madison, wi: part one

Over Labor Day, my two best friends and I headed to Madison, Wisconsin to visit our fourth pal in her new habitat. I didn't know what to expect, but it's needless to say Madison surpassed all of my expectations. In fact, I think I'd be pretty happy to move there one of these days.

fried cheese curds

colectivo coffee

new glarus brewery

With cheese curds on every menu and the nicest people you'll ever meet, this city is full of art, culture, beer and some pretty tasty noms.

We checked out the farmers' market on Saturday and sampled an ungodly amount of cheese curds (my stomach wasn't thrilled). I tasted Colectivo Coffee (their packaging is to die for) and drank way too many Spotted Cow brews from New Glarus. We played more than a few aggressive foosball games, stayed out until 3 a.m. and laughed until we cried.

There's nothing quite like being with the people who know you best.

spotting a good dive bar

Dive bars have a special place in my heart, always there for me when I need them, never judging me for my consumption habits and in return, I never judge them for their sketchiness; I only embrace it. With AJ in town this past weekend, we spent a lot of time frolicking around eating and drinking our way through San Francisco. Of course our weekend wouldn't be complete without more than a few visits to some of my favorite bars around town.

lauren, me and aj at the silver peso

You may find yourself asking, "what's so great about a dive bar?" In which case, here are six ways to spot a good dive bar (in no particular order). 

6. The crowd: Dive bars have an interesting following. From hipsters to gangsters and everything in between, people of all ages can enjoy the warmth and hospitality that are often associated with a dive bar.

5. The drinks: Dive bars generally have a pretty great beer list, or at least a few random gems on tap. I've never been disappointed and there has never been a lack of drinks at a dive bar.

4. The vinyl booths: My favorite dive bar in San Diego has the most offensive, red and vinyl hole-y booths and that's one of the reasons I loved it so much! Character.

3. The entertainment: Usually filled with a variety of tunes I've never heard of, you can always find something good on the juke box at a dive bar. If I'm really lucky, I'll know too many of the songs thus monopolizing the juke box for at least an hour. In addition, there are always games at a good dive bar. Pool, shuffleboard, random board games and maybe even skeeball.

2. The dress code: From pajamas or sweats with no makeup to sloppily stumbling in in heels, the dress code at a dive bar is always questionable yet flexible and can be anything you want it to be.

1. The atmosphere: You don't have to feel awkward about dancing and you don't have to avoid creeps (because everyone is a creep, including you!) If you're going to a dive bar, you aren't trying to impress anyone and your night almost always ends up being a spontaneous success.

a weekend in Dallas, Texas

This past weekend, I visited some old pals in Dallas. It'd been two years since I've made the trip and for some reason, I always forget how nice everyone is there. I don't think I touched a door knob or handle the entire weekend (something simple but often so forgotten in California).

I also ate my fair share of Tex-Mex (read: queso), held, saw and shot a gun for the first time at the shooting range (yes I was totally freaked out at first) and got to spend some quality time with some of my favorite people in the world.

Unfortunately, I wasn't very good at remembering to use my camera, but I did manage to take a few shots at Craft and Growler (3601 Parry Avenue Dallas), a new beer bar in downtown Dallas. With an amazingly extensive local beer list, flights for just $10, the option for delivery from a variety of delicious restaurants in the area and excellent branding, I was obviously a big fan.

loved these light fixtures

the darker the better

my beautiful friends from college

We also had a fun night out on the town at Barcadia, an arcade/bar with Skeeball (YES!) Mario, Track and Field and tons of other old games as well as delicious drinks at Beauty Bar. If you're ever in the area, make sure to check them out!

Barcadia: 1917 North Henderson Avenue; Dallas

Beauty Bar: 1924 North Henderson Avenue; Dallas

All in all, the weekend was a success, though too short. It made me miss living close to a bunch of friends and really really made me miss living on my own. Plus, every time I'm in town, I start picturing what life would be like if I moved back. With a growing food and beer scene and absurdly cheap rent, it's definitely something to consider.

...but i'm pretty good at drinkin' beer

Perhaps you've noticed... I'm kind of a beer snob geek. 2012 really was the year of the beer. I went from drinking Red Stripe (still good, don't get me wrong) to drinking the hoppiest of IPAs and stouts as dark as night. I braved the crowds and was able to sample Pliny the Younger (not overrated, by the way) and I even made a new friend in blog world when I found out she and her husband brewed beer. What can I tell ya... I love beer. I really do. Luckily, I live in a state seriously crawling with breweries. In San Diego, I frequented Societe and Ballast Point and now that I've made the move to north, Lagunitas and Russian River have been nothing less than a second home to me. 

Lagunitas, Petaluma, CA

tehehe; love this.

around the world... aka... every taster

Russian River, Santa Rosa, CA

also every taster.

guilty. as charged.

