Note: Reposted in full because WordPress seems to be having some issues this morning!
Happy Monday! I’ve been feeling less than 100% at work recently, so I’m determined to make this week uber-productive. That means cutting back on mindless internet surfing and checking my blog stats too often; packing healthy, simple lunches; slowly drinking my home-brewed coffee; and knowing that I’ll feel best on Friday if I kicked butt at work all week! What are your goals for the week?
I had a fun combination weekend- part active, part relaxing- with tons of good food! On Friday evening, I braved the rain and met a few girls out at Calavera for a drink. It’s definitely becoming one of my favorite places, even though I can’t really eat the empanadas. My friend saw my spicy pineapple margarita pin on Pinterest and wanted to check it out!
Orderd a mojito this time around
After one drink, we headed to Chuck’s, which is one of Ashley Christensen’s restaurants. I’ll admit that I wasn’t expecting to enjoy it very much. How exciting can burgers be? But everything changed when my friend asked if they could spike our root beer floats. After contemplating with the other staff members, our waitress decided dark rum would be best and let me tell you- make one immediately! For my burger, I chose the small Big House {oxymoron?}:
Amazing! I didn’t end up eating the sorghum-dijon but I did add a ton of ketchup to my burger 
For my french fries, I chose malted vinegar aioli {SO good!}, roasted garlic aioli {also good}, and sampled my friend’s buttermilk herb dressing {just ranch; also very good}.
Next time I’m planning to be adventurous and try the Dirty South burger:
So apparently the answer to my question of how good can a burger be is VERY good! I loved the atmosphere, the service, and everything I ate, so I would definitely go back again.
The rest of the night consisted of a drink at the Hive {my friend introduced me to cucumber vodka + water} and a rap show at Kings. We may or may not have spent the evening hanging out backstage and buying PBRs for one of the rapper’s parents. Haha!
On Saturday, I played a long session of tennis. When I saw my big toe poking through the front of my sneakers, I decided it was finally time to get some new shoes, so I headed to Dick’s for sneakers, tennis ball shorts, and a new racket grip.
On Saturday night, I headed over to Comedy Worx with a group of friends for the late night improv show. It’s always a super fun time and a great alternative to heading straight to the bars. I was surprised by how appropriate Saturday’s crowd was- it usually gets pretty raunchy!
On Sunday I met up with a group of girls for a trip to Poole’s, another Ashley Christensen restaurant and a Raleigh institution. Despite talking about the restaurant several times on here, I had never actually been! It’s quite an experience- I got in line outside the restaurant at 10:45 since the doors open at 11. I had a thermos of coffee and a novel to keep me company, but the time went by quickly. Right at 11, the doors opened and everyone tumbled inside.
All the newbies were confused when we saw a ton of people hovering around a blackboard snapping cell phone pictures. Turns out, that’s the only place where the menu is posted, so people take pictures to avoid having to stand and look at the menu. Who knew!
I was planning on ordering the eggs benedict but the waitress told us about the shrimp and grits at the last minute, so I went for those. Very good!
Overall, I liked Poole’s. We waited awhile for our food, but I was prepared for that. It was a bit dark inside, but that didn’t bother me too much. Luckily we were seated in the corner, because I think the middle of the restaurant may have been too loud for me.
I’m happy that I finally went and I would go back on a random weekend or special occasion.
I finished off my weekend with a round of kickball practice, grilling, pool time, and watching Gattaca in my sweats!
