Brunch was at Bouchon, a much-reviewed and lauded bistro, and as it is a Thomas Keller restaurant, I had high hopes for it. I wasn’t disappointed. While we waited for our table on the patio, the aroma of fresh pastry nearly drove me crazy – Bouchon is also a bakery. By the time we were seated, we agreed that we definitely needed to try the basket of assorted pastries. Alongside Doug’s superb coffee and my cappuccino, this would have been enough to feed the two of us for breakfast – and maybe a snack later. Chocolate croissants, flat pastries not resembling a crescent in any way, with SLABS of chocolate inside. Strawberry-filled beignets. Almond croissants, flat again, filled and studded with pieces of the nuts. It was way too much, and sensibly, we both tried just a taste. After all, we still needed to eat brunch!

And what a brunch. Doug ordered corned beef hash, and what arrived was a dish of succulent diced meat, topped with two perfectly poached eggs. It was a far cry from the usual mélange of mostly potatoes you find at other places. I succumbed to a signature Thomas Keller dish, a version of a BLT (the waiter’s description was just too much for me to resist – he should receive a commission for his sales pitch!). This was unlike any other BLT I’ve ever had – a slice of toasted French bread, topped with the requisite tomato and lettuce, but with an herb-seasoned mayonnise. Instead of bacon, it was covered with pork belly, diced pieces of crispy heaven…and to top it all off, two eggs, again perfectly poached. The side dish of potatoes with caramelized onions was wonderful, but it was just too much food, so I shared it with Doug. Can you believe we never even thought to take a photo?

The waiter packaged the pastries for us in a pretty box, popped that into a pretty bag, and off we went. On the way out the door, I stopped dead. An oyster bar! Row upon row of oysters, different varieties of the little beauties shining in a sea of ice. Oh, if only I had known this the night before, we could have had dinner at Bouchon instead of Dos Caminos. On the other hand, there was the tequila…

The next event of the day was something I was really looking forward to doing, but, even though Doug was humouring me by participating, I don’t think he was really looking forward to it. Good sport that he is, though, he soon found himself standing beside me gazing at a 40 foot high climbing wall.

I’m sure he was regretting ever having been roped into this. On our earlier visit to inspect the gym facilities in our hotel (part of the Canyon Ranch Spa), I was entranced by the wall, and kept returning to it again and again. This was something I had always wanted to try, and when he realized I was actually serious, Doug agreed to join me… probably because this was my birthday weekend. And because he is well-versed in “Indulgent Husband 101”:)  His only remark, though, was “You do realize this is equivalent to climbing a four-story building?”

Our belayer, Sue, soon had us outfitted in climbing gear…harnesses, helmets, and shoes. What a pair of geeks… though as a cyclist, Doug is used to looking like one (ha ha, Charlie. You too!) But can you believe it? No camera or phone again. We went back later to take the photos that follow.

There were four courses on the wall, ranging from introductory to difficult. After a brief chat and some quick instruction, Sue decided we looked fit enough to bypass the first wall, and started us on the second climb instead. I went first. It was an absolute and total rush and before I knew it, I had reached the top. I tapped the bar at the top, and bounced my way back down the wall (I hesitate to describe my technique as rappelling…). That was fun, too. Then it was time for Doug. Initially he seemed reluctant about the idea of the whole ordeal, but once on the wall, he was Spiderman! Where I methodically picked and chose my hand and footholds, he just flew up the side of the rock face. And loved it, too!

The second climb was more difficult, but we both made it to the top without much trouble. It was time to consider the difficult course. Sue had told us that most beginners just don’t have enough energy or strength for more than two climbs, and that we could quit if we wanted – but we didn’t want to. I was determined I was going to make it to the top of this course, too, even though there was a large outcropping to get over very near the top. Alas, it wasn’t to be. After my third attempt to get over the ledge, my shoulders were aching and my arms were quivering. I had fallen once (good catch, Sue!), taken a break to stretch my arms, and been coached by Sue that, because I was short, I had to take a leap of faith, take both my right hand and right leg off the wall at the same time, and push myself off my left leg in order to reach the next holds. Climbing, it seems, is more about pushing off with the legs than pulling up with the arms, but it is hard to let go when you know you can’t reach the next hold without what is, essentially, a large lunge off one foot into thin air. I had to admit defeat.

