Bacon Sundae

Yep, we did it.   We sure did.  Scott got two of these 510 calorie tiny sundae treats from Burger King with delicate pieces of broken up bacon and one slab of bacon shooting down the center.  My first thought that evening was "vomit" when I took my first bite.  I see what they are trying to do with adding salty to the sweet like it was peanuts or something.  I get it, but it is just an unsettling texture.  After I finished the rest of it the next day, licking the carmel off of the bottom of the cup and re-evaluting what direction my life was taking after sinking this low, I still didn't really think it was good.  Some of the bacon went in the trash cause it was just awful awful awful. (Don't tell Scott.)   I don't think anyone can really feel good about what they've just done after eating this...

Meanwhile, back at Sonic, their new Batter Batter Sundae (or whatever the heck it is called) is absolutely ridiculously delicious.  Like I could eat one every single day.  It has bites of brownie AND cookie dough.  What are people doing to me?!  Don't people know I have no self control when it comes to food?  Seriously, none.  Why do we keep eating like this?

Restaurant: Newman's Pasta Cafe

Scott, Nolan, and I were out and about running an errand and decided we should stop and have lunch before we begin.  One place I have been wanting to try for awhile is called Newman's Pasta Cafe.  It is right next to PepperJack's, Arby's and Dairy Queen close to 168th and Center and it has always caught my eye.  It is very nice in there and the menu is listed on flat screen TV's.  I was really in the mood for simple cheesy noodles and Scott went with the Spicy Cajun pasta.  Nolan had some of mine and he loved it and to me, it tasted great.  There was enough cheese sauce on the bottom to really balance out the dish.  Scott was sweating by the middle of his.  We were able to do half pasta/ half salad so we each got a caesar salad which would have been enough food by itself because the portion sizes are so big.  The service was very friendly and they brought out our salads first so we had time to eat those before our pasta came out.  You didn't feel like they were shoving a bunch of food at you.  You also got a breadstick which was little to be desired, but served its purpose.

I found a few other pastas that I would like to try another time and this is definitely a place I would come back to! 

Website and menu for Newman's Pasta Cafe can be found here.

Restaurant: Azteca Family Restaurant

Wednesday evening, Scott's mom and grandma were in town because they were leaving for Florida the next morning, so we all decided to go out to eat.  We wanted to go to Cheddars, but when Scott got there, he found out it was an hour and a half wait.  On a Wednesday night.  This place better serve gold.  We had tried to go to this place one other time with the same results, but some day we will have a successful trip.  Some day. 

We settled on a place that was a bit closer that Scott and I had gone to while I was pregnant called Azteca.  It is a very modest restaurant to say the least, but very family friendly.  The first time we went I got the cheese enchiladas and they were just ok so I decided to go with the spinach enchilada platter this time and it was really really good.  I ate every bite.  They give you a free little sweet treat with berry sauce and whipped cream at the end that just sort of hits the spot to complete the meal.

With this being one of the few close Mexican restaurants to us, it is a very good one and one that I would hit up again.

For their website and menu click here- Azteca Family Restaurant

We Will Have One of Everything

This past Saturday I had the pleasure of spending the evening with my good friend Natalie and some of her friends for her bachelorette party downtown.  We started the night out at Hotel Deco and went to around 6-7 bars throughout the evening.  At midnight we decided we were hungry and went to eat at Roja downtown.  We were all trying to decide what we wanted to eat and one of the girls suggested just getting one of every appetizer plus the nachos.  After Natalie's sister ordered one of everything, the waitress sort of did a double take and gave us the ol' "Oh you are serious?!"  Do we look like we are joking?  Didn't think so. Hungryyy.  My favorite appetizer was the Queso Flameado.  Or flaming cheese if you will.  It was basically fried cheese served with warm tortillas.  I'm pretty sure I ate 3/4 of that appetizer as I might have accidentally kept it by me the whole time.  It was a successful late night snack as we couldn't move for awhile as we were so full.  Perfect time to just relax, chat, and sit by the fire before going to our next destination.

I haven't been bar hopping since college and four years will really age you especially when you are married and ESPECIALLY when you have a child.  I walked in the doors just shortly after 2 AM and fell asleep faster than I ever have in my life.  I officially feel old.

