Entries Tagged as 'limey'

Belated Birthday BBQ

September 20th, 2011 · No Comments


Ed, Cousin, Kristin, Jen


Brian, Limey, Rachelle, Mike (Brian’s dad)


Paul Baker, Rachelle, Kate


Rachelle & Richard (with Guinness, Jameson, and Bailey’s for Irish Car Bombs


Brett, Rachelle


Chad, Rachelle, Quinn


Dallas about to get kissed


Jen


Brett


Rachelle, Danny


Paul Baker, Kate, Rachelle, Alden


Jill, Halle, Rachelle


Todd, Rachelle, Larry, Marty, Josh


Anonymous Passer Outer. Note, he came that way, it didn’t happen at my party.


Rachelle, Trevor, Todd


Rachelle, Amy, Raiden, Steve


Irish Car Bombs!


Guess who won?


Damian, Rachelle, Derek


Rachelle, Derek


Trevor, Damian, Derek, Todd


Cory, Rachelle, Caroline


Marty, Josh, Trevor, Damian, Derek, Todd


Marty, Josh, Trevor, Dallas, Damian, Derek, Quinn, Todd


Chad, Mike (his dad)


Todd, Rachelle, Josh


Rachelle, Brett


Ed


Vanessa, Dylan, Rachelle


Dallas, Rachelle


Jeremiah Weed


Killian, Rachelle (Killian’s birthday gift was Shake Weight


Learning how to use the Shake Weight


Rachelle & Juan, a.k.a Kwan


Rachelle, Juan/Kwan, Cory


Watching the fight: Dallas, Kristin, Caroline, Danny, Cousin, Anonymous, Alden, Paul Baker, Kate, Juan/Kwan, Cory, Ed


See you in my nightmares!

I think the pictures tell the story! At first I was just trying to take photos of people at the party then somehow it evolved into me having to be in the photos.

Dallas and I prepped food for the barbecue for days ahead of time and it all turned out fabulous, if I do say so myself. We had kalbi ribs on the grill (marinated for 2 days) and braised short ribs that slow cooked for hours in the oven. To go with all this delicious meat, I made crack onion dip, bacon-wrapped pineapple, dill dip with veggies, Asian lettuce salad, pesto pasta salad, macadamia nut brownies, and a fruit plate.

It was a fun night. I acted like I was turning 26, not 36, though. Definitely was feeling my true age the next day! Thanks to everyone for all the birthday wishes, gifts, cards, and for coming to my party and making it a great time!

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Wine and Chocolate Pairing Class at 404 Wine Bar

August 15th, 2011 · 1 Comment

Last week Jen, Jill, Limey and I went to a wine and chocolate pairing class at 404 Wine Bar. The class was put on by I Wish and we’d purchased tickets from Groupon. The Groupon was actually just for a wine class, but we were having problems scheduling a date in Chicago (not the suburbs) and I Wish was nice enough to let us transfer the ticket and take the wine and chocolate pairing class.

We learned about pairing different kinds of wine with the different kinds of chocolate. How to complement and contrast the flavors and that sort of thing. My favorite pairing was a Santa Christina Sangiovese with dark chocolate. The wine was very fruity and cherry-like and mixed together it tasted just like a cherry cordial. I should note that this was Jill’s least favorite wine. She actually dumped it out. Ha! She has a thing about fruit. Jen and I were teasing her and Limes from across the table. Hence the thought balloons above.


I really liked this wine: Proyecto Garnachas de Espana

I thought the class was fun enough at the discounted rate ($20). We learned a few things and had an enjoyable lesson. I don’t know if I’d ever pay the full price for the lesson, $45 seems overpriced to me, but I guess that’s why we got the Groupon!

On a side note, you may recall that this is the second I Wish class I’ve taken. Jen and I went to a Korean culture and food class earlier this year.

Since our class was in a side room at 404 Wine Bar and we hadn’t eaten dinner yet, we headed into the bar/restaurant to eat. We ordered a bunch of things and split them:

- Housemade tapenade with crostini
- 3 cheese plate with cranberries, grapes and honey almonds
- Sauteed Maine sea scallops
- Wild mushroom ravioli with a truffle cream sauce
- Fish tacos (from Jack’s Bar & Grill, which is attached to the wine bar)
- Chocolate fondue served with pound cake and apples

Everything was really delicious. Everyone agreed. We also agreed that we all loved the mushroom ravioli. SOOOO good. Also, how appropriate that we both started and ended with chocolate?

