Food trucks have been around for years, but for some reason central Fl was a little behind on this trend, especially Kissimmee. I am so happy that City of Kissimmee has let the Food Truck Bazaar group have a monthly roundup event. These food trucks are not your typical "roach coach" trucks. These are restaurants on wheels, some even gourmet. On Friday, 15 trucks lined up all along Dakin St.
They had trucks from lobster rolls to gourmet cupcakes.The first truck we went to was for pupusas. A pupusa is a Salvadoran dish made of thick, hand-made corn tortillas and stuffed with ground pork, cheese, and beans. Then they topped it with spicy salsa and cabbage. They also had other varieties like jalapeno cheese which my husband tried.These little pockets of goodness were my favorite food of the night. I will be getting these again. And since they are cooked on a griddle and not fried, they were not heavy or greasy. Just perfectly crisp.
Our next stop was at a Korean BBQ truck. The bbq boxes came with your choice of meat, rice, sushi, salad, spicy chicken wing, and tofu. All for $8. I tried the short rib box. The meat was marinated in a special sauce and sauteed with onions. The short rubs were so tender they melted in your mouth like a filet cut would. Very tasty. By now we were getting full on just these 2 dishes so we decided dessert was next.
The Yum Yum truck. This is a gourmet cupcake truck that gets to go order by the dozens. Im serious. People were walking away with 2-3 dozen. These little cakes are not cheap either. At $2.50 a pop I was hoping these were worth it. We tried the basic vanilla, Dolce Gabbana (tres leche with dulce de leche frosting), and Peanut Butter Chocorama (Peanut Butter Frosting, crushed peanuts, and chocolate sauce top our super moist chocolate cake). All were delicious and cant wait to try more flavors next time like Dom Berrion (strawberry cake with champagne frosting)
This event was packed and I hope it stays that way. Kissimmee needs something like this close by since it can take over an hour to Orlando events. We cant wait to try the other tucks next time, even though I can go for a pupusa right now :)
I love middle eastern food especially falafel. Last weekend I was able to try Habibi Lebanese restaurant in Orlando near Disney. As soon as I pulled up I knew I was in for a treat. As you walk up you can hear Arabic music and their patio looks like a middle eastern tent oasis. Flowing curtains, lounge chairs and tall ceilings. We sat on the patio of course. Since there were 5 of us we decided on the Mezza. The Mezza is a sampling of 10 dishes served family style for the great price of $30 per person. We tried Hummus, Tabbouleh (parsley salad), Falafel, Kibbeh, mixed grill meat platter, and so much more. The hummus was creamy and tasty, and falafel perfectly cooked and the right amount of spices, the meats were tender and juicy. The plates just kept comming, and while we ate we had a belly dancer dance to the middle eastern music. It was a perfect meal and experience and can't wait to try it again.
This blog was mostly about our travels. But traveling is also about eating great food while there. So in addition to traveling, I will be posting reviews of restaurants, as well as healthy cooking recipes. These recipes have helped us maintain a healthy lifestyle as well as my husband losing 40 lbs. I hope you like the new additions.
St Augustine is a great weekend trip. If you are into history as I am, you will love it. I have had the pleasure of visiting twice and both times have found many things to do. We went to Fort Matanzas first. It is a little south of St Augustine and worth it. It is a free fort to visit. You have to take a boat ride to the actual fort and they have reenactments there as well. It was a nice start to our St Augustine trip. We then made our way to the Dow Museum of Historic Houses. It is a beautiful display of 7 homes that date back to 1790. They are wonderfully preserved, and well worth spending an hour or two there. They have beautiful gardens as well.
Since St Augustine is a walkable city, we made our way to the pedestrian only street St George. It has the usual tourist shops, but there is a great place for lunch. It is tucked behind a little alley and is called The Spanish Bakery. Its a great place for a cheap good lunch. On St George St is also the oldest schoolhouse. Yes the oldest in the US. Our next stop was the Castillo de San Marcos fort. This is a big fort with a lot of history. They had old cannons, and many displays to give you a self guided tour. It was very nice and they also had cannon reenactments. The next time we went to St Augustine we were able to see one of the oldest drugstores in the US. So many antique bottles it was very interesting. We went to Flaglers College to see some nice historic architecture. We didn't get to do the tour, but it is on my list to do next time. The building was beautiful. We went to the Pirate's Museum. At first I was worried it would be too much for kids, but it actually wasn't. They had real exhibits of items that pirates have used from hundreds of years ago. There was a history area to read about pirates that was interesting too. At the end you got to fire a makeshift "cannon". They had some guns to see which were incredibly heavy. Overall it was a good place to learn some history, and take a break from the sun. St Augustine is also home to the fountain of youth, and they have some trolley tours as well. It is a nice place for families to visit as well. Restaurant Reviews
Old Spanish Bakery- Good affordable food with only outdoor seating. They had great empanadas and picadillo with rice. Their baked goods are great too
Columbia- We went for some drinks- Sangria and Mojitos. It was a nice place to cool off from the heat and the drinks were good
A1A Aleworks- They had some good seafood and many beers made on site. I had the pale ale and it hit the spot. The restaurant has nice views of the bay. Staff was a little weird but the food was good.
