Eat Local: Kitchen

If you find yourself in Providence on a Thursday-Sunday with an open morning ahead of you, I highly recommend you make your way over to Kitchen. A tiny, cash-only, no-call-ahead, no-frills breakfast spot, it is truly fantastic.

Dad, Georgina, and I lucked out when we went, as we only had a few groups ahead of us in line-and I ate a granola bar on my drive down from Providence, ha. We spent some of the time waiting planning out everything we wanted to eat...and building up our appetites!

We started with the griddled muffin-they make one kind every day, and we were totally ok with not having a variety from which to choose. The corn-raspberry combo was perfect.

We then dove into our entrees-a breakfast quesadilla for dad (plus a side of bacon, of course), the huevos rancheros for me, and the Big Shot for Georgina, which came with bacon, eggs, home fries, and the Portugese sweet bread French toast. The salsa for dad's and my dishes was even housemade-too delicious!

Dad and I also definitely enjoyed the coffee milk-it went perfectly with our savory and slightly spicy meals!

Let me know if you're headed over-I'll join you and bring coffee for the wait! :)

xoxoxo
Emma

TACOPOCALYPSE IS HERE

Run for cover!

JK...but I am about to make you pretty upset you missed it. So maybe I should hide?

It had all my favorite things...tacos, rosé, cold brew, doughnuts, good beer, and lots more on a perfectly summery day. It was a good thing Elly had a time constraint, otherwise I could have eaten probably 4x what I should have! Regardless of that, we definitely lived our best lives for the hour we were there.

Fried cauliflower tacos from Compliments Food Co. were a hit with both of us-I definitely plan to recreate these for a Taco Tuesday!

Bon Me didn't disappoint with a tofu taco (and some meat one for Elly, ha)! Of course I had to add some sriracha, but that is no reflection on a lack of flavor-it was delicious.

There was a beer/bar tent set up with a good selection of brews, but I had to try out the wine in a can. It was a tough choice between rosé and sparkling, but I had to go pink here. Also excellent!

Elly and I, being who we are, had to make a stop at both Blackbird Doughnuts and the fun sign on our way out. Cold brew coconut for her, chocolate old-fashioned for me. Always so yummy!

Please, if you know of any taco-themed events-send them my way! I clearly have a slight obsession...

xoxoxo
Emma

Entertainment Weekly 6.24.17

It is definitely summer! I got drenched this morning doing yoga outside, but now it is gorgeous and sunny-though still definitely very humid! Right now, I'm

Reading: I finished All the Single Ladies (and am happy to lend it out as long as I get it back!) and decided to take a break with a YA novel-The Traitor's Kiss. Of course it's the first part of a trilogy-at this point, do they even write non-trilogy YA novels? It was entertaining, and I'll probably read the other two books once they are published, though I wouldn't say it was groundbreaking.

Listening: Jesse Ruben's "First Day of Summer" is so cute-and of course, so appropriate for the season! I hadn't heard his music before, but I'll definitely be trying to make it to his concert in Allston next month!

Watching: I'm finally getting around to the third season of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. I had a little trouble getting back into, but I'm happy to say I am again fully invested! 

Happy Saturday, y'all!

xoxoxo
Emma

Fainting Goat Distilling Co.

The last time I went to Greensboro, we walked by Fainting Goat Distilling Co. but didn't make it in. This time, however, Mom put it on the itinerary for the first day I got there!

The owner of it gave us a very thorough tour and description of how their different products are made.

Right now, they only have gin and vodka available, as they are currently aging both varieties of whiskey-bourbon and rye. At the end of the tour, they have you taste each of them, including the unaged whiskeys! Mom and I were pretty surprised to find that we actually liked the gin, as neither of us drink it, and slightly less so (though not entirely unsurprised) that the vodka was so smooth and easy to drink we could sip on it.

Botanicals used in the gin

I probably still wouldn't choose to do that, but on the rocks or with just a splash of soda (or as I had it at the Bearded Goat, in an excellent Moscow Mule).
I may have also purchased some vodka to bring home with me...I mean, how was I supposed to pass up Tiny Cat vodka??

Plenty of decorations in the restroom!

Father's Day Festivities

I got to actually spend Father's Day with my dad for the first time in years-we were trying to figure it out, and I'm 99.9% certain it's been since high school! Dad requested that we go down to Newport, RI for the day as he has been wanting to explore it for years and somehow has never made it, ha.

I mean, of course we started the day with Providence Bagel-I had to get the rainbow bagel since they brought it back for Pride, and it was great with honey walnut cream cheese. Dad loved the Federal Hill sandwich, with egg, mozzarella, mushroom, roasted red pepper, and pesto-I definitely need to try it at some point.

