Let's Have a Little Bit of Fun

I was just visiting over at Kelly's Korner, one of the regular blogs that I read. Kelly's latest post is another "Show Us Your Life". This week, Kelly is doing a little match making and is having "Show Us Your Single Boys or Girls".

I have a cute little single girl I am going to "offer up". All of the kids are married or have found a special significant other except for Janelle.

So, here is to mine and Kelly's matchmaking skills.

Here is the latest picture I have of her from her birthday, last week. She is with her favorite man.

The best word to describe her is she is FUN! Janelle is 23. She graduated from college in 2009 and she also has her Cosmetology License to do hair. She has a full time job at a local church. She is a strong Christian, so if you are looking for a party girl, you will have to look elsewhere, but she is guaranteed to give you a fun time.

Brownstone

Another great new discovery on Crockett Street (on the corner of Crockett and Currie) is the Brownstone. It is owned by Casey Thompson, who was a contestant on Top Chef, where she became well known.

The Brownstone has two concepts. One is to use locally grown produce and meats and the other concept is "small plates". You can order several smaller portions and get more of a variety.

We had a salad and three small plates. The salad was not your usual lettuce and dressing that Pops so loves. This salad had fresh okra, squash, turnips and other unidentifiable vegetables. Next time, we would probably skip the salad.

I will see if I can accurately describe what we had. First we had a small cast iron skillet that was filled with orange chicken. It was very spicy and sweet and oh so good. It was a little messy because it was on the bone. Next we had the "Grandmother's Biscuit Pan". It was three homemade biscuits with homemade venison sausage and of course homemade strawberry preserves. Really good. We then had what was called "Pork and Peppers". It was a piece of pork belly, baby bell peppers with homemade ricotta, Texas honey and jalapeno oil. Good but very rich.

I saw several other entrees that I would like to try next time. They had some larger plates for those who would prefer just a regular entree. Desserts looked good, but we were too full for anything else. Can't wait to go back.

I LOVE Crockett Street

We first discovered Crockett Street in Ft. Worth about 6 months ago. There was hardly anything open yet, but it looked like a really neat area. We ate at Tillman's, which was so disappointing, and we never gave it much thought again


Fast forward to about a month ago. After eating in Ft. Worth and killing some time, we went to Barnes & Noble. While there, I was reading a local magazine that gave a great review for Terra Mediterranean Grill. We drove by and were really impressed by the area. We decided to go to Terra's the following weekend.

The whole area has now filled up and is still filling up. Lots of new restaurants with outside patio's, movie theater, lots of lights and lots of people.

We ordered an appetizer of olives and feta cheese. I wasn't too crazy about it, but Pops loved it. We both ordered the Gyros. I thought it was going to be a sandwich. To our surprise, it was a huge plate of meat. We could have easily split it with plenty of leftovers. It was very good and so was the pita bread that was served with it.

It has a neat atmosphere. It looks like they have a lunch buffet during the week for around $10. That would be a great way to try a bunch of dishes that you wouldn't normally order. Definitely a place to try again.

On a side note, if you plan on going to the movies, buy your tickets in advance. We tried to see Grown Ups on a Saturday night. We went to get tickets about 45 minutes before the movie started and it was sold out. The ticket agent told us that most movies are sold out on the weekends. Buy in advance!

Sweetie Pie's

I have been so neglectful of the blog. I need to update it because I have about four new restaurants that we have tried and actually really liked.

The first of those is Sweetie Pie's. It is located in Decatur and is owned by the family that owns Babe's. Need I say more?

We went on a Friday night. Lots of traffic getting there and it took us about 1 1/2 hours. The way home was much better. It only took about 45 minutes. I am so glad that there was not a wait. Just like Babe's, there is not a great place to wait. There is no extra room inside, so you have to wait outside. Kind of hot on a 100 degree day. No place to sit, but they are kind enough to have a big jug of ice water and some festive Christmas cups. I wasn't sure if that was just a fun little treat, of if they were really left over from Christmas.

