Ride The Belle

Looking for a unique Date Night, Girl's Night Out, Anniversary, Birthday or fine dining experience? Look no further. Bijou Belle is changing the game with this one of a kind concept. You can dine on a plane, you can dine on a train, but who would have thought you could dine on a coach bus and get the same level of quality as a fine dining restaurant. The moment you step inside the interior decor sets this experience apart from the rest. You have comfortable plush seating, HDTV, a unique table to keep your food and drinks in place, a view of the fully functional kitchen and of course the beautiful scenes of the city from your window. When I asked Kobe Lewis of Bijou Belle how this concept came about he said, "I was looking to do something different. A dinner train in Michigan triggered the idea". The goal is to try to take the stress out of people's day. You can sign up for a public tour that will pick up at the NYLO in Irving, and enjoy each of your 3 course meal options at different scenic destinations around town. Bijou Belle is also available to rent out which will include the chef, wait staff and a violinist. Instead of hopping in the car to clear your mind, why not let Bijou Belle do the driving? Oh, and add a 3 course meal and cocktails with your ride. Are you ready to Ride The Belle?

The Importance of Prayer

I have had my fair share of struggles with trying to make sense of this crazy thing that we call life. We all have plans of just how we want things to go, and we do things to push us in that direction, but what do we do when life doesn't quite go the way we planned? Pray. The only thing that has kept me in spite of it all is my relationship with God. It's been one year since I lost my grandmother, and honestly I have been lost since her passing. Even though nothing else in life went the way I wanted it to go, I knew that I could go to my grandparents house, see my grandmama's face light up, and everything would be ok. Now that I don't have that, the only thing I can do is pray.........to be continued.......

Roots On Tap

After a weekend of bonding and food with my girls, and a long summer of bad food choices, I knew that it was time to cleanse and reboot my body. I remembered trying a juice place during North Texas Black Restaurant Week, and luckily I was able to locate the place I tried. Roots on Tap is  BOB located directly across the street from the State Fair of Texas grounds. I purchased a 3 day juice cleanse, consisting of 5 juices per day with water in between juices, that was custom made by the owner Nicole. She delivered excellent customer service walking me through everything she was putting in my cleanse and the benefits of each juice. I had juices like the Green Cocopolitan, Kale Ale, Lemon Aid, Beet Goggles, and others. When I say that these juices were delicious that is an understatement. There was one exception, the Lemon Aid, but I only had to drink one of those and it was more so about the benefits than the taste. The Green Cocopolitan was like a healthy cocktail that I could sip on every day. Day one of the cleanse was a breeze. I felt good and I was very excited about the process. Day two on the other hand was a different story. I started to get a really bad headache. I had other things going on in my life that probably factored into the headache and day 2 being a bad day overall for me. Day three was much like day one. It was a breeze. My headache was gone, and I had some great juices to get me through the day. I felt like I could keep going for a few more days. At the end of the cleanse I felt good and had lost 7 pounds in the process (my goal was to cleanse not necessarily lose weight so this was just an added bonus) . Almost a week after doing the cleanse I have maintained 5 of those pounds being gone. I plan on continuing to do this cleanse seasonally, and visiting the juice bar to get my juice fix in between cleanses. 

Lo-Lo's Chicken & Waffles

Lo-Lo's Chicken & Waffles is one of Southlake, TX newest restaurants. With their grand opening happening just a few short weeks ago, this place has already hit the ground running. When I visited today the place was packed, but luckily I found one seat open at the bar. The interior was very nice, sleek and upscale. Everyone from the host, hostesses and bartender were very nice. Though the red velvet pancakes were calling my name, I decided to go with the restaurant's namesake and get the chicken & waffles. To wash it down I went for the Lo-Lo's Punch. My waffle arrived nice and hot with the butter already slightly melting into it, and the syrup ready to top it off. The waffle was a regular sized waffle which I appreciated since I couldn't have finished a giant one. The chicken on the other hand was much too salty for my taste. I assume something must have gone wrong with my chicken since the people on both sides of me at the bar said they enjoyed theirs. Mine tasted as if the salt cap had come off by accident and it was drenched in it. I had to send it back after two bites and didn't ask for any more. My Lo-Lo's punch was a nice refreshing way to wash down my waffle. It consists of red berry vodka, red koolaid and pineapple juice. Who doesn't like a grown up version of koolaid? Overall I was please with my experience at Lo-Lo's, and I'm hoping that the chicken situation was all just one bad mistake.

