Louie Louie's...

Tonight I dined with a named MFL contributor but first-time MFL diner, Laura. Or, as you may know her by the handy dandy side bar legend, L. We've both been so busy as of late that time simply got away from us. We realized we hadn't seen each other since late July! Craziness! During the break she sold her house, moved and has been working feverishly on her capstone class to obtain her Masters Degree in teaching. I've been working feverishly on org 2 and biochem while also just plain working feverishly at the vet hospital. So I guess we have legit excuses but it was high-time we met up and caught up and it worked out perf today!

We went to Louie's Lakeside. It's a touch smaller than some of the other Louie's and shares its parking with lake-goers not coming to eat, which is nice but misleading. One of the things I appreciate about L...I can always count on her for an early din din. I tend to eat around 530 or 600 most nights and tonight was no different. L was on board so 5:30 it was but when I got there the main lot was full. I was worried we'd have to wait for a table and that everyone else has figured out the secret to skipping crowds by eating during the geriatric dinner hour. But I was mislead. L had already been seated by the time I got there and we were promptly greeted by our waitress.

L ordered a beer (domestics were 1/2 price I think), half sandwich and roasted red pepper soup. I don't know what sandwich she got but I do know it contained avocado. Another thing I appreciate about L...her undying devotion to the avocado. I fear that she would not be a good person to count on keeping super-secretive intel to herself on account of she'd fold the minute her interrogator presented her with a smorgasbord of avocado dishes and treats. But that's okay because she teaches middle school Spanish so I think the super-secretive intel is minimal. To be honest, I'd probs cave too if tempted with avocados. They're just so tasty! And healthy...even if you consume like 50. In fact, I'm pretty sure 50 is the recommended serving size.

Anyway, I was hungry. I hadn't eaten all day save for a couple spoonfuls of cottage cheese in the morning before leaving for school and was in class all day. So I ordered the grilled onion cheese burger. Go big or go home I say. I wish I'd not gone so big. But it was delish. The onions were cooked to death and the cheese was perfectly melted over top. It was served with a side of Louie's famous shoestring-like fries. We both cleaned our plates (except for my fries) so I'd say the food was a hit! And for $8.66 plus tip it's a pretty inexpensive dinner option with plenty of variety on the menu.

Sadly, I forgot to take pics (are you really surprised?!) but the food is tasty and pretty and consistently so. Check out the website in our side bar. Louie Louie's...oh, baby, you gotta go!

Three Fair Ladies...and B-Ri.

I know, the cleverness is ridiculous. We're part of My Fare Ladies and we went to the Fair and there were three of us so we're Three Fair Ladies. I know. It's awesome. Anyway, the three ladies to which I am referring are C, M and me (K). We thought we'd mix it up a bit and recount the evening through the eyes of the beholder. In other words, hang on to your hat you're going to get three stories about the events of the night and it ain't gonna be pretty. No, just kidding. The evening really was a blasty blast and I can't wait for you to hear from M and C! This will be their first official blog entry! Hip hip hooray!

First, let me (K) say I truly love the State Fair of Oklahoma. I think it is one of the most wonderful fall-time special occasions I attend. The people watching is unparalleled, the food is unbelievable (both in taste and concept) and the attractions (rides and booths) are disconcerting yet exciting. To think that a mere two weeks ago State Fair Park was but a concrete shrine that now plays host to fly-by-night roller coaster operations, game booths that peddle giant stuffed animals as prizes and more neon-lit shacks dispensing fried, doughy, chocolatey, meaty, sugary concoctions than one can imagine is pretty impressive. Yes, it is on a much smaller scale than some of the other state fairs I've been to but I like that about our fair. You don't get lost in the shuffle because it's one big circle. Just keep walking and eventually you'll find an exit. And if you start to panic, stop, take a breath and waltz on over to the nearest InFAIRmation booth where you'll be greeted by a friendly staff more than willing to point you in the right direction! Plus, how clever is the name...InFAIRmation?! It's totes brill.

Where to start?! Okay so we were there for a little over 4 hours I think?! Wow. That's a long time but we did have to fit in eating our weight in fair food, a visit to the smallest woman in the world booth, at least a dozen adult bevies and a couple of tours through a few of the buildings that housed everything from hot tubs to roasted nuts to wrestling masks and frozen wine mixes. All-in-all, I'd say 4 hours is probably a drop in the bucket. We probably could have spent all day there and still not seen everything there was to see and eaten everything there was to eat! I don't even think we'd really want to do that I mean I felt ill after having indulged in a cinnamon roll with nuts and frosting and a couple of fried cheese curds. Imagine eating a turkey leg, roasted corn, indian taco, curly fries, deep fried snickers and mashed potatoes, chocolate covered bacon, etc. I'm getting a tummy ache just writing this post!

