Park Pizza & Brewing Company

I haven't done a restaurant review in a while but a trendy new spot recently opened up close to home and I love the concept. I know there's nothing new about a brewery or a pizza restaurant but Park Pizza & Brewing Company's menu is eclectic with a delicious variety of rotating beers brewed in-house.

Birthday Brunch - Never Too Late to Celebrate

December is so busy, and while the girls tried to plan a birthday brunch for me then, K and I were heading to Charleston and then the holidays rang in so everyone was booked with family functions or traveling for the Holidays.

Weekend Recap

If getting lots of rest and sleeping in on the weekend is your idea of fun then I had a blast! It was relaxing all around with some ventures out to a new restaurant/bar in our area on Saturday and then lounging by the pool of Sunday.

Weekend Happenings

The weekend was a mix of relaxing and fun over here. After work on Friday I met up with K for a quick happy hour drink and then Thai takeout for dinner.

Unbeatable Happy Hour Specials

 Since I moved to Florida in 2002, Miller's Ale House has been one of my favorite happy hour spots and casual restaurants to grab a bite. Thursday nights used to be Ladies Night back in my college days so me and the girls would often get together from some cheap drinks and dinner.

It's incredible there are now 78 locations across the US and I'm not surprised because it's a popular place to eat, drink, and watch sports without breaking the bank.



K and I went to our local Ale House on Wednesday last week to kickoff Thanksgiving weekend with some dinner and drinks and as usual it never disappoints. 

 
If your have an Ale House in your area, it's often that all-American meeting spot for sports fans like my husband. There are TV's in every corner to watch multiple games at once while nibbling on some good food and all-day drink specials.

 
 Miller's Ale House World Famous Zingers^®


Zingers^® Flatbread

Build Your Own Burger


The Miller's locations in Florida offer all-day and late-night happy hour specials with hard-to-beat prices so it's a great place to unwind and watch some sports.



All-Day Happy Hour: From 11am to 7pm Monday - Thursday
$2.50 Drink of the Day, $2.95 pints of Miller Lite, $4 craft pints, $5 specialty cocktails and more

Power Hour: From 4pm to 6pm Monday - Thursday
$5 Miller's Ale House World Famous Zingers and $6 Miller Lite Pitchers

Late-Night Happy Hour: From 10pm to close Monday - Thursday
$2 Miller Lite Pints, $6 Miller Lite Pitchers, $5 craft beer, $7 sangria pitchers and more
A variety of $5 appetizers, including Zingers and Ale House Loaded Fries

Never a dull moment or a lack of a great deal at Miller's Ale House!

Check out their website to see if there is a location near you.

Orlando Blogger Tasting Tour

I attended one of the best blogger events to date last week hosted by OrderUp in celebration of their one year anniversary since entering the Orlando market. OrderUp is a food delivery app for your phone that currently serves more than 40 major cities nationwide.

OrderUp treated myself and about 20 other bloggers to a food tour through College Park, which is a quaint area right outside of downtown Orlando known for it’s cute shops, salons, and restaurants. We enjoyed tastings at 3 locally owned restaurants, none of which I had tried before and it was nothing short of amazing.

We met up at Jade Sushi & New Asian Bistro which is modern and very beautiful inside... perfect for a date night or girls sushi happy hour.



The chefs were hard at work and served up some amazing dishes:

Appetizer:
The WOW Bao

Main Course:
Hawaiian Poke
King Peter Roll
Yellowtail Roll
Tempura Sushi Ball

I was a little nervous about attending this event because I didn’t know anyone attending but it turned out to be tons of fun meeting other local bloggers and sharing food tastings from some hidden gems in Orlando.

Our second stop was at Peppy’s Bistro where we shared some Mediterranean and American fusion family-style dishes. The chef greeted us and gave us a brief history of the restaurant and some info about the dishes we were tasting.

Main Course:
Seccete Alla Vodka
Baked Ziti
Carnitas

Cocktail:
Ziggy Stardust

Our last stop was at Hubbly Bubbly for some casual Mediterranean eats and they just kept bringing different food samples to try. I was already quite full at this point but managed to taste everything they served because the food was so amazing and fresh.

We met the owner and his father-in-law, Georgie, who is the chef and makes all of their dishes from scratch with fresh ingredients. He spoke about how they came up with the the concept for Hubbly Bubbly and explained that most of their dishes are gluten free and vegan friendly. It was very clear that he puts his heart and soul into making the dishes that they serve and make the most authentic recipes in the area.



Appetizer:
Bubbly Salad Blend
Hubbly Hummus

Main Course:
Falafel Pita Sandwich
Mazel Tots
Fried Cauliflower

Dessert:
Baklava Fingers

Drinks:
Big Storm Amber Ale
Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice

It was quite the feast and I’m so excited OrderUp offers delivery to more and more local restaurants, and some of the best spots in Orlando, all via their mobile app.

