Pure Food and Wine Date Night

 

After a long day at the office, there is nothing better than a dinner date with Bo!

Tonight was the last night to redeem the $40 Pure Food and Wine Groupon I bought a few months ago. Therefore, our dinner location choice was very easy and right around the corner from our apartment.

We started the evening off with a glass of crisp, refreshing Sancerre wine.

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We’ve only been here twice before and both times were for appetizers and wine only. I was excited to try some of their main courses and we therefore agreed to share everything we ordered.

After reviewing the menu for only a few minutes, we easily agreed on our appetizer choice of hazelnut crostini with crimini mushrooms and caper bearnaise, caraway sauerkraut, and local apple cider reduction.

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These were absolutely amazing though I could have easily enjoyed three more! The apple cider reduction had a caramel like texture and the caper béarnaise had a cheese texture.

The main course choice was a bit more difficult but I eventually decided on the pad Thai with kelp noodles and baby book choy snow peas, king oyster mushrooms, tamarind sauce, sesame salted cashews, and cilantro oil.

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Unfortunately it was better in print and picture than taste. It wasn’t horrible but it didn’t leave a lasting impression on my taste pallet. I’ve come to expect that Pure’s dishes will blow me since everything that I’ve ever tried has been so far beyond what I could fathom.

However, Bo’s dish was mind blowing! He chose the sweet corn and cashew tamales with chili spiced portabella. The texture mimicked ground beef perfectly and the spices made this dish so flavorful! It reminded us of our Mexican favorite and left us satiated and questioning how they could make this without any heat or meat!

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Our random, spur of the moment date was the perfect weeknight change of pace! Thank you Groupon for bringing us back to Pure for the first time in ages! I can’t wait to go back again and try the rest of their menu items!

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Heading Down to the South Land…

Two flights later, I’m finally in Savannah!

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I slept for four and a half hours on my flight from Las Vegas to Charlotte. It’s amazing how hard I can sleep on planes, trains, and automobiles.

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Upon landing, the first thing on my mind was lunch!

Luckily, the Charlotte airport delivered once again!

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I ordered a naked grilled chicken salad complete with salsa, a small scoop of guacamole, and plenty of vegetables. It was delicious and the perfect lunch!

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I spent the next few minutes before my flight grabbing an unsweetened iced green tea with a splash of lemonade. This is definitely my new favorite warm weather drink! I was a happy camper!

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My flight left on-time and landed 15 minutes early! Smooth, quick flights are definitely my favorite type.

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By 4pm, I was back in my parents home sweating it out in their new home gym. Over the past few months my parents have put together an amazing gym in my brother’s old room. It includes a 32 inch flat screen television, treadmill, elliptical, exercise mat, and weights!

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The views are also better than anything I can find in New York City!

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Evidently my legs appreciated the few days off from running as today’s run was amazing! I’m not sure whether it was the brand new treadmill, enjoying the excitement of the 2011 Masters, or the rest but the whole run felt great!

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Our plans for the rest of the evening are to enjoy a family dinner complete with my greek salad and my mom’s homemade chicken casserole. She has made this dish my entire life and it’s one of my favorite comfort foods.

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Question: What is your favorite food you enjoy when you’re home?

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Julian Serrano: Wine & Tapas Las Vegas Style

Last night, Theodora and I decided to trade in our dancing shoes for a more relaxed evening involving wine and wonderful conversation. We were able to snag a table at Julian Serrano for 8pm, early enough to make a reasonable bedtime but late enough to enjoy the people watching.

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Located in Aria Hotel and Resort, the restaurant was open and very bright, the perfect spot for a relaxing evening.

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The tapas style restaurant’s menu was a bit overwhelming and everything sounded amazing. We made our choice a bit simpler by trusting the waiter’s opinion and making sure we chose a dish from each section, ranging from verduras to carne.

Our first choice, the drink selection, was definitely the easiest as we were both craving wine after many nights of vodka and seltzer.

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Our dishes came out as they were ready, so we were able to take our time and enjoy each dish without worrying that other dishes would get cold.

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Our tapa choices, from top to bottom and left to right were as follows:

  • Pan con manchengo: The simplest dish of the evening was also one of the most delicious. The toasted bread was topped with a simple tomato and garlic chutney before the manchengo cheese was placed on top.
  • Grilled Sea Scallops: This dish was the least memorable, lacking seasoning and flavor. But, the scallop itself was very fresh and cooked perfectly.
  • Ahi Tuna: This dish was delicious and the Asian flavors offset the rest of the tapas flavors perfectly. The tuna was served in two ways, tartare and in a roll form. The light wasabi foam was definitely one of my favorite parts of the dish.
  • Grilled Calamari: The whole calamari was grilled perfectly and deliciously seasoned with lemon and garlic.
  • Sauteed spinach: I can’t wait to recreate this dish at home. The spinach was accompanied by raisins, pine nuts, and pears before a drizzle of vinaigrette. It was warm and delicious and the spinach wasn’t completely sautéed by instead lightly wilted. 
  • Flank steak: This was one of the dishes our waiter highly recommended and it didn’t disappoint. The steak was quickly seared and paired with Japanese eggplant between each piece.

As we finished our last dish, we realized we weren’t full and ordered two more tapas, truffle and mixed mushroom risotto and truffle salmon. Clearly dancing through the nights, raising our glasses, and laughing burned lots of calories and boosted our metabolisms this weekend.

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Both were very rich and we were only able to eat a few bites.

We enjoyed one final toast to the wonderful weekend before heading back to our hotel.

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While Theodora was at the ATM I decided to use my last dollar bill in the Irishman slot machine. I finally had luck and won!

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As soon as I won the $10 I cashed out which allowed me to leave Las Vegas $6 richer than I came. Maybe next time I’ll have more luck.

I’m not in route to Savannah for my mom’s 60th birthday tomorrow! Hopefully all my connections are smooth and I’m able to catch up on sleep. I definitely think a 4.5 hour nap will occur on my first leg to Charlotte!

See you in Savannah!

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