Pleasant Grove Pizza Farm

Took a trip down to Waseca, MN to this delightful pizza farm. We tried the Buster: a mushroom & sage olive oil, sausage, fresh basil, mushrooms, caramelized onions, fresh mozzarella 16 in wood fire pizza. We loved the food and the farm! The farm is a cozy place with a pen of alpacas and goats, trails to explore, yard games, and space for kids to run around and play while waiting for their food. You can also sit and enjoy the sounds of local live music. You are encouraged to byo seating, utensils, plates, and sides should you choose. On this gorgeous day, we were pleasantly surprised to find it mosquito free (no small feat for a MN summer evening!) We cannot wait to return to enjoy this experience again! https://pleasantgrovepizzafarm.com/

The Landing on Madison, Madison Lake, MN

Let me start with saying I came on a day they had an event going on, so it was BUSY!

Ordered Steak Bites with Horseradish Sauce. Ordered medium rare: came out well done. But the creamy Horseradish Sauce was smooth and delicious… could have a little more Horseradish for my liking,  but still great for the average taster!
Save a Horse was the name of the drink special I decided to try.  The description is Pendleton Whiskey with lemon juice and simple syrup topped with soda water. It was good. I always enjoy Pendleton. But I can’t say the drink was something to come down for and order. 
Bar Nachos were good and a fair size portion for a reasonable price.

A-Tavern in Arlington MN

Ceasar Salad was good,  but nothing over the top
Prime Rib Hougie: Shaved prime rib with sauteed mushrooms and onions topped with provolone on a hougie with horseradish aioli, and au jus sauce for dinner.The handheld tavern fries were perfectly seasoned. This might be a perfect lunch mealat this place!
Portobello Sandwich: Grilled portobello mushroom with sunride tomatoes, provolone, arugula and avocado chimichurri was good but nothing spectacular or memorable.
Chicken Bacon Foccacia Sandwich: Grilled chicken breast with bacon, lettuce, tomato, avocado spread, and sundried tomato aioli.
Children’s Smores Pancakes were kid approved.

We started our meal with delicious Bourbon Blazed Brussel Sprouts smothered in bacon and soaked in a glaze (sorry no pic). The wood firing added a delicious twist and our group indulged.

I asked for a house Cabernet. They served Scarlet Vine Cab and I wasn’t loving it.  😕

Our server,  Jordan, was incredibly attentive and wonderful, but didn’t get his name until the bill came.

Overall the food was good.  The atmosphere and service was superb! I will try again, but not sure about lunch. Next time maybe supper.

Cheddars Scratch Kitchen in Mission TX

You can tell I’m a girl from small town MN… I’d never heard of this chain before, but they are everywhere in Texas. I decided on giving it a try. Everything was good. Good food. Great price. Okay service. Good atmosphere. I think it’s a great option for a stable meal and I’ll do it again, but I won’t go searching for it.

Half rack of our slow-smoked baby back ribs with grilled shrimp, served with loaded baked potato (not worth the up-charge) and cheesy broccoli casserole (our entire table agreed that it’s a hard pass).

Ribs were awesome! Perfectly cooked. The sweet and tangy BBQ sauce was delicious. Lots of good meat. Leftovers were a treat!

Grilled salmon over rice was nicely seasoned. Can’t go wrong with a classic baked potato and steamed broccoli.
Whole rack of ribs was huge. As described above, it was meaty and even warmed up great for leftovers.

