Looking back at Christmas.

I can't believe we're already entering the last stretch of January. I had 12 straight days of vacation from work, and it still flew by in a blink. Here's a few blips from Christmas:

My mom's Christmas decorating leaves not one branch of their huge tree unadorned.

I'm trying to think of a Karate Kid reference to make here. 

Success! 

 This was the best that Nala could do.

Chomp. 

 The Christmas Eve spread - all this for five people. 

The halls are decked. 

 Merry Christmas!

Fundays.

Steven came back from Nashville/Columbia on Saturday afternoon, and we immediately launched into having the most easygoing fun we could manage. We started by meeting up with people at Taco Boy. I love spotting David Boatwright's murals all over town, and I especially adore this sort of mixed media mural in Taco Boy's patio. After that, we met up with Elizabeth, Andrew, and Elizabeth's lovely house guest, Caroline, at Bin 152 for some more imbibing. We completely lost track of time there, and barely managed to make it to goat. sheep. cow. before it closed. We got four amazing cheeses and a baguette, which is an ideal dinner, if you ask me. One of our selections was Ewephoria, which is a sheep's milk cheese like Gouda, and it was aptly named, to say the least. If I ever become lactose intolerant, my quality of life will decrease 87 percent. I have charts to prove this. Before we left downtown, we picked up some macarons for the road. With our cheeses and baguette and cornichones, we watched Martha Marcy May Marlene, and now Ashley has been replaced by Elizabeth as my favorite Olsen. 

On Sunday, we got completely whacked out by daylight savings, and ended up not getting our biz together until 1pm. We went to our safety spot, Rue de Jean, for brunch and a Bloody Mary. Second Sunday was happening on King Street, and I always use this as an excuse to shop too much. But, whatever. I got some cute pants from it. And other stuff. Oops. Then we met up with Elizabeth and Andrew for another Bloody Mary, this time at Thoroughbred Club. We wrapped up the day with a beer at Closed for Business -- I'll take any excuse to have a White Thai from Westbrook Brewing.

What a weekend.

P.S. Every time I see this gorgeous vintage Mercedes, I am filled with jealousy. It's officially on my Christmas wish list for eternity.

Because I like to occasionally endorse various food and drink products.

I bought these Rold Gold Dark Dipped Bavarian Twists for the first time before Christmas, and am now thoroughly obsessed. I found out after much research that these seem to be limited edition holiday snacks and probably won't be on the shelves much longer. I actually purchased the last two bags at the Belle Hall Harris Teeter. Whoops.

Anyway, if they still have these at your local grocery store, I highly recommend you purchase them. They will CHANGE YOUR LIFE. That's all.

Roasted.

Cool weather always makes me crave warm meals. I decided to roast up some chicken I had in the freezer, along with some fingerling potatoes, and seasoned it all with lemon, olive oil, and fresh herbs.

I should have taken a picture before it all went into the oven. The pale meat against the bright green of the herbs, and the yellow of the lemon...never has raw chicken looked so pretty.

The smell of roasted chicken was apparently not just alluring to me:

Why is it that the simplest meals are the most satisfying?

Sweet, sweet Charleston.

So, for the most part, I eat healthy. I like vegetables, I rarely eat meat, I try to avoid a huge amount of processed food, and I try to stick to organic/local produce. However, one thing gets in my way. I have a tremendous, powerful, wild love of sweets. For a smallish city, Charleston has more than its share of treats to send me into a sugar rush:

Cupcake:

Sweet treats piled high with frosting (the secret is to smoosh down the frosting to evenly distribute it before the first bite) in a variety of flavors, from the ones they carry every day, to special seasonal ones (my faaavorite pictured above).

Sugar Bakeshop:

Cakes, cookies, pies, tarts, pup treats, homemade popsicles...the bakeshop is as adorable as the pastries it creates, and even Bon Appétit has given them some love.

Baked:

The richest brownies, the fluffiest marshmallows, possibly the only place in Charleston that carries Stumptown Coffee. If you're brave, try a Brookie (a chocolate chip cookie surrounded by brownie)--it's an homage to the owners' first establishment in Brooklyn.

WildFlour Pastry:

(photo by Erica Jackson for the Charleston City Paper)

Less than a year old, WildFlour is one of the new kids on the block, but has already made a name for itself with "sticky bun Sundays" and the amazing array of baked goods (sweet and savory) available.