Restaurant: Blue

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!  Or in our house, Let's Go Eat Out Day.  We never get each other anything for Valentine's Day, nor do we expect it, but we do need to eat out.  Food, is our present to each other.  I don't think you could get anything better.  Well, since Valentine's Day fell on a Tuesday (hard to get a babysitter on such nights) and all of the restaurants would be packed, we decided on just bringing some food home.  And what a better meal to have than sushi.  We had done this exact same thing on our 3rd anniversary as it was the day after we arrived home from the hospital with Nolan and didn't feel like doing too much.  Tastes the same as if you eat at the restaurant, you just don't have to leave a tip!  Cheapskates, I know.  Deal with it.  I only snapped a quick pic of what was left of my Super Asparagus and Philly Bomb but we had two Super Asparagus', Spicy Tekka, Hotel Cali, and Philly Bomb. All amazing and wonderful and everything that is right with the world.  Hope you all had a wonderful V-Day and hope it was filled with love, laughter, and of course, good food.

Restaurant: Cheddar's, no wait Okinawa, no wait Jason's Deli, ahh lets do Smashburger

My mom, Sarah, Kim, Rob, and Sam came up to Omaha to have lunch for my upcoming birthday and we had plans to go to a new restaurant that Sarah had said was the greatest thing since, well anything, called Cheddar's. They have them in Texas where they visit Rob's parents often and there is now a location in Omaha and soon to be in Lincoln. We caravan over there and I see that their parking lot (which looks like a mall parking lot, mind you) was completely packed.  I have never seen such a huge lot for one restaurant.  We all drove through and I was like this is not gonna happen.  Thankfully we were by all the shops at 120th and L so we just found a parking spot and walked around to look at all the different choices.

Smashburger was the final decision after seeing that everything was packed or what have you.  I'm so glad we chose this! I had the Avocado Club with a side of fried pickles and I ate every last drop.  I never eat entire sandwiches or burgers and this one was gone in one fell swoop. It contained grilled chicken, avocado, mayo and some other things. But my goodness, I told Scott I could have that every single day.  Next time I go, I would like to try a burger, but I'm not sure I would want to sway from that avocado wonderfulness.  Scott did a make-your-own burger and he said it wasn't quite as good as Red Robin but still very good.  It is really difficult to beat Red Robin burgers.  During one of Sarah's many "It was so good to see you, we had fun!" texts later that night she mentioned that Rob was still talking about his amazing burger.

There are two locations for Smashburger in Omaha, but I would recommend going to this one if you are ever here. There is a Target, Michaels, tons of fun shops, and other restaurants in that same area.  It's just a fun place to walk around!  And maybe next time, there will be a spot open for us to try Cheddar's. :)

Click here to check out Smashburger's website and menu.

Picture courtesy of local.yahoo.com

Restaurant: Saigon Surface

My friend Maika, who recently moved to England, let us know she was going to be in town on business (fancy, I know) and wanted to know if me and Natalie would want to meet her for dinner.  Uh... yes!  Natalie mentioned a restaurant she had been wanting to try downtown- Saigon Surface.  It is a Vietnamese restaurant that boasted great reviews online so we were all excited to try it!

The decor was very contemporary and the food was absolutely amazing.  I had looked at the menu online beforehand as I had never been to a Vietnamese restaurant before.  I was gonna play it safe and order the grilled salmon cause I know I liked that, but I changed my mind once we got to the restaurant and went with the Carmelized Curry Tilapia Clay Pot (see picture to the right). It was SO good. The flavors were amazing and we each took a bite of each other's food so we could try it and all three dishes were great!  The flavors are so different from what I am used to having.  They have a lot of lime flavors, very spicy but not a hot spicy, and they have many different textures.  Natalie went with the Pineapple Fried Rice as I had seen online it was served in an actual pineapple (see pic below).  One of us HAD to get that business! Maika went with the Oxtail Pho (pronounced like "fa" as told to us by our highly annoying/wouldn't stop touching/hitting on Maika /locked us in after they closed (not really, but kinda)/never wanted us to leave/took forever to offer to get the check waiter. Yep, summed that up real nice) Hers was a noodle soup of sorts and I didn't get a picture for some reason.

We had so much fun over a couple glasses of wine chatting, catching up, and hearing about Maika's new life in England/world travels for work (hence, the money shot above) and Natalie's wedding planning.  Despite the weird waiter situation, it was a great experience and wish we could get together MUCH more often.  Besides Natalie, all of my closest friends have moved away (all but one are out of state) so it means just that much more when we are able to get together.

