Catching Up

Finally the weather is improving. Better weather = more riding + less blogging. So a quick round-up is in order. . .

Cycling
Starting cycle-commuting to work last week on the new bike. All is going well with it. I am very fortunate (and grateful!) to have access to some really fantastic facilities at work for bike storage and showers in the fitness center for cleaning up. I will eventually invest in all-weather gear so I can ride in the rain if necessary.

Speaking of upgrades, yesterday I picked up some SPD pedals for the Dew so I can click into the pedals.

They are Shimano A530. I didn't realize how accustomed I had gotten to being clicked into my bike until I was riding with standard pedals again!

Fun stuff
Went to music trivia at St. Stephen's last night. What a great time! I never go to any trivia night with the intent to win -- just to play and have a good time, which I did.

Music
Went to Barry Manilow Friday night -- yes, Barry Manilow. I am not a huge fan, but was going along with the hubby, who really likes him. Yeah you read it right -- I said my hubby really likes Barry. Anyway, it was neat hearing certain very popular songs of his live. I think I counted a 27 piece orchestra: 11 strings, 9 horns, 1 rhythm/acoustic guitarist, 3 keyboardists + Barry from time to time, 1 percussionist, 1 drummer, 1 bass guitarist. He also had four backup singers. By the way, Barry really loves his Botox.

Chaifetz
On top of it being a Barry concert, it also happened to be the first event inside the new Chaifetz Arena. They have some serious logistics issues to work out, but the facility itself was fine.

Food
Have been to several food places since I posted last. Went to The U sandwich shop, Buffalo Brewing Company, and Pappy's Smokehouse. All three are at the corner of Lindell and Cardinal, just east of Compton. Food was good in all three, though the U needs work on handling its orders well.

Faith
Last but not least, of course, is God! Since starting my new job, my schedule has not afforded me the opportunity to go to weekday Masses, which I miss a lot. I think I am going to give a try to the mid-day Mass at one of the downtown Catholic churches.

Regarding today's readings, I am always so happy when the Holy Spirit is given special attention in the readings. I think we often overlook the Holy Spirit and it is unfortunate, because the Holy Spirit is a wonderful source of wisdom and guidance for us in our day to day living. Try using the Examen of Consciousness to get in touch with that guidance every day -- you may find it to be a wonderful source of grace throughout your day by adding it to your everyday routine.

Newstead Tower Public House

Just a quick summary review of Newstead Tower Public House, where hubby and I recently went with a friend. Scale of 1 - 5 with 5 being the best.

Atmosphere - 3.5
Interesting building shape -- renovator did a good job working around a series of structural support posts that slice the room in half. Nice decor for a pub, with interesting colors, good lighting, and other decor touches to look at. Smoke free, which is a wonderful thing. Seating at the bar or in tables and chairs. Big windows to look out of. The acoustics of the space make it difficult to carry on a conversation when there are lots of people in the space. Musical entertainment that started later in the evening put the kibash on most efforts to chat.

Drinks - 3
The pub had a surprisingly limited selection, but that didn't seem to bother me or my companions. I had a Griesedieck Brothers Golden Pilsener and my friends had their usual Bud Select and Dewar's with water.

Food - 2.5
I had "Benne’s Farm roasted chicken sandwich with brie, arugula and aioli" and the sandwich was ever so mild on flavor -- I think the most flavorful thing on it was the arugula. I put pepper on it to give it a little more interest. Wouldn't order it again.

Hubby had fish and chips, which was described on the menu as "beer battered cod with fried potatoes, chopped pickles and mayonnaise". He liked them and cleaned his plate. Even though the menu didn't specify it, his meal came with a little side of greens.

My friend had a hamburger, described as "Fruitland Farm grass-fed ground chuck with pickles & field greens". He liked it, and cleaned his plate, but his expectation on the field greens was that it would be a small side salad as opposed to a garnish on the burger itself. Since my hubby is not so much an herbivore, I offered his greens to my friend.

