Sunday Brunch: 4 Bells

My parents and I celebrated Mother’s Day yesterday with my favorite thing ever…brunch! Especially necessary after hardcore Derby debauchery on Saturday, our trip to 4 Bells in Loring Park officially added a new destination to my list every time someone I love comes to visit.

4 Bells is the sister restaurant of my beloved Butcher and the Boar, and the similarities between the two spots became apparent the moment our server mentioned that fact. With a focus on Southern/Lowcountry seafood, however, 4 Bells takes quality dining in a totally different direction than B&TB. Without further ado:

Location/Ambiance:

Tucked away off Loring Park in the old Joe’s Garage space, 4 Bells captured my heart immediately with their sunny yellow patio chairs:

And further cemented its place there with a sexy, Edison-bulb-laden bar, high ceilings, cushy booths and sleek, stripped-down décor.

Their roof is apparently amazing as well, and I can’t wait to go back with friends and sip cocktails overlooking the park as soon as possible.

Score: 10/10

Beverage:

Like I mentioned, I Derby’d way too hard on Saturday…and found myself unable to handle alcohol at all on Sunday…not even Café Lurcat’s delicious pink champagne, which I valiantly tried to conquer before Mass with Jodes and Dick. Given that embarrassing fact, I stuck to bottomless coffee, served with real sugar cubes and a tiny pot de crème, and left the boozing to the experts.

Dad went with a Bloody, which was served in a Mason jar and left my basic-girl self all happy and pleased with the presentation, and Jodester toasted Mother’s Day with a Bellini Crush, a lemon-and-peach concoction that looked like the most heavenly adult slushie. I’ve never regretted too many mint juleps more.

Score: 8/10 (based on parental feedback)

Food:

Well, we were a bit embarrassed when, after ordering, our spread ended up looking like this:

Actually, no shame. It was 100% so worth it. Jodester and I both went with the chicken and waffles, which were served with two kinds of syrup and a generous smear of honey lavender butter. HONEY LAVENDER BUTTER. Excuse me while I go wipe the drool off my chin. No exaggeration: if I could, I would smear the honey lavender butter all over everything I ever eat again in my entire life. The chicken itself was just the right amount of crispy and salty, and the waffle was an herb-laden, light and fluffy dream. I could practically feel each bite soaking up the residual bourbon residue coating my insides.

Sides of note were a serving of deliciously sweet-and-spicy Butcher and the Boar sausage served with pickled onions…

..green chili-potato “hash” that wasn’t actually hashed but was delicious anyway…

…and feather-light, melt-in-your-mouth biscuits with a side of fruit compote and MORE HONEY LAVENDER BUTTER. We cleaned our plates with embarrassing speed and unabashed delight in the process.

Score: 10/10

A further note: our server, Erin, was an absolute delight. It’s always a joy when we dine somewhere and the server makes honest and candid recommendations, plays along with my dad’s somewhat ridiculous sense of humor, and takes the time to really go above and beyond. Erin and the 4 Bells team did that, and it was a pleasure to dine there, even in the midst of an utterly punishing hangover.

To check out 4 Bells for yourself, head here, but only if you’re going to call me and invite me along. I promise I won’t eat all the honey lavender butter myself! Otherwise, let’s check another spot off the list together. Happy patio brunch season, campers! 

talk derby to me!

In honor of the Run for the Roses, a photo-heavy, text-light throwback post to the hot sick mess that was Senior Derby. Here's to the fastest/most exciting two minutes in sports, crockpot mimosas, inappropriate bus drivers, and grilled cheese and tacos having fights! 

pounding crockpot mimosas on the bus

getting sloppy in the stadium parking lot

bes fraaaan (post crockpot mimosas, pre bonding with Lyle)

free Mike's for "naming" "all" the "Top Gun characters" (including "Kodiak." Riiiiight.)

first julep!

RIP Inflatable Derby Kitten.

sneaking in mimosas in pill bottles: advil dust pre-emptively cured the hangover maybe?

Derby mom!

Derby bead makeout challenge? Came, saw, conquered. 

long live the BP Babes

the thirty seconds in which I actually paid attention

get your hot face outta my face.

bffs do Dirty Derby (bus driver life story not included)

jacket swag

helmet swag

hat swag

...horse skeleton hat swag?

desperately seeking grilled cheese and tacos

Ah, Derby. Took a few weeks off my life, probably is the reason I bombed my econ final that Monday, but so worth it. Thanks for the memories, see ya eventually Churchill Downs :) 

Octagenarian life advice.

I recently became best friends with Randy at the downtown Macy's shoe repair place. I had dropped off a beloved (but destroyed) pair of heels to have them re-soled and pegged before summer weddings, and Randy offered me life advice for a solid fifteen minutes or so both at drop-off and pickup. 

Not going to lie, last Friday I was in an absolutely stellar mood. I was running errands, chasing all over town and majorly getting things checked off an intimidatingly massive to-do list. Bridal shower invitations? Check. Dress to the tailor? Check. Returns and exchanges all over town? Check and check. It was sunny and warm after what felt like interminable weeks of rain, and I loved being out and about. I think that good mood carried over into the basement shoe repair place at Macy's...who knows? I chatted with Randy happily without even thinking about the remaining five items on my to-do list. 

I carry a red purse, a gift from my mom on my birthday this year, and for some reason that made Randy's day. He reached across the counter, grabbed both my hands in his, and said "It's an old piece of advice for true elegance that's fallen by the wayside...every truly fascinating woman should have a red purse, and a pair of red shoes. You're halfway there, my dear!" The twinkle in his eye was almost Santa-like in its beneficence...as if he had taught me the secret of life. I laughed, admitted that I do in fact own a pair of red heels, and you'd think I had given him some kind of gift. 

