Sunday Musings.

Hi. My apologies that it's been so long since we last spoke! Apparently it has been two weeks since my last confession. So, here's what's been cookin' on the stove of Blog Soup: 1. In the beginning of the month, we went on a Caribbean cruise with our very best friends in the world from Kansas City. Not only was this a great excuse to see all of our friends from home, but two of these friends also got married while we were in port in Jamaica. We had an awesome time... and by the time we got back in ATL, I was definitely ready for some detox. 2. I lurrrrrrve this bakery in my neighborhood, Alon's: I've only driven by it a million times; in fact it's only about a 10-15 minute walk from our house. However, it took me 8 months in Atlanta before I actually went in to the place. That's probably good...because in effect I've probably saved myself some money in the long run! Not only is it a bakery with fabulous breads and pastries, but they also have a wonderful cheese counter, chock full of choices from Europe and the Americas. I could spend a good chunk of my monthly take home on cheese alone. Not to mention a great selection of soups, sandwiches and prepared foods such as roasted garlic feta dip, marinated artichokes and risotto cakes. Last Saturday night, our dinner consisted of three types of cheeses, water crackers, olives, baguette, sliced apples and garlic feta dip. I could eat like that for ages and never get tired of it. They've also just opened up their second location in Dunwoody, right across from Perimeter Mall. 3. We got a Wii. So far I've only spent an hour or so with our new little toy...however I'm seeing the obsession develop as I sit here and blog at 8:36 am on a Sunday morning. I'm waiting for the hubs to wake up so we can play. Sad? No! I'm looking at it as a way to save money on entertainment and pack a little extra physical activity into my sked. 4. Restaurant updates: I have been to Bluefin a few more times now, once for drinks & apps and a few more times for lunch. The food has remained consistently good, however the timing out of the kitchen is extremely lacking. Most of the time I go for lunch with my co-workers, and there have been several occasions where half of the lunches come out a good 15-20 minutes before the rest of the table is served. This makes for an awkward lunch to say the least, sitting there with your rolls or nigiri in front of you while everyone else waits... or vice versa. They do make everything fresh which is great... but having run into this timing problem several times, I'm kind of over it. I should mention that this problem is not limited to large parties... it's also happened with tables of 2-3. Hubs and I enjoyed a tasty meal at La Tavola Trattoria on Valentine's Day. This is a super cute neighborhood spot that we'd been anxious to try for quite some time. The bread came out crusty and warm, and went perfectly with my mixed green salad with gorgonzola. For dinner I had the risotto with black trumpet mushrooms and seared scallops, and Mason enjoyed the baked manicotti with beef, veal, pancetta, spinach and mozzarella. We had a table on the (heated) patio, and it was quite nice...definitely quieter out back than inside the restaurant itself. I would like to go back and try something off of their permanent menu, as my risotto was a special for the night. We also continued our Valentine's Day tradition with a box of Christopher Elbow Chocolates. The chocolate with strawberry balsamic caramel is my favorite.