Wisconsin weekend

After a morning of shopping we enjoyed a light lunch at Buck & Honey in Sun Prairie. I enjoyed the Caprese Avocado & Shirmp Salad. Perfect flavor blend. Avocado with fresh mozzarella, heirloon cherry tomatoes, and basil pesto over a bed of mixed greens with marinated shrimp, drizzled with balsamic glaze and topped with microgreens. I wish the shrimp had been tailless because it made it messy to take them off. It was a large fresh salad that I will be ordering again. https://sunprairie.buckandhoneys.com/sun-prairie-buck-and-honey-s-sun-prairie-food-menu
Saturday night is for pizza! We partook in the BRAT-ober Pizza. It was delicious. The hand tossed crust was perfect for someone who loves both thin and think crust. Creamy garlic cheese sauce and then top it with their signature cheese, smoked brats, caramelized onions and a swirl of bbq. The bbq sauce was a little sweet but it really was great.
The other pizza we had Saturday night was the Yahara Chicken Alfredo. Alfredo sauce, spinach, chicken, mushrooms, and roasted garlic. It was such a good blend of flavors. The only downside was the roasted garlic was full cloves and I would have preferred minced cloves of garlic. Hands down would eat here again. Sugar River Pizza Verona location. https://www.sugarriverpizza.com
Blind Shot for non-alcoholic drinks before the show. BRENT’S BUTTERNUT SQUASH BISQUE with shrimp added in. It was very filling, I could only eat half of it! I definitely would recommend having shrimp added in. That added great flavor. My pregnant friend loved the non-alcoholic drink selection. I had the I’M A FIDDLE PLAYER TOO it had Maker’s Mark Bourbon, Peach, Thyme, Honey, and Cardamom. It was smooth and had just enough sweetness.
https://www.blindshotsocialclub.com/

Knickerbocker on the Lake, Milwaukee WI

“The best salad of my life” was the quote from a friend. This shrimp salad was light, fresh, and the perfect size. Blackened shrimp with field greens, diced tomatoes, diced mangos, feta, and avocado. It was dressed with a fabulous green onion vinaigrette that blended all the flavors together. Must try!

Salmon salad, this was also a delightful salad with a light red wine vinaigrette. This salad featured grilled salmon, field greens, croutons, fresh dill, capers, radish, cucumbers, Roma tomatoes, and shredded Parmesan. It wasn’t as flavorful as the shrimp salad but was still good.

Salmon on a bed of couscous with grilled asparagus and lobster bisque. The salmon flaked into the lobster bisque and melted with the couscous. The asparagus gave a crisp bite to the meal and rounded off the full flavor.

Our drinks consisted of : *Rosebud Martini with ketel One Citron vodka, strawberry puree, rose syrup, fresh lemon and sparkling wine. *Pear flour martini made with gray goose la peoire time, St. Germain grapefruit juice, fresh lemon, simple syrup and a twist. * Cucumber rose cocktail made with liquid geography. Rose muddled cucumber molin rose syrup, lemon juice and club soda.

Italian lemon cream cake. The cake was light and fluffy and a crisp spring flavor to the soothing cream filling. The lemon was not overwhelming and really was a great way to end the meal.

Ahi tuna dinner. This dish had a surprise kick to it. The sesame crusted tuna was accompanied by a chopped Brussels sprout and lettuce salad and a bed of rice. Drizzled atop the dish was a Japanese dressing that packed a punch but it was very flavorful. It wasn’t hot for the sake of being hot.
Vanilla bean cheese cake. The flavors were alright. The caramel topping was ok but not great. Sadly the cheese cake was the wrong consistency which resulted in a mealy texture.

Lacey’s in Kenyon, MN

Toasted pound cake with strawberries and whipped cream. Light fluffy doesn’t lack flavor. Reminiscent of a French toast flavor but with a lovely moist pound cake. Fresh whipped cream would be only improvement.

Vanilla bean ice cream. Think cracker like brownie wafer. Heavy fudgy brownie. The ice cream was delightful with thin caramel and chocolate sauce. The fudge brownie had thick caramel and chopped walnuts. It was a little rich but still good. The brownie wafer with the ice cream would have been satisfying alone.

https://www.laceyskc.com/

Dolsie’s Lunch Box Grille in St Cloud, MN

If you can find them and make your schedule work with their minimal hours, you will be blown away. Wow. My gyro was delicious. I heard the people around me going on about how delicious their food was as well.

You can’t leave without dessert! OMG these cupcakes are amazingly delicious! Pictured is the cherry almond. We also tried a caramel wedding cake. The moist cake melts in your mouth. The frosting was sweet but not a ‘crazy can’t finish it’ kind of sweet.

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