and starved…and in need of an alcoholic beverage so we went with a brewery called RAM a few blocks away. I think my favorite thing about this place was its slogan: Your stomach wants food. Your tastebuds want beer. And they couldn't be more on point. 

Started off with the BIG RED IPA, very refreshing and hoppy. 

This was my burger…oh my delicious. It was a blanketed by beer cheese, bacon and an onion ring all placed between a pretzel bun and sweet potato fries. With the food I decided to go for brew numero two and got Taylor's first choice, Disorder Porter. Oh my this was filled with notes of caramel, chocolate and coffee. 

clips:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXxVw35DrN0

day two:  came around and it was a pleasant surprise that we were staying another night because the women won again! During the whole game Taylor and I were saying how much we crave pizza (another reason why I love that girl, we always have the same guilty cravings). We head back to the media room and the boys ask us if we wanna get pizza…needless to say we were pretty stoked. We did some research and went to a famous pizza joint outside of town called Thr3e Wisemen. 

The brew list and the three beers (Matt and I got the same) that the 21 year olds went with. I got the top beer which had blueberry hints..yum yum and yum. 

The view of our table.

The pizza Taylor and I got. Thin crust, pep, tomato and spinach. Very simple and so delicious. The only thing we were disappointed about was that the medium was for 2-3 people, but we both agreed that we could have easily finished it on our own…however that's probably for the best. 

clips: post game https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2RRQ5OEdsw

Big Ten Talk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxyzKBdxlFo

day three: came around and the girls won again!! We were staying for the championship game and were so excited about it. Each school was assigned a bar and we got Colts Grille, so after the women's we decided to head over there to watch the men's game…and for me to watch the DUKE/UNC game. 

My ahí tuna, I was not expecting this but damn this was good. The tuna had a spicy creole seasoning but then a sweet sauce smothering the veggies, rice and tuna. 

Since it was the last night of getting a good dinner we decided to go big before we go home and ordered the carrot cake. I would explain…but there are no words. (if you really need an explanation, lemme just say icing icing icing)

clips: post game https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyku0oByRds

Hawkeye Huddle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zf3knE6EfJk

day four:  For the last night we got a new hotel room close to downtown…check out this view. 

clips: post game https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=njKMSiQ_ywU

Spirit Squad 101 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gniqgykxBsk

I had such an amazing four days with a great group and even more so an unreal experience. 

journey of a retired student-athlete

Well if any of y'all know me, this is my first semester without volleyball priorities. With no volleyball and only two classes, everyone thinks that I have all the free time in the world...little do they know I am probably busier than ever because of Blackstone and working at Daily Iowan TV. But don't worry about me, I have been able to get out, have fun and have the opportunity to do some new things. So...lets get to it. 

Sazerac at Graze restaurant for Date numero uno with Taylor...the bartenders were impressed that two girls were able to drink this. Not gonna lie, it was stronggg but the licorice flavor made it all okay. 

Then I made my way to Chicago for the "Chicago Advertisement Fair" to network, network, network. I drove there during the awful midwest weather and ended up getting into town super late...and starved. I googled forever on where to eat but decided to just make it an easy night and call for room service. 

The nachos that were smothered in guac. Honestly, these were some of the best things I've ever eaten in my life, I was nauseously full about half way through but just powered on through to polish them off before the big day. 

My name tag for the job fair. 

 

Then after the big day, I met up with one of my favorite people in the world and my old roommate Alli. Of course Dave gave us a recommendation to go to Shaw's Crab House and got some delishhh sushi and some cute little cocktails. 

Then came date number two with Taylor. We decided to stick to Graze and got the Mockingbird drink. Don't be alarmed by the jalapeño, it tasted like a zesty piña colada and was to. die. for.

Speaking of to die for. So here's the thing, we reallllly wanted to cave into our sweet tooth. We went with the "half ass ice cream pie" and ended up getting the "big ass ice cream pie". Its an Oreo crust with neapolitan ice cream smothered in sauces, strawberries, and whip cream...I cant.  We buckled down and gave it our best efforts to finish it off but were defeated and left a few bites on the plate. Now before you get disappointed in us, we were miserably full...like not able to fall asleep because we were so full. I am not quite sure if thats a win or a loss. 

And just because I love this picture, here is a picture of a simplistically perfect day when I am actually able to have a morning off. A large almond latte at High Grounds paired with some thank you notes and bron bron of course. 

Until next time. Besos y'all.

Blackstone is bringing the warmth

As everyone knows, this has been a brutally cold winter. I think it is safe to say that everyone is sick of the snow, bitter winds, and negative temperatures…even those who are crazy enough to claim to love winter. With Major League Baseball season just 33 days away, everyone is ready for snapbacks, sunlight, and most importantly hot dogs. Now let me be real with y'all, I do not like hot dogs. The only way I eat those things is if it is deep fried and made into a corn dog or wrapped up like a pig in a blanket…until now. 

