WIAW: He Ate/She Ate 2012

Happy New Year friends!

I hope you all had a FABULOUS New Year’s Eve and a great start to 2013!

I decided to take a small break from the blog for the last few days, but there was
NO WAY I was going to miss out on my FAVORITE day of the week, especially since I have a good amount of food-porn to share with you guys from my last weekend in 2012!

What I Ate Last Year

Happy What I Ate Wednesday!

 Be sure to pay Miss Jenn a visit over at Peas & Crayons and check out all the other delicious looking link ups for the first week of the new year!

I spent most of this weekend with the man-friend and while my appetite was STILL a bit lost, about mid-way through the weekend, I suddenly found it again…

All the more reason to celebrate, right? 😉

On Friday night, we went to a restaurant called The Looking Glass. It’s what I like to think of as one of the “nicer” places to eat here in Clarksville. They usually have a pretty good variety on the menu and they just recently started having live music! Unfortunately, this night was not one of my best experiences…

Salad & Bread

To start, we each had a salad and a plate of bread with herbed butter
A pretty average house salad, but the warm bread was delicious…the orange-colored slice was a sun-dried tomato and was probably the best part of the meal!

For an entree, the man-friend ordered the lasagna:

Lasagna

A bit disappointing since the menu described it as having meat AND seasonal vegetables, but well, at least they didn’t forget the cheese? 😉

I decided on the “Vegetarian” Diablo Penne since I still wasn’t sure about my appetite and really, I just wanted some warm vegetables…

Penne

Too bad there wasn’t any!

I counted three artichoke heart quarters, a couple of pepperoncinis, and a few strips of onion. What they did NOT mention on the menu was the fact that it would come out with half a can of Kalamata olives and capers in it. Now don’t get me wrong, I love me some olives, but I was not really in the mood for anything salty that night…and with the capers on top of it, I swear it was like licking a SALT BLOCK!

Sadly, I had no other choice but to ask for another dish, so I went with something a tried and true dish:

Crab Cake Salad

Crab cake salad with Mandarin oranges and toasted almonds
Served with a vinaigrette dressing and cocktail sauce….soooo MUCH BETTER!

The next morning, I whipped up a batch of Snickerdoodle Pancakes for the man-friend:

Snickerdoodle Protein Pancakes

And some Detox Pancakes for myself:

Post Christmas Detox Pancakes - 8

My third batch of the week and I could STILL eat them again!

We got together in Nashville on Saturday night, but since it was a bit late and most places had at LEAST a 45 minute wait, we went to a restaurant that is now quickly becoming my favorite place to eat, Athens Family Restaurant.

On the outside, it looks like nothing more than a little mom and pop diner, but HOLY COW do they have some amazing food! They serve Greek and American dishes, breakfast around the clock, and…

Athens

They were even featured on Triple D with Guy Fieri!

So far, we’ve been twice, but last time I failed in the food blogger department and didn’t take any pictures of my appetizer trio of hummus, Taziki, and Melitzanosalata (eggplant mousse <- to.die.FOR!) so this time, I made sure to document…

We started with a hummus platter and warm pita bread:

Pita & Hummus

Sabra?…Sabra who? 😉

The man-friend ordered a trio platter of Greek dishes:

Trio Sampler

Pastichio (casserole with baked layers of ziti pasta, sautéed ground beef & cheese, topped with béchamel sauce), Suzukakia (Greek style oven baked beef meatball, topped with light tomato sauce), and a Dolmade (grape leaves stuffed with ground beef, rice, and scallions, served with lemon-dill sauce).

Veggies & Rice

With rice pilaf, pita, and mixed veggies on the side.

Oh yeah, they made sure he did not leave hungry! And can you believe all that was only $12.95?!

Though I managed to sneak little “ninja bites” of everything off of his plates (LOVED the Suzukakia and the veggies), my entree was by far my favorite:

Bifteki Platter

Bifteki (Greek style beef patties) served with Greek salad x 2 (instead of French fries), pita, and LOTS of tzatziki!

And under all that deliciousness is where I finally found my appetite! I only managed to eat half, but you better believe the rest was packed up and eaten for lunch later in the weekend! 😉

Even though I really wouldn’t have minded going back for breakfast the next day (seriously, I saw someone order pancakes that were bigger than my head!), instead we tried a new-to-me place called BrickTops

Chicken & Waffles

The man-friend ordered the (blurry) Chicken & Waffles (which were made with malted milk and were amazing!)