The wait was all worth it with the first bite of the roll. I could live on bread alone and this was some of the best I have ever eaten. It was a cross between a yeast roll and a biscuit, but extra sweet. At the end of the day, they slice the leftovers and make croutons for the salad. That made the salad extra good.

Pops had the Ribeye, and I had the Chicken Fried Ribeye. It was probably the best piece of Chicken Fried Steak I have had. Think about it - Ribeye - yum, Babe's chicken coating, double yum. The Ribeye was also very good. The only disappointment was their "special" baked potato. It is dipped in a vat of rosin and wrapped in brown paper, and served with a special butter topping. It sounds much better than it really is. It tasted just like a normal baked potato and not the unusual potato I was expecting.

We were too full to try the desserts that really looked great. It was definitely worth the drive and we will be back for more.

New Restaurant - High Hopes

We are going to Sweetie Pie's this weekend. I have heard great things about it. I hope I will be able to write a glowing review. Looking forward to it. It is owned by the family that owns Babe's, so it HAS to be good.

Hamburger Heaven

About 25 years ago, we discovered an old hamburger place that is still just as good today. Clown Burger in Haltom City, opened up 51 years ago. It used to be on Belknap and moved to it's current location when the building it was in did not pass building code inspections.



The building was pretty rough looking when we first went. I usually am picky about the ambiance, but the food is so good here, I can put my blinders on. It tastes exactly like it did 25 years ago. The "new" place does not look much better. It has a King's Korner (a shrine for Elvis) and clowns hanging from the ceiling.



The man that owns it now had the original griddle moved to the current location. He started working at Clown when he was in high school and everything is still cooked exactly the same way. The burgers are thin patties and the buns are cooked on the griddle. The french fries are double fried and they are so good, you don't even need ketchup. That is a huge statement coming from me, because everything tastes better with ketchup.



One of the funniest things about this restaurant is the quirky signs. You never know what they are going to be. They are usually handwritten on a piece of torn cardboard. One of my favorites is one that I have seen often on the door, "Closed - out of meat". One sign I saw yesterday said, "Closed Monday and Tuesday - College Registration". I am guessing that is for his daughter.



They are only open Monday - Friday from 10:00 a.m. - 5:45 p.m. If that doesn't fit your schedule, don't worry, it is likely to change next week. We usually call before we go to make sure they are open. They close for spring break and many other reasons. There is nothing more disappointing than having a craving for Clown and getting there and it being closed. That has happened to us many times. When we pull up, I am always surprised that they are open.

Worth all of the calories.

Piranha Killer Sushi

We had great sushi when we were in Hawaii. I have had sushi a few times, but it is not something that I crave. After eating it in Hawaii, I realized I didn't get enough. Right after we got home, I kept thinking about it.

Justin insisted that we go to Piranha Killer Sushi in downtown Ft. Worth for the best sushi around. We went the weekend after the wedding.

Justin was right, it was a great place. We started with La La's Jalapeno Poppers. They were fresh jalapenos, stuffed with cream cheese and salmon and fried with a tempura batter. They were served with a sweet soy glaze. Delicious!

Next, we ordered several rolls. I am a roll girl. I do not eat regular sushi or sashimi. Texture issues. It reminds me of raw chicken and that is not a pleasant thought. Two of my favorites are the Lobster Roll and the Forget About It Roll. Avocado, cream cheese, shrimp, crawfish and a great sauce. I order mine without the wasabi cream sauce. Too funky for me.

The main thing I like about their rolls is the seaweed wrapper they use. It is very thin and not chewy. You hardly know that it is there. Nothing like a piece of chewy seaweed that you can't bite through to ruin a great meal.


This was so good that I talked Jennifer into going again the next week. She is hooked now and says she is "craving sushi". We will definitely go again soon.