Portions were small-ish overall.

Service - 2
One word -- slow. There seemed to be a total of three servers handling the space. It seemed to me that one of the servers who might have really been intended to work the bar was helping out the other two. In any case, it amounted to what appeared to be some level of confusion. Replacement drinks were slow in coming.

Overall rating of a 2.5+. Would go there again.

Off the Vine

Last night, I went with some friends to the new-ish restaurant, Off the Vine. Another friend wanted a review, so I figured I would post it here also.

1 - 5 rating system, with 5 being the best.

Atmosphere: 2.5
It's the former Blue Water Grill space on Hampton at Columbia. Low-ish ceiling, or at least it seems that way with heavy beams in the structure. In addition to the dark brown beams/ceiling, the walls were painted a dark mustard, and the floor is a concrete slab. Decor was nice enough, if maybe a little sparse, but with a place that small, there's not a lot of room for elaborate decor. While we were there, there was a downpour outside and a table about six feet from us had to be moved because the ceiling was leaking. Since I am allergic to cigarette smoke, I was worried there would be a problem with smoking, since they allow it/have a bar area, but no one there smoked, or if there were smokers, I didn't notice it.

Drinks: 3.5
They had a very extensive wine list. You can get wines by the glass, half carafe, and bottle. They also had a decent assortment of beers and cocktails.

Food: 3

Braised Short Rib as starter: 1
Very small portion considering it was an $8 appetizer -- the meat itself was literally two bites. Meat was very tender. Served on top of a green risotto, which was pretty, but I have no idea what the flavor of the risotto was -- the menu says it was an Italian parsley risotto. Under the risotto was a sauce. On top of the risotto was a grouping of olives, mushrooms, and garlic. The olives did not go well with the dish. The sauce seemed like an attempt at a burgundy sauce, but it was bitter as if some ingredient in it had been burnt and did not taste good at all. The meal had a loooooong way to go to recover from this poor start.

Frisee salad: 3.5
I have never had a salad with a poached egg on it before, but it worked well. It was a hearty cold weather salad -- also had potatoes, red onions, pancetta, and cracked mustard vinaigrette on it. The greens were very fresh.

Roasted Beets salad: 3.5
Lots of good flavor. Well prepared. Nice presentation. Interesting/artistic colors. The goat cheese fondue, which served as the dressing, was especially good with the beets.

Andouille and crab gumbo: 4
This item is not on their online menu, but it's on their in-house menu because they just started offering it six days ago, according to our waiter. It comes with a generous number of substantially-sized andouille sausage chunks. Crab bits were more broken down and blended throughout. I had the 10 oz. bowl portion and I would definitely order it again.

Hanger steak: 4
This steak came with pomme frites and a creamed spinach; this is also is not on their online menu. I was concerned this steak was going to be tough, but it was very tender, flavorful, and the pan juices included underneath were a good choice. The creamed spinach (their menu refers to it as "melted" spinach) was very mild/delicate, and I think maybe if one were eating the steak alongside it may have been too delicate to go with that beefy steak, but on its own it was quite nice.

Devil's food cake with peanut butter center: 2
I was envisioning more of a lava style center, but it was more of a peanut butter-flavored cake in the middle of a dark chocolate flavored cake with a ganache poured over the top, garnished with whipped cream, mint leaf, and strawberry cut into a rose shape. This dish was not as exciting as I thought it was going to be -- the taste was rather drab. I should have gone with the meyer lemon cheesecake instead.

Portions: 2.5
Generally speaking, the portions were small-ish for the price, except when it came to the "large plates" menu items. This worked out great for me, but if feel like big portions, this is not the place to go. The hanger steak was the only item we ordered from the large plates section of the menu and it was a decent portion. They could have been a little more generous with the pomme frites, I think -- the portion looked like one potato's worth (not that one person really needs any more than that, but they are good for sharing). In looking at the other plates that were going around, it seemed the large plates were generally a good portion, though not huge/oversized.