I wasn’t sure exactly what I felt like eating that morning having just found my appetite, but as soon as I spied the section of eggs Benedict, I KNEW I had to give them a try!

Crab Benedict

My very FIRST crab eggs Benedict and the BEST oven-roasted potatoes I’ve ever had in my life!

Ok, so I may be like the worst foodie ever by saying this, but what is all the hype with hollandaise sauce? I thought it tasted good, but really would have been just as happy without it (mmm, runny yolk)!

After breakfast, we walked across the parking lot to Whole Foods and looked around. I thought for sure I was too full to even CONSIDER buying anything, until I saw this:

Coconut PB

CRUNNNNNNNNNCH-aaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

With all the eating out we’d been doing, it finally started to catch up with me by midday so for lunch we kept it simple and went with homemade salads:

Salad

I had mine with a slice of toast smeared with my new coconut peanut butter while the man-friend whipped up a turkey and avocado sandwich for himself.

And for dinner that night, amid a Netflix-watching marathon, I introduced the man-friend to “blogger oatmeal”…

Oats

You should have seen the look on his face once I opened his eyes to the idea of adding peanut butter! Lord, if I showed him KERF’s oatmeal page, I’m sure his head would explode! Lol

What’s the best thing you ate last year?

Have you ever had eggs Benedict? Are you a fan of hollandaise?

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43 Responses to WIAW: He Ate/She Ate 2012

  1. The detox pancakes sound delicious and I think I need to try them! The Athens Family restaurant sounds great! We’ll be in Nashville next fall, we should try it. Regarding the other restaurant…I HATE when a dish is not as it’s described in the menu. For me as a vegetarian, I often run into the issue that they toss in bacon without telling you. Makes me Crazy! Happy New Year, Heather!!

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Oh I know! I have a friend who is vegetarian and it really is ridiculous what she has to do to find dishes that are actually vegetarian when we go out sometimes! You would love Athens! Just don’t be put off by the look of the outside…it used to be a Capt’n D’s so it kinda looks like a hole-in-the-wall sort of place! 🙂

  2. katie says:

    Happy New Year!

    I have been searching for that pb! I will have to go to my whole foods and see if they have it, been a while since I have been there!

    Haha, love what you said about manfriend getting introduced toblogger oatmeal! His life will be forever changed 😉

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Oh my gosh, girl, you’ll LOVE it! I tried the creamy version a few months ago, but the crunchy is definitely where it’s at! I’ve been putting it on everything! Lol

  3. Detox look and sound amazing, definitely checking out the link! Happy New Year missus!

  4. lindsay says:

    ya, major food porn and i need to eat breakfast. You must teach me how to make the perfect pancakes someday… PLEASE!!??

  5. Lucie says:

    Ah! This is first class food porn. Sorry that the menu choice was disapointing, that sucks. All the rest looks to die for. Now a big misery – my blender died and I can not try out the detox pancakes. Yes, I wanted to buy a new one, but the man decided that we wait for the old one to be repared. #redface #freakoutandcry

  6. Those detox pancakes sound delish. I have some that are similar made with coconut flour {Green Monster Pancakes}. I’ll have to give your’s a try. Happy New Year!

  7. Oh my gosh, those Eggs Benedict look good! Can you believe I’ve NEVER had that before?? It’s definitely on my food-to-try bucket list. I did try hollandaise sauce for the first time recently and it was delicious, so I feel like I would like Eggs Benedict. I’m too nervous to try making it for myself, though, haha!

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      I think I must have gotten ahold of some subpar hollandaise because you’re the third person to tell me that it’s delicious. I will definitely have to give it another try next time…or perhaps I’ll try making it myself. We’ll see…if I can do it, you can too! 😉

  8. I totally saw that episode of Diners, Drive ins and Dives! Actually I’m pretty sure I’ve seen almost all the episodes of that show haha. 😛 Your meal there looks fabulous!

    I’ve actually never tried hollandaise before… but considering how much everyone seems to love eggs benedict, I’ve always figured it was good. I want to try it now!

    I ate WAY too many good things last year to be able to choose! Arctic char in butter and a salted chocolate mousse cake from a restaurant in Portland, sticky toffee cake with bacon from a food festival, and the gingerbread cake with dulce de leche frosting that I made for Christmas are all top contenders though. 😀

  9. There is nothing better than warm pita bread and hummus – my favorite! And yes, of course I have had eggs benedict. So good!

