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Showing posts with label slc. Show all posts
Showing posts with label slc. Show all posts

8.25.2015

summer re-cap.

i went to church on sunday only to discover the average age in the ward dropped to 18; westminster started.

paige became a full-fledged adult today and started teaching english to a bunch of eighth graders.

i added about 5 minutes to my morning commute (as of yesterday) because of the elementary that's located on my street, and because of all the freaking school zones on the the way to work.

summer 2015 is OVER!

for me though, things will pretty much stay the same. i've gotten over that gotta-buy-school-clothes-and-get-back-to-school feeling i grappled with post-graduation. and it's still warm enough to swim. so really, i'm good! it also means that city creek isn't so crowded and that i basically have the food court to myself at lunch. win!

nevertheless, here's a pictorial summer 2015 re-cap for your viewing pleasure:

at the beginning of the summer i went on a architecture tour of salt lake. man, we have some beautiful buildings in this city (see above). 

i continued to love burgers this summer and was ecstatic to find this burger seat at one of my fave spots: red robbin.

i went to a lot of concerts this summer. concerts are kind of my jam lately. here ^^^ is passion pit at red butte. we also saw death cab for cutie, father john misty, and black rebel motorcycle club at twilight. last week i sat on the hill behind red butte to listen to wilco and it was a DREAM! looking forward to a few more really great concerts this fall.  

i didn't hike as much as i wanted to this summer. i did timp last year and was yearning for another 10-hour gig, but didn't get the chance. fingers crossed for some good fall hikes. i did however, do a few short hikes here and there. above ^^^ is on the grandeur peak trail.
 ^^^ here's a view from the trail behind the draper temple ... i don't know what it's called ... bonneville shoreline?? which reminds me of a new bucket list item i have:  hike the entire bonneville shoreline trail, which spans from idaho to santaquin. on the day this was taken, i just hurried up the hill to see the sunset. boy was it worth it!

^^^ this is the desolation trail up millcreek canyon. it's lotr reminiscent no? 

^^^ lastly we have a hike-selfie from donut falls.

of course we participated in our annual moonlight ride on antelope island! this year was the BEST YET because i brought a portable speaker and we JAMMED the whole ride. actually, at one point, i was taking a breather at the top of a hill and led zeppelin's kashmir was playing. a couple people thanked me while they passed and said the song helped them up the hill. long live jimmy page.

many a sunday night (and a few weeknights) were spent out on the front lawn. this is a favorite pass time of mine and paige's. another favorite pass time of mine and paige's is TICKET TO RIDE. the best board game ever to exist (with monopoly taking a close second, obvi). 

a super big giant best highlight of the summer was our quick jaunt to disneyland for a two day spree. we drove from saint george early on a sunday morning and returned late (SUPER late, like we got home at 6am) monday morning. it was all in all a wonderful trip. i'm realizing the more i visit disneyland, the more i love it. the ears, the food, the fun. it really is a magical place.

BEFORE the drop on splash mountain.

and AFTER the drop on splash mountain. somehow paige still looks like a model ... 

this summer was momentous because it was my first time seeing 2001: a space odyssey. loved it! love that stanely kubrick. also a shout out to my uncle for letting us watch it in his theater. so good.

two of my oldest and dearest friends had babies this summer. brooklyn (on the right) is my birthday babe cause she was due on my birthday. although, when it came down to it she couldn't wait to make her entrance and came four days early. still, she's my birthday babe. 

^^^ here's another one of my babes i just couldn't help but include in the post. showing me her smile on a sunday facetime sesh. that face! oh that face!!!

i know this picture is really dark, but it was one of my most favoritest days this summer. it was my birthday week and i did a little ferris buellering (if you know what i mean) and spent the day with my favorite people at lagoon. we did lagoon-a-beach, rode all the rides (well, some of the group rode all the rides), played games, won prizes, and ate something called a "beaver tail" that i've been dreaming about ever since. SUCH good times.  

a couple of weekends ago, me and my two best girls drove up to bear lake on a saturday. we stopped in logan for breakfast at angie's (highly recommended, we loved it!), then made the rest of our way up the canyon to that SO BLUE bear lake. it was crowded, but it's so big it didn't make much of a difference to us. we laid on the beach, tanned, listened to poolside playlist classics, and rented a jet ski for a bit and rode around on the lake. it was such a great day we decided to make it a tradition. 

^^^ dancing AND tanning. best of the best.


last weekend was a last-days-of-summer-celebration of sorts. we did slide the city. please note that, although my burger is so adorable, it is not a tube and therefore, was not ideal for sliding down the three block water slide. 

paige WAS wearing a swimsuit. just fyi. 

after slide the city we had snow cone chasers. interestingly, this was my first of the season and it did not disappoint. please give me coconut ice cream with my snow cone ALL THE TIMES.

in the evening we attended a concert at the sandy amphitheater. which was so delightful. oh! and then we went to bill & teds excellent adventure at the tower. 
perfect way to end the summer.

looking forward to football games, horror movies, pumpkin EVERYTHING, and all else that comes with fall.

