This Weekend’s Splurge vs. Steal!

Happy Thursday, dear readers! What are you up to with your sweetie this weekend? Brett and I have a TON going on, including welcoming FIVE Australian visitors on Sunday! We can’t wait to show them some of the fantastic restaurants and hot-spots around fabulous Seattle. That is why we love houseguests: we get to play tourist in our own city!

With that, we will leave you with a couple of good morsels for this weekend’s Splurge vs. Steal, some ideas to treat your sweet. If you decide to partake in the ‘steal’ of the week, you may just run into us! If you do, be sure to shout out a resounding, “OI!” (That’s Australian for “what’s up!”)

Feeling fancy? Throw on a medieval dress and mask, and get ready for the ball! Gage Academy of Art presents a Masquerade Ball & Benefit this Friday, January 29 from 6 – 11pm at St. Mark's Cathedral (1245 10th Ave E, Seattle, WA 98102).

Prepare yourself for an evening of revelry and artistic delights! Join the academy for an elegant feast, bid on unique art experiences, kick up your heels with a ballroom dance lesson, and enjoy performers during a special evening inspired by Italian Commedia dell'Arte.

Celebrate! Come as Casanova, don your domino, or fashion your disguise at our onsite Mercato di Carnevale. Click here for the full night’s schedule, and some great items that will be available at the auction!

Tickets are $175, which includes dinner. The Gage Masquerade Ball & Benefit celebrates the creative power of art-making to transform lives and build community as we raise funds to support Youth Programs and the Annual Fund at Gage. [Photo credits]

*Another Splurge for all you Coug fans! Celebrate Washington Wine’s 9th Annual Auction and Dinner at Chateau Ste Michelle… Go Cougs!

This weekend, why not head down to Pike Place Market? One of my favorite things to do with Brett is catch the bus or monorail ($4 each round trip) down to Westlake Center and walk the 4 blocks down to the market.

From there, we start at one end of the market and work our way down and back, picking up little snacks, fruits, breads, spreads, veggies, pastries, and fruit logs along the way. The market is ‘chock-a-block full’ (Australian for ‘really full’) of farm fresh produce by local vendors. You can’t swing a cricket bat without hitting something you’re dying to sink your teeth into!

Once we’ve gathered enough for a mini-meal, we head to the park at the end of the market ( on Western and Virginia ) and enjoy the meal!

From there, you can continue a historic walk through the market and post alley… you can head up to Cinerama and catch a flick… or you can hit up the Seattle Art Museum. The possibilities of fun things to do in this city are endless, it just depends on what you’re in the mood for!

If you want to be lead through the city by the experts, why not go on a professional tour? Seattle Bites Food Tours, Seattle by Foot, Savor Seattle, and the Market itself (only $10 for this tour!) all offer exceptional tours at affordable prices! Be sure to check them out, and have fun being a tourist in your own city! [Photo credits]

FABulous Snoqualmie Date Weekend!

January 22, 2010:
The Old Hen B&B and Snoqualmie Casino Weekend!

She Said: Brett and I decided to pack up our snow gear and head off to Snoqualmie for a weekend away! The plan? A little Bed and Breakfast, Snoqualmie Casino, Snowboarding getaway! Little did we know it would end up being one of the best weekends we've ever had! Just 40 minutes outside of the city, tucked away in the quiet and peaceful Snoqualmie Valley, you will find a hidden gem that is The Old Hen Bed and Breakfast.

A newly built inn with an earthly country feel, The Old Hen Bed and Breakfast has an old-fashioned elegant country beauty.

Brett and I arrived on Friday, and were promptly greeted by the owners’ Deanna and John's daughter. (Deanna and John were out on Date Night, so she checked us in. :)

Immediately, we were blown away with the tiny details that were put into everything. The house was beautiful. There were gumboots on the porch in case you wanted to take a muddy walk along the grounds.

The entry way showcased a gorgeous wooden staircase leading up to two of the three bedrooms. A fire was lit in the living room warming us immediately upon entry. A large kitchen just beyond the main room gave every indication that our breakfast would be second-to-none.