To browse OrderUp’s entire menu of on-demand delivery options, download the iOS or Android app or visit them at: http://orderup.com.

Here’s a $7 OFF coupon for first time orders: EATIT

Life Lately

Hello friends and happy Monday! I know I've said this before but life has been so busy lately that I can't seem to find much free time for blogging. I've settled into my new job and pretty much settled into our new house yet my days seem to be packed full. Quiet Sundays at home have been my saving grace for getting caught up and organized for the week ahead.

I love my new job and the people that I work with. I have the cutest, bubbly intern that cracks me up and the projects that I'm working on are so much more fulfilling than anything before. Last week Wednesday the CEO of our company got tickets to a private event at the Amway Center for the Orlando Pro Summer League so I got to tag along and network with local business people which was really fun.

Since the shootings at Pulse Nightclub, Orlando has really come together as a community and it makes me happy to see all the signs of support and little reminders as I make my way around town.

On Friday evening I made it home from work feeling more than exhausted but agreed to go out for dinner with K to try a new restaurant close to home.

 

I'm so happy we decided to try Canvas because the food and lakefront atmosphere was amazing plus we caught a beautiful sunset while eating dinner. I can't wait to go back to try their brunch.

It started storming as we were leaving the restaurant so we just headed home to have a quiet night. This is how we were greeted by Lola when we got home and, honestly, I couldn't wait to join her! lol
 

Most of Saturday was spent getting errands done and cleaning up around the house. In the evening we entertained some friends and made Fresh Watermelon Martinis with cucumber infused vodka (a copycat recipe from Bonefish Grill) which were so light and refreshing.

Our guests brought us this amazing basket of goodies for a housewarming gift which was so thoughtful and unexpected.

 

The four of us then headed out for dinner at 310 Nona and spent the evening chatting and catching up over a nice meal.

 Sunday was spent relaxing at home and getting all the things in the land organized which was a great end to the weekend. Lola got her tan on in the backyard while I hid in the shade from the unbearable 100 degree heat we've been experiencing.

The countdown is on for our trip to Jamaica - 11 days to go!

Joining the lovely Biana for her Weekending linkup.

Weekend Whereabouts

Well this weekend just seemed to zip by as they all tend to do. By the time Friday night came around I was pretty exhausted so we went for a quick bite at The Social House, which just recently opened. There was live music but it was extremely loud (like we could hardly even talk) and the salad I ordered was just okay. I'll give them another try but it wasn't the best date night idea.

When we got home we relaxed and watched The Night Before from RedBox. I didn't care for the movie so I zoned out half way through. I guess that means I don't recommend it, at least it didn't peak my interest.

On Saturday morning it was time to go pick up my new car at the Mazda dealership which of course is a long process and takes a couple hours but I'm in love with my new ride and all the new features cars have these days.

 On Saturday night it was time to get dolled up and head to Mango's Tropical Cafe to celebrate J's 37th birthday with dinner, drinks, and entertainment. While the atmosphere was fun with lots of different shows throughout the night, the service was horrendous (took 30 minutes to get a drink), the food was decent but they messed up a few people's orders including mine. The icing on the cake was when we had to pay $15 for valet parking but when it came time to leave, we waited almost 45 minutes for them to bring the car. I probably sound like a complaining shit between the events of Friday and Saturday night but I will always give my honest opinion here on my blog.

It was a fun night with friends but I will never return to Mango's again!

Sunday was all about getting organized - eggs benedict for a late breakfast since I slept in, three loads of laundry, all the blogging possible, dinner cooking in the crockpot, weekly food prep, and early to bed with hopes of not feeling too exhausted today because of the time change.

How was your weekend?

Joining the lovely Biana for her Weekending linkup.

Weekend of Love

Hope everyone had a great weekend! We stayed local and enjoyed some time out with friends along with some delicious food and drinks.

On Friday after work K and I met up with a good friend for dinner at Yamasan Sushi & Grill which has an amazing deal on sushi and drinks during happy hour. You can't beat $4 sushi rolls and wine so we splurged and picked six different rolls to share.

After dinner we went next door to Brass Tap to try some of their beers and hang out for a bit before calling it a night.

On Saturday, I did some damage at the grocery store and relaxed at home before getting dressed to celebrate Valentine's with K. We started off with some drinks in College Park. I tried some strawberry shortcake beer which was so delish!

We then headed over to Two Chefs Oyster & Seafood restaurant for dinner. It was our first time eating there and we really enjoyed the oysters for an appetizer. For entrees, I had blackened grouper and K had scallops and we shared some brussels sprouts and lobster mashed potatoes. Service was exceptional and we were in and out of there in less than an hour.

On Sunday I caught up on The People vs OJ Simpson and had a relaxing Valentine's day at home with K and Lola. We all made out with some gifts too.

K and I made some shrimp fondue to finish off the weekend of love and spent the rest of the evening planning our upcoming trip to Denver, CO!

Joining the lovely Biana for her Weekending linkup.