Eateries & Drinkeries

Old Chicago Pizza & Taproom | Katy, Texas

January 13, 2016 by Mellie Dee Leave a Comment

Hump Day! The weekend is almost over and I’m excited. Hopefully I will be without much pain, enough to actually go out this weekend. Fingers crossed. I miss seeing some peoples in my life!

How cute is this? One of my coworkers saw this and bought it for me. Eeeep!! If you can’t tell, it’s a hedgehog mug. Super adorable. I cannot wait to use this when I have my new place … whenever that is.

Last night’s Mellie Dee & Mallory’s weekly hangout ended up at:

Old Chicago Pizza & Taproom
24515 Katy Fwy
Katy, Texas 77450
(281) 347-0090
http://oldchicago.com

Their menu is a little crazy. Too much to chose from. And if you know me, I’m not a big lover of pizza but she is so that’s why we were there. We are trying a new thing this year where we try new places and we’re doing well so far.

Parmesan Garlic Fries [tossed with Italian garlic seasonings and drizzled with our creamy garlic sauce] | $3.99

They were okay. We tasted more garlic than Parmesan. I would probably just get a burger with fries next time because the fries are made to perfection.

Chicago 7 Calzone [an Old Chicago original with pepperoni, Italian sausage, and onions, black olives, green peppers, sliced mushrooms, and a blend of mozzarella, ricotta, and Asiago cheeses] | $10.99

Bleugh … super thick dough which turned hard. Somehow there were two layers of crust which made it worse. I just ate the insides which wasn’t bad but nothing special.

Hawaiian [Canadian bacon, pineapple, red peppers, green onions and sweet Thai chili tomato sauce] | individual size $11.59

Not a lover of pineapples but we both like this over the calzone but even then … meh. Nothing special.

If I end up here again, I’d try a burger or wings instead. The pizza isn’t horrible but I would stay away from the calzone. The service was pretty slow and there wasn’t even much people there. It took Mallory a good 15 minutes to get her beer. Would we come back again? Probably for our birthdays for free pizzas but that’s about it.

Proud Pie & Erin Condren Steals My Heart

January 8, 2016 by Mellie Dee Leave a Comment

Currently at Proud Pie. I haven’t found a closer coffeehouse since Cloud Cafe closed and thought I’d take a stab after we went to their first Proud Pie Bingo Night. I’ve been dreaming about their Pierhouse Key Lime Pie since Madison oh-so-kindly let me stab a bite last time so I got one of those along with a Hazelnut Cafe Mocha. Don’t worry fellas, I swiped more than half of the whipped cream off. But it is delicious. Everything is handmade yummy goodness.

I would say for a Friday at 2 pm, it’s quiet noisy. Not too great of a place to work at if you want a semi quiet place to work at. It doesn’t bother me though but the random loud eruptions of laughter I could do without. Around 3 pm, the noise level went down when majority of the ladies left. It’s filled with ladies, mostly older, possibly housewives. And with all the people with a small parking lot, it does suck, but I overheard that around breakfast and dinner times, the parking lot isn’t as filled since the businesses around don’t open. That’s good to know.

The decor is adorable though the chairs are hard. Maybe I’ll bring a cushion next time. I didn’t notice it as much when we were busy wanting to win pie the other night. I would still come back though because … key lime pie. And I don’t even like sweets!

Another awesome thing for the year? A whole new Erin Condren planner! I kept the vertical layout though I’m debating if I want the horizontal next time. But so far I’m in love with their changes. I’m still doing the whole post it method until I get closer to the week or whatnot so this is the before shot.

And this is the after shot. When my friends in San Antonio saw this they were mesmerized. They’ve always seen me as an organizational freak especially with how my planner was back in the days so it wasn’t surprising. This time it’s the same but with stickers. One of my coworkers saw this and said “Omg … that’s like $6 dollars worth of stickers”. She knows my love for stickers and how I cannot stop myself from purchasing. I told myself no more sticker purchases unless I run out of something or really need it. But let’s be real, I don’t really need any of the stickers.

As things are changing at work, I’m beginning to take a look at the things I threw on my resume and revising … just in case. And oh man, it’s going to be a big fixer upper. A lot of work needs to go in to fix it because I suck at writing them. Luckily I know someone who is a recruiter and do this for a living. Fingers crossed he can help a sista out because I need it badly. Especially if I get hit with everything.

I cannot believe I’ve only worked four days this week and I’m already dead tired. I have faith 2016 will be a better year though.

Stay Positive and Think Good Thoughts!

Proud Pie Bingo Night | Katy, Texas

January 6, 2016 by Mellie Dee 1 Comment

Proud Pie Bingo Night | Katy, Texas Mellie Dee & Mallory

Mallory and I have been eyeing this place and have been waiting for their first Bingo Night since December! We were super excited it was finally here yesterday and invited Janna and Madison to join us.

