Stalking Danny McBride Part 3

Dear Food Diary,

Once again I went out on the town with Danny McBride.  I think he's really starting to warm up to me.  And this time we went fancy.  Bistro Bethem on William Street has to be the finest dining experience of my life.  Their menu changes daily, so you may not be able to have the same thing as me, but what I had was delicious.  For my appetizer I had the Delmarva Clams in a seafood-garlic-chili broth with anchovy toast.  It was great, it was a buckets worth and I ate the whole thing all by myself.  I felt like the walrus in Alice Wonderland.  So many lost clam lives.  Of course I didn't pretend to be their friend first.  They knew what this was.  For my entree, to continue with seafood, I had the Rainbow Trout stuffed with lump crab meat, breakfast radish, bloody sorrel and panko stuffing.  It was intriguingly tasty and it was the first time I ever had fish with the head and tail still attached.  I tried to get my boyfriend to dare me to eat the eyeball.  He wouldn't.  So I didn't.  For desert I tried Creme Brulee for the first time.  If you've never had that it's a custard topped with a layer of hard caramel and it's fantastic.  The whole meal had me feeling like it should be some special occasion for me to be out at such a fancy place. But no special occasion.  It was just a Wednesday.  It honestly makes me glad I haven't had kids yet.  If you're a parent you can't have Creme Brulee on a Wednesday.  I'm pretty sure it's in one of the books.  Look it up.

Well Thanks for reading my food diary.  This is the girl who ate Fredericksburg, living like you wish you could.

Food Fight Fredericksburg

Dear Food Diary,

I was fortunate enough to attend a unique event this past Friday.  I'm speaking about Food Fight Fredericksburg.  Five area designers and restaurants paired up to compete and each create a one-of-a-kind space along with a small plate and signature drink that encompasses a theme involving the adornment of women.  Now the event was called Food Fight, however I personally felt that the amount of alcohol offered far out weighed the amount of food.  By the end of the night, I was still kind of hungry and a little drunk.  I would have called the night something different, something that included the word cocktails.  Cullinaries and Cocktails?  I don't know.

I would say the night was an interesting experience and I'm glad I went.  Especially, since it was for a good cause, the Fredericksburg Area Museum and Cultural Center.  But I will say this, if you plan to attend this event in the future, make sure you don't mind being on your feet.  My feet were killing me by the end of the evening.  I'm convinced the main reason The Orion won was because they actually gave the participants chairs to sit in, not that their food wasn't exquisite. 


Of course they had some other great restaurants there.  If you've ever tried Kybecca, Bistro Bethem, Foodie, or Castiglia's in downtown Frederickburg, you know they are worth walking around for.  And I even got to try a couple foods that I've never tried before.  I tried Quail for the first time and I got to try some fresh raw muscles.  That's right I ate a slimy raw invertebrate and I liked it.  Anyway thanks for reading my Food Blog.  This is the girl who ate Fredericksburg saying don't judge me.

The Hobbit Menu at Denny's

What up Belog?,

So you guys already know my sister, the girl who ate Fredericksburg.  Now get ready to fasten your napkins and your culinary fantasies satisfied with a guest appearance by me, the brother who ate Fredericksburg.

Today I woke up hungry.  I said hungry.  Now if you have a sister like my mine, you know that she's the one to call if you're hungry.  And she told me all I needed to know.  "Middle Earth has returned to America's diner and this time it's bringing the dragon."  So I hot tailed it over to Denny's to check out their hobbit menu.  But then I found myself faced with another dilemma.  What should I order?  Should I get Bilbo's Breakfast Feast, Smaug's Fire Burger, the Dwarves' Turkey and Dressing Dinner, or maybe I should just build my own Hobbit Slam with Honey Cake French Toast or Sweet Potato Pecan Pancakes.  What's a brother to do?  In the end I just decided to order it all and let the rings of power fall where they may.  Again, I was hungry.  It was all wonderful but by far the most delectable was the warm red velvet pancake puppies.  And the sweet icing dip was awesome, even on my sausage.  Oh Yeeeeaaaah!
In the end, my only complaint was that the pictures in the menu showed powered sugar on a lot of the dishes.  But maybe they were out, because when it came to my table, no powdered sugar.

Well that's all I got for ya.  I'm the brother who ate Fredericksburg and I want to know.... Where the hell's my powdered sugar yo?

Castiglia's

Dear Food Diary,

Today I had the most rewarding pizza experience ever.  It blew drive thru pizza place right out of the water.  I'm talking Castiglia's on William Street.  This place was awesome.  I have to admit this is the first time I got to watch a chef slapping the dough to make my pizza.  There's seats right in front of the chef so you can stare at him the entire time he works.  I do recommend that you refrain from drooling.  Apparently if you yell out "Oh yeah slap it baby!" they'll make you move to a table.  Just Kidding.  No I'm not, they will. 

Anyway after preparing all the food they cook it in a brick oven.  According to something I read on their bathroom wall, they're the best brick oven restaurant in the state of Virginia.  I tried the Bruschetta Castiglia, which could best be described as subtle.  I followed that with an Arugula Salad made with peppercorn pecorino romano cheese, extra virgin olive oil and a truffle mist.  It was exactly how I hoped it would be, uncomplicated, earthy, deliciousness.  

Eating Castiglia's Cheesy Steak and Cheese Calzone

The Brick Oven Pizza was quite simply the most gourmet of pizzas I've ever tried.  For only $11, I was served a pizza covered with pomodoro, fresh imported buffalo mozzarella, buffalo and meatballs.  That's right, I tried buffalo today for the first time, no bull, buffalo.  And those green leaves you see on the pizza, are whole basil leaves, an absolutely delightful, flavor filled addition that I will miss the next time I get pizza anywhere else. 

That's right, I like my basil whole ya'll.  I'm the girl who ate Frederiskburg. Don't judge me, that's just how I dine.