Nevertheless, a fun time it was. We first hit up the Wine Garden. We felt that the evening should start out with a glass of vino, even though I did not partake in the vino so much as I did a cup of beer. Neither were very good but they had alcohol in them so we approved. We then set off to find something to eat. There are so many choices and each is relatively expensive so you must choose wisely. Plus, you always go in thinking you're gonna eat 5 different things and leave having consumed part of maybe 3 different things and needing someone to take you to your car in a wheelbarrow. Never fails. I'm going to skip all of the decision making and just tell you what we ended up eating/drinking...a cinnamon roll with pecans and frosting, fried cheese curds with jalapeno ranch, three corn dogs (one jumbo), one gyro, approximately 12 beers, 2 margaritas, fried cookie dough on a stick and 2 white wines. I can honestly tell you that every last one of those items was delicious. Well, except maybe the margaritas because they were really just lime-flavored shaved ice. Whatevs. Everything else was delicious and decadent and fattening and awesome.

So what is this small woman to whom I referred earlier you ask?! Well, she is one of the many "attractions" at the fair. If you are horrified at the thought of a human being an attraction then welcome to the club. We thought surely she couldn't be real. Perhaps they had some cartooney thing bouncing around back there or it was some other sort of stunt that lured you in to paying a buck only to steal it out from under you. We were okay with this but when we entered the booth, that contained only a wooden box and giant fan, we were horrified to find a real woman sitting in the box! She had a tiny chair and a tiny lcd screen on which she could watch tv, sure, but she was still basically a little person on display for fair-goers to gawk at and listen to her poor story! Awful. Just terrible. I do not approve of this particular attraction.

After that depressing turn of events we needed more booze. We sauntered off to find some and came across a booth that served "Sloppy Tecates" and "Messy Modelos." I got a Sloppy Tecate, which is basically a Tecate poured into a plastic cup rimmed with salt and a lime. I assume the Messy Modelo entails much the same in the way of add-ons. Tasty enough for a $4.50 price tag. Much better than the $7.25 lime slushy. Oh, wait, I mean margarita.

So I think I'll sign off for now. I'm going to let M and C regale you with their tales and then I'll come back at the end to sum it all up. In the meantime, here are some pics for you to enjoy...

Yo quiero...Taqueria La Original!

Yes, the title would be better if said by a little chihuahua. I happen to know one that I'm sure would shine in the spotlight. I'll ask him if he'll grace us with his presence for a quick MFL video shoot. Anyway, today I took an honorary MFLer out to lunch at Taqueria La Original. My dear friend Jennifer Cargle, aka Jenn Jenn, now calls Banfield West her home leaving those of us at Banfield South longing for the days of old when we could see her smiling face without having to trek across the city (I-40 and Macarthur is far away!). I guess I 'm happy for her what with the promotion and all but people should really run these big decisions by me first, dammit! Just kidding, Jenn Jenn. I know you're rockin' it over there and will do great things for West! Now back to the food...

Taqueria La Original is located off 10th and Rockwell. It's in a little shacky looking strip center along with some other businesses that I really should pay more attention to before writing about but oh well. I've been to TLO before but Jenn Jenn had never been. How can you turn down street tacos that cost $1.65 each and giant-sized Mexican sodas in glass bottles?! It would be one thing if the tacos weren't delish but they are! They're fresh, hot and simple. It's all about the meat and tortilla. There aren't any extras like piles of lettuce, tomatoes and cheese that fall out anyway. Instead, it's just a little bit of fresh cilantro, lightly grilled onions and the meat on soft, warm tortillas. I always choose flour but I'm sure the corn is equally divine. Jenn Jenn got the chicken flautas, which are fried corn tortillas topped with guacamole, sour cream, lettuce and tomato. You get five flautas for $6 and the guacamole is actually good not just some side item they make and plop on a plate! All-in-all, TLO is a great lunch spot. Inexpensive, quick, tasty with a friendly staff to boot...in spite of Jenn Jenn and I paying for her coke with dimes, nickels and pennies and then tipping with whatever change we had left. I know that makes us sound like complete bitches but I don't ever carry cash and Jenn Jenn had just spent her last few dollars! I hope the girl understood we weren't trying to be snobby?!

Oh and I did remember to take some pics buuuuuttttt they are post-consumption. I've got to start remembering to take them before we eat the food! Grrrr! Nevertheless, I think you get the idea. This is a pic of Jenn Jenn's flautas, coke and the chips and salsa we got as an app. Oh I forgot about the chips! They are authentically homemade. Thicker than most but still delectable and with plenty of salt. I love salt. It's a weakness. And both salsas are good too. Neither is too spicy...even the green!

Yeah, you can't really see the menu all that well but it's got some good stuff on it. Trust. Soooo go check out Taqueria La Original. I think you'll dig it!

Just Another Day on the Red Carpet...

While Mango Tango, A's orange colored Jeep, was in desperate need of a good wash and wax that certainly wasn't the main goal of our rendezvous today. It just happened to be a nice side effect of having plenty of things to do and two cars from which to choose. So we (A and K) dropped Mango Tango off at Red Carpet and went about our scheduled day. I guess I should say that before we arrived at Red Carpet we stopped by RePUBlic Gastropub in the shops at Classen Curve for a quick nosh. Not once has that place ever let me down. So delish and consistently so.

