There Are No Odd Balls, Only OddFellows

Remember my addiction to breakfast? It's not waning, but I promise to get off the brunch bid after this post. (I swear.)

Photo by Karyna Michaela

I went down to the Urban Street Bazaar in the Bishop Arts District on Saturday, and I was tickled to death to take some fun photos of all the vendors selling their homemade goods. 

As I walked down the sidewalk towards Oddfellows, the "fresh and local" place I was supposed to meet mi amiga at before taking my artistic sneak peek, I dived into my ruby-red, shoulder pouch to pull out my camera. 

It was at this moment I realized I had left my memory card floating around on my laptop (insert face palm here). Yeah, it happened. You know, that moment where you are so pissed off at yourself no words can be uttered. Needless to say I couldn't take any pictures. Bummer, and I mean big bummer. (Thanks to Karyna for lending me a photograph of our eats. Aesthetics are super important, this she knows.)

 Despite my error, I decided to bask in a little "me" time with a mimosa while we waited for a table inside. (There's a window by the patio that opens up into a bar.)

My advice? Get there early. Oddfellows isn't a huge joint, and it fills up fast on the weekends. (We had to wait about 3o minutes to be seated) And although the food is good, it's a bit on the pricy side (I'm assuming it has to do with the whole fresh and local thing, or maybe they're just so good, they charge that much just because they can. Hey, I would too.) The Migas and Buffalo Mac & Cheese (Voted Dallas Observer's Best Mac & Cheese of 2011) are delicious. I repeat the Migas and Buffalo Chicken Mac & Cheese are delicious.

But I wasn't too thrilled with the service. Our waiter took about 10 minutes to take our order then never really came back until the end of our meal, only to ask if we were ready for our checks. (I give props to the girl who stepped in towards the end to finish up with us. I hope the tip went to you, lady.)

I guess it comes down to one simple question: would I go back despite minor discrepancies?

Oddly enough, I would.

Run A Mile...Or Seven...To Breakfast

Ok, I admit it: I never liked breakfast as a kid. I prefered to sleep 10 more glorious minutes instead of dragging my little butt down to the kitchen to put food in my stomach. (I could do that later in the day so why bother, right?)  I did, however, occasionally scarf down my grandmother’s traditional homemade breakfast: two eggs, one slice of American cheese warm, gooey and melted just the right way. (Eight-six and still alive and kickin’. Go Nana Go!)

But you know, here I am 15 years later and suddenly always up for devouring some delicious morning goods: juicy fruit, yogurt, large, thick and crumbling muffins filled with lumps of gooey, chocolate chips and  stuffed, dripping omelettes that would make even the most snobbish of food connoisseurs drool. So what happened? Did my taste buds magically grow a new preference? Well, the way I see it now, food is food and no matter what kind, it’s always good. Must be that whole growing up thing (They say your pallet changes as you get older. That’s gotta be it.)

So way back (And when I say way back I only mean two weeks ago...not two decades) during Spring Break when I had time off from work and school, I was hungry, starving, famished, etc. etc. and decided to take my taste buds over to Seven Mile Cafe off Congress St.

This place, simply put, is "The Shiz." Hooking up locals with fine, downhome cooking, the one story home painted to perfection in gray blue paint, serves breakfast and lunch everyday from 7am-3pm. Their outside as well as their inside will give you that warm, fuzzy feeling (Yes, all over and everywhere. Feel the tingle.) and remind you of some general store your grandparents used to walk a mile and a half to in order to scarf down some of that penny candy that's now $2 in 2012. Although, the guitar collection mounted high above the tables is more modern than retro. (I still dig it.)

 It is a bit on the pricy side, but I believe in sticking by that whole "you get what you pay for" mentality. (It's pricy but not unreasonable considering they offer vegan and vegetarian options to diners.) I suggest trying one of their signature scrambles, (Particularly the avocado, mushroom and cheese scramble. Hello, Happiness!) which comes complete with a larger than life side of hash browns and your choice of wheat or sourdough toast, a cinnamon roll or rasberry breakfast cake. (I opted to switch this out for fruit. It's .75 cents extra btdubs.)

Don't forget about their pancake options too: pineapple upside down, red velvet, chocolate and peanut butter and cinnamon roll.

Why in the hell did I ever pass up breakfast? With age comes wisdom.

Run. Don't Walk to Seven Mile Cafe.

Benson's Bliss

Photo by Art Giraldo

The word bliss is defined as “supreme happiness, utter joy and contentment.” (At least that’s what it says at dictionary.com…I’ll take its word for it.) So if it means happiness, heaven and all that sparkly jazz, what would be considered the ultimate symbol of sweet, sweet bliss?

All hail the queen of contentment, the cream of the sugar crop for nothing utters “bliss” quite like a cute cupcake from Carolyn Benson and her bouncing business: Bliss Cupcakes.

Benson bakes her sweet treats right at home in Spring, TX, offering up countless flavors including vanilla bean, strawberry, mocha madness and carrot cake. First time customers pay $15 for a dozen.

Ah, what sweet, sweet bliss.

A is for Atomic

It has been a whirlwind of a week, folks. The question is: Where oh where do I begin? Let's start at "A" shall we? And when I say "A," I mean A is for Atomic Candy. This retro candy "mom and pop" stop just recently opened their location in Denton's Historic Downtown Square. And I kid you not, when I found out about this place, I showed up three times in one week. (Ok, so I was working on an eat and shop guide and needed to take photos on more than one occasion, but every time I went back, they hadsome cool, new sweet treat to try. It was so addicting.)
Original soda pop, vintage wrapped Hershey bars, Swedish Fish, taffy, and my Mom's all time favorite: the chewy Mary Jane, are just a few examples of all the sugary delights on display.

