Category: Lunch

Weekend Getaway to Miami {recap}

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Confession: I’ve never really thought of myself as a “Miami” girl. I thought it was too clubby and too flashy for my liking (and, let’s be honest- I don’t stay out past midnight these days!), but I was so wrong! Miami is a place for everyone- there are clubs if you want them, but if you’re looking for a relaxing getaway with delicious food and great hotels, it’s also the place for that!

We stayed at the Surfcomber Hotel, which was right on Collins Ave in the Art Deco District of Miami. This was a perfect place to stay, in our opinion. The rooms were clean, the service and hospitality were awesome, the food was delicious and the drinks were too easy to drink. We were even served a glass of champagne upon arrival… you had me at hello… right?!

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Rather than give you a play by play of the weekend, I’m going to let the pictures do most of the talking. We spent a lot of time at the hotel’s pool and outdoor bar, but we did venture to the ocean once (and when I say “venture”, I mean walk out of the hotel’s property and onto the sand… it was so close!), which was a nice treat since it felt like bath water and I am used to frigid Maine ocean temps. We didn’t do any excursions and ended up staying close to the hotel since it was such a nice place to be and the food was delicious. We did go for a nice, long walk one afternoon to look at the hotels in the Art Deco area (which is where we stayed), but other than that we just wanted to relax. Not having a plan to get up and go elsewhere was a really nice feeling 🙂

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Dining– Since RM and I are both “foodies”, we strategically planned out our dinners based on cuisine; Friday we went with sushi, Saturday we did Italian/American and Sunday we did steak. Lunches were a bit sporadic and we ended up sharing things or drinking juices. Overall, though, I was more than pleased with the food options and quality in Miami.

Doraku– The place was packed, but it was well worth the wait (and everyone we spoke with confirmed that it’s the best sushi place in the area).The rolls we got… and the brownie lava dessert… were to die for. The coconut roll was probably my favorite- I’ve never had a “sweet” type of roll- delish!

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Maxine’s– This restaurant was across the street from our hotel so we ventured over there for breakfast on our first morning in Miami. While the food was good, the service was not so good.

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Bianca at the Delano– For dinner on Saturday night, we went to the Delano, which is an absolutely beautiful, beautiful hotel. We had drinks out by the pool first and then enjoyed dinner at Bianca, which is mostly outdoor seating (perfect!). I cannot put into words how good the food was, but I’ll just say it was drool-worthy. Totally worth the money if you’re in Miami looking for a nice place. I got the salmon and couldn’t stop raving about it!

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The Social Club at the hotel- On Sunday and Monday we ate breakfast at the hotel. They had a really nice menu with some healthy options on it. I had Greek yogurt both days and a lot of fresh fruit- absolutely delicious!

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We also did lunch from the restaurant a few times. We shared the cheese burger and salad on our first day, which was probably the least healthy thing we ate the whole trip. We really tried to stick to our usual healthy eating, but when you’re on vacation you have to indulge a little! We also juiced one day for lunch since they had a fresh juice bar (amazing!) and the other day I had a raw kale salad which was so, so good.

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And if I didn’t have enough good things to say about the hotel, they had a complementary wine hour every day from 5-6; free- champagne upon arrival and free wine every night!? I told you we picked the right hotel!

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Meat Market– Our favorite hotel bartender, Summer, suggested that we go to Meat Market for our steak night. Wow. What a great recommendation! We were able to sit outside and it was the most perfect weather for that. We had gotten an app at Monty’s so we jumped right into the food order: we shared a piece of steak, quinoa and avocado salad and sautéed kale. The steak and kale were delicious, but the quinoa and avocado salad kind of stole the show for me. I’m dying to recreate it!

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Drinks- Judging by our pictures, it’s no surprise that we did our fair share of drinking! I mean, can you blame us, though?! Sunny, hot weather, being poolside all day, being on vacation… that’s a perfect recipe for drinking if you ask me 😉 Here are some places that we enjoyed drinks at (other than our hotel, which I mentioned earlier all the drinking we did there!).

