Launching of the Books

I have Bentley in my lap and homemade lemon meringue pie on my right as I recap two book launches I attended last week. First up, The Zen Succulent's launch of Modern Terrarium Studio. Talk about meeting someone who is doing one thing amazingly well and is sticking to it, mastering the skill in its entirety and knowing every nook and cranny of her art.

Megan George of The Zen Succulent mailed the most delightful invitation adorned with none other than succulents. The launch party was at West Elm Southpoint, and it had it all. 

We were greeted by these delicious sugar cookies, hand painted with succulents and air plants to match the theme of the evening. And when I say we, Hank came with like a champ. 

I rocked my gemstone name tag, and we took to the photo booth. We sipped concoctions inspired by the book, complete with dinosaur and gold glitter pom-pom ball stir sticks. 

I loved this snail so much I took him with me everywhere throughout the store. 

I snapped this photo with Megan after she signed my sweet book away. 

There was a DIY plant bar and gold hashtag confetti sprinkled throughout. 

They were spinning up cotton candy in flavors honey and summer sangria. 

I was walking around just soaking it in like a succulent. Loved this giant terrarium Megan created - she's the ultimate succulent stylist and her work makes your home happier. 

Megan told of her dreams coming true, and well, it's always great to hear about that. 

We came home with our own complimentary DIY terrarium kit and a sweet little number from the DIY plant bar. Well done, Megan - the evening, your book and your work.

Next up is my favorite artist Elaine O'Neil and her new book with Missy Julian-Fox, Road Trip Carolina: A Ride Across the Old North State. This children's book is seriously adorable and takes you all throughout this best state ever. 

This launch party was held on Franklin Street at Julian's in Chapel Hill. All of the snacks were North Carolina themed and included delights like Moravian cookies which have been baked in Old Salem for more than 200 years, barbecue, sweet tea, etc. 

Aside: If I were making a taste of North Carolina basket for someone, I would include: a glass bottle of diet Cheerwine, a glass bottle of diet Pepsi (that's who paid for my college education!), Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut holes, Lance crackers, Moravian cookies, Texas Pete hot sauce and Chapel Hill Toffee. 

May and I had our books signed, and my little message reads, Andrea and Hank, To many road trips together! And we surely will do just that. This book has some great state facts in the back too, like did you know, the swinging bridge at Grandfather Mountain is the highest suspension footbridge in America? I want to go do that.

And yep, by the end of this post that homemade lemon meringue slice is all gone.

Favorite Restaurants Ever

Hank and I once went to a beer tasting where we asked the brewer his favorite beer. He had the best answer I've heard. It's not necessarily that my favorite beer is the best beer out there, but the experience that I had while drinking that beer, say the beer I drank after I got engaged, amplified the taste for me, made me want to savor it a little bit longer, and that's why it's my favorite. People always ask me about my favorite restaurants, and I think I answer the same way. My favorite restaurants may not be the best out there, you could try it and think eh, but to me the ambiance was key, the food was great and my memories from that meal make it the best.

1. Hank and I love TV personality Anthony Bourdain. As we were planning our honeymoon to Paris and Rome, Bourdain did one of his shows in Rome and went to the restaurant Roma Sparita. We put it at the top of our list. Hank and I just had an awesome time in Paris and flew to Rome and were bubbling over with love and so excited to try this restaurant. We walked through a tiny rose garden to get to the piazza we needed. We got a table outside and a bottle of house red and ordered our simple little dishes that came highly recommended, cacio e pepe. It was perfect. I daydream often about that tiny little restaurant in that most delightful city. When in Rome...

2. Take me to Little River, S.C. right outside of Myrtle Beach on any given sunny day. You drive down a gravel road to get to a tiny little shack right on the waterfront, Crab Catchers. It's my grab a Corona Light with lime and sit at the closest table to the water under an umbrella kind of place. Life moves slower there. The boats pass by, the sea breeze dances in your hair - it's my happy place. I get the fried oyster, scallop or shrimp sandwich sans bun (because it's cheaper than a basket), and kick back and relax my day away.