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Roscoe Village Burger Fest

July 12th, 2011 · No Comments

Last Sunday I biked over to join Jen and Quinn at Roscoe Village Burger Fest. We decided to go early because it was supposed to be so warm. At 11:30 a.m. it was already in the 80s. Since there wasn’t a line by the ponies, Quinn took a ride there first. Then he had a turn on the bouncy castle. We were getting hungry, so we went through the fest a bit and bought some burgers. The good thing about Burger Fest is that a lot of the stands sell small sliders, so you can try a lot of burgers without stuffing yourself.


Goose Island Legendary Stilton Burger Slider (cracked pepper, roasted garlic, dusseldorf – $4)

Jen got the Murphy’s Slider (Irish cheddar, bacon, tomato bacon aioli, pretzel bun -$2) from Mrs. Murphy & Sons Irish Bistro and I got the Legendary Stilton Burger Slider (cracked pepper, roasted garlic, dusseldorf – $4) from Goose Island. This burger was awesome. The cheese and the roasted garlic were so rich and delicious. I also got a Leinies Classic Amber, maybe my first mistake of the day. It was, by then, in the 90s and I was so hot and sweaty. Plus I rode my bike there. I shouuld have been gulping water, not beer.


Hamburger Mary’s


Hamburger Mary’s Mighty Aphrodite Slider (stuffed with olives, spinach & oregano, with baby spinach onion & feta cheese – 2 for $6)

We also tried the Mighty Aphrodite Slider (stuffed with olives, spinach & oregano, with baby spinach onion & feta cheese – 2 for $6) from Hamburger Mary’s. This burger was good, but not amazing.


Quinn creating his masterpiece.


I told Quinn to make a Batman face.

Since it was so hot, we mostly chilled out under the kid’s art tent while Quinn worked on some projects. We didn’t stay long at the fest before walking back a few blocks to Jen and Chad’s house. Quinn had to go to a friend’s birthday party anyway. Also, their backyard was way cooler. It’s shaded and had a breeze. We needed to cool off. We were so hot, we didn’t even stop to see any of the gardens in the Roscoe Village Garden Walk on the way home, like we did last year.

When Jen took Quinn off to his birthday party, Chad and I headed back over to Burger Fest. We had roadie beers for the walk over and the tough security guard would not let us through with them. So we had to chug. Probably my second mistake of the day. Followed by much more beer hydrating.. let’s just say, I did NOT ride my bike home that night.

Chad and I stopped by the Village Tap stand. This is our favorite bar and we’d just been there on Friday night. Our waitress was telling us about the mediterranian burger they were going to sell. Chad and I stopped by and talked to the Village Tap owner to aks if the burger would be on their menu any time soon and the owner said it would be likely. So, we passed that one up, knowing we’d be eating it soon.


Murphy’s Slider (Irish cheddar, bacon, tomato bacon aioli, pretzel bun -$2) & Pulled Lamb Slider (Irish Whiskey BBQ sauce – $2)

On Jen’s recommendation, Chad went to the Mrs. Murphy’s & Sons Irish Bistro stand. He tried both the Murphy’s Slider (Irish cheddar, bacon, tomato bacon aioli, pretzel bun -$2) and the Pulled Lamb Slider (Irish Whiskey BBQ sauce – $2) there. He loved the slider, but not the lamb, and didn’t even finish it. I tried it too… very flavorless. Chad also had a Turkey Slider (gouda, onion jam – $4) from Goose Island, which he really liked.


John’s Place Cowboy Burger (1/4 pound angus beef burger, pub cheese, bacon-onion jam, bbq chipotle drizzle – $5)

John’s Place had a burger called the Cowboy Burger (1/4 pound angus beef burger, pub cheese, bacon-onion jam, bbq chipotle drizzle – $5) that was the Burger Fest winner last year, so I tried that. I was totally intrigued by the bacon-onion jam. The pub cheese was kind of cheez whizzy, but it worked. Added a nice creaminess that complimented the savory bacon and onions.

Trent and Loden recently moved to Roscoe Village and brought their doggies Charlie and Winston over to the festival. We sat for a bit and decided once again that we were too hot, so we headed back to Jen and Chad’s backyard, where it was much cooler.