I'd like to say thank you to the owners as well for not shooing me away for taking so many photos of their new digs. (And to be fair to myself, I did bring a new person with me every time I went in. Yes, I'm seriously that excited about it. I kid you not.

There's nothing wrong with sharing some sweet, sweet wealth.)

Just go see for yourself...I dare you.

(You can also find Atomic Candy listed in the Denton, TX City Guide that I wrote for Design Sponge this past week. Design Sponge, you rock my freakin' socks. Thank you again for the amazing opportunity.)

Happy Monday, Friends.

My eye is on the blackbird

I took a trip to Austin a few weeks ago.

Outside of Blackbird Austin

There's something about this city that ignites an excitement in me. It could be its "mom and pop" type of feel (People own businesses everywhere there. And according to local sources, the best places to eat are right in the middle of the city where people sell scrumptious goodies out of mobile trailors. Ever heard of the saying, "the shadiest looking dives are always the best places to eat?" It's true, people.)

 While I was there, I wanted to check out a few of these locally own places.

And so with my fabulous, female sidekick and her handy, dandy copy of Eat.Shop.Austin, I headed to Blackbird, a fairly new clothing and jewelry boutique, to scope out the scene.

The doll photographs are for sale and often sell out quickly

Located on the North Loop, Blackbird Austin has an artistic yet Gothic feeling. The upstairs windows make for a beautiful and mysterious photograph. They call you inside, beckoning your curiosity, and the design on the outside of the building was crafted by the owners themselves.( Nothing says "we can do it" and "we can do it creatively" quite like a DIY project.)

It's not a big place but definitely has a personality to it. Steampunk hats, handmade jewelry, and a cabinet completely refurnished for display decorate the inside.  And yes, the doll portraits are creepy but not in a bad way. It's hard to take your eyes off them, a sign that interesting art was definitely created.

The $20 fab find

My favorite things about this place?
1. Its affordability (My necklace I bought only cost $20)
2. Its owners.(Juliana had no problem with me taking photos inside of her store,)
3. The store won the Best of Austin 2011 Reader's Poll (When I was there, they had just reached 500 "likes" on Facebook.)

Yes, my eye is on Blackbird Austin.
Maybe yours should be too.



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DIY Halloween Goodies

If you’re like me, you’ve been pretty damn busy during this time of year. Between graduate school, work, and oh yeah, just taking care of me, there hasn’t been much time for mellowing out like a marshmallow (Ok, marshmallows don’t really “mellow out”). But hey now, being busy isn’t going to stop me from celebrating The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. (Some like to call it All Hallow’s Eve. I call it Halloween.)

I love my staff so I decided I wanted to do something easy but fun for them to celebrate the holiday. Here’s my little DIY for Halloween gifts, goodies and greetings.

Enjoy!

Arts and crafts supplies:

Cardboard gift boxes

Wooden clothes pins

Your own Halloween Photo

Photoshop

Baking Supplies:

Muffin tin

Cupcake liners

Mixer

Mixing bowls

Ingredients for chocolate cupcakes:

Cupcake batter:

2 cups all-purpose flower

1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

1 stick unsalted butter, at room temp.

1 ½ cups sugar

2 large eggs

3 ounces unsweetened chocolate melted and cooled

1½ cups buttermilk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cream cheese frosting:

1 package cream cheese (I use fat free Weight Watchers)

¾ stick of unsalted butter

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

4 cups confectioners’ sugar

(This cupcake recipe is from the best bake sale ever cookbook by Barbara Grunes)

The How To:

1.       Find out how many staff members you are baking for (This seems like a logical step, but you’d be surprised how easy it is to miscount)

2.        Pick out the type of gift box you want to put your fall goodies (I went to Michaels and found these cute, little Peanuts boxes. Good for recycling later on, right?)

3.       Make sure you have wooden clothespins (You’ll be using these later on.)

4.       Pick out a cool, vintage or retro image you’ve taken (I found a photo I took of a Halloween sign way back in the day.)

5.       Use your Photoshop program to add your staff members names onto the photos. (You’ll need to save each one as a separate image. You’re creating a Halloween tag for their gift box. You can add whatever greeting or message you want.)

6.       Print out the personalized photos and cut them out to make them look like a tag

7.       Attach the “tags”, using the clothespins, to the gift boxes

(How ya doin’? You’re almost there. Now comes the baking part)

8.       It’s time to bake the goodies.

Prepare the cake:

·         Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line your muffin pan with the cupcake liners (Thank you, Martha for “loaning” me some of yours)

·         Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Set aside

·         In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until light, about 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Blend in the cooled chocolate. Add the flour mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating until smooth and well blended. Mix in the vanilla.

·         Fill the cupcake liners about 2/3 of the way. Bake in center of oven for 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cupcakes cool.

Prepare frosting:

·         Cream the cream cheese and butter with the vanilla.

·         On low speed, slowly add the confectioners’ sugar, beating until creamy

·         Once cupcakes have cooled frost them and add sprinkles, if desired

9.       Place cupcakes in the fridge for safe keeping. When you’re ready to take your goodies into work, put the cupcakes and any other treats you wish to give out in their individual gift boxes and attach the Halloween tag

Happy Halloween!

Awww Yeah...It's the VERY GREEN SOCIAL

Are you an Organivore, Locavore, or even a Vintage Whore? Check out luri and wilma's VERY GREEN SOCIAL July 21.