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Delano- Before our dinner on Saturday night, we went to the Delano a little early to have cocktails (stupidly expensive cocktails) by the pool. How gorgeous is this?! You’ve got to visit the Delano if you go to Miami!

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Haven Lounge– After dinner one night we went to Haven for a drink. The restaurant had a really cool vibe to it and a great bar area.

Monty’s– This was a bit of a hike from our hotel (had to take a cab), but one of RM’s coworkers told him we “had to go there”. And, while we didn’t want to go, we ended up being happy we did! They have a HUGE outside bar area/swimming pool/live music area which is perfect for daytime drinking. It also looked to be a big place for boaters to dock for lunch. We had a drink and shrimp cocktail and had a great time people watching.

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The Gale Hotel– For our post dinner drink after Meat Market, we stopped in at the Gale hotel, which we both fell in love with. The décor and ambiance were awesome and they have a rooftop pool!

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By the time Monday morning rolled around, we both agreed that we were not ready to go home.

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The weekend was just so perfect! We had a little bit of crappy weather in the afternoon on Sunday, but since we had massages planned, it didn’t end up being a big deal. Other than that, though, the weather was great (but hot!), the accommodations were great, food and drinks were delicious and the company, well, couldn’t have been any better! I’d say we had a really successful trip together and it’s safe to say we’ve already started thinking about where the next weekend getaway will be!

So, if you’re looking for a nice, long weekend getaway, I really would suggest Miami. It’s easy to get to (short 3 hour direct flight), there are lots of hotels to stay at, the beaches are gorgeous and the food was impressive!

Questions for you: Have you been to Miami? Do you plan your days around your meals? Do you like planned out vacations or ones where you just relax and go with the flow?

 

Weekending: Local 149, drink maple. review, Quick Trip To Maine

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This past weekend was just what I needed: a good mix of some girl time, early nights, Maine and family time. The only thing missing was time with RM… whomp, whomp.

Friday night, the Shapleigh girls were supposed to have a girls night, but Rachel ended up being sick and couldn’t join 😦 Danielle and Amy and I still decided to go out, though, which was a nice way to unwind from the week. I’ve been DYING to get to Local 149 in Southie, so I was so happy when we decided to go there. I have to say, it totally lived up to my expectations! We started with wine and then ordered a number of apps- it wasn’t the healthiest meal I had all week, but it was damn good! I can’t wait to go back.

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Saturday I taught a great kickboxing class, but only one of my “front row” girls was there! Where were the rest of you girls??

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From there, I headed up to Maine. Mom and I met for lunch at Mill 67 which is a new restaurant built in an old mill building right on the water. I loved everything about it! The atmosphere, location, service, food and wine. We shared the Warm Kale Salad and Tomato and Basil Pizza.

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What I loved about the restaurant’s menu was that it was all locally made/grown and they offered gluten free options (even pizza dough… which we didn’t do because I wanted regular pizza). I can’t wait to go back.

Father’s Day was low key, but I think it was just what dad wanted. We went to church then picked up some fried seafood for him and sat on the patio. I hope he had a great weekend!

On my way back to MA, I stopped by my friend Caitlin’s house hoping to catch the tail end of her son Tucker’s 1st birthday party. Sadly, everyone was gone, but it was good to catch up with her- even though it was too short of a visit!

drink maple. Review
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A few weeks ago, I was contacted drink maple. to see if I wanted to try their product. When I read about it, I decided I would take them up on their offer! Here are some stats from their site:

maple. is pure maple water is a natural refreshing, hydrating water with a hint of maple flavor. It contains fortifying vitamins, minerals, polyphenols, antioxidants, prebiotics and is naturally low in calories. We tap maple. straight from the tree and bottle it with absolutely NOTHING added. It is the perfect way to hydrate and nourish your body the same way it nourishes the maple trees. DRINKmaple.

