Crabby Saturdays

Why do you want to stay at a bed and breakfast owned by a couple from Maryland?

Because on some Friday nights we like to get a couple dozen steamed crabs--just like at home (well, not just like at home...at home a dozen crabs are a Ulysses S. Grant, plus a couple of Alexander Hamiltons; whereas in Florida they're closer to an Andrew Jackson. Just Jackson--with a couple of George Washingtons left over).

Now, we can only eat about a dozen crabs between us. What are the extras for? Why, we pick them and make a delicious fresh crab dip for our guests, of course!

We have a couple of recipes that we like, but here's the one that we're using today:

Sandy's Old Line State Crab Dip

1 tbsp butter
2 packages cream cheese (8 oz. each)
1 tsp horseradish sauce
5 dashes tabasco sauce
1/2 lb. crab meat
1/2 cup finely minced onion
1 tsp Worchestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. Old Bay seasoning
1-14 oz. can artichoke hearts
1/4 cup parmesan cheese

Saute the onions in the butter until they are softened but not brown.

Add the cream cheese, and stir it over low heat until it is soft. Add the Worchestershire, horseradish,

Old Bay, and Tabasco. Stir until well blended.

Fold in the artichokes and crab meat.

Put the mixture in a shallow baking dish (about 1-1/2 inches deep).

Sprinkle the parmesan cheese evenly over the top

Bake in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes. The cheese should be brown on top and the sides should be bubbling.

Enjoy!!!

Ice Cream Wednesday

Your opportunity to taste Mike's homemade ice cream is disappearing faster than a cone of vanilla bean on a hot summer day.

Yup...today is the LAST ice cream Wednesday of the summer!!! We have a couple of rooms open tonight...and they all come with complimentary ice cream.


And what did the hub make for the occasion? Chocolate cheesecake with a strawberry swirl. Mmmmm.


Spoons away, friends!!!

Breakfast in Bed

You know my favorite part of vacation?

 

Room service.

 

I'm serious; my husband may want to hike a beautiful trail, or swim with dolphins, or tour some spectacular house, and I like all of that just fine. But my all time favorite thing is to just open the door--while I'm still in pajamas--and have someone bring a nice tray of yummy yumm-yumms into the room (I like room service for dinner, too--but my very favorite is breakfast).

 

I don't even care what's on that tray--because I haven't met the breakfast food that I don't like. Last time I was on vacation, I was determined to eat healthy meals the whole time (I must have been on drugs). So I ordered oatmeal and blueberries for breakfast, along with green tea.

 

I will tell you, even oatmeal tastes extra special when you eat it in bed.

 

Anyway, this is all just my way of reminding you that we do serve breakfast in bed. It's an extra $20, and it's $30 if you want homemade mimosas. Of course, you also can eat it in our gazebo, or on our gorgeous patio, or in our dining room--and there's no charge at all for that.

 

Of course, in my mind, twenty bucks is a small amount to pay for a total indulgence to start the day. What do they say on the commercial? It's *priceless*!

 

 

 

Local Secrets: Where to Eat

If I had a dollar for every time someone says to me, "Wow--Saint Augustine has the most amazing restaurants. It must be great to live here and eat at them all the time!!"

If I *did* have a dollar for every time someone said that to me, I might have enough money to eat at Saint Augustine restaurants all the time.

Which is why I was so excited when Mojo's finally opened (their contractors may have moved even slower than our own--and that's sayin' something). Mojo's is a barbecue place...the kind of casual, laid back joint that offers pulled pork sandwiches and a row of 5 different sauces to enjoy with it (Chipotle, Sweet, Vinegar, Mustard, and Mojo BBQ). I like to douse the pork in vinegar, then dot with a little of the sweet sauce.

They have awesome sides, too--like pit baked beans (smoky and just a little sweet), collard greens (so good with chunks of bacon), the best french fries in town (I put a little vinegar on them too), mac n' cheese (haven't tried it yet, but people moan when they taste it), black eyed peas, mashed potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes, green beans, and a bunch of other ones that I also haven't tried. They've only been open about a month; give a girl a little time.

