Welcome to a new "series" of sorts here on the blog. Jonathan and I will be going to new restaurants and reviewing them. This was a short-lived cooking series on our channel a few years ago. Who knows, maybe it will come back. For now, let me give you your foodie fix with Fayetteville's newest breakfast/brunch/lunch hot spot: First Watch. Jonathan and I were served complementary meals. The VIP Friends and Family Weekend Sneak Peek worked as a training exercise for the employees and doubled for us as a means of review of the restaurant for the blog. I was in no way compensated for my opinions or review. THE ATMOSPHEREWe were one of the first groups of the day on the restaurants special friends and family weekend. The staff were super sweet, which made the modern southern decor even sweeter. We were seated almost immediately. Our server was amazing. What was even better was that other staff who were there for the training were always making sure to clear the table of dishes and always asked us how our food was or how our experience was going. The seating was super comfortable, as well. Overall, the atmosphere was perfect for Saturday breakfast or brunch. I'm so excited to have a brunch place in our city that is so close to us! THE COFFEE
THE SHAREABLE
OUR MEALS
FINAL THOUGHTSI really enjoyed everything about this restaurant. We left with our plates cleaned and our bellies full. We are super excited to come by at brunch on Sundays after we get out of our church's early service.
Both of us would recommend that you check out First Watch as soon as possible, because we're sure that it's going to be busy for quite a while. It is open to the public. Go check it out for your own foodie fix! We hope these photos made you hungry. Tell them Gabbie and Jonathan sent you!
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I realized the other day that I have a whole tab for food and drink on my blog, but I haven't actually added anything to it since October of last year! So, I figured I would share with you this recipe for my homemade quesadillas. WHAT YOU'LL NEED
STEP 1: THE SEASONING
STEP 2: PREPARING THE CHICKENSTEP 3: ASSEMBLING THE QUESADILLA
STEP 4: ENJOY
If you're looking forward to a Halloween party but have no idea what to make for your guests, don't worry about searching the internet for hours to find the perfect food options for your party. I've got you covered. I've made all of these myself (these are pictures of my own creations), so I will let you know what works and what doesn't! Without further ado, here are your spooktacular Halloween recipes: FINGER FOODSA lot of Halloween get-togethers feature a table filled with an assortment of finger foods that guests can munch on throughout the night. Here are some ideas I tried out! SPIDER DEVILED EGGSFor this recipe, I used a basic deviled egg recipe. I put the eggs on medium-high and waited for them to boil. I then removed them from the heat and covered them for 15 minutes. Peeling them was difficult, but I did it! I then mixed two tablespoons of mayo, a teaspoon of mustard, and one-and-a-half tablespoons of relish with some salt and pepper and added in the yolks. The "spider" on top is made out of black olives, which I am convinced are the worst smelling food in the universe. I cut them in half for the body and cut them into 1/8ths for the legs. Jonathan (the hubby) tried them and said they were great, which makes me feel great since this was my first attempt at making deviled eggs on my own! MONSTER APPLES
Cut your apples into four pieces and remove the core. Cut a mouth-sized slit into the back of the apple. Use the peanut butter to attach the candy eyes, strawberry slice, and sunflower seeds. This was a really great snack Jonathan and I enjoyed on a weekend afternoon, so I know it will be great for Halloween get-togethers. ENTREESIf you're having a Halloween dinner party, or you just want to offer something more substantial to your guests, you can make these monstrous mouth-watering meals: BURG-O-LANTERNSI have two pieces of advice if you're planning on trying this for yourself. First, make sure you skip the cheaper Kraft cheese slices and opt for a cheese that was cut from the block, which they also sell packaged. This cheese is a bit more sturdy. The second is to get burgers that will not shrink too much when you cook them. Half of our cheese was off of the burger and just laying on the bun. Follow those tips for the best looking Burg-O-Lanterns on the block! ZOMBIE MEATLOAF
DESSERTSThe best part of every meal is dessert. For your Halloween dessert, you need to make something that is tasty and follows the Halloween theme! Try out the following recipes for a terrifyingly tasty treat! GRAVEYARD DIRT
These look the best when you serve them in a see-through container. For easy clean-up, I recommend plastic cups. My husband has always loved this dessert, and I know all of your family and party guests will absolutely love it as well! FRANKEN-ROLLSI love these because they are so customizable and so cute. I have to give my mom a shout-out for suggesting these. They are sooo cute and I wish I had a party to take them to. But, I guess I will just enjoy these with the hubby for now! Make sure you add your decorations when the chocolate is still melty. Store these in the fridge until you're ready to serve them up to your guests! CONCLUSIONI hope these spooky treats made your mouth water. If you try these out for yourself, PLEASE tag me on social media. I'd love to see how your attempts came out! Use #CookingWithGabbie so that I'll see it!