As we headed upstairs to our room, we were greeted with a little bag of hand-made chocolates on our door knob, welcoming us with a cute little note.

We were lucky enough to stay in the Old English Balcony Suite, boasting a king-size bed (the MOST comfortable bed we've ever been in! We actually went to Costco on our way home to get a memory foam for our own bed!), two Juliet balconies (one overlooking the living room, one overlooking the back yard and its chicken coop and goats!), a flat screen television and two reclining chairs, and an enormous bathroom with both an old-fashioned claw foot tub, his and hers towels, AND a rain shower -- yes, there was a spout ON THE CEILING that rained down on you (click on the photos below for more detail). IT. WAS. AMAZING.

And this is just the beginning. Everywhere we turned there were thoughtful details put into ensuring we had an amazing time.

A bottle of Snoqualmie Riesling chilling with two glasses... hand-made soaps in the shape of a hen (made by the talented Deanna!)... a state-of-the-art coffee maker and all the fixin's; a journal for us to keep our memories of our stay in, bath salts in case we wanted to go for a soak...

We felt so spoiled, sitting in our his and hers towels, feet up, glass of wine in hand, watching Family Guy on the flat screen.

Just what the doctor ordered to melt away our stresses of work and life and wedding planning.

Right next to our room was a small recreation room, complete with bookshelves stuffed with literature and games, a comfy couch, and a corner with an easel and paints set up in case you're feeling artsy.

There are two other suites apart from ours, you can read about here. But if you're taking my advice (and you should take my advice!), stay in the Old English Suite... it was AMAZING! And that bed... ohhhh, that bed. Was like nothing I've ever felt before.

But alas, "Bed" was only half of our "Bed and Breakfast" experience. We woke up to the sound of roosters crowing in the morning. But fear not, these are polite roosters: they waited until 8am to wake us from our slumber. We woke to the most amazing smell: BREAKFAST! As hesitant as we were to pull ourselves out of that bed, the siren smells carried us down the stairs to see a feast awaiting us. And because we had missed Deanna and John the night before, we finally got to meet our hosts!

It takes a special type of person to own and host a Bed and Breakfast. John and Deanna are those people, and then some. It is so clear that they love what they do (and each other!), and take pride in every little piece of this wonderful space.

It is clear in the small yet thoughtful details, and in how they interact with their guests. We immediately felt as though we had known them for ages.

Breakfast was amazing. We were spoiled both mornings, with fresh coffee, quiche, potatoes and scones, and then the second morning with a prosciutto-wrapped asparagus-stuffed omelet and hollandaise sauce, new potatoes, a cinnamon bun and a fruit juice cocktail to top it all off. WOW. We hadn't eaten this well since we first started dating and I was trying to lure Brett in with my mad cooking skills. And even that didn't compare to this culinary treat.

On Saturday we headed up to Snoqualmie Pass to spend a day on the slopes! We headed back mid-afternoon to start getting ready for our night at the Snoqualmie Casino. It's only a 10 minute drive from the Inn, so naturally, we HAD to go! :) Stay tuned for Brett's review on the Casino, it's gonna be good! On Sunday, after enjoying yet another amazing breakfast, we headed out back to feed the three goats! It's not every day that you get to experience nature like this, especially living in the city.

After lazing around a bit more (read: trying to take in the comfort of the suite as much as we possibly could!) we finally (begrudgingly) headed back into reality. But not without a goodie-bag from Deanna. She packed us a bag full of trail treats -- waters with their own personal labels on them, trail mix, and a 'thank you for staying with us' note. Wow.

Every thoughtful detail throughout our stay helped this to become one of our most unforgettable mini-vacations. And with it being only 45 minutes outside of Seattle, we cannot recommend it enough to those of you needing just a little bit of R&R.

You will not be disappointed.

This Weekend’s Splurge Vs. Steal!