But you know what's really awesome about it? It's huge, for one, which means that you can actually go there on a Saturday night (we locals NEVER go out to eat on a Saturday night--it only makes us cranky to wait in lines), and you can get a sandwich and side for just nine bucks.

That's right--nine bucks. In addition to the pork, the hub loves the blackened catfish, even though you can't load it up with sauces. I plan to try the maple salmon entree next time I go--sure, it's a whopping $15, but sometimes even us locals have to live it up.

Our Latest Press Release: Ice Cream Wednesdays!

Mike Wieber, owner of the Bayfront Marin House bed and breakfast, shares his love of homemade ice cream with his guests during the summer.

• St. Augustine, FL (PRWEB) July 10, 2012

     Summers in St. Augustine are a little bit cooler, thanks to this beautiful bed and breakfast on the water.


      Mike Wieber, owner of the Bayfront Marin House, pulls out his ice cream maker and his creativity every week in July, August, and September. On Wednesday nights, he shares his latest frosty creation with his guests.


     "Ice cream is a great equalizer," says Wieber. "Everybody likes ice cream, and it tastes even better in the summer."


      Guests are treated to concoctions like Girl Scout Shout Out (a chocolate ice cream base with marshmallow, caramel, and chunks of Samoa cookies); You're a Peach Fruit Cobbler (peach ice cream with a swirl of caramel and sweet pie crust pieces); Spunky Monkey (a banana ice cream with Oreo sandwich cookies); and Cinnamon Toast Crunch (a cinnamon cake batter base with pieces of homemade snickerdoodles).


     "I don't have a plan for what I'm making throughout the summer," says Wieber. "I usually get inspired on Monday or Tuesday--either I have a craving for a particular flavor, or I see great looking produce at the market. Then I start thinking--what could I add to that to make a fantastic ice cream?"


      Last summer's staff favorite was Chocolate Cheesecake Crunch (a chocolate cheesecake base with Oreo sandwich cookies), closely followed by Gimme Some More S'mores (a chocolate ice cream with chocolate covered graham crackers and a marshmallow swirl). Wieber says he wasn't surprised by the choices: "As a bed and breakfast owner, I know that chocolate is a surefire hit--and chocolate mixed with cheesecake is even better!"

Recipe:

Marin House Chocolate Cheesecake Crunch Ice Cream

Ingredients:

1 package softened cream cheese (8 ounces)

1 c. granulated sugar

1 c.  half and half

1 c. unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 c. heavy cream

12 chocolate sandwich cookies, crumbled into bite-sized pieces

Put cream cheese, sugar, and half and half in a blender. Mix at medium speed, until smooth. This takes about one minute. Add the cocoa and blend until mixture has a uniform color. Add the half and half and vanilla. Mix. Slowly add the cream, continuing to mix on low speed. This takes about 30 seconds.

Transfer mixture to ice cream maker and follow manufacturer’s instructions.

When the mixture is frozen, remove ice cream from maker and place in storage container. Add crumbled chocolate sandwich cookies to taste and fold in.

 Serve immediately. Makes approximately 1 quart.

Rhythm and Ribs and Other St. Augustine Tastes

Is there a better feeling than sleeping in on a Saturday? Heck, who cares if it's Saturday, is there any better feeling than sleeping in EVER????

I woke up at 10:45 this morning (!!!), grabbed my suitcase from yesterday (that's why I was so tired--I was up at 3:30am yesterday and then didn't get home until about 11), and started my laundry. That's really all I do at home lately--stumble in, kiss the hub, wash some clothes, then pack another suitcase.

I thought I was still half asleep when--just a few minutes after starting a load of whites--I heard music. Cool, rhythmic music, coming from St. Francis Field (just about two blocks from our house). YES!! Today is the second day of Rhythm and Ribs!! Thank goodness I didn't sleep through that!!

