Tag: dining

Brio Tuscan Grille

I love trying new restaurants, especially when they’re right around the corner from where I live. A new Brio Tuscan Grille just opened on the southeast corner of Westfield Mall in Plantation. We had an excellent meal, starting with the tomato and mozzarella Caprese salad. My husband had shrimp and crab cakes and I had grilled salmon. The fish was accompanied by roasted diced sweet potatoes, asparagus and other vegetables. It was delicious and the service was excellent. I can’t wait to go back. We also liked that they served butter instead of olive oil with the crusty bread. Prices are reasonable, and they are open for lunch. And who can resist the mini-desserts for $2.99?

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New York City: The Food

New York City: The Food

You can’t go to New York City without experiencing some of life’s best dining. The first night, we ate at the Fig and Olive. For appetizers, we got a bowl of olives and a mushroom dish that was heavenly. Our main meal was salmon with side dishes that were fairly meager. Don’t expect big portions here. The restaurant was crowded so we were glad we’d made a reservation.

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Friday morning, we ate breakfast at Carnegie Deli. My daughter had a smoked salmon platter with a bagel and I had a boloney and egg omelet.

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After spending half the day at the museum, we ate lunch at one of the Le Pain restaurants where you get served. We got like an appetizer platter of cheeses and such and nibbled from it for our meal.

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Friday night was dinner with the mystery writers’ gang at Sammy’s Noodle Shop.

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Saturday, I dined alone with the MWA folks at Bobby Van’s Grill. The filet mignon and side dishes were excellent.

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On Sunday, we grabbed a bite to eat on our stroll to Rockefeller Center, shared a hot dog from a food vendor on Broadway, stopped in to the Hershey store to buy chocolate to bring home, checked out the Cellar at Macy’s, and had lunch in Lord & Taylor.

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Their tomato soup was delicious, and it paired very well with a grilled cheese sandwich. Again, we were too weary and burdened down by our heavy coats to want to shop. I hated that part when I lived up north: dressing for the cold weather and dying from the heat when you went inside. I love the South, where you can run outside in short-sleeves for most of the year.

We bought croissants and Danish at Grand Central Station and a piece of chocolate layer cake at the Strip House to bring home.

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Temptation abounds with the best looking pastries in New York wherever you go, cupcakes and crumb nuts (square donuts), fresh breads, and more. You could get fruits and vegetables at many of the markets, but I think we do better in Florida in this regard, at least in winter. I really liked the Hale & Hearty soup places in New York. That’s great for cold weather, not so much for their heat waves in the summer. So if you go to New York, leave room in your suitcase to bring home some treats.

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Dinner on Sunday was New York pizza at John’s Pizzeria, just down the street from the Minskoff Theatre where we needed to go to see The Lion King. The medium size was more than adequate for both of us.

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Finally, we left on Monday and ate breakfast at the airport. All that walking helped when I got on the scale at home. I’d only gained one pound. Now it’s back to a healthier diet.

View all the photos here: http://fw.to/00nuTlP

Magic Kingdom at Disney

This visit to the Magic Kingdom found us exploring the new section of Fantasyland. We headed over there after an unexpected late morning parade down Main Street, decorated for the autumn season.

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Wishing to eat first, we went directly to the Be Our Guest Restaurant in the Beauty and the Beast castle for lunch. It took us about 20 minutes to reach the front door from the end of the line, but menus and umbrellas handed out by the helpful staff kept us comfortable and occupied. Inside, the lighting dimmed and a row of knights in armor kept us company along the hallway.

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We came to a host who handed us a fake rose and assigned us a station. At this next stop, an attendant took our orders and payment then directed us to find a seat anywhere inside the dining rooms. We sat at the immense ballroom with crystal and brass chandeliers. Other rooms had the magical rose inside a glass case, or a statue of Belle and the Beast together.

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We sat and waited for our meals to arrive. Waiters wheeled around glass enclosed carts from where they served everyone’s plates of food. Drawers inside these ingenious carts held extra plates and such. All restaurants should use these devices. It would save their servers a lot of arm strain. The food was fair but with some better choices than the usual fast food. In the evening, this place turns into a sit-down restaurant requiring reservations. It’s nice for lunch one time but I wouldn’t rush back. Too much trouble when we can go to any of the other fast food places around the park.

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Then we viewed Gaston’s Tavern, which disappointedly serves only soft beverages. But then again, this is Fantasyland geared to kids. We dipped into the Under the Sea—Journey of the Little Mermaid attraction, winding around and around the line inside the building. It’s decorated like you’re in a cave system so the themed entry diverts your attention. The ride itself is very sedate inside clamshells where you get a glimpse of scenes from the movie with accompanying music. It’s pleasant and a good place to get cooled off but more appealing to children.

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Too hot to go anywhere else, we left the park in mid-afternoon. That’s the benefit of having annual passes. We can come and go as we please, and we always discover something new each time we visit.