we put the “happy” in happy hour

a few days backmiss elinor, hubby, and i grabbed some early dinner with my folks at st. francis.  it was mighty tasty. there is just something about heading to a restuarant on the earlier side and making the most of the evening.  it usually gives us license to try more dishes and double up…you can’t beat a happy hour deal, am i right?  and in this case, i am talking a big ol’ gourmet burger with a side of hand cut fries for seven bucks.  #winning.

the springtime weather was particularly springy and the restaurant opened up the side of the restaurant so there was a perfect breeze while we dined.  elinor sat in her little seat just playing away while we sipped some good wine and noshed on baked goat cheese with crusty bread, french onion burgers, chicken salad sandwiches, and radish/bacon/garden pea/buttermilk ranch salad.  good stuff.  and so local and fresh.  it was a simply delightful meal with great company.  happiness and satisfied tummies all around.

 

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date night @ searsucker

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oh brian malarkey.  you culinary conceptual genius, you.  thank you for gracing us with one of your restaurants here in the desert.  we thank you.

so my hubby ate at the original searsucker when he was in san diego for his boys weekend.  he came home and bragged about the best brunch ever.  and yes, pregnant me was very jealous of his gastro good time.  but then!  we discovered that mr. malarkey would soon be opening a searsucker in scottsdale {insert happy dance here}.  we waited for what felt like forever… long enough to have a baby even.  and then we finally stopped by for some brunch.  well, it was really something.  totally lived up to all my man’s bragging.

so, when we were planning our sans baby date night for this week {thank you grandparents!} we decided to give te dinner menu at searsucker a go.  good move, us.  it was amazing.  we didn’t even touch the real entrees, we just dabbled in small dish land. and oh my.  so darn yummy.  dare i say, scrumtrulescent?  yes, i dare say that.  we tried quite a few dishes and took our time savoring each one.  so much fun.  and so tasty.  if you are a local…go here.  and go here often.  it will rock your world people.

here’s what we had:

house made cinnamon infused bourbon + lime + ginger beer + bitters

cheddar puffers

nuts + spice + salt

duck fat fries + tomato jam

chicken + waffle + frank’s

shrimp “spicy” + bacon grits

and p.s. the menu descriptions are deceptively simple…what lies underneath is total creativity and flavor complexity.  i love that the menu is totally chill and then when you taste the dish it is like “woah!”  for example:  nuts + spice + salt = spice coated roasted nuts with a salty sweet, crunchy glaze.  they were the yummiest nuts i have ever had.  plain as that.

snaps & snippets & blurbs

aaahhh…looong weekend.  i love three-day weekends.  i love when the market is closed so elinor and i get an extra day with our favorite guy. but what made it extra fabulous?  kicking it off with valentine’s day!  after enjoying a quiet night at home on thursday as a family, my hubby and i stole away for a celebratory date at our favorite place to celebrate, our place {see here and here}, royal palms.  so romantic and perfect and delicious.  can’t wait to go back again…

happy tuesday to you all!  enjoy the snaps.

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now blow the candle out my dear and make your wish come true. a very merry unbirthday to you!

today is the official anniversary of my hubby’s birth.  but we kicked things off early with some celebrations this past weekend.  i am talking a family outing for brunch, a trip to the movies, and a dinner date at our very favorite spot.  and then, bonus!  since it was a long weekend {hurray for the market being closed} we got to spend an extra day together.  and we scheduled a leisurely day at home together.  after being out and about this weekend, we played homebodies and cuddled on the couch with movies and british telly.  it was a splendid day of doing a whole lot of nothing in particular.  just munching and chatting and laughing {and enjoying the many sounds and faces of miss elinor}  perfection.

here are some of my favorite shots from our weekend of birthday excursions.  very merry wishes to my hubby. i am so blessed to get to experience this life with him.  and the little miss thinks her papa is simply grand.  we sure do love him.  he is the best and we always have such fun together.

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a post that will make you super envious

this weekend, my amazing hubby made me the most scrumptious and decadent dinner.  you know you’ve got it good when your man randomly turns to you one day and says “i would really like to start making a special dinner at home once a week”.  um, okay.  so.  the plan is to get out on the town for a date night dinner out at least once a month and eat a special date night dinner in once a week.  courtesy of mister ben.  yup, sounds like a good plan.  he just loves to cook and he is so darn good at it.  this is one of his best ideas yet.  and has inspired a new series that i will be calling “chef ben”.  winner, winner, chicken dinner indeed.

dinner1he took a page out of tyler florence’s new cookbook fresh i highly recommend it. dinner2

nothing sexier than a man in the kitchen. dinner3the finished plate.  butternut squash puree topped with crispy porcini mushrooms, crispy sage, roasted pecans, and brown butter wine sauce.  and a dusting of parmesan.  so rich and satisfying…and no meat to be found!  now that is a culinary feat.

snaps & snippets & blurbs

what a whirlwind week!  can you even believe that we are a whole week into a new year?  if this is any measure of things to come, we will be singing auld lang syne again in a flash.  speaking of time flying…my hubby has a birthday in a couple of weeks.  we are going to do it up.  it is always so much fun to spend a few days {that’s right, we spread it out} just enjoying my man and celebrating his life.  can’t wait.

anywho…here are a few of my favorite moments from our weekend, et cetera.  thank you iPhone!

and fair warning.  75% of these pictures are of miss elinor.  hope you don’t mind.  we kinda love that little face.

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follow our daily life adventures on instagram @swankyanddapper

two new parents, out on the town

well, we did it!  we kissed our baby girl buh-bye for an evening out – just the two of us.  dinner and a movie with my hubby.  evenings out sure feel different now that we are parents.  they require much more planning {being someone’s food source involves some coordinating, after all} and they also feel like more of a treat.  it felt like such an indulgence to get in the carseat-less car and take an entire evening to just relax and chat.  PLUS!  coming home is so much better than it used to be because we get to see the sweet little face of miss elinor.

life is good.

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this post made possible by my medela breast pump, tommee tippee bottles, and grandmama ridley {thanks mom!}

elinor’s first thanksgiving

my oh my, we have much to be thankful for…especially our little peanut.

we enjoyed a lovely little thanksgiving with family. you know, with all the fixin’s. a glorious turkey, sausage cornbread stuffing, cranberries, sweet potato soufflé, mashed potatoes, bacon brussels sprouts, and giblet gravy to boot!

we cooked together, ate together, fellowshipped together, walked together, and polished it all off with some fig pecan pie. oh happy day! i do think that miss elinor was disappointed that she couldn’t exactly join us at the table. but that just gives us something to look forward to for next year – elinor’s first thanksgiving feast! all wazzed up and squishy. just how the pilgrims did it. yum.

blog envy

just wanted to share another blog that i drool over daily.

spoon fork bacon

best blog title ever, right?

and the food, oh the food.  here are some of my latest seasonal obsessions…

pumpkin + thyme + mac and cheese

white cheddar black pepper scones

banana bread french toast

and yes, i am going to milk the new mama thing and get my hubby to whip some of these up asap.  honey, it isn’t just that I want it…it is our daughter.  elinor needs proper culinary stimulation and nourishment… pretty please?  just look at that widdle face… [cue baby eyelash batting]

aaannnd…dinner is served!