Doug, with his longer arms and legs, managed the first part of the climb easily, but then he, too, got stuck at the outcrop. Because he has so much more upper body strength than I, he had been relying on his arms even more heavily than I had, and after a few attempts, it was obvious even from 30 feet below that his arms were quivering. He, too, admitted defeat, and rappelled down the rock face much more elegantly than I.Click to view slideshow.

But we really didn’t care that we hadn’t quite made it. We were both high from the experience, and thrilled with having discovered a new challenge we both enjoy. We will definitely be doing this again, and next time I’m in Las Vegas, I will make it over that ledge!

To celebrate, we headed back up to our room for a nutritious post-workout snack – Diet Coke and the box of pastries. The WHOLE box. But no beer. My trainer would be so proud of me…

(This is already a long post and I’ve only reached 3 p.m.  The next ten hours of our day will have to wait until tomorrow.)

Las Vegas. So many love to hate it. Doug and I, on the other hand, love to love it. We have had many fun jaunts to this decadent desert city over the years, and this past weekend’s trip stands to be remembered as one of our very best.

It was a quick trip – we arrived at the Venetian on Friday and headed back home on Sunday – but though it was short in duration, it was very long on memorable experiences. Friday, after checking in to our hotel, we headed out to grab a burger for lunch, and as “i love burgers” was just a short walk along the indoor canal, that was where we headed. It was a reasonably good experience, but frankly, not because of the burgers. Doug and I are burger aficionados and we are always on the quest for the perfect burger, a task that is thoroughly enjoyable in beef-rich Texas (Tim Love’s “Dirty Love Burger” ranks high on our list of favourites). But living in a state that has such fabulous beef has made us a tad more discerning than most, we find… especially when we travel to other places. Still, ever-hopeful, I plunged in and ordered the ” i love bacon” burger – I mean, bacon, folks! With fried onions! How bad could it be?

“Fairly” was the answer. This was just a mediocre burger at best, hidden under way too many pieces of deep-fried onion. Not even the bacon could rescue it.

Doug, quite sensibly as it turned out, ordered “The Oregon Trail”, which was actually a buffalo burger, and it was much better.

These hand-cut chips were actually very good.

But the highlight of the meal turned out to be the beer. Yeah, we’re beer aficionados too… The beer was a local brew, Tenaya Craft IPA, and while I wouldn’t rank it as the best I’ve ever had, it was pretty good. So, always happy to find a new beverage, I considered the meal a success.

After lunch, it was off to the casino. I’m not much of a gambler, and for a very good reason – I ALWAYS lose. Well, frankly, I think that most people do, and I’m just more honest than most. Either that, or I’m just really cheap, because I really hate giving my money away. Doug, on the other hand, enjoys a certain limited success, and so I watched him for a while. After I’d blown my whole twenty bucks (See? Cheap!)

The man and his favourite Wheel of Fortune machine. He actually won a lot, but of course, he just kept playing til it was all gone...

We took a tour of the hotel after that, and as I had never seen the Palazzo addition, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Yes, it’s all fake, and yes, it’s tacky-glam, but Vegas is so much fun if you can let go of pretensions and snobbery, and relax into the moment. After all, this is really just Disney World for adults. I love it! Even the super-fake water features…

Why no... I didn't safari to Victoria Falls in a sundress and heels...

... I merely accompanied this man to a much tamer version. Complete with lily pond. (Love the purse, Doug...)

We headed back to our room. Well… there was a stop at Sin City Brewing Company to quaff a quick one… okay two. Gotta count the traveller. These were also IPAs…  not nearly as good as the Tenaya, but they hit the spot. Afterward, we relaxed for a bit before venturing out to dinner.

Okay. Above I just recounted how, living in Texas, we enjoy an elevated standard of beef, and how that can make us picky when we travel. So, with the sheer number of Mexican and Tex-Mex restaurants we frequent at home, you wouldn’t think we’d pick a place called “Dos Caminos” for our first dinner of the weekend, would you? Wrong. But this place came well recommended by multiple ‘foodie’ sites, received high praise from local Las Vegas food writers – with Hispanic surnames – and even looked elegant and promising when we checked it out earlier in the day. And our meal actually started out well.