Assuming that you're not still in bed, you should run over for some awesome barbecue (lots of napkins provided) and even awesomer music. As I type this, I can hear Swanky Mo's wrapping up their set, but after they vacate the stage there are six more acts to come (including Eager Beaver, The Committee, Yankee Slickers and JJ Grey & Mofro).

The festival goes til 10 tonight, and 11 til 6 tomorrow. Admission is $5 (and that starts at 3). See more info at http://www.rhythmandribs.net/.

Today is also the Taste of St. Augustine, held at the Amphitheatre from noon til 8. It features tasty morsels from about 20 different restaurants, including Gas, Gypsy Cab, Raintree, Creekside Dinery, and lots of our other favorites. Admission is $5, and food tickets are additional.

Want to park at the garage, but then don't feel like running over to the island? There's a shuttle that runs between the two events, hosted by the Green Trolley. The trolley holds 25 people--so line up early if you want a seat!

I've got a wedding on the beach at 3:00 (look for photos on Facebook later), but I'm going to want to hit both of these events. Good thing I got a lot of sleep, because I could be up late eating ribs!!

Hope to see you there, well rested and well fed.

Who's Your Farmer?

Feeling hungry? Join us tomorrow from noon til 5:00 for the Tour de Farm, an annual tour of more than 20 farms in Northeast Florida that offer a great look at the food we eat, the farmers who grow it, and the chefs who make culinary magic with it.

Now wait, before I get ahead of myself, I should rephrase that: join us tomorrow to visit *some* of the 20 farms that are open to guests, because there is no way that you can physically visit all 20. You can see the full list of participating growers at www.slowfoodfirstcoast.com. I personally recommend that you go through the list and choose your favorites.

Admission to the farms is free, and the activities at each farm vary. There are cooking classes, plant sales, petting zoos, hayrides, and tastings. Just make sure that you register with the volunteer working at each farm so that we can keep a count of attendance--last year, more than 8000 people visited the farms during the five hour event.

There should be lots of seasonal produce to pick up. Here's a list of some of the things in season right now: squash, kale, mustard greens, collards, carrots, cucumbers, radishes, white and sweet potatoes, turnips, yellow and green beans, eggplant, and lettuce and herbs.

See you down on the farm!!

Yum-mo! Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

Like any other red-blooded and x-chromosomed American, I like sweets. Love 'em, in fact.

But I also like a little tart. Key lime pie? Bring it on, and don't be shy with the citrus. Lemon squares? You betcha. I like my desserts with a little pucker.

Which is why I love me some spring, and the season-appropriate strawberry rhubarb pie.

The trick, of course, is to make sure that the sugar and the strawberries are sweet enough but not so sweet that they overpower the punch of the rhubarb. The other trick is to make sure that they rhubarb is cooked properly--it shouldn't be just mush, but it can't be too crunchy either.

Life is a balance, and so is strawberry rhubarb pie.

The hub saw rhubarb for sale at the grocer's this week, and he bought the place out (Seriously. My whole freezer is full right now, and we already made three pies!) We used a recipe from the iconic Farm Journal's Country Cookbook--which I snagged from my Mammy's recipe cabinet when she died. The pies turned out awesome--we'll be serving them at the inn later this week, and we'll be sure to let you know what the guests think.

Want to make your own? Here's how:

Strawberry/Rhubarb Pie

Pastry for 2-crust pie
1 1/4 c. sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
1/3 c. flour
2 c. fresh strawberries
2 c. fresh rhubarb (cut into 1" pieces)
2 Tblsp butter
1 Tblsp sugar

Combine 1 1/4 c. sugar, salt, and flour.

Arrange half of strawberries and rhubard in pastry-lined 9" pie plate. Sprinkle with half of sugar mixture.

Repeat with remaining fruit and sugar mixture; dot with butter.

