Posh Tuscaloosa has started recently and I'm hoping it sticks..it's like Groupon...I've already gotten a gift certificate for Sarabella Cafe which I'm excited to try (I have a soft spot for chicken salad). It's a blast from the past because I'm pretty sure Dan and I drove by Sarabella Cafe back in December when we were looking for the Christmas tree farm (remember when we were totally lost Dan?? I think we called Anthony for directions) and we told ourselves that we should try it sometime. Bummer is it's only open Tuesday-Friday for lunch because I really want a chicken sammy right now, but it might be a good place to head down and write the thesis for a lunch session during the week! I'm pretty excited to try one of their sammies (or samlokas in Icelandic) and a nice slice of pie!
I learned last night that the husband of one of the professors in Biology is setting up a brewery here in Tuscaloosa! So exciting to have such a thing!! I believe it's going to be called Black Warrior Brewing Company, and will be situated downtown T-Town..they'll have a tap room where you can taste the beers, and hopefully they'll distribute widely in the local bars and restaurants. I can't reiterate how exciting it is to be in Tuscaloosa right now - things are coming along, business is booming (although, our unemployment rate just jumped from 6.8 to 7.1%, but still - that's so much lower than the national average!!).
Another exciting venue is 5 Java. Five is that hip restaurant that opened up a little over a year ago in downtown. Dan and I have eaten there a couple of times and it's great, simple menu, great drinks, and a nice outdoor eating area. Well I forget if I've mentioned that they bought the next door store front a while ago and have been working on expanding the restaurant (it's always super busy). Only there is a twist! During the day, when the actual restaurant is closed, 5 java opens as a coffee house and juice bar! Complete with Wi-Fi AND!!!! they open at 7am!!! this is amazing folks!! I know a coffee shop that opens up at 7am is nothing new in most places, especially the Northwest! But here in the deep south Sweet Tea runs the caffeine racket and that is served at restaurants and cafes as the token morning drink..NOT espressos! So I met Cris (the owner) on opening day (Wed) when Hannah and I walked down to grab a soy latte and a grilled cheese sammy for breakfast (the grilled cheese was AMAZING - perfect multigrain bread, tasty cheese, and a tomato onion relish that gave it some zing!). He was super excited about opening the place, super excited about coffee and bringing good coffee to T-Town. The coffee in fact is roasted in Birmingham and called O' Henry's. Never been to the OG place in Birmingham/Homewood, but excite to try it out next time we hit up the big city. Anyhow, I'm excited to make a morning trip to 5 java a weekly ritual before heading into work - if you bike in they give you a dollar off your drink!!! Yeah!!! That's a two-fer people - promoting biking AND good coffee...you can see why I am instantly in love with this business and its owner!!!
Just went on a little afternoon walk with Hannah bear...We walked down to Shelby park which is only a couple blocks from our house. It's a new-ish park, and the fountains were on, spewing happiness by the minute. It's so nice to walk and see so many happy kids, on summer vacation without a care in the world...Parents have setup tables and chairs and put out a full spread of soda, BBQ, chips, and various salads. A true park outing.
I remember my parents dragging the family out for such events. We would go to a city park or the beach and setup shop, sit in the shade and play cards, maybe rollerblade or bike, take a walk to the pond and feed the ducks etc...It was always exciting if there was a pool or fountain to keep us cool in the midday heat and tire us out for the drive home. The beach could be fun, we weren't strong swimmers, and I remember being annoyed by the sand getting everywhere all the time when I just wanted to sit and eat my lunch. Usually it was sticky rice and chicken for food. The sticky rice was always wrapped up in foil, and was so sticky that you could just easily pull off a bit of it to stuff in your face and then take a bite of chicken. Always bone-in pieces, marinated in fish sauce, soy sauce, and a bit of sugar and pepper. So simple, but strangely satisfying after a day of running around.
It was always like pulling teeth to get all of us piled in the car, and packing all the food, drinks, toys, and supplies we would need for our all day adventure. We were never usually happy about the outing, but once there and setup, I think we all agreed that, yes, it was indeed a good idea to bring the family to such a place, and not as dreadful as we thought it would be. We weren't super into the outdoors as kids, perhaps due to growing up in the LA area and not really having much exposure to it, but maybe just due to the fact that I think us kids really just liked sitting at home and being insular...Hanging out with each other, playing video games, watching VHS tapes, maybe playing on the swing set for a bit. We always entertained ourselves someway.
So nice that a simple walk in the park can conjure up such nice memories....
Happy early Father's Day to all the Dads out there...including my own! Love you lots!
This was supposed to be a quick little post, but it turned out longer...hmm...time to crack the whip and get back to the thesis!!
xo
Chau