Hello, my darling readers! This week’s Splurge vs. Steal will be a special one. Instead of listing two suggestive dates for you, I’m sharing with you a quick list compiled by Seattle Times’ lovely Nancy Leson of local area restaurants who are kind enough to give part of their proceeds to the devastation happening in Haiti.

Here is the list. Head out with your sweetie and enjoy one of these local establishments, all while doing your part to help our neighbors to the south.

Thursday, January 21: Pho Saigon (1016 Madison St.) on First Hill will donate the entire day's proceeds (and gratuities) to the efforts of Dr. Kathleen Jobe who, along with a the Seattle/King County Disaster Team, will soon be traveling to Haiti to set up a medical clinic providing emergency aid.

Sunday, January 24: Dinette (1514 E. Olive Way) on Capitol Hill will donate a portion of sales ($40 per person) from this week's Tuscan-inspired Sunday Supper to NetHope. With only 40 seats for this family-style meal, reservations are going fast and available via e-mail by contacting Dinette@mail.vresp.com.

Monday, January 25: Iron Chef contender Daisley Gordon and Campagne in Pike Place Market (86 Pine St., Seattle; 206-728-2800) will offer a special 3-course Bouillabaisse Dinner comprising a traditional Provencal-style seafood stew, chevre salade and a galette for dessert. Sommelier Cyril Frechier is pouring wines. All proceeds ($100 per person) will be donated to Medecins Sans Frontieres (that's French for Doctors Without Borders). Note: Campagne's purveyors are donating products for the dinner, service staff is donating labor and gratuities, and the Inn at the Market (bless 'em!) has offered to match the first $5000 raised by the restaurant.

You can also help by donating to the Red Cross here.

Date Night: ACRONYM Style!

January 14th, 2010:
KFC and IMAX

He Said:

We’ve all heard the rule that if something sounds too good to be true, it generally is too good to be true. Common sense really. The old sniff test so to speak.

Same goes for business as in life, and you’d be telling porky pies if you said you hadn’t fallen at one time or another for the next big thing, next easier option. As a bit of an impressionable dreamer myself, I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve been stung by many a fanciful tale of something being the next revolutionary and great thing. Be it the guaranteed, game-changing sale at work, the ever-sharp miracle blade perfection series III through to the thought of Sarah Palin going away as soon as the election was over, this school boy gullibleness is something I’ve been working on eliminating.

With this in mind, Date Night this week involved two things that I categorically thought were too good to be true. Avatar 3D at the IMAX, and KFC’s Under 400 calories meal for $3.95 (Penned, "a penny a calorie meal"). I’ll begin with the KFC.

Firstly, I’m a big fan of the dirty bird. One of the greatest hangover cures in the Western world; nothing brings you back to life like a 2 piece feed on a foggy Sunday afternoon.

But as I’m now in the midst of preparing for an October beach wedding, Colonel Sanders and his mates have been black-listed for the remainder of the year.

Until of course, I heard about the new health meal. To be honest when I first heard of the Under 400 meal, I thought the old colonel had a few kangaroos loose in the top paddock. I mean how on earth can you get a whole meal at KFC under 400 calories?!

Having faith in Uncle Sam’s advertizing laws, I quickly concluded that either the meal tasted horrible and/or the portion size would be tiny. I was wrong with both.

The meal consists of 2 pieces of the new grilled chicken, potato and gravy, green beans and a diet coke. All of it bloody beautiful and big enough to fill me up. I was stoked and a little remorseful that I didn’t believe my old mate who has nursed me back to health numerous times over the years. And for only $3.95, it’s now on my weekly lunch list.

Regarding Avatar, well we’ve all seen the media hype about how good it really is. Be it the endless morning show interviews, news paper articles, online reviews and stream of Facebook posts, I thought to myself, can it really be that good?

THAT GOOD!

With it making enough money to single handedly end the world’s recession, you’ve all probably seen it and have reviewed it for yourselves so you don’t need to hear my waffle about the film details so in short it is amazing. Visually the best movie I’ve ever seen and for the 3 people that haven’t seen it, make sure you do in IMAX 3D.

