If Monterey Peninsula were a woman, she’d be the one that all the others envy. The one who doesn’t give much thought to hair or clothes or makeup. For her, it all just comes together effortlessly, a unique kind of beautiful that you can’t get from poring over the fashion boards on Pinterest. Like the […]
Delicious Detours: Destination Boudin
Traveling the dreaded I-10, from Baton Rouge to Houston, my family knows what to expect: like forcing an elephant through a drinking straw, it often seems the entirety of the Gulf Coastal U.S. is trying to get over the Mississippi River Bridge at the same time as I am. This is the usual state of […]
Dining Well at Disney
Beauty and the Beast: It was 8:30 p.m., and we had hopped two monorails to get to Epcot after arriving just a few hours earlier at The Contemporary Hotel in the Magic Kingdom. We were late for our reservation at the Biergarten in Epcot’s Germany Pavilion, and people were packing themselves in like beached sardines […]
Delicious Detours: Giving Thanks at New Zion Missionary Baptist Church BBQ
My dad came to visit from Louisiana a few weeks before Thanksgiving. Sort of an early holiday visit, since John and I had decided to take a vacation with the kids during Thanksgiving week. This time, my dad wanted to get out of the house and “see the sights.” When he told me this, my […]
Gringo’s Shines in New I-45 North Location
The air was more than brisk as we pulled into the Spring Park Village retail development, north of FM 1960 on I-45. Our destination, the new location of Gringo’s Mexican Kitchen. (Disclosure: I was part of a group invited to a pre-opening event held a few days prior to the restaurant’s official opening. As guests, […]
Desperately Seeking Sushi
“You pick your fish, and I will create something, just for you,” says Masa Nagashima, head sushi chef and owner of Masa’s Sushi & Robata Bar in The Woodlands, Texas. It’s a sunny Sunday afternoon, and I am on my third visit to Masa’s, the latest test site in my search for good sushi. I […]
Vancouver 2: TaiwanFest, Granville Island, Stanley Park After Dark & More
(This is Part 2 of our Tour of Vancouver, B.C. Read Part 1: Visiting Vancouver? Eat. Drink. Play. Repeat.): We took the city’s public transit rail, a.k.a., the Sky Train, through downtown to Granville Street, cutting through Yaletown once again, on our way to the southern edge of the city. Unexpectedly we came upon a local festival in […]
Visiting Vancouver? Eat. Drink. Play. Repeat.
(This is Part 1 of our Tour of Vancouver, B.C. Read Vancouver 2: TaiwanFest Granville Island, Stanley Park After Dark & More): What are the key elements of an ideal travel destination? How about magnificent scenery, abundant seafood, a diverse international vibe, well-rated regional wines, and good coffee close at hand? Look no further than […]
Brisket is My Kryptonite
A question that is music to my ears: Would you like lean, fatty or burnt ends? It’s not by choice that I love smoked brisket. Apparently I was born this way. Or maybe all that meaty smoke just overwhelmed my taste buds when I arrived here from Louisiana years ago. Some of my favorite blog […]
Night and Day in Austin, Texas
We make our way through the picturesque farm and ranch country of central Texas, headed for downtown Austin and then to the north shore of Lake Travis. It’s a spur of the moment road trip. An impulse to get out of town before the summer slips away, do a little wining and dining someplace fresh […]
Breadnbottle 