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Posts Tagged ‘St Paul MN’

Wordless Wednesday

Posted in Wordless Wednesday, tagged , , on December 9, 2015| Leave a Comment »

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Culture Vultures

Posted in Everyday, tagged , , , on July 8, 2015| 3 Comments »

Hello!  I feel like it’s been forever since I’ve talked to you all!  I’m so behind in keeping up with the happenings at the Auntie B’s Wax World Headquarters, both professionally and personally.  But as we all know Blog Time isn’t necessarily the same as Real Time, so whatever I post will be appreciated no matter how far behind it is, right?

Enough with the time tricks and riddles.  Husby and I spent a marvelous evening out for his birthday.  Okay, so his birthday was way back in May, but you can’t fault me for giving him the gift of an experience (rather than a ‘thing’) which took place over a month following his actual birthday.  Here are two things you have to know before you can appreciate the gift I gave him.

1.  Husby was raised in a family that loved musicals.  South Pacific is his favorite, but he can sing and/or quote many musical productions, especially those produced in the ’50s and ’60.

2.  Husby loves baseball.  OK, maybe he isn’t a die-hard fan like some other people you may know, but he enjoys keeping up with the scores and listening to or watching a game or two on the radio or TV, and loves to see a game in person now and again.  (Note to self – take Husby to a Saint’s game, he would love it.)

What would be a better present for this man than a musical production about baseball?!  I bought tickets to Damn Yankees –  a musical about baseball!  We gussied up and trotted to downtown St. Paul for an evening of dining and theater.

We began our night at Kincaid’s with a cocktail (or two) and an appetizer to share – a platter of melt-in-your-mouth steak bites, coconut shrimp, and crab-artichoke dip with delectable bread.  We felt absolutely glam with the service and food provided to us.

Afterwards we took the short walk across Rice Park to the Ordway Theater for the Performing Arts and settled in for an evening of great fun.

The pre-theater appetizers were to die for, the play was outstanding, and on our walk back to the parking ramp we were serenaded by a festival of sorts in Rice Park with live music.  All in all it was a glamorous evening in the city.

Happy birthday to Husby!

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Enter Weekend, Stage Left

Posted in Holidays, tagged , , , , , , , on November 29, 2012| 5 Comments »

Today marks the beginning of my weekend.  I like to take long weekends this time of year. 

For a long time this particular weekend has been reserved for two things.

1)  Holiday shopping at the Landmark Center Old-Fashioned Holiday Bazaar in St. Paul, MN with Charlotte and our mom. 

After that little shopping excursion we go out for a nice bowl of lobster bisque and popovers. 

2) Decking the halls at my own house.  Christmas music will be blaring and evergreen needles will be scratching.  I’ll be trying to hide the holes of the Christmas tree against the wall and most likely cursing at the many strings of lights.  But in the end I’ll be so happy to see the tree shimmering with all its tinsel and sparkly ornaments.  By Sunday the whole house will be filled with the sights, sounds, and aromas of Christmas, and will remain that way until the twelve days of Christmas are over on January 6.

It’s going to be a Christmasy weekend, and I’ll probably even make time to watch Rudolph, The Red-Nosed Reindeer. 

But before all of that happens Husby and I are meeting up with Ruthie and Ray for a sorely-needed Dive Night.  It’s been a while.  I don’t want to divulge the location of this culinary treasure, but it begins with V and ends with FW.  Should be an interesting evening, and I’ll be sure to chronicle the whole event for you next week.

Although it’s only Thursday I’ll bid you a happy weekend as I’ll be too busy shopping, slurping bisque and slathering my popover with butter to write a post tomorrow. 

Have a merry weekend everyone!

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Dive Night – The Countryside

Posted in Dive Night, tagged , , , , on May 10, 2012| 3 Comments »

Dive Night is a once monthly adventure undertaken by me and Husby, along with our friends Ruthie and Ray. Each couple alternates choosing a restaurant, one which must come under the category of “dive.” Our definition of dive: a neighborhood gathering spot with a laid-back atmosphere and good food. We’ll find the interesting hang-outs in the Minneapolis/St Paul area. Casual attire required. A sip of beer or wine doesn’t hurt either.

We were treated to a different kind of dive this month.  The Countryside is a family restaurant, which is a change from the typical bar-type place we visit.  However, it still falls under our category in that it’s not a chain, it’s neighborhoody, casual, and the food was fabulous.

The Countryside has been around since 1958 so they must be doing something right.  I know what it is too ~ the food.  They specialize in broasted chicken.  According to my mom, good broasted chicken is a rare commodity and any restaurant serving good broasted chicken should be frequented often.

Their menu isn’t huge but is filled with some good things.  Strange combos too, like chicken and spaghetti, but again, if it works for the customers then more power to them.  We started out with some appetizers, as usual.  Delish.

Gigantic onion rings ~ crispy and hot

Mini tacos with a taco sauce dip

The onion rings came in a full and half order; our waitress recommended getting the full order for four people.  HA!  A half order would have been plenty for us, especially considering the second appetizer of mini tacos.  But never fear, we cleaned them up because they were so dang good.  The tacos were pretty tasty too.  I want to know where I can buy little tiny taco shells so I can make these at home.

The Countryside serves bottled beer and Mike’s Hard Lemonade, but doesn’t have a bar.  The service was cute.  By that I mean they are young, really young, just starting out and learning how to be servers and busboys.  (Bus people?)  We were asked to save our forks when the appetizer plates were taken away, and when Ruthie asked for another iced tea the waitress took her existing glass, still half full, and just topped it off.  See?  Kind of cute.

But more about the food.  It was hot.  Like, really hot.  So hot it made a big impression on me.  It was a good hot.  And the flavor, ooh yeah.  Very good.  Very, very good.

Clam Chowder ~ not pasty with an appetizing golden color. Some of the best chowder I’ve had in a very long time.

Chicken Sandwich ~ huge! Really good, crispy, and tender. Served with fries and coleslaw. I had to ask for additional mayo, but other than that it was fabulous.

Husby’s Steak Sandwich ~ more delicious onion rings on top! Perfectly done in his opinion. Also served with fries and coleslaw.

Ray ordered the broasted chicken and spaghetti combo. The chicken deserves bragging rights, he said. This combo also included a big stack of bread and butter.

Ruthie got the spaghetti and chicken parmesan combo. She loved it!

My camera shots of the interior of the restaurant didn’t turn out very well.  I’ll say it was a well-kept, clean, and brightly-lit establishment.  We saw families as well as young couples on dates.  The Countryside is a nice restaurant, and I was really impressed with the food.  It was so hot!  (Did I mention that already?)  Not only that, it was very delicious and plentiful.

If you want to take the family out for a good meal without spending a fortune The Countryside is a good choice for eating in or take-out.  Located in beautiful Roseville, MN it’s easy to reach from either end of the Twin Cities.  We gave it four thumbs up!

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