I should have been more creative in my ordering but I'd been dreaming about the Ahi tuna tartare appetizer since like Monday and hadn't thought much past that so when it came time to order I just copied A. We both ordered the Knife and Fork BLT...be ware the knife. This is no ordinary knife. This knife is the real deal. And heavy. Anyway, A didn't get a side item but I did and let her try some. I got the mac and cheese w/ bratwurst hold the bratwurst. It's not that I don't like bratwurst, because I very much do, it's just that I like my mac and cheese to be pure. Unadulterated. You know, like how Kraft makes it?! It's probs totes delish with the brats but for now I'll stick to just the noodles and cheese and butter thank you.

The tuna appetizer is, IMO (in my opinion), the best I've found amongst several contenders. I find that the avocado and tuna pair well together when left in bigger chunks. Plus, you don't lose the texture aspect by mushing them together. And the sauce?! OMG to die for! It's salty and spicy with a little sweet and fried jalapenos on top. I don't think I have to go on. Yum. Just yum.

The BLT comes with a bit of a twist. I've found that RePUBlic likes to put their own twist on classics and, thus far, they've worked well every time. This particular BLT comes with a fried green tomato, avocado relish (yes, please!), thick-cut bacon, melted cheese and arugula/spinach atop a slice of Texas toasty type bread. The mac and cheese came in a super cute, mini dutch oven of sorts. And get this, we actually remembered to take a picture of the food BEFORE we ate it...well, A reminded me to take one of mine because I was still munching on the tuna tartare and she'd already started to eat hers. So really it's just a picture of the BLT pre-consumption and the tartare about halfway through consumption. Same thing. Whoopsa days!

I mean, look at those beauties! Makes you wish you could have them right now, huh?! Yeah I'm actually still full from lunch so I decided to blog about our day until I could think of what I wanted to eat for dinner. Decisions decisions. At any rate, RePUBlic is reasonably priced, I think. Could it be a little less expensive? Sure. But for the quality of food I've always gotten, and the service and atmosphere, I think it's well worth the price. Plus, they have tons of beers on tap and bottled from which to choose and you can order them in flights to try pairings of beers that the owners think go well together or that take you on a journey through a certain part of the world. Pretty cool! We didn't partake in any drinks today on account of the pitcher fiasco last time but I have in the past and recommend a Lambic! Yes, I know they're super-sweet girly beers but they're so delish and fruity!

Now we're at the point where we dropped off Mango Tango to get so fresh and so clean clean. While she tangoed with the Red Carpet peeps we were off to continue our regularly scheduled programming at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art in Downtown OKC. Just by writing that I instantly feel very classy. Anyway, we went to see a couple of the exhibits, specifically the glass ones. The visiting Fusion exhibit is a little odd but A found solace in a glass reproduction of E. Coli. In fact, it inspired her so much she later bought a glass ball with glass protrusions from the gift shop that she's convinced she'll turn into virus art by filling it with different things and then displaying it in random places around her house. She will take pictures of the virus art in said random places and then create a slideshow and show people her virus art. She will have captions to explain the art like in a real museum. She will become famous because her virus art will go, forgive the pun, viral. A is awesome and unique and this is why I enjoy spending time with her.

"Viral Explosion" - by A

The highlight of the afternoon was seeing the newly-rearranged Dale Chihuly exhibit. Blown glass is one of the most beautiful things to me and this artist has an unbelievable gift. I can't imagine how long it takes to create one of those pieces but then to create enough to fill an entire row boat?! Crazy! And the colors are so vibrant and, of course, everything is shiny. I like shiny things. I think my favorite part is the clear glass ceiling with a variety of his smaller pieces overhead. It creates a kind of life-size kaleidoscope. Very cool.

So basically we're saying Okc rocks! Get out there and see what it has to offer and don't forget to save room for the mini-donuts at RePUBlic! We didn't have any room left or we would've ordered some. I guess we'll just have to go back. Happy faces.

My last name is Spanakopita

I'm concerned that 2/3 of the posts so far are from Greek-ish restaurants.  What does that say about us a group?  That we're Greek?  That we eat Greek food  a lot?  That our last names are really Spanakopita (which by the way I think should be prounounced Spanko-pita because its funny).  Also, spanakopita (span-a-cop-ita?) looks lovely and wonderful - spinach squares.  Alas, I have never tried it.  Next time, dear friends, next time. 

This week, this Fare Lady went to "The Mediterranean Grill" on south Western.  This was actually my second visit there.  It's a quick hop, skip, and a jump from work when I am fortunate enough to get a lunch break.  This visit we shared the hummus - a divine garlicky chickpea concoction floating a few beautifully purple kalamata olives, pits included.  The associated pita triangles are decadent, pillow-like, and taste even better the next day for lunch! 

 

I also had the classic Greek gyro, enticing cucumber Greek yogurt and all.



I must add that the first time I visited I had the Greek salad, a personal favorite type of salad.  You can add gyro meat.  So.  Good.  The only downside to The Mediterranean Grill are the prices.  The salad with gyro meat is between $12.00 and $13.00.  Add in the almost $4.00 hummus and lunch becomes pretty expensive.  It's not so bad if you are sharing with friends, and it's a much more reasonable dinner price.  At any rate, I say it's definitely worth a try - even for a special occasion lunch.