Add top crust and flute edges. Brush crust with cold water and sprinkle on 1 T sugar. Cut vents.

Bake in oven at 425 for 40 to 50 minutes. Rhubarb will be tender and crust is browned.

The Farm Journal cookbook suggests serving it with sour cream spread on top--but I'm not so sure about that. I recommend a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream--remember, you want some sweet with that tart!!

Enjoy!!!

Secrets of the Locals: Best Ice Cream

You may remember that the hub is an ice cream snob.

Other men may talk about wine at dinner parties--going on about the nose of this wine or the head of that one or the blush of berries or whatever it is that they think they taste. It's like a foreign language to me.

In the same fashion, the hub can wax on and on about his favorite frozen treat--the mouth feel of the cream content, the ratio of ice cream to addition, the combination of additions at all.

Hey, I'm not complaining. You'll never find a $200 gallon of ice cream, so I'm a big supporter of his enjoying the icy treat over anything fermented.

But he can't make ice cream every day. True, he does make it for inn guests on Wednesdays in the summer. But that's a special treat.

If he wants great ice cream any other time, he drives all the way down Route 1 to beyond Wal-Mart (real St. Augustine residents *never* drive past Wal-Mart unless they're going to Orlando. The fear is that Route 1 is flat and you will fall off of it if you try to go too far). He drives to Cold Cow (http://www.coldcow.net/), a little ice cream shop owned by Jason Welty. Jason is an ice cream lover too--and he comes up with weird flavors like Mike does, too (like Trash Can, which is vanilla ice cream with 7 kinds of candy bars).

It's a great place, but going there really does feel like Columbus heading off for unknown and possibly dangerous horizons.

So imagine our surprise--our delight!--when we went to Lee & Cates, a glass cutter on Anastasia Island, right across the bridge, and saw a little ice cream truck parked in the corner of their oddly-shaped parking lot. The sign said "Cold Cow has had a Baby...Meet Cold Calf".

The sun shone down, angels sang, and the hub skipped towards it like a little girl. Yup, it was our old friend Cold Cow, in a cool moveable trailer. They had 29 flavors of ice cream yesterday; the hub and I shared a scoop of toasted coconut (which was exactly what it sounded like) and red velvet cake (which was an icing flavored batter with chunks of red velvet cake). Our friends (who are visiting from Atlanta) got a butterscotch bomb (vanilla ice cream with butterscotch and fudge) and peanut butter cookie.

We all left there very, very happy.

You will be happy if you go there too...unless you go on Monday, when they're closed. Otherwise, check them out Tuesday through Sunday, from 3 - 9 pm.

Looks *Do* Matter

Sometimes, the best recipe in the world won't impress people if it just doesn't look good (case in point: trifles are awesome for the first three of four people who dive in; anyone coming later than that is going to think twice before plopping that goop on their plate).


That's why I love a good table as much (well, maybe not quite as much) as a great meal.


Here's a great example from one of our recent weddings. Check out the pineapple in the middle--it's a great way to serve fruit salad. Just cut a variety of fruits (we use pineapples, berries, grapes, and melons) into bite sized pieces, then skewer them onto a pineapple (you can cut the bottom off to make it stable). Add some fern fronds at the top to make it a little more dramatic.

Other tips I love: the dip in the front, served in a hollow pepper. Pretty dishes served at different heights (if you don't have pedestals like ours, use a cake plate, or even just a plate puttied on top of a water goblet). Cilantro or parsley sprinkled on everything.


A good bridal buffet is a little like the bride herself: it should look like what it is, beautiful as always, but a little more special than usual.


Best wishes!

Groovin' Reuben Dip: St. Paddy's Happy Hour

Last night, as we were walking home from the inn, the town was lit up with glow-in-the-dark necklaces and headware. You know what they say...everyone is Irish on March 17.