Chad, Winston, Cortez, Drake


Drake, Jill, Halle, Charlie


Halle


Winston

Jill, Brian, Halle, and Limey met up with us there. We sat around the backyard watching the Cubs game, visiting, and drinking beer (mistake!). After a while Jen and Quinn came back. It was getting to be around dinner time, so we decided again to go back to Burger Fest. Everyone went over, except Jen, who smartly had enough of the heat and decided to stay home.


Goose Island


Goose Island Turkey Slider (gouda, onion jam – $4)

On my third trip to the fest that day I tried the Turkey Slider (gouda, onion jam – $4) from Goose Island that Chad was raving about.


Stanley’s Kitchen & Tap


Stanley’s Kitchen & Tap Roasted Corn Salad (chipotle, cilantro, onion – $2)

Also, my coworker Dave had told me that on Saturday he had the Stanley’s burger and corn side and both were good. It looked like they were only selling full-sized burgers and I was trying to avoid those, so I just got the corn side. It was light and fresh and just a bit spicy. Perfect for the hot weather. This was a good-sized side, so I passed it around to share and everyone really liked it.


Mrs. Murphy & Sons Irish Bistro – Murphy’s Slider (Irish cheddar, bacon, tomato bacon aioli, pretzel bun -$2)

I also tried the Murphy’s Slider (Irish cheddar, bacon, tomato bacon aioli, pretzel bun -$2) from Mrs. Murphy & Sons Irish Bistro. Many of us tried this slider and it was great, but the meat patty was a little small for the bun. But the bun was a pretzel roll, so we didn’t mind much. This was a delicious little slider.

So, after a while people were dispersing. I went back to Jen and Chad’s house because Chad had to drop Quinn off for bed. I was getting so tired. By then it was maybe 7:30 p.m.? And I’d been back and forth from the fest drinking beer and eating burgers and sweating my butt off in 90+ weather since 11:00 a.m. I was done! Chad was trying to get me to rally, saying that since I’d opened the fest that day, I needed to close it too, but I just couldn’t. Foghat was playing. Foghat. I was not rallying for Foghat. I took a cab home. My bike is still in Jen & Chad’s garage!

Oh, and the winner of Burger Fest? Each hamburger stand had a code on it and you texted your votes in. I thought that was a great idea. I voted for Goose Island because I enjoyed both of their sliders. Very good. But guess who won? STANLEY’S! The place Dave told me to get the burger from and I didn’t. Oh well. Mrs. Murphy’s & Sons Irish Bistro placed third, losing second place by only one vote! Select Cut Steakhouse won second place. I don’t think any of us even got a burger from that place! On a side note, Dallas used to live above Select Cut probably something like 10 years ago.

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Wine Tasting at WineStyles

May 31st, 2011 · No Comments

Last week I went to a wine tasting at WineStyles in Lakeview. Limey Dave won the tasting at a charity raffle and invited me to go. It just so happens that this is Limey’s regular go-to wine shop and that he’s good friends with Matt, who is a wine specialist there. One thing I really liked about the WineStyles store was that they split up the wines by different styles – crisp, silky, rich, bubbly, fruity, mellow, bold, nectar – that I can actually understand. I tended to like the crisp and mellow styles the best.

Matt chose the wines for us and poured. We tried each one and then at the end we had seconds on the ones we liked. They also had cheese and crackers for us, which was good because I hadn’t eaten for like 7 hours and when I did, it was just a salad. I didn’t think our pours were large, but I was feeling the wine quickly!

WineStyles was also running a special on their wine club. You had to sign up for 3 months, but the first month would only cost $1. It was a great deal, but the store is not that convenient for me, so I didn’t sign up. Check out the notes Matt printed on our tasting sheet. Sorry Dave. And Go Heat! Matt is a huge Miami Heat fan, which we found out later when we went to Beckett’s to watch the game and eat dinner. Bulls lost, but Jill and I were big winners with the delicious burger we ordered and split. Get this, the Oui Oui burger was a french onion soup infused patty topped with truffled mushrooms, cognac onions and melted brie and served on a French baguette. So good. I really liked that place, too: Beckett’s. I hadn’t been there since it had been the bar called Belly’s, which I didn’t really like.

Also, I may not have joined the wine club, but I did buy two of my favorite wines from the tasting:

Skouras Chardonnay – Greece. Tasting Notes: Crisp. Only a touch of oak in this lean, refreshing Chardonnay. The pineapple, peach and vanilla scents are bright. Tropical and orchard fruit flavors, but crisp with the acid to focus the flavors.

