2009: Off to a Great Start

Happy New Year!

Kevin and I just got back from a great couple of days down at the beach with friends. We had a blast and ended up staying an extra night. I cant even imagine going back to work on Monday.

New Years Eve we had a fabulous dinner at The Hobbit which has been called the nicest restaurant in Ocean City. I couldn't find a website, but did find a review with photos HERE.

Unfortunately, I didn't feel comfortable taking pictures, but of course I remember exactly what I ate. Kevin and I split shrimp bisque, all four of us shared this warm, garlicky, pistachio cheese spread with crackers and apples, and then I ordered the prime filet and crab cake that came with asparagus wrapped in prosciutto and roasted potatoes. Everything was incredible and I savored every bite.

After dinner, I ordered an espresso martini to ensure I made it to midnight and beyond. Since I had downed two glasses of red wine during dinner, I felt brave enough to snap a photo of the martini. :)We moved on to our friends' restaurant/bar - Mother's Cantina - to see the ball drop and celebrate for the rest of the night. I thought it might be tasty to dip tortilla chips in a vodka/cranberry drink. Speaking from experience - stick with salsa. Kevin helped pass out the champagne before the ball dropped. We had a ton of fun.
Since my parents were down with friends also, they invited us over for New Years Day brunch. We managed to make it there by 11am despite having just gone to bed at 4am. oopsie.

Fruit salad, mexican egg casserole, fresh waffles, and mimosas. I topped my waffle with some smart balance and syrup. My mom also had made lump crab dip the night before that we helped polish off.The rest of the first day in 2009 looked like this. Ugh.

Kevin and I did manage to get up the next day (Friday) and head straight to the gym. I did 30 mins on the elliptical and then 45 mins of lifting.

That night, our friends had us over to their place for a fancy beach dinner.

I started off with red wine and then moved on to a Circus Boy. The chef of the night - Pat - works for Magic Hat, so we had a good supply of this stuff. Pat cooked the entire meal for 10 of us. We started off with a simple salad of mixed greens, croutons, and italian dressing.Also had some fresh baguette dipped in an olive oil/ground black pepper mixture.It is great to be surrounded by men who love to cook. Kevin helped plate the dishes while Pat took a quick wine break.My plate of seared venison medallions in a red wine demi-glace served atop mashed red potatoes with a mixture of sauteed vegetables. Oh and two stuffed shrimp, full of a lump crab imperial mixture. YUM.I had never had venison like this before and was skeptical, but it tasted just like beef and while i am not a huge red meat eater, I really enjoyed it.

Afterwards, we headed back down to Mother's Cantina for a night that involved a lot of this.Guitar Hero. The guys were really serious.

I hope that everyone had a delicious and fun new years. Looking forward to catching up on the hundreds of posts sitting in my google reader!

On the way home from the beach today, we stopped to pick up a pound of fresh scallops. Dinner was incredible but since this is already pretty long, I will save the recap for tomorrow.

Good night all!