I don’t know how I can go back to normal 2D, non-6-story-high screens from now on.

You’ll feel like you’re literally in the movie.

To round out this short review, I was a little disappointed in the story. It’s a great, feel good, rounded story but absolutely not original.

Also I was stoked to see an Aussie taking the lead role though for the 300 or so swillion they spent on the flick you would have thought they’d fork out a little cash on an accent coach. I could of sworn he said “G’day mate” in there somewhere.

None the less, Avatar is a winner. It is the kind of movie that personally I could watch over and over again.

Cheers,

Brett

She Said:

Brett summed our night up pretty well! I got lucky and scored some tickets to Avatar IMAX 3-D at Seattle Center's IMAX (literally across the street from us! Bonus!) the day before Date Night.

When i called, they only had 3 tickets left! I snagged 2 of them ($13 each plus $3 handling fee plus $2.50 processing fee plus the promise of your first born child) and was happy to pay it. This show has been sold out EVERY NIGHT since its opening on December 18th, so i recommend calling ahead to get your tickets. If you just show up expecting to see the show, you won't.

Another tip: GET. THERE. EARLY. It's a freakin' cattle call trying to get into the theater and getting a seat. Folks line up two hours in advance to get the prime seating. Don't get there THAT early, that's just crazy. But definitely plan on being there at LEAST a half hour before the show starts. They have fun activities and toys in the lobby you can play with, and also a great snack bar that sells DIBS for only $4. So you have time to eat about 3 boxes before the show starts. PERFECT!

Lastly: Don't sit close to the front! You do this (especially with 3D) and you will seriously puke from motion sickness.

ENJOY the show!

Seattle Center IMAX
www.pacsci.org
200 2nd Avenue North
Seattle, WA 98109
(206) 443-4629

Showtimes: 12.50, 4.10, 7.30, and 10.45
Running Time: 166 Minutes
Worth it? Yes. Every 166 minutes of it.

This Weekend’s Splurge Vs. Steal!

Hellooooo, Thursday! This means it’s time to start thinking about your weekend plans, dreaming up how you are going to spoil your special someone. There are quite a few things going on this weekend, regardless of the dreary weather. So pull on your galoshes, grab your girl (or guy!) by the hand, and get ready for a fun-filled night on the town, with this week’s version of Splurge Vs. Steal!

Like a lot of fun, and like it fast? Me too. Which is why you HAVE to check out 14/48 at ACT Theater this (final!) weekend.

According to the ACT Website, 14/48 -- the world's quickest theater festival -- is 14 plays conceived, written, designed, scored, rehearsed and performed in 48 hours.

The combination of deadline, talent, speed, nerves and genius inspiration serve to strip away the creative inhibitions from more traditional theater, proving that, contrary to popular opinion, sometimes the first idea is the best. 14/48 involves more than 75 artists per weekend with at least 25% participating for the first time. Artistic participation is by invitation only and is predicated on the most rigorous professional standards.

Tickets can be purchased to this whirlwind event online ($20) or at the door ($25).

Still confused? Me too. Let’s read THIS together to find out what this whole festival is REALLY all about!

ACT Theatre
700 Union St
Downtown Seattle

Start the night off with dinner and beers at the Tap House Grill (at 1506 6th Ave). Remember to start early, because with over 160 beers on tap, trying them all will take you a while! Be sure to check out the Boundary Bay IPA – one of my FAVORITES!

Short on cash but still wanting to take your sweetie out for some high-class fun? Don’t go BROKE, go BAROQUE! (i know, i know… i groaned when i wrote it, so I'm sure you’re groaning while reading it!)

Baroque & Northwest Wine Series Kicks Off on January 15!

Toast the New Year with wines from the region's best vintners — just $10 for five pours. Then, hear Guest Conductor Nicholas McGegan — one of the world's foremost early music experts — lead Seattle Symphony in a program of Baroque masterpieces, including Handel's Organ Concertos, featuring Seattle Symphony Resident Organist Joseph Adam. January 15 & 16.