  10. How has nobody picked up on “The next morning, I whipped up a batch of Snickerdoodle Pancakes for the man-friend.” Maybe their just too polite and proper to say anything, but the next morning, huh?!
    It sounds like you had a fabulous weekend and got your groove back (I mean your appetite, of course).
    I am loving the Greek restaurant. Greek food always has such great flavor, and at least they know what seasonal veggies means. Olives and capers doesn’t equal veggies and also needs to come labeled as such. It’s like using blue cheese in a meal without letting people know it’s blue. That’s a big deal.
    Welcome back to the land of solid food and weekend sleepovers. 😉

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Haha! You caught that one huh? 😉 And yes, I have definitely found my groove…um, I mean my APPETITE! Lol Oh girl, I love you so much!

  11. I just ate breakfast and your post is making me hungry all over again! I love that you made 2 kinds of pancakes. I did remember to buy spinach this weekend so your detox cakes are in my near future!

    You have to try my lightened up version of eggs Benedict. No need for the fatty sauce – Greek yogurt makes a sauce that is just as texturally pleasing.

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      I’m totally on it! And I’ve got some avocado in the fridge that is just BEGGING to go on top! Oh god, now I’m hungry! Lol

  12. Hehe I do the ninja bites thing when I go out to eat with the boy – I just need to try everything :-p
    Eggs benedict is easily one of my favourite breakfast dishes! I do like Hollandaise, but I never feel the need to have it completely soaking everything. I usually order it on the side and add a little bit on top! Love the idea of having it with crab – the best version I ever had was with Gruyere, asparagus and smoked salmon.

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Oh man, that sounds like an amazing combo! And I do love me some smoked salmon! I think I might give the hollandaise another try sometime…sounds like I may have gotten a subpar version, but I’ll definitely ask for it on the side. Can’t believe I didn’t think of that!

      And isn’t that the whole point of dining with someone else? I swear I could never date someone who wasn’t a food-sharer! 😉

  13. I LOVE crab cakes benedict! and Greek food! Looks like your 2012 ended with a lot of yummy food 🙂

  14. Your detox pancakes look phenomenal! I bought a couple “treats” for the New Year so those are fresh in my mind. The sweet potato chips from Food Should Taste Good are unreal. But the real winner are the salted caramels form Whole Foods. Totally worth the $6.99. It’s like eating a caramel in the ocean. And who doesn’t love that?

    As for eggs benedict. I didn’t think I liked hollandaise sauce until I tried a really good one. My favorite is a small breakfast place in MA. They have avocado tomato benedict. Love it! That’s also saying a lot considering 99% of the time I HAVE to include bacon in my breakfast. I make an exception with this one.

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Thank you so much, Maria! They definitely taste as good as they look! 😉

      Good to know on the hollandaise..perhaps I should give it another try sometime. They DID have an avocado/tomato that I almost ordered, and a smoked salmon one too, but in the end I basically just closed my eyes and pointed! Lol

      I’ve tried the FSTG sweet potato chips before and was a little disappointed, but have you tried the chocolate ones? I hear they are out of this world!

  15. It looks like you had some really nommy eats. I love Greek food. It’s a shame the Greek restaurant where I live was replaced with a pizza chain.

    Your pancakes always look heavenly.

  16. Eggs Benedict is a dish I miss – my favorite breakfast before I stopped eating eggs. And I LOVED hollandaise sauce. It’s hard to find one out that’s not overly-buttery though. I know Kirk used to significantly change the recipe to get it “right”. 🙂

  17. So.much.good.food. Gah! It’s a good thing I’m eating lunch over here or I seriously might be going a little out of my mind with envy. And admitting that you don’t like hollandaise sauce doesn’t make you a bad foodie… but having to Google eggs benedict definitely makes me one. I’ve never had them before!

  18. Happy New Year! I loved your edition today 🙂 The food looks so yummy – now question, where is this alleged Looking Glass restaurant? I know you were disappointed but I live on Ft. Campbell and am DYING for somewhere to eat around here – besides Dennys…or the plethora of chain restaurants down on Wilma Rudolph 🙂 Thanks!