Lo-Lo's Punch made with red koolaid

Iron Fork Dallas 2016

Foodie Event Alert!!!

If you are as into food as I am, then this is an event you don't want to miss. Next Wednesday The Whole Foods will host its event Iron Fork in association with Kent Rathbun at Centennial Hall at Fair Park. There will be a Chef Challenge where Jermaine Brown of Julia Pearl Southern Cuisine and Oliver Sitrin of Blind Butcher will receive a basket of ingredients and go head to head to see who will claim this years Iron Fork award. The night will include not only the chefs challenge but also tastings from local restaurants, live music, wine, beer and cocktail sampling. 

General Admission Tickets: $35-$55 (This includes food, wine, beer and cocktail sampling as well as the Iron Fork Chef Competition)

Premier Grilling VIP Tickets: $65-$90 (In addition to everything included with the general admission ticket this includes early admission at 6pm for restaurant, wine, beer and cocktail sampling before the general public, complimentary valet before 6:30pm, access to the VIP Lounge, as well as access to all general admission areas and entertainment)

Click here to purchase your tickets now before it's too late.

Wednesday, April 27, 2016 7PM – 10PM
Centennial Hall at Fair Park
1001 Washington St.
Dallas, TX 75210

Do You Know What Today Is? It's my locsiversary

Well, my locsiversary was actually yesterday 4/20. Before you ask, NO, I don't smoke weed. I've never smoked anything in my life, though people ask me all the time if I do. I don't know what that's about. Anyway exactly 3 years ago I made the decision to start my loc journey for the third time. People ask me about my locs all of the time, so here are a few facts about my locs.

• My locs were started and maintained using the interlocking method
• I only go to a professional for tightening about 3 times a year
• I don't use any products in my hair at all on a daily basis (I use a tiny bit of mouse to hold curls
• I wash using dawn liquid dish washing soap

I love my locs, but it seems like having them is becoming a trend now. Faux locs are on the rise, and more and more people are making the decision to transition to real locs. I'm not opposed to folks doing what they want, but I've never been one to be a part of a trend. Any who, let the journey continue.......

Thibodeaux's Authentic Cajun Cookin

Thanks to one of my friends sending me one of the most drool worthy pictures of her food from Thibodeaux's, I've been having this place on my mind. I knew I had to go and try the food for myself. I was finally able to try it this past Friday. Thibodeaux's is a small hidden gem in Duncanville, TX. You walk in to a few chairs to relax in while you wait for your food, a TV mounted to a wall to keep you entertained and a large counter to order your food. They are working on expanding to an eat in restaurant. The menu has many options for you to indulge in including wing baskets, catfish baskets, po boys and even a catfish burger (I plan on getting that catfish burger on my next trip). Their daily specials include the Cajun pasta, ettoufee, courtbouillon and Jambalaya. I ordered the Cajun Tater Bowl pictured above. The Cajun tater bowl comes fully loaded with seasoned potatoes that are already mashed with the skins removed, cheese and sour cream, and then your bowl is topped off with your choice of meat. I chose the grilled shrimp and grilled pulled chicken. My taste buds are so grateful  that I finally made it over to this place.  I can't wait to explore more from this family owned and operated restaurant.  

Birthday Brunch - Meddlesome Moth

I was recently blessed to celebrate another year of life. I ended my birthday weekend by having brunch with a mixture of friends old and new. I met up with fellow blogger Queen of Brunch. At Meddlesome Moth. We enjoyed brunch on the covered patio, which was a very nice and intimate location. Each table was set with the most beautiful fresh flowers. Our server was very attentive and friendly. We started the afternoon with the blueberry mimosas. This was a great combination and definitely added the extra flavor to make these mimosas fit the special occasion. Ok, so it wasn't just my birthday weekend, it was also Valentine's weekend:-). After starting with mimosas we had the cinnamon rolls. They were so soft, buttery and covered in gooey cream cheese frosting. I could have licked that whole pot clean if I wasn't in the presence of others. Since I don't eat beef or pork my selections from the brunch menu were a bit limited, as usual. I ended up getting the french toast sandwich and subbing the meat for roasted chicken. The chicken didn't really add or take anything away from the meal, but the french toast was good. The side of fruit was perfectly sweet. I can't wait to explore more of the menu from Meddlesome Moth. 

