"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night."

This holiday season was a whirlwind.  Given our hectic schedules we had no choice but to focus all of our shopping in two isolated outings.  The good news, however, was that each outing provided an excuse for some delicious food up as a respite from the holiday crowds.

First stop, Dandelion - Stephen Starr's homey throwback to the traditional British pub.  Dandelion has a wonderful ambiance, complete with a wide selection of delicious beer on tap (there was even a soccer game on the tube the Saturday morning we stopped in).  B and I both opted for the English breakfast.

Fried eggs paired with baked beans, thick sourdough toast, a roasted tomato, mushrooms, bacon, a traditional Cumberland sausage, and black pudding.  Black pudding, aka blood sausage, is a type of sausage that is made by cooking blood or dried blood with a filler until it is thick enough to congeal when cooled.  It sounds gross but it was great.  We fell in love with this dish, and Dandelion itself, instantly.

Second stop, lunch at Oyster House.  Centered around the raw oyster bar (at which they do $1 oyster happy hours 5 days a week) with oyster plates lining the walls, Oyster house is a charming place to indulge in some fresh seafood.  B started with the clam chowder, while I opted for a green salad.

The salad was nicely dressed with a zesty lemon vinaigrette, and the chowder was hearty and creamy.  As an added bonus, while we waited for our main course at the oyster bar we were given a few oysters gratis.  Can't beat that.  For lunch I had the lobster roll and B the clam roll, both with homemade chips.

The clam roll was great, but that lobster roll cannot be beat.  The roll is perfectly toasted with a bit of butter on each side and the lobster is dressed to perfection.  If the chips had had a bit more old bay seasoning it would literally be perfection on a plate.

Next stop, an early Christmas celebration with B's family at his parent's house.  After presents and a great meal courtesy of my mother-in-law, we enjoyed her homemade Christmas cookies.

[B's grandfather, Poppy, playing with his cookies... I wish I could say this was the result of too much wine but all the boys seem to find it hilarious to play with any item of food or tableware that can be made into "eyes" like this.  I know, I don't get it either]

Since we had seen B's family for our early Christmas celebration, and we were heading out of town for vacation with my family on Christmas day, we decided to spend a nice night at home alone on Christmas eve.  We started with a plate of pepperoni, pear, honey, and a wonderful hard cheese (unfortunately I cannot recall the name).

After appetizers and presents, we enjoyed a beef lasagna and garlic bread from Georgetti's with a simple balsamic vinaigrette. 

It was simple (just pop the lasagna in the oven for an hour and 25 minutes, and the bread for 15 minutes, both at 350, and you're ready to enjoy) and delicious.  After dinner we watched a bit of It's a Wonderful Life before turning in so we could wake fully rested and ready for our vacation.

Turks and Caicos here we come!

“Good-night to the Season! - Another Will come, with its trifles and toys, And hurry away, like its brother, In sunshine, and odor, and noise”

I have to apologize up front... I have been completely lax in my blogging of late.  I've been crazy at work, gearing up for the holidays, yada yada.  In any event, I'm here now and there's been a ton going on.

First, I turned 29 - and so starts the victory lap of my 20s.  For my birthday B and I went to Amada and had a fantastic meal.  Without getting into details you must must must stop by at least try the Manchego cheese with lavender honey and the "ensalada de jamon" - dressed salad with spiced almonds and figs wrapped in serrano ham... yum and yum.  The following night we went with B's family to Zama where we especially loved the spicy crunchy salmon roll (just a spicy salmon roll rolled in delicious little crunchy poppers) and the Vetri roll (so named because it was created by Mark Vetri as part of an initiative Zama has developed to pair with celebrity chefs and formulate delicious rolls, the proceeds of which go partially to charity).  The Vetri roll was eel with scallions wrapped in daikon, drizzled with a truffle eel sauce, and topped with cucumber noodles tossed in an uni sauce.  I die.  All-in-all it was a good birthday and a nice way to kick off the season.

Next, B and I went to the 2nd annual Stout and Chowder Festival, benefiting Philadelphia's Independence Seaport Museum.  For a flat fee you got 3 hours of all you can drink delicious Stouts and other winter beers, and all you can eat of four different types of soups and a few other random snack foods.  While we were slightly disappointed in the lack of chowders, and really any substantial food, at the event, the beers were fantastic and it was just crowded enough to be fun without being annoying or overwhelming.

 [me at Stout and Chowder Fest with my complimentary mug]

Two weeks later, it was time for Thanksgiving.  I was lucky enough to have my mom, dad, and baby sister to visit.  Wednesday night we took them for dinner at Osteria, one of our favorites for upscale Italian from chef Mark Vetri.  For starters we had B's and my absolute favorite pizza, the lombarda.

Served on paper thin crust, the lombarda is made with bitto and mozzarella cheese topped with cotechino sausage and a baked egg.  It is simply divine, especially when you get to dip your crust in the left behind egg yolk.

Next we had a few appetizers, including the baby pig's head.

That's right, we were literally served a roasted baby pig's head, complete with tongue.  It looks disgusting, and I myself could not stomach the tongue, but the meat was quite tasty.  I liked it best atop a piece of crusty bread with the marmalade that is served on the side.

For dinner we had a number of pastas, the best of which was a squash lasagna.  I literally exclaimed "shit that's good" when I bit into the lasagna.  Enough said.

After stretching our stomachs Wednesday night, we were ready to put away some turkey at B's parent's house Thursday.  We had a great time, and a great meal thanks to my mother-in-law.

[carving the giant turkey]

Black Friday we did a bit of shopping and then headed to New York to see the Book of Mormon!

[Dad, mom, my sis, and me outside the theater]

[ready for the show!]

The show was hilarious, and the perfect way to end our fun-filled Thanksgiving together.

Saturday night after the family headed back to South Carolina, B and I went with friends and his brothers and our soon-to-be sister-in-law J5 to the Winterbeer Fest at Union Transfer.

 [brothers]

 [the girls]

[AJB, J5, me and B]

It was a much crazier event than the Stout and Chowder Fest with more than triple the breweries, but it was also a cheaper ticket price.  We had a great time and will definitely be back next year.

I think that *almost* brings us up-to-date.  It was a great November, and I can't wait for the holidays!