I may not be Irish, but I know a good Irish meal when I see one (for the record, you can get a mean corned beef and cabbage at Meehan's any day of the year). And I know that a great Irish lunch is a nice, messy Reuben.

We don't serve sandwiches at the inn, but I thought a reuben dip might be nice. We had some leftover from happy hour, and we served it to the wedding party last night (they were hanging out a while since the someone forgot the marriage license and they had to drive back to Ponte Vedra to get it!!) Now, the guests were pretty hungry by this time, but still...they raved about the recipe. Which makes me think it might be good enough to put on the rotation any time of year.

Try it for yourself, and let me know if you like it.

Reuben Dip

1/2 pound corned beef
1 cup swiss cheese (I couldn't find any shredded, so we just sliced it into thin strips so it would melt)
1 block cream cheese, softened
1 cup sauerkraut, drained
1/2 cup sour cream
1 T ketchup
1 T spicy brown mustard

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Spoon into a lightly greased 1-quart glass dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until cheese bubbles and top browns slightly.

Serve with rye crackers or rye bread. All our rye crackers were eaten at happy hour, so I served it with a Ritz-style cracker at the wedding, and everyone loved it just as much!!

Do You Like to Sea Food?

You remember that joke, right?

Your best friend (or worst enemy) in second grade asks if you like seafood. When you say yes, they open their mouth and show you all the chewed up food they could shove in there.

I'm embarrassed to say that the hub still sometimes asks me the same thing. I always say "No".

But I won't say no this weekend...not with the annual seafood festival taking place on Francis Field.

The festivities begin Friday at 3:00. I plan on heading over there around 6 for the first of many crab cakes I will try this weekend.

More info at www.lionsfestival.com.

Erin Go Bragh!!!

Happy St. Paddy's Day, lassies!! (And lads!)


A bit of leprechaun magic overtook me last night and I made what I now call Leprechaun bark. It was a big hit at happy hour.

If you want to make your own, here's how:




Leprechaun Bark

1 bag dark chocolate chips
1 bag white chocolate chips
shortening, as needed
peppermint extract
15 peppermint candies
green food coloring

Temper the dark chocolate. I do this in a glass bowl over boiling water. Bring the water to a boil (make sure it doesn't touch the bowl), then dump in the chips. Stir until they melt. Add 1/2 T. of shortening to chocolate and stir in (it will make it smooth and shiny).

Pour melted chocolate on a wax-paper lined cookie tray. Spread over entire tray.

Put tray in refrigerator.

Crush peppermint candies in food processor. Add green food coloring, if desired. Note that food coloring will make the peppermint much harder to remove from processor, so be prepared to use this seconds after you whirl it up.

Temper white chocolate, using same method as above. Add shortening, and two drops of peppermint oil. If you add too much, and the chocolate begins to seize (happened to me twice last night--out of my six batches!!), add more shortening until smooth.

Pour white chocolate onto hardened dark chocolate. If you want a pure white layer, do not mix too much. Otherwise, spread liberally over dark chocolate. This will mix the two colors together and you will have more of a mottled milk chocolate color on top (my preference).

Crumble the peppermint crumbs over the top, pressing lightly to adhere.

Refrigerate until hard.

Break into pieces and serve. Do a leprechaun jig if you think it's really, really good.

Menorcan Madness

Our neighbor is a Menorcan (meaning that her family is one of the town originals from the Spanish island of Menorca).

I don't know a whole lot about the group, but I know that they make an amazing clam chowder and I am a big fan of their pilau as well. Pilau (at least the way I've had it) is a single pot dish with rice and meat and onions and probably anything else sitting on your countertop.

I mention this because tomorrow is the Menorcan Festival. It's held right down the street at the Llambias House and admission is FREE. They're going to have pilau (the flyer says "various kinds"), clam chowder, and baked goods.

I plan on checking it out--it's open from 11 til 2.

MORE to Eat: Annual Oyster Roast

As if there weren't too many great food choices ALREADY in St. Augustine, today there's one more: the annual Cathedral Parish Oyster Roast.