Purchase wine tasting cards in advance by calling the Ticket Office at 206.215.4747 or visit us at the corner of Third Ave. & Union St. in downtown Seattle.

Who says a night of symphony and wine has to cost you more than $20?

Happy Dating!

xo,

B&M

El Gaucho? More like El Awesome!

January 7, 2010:
El Gaucho

She Said:

Two beautiful words: El. Gaucho. What comes to mind when you hear these words? Does your mouth begin to water thinking of the most succulent steak you've ever tasted? Do you picture the dimly-lit interior, thick with intrigue and mystery, almost like you've stepped onto the streets of the 1920's--or the streets of Disneyland... Or does the world-class experience and amenities - complete with Valet parking, coat check, spot-on service (not to mention the Cigar Room) come to mind?

If you've answered 'all of the above', you've clearly spent an evening at what is considered the Northwest's Steakhouse Legacy.

Brett and I were fortunate enough to spend last week's Date Night at Belltown's El Gaucho. I know, this doesn't quite fit into our "Not spending money until after our wedding" vow, but we received a gift card from a dear friend of ours for Christmas, and HAD to spend it. Neither of us had been before, and were desperate to go. So now was the perfect time!

We made 8pm reservations, and arrived to find the dining room alive with a piano and bass playing in the corner, a wait staff dressed to the nine's, and fellow diners who were all clearly enjoying themselves as much as Brett and I were, and we hadn't even sat down yet! All we need is live piano and we're happy!

We started with a couple of Redhook ESBs ($6ea) ... sounds normal, right? NO! For some strange reason, these were the BEST Redhook's we've ever had in our lives. As we were enjoying our beers, we decided on an appetizer and some mains. To start, we shared the Steamed Clams in Wine Butter Sauce ($11), and for our mains, I ordered the Crispy Seared Chicken with wild mushroom corn ragout ($24), and Brett ordered the Mixed Grill sword ($28) and we shared the Grilled Portobello Mushroom side ($8) and the Sauteed Spinach ($8).

When the clams arrived, we DEVOURED them! They were so good. We ordered a bit of garlic bread to soak up the last bit of juices too, we couldn't waste that taste! Highly recommended.

The mains arrived shortly after.

(The timing on the food was like a dance-we never noticed when our dishes were cleared, it was so smooth!) My chicken was AMAZING, and I especially enjoyed the corn ragout. There was a bit of basil in it that made the flavor pop like nothing I'd ever tasted!

The Portobello was amazing (but I am OBSESSED with Portobello!) and the spinach was good (perhaps a bit too acidic), but the real star of the evening was Brett's Sword (he loves it when i say that his sword stole the show!).

The chef comes out with big chunks of meat on a giant metal stick (meats included lamb, beef, ostrich, and pork sausage) and cooks it there in front of you, using brandy, and a whole lot of skill.

There was fire everywhere! It lasted about 5 minutes and was quite a show! Brett devoured it, saying it was the best ostrich he'd ever eaten! I even tried it, and quite enjoyed it!

At the end of the meal, our waitress brought us a complimentary fruit and cheese platter, with the smoothest Roquefort cheese we've ever tasted... along side apples, pears, oranges, nuts, crackers, and dates. Was the perfect way to end the night of amazing and appreciated over-the-top flavors.

We headed back out into the night--after the gentleman at the coat check helped me with my coat--high on an amazing dining experience that we won't soon forget. We highly recommend hitting up El Gaucho for a special occasion, if you are looking for an evening of romance... enchantment... and a hell of a good meal.

RATINGS:

El Gaucho
Neighborhood: Belltown
2505 1st Ave
Seattle, WA 98121
(206) 728-1337
www.elgaucho.com

Romance: 5

Cool Ambiance/Interior: 5

All Around Service: 5

Cost: $$$$ = entrees from $22+

Would we recommend it? 5: Yes! And can we come with you?