Silent Disco @ TCMMF

After recovering from the recent Traverse City Microbrew & Music Fest, we all had one thing on our minds:  the Silent Disco was awesome!   For those of you who have never attended one, a Silent Disco entails dancing to music which can only be heard through headphones.  So, dancers can hear the dj & the tunes, while bystanders can only hear the participants cheering and singing (usually… & comically) off-key :)  It’s quite a spectacle…in a good way.  Approaching the crowd, it just looks like a bunch of weirdos, randomly hanging around and gyrating to imaginary songs.  Once the headphones are donned, however, all of those weirdos become your comrades in a sort of private club! 

Anyway, my point is that we would love to host a Silent Disco here in The Mercato.  What do you think?  Would YOU participate?  I’m pretty sure that I can count on my Village People to get down.  I think I love the idea…

"I wanna live with a Cinnamon Girl..."

 I admit it.  I LOVE Left Foot Charley’s Cinnamon Girl Hard Cider.  There is no finer beverage to imbibe after a long day at work (or even a great workout at the gym), than Cinnamon Girl.  Imagine yourself, kicking back on the LFC patio, soaking up the sun, breathing in our fresh, Northern Michigan air, and sipping a cold pint of that sweet, sweet cider.  Liquid gold.  Apples and cinnamon cavorting happily with bubbles and 5.2% alcohol = pure bliss. 

My only concern, is that this delicious cider will eventually run out…probably in mid-June.  So, get yours while it lasts!  In fact, take home a growler or two, and make your neighbors jealous. 

"I could be happy the rest of my life, with my Cinnamon Girl."

I do realize that Left Foot Charley will be coming up with another unique and totally yummy cider for me to adopt as my new fave…but for now, I vow to enjoy every last drop of cinnamon goodness.  Ahhhh.

Confection Perfection

Every once in a while I get a sweet craving…for something other than chocolate.  Sometimes I like to have a dessert with a rich, buttery crust.  An ooey, gooey, tart filling is a plus.  Ooh!  Don’t forget a heavy dusting of powdered sugar on top!  “What on Earth could satisfy these 2pm snack desires?” you ask.  The Underground Cheesecake Company’s Key Lime Bars could…and they did :)

Ahhh.  A perfect compliment to coffee, these little babies are about as good as it gets.  I wonder how well they go with Margaritas…

Yummy, Little Bites of Heaven

John grills like a pro.

So…I finally tried the Matterhorn Dinner @ TASTES of Black Star Farms in The Mercato.  It was awesome!  I told my friend, John, that I was giving him the gift of Matterhorn for Christmas (so I could try it, too), and we just recently got around to making a reservation.

Kevin & Caren brought us a huge plate full of ham, sausages, potatoes, bread, fresh veggies, apples, & Leelanau Cheese Company’s famous raclette cheese, along with some pearl onions, pickles & garlic to cleanse our palates.  Each of us were also given 3 (very generous) samples of wine.  And…we were off!

In no time, we had the grill loaded up with lots of goodies, and flipped them while we sipped our wine.  After the food was browned to our liking, we stuffed the raclette into the melting pans, and slid them under the grill.  This, my friends, is where the magic happens.  Raclette is delicious pretty much anytime, but when it’s melted, it’s heavenly.  So, we unloaded the grill onto our plates, and poured the cheese all over everything.  A dash of salt; a few turns of the pepper grinder…hold on, I’m still chewing…AMAZING!!!  I believe my favorite “taste combo” was bread + apple + cheese + pepper.  Mmmm.

Dinner was so much fun :)  We grilled, we drank, we ate, & we laughed, never bothering anyone, since we were nestled in a semi-secluded nook inside the tasting room.  I would definitely recommend this to anyone who would like more of a hands-on adventure for dinner.  It’s reminiscent of a fondue party, but with pouring rather than dunking.

Dinner for 2 is $50, and includes all of the aforementioned items.  The tables can seat up to 6.  Reservations are recommended, due to limited seating.  Stop by TASTES or call 231.944.1349 to reserve your table.  It’s so yummy.

Lisa’s Luscious Salad from The Silvertree Deli in The Mercato is just that.  Luscious.  As a (mostly) health conscious person, I am always in the market for a great salad.  My #1 concern, is always “stuff.”  “Is there a lot of stuff in that salad,” I ask.  Well, the answer here is plain to see…yeah, there’s a lot of stuff.  With just the right mix of Romaine lettuce, chicken breast, dried cherries, pine nuts, and feta cheese, this salad’s got it goin’ on.  Just splash on the  balsamic vinaigrette, and the package is complete:  Sweet, salty & sour = the perfect taste combo.

I’m thinking, perhaps, that this could be Traverse City’s signature salad.  After all, it does utilize the Cherry Capital’s favorite fruit.

Fresh & Hot from the Oven!

Calling all Foodies & Pizza Lovers!  Being the pizza connoisseur that I am, I can tell you that this is some good stuff.  Pleasanton Brick Oven Bakery is now offering delicious Italian-style, hearth baked pizzas, crafted from all organic flours and the finest toppings.  Not only are these pies baked with wholesome ingredients, they are also made with love :)

Currently, you can purchase Pleasanton’s yummy, artisan pizzas on Saturdays, from Noon to 6pm.  $8 will get you a 10″ pie to split with someone you really like, or hog down all by yourself.  BEWARE:  If you attempt to eat one of these babies straight out of the oven, you will most certainly burn your tongue, rendering your tastebuds useless for the remainder of the experience.  So, try to wait a couple minutes…it’s not gonna be easy.