First, we had a tequila tasting, anejos in a flight, and it was a great way to start a meal. With it, we ordered the signature guacamole trio, and it, too was wonderful. But the accompanying chips were just plain awful. They were tasteless and insipid and seemingly stale, and so we sent them back. The replacement basket wasn’t any better. I guess we should have paid the extra charge to have raw vegetables as an accompaniment, instead. But ever optimistic, we enjoyed the end of the guacamole and tequila, ordered a margarita (quite good), and waited for dinner to arrive. What followed was a prettily arranged meal that looked much better than it tasted. Oh, it was adequate, but certainly nothing to write home about.

My "Cochinita Pibil". Slow-roasted suckling pig, sauteed plantains, habanero pickled onions and achiote sauce. Billed as Hot! (two flaming skulls), but believe me, it wasn't.

Doug's "Dos Enchiladas". Chicken in corn tortillas, with mole poblano and tomatillo verde (at least I think that's what he had...)

It was an average meal, watered down for the average indifferent eater, but priced at a level that only an enthusiast wouldn’t mind paying. I couldn’t help but compare it to a recent meal of pit-barbequed pig at Baja, a pretty little restaurant near us, in Southlake. The food at Baja, authentic Mexican, was three times as good as this, and the price was less than half. Sigh. But they say travel broadens the mind, so I decided to just chalk this up to experience. And the amount of tequila I’d ingested certainly helped

So at the end of day one, we certainly hadn’t hit any home runs with the meals we’d had – and not even the decent quality of the beverages really made up for that. But our luck was about to change – though not in the casino! Day two was about to give us pay-back for our optimism.

But that’s a story for tomorrow.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Beer, Birthdays, Food, Restaurant Reviews, Restaurants ]]> http://paythepiper.wordpress.com/2011/08/03/eating-las-vegas-or-maybe-that-should-be-drinking/feed/ 7 IMG_0139 paythepiper IMG_0135 IMG_0137 IMG_0139 IMG_0141 IMG_0147 IMG_0151 IMG_0156 IMG_0159 http://paythepiper.wordpress.com/2011/05/31/barbeque-and-of-course-beer/ http://paythepiper.wordpress.com/2011/05/31/barbeque-and-of-course-beer/#comments Tue, 31 May 2011 12:48:37 +0000 paythepiper http://paythepiper.wordpress.com/?p=6527 ]]> Another “B” post… no baseball this time, but most definitely beer.

And barbeque. It was Memorial Day weekend, after all. So we fired up the smoker, and a few hours later, this is what we ate:

We nailed the brisket this time, Charlie… absolutely wonderful. Seriously… and not just because we were drinking Jockamo…

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Barbeque, Family, Memorial Day ]]> http://paythepiper.wordpress.com/2011/05/31/barbeque-and-of-course-beer/feed/ 3 DSC_0120_2 paythepiper http://paythepiper.wordpress.com/2011/05/30/rangers-vs-royals-and-a-lot-of-food/ http://paythepiper.wordpress.com/2011/05/30/rangers-vs-royals-and-a-lot-of-food/#comments Mon, 30 May 2011 20:37:16 +0000 paythepiper http://paythepiper.wordpress.com/?p=6520 ]]> Sunday afternoon at The Ballpark in Arlington. What fun!

It was a hot but breezy day, and we started out in our seats. But as the shade began to disappear, we adjourned to the air-conditioned Upper Home Run Porch and the temptations of the all-you-can-eat buffet. Oh, and the siren song of beer, of course!

The all-Ironman crew...

...well, with one hold-out...

Time for a swirl!

...and some peanuts. (We've already eaten the hot dogs, chicken sandwiches, and nachos.)

Heading for home. My handsome husband.

Oh, and the Rangers won, too. A perfect day!

I love baseball. My husband loves baseball. My father-in-law loves baseball. My mother-in-law is a good sport who tolerates baseball. But the one thing we all have in common? We love to eat. So the “all you can eat” tickets we had to the Rangers vs Royals game were a great idea. In a superficial, totally fun sort of way, it doesn’t get much better than baseball, beer and junk food.

But beyond beer and baseball, today is bittersweet for me, because it is also my mom’s birthday. She would have been 75 today, and while one birthday shouldn’t be any more important than another, this is one we did talk about – for obvious reasons in the last year, of  course, as it was one she really hoped to attain. But also, in years past, because my mom was exactly 20 years older than I. That one weird little fact always made some birthdays more important to us than others… For instance, when she was 50, I was 30 – we always shared important “milestone” birthday years.