Every five dollar spent equals four bingo cards. I ended up with twelve cards and won … nothing. None of us won anything. We’ve failed but had a lot of fun doing so.

Proud Pie | Katy, Texas | Hazelnut Cafe Mocha

Large Hazelnut Cafe Mocha | $4.50

Super sweet and lost points since it’sin a coffee cup and not in a mug like how I like my coffees. Might try their teas next time.

The Tuscan Clucker [grilled pesto chicken with roasted red peppers, goat cheese, fresh pesto on cheese focaccia roll] | $6.90

I wanted to trade out the goat cheese but they only had American cheese? so I kept what it was. I thought I wouldn’t like the cheese but it went really well with everything. I would definitely come back just for this sandwich. Pesto has not failed me yet.

Miss Daisy’s Rich Fudge

Too rich for all of us but Madison. She really enjoyed it. Or maybe because her daughter is also named Daisy? haha She got ice cream on the side which was extra and they even warmed it up for her. She said it paired really well.

Wobbly Turtle Caramel Heath Chocolate Silk [Ghirardelli chocolate silk mousse with layers of crunchy heath bar and sweet fresh butter caramel, topped with sweet cream]

Again too sweet for my taste but having the little Heath bar pieces in there gave it some texture other than just mush. This was one that took us all a while to finish because it was just too much.

Pierhouse Key Lime [from the Pier house resort in the Florida Keys, tart and sweet creamy lime pie]

Most of our favourites. I was going to buy one for a friend but they were sold out. Sad. Will have to come back for this because it’s very delicious.

Blueberry Lemon Chess [layer of buttermilk lemon chess custard topped with fresh blueberries]

Not the same as what the picture was. We thought the blueberries were with the pie but they had it separate which I was not a fan of.

Overall, a cute little place. I want to go back and take my laptop to blog. They have a point system to where you scan the receipt and collect points. After so many points you can get five dollars, ten dollars, etc. off. I’m almost close to five dollars off since we put them all together.

Cannot wait to go back and possibly try something new. Craving the pesto sandwich right now though … fattie over here.

Sushi 9 and Bubble Clay Masks

January 5, 2016 by Mellie Dee 1 Comment

Running errands all morning one of which was waiting in line in the post office. The things I do to surprise people. Sent out Cantu’s gift since, due to a little mishap, I wasn’t able to give it to him this weekend.

Then Forest got an inspection along with a car wash with detailing. I felt so fancy doing so. I’ve never had my car detailed before. And I love it. Gah … this might be a problem. I did tell myself that every few months, I was going to get my car detailed. Too much love for him right now. He is a beaut.

Sushi 9
1830 S Mason Road
Katy, Texas 77450
(281)391-8898

June was off today as well so we decided to try this all you can eat sushi place and man …

Look at all the food we ordered. Actually we ordered more than this but I only took pictures of every new dish we ordered. The good thing about this all you can eat is that it comes out fresh. It’s not a buffet at all. You order what you want and they make it.

And because of that I would say service was quite slow. We were there for over an hour and if you know me and my people, we are fast eaters. Put down the dish and we’ll be done in less than 20 minutes. But I guess eating slower makes you eat more? I am not sure actually.

I already know what I would not order next time for sure so it was nice to have a variety to choose from.

The breakdown of everything we ordered. I did order a fried rice to go so just ignore that.

Lunch is only $15.99 all you can eat.
Dinner is only $25.99 all you can eat.
** 15% if you do not finish your food. Obviously because they don’t want waste.

Lunch already has a big array of choices but they kindly let me look at the dinner menu and there are a lot more choices. Note that sashimi is only for the dinner all you can eat. And because of that, I got a gift card so I can take my parents and June again. They’re doing a promotion where if you buy a $50 you get $10 or $100 for $20. I did the $100. I’m excited because I know they’ll love it!

If you’re not wanting the all you can eat choice, you can always order a la carte. And they even have Happy Hour. I’m hoping Mallory will join me one of these days.

Back in Hong Kong, I picked up Marion carbonated Piggy Clay Bubble Mask. I finally got a chance to open it up and do it.

I smeared that crap all over my face and waited for a good 5 minutes for it to bubble. It made me sneeze a few times. Then I massaged it in my face and washed it off with lukewarm water and now I have skin of a baby’s bottom.

Sissy copied me and bought one too and she and BIL used it and both love it. They believe it does help clean up the pores which is what I have been wanting. The only thing BIL said was that the fizzing annoyed him because it felt uncomfortable.

I’m going to use this once a month and see how it goes. Maybe I’ll order more. Eeps. Love when things work out perfectly!

The Pearl Life

January 4, 2016 by Mellie Dee Leave a Comment

Started the year off right by seeing some of my favourites this past weekend. I haven’t visited since back in April so it was long overdue. This is the dinner group that came out regardless of the freezing cold and pouring rain. So thankful we were able to catch up.