8.03.2015

18. find the best burger utah has to offer.


i'm nearing the end of my time for 27 things. in which case it's time for me to do a little accounting!

i'm sure i've talked about the mind of a chef here before. it's one of my favorite television shows. i'm SO intrigued by these food-geniuses. oddly enough, you can find me marathoning this documentary/travel/history/science/food series any given friday night. i'm obsessed.

david chang was the show's premier chef. season one encompassed the mind of david chang, founder of the momofuku restaurant group and 2 michelin star holder. needless to say, i'm a big fan. i look forward to the day i dine at one of his establishments.

combine my love of david chang with my love of burgers and imagine my delight upon finding this "burger manifesto" in lucky peach, last month. it's basically just a list of things david chang DOESN'T like about burgers. i similarly tried coming up with things i didn't like about burgers, but could really only come up with one:

a bunch of fancy stuff; arugula and candied bacon confuses my mouth.

really i'm pretty simple. good cheese, good meat, good burger. oh, i guess i have one criteria:  that the burger have a sense of the americana if you will. i'm talking mustard, ketchup, meat and bun, with good fries and a diet coke on the side. this, to me, is the perfect combo. if you can follow it up with a yummy shake, it's the cherry on top. ok so, 

top 3 in utah
1. tony burger - this place is cheap. and if you go in, you will come out smelling like a burger for the rest of the day. which is a good thing i guess. at tony burger, you have lots of options, really good fries, and coke products with crunchy ice. they also have shakes with BIG straws (very important). all i know is that if i'm in the mood for a burger fix, fast, tony burger has my back, EVERY time.

2. salt lake burger company - ok i love this place. and many of my loved ones do, but i have heard some negative reviews. what i like MOST of all about s.l. burger co., is that you have a ton of options here. they have a salad-bar-type jive going on where you can order any burger, specialty or plain-jane, and then add extras at a bar in the restaurant. the bar has veggies and sauces. it just makes me feel like i could have ANY combination on my burger. i usually get my burger with bleu cheese and then add veggies and dijon mustard. i love it. they have good fries too, and yummy fry sauce. and, oh yes, shakes. always shakes.

3. hire's - i grew up going to hire's. it's a salt lake favorite, but more importantly, it's a DAD favorite. whenever we would meet up with my dad for lunch when i was a kid, we'd go to hire's. for YEARS i never ordered burgers at restaurants, because i only liked my dad's home-grilled burgers. i remember going out with some friends in my teen years and having a friend say "you don't get the big h?!?! are you crazy?!?!". at which point, i tried the burgers (cause peer pressure ya know?) and never looked back. for me it's the big h combo with fries (topped with cheese if i'm feeling extra hungry), a large diet coke (hire's has THE best crushed ice in the biz), and the big h burger. it's a down and dirty burger - classic, hole-in-the-wall diner, greasy. the bun is really floury, the meat is ... greasy, there's one piece of iceburg lettuce and a slice of (usually unripened) tomato, american cheese (gross), and for sauce, a heaping tablespoon of frysauce (hire's secret recipe obvi!). so simple and yet, so damn good!

i thought a lot about #18 this year, find the best burger utah has to offer. and i guess what i learned is that i am always in search of the best burger, not only in utah, but in the WORLD! i am currently and will forever more be constantly seeking out the best burger. cause i love burgers

5.09.2013

what i eat at work: hire's.

i think this is pretty self-explanatory.

4.18.2013

what i eat at work: kneaders.

i've been trying really hard not to eat out lately. i even cooked 2 whole times this week. and even though my corn chowder and chicken chalupas were quite tasty, i can't shake the habit. i brought a lunch today so i wouldn't be tempted but when 10am rolled around i found myself ordering not lunch but BREAKFAST at kneaders. i can't say i was disappointed, in fact, i may do breakfast out more often now that i've experienced it. also cause it's the most important meal of the day you know ...

i ordered the greek omelet. i have a weakness for feta cheese and this omelet did not disappoint in that area. the omelet had feta, spinach, and mushrooms and came with a side of wheat toast and two slices of oranges. oh boy it was GREAT! a good substitute for my favorite st george breakfast at the egg and i.

kneaders has MANY wonderful things on their menu that i'm no stranger to (thanks city creek). you need to try their all you can eat french toast during mortality, i'm a sucker for their chocolate croissant; at lunch try their broccoli cheese soup or just a simple ham and cheese sandwich, in college i loved their chicken salad sandwich and parmesan chips with a cream cheese brownie for dessert.

basically you could go there for anything, at any time of the day and be happy.
long live kneaders.

9.12.2012

my morning walk.

for my morning break i decided that i would take a little walk over to harmons to get the perfect salad dressing for my strawberry spinach lunch salad. 

it wasn't very crowded out, certainly no where near the lunch time crowd. 

i waiting for the light to change next to a dancing man. 

on my way back i got a 44 ouncer (but don't worry it was mostly ice) from the little pharmacy on the corner of state and south temple. 

i passed a new greek food cart called "moms". the gentleman at the cart greeted me and i told him his food smelled good. he thanked me and we chatted briefly about how it was a chilly morning. 

it was pretty crisp, that good fall crisp. i heard it snowed somewhere today ... 

when i crossed the street i saw a group of tourists rushing to catch the salt lake city open air tour bus.

and finally, as i walked back into my building the sun glistened on the temple fountain. 

and i was just happy and in love with my city and my life.