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After going to see Fed Up!, I’ve really tried to cut back on unnecessary sugars and be more away of labels and what’s in the food and drinks I’m putting into my body. Post workout, I’m always looking for something to help me rehydrate, but the normal drinks I turn to: Vitamin Water, Gatorade, Propel, etc., are filled with sugars and other ingredients that I can’t read or understand. The only thing in drink maple. is pure maple sap- love that!

So, after class on Saturday, I decided to check it out.

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The verdict? Initially, I didn’t like it as much as I wanted to, but after a few sips, it started to grow on me. It wasn’t that I didn’t like the flavor, but more that it was weird drinking a lightly flavored drink without fiz! I ended up saving half and putting it in the fridge at my parents and decided I like it better when it’s nice and cold, rather than cool like they suggested. I want to get my hands on some more of this because I really think it’s a great drink to have after a workout! Thanks for letting me try it out 🙂

Questions for you: What was the best part of your weekend? Have you been to Local 149 or Mill 67? What did you do for Father’s Day? Have you heard of drink maple.?

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Boston Restaurant Roundup: Part 1 {Downtown Boston}

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It’s no surprise that I love to go out to lunch or dinner or even just for drinks, right? I love trying new places or foods or drinks and then sharing that information with all of you who read this little blog. I especially love when you guys ask me for restaurant recommendations, so I thought that I would make it a little easier for you and give you my Boston Restaurant Roundup so you can have access to all my favorite restaurants in a few different posts. I originally wanted to put everything in one post, but as I started to list out the various restaurants I’ve been to, I realized I’ve been to A LOT of different places all around Boston. Putting them into one post would’ve just been too long, so here is your first installment of my “Boston Restaurant Roundup”, which includes restaurants in Downtown Boston (Fanuel Hall, Financial District and Downtown Crossing).

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  • Anthem– I have talked about Anthem a number of times on here, so it’s no surprise that it’s the first place I list. They are located right in the heart of Faneuil Hall, have a good wine and cocktail menu and a terrific food menu. It’s great for outdoor dining in the summer and the bar area is great for indoor people watching in the winter/colder months. If you go, you MUST, I repeat, MUST get the fondue! It is the absolute best.

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  • Granary Tavern– This is another place with a similar vibe to Anthem. I have to say that the prices are a little better and I like their wines more, so sometimes we choose this place over Anthem. It’s located on Atlantic Ave, so it’s still close to shopping and bar hopping. They’ve got some terrific salads and pizza’s and a great outdoor patio area for summer dining.

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  • Sakurabana– If you’re looking for Sushi in this area, I definitely suggest Sakurabana. The fish has always been really fresh and colorful and they have brown rice options. This is a really popular lunch place, and although it’s never busy for dinner, it’s wroth a trip. I think I’ve been there 3 times in the past 2 months. If you have a gluten allergy or intolerance, they accommodate that, too!

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  • Society on High– I went here for after work drinks and loved the atmosphere. They had a great bar area and lots of high-top tables to sit at around the bar. They also had an absolutely delicious Sauvignon Blanc that I may or may not have had 3 glasses of… on a Tuesday! 😉 We ended up getting some apps and really loved the fish tacos and shrimp cocktail. I’ve been trying to get back there ever since.

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  • Stoddards– I haven’t eaten here, but my sister, Amy and I had a girls night there a few months ago and loved the bar area. We ended up downstairs, but they have an area upstairs, too. I’ve heard that the food is good, I just haven’t had a chance to get back there to try it.
  • 49 Social– Danielle, Amy and I went across the street from Stoddards for dinner at 49 Social. While this is a little more of an ‘upscale” place compared to Stoddards, it wasn’t TOO stuffy. We tried to sit at the bar area since it was certainly more casual there, but they were full so we had to go upstairs. The regular menu looked wonderful, but we were more in the mood for munchy food and asked if we could order from the bar menu- no problem at all! Everything we had was absolutely delicious- I highly recommend trying this place.
  • Sip– I recently went with my friend Lisa and we enjoyed countless drinks and a few food dishes and left there completely satisfied. I still dream about the tacos and mushroom pizza with truffle oil. The fact that you can choose what size glass of wine you want is also a really fun thing- it gives you a chance to do a tasting “flight” of various wines. The prices are also very reasonable.