What beers do you love? I'm always looking to fall in love with a new brew!

fig + goat cheese pizza

A couple weeks ago, I went to my cousin Molly's house in Pasadena to stay for a night with her, her husband Schuyler, their two adorable kids [most likely the only children that aren't in India that I'll ever love] and my other cousin Clare. Here's the thing about my cousin Molly. She's essentially what every young woman strives to be: she's a successful marketing consultant for Nestle, she has impeccable taste in home decor, children's clothes and her own clothes, she's married to most girls' dream guy and she is a FABULOUS chef. Though she rarely has time for herself, Molly made homemade pizza for dinner, complete with homemade crust. Though I'm usually skeptical of sweet-ish pizzas, I could not get enough of her fig, goat cheese, prosciutto and mozzarella cheese pizza. It was absolutely perfect.

Since the visit, I had been dying to recreate the recipe and on Friday, I took the plunge and invited over Lori, Chris and Vanessa as my guinea pigs. Needless to say, it was essentially a disaster and they were great sports.

Since god forbid I read the recipe in advance, I didn't exactly realize that I needed to make the pizza dough two or more hours ahead of time [I know I know I know, some foodie I am] and realized about 10 minutes before everyone was coming over that there was no way I could pull it off. So I rushed to Fresh & Easy to pick up their pre-made dough and alas, they were sold out. In a slight panic, I sped down University Ave. to try and make it to Trader Joe's before they closed when I had a brilliant beyond brilliant idea: URBN.

Now, URBN pizza and I have a very special bond. I eat and/or drink there around three times a week and I have made friends with almost all of the bartenders. So in my frenzied state, I stopped my car essentially in the middle of University Ave. with my hazards on and made a slightly crazy phone call to URBN, begging for pizza dough. Turns out, URBN is even better than I thought and they sold me two pizza dough balls [!!!]... saving the day, yet again.

nom to say the least and topped with thyme

Ingredients: pizza dough, fig dalmatia, goat cheese,

mozzarella cheese, prosciutto, onions, 

flour & olive oil

First, lightly coat a cookie sheet with olive oil. Roll out pizza dough using flour and stretch out to cover the cookie sheet. Layer fig dalmatia, prosciutto, goat cheese and mozzarella cheese. Cook on 375 degrees  until dough is cooked and cheese lightly browns.

In the end, the night was not a total fiasco [minus I forgot to grease the pan and the pizza stuck pretty badly] and I learned a lot; for example that it's pretty hard to grocery shop and then cook a full meal after a work day and it's always a good idea to read the recipe [at least] a night before. But everyone had a full and happy stomach and those are pretty much the only goals I have when hosting a dinner party.

{Did I mention I had some pretty great beer too? Happy Almost Monday!}

the lion's share

More often than not, I'm craving something. Not chocolate or ice cream, but usually a beer. And not a Bud Light or a Blue Moon or even a Red Stripe [though I do enjoy the latter two on occasion] but a delicious, filling, maybe even "overly" hoppy beer. Recently, my co-worker / new favorite person Amanda and I ventured downtown and with Jade's recommendation, checked out The Lion's Share. The lighting was dim, the decor was ornate and fabulous, the people were lively and the beer list was impressive. Obviously, I was hooked.

in addition, an array of eclectic art hung on the walls throughout the bar and restaurant

parmesan french fries with mustard aioli and ketchup

THE BEST FRENCH ONION SOUP I'VE EVER HAD

so good it warranted a close up

amanda's duck confit flatbread... also a winner

Aforementioned, the french onion soup was... wow. Incredibly comforting, the perfect amount of cheese and bread on top and a TON of broth and onions, all baked together to create a cheesy, warm, melty dream in my mouth [and served with a couple crostinis]. Seriously guys, this was like THE burger experience that [again, in typical dramatic-allie fashion] changed my life. Yum dood.

{the beer was pretty darn good as well...from duvel to manzanita chaotic, i was stoked!}

neighborhood

I had been hearing about this place for quite some time, but for some reason never ventured downtown to try it. to put it simply, I had been missing out. for five years. Neighborhood, located in East Village downtown, is actually my new favorite place - in the world. From the large decal of Jesus on the door out front to the dim lighting and eclectic art around the bar and sitting area inside, Neighborhood quickly won me over.

to make things better, we stumbled upon pliny the younger; the hard to find, not overrated, triple ipa.

 [and no it was not overrated]

entire dipping sauce section on the menu

jalepeno mac n cheese.

the. best. burger. ever. i had my way with it. it left me wanting more. and i talked about it for about 24 hours straight afterwards. incredibly soft bun, gruyere and bleu cheese, caramelized onions and arugula.

friezzzzzz

{if anyone wants to try it, i am always down}

urbn

Sometimes, you just need a little pizza and beer with your friend. So I did it. My hungover self threw veganism out the window [just for one meal] to indulge in a feast of epic proportion. urbn, located on University Ave. in North Park, has to be my new favorite place... in the world. From sobbing to the bar tender at 2 p.m. [alone] while ordering a giant pizza to eat [by myself] to having the best time ever with my best friends there on a saturday night to pizza and beer on a sunday, this place has become my home away from home. The bar tenders are cute and genuinely awesome, they have quality, not crappy, beer and the pizza...oh the pizza... is for sure the best in the area [maybe the world]. I'm semi opposed to tomato sauce on my pizza [don't ask me why] and their white pizza option makes me probably more excited than it should.

hope everyone had a lovely, food-filled weekend!