Grilled Veggie BBQ

Grilled Eggplant and Peppers

So my best friends family had a BBQ! This is my favorite place to do the whole outdoors/BBQ thing.. 

and for several reasons! First, I get to spend time with my best friend, and her family, whom I love. This is my #1 reason for going, the people in your life are always more important then places or things... or food, adventure & travel for that matter! The people who come along for the ride make it all worth while! 

The Peppers before they hit the Grill!

Second, and most important for this blog 

I suppose, is the fact that they are always making interesting food and grilling different and unusual things, compared to the ordinary BBQ. Don't expect to dine here and get your ordinary hotdogs & burgers! Not that there's anything wrong with hotdogs & burgers! I'd eat them too... lol. This time VEGGIES were the main focus!

So we cut up all sorts of peppers into nice hearty chunks. The eggplants were cut into thin slices. A little drizzle of olive oil and some spices were added before everything was placed on this grill.

The Eggplant before it hit the Grill!

Red Potatoes

The Red Potatoes were scattered in a pan, drizzled with olive oil and some spices. Then, they were placed in the oven to roast. Why I don't have an 'after' picture of this, I'm not sure! I guess by the time they came out I was too distracted actually eatting them to take the 'after' pic! Sorry guys, next time! :P

My bestie's mom made asparagus soup from scratch.
I have no idea what was put into it or how it was made, but thankfully she made a large pot of it. Everyone had 2nds, 3rds and 4ths! It was just that good... I believe this is a secret family recipe though, so we may never know what goes into this! 

Homemade Asparagus Soup

Croxley's Wings

Fried Wings with Mild Sauce

Fried Wings with BBQ Sauce

One of my favorite places to go!
Where can you enjoy 10cent wings and a large variety of international beers on tap!?!

Croxley's Ale House and Eatery!

That's where!!!

Nachos Supreme

So one of my friends had a very special Birthday come up!
We decided to take a group of us over to Croxley's. The atmosphere is always very laid back yet fun.
There's something for everyone here.


We ordered BBQ and Mild wings. The wings are ALWAYS phenomenal here! So good, I sometimes dream of them... The Nachos Surpreme are usually pretty good too! With tri-colored tortilla's, refried beans, salsa, sour cream, olives, jalapenos, tomatoes and cheese you can hardly go wrong. They serve up a large order, enough for a decent sized group to share in addition to everything else ordered.

Le Freak Beer

Over the last several years I can't tell you how many trips we've made out to this place. Every time I go I make it a point to try a beer I've never had before. (Variety is the spice of life, isn't it?) This trip I decided to try a bottled beer, Le Freak, and split it since it was enough to fill at least 2 glasses.


Other drinks ordered at our tabled included Angry Orchard Apple Cider Beer, Stella, Killian's and others. A few of my friends also enjoyed a Wild Turkey Honey shot together. 
  

Wild Turkey Honey Shots

        At the end of the night, the Birthday girl got a nice cheesecake surprise Believe it or not, the     cheesecake was amazing, one of the best I've had in a while! At a wing & beer hangout, go figure! :D

Cheesecake with Whipped Cream and Strawberry Caramel & Vanilla Drizzle

Porto Fino's Caesar Salad & Fried Calamari

Caesar Salad

So my best friend and I were at it again.. we stopped in this nice neighborhood Italian Restaurant/Pizzeria.. Porto Fino Restaurant & Brick Oven Pizza. They have a restaurant dining area, but a walk-in and sit-down casual pizzeria area also. Whenever we go here, we opt to hang out in the pizzeria area.. usually because on days like this we're so dressed down and comfy, it only makes sense. LoL

Usually we'll share a big meal or get some pizza slices here.. but this time tried doing something a little different. Wanting to be at least minutely healthy, we ordered a Caesar Salad, which was great! You know how they sometimes have too much dressing or not enough? I have to say this one was well balanced and pretty good. :)

Fried Calamari with Marinara Sauce

Craving Fried Calamari.. we opted for the appetizer, which I have to say, compared to most places you order Fried Calamari, they served us a nice healthy portion.. and it was so YUM! I'm drooling just rethinking about it... *want*

Applebee's Fiesta Chicken Chopped Salad

Fiesta Chicken Chopped Salad

I don't have a ton of pics to represent this lunch time outing, but the salad was so good, I couldn't resist but to take a pic and add it to F.A.T. So took a trip to Applebee's with a friend and ordered the NEW Fiesta Chicken Chopped Salad. Who says you can't go out to eat and enjoy something seemingly healthy and tasty? You don't always need to order something greasy or meaty! The menu describes the salad as:

"Chopped lettuce tossed with black bean corn salsa, roasted red peppers & onions, tortilla strips, white cheddar and spicy jalapeño dressing, mounded nicely with chimichurri glazed grilled chicken."

So yummy, on your next Applebee's visit, it's worth a try!