It was a pretty dreary day (until we got back to Providence at the end of the day, of course), so we missed out on some views going into Newport (as well as along the coast full of mansions), but we found plenty to do! We started at the Museum of Newport History, which was small but informative!

We then made our way to the Touro Synagogue, the oldest one in the United States. Our guide was so knowledgeable, and I really appreciated that he acknowledged (once asked) the complexity of the affluent families who built and attended it and where their wealth came from-including slavery or profits linked to it.

After walking up to view the cemetery, we decided we needed a brunch break, so we decided on White Horse Tavern, America's oldest tavern (are you sensing a theme?). While the food was quite good-and the cocktail I had was fantastic-Dad and I decided the most accurate word for our dining experience was "confusing". Our server seemed nice enough, but wasn't exactly a good listener-thankfully Dad likes blue cheese far more than I do! I will also give him credit for taking a good photo, ha. We were seated on in the corner next to the server stand despite the room being empty almost the entire time we were dining. I will definitely recommend the cheese board and the Trading Post though!

Fortified by our omelets, we walked down to the water, but there wasn't much to see given all the fog. We decided on one last stop-possibly the one I was most looking forward to-the Redwood Library and Atheneum. It is-you guessed it-the oldest library building in the USA, and absolutely gorgeous. I love that it is still a functioning lending library while maintaining its history. I definitely could have hung out there for a while!

As I mentioned, we drove by the Newport Mansions-they are crazy! I can't imagine not only owning but caring for one of those. However, I wouldn't mind trying...anybody want to introduce me to some of the private owners? ;) We couldn't see much of the ocean but the waves crashing were gorgeous. I didn't even take a photo-I knew I couldn't do them justice. 

All in all, definitely a good day! There's still more to see, so I would certainly make the trip down again-though I'd like a little sunshine this time, please!

xoxoxo

Emma

Happy Father's Day!

I can't believe how lucky I am-I get to write truly grateful posts for both Mother's Day and Father's Day. I am so thankful to have such great relationships with both my parents!

Dad-thank you so much for your support all through my life. In the past year, though, thank you for letting me live with you for far longer than I planned on when I moved out here, countless rides to and from the commuter rail, trying your best to play roommate when I had dating drama, always trying new food, whether it's something I made or another restaurant I wanted to try, letting me take a zillion pictures of said food, and playing host to my friends whenever I bring them along. I love you!

And Alvan-you came into our lives when I was already an adult (yet living at home...again...ha!) but I am so grateful for your love and support of our whole family.

Happy Father's Day!

Now, I'm off to explore Newport with my dad...and no doubt eat and drink our way through it!

xoxoxo

Emma

Entertainment Weekly 6.17.17

It's been a crazy couple of weeks...lots of socializing alongside some intense time at work. It's the end of the school year, so you'd think things would be cooling down...alas, that is not the case. Between having to address issues with schools, favorite coworkers leaving either temporarily or permanently, conferences, and the day-to-day unexpected, I've been too exhausted to even open my computer most nights! Thankfully, I've still had time to enjoy some good entertainment...

Reading: I am so into All the Single Ladies by Rebecca Traister. The author does a great job discussing the past and current situations of single women of varying races and SES-I reallllly appreciate that she doesn't fall prey to the frequent Ivory Tower trap of discussing only middle class white women.

Listening: I've been into my ladies lately-Schuyler Fisk and Tristan Prettyman. I've needed a little girl power as I get back into dating-plus they are great to sing along to!

Watching: Wonder Woman, duh! I've seen it twice-and would see it again. You can read my thoughts on it here-there's been a lot of controversy, most nonsense but some bringing up valid points to discuss.

Have a great weekend-and stay tuned for a shout out to my dad!

xoxoxo
Emma

Wonder Woman hits back

I have managed to see Wonder Woman twice already-and it is fantastic! No movie is perfect, but it has a lot going for it.

Entertainment-wise, it is pretty excellent. The action scenes are great, especially those with the Amazons. Their training montage was inspiring! All the actors did a good job, though I have to say that Chris Pine had impeccable timing. Gal Gadot destroyed the rumors prior to release that she didn't "look strong enough" to pull off Wonder Woman-I thought she did very well with balancing Diana's naïveté with her mental and physical strength. It was also pretty cool to be a part of a record-setting box office weekend-the highest for a movie directed by a woman, which also happens to be the first superhero blockbuster directed by a woman. Go Patty Jenkins!

There have been a lot of think pieces already about the various social justice, feminist, etc. aspects of the movie, but of course I have to express my views as well!