Le Peep
19141 Stone Oak Pwky
San Antonio, Texas 78258
(210) 499-0694
http://lepeep.com

I literally woke up and started driving at 5am. No traffic. So freaking nice. I actually arrived earlier than what Liliana, Patricia, Daniel, and I agreed on. So I sat waiting for them in the car during which I started planning out my following week. I’m one of those people who takes their physical planner everywhere.

If you haven’t already noticed, I tend to order more than I can take but everything is pretty good. There’s a Le Peep in Houston so I might check it out now that’s I’ve actually tried it and it’s okie dokie but I think the one in Houston had a way lower rating. Hmm …

After breakfast, we drove back to Patricia’s house so I could drop off my car where she gave me the rest of my Christmas present. A new mug to add to my collection for when I move and a necklace.

Bird Bakery
5912 Broadway St
San Antonio, Texas 78209
(210) 804-2473
http://birdbakery.com

I forgot how much I loved San Antonio stores are so close.We walked around and ended up here for dessert. It’s actually a place I’ve always wanted to try but never ended up at. So lucky that I have bubbies that would drive me so far away just for dessert! Is it sad to say I ordered the cupcakes only because I wanted to take a cool picture? Sad life? … But I did try a bite of each and my favourite is the lemon cupcake and the elvis cupcake. But they’re not so amazing that I would come back. I would come back for the sea salt caramel latte though. That was bomb. And the fact they did some latte art is a win. And I creeped on other people’s drinks and saw various designs so that’s a win.

Cured
306 Pearl Pkwy
San Antonio, Texas 78215
(210) 314-3929
http://curedatpearl.com

We had an early dinner. Upon arriving to San Antonio in the morning, I was told to pick a place at The Pearl. I wanted to go to all of them. No jokes. But we ended up here and it was literally the funniest dinner we’ve ever had. Notice I said funniest. Not funnest. Though it was one of the funnest dinners. The Pearl is an upscale area and so things cost more for less amount of food, majority of the time. It doesn’t bother me since I don’t usually go to upscale places so I was willing. Plus we went when it was happy hour so we got a discount on some of the goodies. Travis and I were winning since we somehow ordered food that came with a lot.

Deschutes Blake Butte Porter – I actually tried this beer back when I was at the brewery in Oregon. One of my favourites. So glad I got to have two of them at dinner. Oh yeah, wild over here.

Quail Legs – This is actually Travis’ order. but many people at dinner ordered them too. So bomb. It’s like fried chicken but a million times better.

Beer Can Mussels [homemade tousso ham with whipped aioli fries] – A whole pot of mussels. I’d say it was pretty great for the price. The fries here are amazing.

Seriously, it’s expensive for every day type of meal, but for once in a while, I would totally come here all the time for happy hour. The beer with quail legs and fries. I’m set. I am hoping to hit up all The Pearl places one day soon. One of my goals for life … I aim high. Obvi.

We then headed over to Bakery Lorianne where I spent a major amount of time catching up with Travis. We aren’t really phone people. We’ve always been face to face and I guess seeing him gave us a lot to catch up on. Now that I think about it, I don’t think I’ve seen him for a whole year. Whenever I was in town, he was out and we just kept missing each other. Glad he decided to come out and literally stayed all night with me even though he worked all day and worked the next day as well. Great friend right there.

When Bakery Lorianne was closing, we all walked over to Local Coffee where we spent another couple hours just talking nonsense. I had plans to meet up with Cantu later that day at Thirsty Horse and so they waited with me. I’m glad I got to spend some time to catch up with Cantu but after awhile, it was Travis and I talking about how much guys suck. haha I miss my next door psychologist but he helped me see a lot of things I was blinded about.

After throwing back a few drinks and the clock almost turned to two am, we left and bought some tacos at the taco truck outside the country bar. I miss just being able to buy these kinda things everywhere I turned. We headed home and stayed up a bit to talk about some randomness and drama that happened and went to bed.

The Egg & I
9985 I-10 West
San Antonio, Texas 78230
(210) 691-3447
http://theeggandirestaurants.com

Only sleeping for a couple hours, I was up and at it again. Andy and Jakob wanted to do brunch, but let’s be honest, it was a lunch. So Patricia found a place and we had a grand time.

Texas Skillet – These potatoes are bomb. Not a big fan of the egg since it was too oily for me. And I got toast instead of the muffin (best decision ever). I don’t like grains that much but this was the best toast I’ve ever had!

Felt nice to be surrounded by them again and we talked about my moving back. I mean, it’s great when I’m here visiting, but if I wasn’t, would I be so bored? I really doubt we’d hang out all the time, yah know? But we did make plans to travel somewhere in the beginning of the year. I’m ready.

Here’s to collecting memories and not things! So far, I think I’m doing well on that.