My home away from home Blackstone is getting in the Spring spirit and doing a hot dog special tomorrow, Feburary 27th! When I first heard about a hot dog special I was a little taken aback by the idea, until I heard and saw what they were going to be. I introduce to you...

Gourmet Hot Dogs

"Hopped Up Dog"
This frank is bacon wrapped (lets be real…that should get your attention already), then topped with house-pickled jalapeños, cheddar cheese, caramelized onions, and zesty hopped-up mustard all housed inside a toasted poppy seed bun. 

"Champions Dog"
This dog is accompanied by maple glazed ham, caramelized onions , arugula, tomatoes, garlic béchamel*, and crushed pineapple and most importantly topped with an oven poached egg and snuggled in a toasted poppy seed bun.
* béchamel: a rich white sauce made with a roux of butter and flour that is seasoned and cooked in milk

I am ready to get down and dirty to try both of these guys and most importantly you should too! 

Now I know your next question is, what in the world am I going to wash these bad boys down with? Well, Blackstone has you covered there too. At 3pm, they are going to tap some delicious brewskies to quench your thirst. 

The showstopper here is the Toppling Goliath's KingSue. It is a double version of their very popular PseudoSue and very limited. Blackstone is only getting one keg…I repeat ONE keg. The other beers being tapped are Confluence Milk Man Stout, Millstream Johns White Ale, as well as a very limited release from Madhouse Brewery- V.I.P. Vanilla Imperial Porter that is aged in Cedar Ridge whiskey barrels. I'll take one of each please!

Hot dogs will start being served at lunch time (open at 11am) and the new beers will be tapped at 3pm! Escape the cold and head over to Blackstone tomorrow, and bring a friend so you can each get one. Or follow after me and get both, I mean why not at only $7 each! 

I'm not gonna tell you again, get your booty to Blackstone and get yourself a dog. But thats not all, I want y'all to let me what you think. So after you grab your hot dog and a brew or two, head back here and let me know which one was your fav. Yeah yeah yeah I know I am asking a lot of you, but I think you and your tastebuds will be thanking me after you do it. 

Which was your favorite?

Hopped Up Dog

Champions Dog

Poll Maker

Home away from home

I am lucky enough to be able to work in an atmosphere that is like home and employees that are like family. I work at a restaurant called Blackstone in Iowa City, and it has seriously been one of the best choices I have ever made. I have made some life long friends, ever lasting memories, and even more importantly have eaten some amazing food. 

Speaking of food, Blackstone made some different specials for the love bird's holiday. Since I worked on Valentines day, Mitch and I decided to head back the next day to get our grub on while our girl Linds had to finish up managing. I apologize in advance for the bad picture taking, we were really hungry and couldn't wait to get the right snap.

We started off with one of the specials…calamari. 

Mitch was beyond excited for this one…he got to sneak in a few little squids before I took a picture, and I don't blame him because it was amazing. It was a chili zesty calamari that was fried to perfection. Then it was main course time. We got to try the specials on Valentines day to be able to describe them for our table, and once I tried this pasta I was in love. 

Everything about this pasta was my favorite. Farfalle check. Crab check. Asparagus check. Creamy yummy goodness check. It had a "oscar sauce" (which is a hollandaise based sauce with crab, asparagus, and tomatoes) as well as three perfectly cooked scallops. 

Mitch decided to get one of our regular menu items, which was the stuffed chicken and grilled asparagus on the side…not steamed. The chicken is stuffed with tomatoes, artichokes, onions and then has mozzarella cheese and a creamy tomato sauce on top. 

We then continued to drink away with wine, sazerac, and a mojito…but I was a little to thirsty and didn't snap a picture before. 

So if you haven't been to Blackstone, or you haven't been in a while then get your booty to Iowa City and to 503 Westbury Drive to get your drink and grub on. 

Mom Comes to Town

Volleyball season ended and all that there was left was the banquet. Dad had a big work event so Mom decided to brave the cold and come to Iowa City for the banquet festivities.

Ma and I wanted to try new things that Dad wouldn't necessarily go for. We started off at this little vegan cafe called Trumpet Blossom Cafe. The place was very quaint and earthy, and needless to say Mom was in love.

The fabric napkins and Mason Jar water mugs.

Falafel Pita.

Vegan grilled cheese…there was no actual cheese in this and it was unreal. 

We followed up the day by going shopping and seeing Labor Day. 

…where we snuck in some wine juice boxes. 

The next day was banquet day so we started off by going to Brix and drinking a glass of wine or two and a cheese platter before heading off to the banquet. We didn't really eat much at the banquet, but I could have had about twenty of the tiramisu cups. 

We then headed off to Josephs to have another drink and bite to eat. 

My yummy and strong Pomatini. 

The salmon grilled cheese…I was too hungry so I had to sneak in a bite.

Fries. 

We ended the night by chilling in the hotel with some Backpocket Brewey. I had a bomb weekend with so much yummy food and drinks. Ma left on the morning of Superbowl Sunday so I had to rush home and start making food. 

The great Super Bowl spread we had…for three people.