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  • Gem– This triples as a great dinner spot, lively after dinner drink spot and a great post dinner drink spot. Trust me on this- I’ve done all three 😉 We did dinner first (a while ago as one of our girls nights) and loved it. We shared a salad and a flatbread and lots of wine (they have a heavy pour!). Recently, we went for after dinner drinks and loved the scene. It’s certainly not a “casual” atmosphere (more clubby than casual Boston bars), but if you’re looking for a time to get dressed up, it’s a great place to go!

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So, there you have it! Your first installment of my “Boston Restaurant Roundup”. Next up will be Southie/Seaport District and East Boston. There are lots of good places in those locations!

Questions for you: Have you been to any of these places? Did I miss any/are there any that I should try? I’m always looking to expand my restaurant repertoire, so share your favorites in the comments section!

Weekending: Dining, drinking & celebrating mom

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Weekends are usually pretty great, but this past weekend was especially great and I think the combination of being surrounded by lots of family and the weather was the reason behind it. I’ve been trying to cut back on weekend recaps because I’m not sure how much you enjoy hearing about my play-by-play weekend adventures, but this one was filled with trying out new restaurants and celebrating someone very special so I figured it was worth sharing 😉

Friday night, I met the boy in Central Square and he brought me to a little hidden gem: Green Street Grill. This little restaurant/bar was tucked away on a street parallel to Mass. Ave right in the heart of Central Square. We were lucky enough to snag 2 seats right at the bar (our favorite) and enjoyed some vino and delicious (gluten free) dishes. I had had a very stressful (but good stress) day and it was so nice to be able to relax, have a few wines and not think about anything for a while.

Saturday morning, my sister and I went to a class at Flywheel and, just as I expected, Ann taught a phenomenal class. I’d love to say that I had a great ride, but for some reason, my legs felt like lead and I just didn’t have it in me to push myself and pedal faster. I wanted to- so badly- but my body had another thing planned. Oh well. It was still fun riding next to my sister and we left there hot yoga sweaty!

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After class, we shopped around a bit (I got a new dress for Miami!) and then had lunch at Sonsie. The weather had cleared and we got seats right near the open windows- felt so nice to have warm weather!

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I can’t say any of what I ate/drank was healthy, but life is all about balance, right?

Saturday night was date-night. We went to his brother and sister-in-law’s condo in the South End for roof deck cocktails and baby snuggles before having dinner at Stella, which is also in the South End. My friend Jess recommended it and it turns out it’s one of his favorite restaurants, so it was a no brainer to try it out! Even better? They have a whole gluten free menu. We had a drink while waiting for spots at the bar to open up (the Bruins were on. I couldn’t care less, but I wasn’t going to take him away from watching). For dinner, we shared the sausage and broccoli rabe, the arugula salad and the braised short ribs. They split that for us, which was so nice! They also served it atop gluten free penne instead of GF mashed potatoes which was totally fine.

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Yum. I can’t wait to go back- I dream of that dish. Okay, not really, but it was SO good.

Sunday was a fun day filled with pampering mom! We were lucky enough to have them agree to come down for the day instead of us going up there since we’ve been a few times in the past month or so. Danielle and I made a pretty delicious brunch, if I do say so. We had an egg casserole (egg, milk, chicken sausage, sautéed peppers and onions, spinach and cheese- so easy, so tasty), warm kale salad (with EVOO and lemon juice as the dressing, craisins, goat cheese, grilled pear and candied pecans), fruit salad and Stonewall Kitchen blueberry muffins.

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One of the best parts of the day was the fact we got to spend time on my back patio, soaking up some serious sun!

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(terrible picture, but it was all I had!)

My mini patio set is, well, mini, but we squished to make it work.

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Yummm. I love brunch food! We had such a nice afternoon drinking wine (mom loves excuses to day drink!) and catching up. My dad is coming down next weekend to help get my garden started and I can’t wait! It will be so nice to have fresh veggies all summer- I’m lucky that he has volunteered to help!