Cheers!

All pictures were taken using the Instagram app on my phone using different settings.  To view the website and menu for Saigon Surface click here.  Also, you should check out Maika's blog at seemaikablog.blogspot.com.

Restaurant: The Green Apple

Scott and I wanted to take part in Small Business Saturday today as we know how vital small businesses are to our economy and decided to eat at the newest restaurant in Gretna, The Green Apple.  And man, did we make the right choice!

We had seen this place come to life as we would go through the drive thru to Runza on occasion and it boasted healthy sandwiches, soups, etc.  We were very excited to not only have a new place to eat in Gretna, but a healthy one at that!  We have a lot of fast food places, but not a lot of healthy, good options.  Their location is great as it is right next to Anytime Fitness and we saw a couple people come in after their workout to grab one of their yummy looking smoothies.

We walked in to a bright green decor and a small quaint little eating area. We found our spot in the corner and I ordered a garlic herb wrap with turkey and cheese inside and Scott had a beef wrap.  We both REALLY enjoyed them! We decided to do the combo with the potato salad, but we probably wouldn't do that again. Not that it wasn't delicious, but it was such a small portion and the combo didn't come with a drink that I would just stick with the wrap itself. It was plenty of food!  They had terrific service and we even shared a single scoop of Butter Pecan ice cream at the end.  Had to treat ourselves a little bit. :)

Can't wait to go back and hopefully we will be able to come here with family the next time so they can try this little Gretna jem!

Click here for The Green Apple's facebook page with their menu and pictures!

Restaurant: Pizza Gourmet Company

It all started way back when Scott and I were in college and went over to Greg and Brooke's for some pizza.  What we got, changed my life forever.... too dramatic?  No but seriously, it was awesome.  We got pepperoni, jalepeno, and cream cheese pizza from Nero's and it was like nothing I had ever had before.  Cream cheese on pizza?  Who would have thought it would be the best thing in the entire world?

Zoom ahead to 2008 and Scott and I are making our way to our new apartment in Omaha. We didn't know much about Omaha and what was around us, but Pizza Gourmet Company was a close restaurant to our apartment so we decided to try it.  The inside is nothing like what the name of the restaurant might indicate.  It is nothing short of a sports bar complete with large screen TV's and beer.  Our kind of place!

We look at the menu and see that they have cream cheese as a topping!  Oh my we have to get this with pepperoni! It was so damn good.  Any time any family would come to town after that, we would take them to the Pizza Gourmet Company to have this pizza. Every single person couldn't say good enough things about it.  Scott and I had a Groupon to Pizza Gourment, which they have often so we brought Nolan to his second or third trip there and had ourselves some delicious pepperoni and cream cheese pizza. Yummy.

Restaurant: Sushi Japan Yakiniku Boy

So, Scott and I went out on a lovely date night and went to go see the movie Horrible Bosses which was terrific! It ended up being better than I thought it would be and I thought the guy who was the least well known- Charlie Day- was actually the funniest. I would give it a 4 out of 5 stars!

After the movie, we hit up Sushi Japan Yakiniku Boy as it was close to the theater and it was a sushi place we had never tried before. Scott and I absolutely love sushi. We had never had much of  it until we moved to Omaha three years ago and man we never turned back. Our favorite sushi places we frequent the most are Blue and Baby Blue strictly for convenience and Hiro is also a great place to go. I would go to Hiro for lunch quite often with coworkers when I worked at my previous to my previous job. ;) Didn't know how to phrase that exactly. I would also recommend Kona Grill strictly for their Las Vegas rolls. They are my favorite roll next to the Asparagus Salmon.  I could eat a tub of Asparagus Salmon rolls if presented with one. The combination of the salmon, cream cheese, and crunch of the asparagus is absolutely delectable.

When we went to Sushi Japan, I got their version of the Asparagus Salmon and the Crab Rangoon roll. This roll was one that I had never seen before at any restaurant so I had to try it! It tasted exactly like a crab rangoon, a crab rangoon at The Gourmet House mind you, drizzled with sweet and sour sauce. So good! Scott got the Spicy Tuna and Philidelphia rolls, which he said tasted about the same as the other places. I really wish I would have gotten a picture of our amazing platter. Those sushi places really know how to make a grand presentation with their plating!  Now, I will eat raw fish but the rolls I like the best just happen to be cooked! If you are afraid of sushi, I would start with the cooked rolls as they might suit you best. I would definitely recommend this restaurant along with the other sushi places when you come to Omaha! Give them a shot!