It looks like we are finally going to be international travelers. So far we have only done US travel, but October that will change. We booked our tickets to Ireland. We are so exited. Then in Jan 2013 we will hopefully be going to Costa Rica. If that doesn't work out, we will be going somewhere in the Caribbean. We do a few long weekend trips in Florida throughout the year, so I will continue to post these as well. Looks like we will have a busy traveling year this year.
Well, we were able to do it. We were able to come back to California for our 5 year anniversary. We were able to see Napa and Sonoma in full swing for harvest. I have never seen so many grapes in my life. The vineyards never ended.Our first day we flew into Oakland and the first stop was In and Out Burger. It was good. It reminded me of Steak and Shake. We made sure to stop at a winery on the way up so we went to Domain Carneros for some sparkly. Then we drove all the way up to Windsor in the heart of Sonoma County. This was our base for a few days before heading to Napa. We stayed at the Holiday Inn express Windsor. It was the perfect location. Minutes from wineries, and 45 min to the redwoods and coast. The next day we explored Russian River Wine region. I loved it since i was laid back and most of the Wineries were family run. See itinerary at bottom to see all the ones we went to. Dinner was in Healdsburg at Willie's Wine Bar.
Day 3 was all about the redwoods and Bodega Bay. Walking in Armstrong Redwood Park was something I will always remember. It is amazing how tall these trees are, and that some are 1200 years old. It was also so quiet and peaceful. After spending 2-3 hours there we headed to the coast. Just like in Big Sur Route 1 up here was amazing. We pulled over many times. We stopped at Goat Rock Beach where the final scene from Goonies were, and Bodega Bay. My favorite beach was Schooolhouse Beach. I could spend hours there. There were little coves, big waves, and the whole beach was pebbles and rocks with jade stones. It was beautiful. The next day was all wineries in Sonoma. See itinerary. We splurged the last 2 nights and stayed at the Renaissance Sonoma Lodge and Spa. It was amazing. The room was huge and had a fireplace, jacuzzi tub, and a balcony looking at the mountains. If you can splurge a little, I recomend this hotel. It is 5 minutes to downtown Sonoma.
Day 5 was Napa valley and our foodie day. We went to many wineries but our 2 favorite in Napa were Hendry for the 2 hour very personal tour, and Silverado Vineyards for the view and the $90 Solo Cabernet I fell in love with--buttery smooth. Lunch was at Michael Chiarello Botegga and dinner was at Marimoto's Sushi.
Our last day we woke up early to see the Golden Gate bridge at sunrise. Im so glad it wasnt covered in fog like most mornings. We went to Fisherman's Wharf and ate breakfast at Boudin Bakery. Very good bread. The quickly went to Chinatown to get me some pashminas. Then it was time to go home.Wine country was great. There were so many wineries we would of wanted to go to and so many restaurants, but there are just too many. Some tips if you are driving. We shared most of our tastings. It saved $$ but also allowed us to try more wines. Also keep 2 Styrofoam coolers. One for bottled water to hydrate, and one for the wine. You dont want to spend good $$ on wine and it get spoiled in the sun. I am looking forward to going back probably in a few years. It was such a great experience.
Itinerary and reviews
Day 1
In and Out Burger
Domain Carneros- great sparkling wine with a view
Dinner at Scopa- Tiny italian place with no sign. It is sooo popular right now that reservations need to be made way in advanced. Even being 2 inches from the next table the food was worth it. One of the best italian meals I have had.
Day 2
Russian River Valley
Kendall Jackson Tasting- I surprised hubby with a dessert pairing. It was one of the highlights of our trip. We had the whole patio to ourselves.
Thomas George
Korbel for lunch- great free tour and great deli for afterward
Arista
Preston- Nice unfiltered wine with a farm.
