dining – Page 2 – thosecoolkims

Tennessee Super Kitschfest! Day 5, Epicness on the way to, and within, Memphis

Day 5 was surprisingly action-packed — it’s best just to count down the highlights!

#1 – Morning run at The Parthenon (Nashville)

So random that Nashville has a replica of the Greek Parthenon. Our hotel was so close (and we needed a run after the crazy awesome dinner we had the night before), so we put Ruby in the stroller and ran the loop around it to get some exercise and sightsee all the same time. How’s that for multitasking?

#2 – Loveless Cafe (Nashville)

A quintessential Southern Style Diner. Known for the Hashbrown Casserole and biscuits made from scratch. Delicious and retro – the perfect Ed + Carrie combination.

#3 – Loretta Lynn’s ranch (Hurricane Falls)

This was a crazy unexpected detour! We saw a billboard off the side of I-40 and knew we’d have to make a stop. It did not disappoint, plenty of Coal Miner’s daughter kitsch and actually, a pretty amazing place. We skipped the guided tours, but snapped plenty of pics on our own.

#4 – The Peabody Hotel (Memphis)
The Peabody is a very old place, and they are known for the ducks that live on the rooftop in the middle of this crazy city. Each day at 5pm, the ducks “walk” from the fountain in the lobby to elevator, and ride up to the rooftop of the hotel. It’s kind of a big deal. We were stoked that we could get a cocktail, while Ruby stayed entertained watching the ducks!

#5 – Unexpected Flaming Lips Concert on Beale Street! (Memphis)

We were walking down Beale Street and saw a big crowd, then all of the sudden I heard Wayne’s voice – it was a Flaming Lips show! They were trying to break Jay-Z’s world record of the most shows being played in 24 hours. It was crazy to be standing on the street and seeing the show! I was stoked they played oldie-but-goodie, “Vasoline” and my mom even caught one of the big balloons from the show – RAD!

#6 – Central BBQ (Memphis)
With so much BBQ in Memphis, there’s a lot options, and a lot of favorites. We went to Central on the recommendations of MANY and were not disappointed! This is not a tourist trap on Beale, and its nothing fancy – just delicious BBQ that had us savoring every bite. I got the brisket, Ed got the pork, and Ruby stuck to her vegetarian ways and kindly asked for hummus. She indulged once we got back to the hotel.

#7 – Date night in Memphis

Not gonna lie, it was uneventful. We were just too tired after a long day! We enjoyed another cocktail at The Peabody (after deciding Beale Street wasn’t our scene and being unsuccessful in finding Elvis impersonators!). It was a good drink, though!

Tennessee Super Kitschfest! Day 4, Country Music Hall of Fame, Hatch Show Print and the Best Meal ever

We returned to Nashville on Day 4 with big plans to hit up the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. It was NOT a disappointment! From Johnny Cash’s guitars to Carl Perkins’ Blue Suede Shoes to Hank Williams, Jr.’s boots, there was so much to see and learn about. We loved it because it really broke down all the different eras and subgenres within the Country Music scene – further proof that Lefty Frizzell and Garth Brooks are NOT the same when it comes to country music!

(Top to Bottom: Johnny Cash’s guitar, Carl Perkins’ Blue Suede Shoes, Kenny Rogers’ vest, Hank Williams Jr.’s boots, Hank Williams Sr.’s guitar, Wanda Jackson’s guitar)

My day was made by seeing Patsy’s Hall of Fame plaque on the wall

And Ed jumped in on the action with Kenny Rogers

After hitting up the Hall of Fame, we had just enough time to see the Hatch Show Print Shop. This is an amazing Letterpress shop that’s been around for 100+ years and has done many of the iconic show posters for many many well known concerts. It’s music history inside those walls, and both Ed + I went crazy inside. Such a fascinating place. These pics don’t even do it justice. We love Hatch Show Print’s Style!!!

We finished the day at Monell’s in Germantown for one of the most amazing meals we’ve ever had. In fact, it was so amazing that we didn’t even take a single picture. It’s an old Victorian style house where you walk in, get seated around a large family style table (which you likely share with other folks) and get served everything just like you would at a big family dinner. The rules are “Take as much as you can eat but eat all that you take. We pass the bowls to the left. No cell phones calls allowed at the tables during dinner.” We had the best Fried Chicken we’ve ever had, Pot Roast, biscuits and cornbread served with fresh peach preserves, Red Pepper Cabbage, Corn Pudding, Mashed Potatoes, Green Beans, and some kind of crazy good peas (and Banana Pudding for dessert!). Seriously – an amazing dining experience, one we’ll never forget!

