Lunchbox Laboratory

Going to dinner at Lunchbox Laboratory was one of the last things we did in Seattle. This majorly retro burger place was fabulous! Not only was the food spectacular and creative, but Lunchbox Lab was gluten-free and vegetarian friendly. Why do I care, you ask? Although I am neither gluten-free or vegetarian, my father-in-law has Celiac Disease and I am a lover of veggie burgers (a leftover habit from when I really was a vegetarian for 7 years), so I am always on the lookout for both!

Now let me tell you why this veggie burger was the best I've EVER had... and I consider myself to be somewhat of a connoisseur! 

Most veggie burgers are veggie burger flavored- meaning that the usual suspects accompany said burger: lettuce or sprouts, tomato, onion, some sort of spread, various cheeses, and the occasional avocado slices. What made this veggie burger so remarkable is that I was able to have it with the accouterments of "The Tear Jerker" aka the spiciest burger on their menu. I LOVE mega spicy food, so a burger with some jalapenos, a little habanero mayo and "Satan's tears ketchup" was right up my ally. 

It actually hurt my mouth a bit to eat this magnificent veggie burger (it was that spicy!!!), but that is how I like things.  I'm a little wild sometimes...

My husband stuck with the traditional beef "Burger of the Gods," and I think he was nearly equally pleased with his selection.  

This is my main man with the yummy shake we shared for dessert!  Speaking of which, the shakes are why we ended up at Lunchbox in the first place. We came across this article and decided it sounded good enough to check out in person.

We ended up (at the suggestion of our wonderful waitress) getting the Boston Creme Pie shake with a shot of vanilla vodka... they call this 'boozy'! The small size was more than share-able for the two of us, but then again, I had just eaten the best veggie burger of my life. The shake was a great cool off for my mouth fire, not to mention extremely delicious.

To sum it up, this quirky (did I mention that most of their cocktails involve Tang? They take hipster/retro to a whole other level!) burger place exceeded my expectations.  Even the atmosphere- we sat outside in a sweet patio garden, across the street from a cute Lutheran church- was perfection. 

I wish Lunchbox Laboratory was on the East Coast!!!

Pike Place Market

On our very last day in the Pacific Northwest, we were able to actually spend some time in Seattle! 

We hung out at Pike Place Market and went to all of the quintessential places... I even tricked my husband into checking out the gum wall in Post Alley. In case you've never seen it, the gum wall is more disgusting than you'd expect.  My favorite memory from viewing this spectacle was a mom lecturing her child who was posing in front of the wall: "Stand away from the wall... NO! Don't touch it! Just stand still near the wall.... Don't lean on it!!" This seemed like a traumatic photo-op, so we just kept walking without documenting our disgust.

Obviously, watching the fish mongers throw around HUGE halibut and salmon was a must. What made it even better is that we had a pint of fresh raspberries from one of the farmer's market vendors to munch on while we took in the show. Yummy!

Those lobster tails were as big as my arm!!

I loved walking through all of the flower vendors. The dahlias, sunflowers and peonys were my favorites.

As we walked, we munched on a delicious amandine (the best almond croissant ever) from Le Painier. 

Holy cow... I could eat those every day and still marvel at how perfect they are.

Our view from a rooftop bar.

We also went to Beecher's for some of their "world's best" macaroni and cheese.  We took it to-go and ate outside in a park. We also shared a dungeness crab grilled cheese sandwich. Everything was superb! I only wish that we'd had room in our suitcases to take some of their homemade cheese with us.  Our favorite was the Raw Flagship cheese.

When we needed a break from walking around in the blazing summer heat (just kidding, it was in the 70s), we ducked into the Frontier Room for some local beer. We both had an IPA from Diamond Knot.

I guess we really ate and drank our way through Seattle!

One thing we did that didn't involve eating (or drinking) was our visit to Seattle Glassblowing Studio.  I imagine that I forgot to take a picture in the gallery because I was too busy trying to take it all in.  The vases, figurines, bowls, and sculptures were spectacular.  We bought a little evergreen tree to remember our foray in the Pacific Northwest :)

Last, but not least, we saw the first Starbucks shop. It was swarmed with people, of course, so we didn't stop in, but it was fun to see where the coffee magnate originated.

Juicy Mojito

If I say 'Mojito', your mind probably conjures up some drinks that look like this:

Well, maybe not exactly like these because they were watermelon and coconut (respectively) mojitos. And they were DELISH!

However, when I'm juicing a lot, it seems SO wrong to drink cocktails. This is my version of a healthy mojito!

Ingredients:

1 bag of Organic Baby Spinach

2 Organic Green Apples

5 Organic Celery Ribs

1 Organic Cucumber (or in my case 1/2 of a monster cucumber)

3 Limes, peeled

1/4 of a Pineapple

1 Handful of Mint leaves (approx. 20-30 leaves depending on taste)

Juice all ingredients and chill. Add 3/4 to 1 Cup of coconut water. Stir and enjoy!!

This is seriously one of my favorite juices. It is so refreshing and flavorful... just like a real mojito, but minus the empty calories and plus the amazing nutrients!!!

Delong's Deluxe

DeLong's Deluxe was a local burger place we visited during our last week at Fort Lewis.

All of the Yelp reviews would have discouraged me from going here, but after passing this cute walk-up, eat outside burger place when I was running errands, I thought it would be a fun place to go when my husband was craving a good cheeseburger. 