Quivera- Nice wines with amazing gardens
Dinner at Willi’s Seafood Bar- great tapas. My fav was lobster roll, and the calamari.
Day 3
Armstrong Redwoods
Goat Rock
Bodega Bay- Chowder and Crab Sandwich at Spud Point Crab- Creamy clam chowder and very fresh crab on the sandwich
School House Beach
Candy and Kites
Bodega Head 1.5 mile hike
Dinner at Chinois (Windsor)Great little Asian restaurant with delicious basil noodles
Day 4
Ledson- Very nice estate. We didnt taste here but took picture
Chateau St Jean- Beautiful winery with nice Reisling
Kunde- Nice cave tour with good picnic grounds which we did
Benziger- Nice tour on a tram of the organic vineyards
Dinner at Girl and Fig- Great french restaurant with fresh ingredients from the area
Day 5
Breakfast at Fremont Diner- A must. Everything was amzing and the apple donuts were the best. They make their own smoked ham, brisket for the brisket and hash, and their own eggs.
Hendry- 2 hours and 12 tastings later we were hooked. It was a very informational tour that took you from the grapes(we tried grapes still on the vine), to the press, to the bottling.
Bottega- Great food. The gnocchi were like little pillows. So light and airy. The polenta under glass was very tasty.
St Helena Olive oil- Nice place to taste some olive oil, and get cool wine related gifts. I bought a candle holder made from a wine barrel.
Hagafen Winery - Kosher winery with nice sweet wines
Silverado Vineyards- Most beautiful view of all the wineries, and the most delicious Cab. Too bad it was $90. Maybe for our anniversary :)
Dinner at Marimoto for Sushi Bar- Very nice decor and good softshell crab roll.
We went to Vermont to experience fall foliage at it's peak. Something that I miss so much since moving from the North East. Vermont was such a great place to go to in the fall. There is so much to do from hiking, to eating cider donuts and Ben and Jerry's, to driving Smugglers Notch. It was a fun filled week.
The first day we spent time in downtown Burlington. I really liked this city. Its small so it's very walkable, and I really liked the low key vibe. We had lunch at a street vender called Hong's Dumplings. Hands down the best dumpling I have ever eaten. She makes them right in front of you and they are huge. We went to Lake Champlain to see the lake and eat some maple soft serve. We then went to Champlain Chocolate and took the tour. It is very small, but the chocolate is great. We even had an iced chocolate. It was not chocolate milk. It was a very good cold hot chocolate is the only way to describe it. We checked into our B&B, freshened up then went out to eat at Trattoria Delia.
Next day we went to see some old covered bridges and see downtown Stowe. Stowe was nice and had a great scenic walking trail that had great picture opts. We hiked for 4 hrs to a lake that was at a high altitude. It was hard but worth every climb.
The next day was going to a winery tasting room, and seeing the rest of downtown Stowe.
The following day was food heaven.But first we went to Shelburn farms which was huge. It was raining so we didnt see as much as we would of liked. I guess next time We went to Cabot Cheese, Ben and Jerry's, and my favorite-Cold Hollow Cider Mill.
Our last day we went to the Magic Hat Brewery. It was awesome. They showed all the behind the scenes, and then it was all you can want tastings. I loved the #9 which I am very happy my local wine bar has it on draft so i can enjoy it just as I did in Vermont.
Itinerary and Reviews
Day 1- Burlington Church St
Lunch at Hong’s Dumplings (street vendor) amazing dumplings
Champlain Chocolate tour
Dinner- Trattoria Delia (fresh homemade pasta and very romantic atmosphere)
Tea at Dobra Tea(a very hippy place where you have to take your shows off, but the tea was good)
Day 2- See Gates Farm Covered Bridge
Grist Mill Covered Bridge (108 & Canyon Rd)
Stowe/Smugglers Notch
Hike Mt Mansfield
Downtown Stowe
Dinner at The Alchemist
Day 3-
Boyden Valley Winery
Stowe
Moss Glen Falls
See more downtown Stowe
Quiet Trail Bike Path
See Trapp Family Lodge
Dinner at 158 Main Restaurant (really nice down-home cooking. I had turkey with all the fixins)
Day 4- Shelburne Farms(huge and had many animals)
Lunch at the Farm Cart(this was at the farm. Everything is made from items on the farm)
Shelburne Winery
B&J Factory
Cold Hollow Cider Mill (amazing cider donuts and hot apple cider)
Cabot Annex Store(all you can sample Cabot Cheese)