Service: 2
I had what has to have been one of the most peculiar servers I have ever had wait on me. His mannerisms were very odd and his style distracting. He was usually on the spot with most things we needed, so his timing was not an issue, but he was just a one-off. I think he was going for an "elegant flourish" style of serving, but really ended up more in the "awkwardly over-trying" category. I didn't see other servers doing it, so I think it was just his thing. But I have to give him goody points because at the end of the meal, when he asked how we liked everything, I mentioned the bit about the braised short rib and without prompting, he took that off our bill.

Overall, I'd give the place a 3.5. They have improvements to make, but the food has promise/interest. I would go there again.

Three Monkeys

Hubby and I just tried a relatively new (open just a couple of months) restaurant last Thursday called Three Monkeys.

We ordered the Romeo's Red Wings tossed in Jamaican BBQ sauce. Having had some exposure to West Indian and Jamaican food -- maybe a little more than the average St. Louisan -- I had a hard time discerning what about these wings made them "Jamaican BBQ" style, but it didn't matter that much to me since they were pretty darned tasty. I also ordered a bowl of their chili, which, according to their menu has beer and tequila in it. If it does, I couldn't taste it or, if I did taste it, it didn't seem to add much to the flavor. The menu also says it is served piping hot. On a cold January evening, I was looking forward to a steaming bowl of chili, but it was served just a little warmer than lukewarm. The final nail in the coffin on the chili selection was the consistency. I hate to say it, but it looked like the consistency of Alpo. Sorry -- it's the truth, though. So, if I were you, I would give the chili a miss.

However, 3mstl redeemed itself with its wood-fired pizza. Boy oh boy, was it good! We had the "Quick-Sand" variety, which is topped with sausage, pepperoni, bacon, and andouille sausage. And, at the risk of offending my native St. Louisan friends, thank God there was no icky provel cheese on it -- mozzarella is the only way to go!

Their interior is by far one of the most beautifully done bar/pub spaces I have ever seen. The details of the wavy glass in the doors is captivating, the woodwork is so warm and inviting, and even the bathrooms are stylish.

They have half-price pizza Tuesday through Friday from 3 - 6 PM, and drink specials during the same hours. I look forward to trying other menu items in the future.

Jive and Wail

I love the new dueling piano bar, the Jive and Wail, which is in Maplewood. Hubby and I were there on opening night in September, which happened to be our wedding anniversary. We were brought there that night by a happy coincidence.

I had read info on the web about this dueling piano bar coming to Maplewood. I was interested to go, but hadn't heard/seen much about an open date. Then one day, I was inside a Bread Company near my work, standing in line waiting to make my lunch order. There was a fellow in front of me who turned to me and said he was originally from the east coast, and now lived in Florida, but everywhere he had ever been, the Bread Company was called Panera Bread Company, while here in St. Louis it was called St. Louis Bread Company. He wondered aloud to me why that was. I said that it's because they are headquartered here and while they tried to change the name in this area, I think they must have gotten some feedback about it from St. Louisans who didn't like the change, so it still remains St. Louis Bread Company. So after that, we talked for a couple of minutes and he told me he was in town to play piano at the Jive and Wail and invited me. I told him I had heard about it before, but didn't know it was open yet, and he said that very night was going to be their soft open, so I should come on down.

So, hubby and I made it there that night after dinner, and it was a great time, even if there weren't that many people there that first night. We really loved it from the beginning. I had never been to a dueling piano bar before, so it was a new experience and one that I enjoyed much more than I expected I would. It's just a great time to sing along to songs played live for you by two folks on pianos -- amazing to watch/hear them sing and pluck these songs out on the piano with no sheet music!

Well here it is going on a couple of months now since that first night, and this place has gone nuts -- it's so busy now we can barely get into the place ourselves!