And 75 is certainly a milestone year.

But this time, she isn’t here. And on this milestone birthday of hers, I was occupied with people other than my mother, watching an activity  she didn’t much care for, and drinking a beverage she actually hated.

Yet  I know she was smiling. Even though we couldn’t share this day, I like to think she knows I spent it with family. Enjoying something that I love. And sharing the experience with those who love it too.

Love has many incarnations, I’m learning, and sometimes, it isn’t until we’re forced to change that we can actually see them.

Happy Birthday, Mom. I miss you. But as I’m sure you already know, I’m okay.

Mom's 74th birthday, 2010. And the card was true - she remained young in spirit to the end.

Filed under: Uncategorized Tagged: Family, Life, Mothers ]]> http://paythepiper.wordpress.com/2011/05/29/baseball-beer-birthdays-and-love/feed/ 1 IMG_0889 paythepiper IMG_0889 http://paythepiper.wordpress.com/2011/05/28/vicarious-vacations/ http://paythepiper.wordpress.com/2011/05/28/vicarious-vacations/#comments Sun, 29 May 2011 02:11:33 +0000 paythepiper http://paythepiper.wordpress.com/?p=6494 ]]> So…today, Jennifer sent me this pic, accompanied by the following text: “View from the Kiva Coffee House between Escalante & Boulder, Utah. Headed to Boulder for the day. Late breakfast at Hell’s Backbone Grill then on to Burr Trail & wherever that leads us. “

Jen, Larry and the “girls” (Ellie, Katie and Abbie) are on a much-needed break from real life and I’ve been cheering them on from the sidelines. But I didn’t even realize how much I need a vacation too, until I saw this. And I’m not even a fan of the desert…

Envy. Complete, and total.

Have fun, dear friends.

It was a private joke, a little jest based on the fact that Doug has never wanted a tattoo of any kind – that is, until he took up triathlon. The crazy sport that changed his life – our life! – in so many ways, also changed his mind about getting a tattoo. He suddenly decided he wanted one – not just any tattoo, of course, but an Ironman tattoo. An M-Dot.

But first, he had to actually complete an Ironman, for this is not a tattoo to be sported lightly. It must be earned. And Saturday night, Doug did just that. What was once a dream, a goal seemingly far in the future, became a reality the moment he crossed the finish line of the Memorial Hermann Ironman. With a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride, and a 26.2-mile run – 140.6 gruelling miles in total – under his belt, he joined that small group of  people who can officially wear the title of Ironman. And I, accompanied by his mom and dad, was lucky to be there to witness the moment.

One day very soon, he will be sporting real ink, the tattoo that he has earned the right to wear. For now, though, the “M-dot” is just a fake – a small joke from a wife who knows that his accomplishment is anything but.

Congratulations, Doug.

Do...

...and Garnet...

...both had LOTS of shrimp, though cooked differently.

Doug and I, on the other hand....

We really did eat, not just drink beer. I’m just not sure what happened to my brilliant photos. I had oysters-on-the-half-shell (wow, my new favourite!) and rare Ahi tuna with wasabi cream, while Doug opted for grilled redfish, andouille sausage and dirty rice. There was a LOT of food on that table, and I haven’t even mentioned the salads, bread or Do’s bananas Foster…

Today, we toned it down a tad by going to Chuy’s for lunch. Oh, all right, it was still a lot of food, but at least there was no wine or beer.

Being good... even the "signs you need a drink" sign didn't make me fall off the wagon.

There were chips, though... and Do, sporting her new Ironman lid!

 We did actually accomplish supporting our favourite athlete in non-food ways, too. First, we accompanied him to the venue so he could set up his transition areas:

A man and his bike...heading into the venue.

In the bike transition area.

Do and Garnet.

Heading to stow his gear bag. Doug & the 'rents.

And afterward,  we did a little shopping with him at the Ironman store. Last, but not least, his wife and his mama staged a fashion show of cowboy hats – my ancient, battered old favourite, and Do’s brand-spankin’ new Ironman.

In the lounge back at the hotel. A little break before we head out...

to eat again. Now that's a sobering thought...

Tonight’s agenda: Carb-loading at Macaroni Grill. But honestly, I don’t really think I can handle being quite this supportive. I think I’m going to have to pass on the pasta and opt for lighter fare. Call me an uncaring wife if you want, but I’m running out of clothes that fit…