For just $20 in advance ($25 at the gate), you can slurp down all the salty slick goodness you want!! Bring your own oyster knife--or buy one at the event. While you're there, you might also want to purchase chowder, shrimp boil, wine, or funnel cakes (they're Pennsylvania Dutch, you know--who else could make a yummy fried dessert with leftover gooey dough!)

And yes, in case you're wondering, this event is about 30 steps away from the inn. So waddling home is easier than ever!!

Swing on by from noon til 4 today.

All proceeds benefit the school.

Marin House Sangria Recipes

If you've stayed here, you know that our happy hours are practically world famous.

And the most famous part of our practically world famous happy hour is our red and white sangria. Can't decide which one you want? We are not judgemental if you'd like a glass full of each, or even if you'd like to mix the two for a festive pink sangria.

We're also not judgemental if you'd like to try your hand at making it yourself. If you want to try, here you go:

Marin House Red Sangria:

ingredients:
cabernet
orange juice
fresca
suga
fruits (we use fresh oranges and pineapple chunks, or canned if the produce doesn't look good that day!)

Pick a jar of any size (the bigger the better, as far as we're concerned). Then mix everythinbg together with these proportions: 3/4 of the jar should be filled with cabernet, 1/8 jar of orange juice, 1/8 jar of fresca, 1 or 2 cups of fruit (enough to fill the bottom of the jar). Then add sugar to taste.

Marin House White Sangria
chardonnay
apple juice
fresca
sugar
fruits (we use peaches and pineapples, canned works just as well)

Use the same proportions--3/4 full of chardonnay, 1/8 apple juice, 1/8 jar fresca, 1 cup of fruit. Add sugar to taste.

And remember--sangria always tastes better with friends. So invite a bunch over (or plan a trip for all of you to come and see us in St. Augustine!!)

Light Up Your Life: A Holiday Special from the Bayfront Marin House

I used to balk whenever I saw Christmas decorations in stores before it was even Halloween.

Then I met my nephew, who--when he was four--opened his last birthday present of the day then said "When is my birthday next year???"

Why not celebrate something that you really enjoy as soon as possible?

We've been thinking about Christmas for quite some time now. And we've got a GREAT deal for our guests who are planning to spend the holiday season with us.

From November 27 through January 26, guests who stay two weekday nights (that's Sunday through Thursday) are going to have a sweet time at the Bayfront Marin House.

First, when you check in, you'll get awesome chocolate peppermint bark and s'mores from the amazing Claude's Chocolates (a local favorite--just ask our staff!) It's a great way to start a romantic getaway with your own sweetie.

After you've fed each other chocolate, you can enjoy our almost-famous happy hour from 5-7 each night. Lounge around in our hammock--or one of our relaxing porch swings--with a glass of our sangria, and a plate of our nom-noms du jour.

But the most fun is yet to come. When the sun goes down, the lights go up--over 2 million twinkly white ones, part of the illuminating Nights of Lights celebration in Saint Augustine. You'll enjoy the perfect vantage point on a FREE and EXCLUSIVE ride on the Inns of Elegance red train. It will pick you up right from our inn (we're one of only 5 Inns of Elegance, so there will be plenty of room on the ride), and take you on a gorgeous tour through town.

If you and your loved one don't feel all lovey-dovey after that, well, then there's really nothing more we can do for you.

But that doesn't mean we're not going to try!! When you check in, we'll give you a gift certificate good for two cups of homemade hot chocolate and chocolate covered biscotti from Claude's. It's our holiday gift to you--to THANK YOU for helping to make our first full year as innkeepers truly sweet for us.

We hope you'll join us for the holidays this year. The Trolley Treat Tour begins November 27 and runs through January 26 (with the exception of the week between Christmas and New Year's, when even Santa takes a break!!) Call us soon to book your stay!!

