With only 3 days until Valentines Day, it's time for everybody to get out and start buying chocolates for the people you love. I don't know where you usually shop for your chocolate, but it feels like I've gotten into quite the Malley's rut over the years. Don't get me wrong, Malley's always tastes great, but I feel like I've had it enough times to know what filling is inside each piece of chocolate just looking at it. Time to mix things up a bit! Last Valentine's Day, Howie bought me these gorgeous hand-painted truffles from Lilly Handmade Chocolates in Tremont that were almost too pretty to eat! Almost being the key word. With exotic flavors like Tiger Lilly - molasses, coffee, candied ginger and cocoa nibs, all coated in milk chocolate - they're too delicious not to indulge. Visit the store and support an incredibly talented local business...and of course load up on chocolate for all the people you care about. The store is open from 12pm-8pm through Valentine's Day!
Happy Sunday! I hope everybody had a fun weekend. I know I did, and now it's time to RELAX. I had a busy Friday night trying out the new Barrio Tacos downtown for dinner with friends, which quickly turned into a late night at the Butcher and the Brewer on East 4th. Then I was intending a quiet night in last night, but ended up having a tasty dinner at Market in Rocky River instead, with a little side-trip to 16-Bit Bar+Arcade afterwards for a few games of centipede. Lots of fun, but I definitely woke up needing a big cup of coffee today, I'm beat! That's why I'm at LOOP Coffee in Tremont this morning. The coffee is the bomb, but the atmosphere is even better; think hipster coffee shop in Seattle meets indie music store. Clean colors, abstract art, rows and rows of records and a full house of people working on their laptops fill the space. Seems like the perfect backdrop for some serious blog-redesign work...
This week is very special because my best friend and mom is turning the big 5-0 on Thursday! We obviously had to commence the festivities the weekend before her birthday, so we decided to have a girls day complete with brunch, shopping, and coffee. We started the day off right by ordering delicious mango mimosas at Press Wine Bar in Tremont. They were so good that we felt obligated to get a second round during our meal...it's a celebration week!
Some people say Wednesday is their least favorite day of the week. I say there's no reason to have a bad day of the week, so I go to Prosperity Social Club in Tremont for tasty food, Polish beer, and some good old Polka music. That's right, every hump day from 6-9pm is Old World Wednesday, 3 full hours dedicated to celebrating Cleveland's Polish heritage. As soon as you walk past the beautiful stone exterior and through the 1920's era wood door, any worries on your mind are instantly replaced by the sounds of the accordion and sights of people of all ages enjoying themselves in a room that has probably not changed for at least 60 years (besides the 13" TV above the bar circa 1989).