Macaroon Boutique:

Just as cupcakes revolutionized the bakery scene a few years ago, macaroons are setting hearts a-flutter from coast to coast. Walk into the Macaroon Boutique and you'll think you've died and gone to Paris.

Charleston Crepe Company:

On the topic of things with a French flair, have you ever tried a crepe cake? Why the heck not? Layers of sweetness between paper-thin crepes...at least have a slice.

Sweeteeth Artisan Chocolate:

Warning: this is not your run-of-the-mill milk chocolate bar (thank goodness). With chocolate bars featuring peanut butter and chipotle (sweet and salty and spice, oh my), sea salt and caramel, or apple and cinnamon, this is the ordinary chocolate bar's way cooler and better looking friend.

I think I've got a sugar high just putting together this post. Charleston people...am I missing anything? Any other places/treats I should try?

A nearly perfect Sunday.

• blueberry muffins and Stumptown Coffee at Baked
• people and dog-watching at Waterfront Park
• a leisurely stroll around the French Quarter
• early afternoon nap and movie break
• afternoon shopping excursion (I love you, J. Crew. I hate you, J. Crew.)
• bottle(s) of wine and seafood at Coast
• gypsy jazz accompanying great conversation/company
• Paolo's gelato (Straciatella...mmmm)
• goofing off in Marion Square at dusk
• evening drinks at home base (Recovery Room)

Possibly a perfect Sunday:

My Friday, visually:

O-Ku Sushi

I got the chance to make a quick stop by O-Ku's media preview today. In case you Charlestonians haven't heard, O-Ku (Japanese for "Oak") is the Chef Brett McKee-backed sushi restaurant opening March 18 in the old Waterworks space on the corner of King and Radcliffe (Upper King, holla!).

Picture this: dark wood, soft light, over-sized mirrors and the best quality sashimi this side of Nobu. The vision behind O-ku is that they pride themselves in the quality of their seafood--either locally sourced or shipped fresh from Hawaii and Japan--so they are keeping the decor low-key and their food free of any ingredients that muddle the palate. For example, their offerings today were clean, fresh, and surprising in some of their combinations. Their chef prepared yellowfin tuna with jalapeno and flounder with chive and citrus. Each bite allowed you to actually taste the fish and appreciate the unique ingredient pairings.

O-Ku opens just in time for the tail end of Charleston Fashion Week, and if today's sneak peek showed anything, it's that there isn't going to be an open reservation in sight for a while. Add this place to your "must visit" list.

Sometimes a little gluttony is a good thing.

This weekend is one for celebrations--of new homes and new years of life. And on those occasions, just a little too much becomes just enough.

Happy Weekend!

A Sunday morning.

Closed for Business.

So, I'm sure that by now everyone in Charleston knows that Raval is now Closed for Business. As in, Raval no longer exists, and in its place is a 6-day-old cozy bar called Closed for Business, where they serve delicious things in a room with warm honey-colored wood walls and floors with small taxidermied animals and antlers as decor. It is absolutely my new favorite place in Charleston. We ate the mussels (several orders worth), the cheese plate, and the most delicious, cinnamony baked apple pocket with vanilla ice cream. And beer. Their selection is fantastic. We sat near the fireplace, which is a modern twist on the traditional:

Gotta love a junky camera phone shot.

Way to go Revolutionary Eating Ventures, for creating yet another place where I want to spend all my time (we were there for almost three hours!) and money. Plus, the soundtrack for the evening was filled with songs from the likes of Neko Case and Neil Diamond. What is there not to love?

Things that make me happy today.

• knowing secrets
  
• Jeff Buckley singing Bob Dylan's "I Shall Be Released" over the telephone
• plans for travel to nostalgic places
  
• This profanity-filled clip from David Cross's TV pilot, The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret (also starring Will Arnett and SPIKE JONZE). You lucky jerks who live in the UK can watch the whole pilot episode here.
  
• The music video for "Cousins" from Vampire Weekend's new album (which is fantastic).
  
• Ogling these amazing Lanvin ankle boots
• the dinner I made: roasted vegetable panini (eggplant, tomato, zucchini, onion) smothered in melted mozzarella
  

Autumn in the kitchen.

My kitchen was filled with autumn colors and savory smells last night.

Onions and leeks sautéing in butter.

Chopped butternut squash and carrots and a ripe tomato.

Butternut squash soup seasoned with curry and garam masala.

There are few things cozier than soup on a rainy autumn night.

My Sunday.

Relaxing would be an understatement.