Maryhill Winery Winemaker’s Red – Columbia Valley, Washington. Tasting Notes: Mellow. An easy-drinking wine with complex notes that make this wine a favorite! The caramel, cherry and smoke aromas lead into a palate of black pepper and nutmeg, followed by cherries, berries, and oak.

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Jeopardy: Chad Edition

May 19th, 2011 · No Comments


Chad’s Birthday Mug


Chad, Cousin, Dallas, Trent


Chen-Je, Jen, Jason


Limey, Ted, Fitz, Paul, Carrie, Trent


Chad & Dallas


Chad & Rachelle

In grand family tradition of playing bar games for 40th birthday parties, we all gathered last weekend to celebrate Chad’s big birthday and played Jeopardy: Chad Edition. Remember, for Brian’s party there was the Pub Crawl Olympics and for Jill’s there was Survivor Wrigleyville.


Brian setting up the Jeopardy board.


Jill explaining the rules.


Jeopardy Team Representatives: Carrie, Limey, Ted

For Chad’s 40th birthday Jen rented out the beer garden at Fizz, but since it was raining, we were in a heated tent. We paid $35 for all the drinks we could drink for 4 hours and Jen arranged for some really delicious food to be served as well. At the appointed time, we all gathered to play Jeopardy. When we arrived Jen had given us each a number: 1, 2 or 3. This was to sort people into 3 teams. I was on Team 2: Team Burrito House. We chose Limey to be our team representative. When the answers were presented, Limey had to yell Burrito House to buzz in with the correct question. The other teams and reps were Ted for Team Guthries, Team 1, and Carrie (and later Danny) for Team Syracuse.


Chad


Getting intense!

These were the categories – For the Jeopardy round there was The Man and His Bans, Potent Potables, and Movies & Music. In Double Jeopardy there was Chad’s Sports Follies, Brushes With Fame, and He’s Had a Job or Two. The Final Jeopardy category was Location, Location, Location and the question was about how many places Chad has lived in Chicago. Jill and Brian constructed the Jeopardy board. Jill played Vannah White, flipping the answers open, while Brian did his best Alex Trebec, reading the answers off. Jen was the scorekeeper.


Chad had to charade out one of the Jeopardy answers.


Jeopardy crowd.


Final Jeopardy


Chen-Je with two winning girls, Caroline & Loden

The game got really heated with everyone screaming to ring in and shouting answers. Before Final Jeopardy my team, Team Burrito House, was in the lead by far! We could not mess this up! Well, leave it to Limey…. he wagered something like $4,000 more than we even had, which seems to be breaking the rules to me, and then we lost everything, and then some, when no one on our team know how many places Chad lived in. Wah wah wahhhh…


Cousin & Todd


Baltimore Bomb


Baltimore Bombs


Jill & Dallas

Chad’s high school friend Todd flew into town from Maryland and introduced us to a new shot called the Ravens Bomb. Well, when he’s tailgating at football games he calls it that, but we were opting to call it the Baltimore Bomb. In Baltimore they drop a grape vodka shot into a cup of Red Bull energy drink. At Fizz they only had Monster energy drink, so we used that. Check out the awesome custom shot glasses Fizz had. Perfect for bombs. As for the Baltimore Bomb? It tasted awesome. The grape vodka tasted just like grape soda. Todd did warn me that they will sneak up on you if you are not careful, but I only had two. They were flowing pretty readily, though. I think they did sneak up on some people. Or… it could have been the other bombs…


Chad’s Birthday Cheesecakes


Dessert: Carbombs or Cheesecake?

Of course a night out with all these guys is not complete without Irish Car Bombs. Right as Trent was ordering a round, Jen was in the other room gathering people for cake! Ed (remember The Baked Escape) made two white chocolate raspberry swirl cheesecakes (with a chocolate cookie crust) for the party. So delicious. I’ve had this one a few times. It never disappoints. Just as the cake was being cut the Irish Car Bombs arrived. So, choose your poison: Cheesecake or booze. Or both. Why not? Actually, I only had a tiny sliver of the cake and passed on the bombs.


Todd & Brian


Dancing around the birthday boy.

After this, I don’t know what happened. I didn’t feel very drunk, but there was a lot of dancing. And Ed sent me photos of things this week that I only vaguely remember happening. So yeh. Kind of proud that us old people can still have a good time!

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