What to Expect at Chicago’s Dinner in the Dark

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Have you ever heard of a restaurant where guests eat dinner in complete darkness? What better way to elevate a flavor experience than by focusing solely on taste and smell rather than sight? I first encountered the idea in the movie “About Time” with Rachel McAdams and Domhnall Gleeson, where the characters meet on a…

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Return to Fine Dining at Erna’s Elderberry House

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In a few short months, our friends José and Roya will be first-time parents! This sweet couple has been our rock through the pandemic with every Zoom happy hour and game night around our tiny dining table. When Roya announced her pregnancy, we shouted “road trip!” and promised to take them on one last fancy…

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Dazzling Flavors in the “American Rivera”

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Pit stop! The first leg of our road trip to sunny Santa Barbara began with saucy ribs and blue cheese tri tip salad from Salinas City Barbeque. Hands down, the most gorgeous combination of meat and seasonal veggies that we’ve ever seen. Pro tip: Never start a long journey on an empty stomach. Ok, back…

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Barbareño – Flavor Stories of Santa Barbara

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When the mild California winter finally breaks around Easter, and the sun warms our faces on afternoon walks, we emerge from our cooped up tiny house existence for a celebratory stay-cation in Santa Barbara. It’s not summer yet; not time for long holidays in exotic places far away from home. No, we venture just a few hours…

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Cruising the Mexican Riviera Aboard Norwegian

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Surfing through cruise deals online one day in March, we stumbled across an amazing early bird offer from Norwegian Cruise Line – four tickets for the price of two, for a week-long Christmas cruise to the Mexican Riviera, making port in Mazatlán, Cabo San Lucas, and Puerto Vallarta. What a steal! And completely worth the…

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Fine Dining in Yosemite National Park

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Venturing to Yosemite National Park in the Sierra Nevada mountains of east-central California is an all-day event, well-worth the drive from the Central Coast. We visited on a whim one Wednesday in the early fall, marveling at the sheer size of everything – the giant sequoia trees, towering granite cliffs, and delicate misty waterfalls. After…

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Odeum – Artisanal European Cuisine

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It’s becoming a yearly tradition to dress up fancy and visit Odeum for my birthday dinner. Serving artisanal Mediterranean cuisine in downtown Morgan Hill, this local favorite offers heated outdoor seating or intimate indoor dining near a colorful magenta wet bar. But the real reason to eat at Odeum is Michelin Star-awarded chef, Salvatore Calisi.…

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Small Bites At The White Hart Tea Room

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Turning 29 again is always a special occasion, so I treated my mom (the birthday girl) and my grandma to afternoon tea at The White Hart in Pacific Grove, just blocks away from the Monterey Bay Aquarium. This gorgeously restored old Victorian home overlooks the sparkling Monterey Bay. After we selected a loose-leaf tea to fill…

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Workin’ it in Ensenada Mexico #selfietrip

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*Disclaimer: This was a #selfietrip. Sometimes when photographers go out into the real world to have real experiences, they leave their fancy cameras and lenses at home to enjoy the little moments as they happen. This was one of those trips. Feel free to excuse yourself now if you can’t handle looking at two people,…

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