He continued: "I bet that's something your grandmother taught you, isn't it?"...and a tiny shiver ran up my back. As I've mentioned here a few times, my Grandma Lo was the epitome of what I have always thought of as elegance. Much more than simply matching her shoes to her bag, or wearing the right lipstick or perfume, her general grace and mostly-sunny outlook on life permeated everything around her in a way that imbued the whole world with a little extra sparkle. I told Randy that, and he smiled. 

"You, my dear, have it figured out. If you can smile like that through the years of cardboard shoes and synthetic leather, you'll find yourself feeling like diamonds and champagne even on the worst of days." 

And I couldn't help but smile, on that day that did feel so very diamonds-and-champagne good. Here's to red bags and red shoes and Randy, friends. 

Girls gone Wildlife

Last Friday, Kelsie and I went wild. 

Literally and figuratively. 

We joined my parents for "Adult Night at the Zoo," an after-hours event with alcohol and all-over access to the zoo's exhibits. And it was an absolute riot. The Minnesota Zoo does Adult Night every month during the summer...and since Jodester has wanted to go to the zoo for months, we decided there was no better way to enjoy it than with adult beverages in hand! 

Clearly, I was unduly excited about the prospect of alcohol and animals. As soon as we arrived, we waited in an absurdly long line for wine and hit the Northern Trail, where we saw ALL THE BABIES. Namely, this baby takin: 

Please don't ask me what a takin is. We also saw this baby camel: 

...and Richard proceeded to make MANY humps/humping/cameltoe jokes. I have to say, highlight/official MVP of Adult Night at the Zoo was unequivocally my papa bear, who seemed to have some kind of off-color color commentary for every single animal in the place...or a totally epic story. Case in point: grizzly encounters while deep-sea fishing in Alaska, up-close and personal wolves/coyotes on man trips in northern Minnesota, the usual, you know. He got really into this turkey, for instance: 

It is clearly mating season, as this turkey was putting the MOVES on two lady-turkeys hanging out in his general vicinity. Dick's narration of said moves left me, Kels, and two or three other random passers-by laughing so hard I almost peed a little. He is officially my new favorite standup-comedy-wildlife-expert. 

Now the fun starts: As soon as we finished the Northern Trail, we headed inside to replenish our wine, and found ourselves facing down a twenty-minute wait alcohol wait. (Tip for next time, MN Zoo: MORE BARTENDERS!) In continuing epic fashion, as soon as we got to the front of the line, Papa Bear ordered us all "doubles," which ended up looking like this: 

These are Solo Cups, and they are filled to the brim with wine. We hadn't eaten anything, and we were pouring the chardonnay back hard. Recipe for a really awesome trip down the Minnesota Trail...

Dick was feeling stealthy. I, on the other hand, was just feeling all the Chardonnay. 

The Minnesota Trail officially earned the #1 spot in Dad's heart as soon as he could settle in an Adirondack and pretend he was at the cabin. Looks like a pro, no? 

On the Minnesota Trail we encountered lynx, a wolverine (MUCK FICHIGAN), and this wolf who, along with his brothers and sisters, basically prowled around the fence looking at us like he wanted to have us for dinner. 

From the Minnesota Trail, with wine STILL in tow, we headed to Tropics Trail, where, among other things, I smiled at a crocodile...

I talked to some flamingos...

We admired this leopard shark, and then found Nemo...

...and Richard's night was made by this sight. Honestly, I'm lucky I had Jodester around while growing up or else who knows how I would've turned out....

Color commentary from Dick on this one: "God, slowest sex act ever." Good thing they're cute and fun, otherwise I wouldn't be able to take them anywhere. 

You know who else is cute and fun? Kels and me. I loved our "inner circle" date! So glad I have friends who can handle my family and a family that has embraced my friends so wholeheartedly. I'm a damn lucky girl. 

Bookworm: April 2016

"Sometimes you buy a book, powerfully drawn to it, but then it just sits on the shelf. Maybe you flick through it, the ghost of your original purpose at your elbow, but it's not so much rereading as re-dusting. Then one day you pick it up, take notice of the contents; your inner life realigns."

--Hilary Mantel

Loved: 

Wolf Hall, Hilary Mantel: Winner of the Man Booker Prize for English literature, "Wolf Hall" is the first of three novels by Mantel chronicling the life of Sir Thomas Cromwell in the Tudor court. I'm a fanatical English history nerd and Cromwell's politics and influential role in the English court of the 1520s and 30s have always fascinated me. Great, gorgeously descriptive read. 

Enjoyed: 

Fairest, Gail Carson Levine: A re-telling of Snow White that I picked up when feeling grumpy and out of sorts one day. Charming and light and smart - very much like "Ella Enchanted." 

The Heir Apparent: The Life of Edward VII, Jane Ridley: Number 4 of 5 in my 101 in 1001 #76, this biography chronicled the exceptionally weird and dramatic and fascinating life of Queen Victoria's heir, Edward VII. Known as "the Playboy Prince," his Marlborough House antics and numerous affairs often overshadow his unique kingship and diplomatic finesse. I enjoyed the insight into a monarch I previously knew very little about. 

Tolerated: 

None this month! 

Re-reads: 

Ella Enchanted, Gail Carson Levine: Did anyone else adore this book as a child? It came up in conversation with a co-worker looking for good books for her nine-year old daughter and I immediately felt like I had to re-read it. Such a great, quick (2 hours-ish) read. 

The Night Circus, Erin Morgenstern: I've read this book five or six times in around four years and the imagery of the writing never ceases to astonish me. It's such an incredibly evocative novel...the phrasing and prose, just like the story, remain unexpected and draw me in every time.