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Oh my gosh, you’re a local?! You seriously have no idea how big my eyes just got! Haha! How long have you lived in the area? If you’re looking for some good eats around here, I can definitely give you a few tips! The Looking Glass is on Warfield Blvd. between the bridge that goes over Wilma Rudolph and the Pinnacle Bowling alley. It’s in a strip center on the left side of the road next to a chiropractor’s office. And just so you know, they can do a LOT better than they did this night…they’re crab cake salad is one of the best I’ve ever had and they have a great selection of baked goods…cakes, pies, tarts, etc. Also, if you like sushi, there’s a place called Fujiyama on Wilma Rudolph that is AMAZING! I’ve never been disappointed with anything I’ve ordered from there and the service/prices are always good! 🙂

  19. I hate when I get something at a restaurant and it is completely different than promised. Once at a restaurant I order french toast topped with french toast… It ended up coming in a bowl that was literally filled TO THE BRIM with syrup. I think the “fruit” was the tinted color and berry-ish taste. Uh, no.

    Oh my, I would totally take that rice pilaf, pita bread and mixed veggies for my meal. It looks amazing! You pick the best restaurants!

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Oh my gosh, sugar coooooooo-ma! Sounds about like my disappointing sweet potato this weekend…I didn’t think to ask for it plain and I kid you not, the thing came out with a golfball-sized lump of butter on top of it and it was DROWNING in brown sugar! I somehow managed to eat half of it before feeling like I was gonna pass out, but I think I’m ruined for sweet p’s for a while! 🙁

      And you just let me know…you come to my neck of the woods sometime and I will definitely show you some good eats! 😀

  20. Happy New Year, Heather!

    Wow, such a lot of delish-looking food in one post is making me seriously jealous. I’m sorry about your bad restaurant experience, though.

    You’re not actually asking me to decide on the best thing I’ve eaten last year, right?! I’d never be able to remember everything I’ve eaten let alone decide on what was best :D.

    Haha, I just had to laugh out loud imagining your man-friend’s face at the idea of adding PB to oatmeal. Now what did he say about you adding spinach to your pancakes???

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Haha, surprisingly he wasn’t that opposed to it! He told me that he’s tried spinach in a smoothie before and shocked the heck out of me when he said that spinach is his favorite vegetable! But since this was his first pancake experience with me, I thought I’d keep it “normal”…don’t want to bust out all the blogger secrets in one weekend ya know! 😉

  21. Kendra says:

    I am always disappointed when I order a dish that I THINK will have tons of veggies, and then only has a few pitiful pieces of broccoli or carrots–but oh well, I suppose not everyone enjoys boatloads of veggies:D That hummus and pita bread looks delicious; I absolutely love Greek food! Stuffed grape leaves, tabbouleh, hummus, falafell, etc…There are so many vegetarian options, which I love. That coconut/peanut spread also looks amazing; I need to get some of it soon! I am definitely a fan of crunchy nut butters as well.

  22. I love Eggs Benedict and I love Greek food! Those detox also look amazing-I’m totally making them soon!

  23. Lot-O-Choc says:

    Happy new year!
    All the food looks amazing – i always love all your pancake creations!
    Wish i could pick up some of that peanut + coconut spread..it looks sooo goood!

  24. Jessie says:

    I’ve never visited a place from Trip D that I didn’t LOVE! That guy sure knows good places to eat & recommend. He’s pretty much my food idol =)

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Oh I know, right? I’ll never forget the time I went to the Marietta Diner in Georgia after seeing it on one of his shows…some of the BEST food I’ve ever had!

  25. Happy new year! 🙂 I’m already looking forward to all your great photos and recipes this year.
    Detox pancakes? YES, I need to try those!

    • kissmybroccoli says:

      Aww, thank you Shannon! I’m excited to see what this year brings…I kinda wonder if/when I’ll run out of ideas! Lol

  26. Jennifer says:

    WOW! What a massive post! LOVE IT! Also love your blog! I’m a new follower!

  27. Woooow, those pancakes look good – especially the detox pancakes! 🙂 Happy New Year!

  28. So you know that comment I JUST made on the past post about overdosing on peanut butter? Perhaps it’s because last night I opened a new jar of that EXACT crunchy coconut dreaminess. Oy. I have to special order it because they don’t stock the crunchy at the store, and it is SO much better than the creamy.

    Anyways, there is too much in this post to even talk about. Holy food coma. 🙂

    P.S. That kind of reminds me of getting the pasta at Blend when we were sitting next to each other and all I wanted was MORE VEGGIES. I don’t think restaurants understand that many of us want what is IN the pasta…not really the pasta itself.

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