Somehow I have managed to catch up with five old friends in 48 hours. 🙂
On Thursday night I met two good friends from graduate school, Danielle and Leigh, at Buku in Raleigh.
Buku says that they offer “global street food”. They are a fairly new restaurant and this was my first time trying them out.
I started off with a glass of Tempranillo from Spain.
I immediately spotted the baba ganoush and asked if anyone wanted to share it. We decided that we should share everything and also started out with a cucumber salad which was in a light vinaigrette with roasted peanuts.
Our second course and my favorite part were the butternut squash and chicken stuffed perogies.
Perogies are Polish but remind me a lot of empanadas. Their flaky pastry crust can be stuffed with almost anything but traditionally are stuffed with potato.
Last, we shared a espresso rubbed pork tenderloin with pureed cauliflower and dark chocolate sauce. Who would have ever thought to put cauliflower and chocolate together? It was interesting, but I don’t think I would voluntarily put this combination together in my own cooking.
After dinner, we walked down the street to The Hive to have a second glass of wine.
Danielle and Leigh
We had a great time discussing what was going on in our lives and especially Leigh’s upcoming wedding in Charleston this summer. I’m so excited for her! 🙂
Fast forward to yesterday morning. I attended the last few bits of the conference, then packed up my things and got on the road.
But first, I stopped by Whole Foods in Durham to get a quick lunch. 😉
I checked emails on my phone while I ate a big bowl of veggies with a little tofu.
Chobani for the road!
I drove in some yucky rainy weather until I reached Greensboro to catch up with my friend Mary Jean. We went by a Caribou Coffee and I got a small cinnamon rooibos. I’ve had this tea several times but honestly, it’s not my favorite. I had reached my coffee limit for the day and Caribou didn’t have a huge selection of decaf teas, so I settled on the rooibos. It’s just a little too cinnamony for me and doesn’t really go well with milk, which is my favorite way to drink tea.
While driving home to Charlotte, I made plans to meet up with my old friend Erin, who just moved back into town. Erin and I have known each other since we were born, but haven’t had a chance to talk since my wedding last August.
I fixed a quick spread of cheeses, veggies, hummus, and crackers. Erin brought a bottle of Merlot, some really yummy mango chutney, and a ripe pear.
We made ate most of the cheese, pear, and crackers and made a dent in the veggies. The best combination was pear + honey + Gorgonzola. That is one of the best combinations ever! Yum!
I didn’t snap any photos of people yesterday so here’s a blast from the past. MJ’s on the far left and Erin is in the middle.
It was sooo good to get in a lot of girl time in the past two days and catch up with old friends.
Lucky for me, Brad and I are having dinner with more friends tonight. 🙂
I hope you are enjoying your Saturday!