3. This next one is a local to Raleigh, N.C. favorite - Dos Taquitos. I'm good for either location, but I've never seen a chip train anywhere else so the Glenwood location has that; although the esquites soup at the Creedmor location is better. Dos Taquitos is the happiest Mexican restaurant. It's loud, tacky and their Mexican flag enchiladas are perfection. I forgo the black beans and rice for their esquites soup, because it's all levels of delicious. I love this place for a fun day, birthday, any day kind of place. It's always a treat.

4. St. John, USVI was an amazing trip, and I'll recap it here one of these days. My favorite day on the trip included this next spot so it's certainly all encompassing as to why I love it so much. We piled eight deep into our red jeep and took the most vertical, hill ridden, scariest drive to beautiful Salt Pond Bay. It was a small hike to get to the actual beach but when we arrived it was a secluded oasis that we had almost all to ourselves. We left much of the group behind and took a quick drive to The Tourist Trap to pick up lunch for all. They are known for their lobster rolls so we grabbed eight of those and brought them back. We ate them on the beach against crystal clear blue waters, sailboats in the distance, a calmness so perfect that you could here the tiny waves dance against the sand. So yeah, the buttered and toasted bun filled high with lobster salad made from fresh, tender meat, celery, light onion and mayo... it was just right.

5. Lastly on my current top five favorite restaurants ever goes to Sauc in Barcelona. Hank and I went to London and Barcelona to celebrate our second anniversary. This dinner was memorable for many reasons but absolutely memorable because of how long we spent actually eating - no less than two and a half hours. This restaurant is a gastronomy delight, and we had whatever the chef had on deck - 15 courses - something like that. Too many to count that's for sure. I remember we were there so long, and certainly the last table, that they were vacuuming. I was laughing so hard I was crying. Back to the food though... the food! It was a visual feast. Each plate was small but creative. The fish was embraced by sea foam, the dessert was a chocolate sphere that melted away to reveal the true dessert. It was unlike anything I have ever experienced. We rolled out of there, just like that chocolate sphere would have, but it was certainly a dinner to remember.

When Hank and I eat at that next best restaurant, these five restaurants are in the back of my mind, and I'm wondering, would this beat out any of those? It would be no easy feat but I'm certainly open to it.

Charleston Happened

Y'all. I love Charleston so. I'm talking favorite city on earth so. May and I tried an Airbnb for the first time, and it was great. I love having all the space of a home, and it just makes you feel more like a local. I already booked another Airbnb in August. Once we arrived to the land of the palms and pineapples, we went straight to newish Tex-Mex restaurant Minero (same owner / chef as Husk - another Charleston favorite of mine). Here's what we ordered up:



Sangria. Chips and guacamole. Their guacamole is amazing with all the cilantro, radish, etc. garnishes - really kicks it up a notch. The chips - those are great too - not your average tortillas. All of their tacos are under $4 each. Resounding favorite was pastor followed by grilled steak and pork carnitas. They don't take reservations so just get there late.

That night we went to the bar Blind Tiger. Inside is definitely college but outside is the polar opposite (well, I can't speak to clientele on the night you're there, but ambiance, yes). The outside patio truly is "an enchanting garden where seating areas are tucked behind crumbling brick walls or under branches." Charlestonians were loving my pineapple spirit. One person did say, "what's up Tupac," so there's that. I'll go with it.

Saturday morning came and we walked it out to the Charleston Farmers Market in Marion Square. I don't think I could ever miss this market on Saturday. The hustle and bustle in the heart of it all really gives you the pulse of the place. It opens at 8 a.m. so I try to get there right around then. At the start of the market there are a good amount of breakfast and coffee vendors so that's always my first stop. We're talking giant breakfast croissants that two people need to share. Oh, and bring cash here. Many of the shops take cards but not so much the food spots so $20 will do you good. 