Blueberry Mimosa Carafe

Cinnamon Rolls Starter

French Toast Sandwich with a Side of Fruit

Trucker's Cafe - More Than Just a Meal

Upon first arriving at the entrance of Trucker's Cafe, you might not expect too much. You might not even realize that such a gem exists there. Trucker's Cafe is located inside of a gas station that has a high population of truckers that come through. The gas station is small and crowded, but once you walk past the entrance you will find a few chairs, tables and a TV screen with a buffet of food at the counter. Don't expect to be greeted with a smile or small talk about how your day was. Just look at the menu, place your order and keep it moving. The business is a small business run by a family that do everything themselves from scratch. This place is a favorite of my grandaddy's and almost every time I visit he asks me to get him some fish. Whatever grandaddy wants, he gets. The fish is light, flaky, moist and fried to perfection. Seasonings are perfectly sprinkled throughout every bite. With the meal you will get fries, fried shrimp, vegetables and toast. I've tried many meals from this place and haven't been disappointed yet. They are planning on opening up a new location away from the Trucker scene. I will be on the lookout for that grand opening, but in the meantime give them a visit at their current location.

Social Justice Class

This semester is my last semester of grad school. Let's pause and take a moment to celebrate the end of this journey! I didn't know what to expect from this class, but it is actually turning out to be one of my favorite classes in the program. The class is a social justice class that is designed to get us to be aware of the social justice (or injustice) issues that our country faces. I think that every profession should have some sort of racial sensitivity training, and training for the issues various people face in general. We discuss the root of prejudice, racism, and issues that affect various groups (ethnic groups, LGBT, class, gender, age etc.) in this country and around the world. This class has challenged everything that I have ever been  taught, social norms and even some of my core beliefs. I'm starting to see some of the systems that have been put in place, and how deeply rooted some of those systems are. When I decided to become a teacher, it was because I wanted to make a difference in the educational system. I wanted to change the system for the better interest of the children. I am starting to see just how steep of a mountain that is to climb. When you join the system you are more likely to be gotten rid of before you can get to the point of changing anything. Anyone who deviates too much away from the standard poses to big of a threat to what is in place. Right now I'm just in this space of trying to figure out the next move. Until then, I will countdown the days until my graduation :-).

Welcome to my Open Diary...

 

A few weeks ago I wrote a post on Facebook expressing that though your life may not be where you want it to be, it is OK. Things don't always go as planned, but I've come to learn that the hiccups we experience in life are actually more common than we perceive them to be.  We spend our time living our real lives in secrecy and portraying an image for the general public. Social media can make everyone's lives seem so perfect, and your own life feel so empty. I was going through a tough time in life and felt like my life really wasn't worth much at all. On the surface I had a college degree, purchased a home and had a steady career. On the inside I would come home to an empty house because I'm STILL single, felt the connections with those I was once really close to was slipping away, gaining weight due to stress from one of the toughest times in my career and the list goes on. I would peruse the pages of Facebook, pictures on Instagram and videos on Snapchat and it further implanted the idea in my mind that everyone else's lives were so amazing compared to my insignificant life. Then God started to reveal some situations that "seemed" perfect on the surface, but had much deeper issues going on. At first I was confused. How could things like this be happening to people who for years have had it all together, or at least looked like they did?  I realized everyone has a story. No story is without its adversity. God has touched me in a number of ways through revealing true stories about people, messages at church and personal study in the Word. A weight has been lifted, and though my life isn't where I want it to be, I'm OK with that. In the mean time I'm going to live my life out loud and make the most of the life I've been given. I hope that you enjoy joining me on this journey.