(Their website www.omaha-sushi.com never works very well, so if you are interested, just try to Google them and see what comes up!  I have yet to be able to pull it up.)

Restaurant: Roja Mexican Grill + Margarita Bar

I love Mexican food. Who doesn't.  As you can see, or as I have noticed, every single restaurant I have posted about has been Mexican food and this one is no different!  Wow, we really get quite the variety!

Roja has been one of my favorite Mexican places to go to ever since we have lived in Omaha.  Whenever we are thinking of a place to go some weekend night, Roja will always come up.  My friends and I have frequented this place many times and have had their delicious margaritas. It is great Mexican cuisine with a great atmosphere.  Naturally, when Scott's parents were in town and we were going out to eat with them, Greg, and Brooke, Roja was the choice.

Now of course, I stick to my cheese enchiladas, which are absolutely fantastic.  They have a nice red sauce on them that makes the whole dish pop.  Side that with some delicious refried beans and rice and you got yourself a meal!  We also got the cheese dip which has the correct amount of spices in it that is even friendly for our 4-year old nephew who loved it. The atmosphere is very fun and LOUD.  Apparently so loud, only my child could sleep through it. I felt like we were all yelling at each other while we tried to talk at the table, but it was good time nonetheless! Roja- visit it, love it, eat it up.

Website and menu can be found at- www.rojagrill.com
Photo Courtesy of www.rojagrill.com

Restaurant: Panchero's Mexican Grill

Scott and I were going to the very funny comedian, Jo Koy, at the Omaha Funny Bone for his birthday with Kyle and Melissa and had only about half an hour to eat beforehand so we picked Panchero's to eat, which is located right next door.  Neither one of us had eaten here before but knew it was like Chipotle, Qdoba, etc. so we knew we might as well try it!  They have basically the same type of menu with tacos, quesedillas, and burritos.  One thing that is different about them is that they make their tortillas fresh, in front of you.  I didn't know how big of a difference that would make until I tried it.

I bit into my burrito made of rice, black beans, cheese, sour cream, etc...you get the hint. I eat the same things all the time.  Apparently twice in one week.  The first thing you notice before you even bite into it is the smell of the freshly made tortilla.  It was so warm and soft and so delicious.  It made the burrito that much better.  Their slogan is even- "It's all about the tortilla", which is so true as that is what sets them apart.  They are a tad more expensive than the other burrito places, but occasionally, I would spend more money just so I could have this tortilla again. Great place to eat if you are ever at Village Pointe and only have about 20 minutes!

Website and menu can be found at www.pancheros.com
Photo courtesy of www.omahafinedining.com


 Jo Koy, by the way, was one of the funniest comedic acts we have ever seen in person, right up there with Brian Regan and Daniel Tosh.  We were laughing hysterically the moment he started talking and didn't stop for the next 2 1/2 hours. He was so great with the crowd that after his last joke, people said they didn't want him to leave, so he talked and told jokes for another 30-45 min.  He tried calling his mom, Jon Lovitz, and finally Chuy, who he got ahold of, and it was hilarious.  He ended up singing a couple songs and he deserves a record deal! If you are unfamiliar with him, he is on Chelsea Lately every Tuesday night so you definitely have to check him out!  We had never seen his stand up until tonight and he didn't disappoint! You can see more about him on his website- www.jokoy.com.

Also, a note about the cleanse, it tasted a bit better today and when we got home from the show, Scott and his dad went to get ice cream and I DIDN'T WANT ANY.  It sounded absolutely horrible to me. I never turn down ice cream. I had a bowl of grapes instead.  A bowl of grapes instead of ice cream. Not because I thought I needed to eat healthy, but because I wanted them and they sounded good. I don't know what this cleanse is doing to me but I'm kinda wishing it was a 365-day one instead of 7.

Restaurant: Pepperjax Grill

Happy 26th Birthday to my wonderful husband!  We are technically going to celebrate his birthday on Thursday when we go out with Kyle and Melissa but thought we better at least go out for a quick dinner and get some ice cream.  I know, I'm on the cleanse, which by the way tasted a little better today so it is going well, but I wanted ice cream.  Just a tiny bit.

