On Thursday, my former coworker and super friend Crane took me out to lunch at Burntwood Tavern in Rocky River.
Burntwood Tavern replaced the old Rocky River Pub late last year. The Pub was British-themed and the place was pretty dimly lit and the food was sub par. Walking into Burntwood, I immediately noticed how much brighter and open the place looked. It already surpassed the old spot in my mind.
There were a lot of yummy options on the menu including the flash-fried zucchini frites ($6), tavern dip ($11) and the chicken Philly ($9). I decided to go with the salmon BLT -- planked salmon, bacon, lettuce, tomato and smoked tomato aioli in a wheat tortilla ($11).
The wrap was exactly what I expected. The salmon was perfectly cooked, the bacon was crisp and the tomato aioli gave the wrap some delicious added flavor.
Burntwood's salmon BLT
Since Thursday was an extraordinarily beautiful day, we decided to hit up nearby Mitchell's for dessert. After skimming the menu, I knew exactly what I wanted -- the toasted pistachio in a sugar cone. Crane opted for the tiramisu in a waffle cone and we took our treats outside to enjoy the weather.
My ice cream was melting faster than I could eat it, so I had to get a bowl to save my drippings!
Later that day, I met Angela for dinner at Bac. Unfortunately, the patio wasn't open, but we scored a table near the front door, which was open, and the fresh air circulated throughout the bar area.
I started the evening with my usual drink, the 17th Parallel -- vodka, cucumber water, Vietnamese herb syrup and lemon juice ($6 during happy hour). I swear, Bac makes some of the best mixed drinks in the city! And the drink menu is always featuring new seasonal beverages. I can't wait to see what they have in store for the spring!
I normally order the soups and stews at Bac, but since it was so warm out, I wanted something lighter. I ended up getting the kim chi noodles with chicken -- potato noodles stir-fried with spicy kim chi cabbage, snow peas, red bell pepper, onion, roasted sesame seeds and scallions ($13). I love the texture of the noodles in this dish along with the amount of veggies they use.
Look how colorful the dish is! I ordered it medium spicy, but could've gone even spicier.
On Friday night, we went and picked up a new propane tank for our first grill session of the season. Since reading news reports about pink slime mixed in grocery store ground beef, I've been a bit hesitant in buying ground chuck. We substituted ground turkey in place of beef and made turkey burgers with fried potatoes and asparagus. Holy yum. I think turkey burgers are my go-to burgers from here on out. The patties turned out so fluffy and moist and the sides were perfect complements to the burgers. I was so enamored by our meal, I forgot to take photos of the amazing turkey burgers. Sorry guys.
On Saturday, Adam and I woke up fairly early to get ready for St. Patty's Day. For my birthday, my dear friend Flood bought me a St. Patty's Day Hello Kitty T-shirt, so I already had my outfit planned for the day. We had plans to hang out with friends in Ohio City at a friend's house. Our friends have a fantastic house right off of W. 25th, so we spent much of the morning/early afternoon drinking on their patio and soaking in the sun.
Our host and hostess' Great Dane sunbathing on their patio.
After imbibing on Bloody Mary's, Guinness, cider and more, we all agreed food was needed and we walked down to Market Garden Brewery. There was a good crowd at MGB, but it wasn't overly crowded, which was nice. After an hour wait, we finally got a table for our group of 10.
I had my heart set on eating corned beef, so I ordered the corned beef sandwich ($12) while Adam got the currywurst -- traditional German sausage served with curried tomato sauce over seasoned fries.
The corned beef sandwich was pretty disappointing. Although the flavor was there, the corned beef itself was thick, tough and very chewy. The currywurst was the highlight of the meal. The sausage was tender and full of flavor and the curried tomato sauce was perfect with the sausage.
Market Garden Brewery on St. Patty's Day. Not overly crowded, yet still a fun bunch.
Our day ended with drinks and ping pong at ABC Tavern (where I spent my 30th just the weekend before) and more drinks and the Indiana-VCU game back at our friend's house. After 10 hours of celebrating St. Patty's Day, Adam and I called it a night and headed back home.
It was a fun, relaxing day with great friends and fantastic weather.
Hope you had a fantastic weekend too!