Sand and Sound at the Pier

Today's Wednesday, and that means two things:

1. It's homemade ice cream night at the Bayfront Marin House (5-7)
2. It's free concert night at the Saint Johns County Pier Pavillion (7-9)

Really? Can you top that?

Tonight's musical guest is RhythmFish, and the ice cream flavor is raspberry cheesecake with dark chocolate flecks. Frankly, they both sound pretty good to me. And one sounds like a great way to prepare for the other! (Because this way, you won't get hungry during the concert!)

But you'd better hurry...because free concerts and free ice cream are only available Wednesdays in September. So, unless you're funk and lactose intolerant, you'd better hurry on down to Saint Augustine. There are only three more opportunities to check it out!

95 Cordova Gets 100 From Me

Although I work from home, and the hub works at the Inn (a mere 10-minute walk away...and that's if you have to wait for the light at King Street), we really don't have that much "couple" time.

Oh, we decorate for weddings together, and we pay the bills together, and late at night we sit next to each other, working on our respective laptops. But I'm not sure that any of that qualifies as couple time.

So today we decided to meet for a nice lunch. Mike chose 95 Cordova, the beautiful Moorish restaurant in the Casa Monica hotel. He ate there a few weeks ago for a lunch meeting, and he's been wanting me to go ever since.

The restaurant is exotic--with tall dramatic chairs and elaborate arches everywhere. The ceiling was burnished gold, and it seemed like every surface was decorated with a little sumpin sumpin. But too much is never enough for me, so I liked it just fine.

Since I was in a bit of a hurry (I had a phone call with the office at 1:30), Mike didn't get the coconut curry soup, and he probably is still a little miffed over that. So I can't report on whether that was good or not.

The waiter brought us some good chewy bread as a starter, with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and house made pesto sauce. My grandmother is coming to visit us in October, and the bread alone made us both say--almost at once--that we'll have to bring her to this restaurant (she loves bread!) It was excellent, and probably would have gone great with a bowl of curry soup.

As it turned out, I didn't need the bread, as my curry chicken salad ($12) came with little wedges of pita. The salad was delicious, although the write up had said it came with apples, dates and cilantro, and I don't think I had any of those things on my plate (many people would say that these are all just cheap filler, and they would be happy that every chunk in the salad was pure white chicken instead). I did enjoy the candied nuts on top of the salad...they added a nice sweetness to the spice.

Note: if you order this because you want a lot of greens with your salad, don't. This is pure chicken salad, like the kind you put on a sandwich, and there were just a few tiny greens underneath it for looks. Again, this was fine with me...it's the chicken that's the good part anyway!

The hub enjoyed meatloaf, made with beef and homemade sausage ($15). It was topped with mushrooms in a rich sauce, and bottomed with a HUGE pile of mashed potatoes and then an artful spray of green beans. The waiter said it was his favorite dish on the menu (the hub and I always compete to see who gets the heartiest "Oh, good choice, sir/madam" from the wait staff.) Why a heavy meal like meatloaf is a very good choice on a sweltering day, I'm not sure...it's possible that the waiter knew that Mike was paying the bill.

The service was very nice, and it was a great (and quick) getaway from the daily grind of the home office. The menu had lots of yummy looking desserts too, I'll have to check them out on the next trip!

Gimme Some More: The Ice Cream of the Day in Saint Augustine

Today is National S'mores Day! (Read more here: http://www.holidayinsights.com/other/smoresday.htm).

In honor of that, we're serving up Gimme Some More Smore ice cream tonight at the inn.(As a reminder, we're serving Mike's homemade ice cream every Wednesday night in July and August).

Last night, we took graham crackers and covered them in chocolate, then froze them and broke them up into bite-sized pieces. We then swirled these into a chocolate ice cream, along with massive amounts of marshmallow and caramel. I tasted it this morning, and it's pretty darn awesome.

If you're in the area, stop by our dining room tonight for a taste. We can almost guarantee that you'll want us to Give You Some More!!!