Happy Halloween Cooking! Fall brings with it a number of parties and get togethers. After all, fall is a time for football season, Halloween, and Thanksgiving. With all of the parties happening, you're going to need some fall foods to serve at your fiestas! I've tried all of these myself, so keep reading for a few ideas to help you achieve that fall aesthetic at your next party or get-together! Get your FREE RECIPE printables by clicking the recipe, downloading, and printing! FALL FINGER FOODSPerhaps the easiest way to serve food at a party is just setting it out on a table. I've come up with or tested two fall finger foods for you to try this fall! CARAMEL APPLE SLICE STATION
PIGSKIN IN A BLANKET
FALL ENTREE IDEASPerfect for potlucks or dinners, these two entree ideas will keep guests' mouths watering! LOADED POTATO SOUP
TURKEY GRAVY MEATBALLS AND MASH
DESSERTS TO "FALL" IN LOVE WITHNothing is more important in the fall season than the dessert. Here are some delicious desserts you need to serve at your next gathering! PUMPKIN SPICE MONEY BREAD
APPLE TURNOVERS
CONCLUSIONI hope you enjoyed these recipes and I hope you give them a try this fall. Please let me know if you do. If you make them, I'd love for you to tag me in your creation. Follow me on Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat @gemusiclover, or find my page on Facebook.com/TheOpinionatedOne!
If there is one thing that I know about myself, it is that I am a picky eater. I used to be a lot worse when I was younger. It was so bad that my mom often cooked me something different or would make me a PB&J when they were eating something I didn't want. If you are like me, you might have grown out of some of your childhood food phobias, but you still seem to be wishy-washy on where to eat. My husband will sometimes suggest something that I like to eat, but if it isn't on a day where I want it, I will often turn down his suggestion. This can be frustrating, so I've come up with a few ways that you can choose where to eat (and how to eat) when you have a picky partner. Keep reading (or scroll down) for a free link that will save you some money on food from some of your favorite restaurants! PULL FROM A JAROne great way to decide where to eat is to pull from a jar of suggestions until your partner hears a suggestion they are in the mood for. I think the best way to do this would be to write the names of restaurants you like on popsicle sticks and color-code them by price range. However, if you just want a basic way to pull the names of restaurants, just cut up some slips of paper with restaurants names written on them. PLAY THE GUESSING GAMEJonathan always asks me what I want to eat, and I often answer with "I don't know." I recently saw a suggestion on Facebook that said you should ask your partner where they think you are taking them to eat. When they answer, they will likely answer with the location they want to go to grab some grub! Just make sure that they are suggesting that you're taking them somewhere they want to go and not somewhere they think they are going because you take them there all the time! ORDER FOOD ONLINESometimes, the reason your partner is picky is because they don't want to go out to eat, but want to stay at home. I know that I like enjoying food from my favorite restaurant in the comfort of my home when I'm sick or feeling too tired to cook but don't want pizza or fast food. GrubHub is the perfect alternative! You can order food online and have it delivered right to your doorstep, usually for a pretty minimal delivery fee. The restaurants that are available to me include sit-down restaurants as well as places like Subway. The food is great and the customer service is excellent. One time, I ordered from GrubHub and, after my order was placed, I got a call from GrubHub explaining that the restaurant didn't have the food that I wanted. They canceled my order, gave me a full refund, and sent me two coupon codes to use for future purchases! So, if you want to try it, I have a coupon link that will help you save money on your first order from GrubHub. Just click the button below! GET RESTAURANT-STYLE FOOD |
GABRIELLE'S NOTES: TACO BELL: Taco Bell's nachos are great for those on a budget. They contain the staples of traditional nachos, but the chips are flimsy an often break under the weight of the toppings. MCALISTER'S DELI: These nachos are what you imagine you would get from the fair or at a football game. They are smothered with chili and an amazing almost homemade cheese sauce. CHEDDAR'S SCRATCH KITCHEN: These nachos take the cake for taste payoff thanks to the generous helping of toppings built onto each individual chip. You don't get as many nachos, but you aren't left with a number of dry chips at the end either. KICKBACK JACK'S: Another great nacho app, really comparable to the McAlister's Deli nachos. However, the cheese sauce doesn't have the same zing as the one at McAlister's. MI CASITA: These are as close to traditional Mexican nachos as I think we could get based on the options. The meats are seasoned well, and the queso at Mi Casita is nearly unbeatable. | JONATHAN'S NOTES: TACO BELL: They aren't bad, but they lose quality because of their fast food roots. It would be better if they had a seasoned pico de gallo instead of regular tomatoes to add flavor. MCALISTER'S DELI: I don't have anything bad to say. These are my favorite because I think it has the best nacho cheese. Their queso has peppers and tomatoes which tastes amazing. CHEDDAR'S SCRATCH KITCHEN: I have no issues with these nachos.. I like them because they aren't as messy as traditional nachos because it is made on each individual chip as opposed to a bed of chips with meat, cheese, and toppings thrown on top of it. KICKBACK JACK'S: The portion size is the biggest out of all of them. In my opinion, there are way too many chips, and far too little toppings. There aren't enough toppings to go around. MI CASITA: The lettuce and tomato on top make the nachos soggy. You should get a solid crunch when eating nachos, but I find I normally have to use a fork to eat the rest. The meat is really the only thing with flavor. |
OUR PICKS:
Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen
McAlister's Deli
Kickback Jack's
Mi Casita
Taco Bell
McAlister's Deli
Kickback Jack's
Mi Casita
Taco Bell
Cheddar's and McAlister's are both amazing, and it was really hard to choose which one was the best. We will continue order nachos from both of these places when we go, but we can do without the nachos from the other places.
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