I was right. Fresh ingredients, not greasy, good service. Definitely not McDonald's prices (I think our meal was around $15 for two burgers, fries and a shake), but the quality and selection was far superior. Also, they offered a military discount (10%, I think), which I really appreciate.

It was a beautiful evening when we went to DeLong's, so sitting outside on their picnic benches was ideal.  We would definitely visit again if we go back to Fort Lewis!

We Made It... Again!!

Y'all might have guessed by my absence from blogging for the past week or so that we've changed locales yet again! Two days ago we arrived in Bethesda, MD at a friend's condo... no hotel rooms for 6 whole weeks! Hallelujah!! 

This is Ron.  He comes with the condo for a week. We're bonded :)

He thinks this is his couch. I'm trying to convince him otherwise.

Our last week in the Pacific Northwest was so awesome, and I will be sharing everything very soon!

Detox Tea

 I've mentioned a few times now that juicing has found its way back in to my life. Hallelujah! However, I felt as though I wasn't very 'clean' when I started drinking juices again (maybe the abundance of Lean Cuisine in my life has something to do with this...) and wanted to kick start my detox.  By detox I mean getting rid of the bad stuff accumulated in my body so it can absorb all of the awesome nutrients in these juices.

That's where this tea comes in:






















 At one point in time, I went to a detox workshop and learned how to make a homemade detox tea blend.  However, this tastes remarkably similar, and it is SO much easier to just grab a tea bag rather than grinding up your own. Its yummy and dandelion (among other ingredients) is supposed to be very cleansing. Combine that with the natural diuretics that come along with juicing and some yoga, and I feel well on my way to being in tip top shape! A glass of wine here or a chai latte there doesn't hurt, right?

Oh, for those of you not on the juicing train (you're missing out!) or if you're simply bored of reading about liquids, you're in luck! My next post will definitely not be about juice.  I think.

Tropical Green Juice

Because I am juicing in a hotel room in Washington State (help me!), something I promised I'd never do, I decided to create a new juice combo. Also, I've heard that this particular type of blend is great at preventing and attenuating migraines. Hallelujah!

Ingredients:

2 Cups Fresh Spinach*

3 Stalks Celery*

1 Green Apple*

1/4 of a Fresh Pineapple

1 Lemon

Juice all ingredients together.  Stir juice together with 1/3 Cup coconut water. 

*Use organic whenever possible!

Washington Juice

I decided that since I'm jumping off the juicing cliff here in Washington, I might as well make it interesting. Here is a new juice recipe, inspired by my favorite local ingredient: cherries!!

Ingredients:

3 Large Carrots

1 Apple

15-20 Cherries, Pitted

3 Stalks of Celery

1 Orange

1 Lemon

1 Tbs. Fresh Ginger

Juice in this order. Enjoy!

Makes one delicious serving of juice that is really satisfying! 

Breaking Promises

Ok, y'all. I have a confession to make. I know I said I would never do this, but I really wasn't given a choice (thanks mom!)! I am juicing in our little hotel room!

Obviously, I'm not actually upset at this new development... juicing is in my soul!!

The little juicer that showed up in the mail from my mom gets the job done, even if the cleaning process is slightly excruciating without access to a disposal.

So there you have it... never say never! New juicing recipes coming soon!

Side note- looking back, I used way too many exclamation points in this post... I guess you can tell that I'm excited!! ;) just a couple more for emphasis...

4th of July

 Just in case you were wondering, we had a perfect little 4th of July here in the northwest. Although my husband had to spend most of the day working at the hospital, we were able to spend a couple of hours together in the evening.

I spent most of the day in Silverdale, WA, with some family friends that I've known for over a decade. It was really lovely catching up with them, and we definitely had some good laughs. They were so thoughtful to pack up some of their cookout fare for me to bring back to Fort Lewis for Michael (whom they have yet to meet!) to enjoy.

Just as Michael and I were about to climb into bed, the base fireworks show began.  We watched the impressive half-hour show from our little hotel window. I can't remember a sweeter July 4th! Happy Birthday America!

Bermuda

Talking about our wedding has made me think about where we went after we celebrated with our family and friends: Bermuda!! Also known as one of the most beautiful places I've ever been, Bermuda was the PERFECT place to honeymoon!

We went on a Celebrity Cruise and spent three days in Bermuda (the other 3 days were spent at sea). I don't think I've ever been as relaxed as I was on that boat... Here are some photos of our fun!

We got a lot of use out of our balcony... drinks, breakfast, reading, champagne...

One of our favorite places to hang out on the ship was the Martini Bar... a frosted paradise with the friendliest bartenders (Igor from Ukraine was the best) and the yummiest martinis!

We made friends with the other couple at our table for dinner: Keith and Lauren! Can't wait to cruise with them again!

Most expensive wine I've ever tasted was at the wine bar on the ship.

The Summit! Oh yea... and the handsome guy in the helmet, too :)

The return of one of our favorite pastimes- scootering!

A few different views of Admiralty Cove. A local's hangout to jump off cliffs into the ocean!

A secluded beach we found when scootering around the island. Breathtaking when you're zipping around corners only to catch a glimpse of a place like this!

The Fourth of July, 2012!!

Taken when we were snorkeling... the water photographed this amazing turquoise color, but it was much prettier in person. Is that even possible?! Oh my, yes.

The happiest honeymooners there ever will be!