We stopped in again last night because the pianist I mentioned above, Matt Nichols, was playing. It was good to see him again; very nice guy. If you get a chance you should go see him -- he'll be playing there now through New Year's Eve. Here's a pic of me and him from last night. He had the cutest t-shirt on that you can see in the pic -- Linus playing on the piano with Snoopy watching and the word "PLAYER" underneath. Clever.

Grumass!

A couple of my brothers-in-law are in a local band called Grumass. Went to see them play last night for the first time at Off Broadway -- lots of fun and they played great!

From Grumass! 12/...

I had a good time dancing, which I haven't done in a while!

From Grumass! 12/...

I hope to see them put together another show in the near future.

Neat thing about last night was that all six of the Ryan siblings were partying together.

From Grumass! 12/...

I made the mistake of thinking they were playing at Broadway Oyster Bar, so hubby and I accidentally went there first. Oops! We decided to stay for a few minutes to grab something to eat and ended up chatting with a vivacious bunch of SLU students, who were there to celebrate one of their sorority sister's 21st birthday.

From Grumass! 12/...

We offered them some of our chips, since we weren't going to be able to finish them, and they gratefully accepted.

From Grumass! 12/...

They were a lot of fun and engaged us in conversation, asking lots of questions about us, where we go/what we do on the weekends, about my husband's kids, etc. It seemed like they were looking for info on what "real St. Louisans" do/are like. They were cute/fun!

Feast of the Immaculate Conception

I took in this morning's Mass at St. Mary of the Angels parish near the neighborhood where we are staying here in Chicago. It's a very beautiful church.

From Chicago Trip ...

The church was almost completely full for Mass this morning.

The liturgy was about as close as you can get to a Tridentine Mass without it actually being in Latin. Opus Dei staffs the church. There were about a half-dozen altar boys -- no altar girls. The altar boys wore red cassocks with white surplices and all the priests wore cassocks too. The book of the Gospel was incensed before the reading. All responses were sung. The altar and all the priests' hands were incensed before communion. Only the presider took the Blood of Christ at communion and the Body of Christ was distributed exclusively on the tongue. No kneeling at a communion rail, though and the priests faced the congregation rather than have their backs to us. It was about a 90 minute Mass.

Being a feast day in honor of the conception of their parish's namesake, the folks attending SMA for Mass today were very well dressed. There were many beautiful little girls in their pretty velvet holiday dresses and little boys in tiny jackets and ties.

The music was performed/arranged well and reminded me of a chamber orchestra with accompanying chorus -- violins, french horn, organ, and perhaps some other instruments. Can't say for certain since the musicians and singers were in a choir loft.

The church also had some beautiful statuary. This one, which appears to me to be the Agony in the Garden, was really touching.

From Chicago Trip ...

Here's St. Michael:

From Chicago Trip ...

After Mass, we went to a neighborhood art/craft fair. Very beautiful handcrafted jewelry was available there, among many other handicrafts. Hubby bought a couple of candles he liked. After that, we did some shopping at various stores nearby. Eventually we headed towards downtown and had a very late lunch at Portillo's. Santa was there, so I decided to ask him for my Christmas present.

From Chicago Trip ...

Funny thing was, I asked Santa (because surely he would know!) which way to Michigan Avenue, and he sent me to ask one of the Portillo's staff. Hubby concluded it must be because the reindeer magically know the way, so Santa doesn't have to. Santa did say he would see me in a couple of weeks, however. I am feeling pretty good I won't get a lump of coal this year. ;)

After Portillo's it was off to buy some gourmet chocolate, then we went to Holy Name Cathedral to take in a Vigil Mass.

Holy Name Cathedral is beautiful in its own way. Its interior is a lot more rustic style than most cathedrals I have seen. Instead of a lot of gilding and mosaics, the interior has lots and lots of woodwork in the ceiling, especially. The stations of the cross appeared to be sculpted bronze, beautiful with a rough-hewn appearance. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to grab any pics of the inside, but there are some photos of it on their web site.