As for the shopping, Rewined candles are here cheaper than we can get them at home since they're Charleston made - perfect souvenir. My favorite Rewined scent is pinot noir and their second line, Produce candles, the scent wildflower is pretty great. They'll hold them for you while you walk the rest of the market. I love the Charleston Soap Chef too. Try her sugah scrub and the lotions and bath salts are great as well. I have almost the whole line (whoopsies!) in her sweet magnolia scent. Both of those vendors have the Square, so cards accepted. 

After the Farmers Market we walked King Street to City Market. May had to buy a bag for her bags so I suggest packing a reusable shopping tote with shoulder straps (just sayein'). My favorite shop in City Market is the Historic Charleston Foundation. They have everything pineapple you could dream of. I recommend their pewter pineapple bottle opener (at only $6 it's an absolute steal). Since they are a nonprofit, you don't pay tax so that's a pleasant surprise. 

From there we went to all of my favorite stops that I'll stop at every time I am in Charleston no matter what. Even though I've already seen it, it doesn't seem like a visit to #Chas without seeing the staples: Rainbow Row, White Point Gardens at Battery Park (where Hank and I got engaged!) and the Pineapple Fountain. 

We seriously could not have done it without Phil. We hitched a ride at City Market and he pedaled us and our bags to all of those stops. It was delightful or as I said, PHILnomenal. He took us to favorite beer shop The Charleston Beer Exchange where I picked up Westbrook's Mexican Cake beer for Hank. It only comes out once a year so the odds of us being there the day the shop stocked it is beer fate. Souvenir for Hank, check! 

We did all of that by lunchtime. Whew. Phil pedaled us all the way back to our Airbnb. Bless him. It was hot. May and I popped on our suits and made our way to favorite beach Sullivan's Island for some fun in the sun. We called ahead at Poe's Tavern and got takeout for the beach. Surprise... more tacos. The line for Poe's is always long in the summer so I'd recommend a call ahead. The parking for Sullivan's Island is sparse so patience and it will happen. 

After the beach we stopped by Sugar bakeshop, and oh my goodness it was so good. 

So cute, so good. I picked up an ice cream cone shaped ginger snap dog treat for Bentley and a coconut cupcake for myself. Seriously delicious. Next time I'm picking the one with sprinkles. 

We got dolled up and it was off to Moon and Lola as May was teaching handlettering. 

I organized some things. Wrote some things. And posed with giant pinata letters. 

After a job well done, we went to Leon's Oyster Shop for dinner. Hank said he wasn't seeing enough seafood so by golly I will eat seafood. May and I started with their char-grilled oysters and fried brussels sprouts. The brussels were amazing. Then we ordered more oysters but raw this time, and I always love oysters so those were of course great too. Next time I want to try their crushed avocado toast as it seems like that's what people are eating these days. Leon's has an abundance of outdoor twinkle lights so yippee for that. 

On Sunday we woke up and had more seafood. We got to Hominy Grill (UNC alumni owners and chef!) right when they opened. I had their shrimp and grits. I just couldn't not order them. 

Afterwards we packed it up, went to see my favorite potter, Elizabeth Carlton, grabbed iced chai tea lattes at Kubu, walked down the middle of King Street because it was Second Sunday, their celebration of the arts, and then worked an alumni event where there were benne wafers (another Charleston staple). Then it was off, off and away back to the land of the pines. Until next time, Charleston.

P.S. If you're interested in trying Airbnb, here's $25 off your first adventure. As for my past Charleston adventure recaps, here and here.

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Sea Leg Salad

Here we go again! This time down by the sea with another Hank-family staple.

Ingredients

16 oz. package elbow macaroni, cooked
14 oz. package flake style imitation crab (found in fresh catch section), roughly chopped
12 oz. tail off 71-90 count cooked shrimp, thawed and roughly chopped
1/3 cup dill salad cubes (dill relish)
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
3/4 cup mayonnaise
salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Mix all together and done. Seriously! The dill relish, mayo and salt and pepper can certainly all be added to taste - more or less than mentioned above depending on your style. The mayo simply serves as a light coat so don't go too crazy. This makes a ton too. Refrigerate and serve. Shell yeah.

Turtle dish by Vietri; my favorite table ever by Hank