We knew we would be going to Dairy Queen, so I suggested going to Pepperjax Grill and Scott agreed that it was a SPLENDID plan!  Pepperjax Grill is amazing.  You can get philly sandwiches, wraps, rice bowls, or salads.  Scott always gets his standard philly cheesesteak with fries, but he got a salad INSTEAD of fries this time.  Way to go!  I got my usual fresh veggie wrap.  The name is quite deceiving as the only veggies in mine are olives. Although it is gargantuan, I felt it was still a healthy option as it has black beans, rice, salsa, and olives.  I also add in there lots of cheese and sour cream.  I'm human, okay?  Their wraps have the same concept as Chipotle but don't leave you sitting on the toilet for the rest of the night.  They are filled to the max with your choice of meat, beans, veggies, etc.

I do have to say though, out of all the wrap places in Omaha, Qdoba has to be my favorite.  The ingredients always seem a bit healthier and lighter and I prefer their cheese. There is also no beating their chips and cheese either.

So ends another successful trip to Pepperjax Grill which is a great place to go if you want a good, fast, very filling, sit down meal.

Click here for their menu and locations: http://www.pepperjaxgrill.com/
Photo courtesy of: www.kcdealfinder.com

Restaurant: Trini's

One restaurant that I have had to hear about almost every single week from Scott is the Mexican Restaurant Trini's and how it is God's gift to man.  He goes about once a week, and he and his co-workers will just walk in, sit down, and their food will be there in 10-15 min with just the acknowledgment of the waitress.  No ordering, no fuss- the staff remembers exactly what they want.  So you would think after all the excitement of this place for the past three years living in Omaha that I would have tried it at least once.  Well, then you would be mistaken.

I don't hardly ever get down to the Old Market as much as a good Omahan should. When Scott mentioned going down to the Farmer's Market this past Saturday, I thought how I've been cooped up in this house all day and he might as well have suggested going to DisneyWorld.  Heck yes we should go! When I worked all the time, all I wanted to do was be at home.  Now that I am home all the time, all I want to do is leave the house.  Just one of those things.

So we will be in the Old Market for the morning, why don't we go to Trini's for lunch??  Perfect suggestion!  So we walked around the Farmer's Market for about two seconds as it was extremely hectic and not easy to maneuver with a stroller, went to Scott's office real quick, and headed to Trini's.

Now this place is located in the underworld and that picture that you see above is below street level.  It is in its own magical city below Omaha with shops that you only have access to down there. We had to take this roundabout way as we had a stroller and I thought we were entering a dungeon.  After slaying the fire breathing dragon and waiting til 11:30 when they opened, we got seated at one of the "outside" tables that you can actually see in the picture.  The ambiance is very dark inside, so it was nice to be outside with a little bit of light especially on an early morning. I knew exactly what I would get as I do not stray from cheese enchiladas and of course Scott knew he wanted (chips and salsa and chicken enchiladas with sour cream) so we ordered and got our food within about 15 min. Now Scott told me to be prepared for my enchiladas to be better than La Hacienda in Holdrege so he was setting the bar pretty high.

I took a bite of the enchiladas and they were absolutely delicious!  You never know what type of cheese you are gonna get when you go to a Mexican restaurant and it was very good. The sauce on top complemented it very well.  I was not a huge fan of the rice as I like mine to be a little bit dry but Scott absolutely loved the more liquidy rice.  It's just personal preference. The refried beans could have used a little more flavor, but they tasted great when I scooped them up with each bite of the enchilada.  I would say La Hacienda still trumps this restaurant but out of all the Mexican places we have been to in Omaha, this has been the best.  Scott would say this is his absolute favorite Mexican place of all time.

Even though Nolan didn't have anything to eat, he ripped a big one so freshly scented that the next table looked over at us. We acted just as surprised at this lovely compliment to the meal so maybe we tricked them into thinking it wasn't us.  Just maybe...but probably not. I just think his body was telling him what is appropriate after eating a nice Mexican dinner.

So the next time you are in the Old Market, you need to check out Trini's Mexican Restaurant.  If anything, just go down there to see this cool little underworld for yourself. 

Click here for the website and menu- www.trinisoldmarket.com

Photo Courtesy of: http://www.trinisoldmarket.com/