After the Cathedral, we went to dinner. Going back home to STL tomorrow.

Whistle Stop

Hubby and I picked up a friend at the airport last night. Since our friend lives in the north county area, we decided to stop in Ferguson at the Whistle Stop Cafe to grab some dinner and visit.

Whistle Stop seems to be the Ted Drewes of north county, with the exception that in addition to frozen custard, it offers a selection of sandwiches and soups. However, it is similar to Drewes in the sense that it appears to be a community gathering place, and drew a steady stream of customers during our visit in the latter part of Sunday evening.

I had a Dusty Road sundae. I have a fondness for malts and anything that has malt powder in/on it, so when I saw the malt powder mentioned on the menu, that clinched it! It was really, really yummy.

Mmmm, donuts!

I do love me some donuts now and then. I also love to cycle. An online acquaintance said he was putting together a ride that would tour five south St. Louis city donuts shops today. Oh yeah, I'm in!!

I lit out from home near Carondelet Park, north on Grand, east on Forest Park Parkway, north on Euclid, east on Lindell, north on DeBaliviere to our meeting place at Forest Park Parkway and DeBaliviere MetroLink station. One of the riders was coming from IL, so he was arriving via the MetroLink. Roger is a stalwart cycling supporter and is very instrumental in supporting cycling in the metro-east area. Once Thomas and Arlene arrived, we rolled!

We did a partial loop around Forest Park's trail system, ultimately ending up near the police horse stables, where we used an underground tunnel to pass underneath I-64 (or 40, as most people call it). Avoiding the fast Kingshighway traffic, we traveled through the Hill's quiet streets, winding through the neighborhood until we got onto Shaw, crossed Kingshighway there, and not long after that, we found ourselves in front of World's Fair Donuts (1904 S. Vandeventer). It was about 6.3 miles of pedaling from the MetroLink stop to arrive at our first donut destination.

From Donut Cycling...

I was fascinated watching the man who was producing donuts. He expertly cut them from the dough, and flipped them onto his thumb in what could be described as a miniature version of a ring toss game. He was fast and efficient. He said those donuts would be ready in 15 minutes. Fresh!!

From Donut Cycling...

Arlene was thoroughly enjoying her donut; you couldn't have stolen that grin from her face!

From Donut Cycling...

Leaving World's Fair donuts, we passed the Botanical Gardens and eventually made our way to one of my favorite shops, Eddie's Southtown Donuts (4701 S. Kingshighway). His donuts are light as air and melt in your mouth! He remembered seeing me in when I had a sling on my shoulder earlier this year (due to an off-road cycling mishap), so he seemed glad to see that I was back on the bike and that I brought friends!

From Donut Cycling...

After Eddie's, we headed to Hampton Avenue with the intent to go to St. Louis Hills Donut shop (6917 Hampton Ave.). Unfortunately, even though the shop's posted hours are 5 AM - Noon, and we were there about 11:52 AM, their shop was closed. Oh well, their loss!

At this point, since I was so close to home, I broke off from the ride and headed to my parish. The other three riders in the group were going on to the Donut Drive-In (6525 Chippewa near Watson) and then to O'fashion Donuts (5120 Southwest), then back to the Forest Park MetroLink station.

Conveniently enough to the purpose of my ride today, my parish was having its monthly "donut Sunday", so I popped into the parish hall to chat with some folks. I managed to stuff a jelly donut from the parish inside a bag with 2 donut holes from Eddie's, then stuff that into one of my jersey pockets without squishing any of the jelly out. I deserve some kind of award for that.

After I got home, I threw on the cozy robe and plopped down at the 'puter with the donuts, a hot steaming drink, and a cuddly cat.

From Donut Cycling...

Ah, sweet reward!

Check out more pics of the trip in this slideshow: