Monday, March 4, 2019

Quick Trip to Dallas!

Jeff and I went to visit Allie and her boyfriend in Dallas over the weekend - they moved in December but this was our first time to see their new place.  We helped with some final touches in setting up (I was called a kitchen wizard by Allie's boyfriend...let's face it, I've had a lot of experience in getting a kitchen organized in the last year, LOL), we watched some movies, tried not to freeze to death because holy moly it was cold and windy and wow was it ever cold, and of course, we ate out.  They had several destinations planned for our meals, beginning with my favorite, Scotty P's:
Allie and Andrew.
The Preston Trail chili cheeseburger - it's always amazing.  In the interest of balance, I didn't get fries with my burger but I swiped some from Jeff's plate.

Friday night movie:  Ant Man and the Wasp (yes I'm still working on seeing the Marvel movies before the newest Avengers movie opens in April).  Great movie but that ending, ugh!  I hope things are not what they seem to be...please, Avengers: Endgame, have mercy...
Saturday morning:  we planned on running but it was misting, windy, and cold.  So we stayed on the couch - no regrets there.

Allie and Andrew planned out for Saturday to be our Asian day:
For a late breakfast, we went to Sweet Hut, which is a Chinese bakery.
You picked up a tray and tongs and walked around choosing items from the cases, which was interesting.  Some things were unknown flavors to Jeff and I, like red bean paste inside one of the pastries.  We all split everything, and in the interest of balance, I didn't finish all that I sampled.
We had to get this one since it's the year of the pig - the bread was soft and sweet, and there was some sort of filling inside; not my favorite so I only had a bite.
Proof that you can't take me anywhere - I'm wearing powdered sugar topping.

Later on for dinner we went to a Korean BBQ place, where you choose meats from a buffet and cook them on a grill at your table:
I've never done this before - it was fun to try different kinds of marinated meat (I mostly did chicken and pork) and see how they grilled up.  I was the only person using a fork...shame on me but hey, I wear enough food as it is, never mind trying to use chopsticks!

After we ate, we went to a Japanese grocery store that was so interesting - we probably spent close to an hour there looking at everything.  The oversized boxes of curry on display in the produce section were cute, especially because I have a smaller box of the Vermont curry in my pantry at the moment:
This shelf was above my head, but you can get a bit of scale from the sign hanging there.  I really should have had Allie stand below the boxes for a true idea of how big they were.

Saturday night movie:  Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms.  Japanese anime, very well done, captivating story.

Sunday morning movie: Spider-man: Into the Spider-verse.  We went to the Imax theater to see it, which was great - the perfect movie for such a big screen.  I never thought I'd like a movie like this but I did, very much.  It was funny and clever and I can see why it won the Academy Award for best animated film.

Then we went to Red Robin for lunch:
Waiting for our table selfie.
Their original gourmet cheeseburger is my favorite - plus steak fries with campfire sauce.  In the interest of balance, this was it for the day with eating.

Then we drove home.  Three hours up, three hours back, and a whole lot of fun in between!

24 comments:

  1. Sounds like a fun weekend trip was had. Hanging out and enjoying time with your grown kids is the best!

    Sadly we are having winter re-visited here this week. What the heck weather? I mean really? Go away winter just go now!

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    1. I agree, go away winter - not only is it hanging on, it's gotten colder!

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  2. Great weekend! Not sure I'd be brave enough to try all the new foods. LoL

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    1. I was pretty selective with what I ate - I'm not the most adventurous eater, but I tried quite a few new-to-me things.

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  3. That Chinese Bakery looks interesting. Did you like the red bean paste? Scotty P's--happy memories!!! That's interesting that you said that Red Robin was it for the day. When I eat lunch out, I'm never hungry for dinner either.

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    1. No, I didn't particularly care for the red bean paste. Most of the paste fillings were a little much for me - there was one with pineapple that was just too solid.

      I always think of you when we go to Scotty P's!

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  4. I love Allie's pink hair (!!!!!) and love how happy she looks in the pictures with Andrew. Awww :)

    Holy cow that chili cheeseburger looks amazing! I don't know if you knew this already, but covering things in chili and cheese is basically the state food of Ohio. So if you're ever in these parts, you're in for a chili cheese treat!

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    1. She is having fun with her hair colors, and yes, they are pretty happy together. :)

      I did not know that about Ohio, but it sounds like I will be in heaven if I ever get to visit!

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  5. I'm so torn about watching all the Marvel movies - I never was a huge fan of comic books and sometimes there is too much fantasy for me to really enjoy them. Yet the few I have watched I really enjoyed. Also, did you hear Marvel is leaving Netflix?!!!

    All your food choices look yummy. I, too, ate out several times over my long weekend and by this morning was thinking about people I know who eat out for nearly every meal and I wonder how they do it and not gain a bajillion pounds.

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    1. I did not hear that about Marvel/Netflix, but I guess it's because Disney is starting their own streaming service?

      I'm with you - how can you eat out so often and not gain a ton of weight? It was fun, but I was glad to be back to my normal eating today.

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  6. Aww, I miss Red Robin! That used to be our go to place until they replaced the Boca and Gardenburger options with some nasty "ancient grain" party BARF.

    What did you think of the red bean paste? I like it! It's fun to go to bakeries like that and get things and see how different they are from what you think they will be! We used to like doing that at a Mexican bakery by our old house.

    I never thought I'd want to see that Spider-verse movie but everyone says it's so good! We'll have to rent it!

    Allie and Andrew are so cute! What a fun weekend together :)

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    1. Ancient grain patty, come ON. Stick with the good stuff, RR!

      I didn't love the red bean paste, but that's OK, there were plenty of other items that I did love. :)

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  7. Sounds like fun! I had to laugh at Allie's boyfriend's face in the couch selfie...lol. Looks like you guys had a lot of laughs.

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    1. Oh I know, Andrew's face was classic - and yes, we definitely had a great time!

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  8. You sure did pick a bitter cold weekend to come up to Dallas! Looks like you all had a great time despite the cold.

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    1. Bitter is an apt description - that wind!!! So cold...

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  9. Love Allie's hair! Looks like a fun trip!

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  10. What a fun trip!!! Looks like everyone had a great time!!!

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  11. Looks like a great little "Culinary tour" . I can see why you were called a "kitchen Wizard"! Will we see any pics of their place?

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    1. I didn't take many pictures beyond some silly selfies.

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  12. I love how your hair looks - and your profile pic on the blog! My niece is a huge anime fan and loves anything Japanese. She would have been in heaven with you guys LOL

    Was Allie always in Dallas or somewhere else? I was thinking somewhere different, but my memory is kind of crap right now.

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    1. Thanks - I am really loving my new hairstyle. :) And it sounds like our weekend would have been right up your niece's alley, so to speak.

      Allie was in Denton when she was in school, but has been in the Dallas area since graduation.

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