On the topic of "strong women": first, that term is outdated, implying that women being strong requires specification. As I mentioned above, there were a number of people who said before the movie was released that Gal Gadot did not look strong enough to play Wonder Woman. I have to shoot this down in a few ways. 1. What do strong women look like? It is not necessary to look like a bodybuilder to be strong. 2. Wonder Woman is strong and trains hard, but also has magic on her side-that can go a long way! 3. Gal Gadot served in the Israeli army, so I'm pretty sure she's got some muscles on her.
There are also many kinds of strength (as we discussed with the teen girls after viewing the movie on a field trip). Musculature, ability to endure hardship/pain, mental, emotional...

Seeing this movie with several teen girls of varying backgrounds and witnessing their excitement and empowerment was fantastic. They loved it and were so pumped to talk about the movie and the new ideas it gave them about femininity capped off one of my favorite field trips.

There are a couple silly issues I have heard about-that Wonder Woman isn't patriotic enough, that this a man-hating film...I'm not going to spend a lot of time thinking or writing about them.

Some of the more nuanced criticisms or reflections are far more interesting and deserve more thought. While discussing the movie with my mom, she brought up that a couple of her friends are boycotting it due to Gal Gadot supposedly being a Zionist. I did a quick search online to see what evidence was available, and it's pretty minimal. The term Zionist is extremely loaded, and discussion of this topic definitely does not fall within my professional field, so please (gently) correct me if I have any facts in error. My understanding is that is officially defined as "a person who believes in the development and protection of a Jewish nation in what is now Israel" and she would probably meet those requirements as she is from Israel and served in the IDF. The article that my mom's friends cited is here. Before I criticize it, I want to say that I am excited to come across this website-I can't wait to read more articles by youth reflecting on the world around them, and that I think it is so empowering that youth have created this space and voices for themselves. However, the article is making some big assumptions-that having served and posting a message of support for people serving in the military equals supporting everything done against Palestine. This article is far more nuanced, and better than what I could write.

I won't argue criticisms of the movie itself-for me it was a couple hours of pure enjoyment both times I saw it. However, I will dismiss sexism and anti-Semitism cloaked in artistic feedback. There's even more that I haven't gone into here, but I will link to a couple other pieces: Brave Rock reflecting on his role as Chief and a powerful reaction to it.

My recommendation: see it, at least once, and remain thoughtful. Engage in discussion and educate yourself.

Also, read these tweets and smile. And these.

xoxoxo
Emma

Can't stop won't stop...socializing?

I usually like to take a significant part of my weekend to recharge solo-I'm an extroverted introvert so I definitely require a fair amount of "me time". However, there were just too many fun things to do this weekend, apparently! Michelle and I had a good laugh at how much we were both socializing (and together)!

Friday night we went out for her roommate's birthday, starting at Jacob Wirth and continuing on to Highball Lounge. I love a good piano bar, but was a little weirded out by how bright it was in JW, ha. Highball was not exactly my speed-I literally had to use the flashlight on my phone to read the drink menu-but we had a good time regardless. We didn't manage any photos (of course-we never do when we get dressed up!) before we headed on our way to snack food. I had to take a screenshot, though, of my Yelp search from that night. Michelle hadn't gotten any donuts to celebrate the holiday, so of course we had to find them for her. Thankfully, I remembered that Doughboy is open 24/7!

Saturday afternoon we headed down to Providence for PVDFest and to see Wonder Woman with Dad. I'll be doing a full post just about the movie later, but suffice to say it was great! Dad even got his own poster, ha.

PVDFest was pretty cool, though unfortunately we didn't have a lot of time to spend there. We mostly walked through and ended up going to dinner at AS220, where we feasted! Tofu binh mi, veggie burger, chicken tacos, chips & guac, fries, and Mexican street corn...oh boy.

Michelle and I did find room in our second stomachs for ice cream sandwiches from Tricycle Ice Cream. I've been wanting to check them out, so I was pretty excited to come across them at PVDFest! They were sold out of a few by the time we got there, but the strawberry ice cream with vanilla shortbread and the chocolate ice cream with pretzel shortbread were pretty fantastic.

We rounded out our weekend with some fitness on Sunday-Bar Method and Recycle Studio teamed up to do a 30/30 BikerBar event: 30 minutes of barre and 30 minutes of spin followed by rose! My kind of people for sure. I haven't done a spin class in years-and have only done one or two before with Hannah. Man was that tough...but I can see why people love it. If only I could afford both memberships!

We decided to finish our bourgie/healthy Sunday with lunch at Dig Inn. I love that place for a quick and pretty healthy meal. With adding a bonus side, it's plenty for two meals-so I'm even happier about the leftovers! Though it would be awesome to get the same amount of tofu as they give chicken...two slices is not quite enough for me, ha.

Hope you all had as fun a weekend as I did! Now, to recharge during the week? No idea how this is going to go... ;)

xoxoxo
Emma