And that about sums it up. Although it was a rather indulgent weekend, there’s nothing better than spending time with the people you love and food/drink indulgences are totally worth it during those times!

Questions for you: Did you get outside to enjoy the weather? What was the best part of your weekend? What did you do to celebrate Mother’s Day? What’s your favorite “hidden gem” restaurant? Do you ever have workouts where your mind wants it but your body doesn’t?

Wednesday Workout: Tips for working out during lunch & a lunch-break workout

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On Monday, I headed to the gym in my office building (that I also teach at) for a lunch-break workout. For so long, I avoided lunch-break workouts because I hated the idea of having to get ready for work, workout, then get re-ready for the rest of the work day. However, I’ve recently been doing lunch-break workouts once a week or so, as I’ve realized how nice it is to have an evening off on my non-teaching days (rather than going to the gym after work and getting home late). Because of this, I’ve had to strategically plan my workouts to maximize my workout time and minimize my locker room time… biggest bang for ya buck, right?

Since the weather is getting warmer and afternoons are likely filled with more after-work drinks (what is it about warm weather that makes you want to get drinks outside after work?!), maybe some of you could take some of these tips and incorporate lunch-break workouts into your day.

1. Skip or limit the cardio

I’m a sweaty beast when I workout, but especially when I do cardio inside. Getting that sweaty requires me to take a full shower (washing my hair), which really just makes the locker room process too long. However, if I do just weight training, I’ll get sweaty, but not TOO sweaty. I can usually get away with just a quick rinse or use sanitizing wipes to clean all the important areas (don’t judge). But, if you must do some cardio, pull your hair back into a tight, low pony tail and wear a headband to help soak up sweat from your forehead/hairline area. This really just doesn’t work with me because my hair/head gets too sweaty, but I guess if I just let my hair air dry after, it wouldn’t be so bad… no one else would know 😉 If you have straight hair anyway, just blow dry it again!

2. Plan out your workout before you get to the gym

I usually put what I want to do on a sticky note and put it on the back of my phone so I have it handy. By doing this, when I get to the gym I can start immediately on my workout instead of standing around wasting time figuring out what type of format I want to use, what exercises I want to do and what weights and equipment I’m going to need.

3. Wear something easy to change in and out of

In other words, don’t wear tights or a lot of jewelry or other things that might take more time changing out of and back in to. Similarly, pack light in your gym bag so you’re not rummaging around sifting through things you don’t need. I just pack 1 top and 1 bottom and since I usually walk to work in my sneakers, I already have those.

4. Put it in your calendar at work

If I don’t block off time on my calendar, I’ll just keep putting off my workout until I realize I’ve lost all opportunities to do so during the day. In addition, if my calendar isn’t blocked off, people can schedule calls and wouldn’t know that I had plans for a workout. Also, I plan my workouts between my morning snack and lunch that way I’m fueled for the workout and know I’ll be eating lunch soon after I get back… what can I say? I usually plan my day around workouts and eating.

5. Find a coworker who wants to go with you

Having a workout buddy helps hold you accountable for actually getting the workout done. It can be hard to separate yourself from your work, but if you have someone else doing it with you, it’s better motivation! Even if your office doesn’t have a gym, you can bring sneakers and just go for a power walk, which probably doesn’t even require a locker room to clean up in 😉

Now, here’s for the workout I did during my lunch break on Monday. The whole thing took me 35 minutes, start to finish. I wore my heart rate monitor and my heart rate was up for most of the workout, especially because I moved quickly between exercises and sets.

35 minue lunch-break workout

I really enjoyed this workout! Lately, I’ve been just doing upper body lifting when I’m not doing cardio, but I was craving some leg stuff on Monday so it was fun adding it in.

Questions for you: do you like to workout during your lunch break? Do you have any tips that I forgot to mention? Do you ever skip out on a shower and using sanitizing wipes instead (please tell me I’m not the only one!!)?