Now, don't get me wrong...we've always been passionate about our food. But when we're talking about being from Lexington, NC, our food was always BBQ cooked Lexington pit style, of course, and Cheerwine. You can't go wrong with BBQ and by BBQ, I mean a pork chopped sandwich with slaw, extra dip, and maybe even skins from the Monk...and served with Cheerwine with the good ice. Ohhhhh, home. My heart is there.
And even when we've lived or traveled to different places, we have always tried to find the hole- in- the- wall joints where the locals go. We avoid most chains and go for the "real deal." So in Annapolis, we ate crab; in Pensacola, it was McGuire's and fresh fish markets; in NYC, it's Grimaldi's; in Tallahassee, Gordo's, MoMo's, and KoolBeanz; and in Greenville, it's Pete's or Stax (haha!). In Oklahoma City, we went crazy over the restaurants we found, and if you're still living there check out: *Victoria's (of Norman) for the best Italian, fresh pestos, to die for garlic cheese bread and lasagna rolls; *Tarahumaras (also in Norman) for our favorite Mexican; *Cheevers (downtown OKC) for upscale southern cooking & the best chocolate cake hands down of any restaurant EVER...owners also have Ironstar (more casual) and Red Prime (special date nights) that are also equally but differently delicious; *or one of the bazillion cupcake places that are so fun! (Cuppies & Joe, Sara Sara, Pinkitzel, etc.)Fast forward to our summer vacation where we even chose the location based on food reviews...what in the world?! Haha! We traveled to Napa Valley and San Francisco for some fantastic chowing down! Gorgeous vineyards and beautiful meals! From bakeries to fine dining, we had it all, and it was a vacation to remember. One of my favorites was Wayfare Tavern, where you can order deviled eggs (not like momma makes em!) for an appetizer and the best organic fried chicken you could ask for.
You may be asking at this point, "What's the big deal? Everybody eats. What's so special about it?" But I'm saying that if we all have to eat, why not do it well? And why not have fun with it? I've always had a "better be fun if it's worth doing" attitude about most things in life (including life itself), and I'm feeling that way more than ever about food. There's nothing better than sitting around the dinner table enjoying family, friends, conversation, and bonding over a well cooked meal. And building a skillset in cooking is a fun way to continue learning post-college. There are so many blogs (and if you watch tv or have cable, tv shows...but we just have 4 antenna channels, so that doesn't work for me) and books, so even if you have no prior experience, you don't have to feel intimidated. Jump in and try something! Enjoy yourself, relax, and enjoy your food. A little pleasure never hurt...and it definitely doesn't over the Sink table! I'm off to check our crab traps...our newest fresh Maryland meal!