Umami Burger in the OC!

When we heard Umami Burger opened up a new location in Costa Mesa, we knew we had to get there ASAP. If you’ve never heard of Umami Burger, all you need to know is there’s no other burger quite like it. These folks don’t take their craftsmanship lightly. In a nutshell, “Umami” is an experience, a specific taste. (Click here to learn all about what umami is!) Anyway, we hadn’t been in a few years and we certainly had never taken Ruby, so we figured that was reason enough to get over there today!

We met up with our friends Mark, Lisa + Ollie and had a great lunch date! We started things off with the house pickles. I particularly loved the pickled cauliflower. Then I ordered the original Umami Burger, which comes with shiitake mushroom, caramelized onions, roasted tomato, a parmesan crisp + umami ketchup, and Ed ordered the Hatch Burger which comes with 4 types of green chilies + house cheese.

Ruby was a big fan of the umami ketchup – and she didn’t hesitate to help herself to Daddy’s Hatch Burger either! You should check out the list of burgers and see which combination of umami sounds best to you!

Palm Springs, Day Two

Oh, yesterday was chock full of perfection! It couldn’t have been better, and we managed to fit in just about everything we love in Palm Springs.

First – it must be mentioned that we SLEPT IN.

Then, it was off to Charles Phoenix‘s retro slideshow: Pools, Patios and BBQs. We had been to his Holiday slideshow before, and it was so fun and super kitschy that we knew we would love the backyard one, too. Basically – he has found and collected the jackpot of kodak chodachrome slides from the ’50-’70s, and has compiled them all into one amazing and hilarious compilation. Here’s just one gem of an example from his slides from the show:

Probably even more of a surprise than his show, was the auditorium and grounds of the Palm Springs Art Museum where the show was held! Yes, we always swoon over the amazing mid-century modernness of Palm Springs, but the museum is super-70s, and we couldn’t have been more thrilled! All orange, very orange … we were dying over it, and took a few pics:

After the slideshow, we headed upstairs to catch the Backyard Oasis: The Swimming Pool in Southern California Photography, 1945-1982 exhibit, which is as amazing as it sounds, and the perfect thing to see while in Palm Springs!

After all the amazing architecture and art, we were starving – so it was time to hit up our favorite place to eat in Palm Springs – Norma’s, which is on the campus of the absolutely fabulous Parker Palm Springs Hotel. There’s not a trip in Palm Springs that has happened that we haven’t stopped at the Parker. We love it there and freak out over Jonathan Adler’s design no matter how many times we’ve seen it. Norma’s has the best brunch ever. I got my usual lobster + asparagus omelette and Ed got a take on eggs benedict with pancakes, canadian bacon + asparagus. Yummmmmmmmmmmm.

We’re always planning our next trip to Palm Springs, even before the current one is over, and I’d heard about a new hotel in town called the Saguaro. Basically, they took over the old Holiday Inn and swanktified it – and now, we are definitely going to stay there next time! It looks amazing with all the colors of the rainbow. We could not get enough of this place as we walked around …

After drooling over the grounds of the Saguaro, we took off to drive around the neighborhoods of Palm Springs to admire the gloriously restored and very well loved mid-century modern homes. We even made a stop by one of our old favorite, Richard Neutra’s Kaufmann House, and got a pic of it in my fancy 5-series that I’ve been testing all week!

It was an amazing day!

Palm Springs for Carrie’s Birthday!

Many of you know that Palm Springs is a place dear to our hearts. Iconic mid-century architecture, fun and stylin’ places to hang out and get pampered, and on top of that, it’s just a good place to chill. As such, coming here for Carrie’s birthday has become something of a tradition for us.

And so for Carrie’s birthday this year, where are we? Naturally! This time around, we’re staying at Hope Springs, a place we’ve wanted to check out for many years. Very cool, if slightly bare bones. Carrie’s birthday this year happened to fall on a Friday…the beginning of all the festivities for Modernism Week Palm Springs!

Dipping our feet in the mineral hot springs tub!

THIS is Edfood. Lobster pot pie at Copley's.

We’ve got lots more fun coming tomorrow, so stay tuned!