Take time to watch the leaves turn

It was a beautiful fall day in Washington DC on Saturday.

A perfect occasion to enjoy some culture, fresh air and good food with friends!

Andy, Steph and Dan came to visit us from Pittsburgh.  We spent the day visiting the Holocaust Museum and various monuments.

It was my first time at the Holocaust Museum and I found it fascinating.  I had heard about the museum many times, and I prepared myself for the worst.  Mostly I couldn’t help but be in awe and shock learning such specific details of the tragic events.  Pictures were very tactfully displayed, and the most graphic images were behind walls that only adults could see over and only if they chose to look.  Virtually all parts of the museum were silent, not because the museum requires it, but because visitors choose to be.  It seems that’s the least we could do to show our respect.  As we walked out of the exhibit I almost breathed a sigh of relief.

Before making the rounds to the monuments surrounding the reflecting pool we stopped for lunch in the Ronald Regan Building food court.  I had a chicken and cheese crepe and caramel cream gelato.  I traveled around the world in a lunch!  I can’t pass up either of those foods when they are available because they were my favorites when I visited France and Italy.  They are never quite the same in the US, but they were still delicious.

Plus, I didn’t feel to bad about having a lunch time dessert because of all the walking we did!

It was so nice being out in the sunshine!

On the way home we stopped at the Dogfish Head Ale House in Gaithersburg Maryland.  It’s the second time I’ve been there and again it was great!  I had a cup of creamy and flavorful butternut squash soup and a hummus plate.  I also had their Punkin Ale and my absolute favorite Raison D’Etre.  Mmmmm!  I could have ordered half the beer and food menu, but I kept it to two from each.

Thanks to our great friends for making the drive to see us! 

Have a great thanksgiving week!

Trellis

Another day of Weight Management learning complete. I literally went running out the door when the day was done. I needed to stand, walk, breathe the fresh air, and eat! Steve was waiting outside for me and we headed down the street.

We strolled Williamsburg’s colonial streets and shops a bit before hunger really set in.

For dinner we decided to take a recommendation from Leslie, another participant in the class. She so nicely made a list of a variety of places that we might consider for our anniversary dinner. She came up with such a variety of suggestions, I knew I asked the right person for dining guidance.

We stuck to the colonial area and headed to Trellis for a lovely 2 year anniversary dinner!

We took the name quite literally and dined under the trellis.

How could we not when it was in the 80’s in October!? Perfect weather to enjoy the great outdoors. I will happily soak it in before heading back to PA later this week.

Before long the infamous fine dining bread selection graced our table, served on a slate. Focaccia with olive oil, pretzel rolls with mustard, and corn bread with sweet butter. They were all moist, dough, and absolutely divine. I could have eaten slatefuls platefuls! No lie! My ooohhhh’ing and aaahhhh’ing commenced at this point. I was completely absorbed in my food similar to this other experience. Funny it works out this way when Steve and I are supposed to be enjoying each other’s company!

For my entrée I go the Berkshire pork, best described right on the menu: Seared Pork Tenderloin with Braised Pork Belly with Mole, Root Vegetables, Roasted Acorn Squash and Root Beer Infused Jus. The tenderloin was a bit dry, but the root beer sauce was a nice addition. The pork belly was melt in your mouth. I could have just eaten this with some more veggies and been perfectly happy.

I also had a glass of pinot gris. Apparently these days one glass is enough to make my cheeks rosy and my head a little light. Cheap date! What can I say?!

Steve had clam chowder with whole clams. I’ve never seen it served this way, but it certainly made it more interactive for him to eat. It was the biggest bowl of soup I have ever seen. However, Steve had no problem finishing the flavorful soup, with a little bit of my help of course.

Overall the food, atmosphere, and staff of Trellis were top notch. We would definitely recommend it to others. In fact, I already recommended it to my family.

And dare I say even Tom God* would agree?

What do you like to do for an anniversary with that special someone?

*In case you were wondering, thanks to my time living in Virginia, I affectionately call Tomas Jefferson, Tom God or sometimes just TJ or Tom. Virginians just love him so much that I began to think of him as a god. And now I can most definitely say, I love him as if I were a Virginian. So much that we are on a first name basis. If you start to learn about what he did for our country and society, you might just love him too!