2.19.2012

smogville usa.

also known as salt lake city, utah from january to april.

to avoid this we often get outta town during march. two weekends ago it was st geezy and next weekend is lava hot springs. 






we're pretty excited.

2.16.2012

what makes the perfect neighborhood?


i stumbled upon the granary district blog today. the granary district is an up and coming area of salt lake. i'm sure i've mentioned rubysnap before or chic and unique. these are both located in the granary district.

a particular post asked "what's in your perfect granary neighborhood?", and sited an article at outlines a few items that make a neighborhood a GOOD neighborhood:

-a signature event
you know like, the hell's kitchen street fair or the shakespearean festival.

-third places
your first place is home, second work, what is your third place? the place you go to chill or eat or drink or be inspired?

-public spaces
think high line park in chelsea.

-a human scale
this is like, being able to get pastries from a pastry shop and hardware from a hardware specialist. like, being able to walk or bike everywhere and get things done. and is something i'm excited to see grow in salt lake as city creek opens up. my heart was filled with such joy yesterday when i saw masses of people out on the streets to walk to the harmon's grand opening.

-an anchor institution
i can't say it better than this: "what makes some college towns so great is their ability to galvanize civic spirit through the symbiotic relationship those institutions maintain with residents. when the success of the neighborhood and the success of the school or company are one in the same, everyone wins." 

-diversity
not just diversity, but integrated diversity.

in the end "it's hard to consciously describe what exactly makes neighborhood like dupont circle in washington, dc {holla!} or the castro in san francisco, or the pearl district in portland, oregon so welcoming and nice to be in."

what are some of the facets of your neighborhood that make it so nice to be in? and for salt lakers, what are the qualities about our city that make people want to come and stay?

1.30.2012

to do salt lake city.

via.

off and on, here and there, folks have asked me what they should see and do while in my beloved city: salt lake. maybe it's because they can sense the passion in my voice when i talk about it. or maybe i'm just really cool and they want to be me ... regardless, i've decided to share my thoughts on the subject: 

things to eat 

  • redrock brewery $ -- for your fresh brewed cream soda
  • hire's big h $ -- for your burgers
  • ruby snap $ -- for your cookies
  • gourmandise $ -- for your french connection
  • caputo's $ -- for your meatball sub
  • toasters! $ -- for your balsamic vinegar on a deli sub
  • bruges $ -- for your belgian waffles, try the fresh peaches with creme fraiche (it will make you want to be a better person)
  • mazza $$$ -- for your mediterranean
  • les madeleine $$ -- for your kouign amann
  • settebello $$ -- for your authentic pizza
  • litza's pizza $$ -- for your american pizza
  • cafe med $$ -- to get your greek on
  • aristo's $$ -- let me just say this, if i were ever on the best thing i ever ate, i would site this restaurant
  • dolcetti $ -- for your gelato
  • so cupcake $ -- of all the cupcakes i've tried, i still love these most
  • the little america coffee shop $$ -- for your comfort food
  • vinto $$ -- GREAT gelato
  • su casa $ -- for your mexican
  • finn's $$ -- for your classy saturday brunch
  • j wongs $$ -- for your chinese
  • pig in a jelly jar $ -- for your chicken and waffles
  • copper onion $$$ -- for the best taste in salt lake
  • the roof - $$$$ -- for the view
  • oh mai $ -- for your vietnamese
  • penny ann's $ -- for your pie
  • eva's cafe $ -- for your paris in salt lake fix
  • avenue's bistro $$$ -- for your burger with candied bacon on it
  • kathmandu $$ -- for your indian (dat tandoori chicken!)
  • ekamai $ -- for your thai
  • rusted sun pizzeria $ -- for your bleu chicken pizza
  • cubby's $ -- isn't in salt lake ok! but i love it so go to provo and get some burgers!
  • dask's $ -- more greek, and for your rice pudding
  • salt city burger company $$ -- for your gourmet burgers
  • from scratch $ -- for everything ... from scratch!
things to do/see

  • cathedral of the madeline
  • the salt lake city library
  • memory grove
  • gilgal gardens -- joseph smith jr. as a sphinx? find it here
  • the tower theater
  • the broadway theater -- home to film lovers
  • the capitol
  • gravity hill -- haunted hill or optical allusion?
  • the salt lake city cemetery
  • the spiral jetty -- worth the 20 mile drive on a dirt road
  • church history museum
  • temple square
  • the leonardo
  • utah museum of contemporary art
  • utah museum of natural history
  • red butte gardens
  • antelope island state park
  • liberty park -- ride the ferris wheel, feed the ducks, visit the aviary
  • discovery gateway
  • find the food trucks!
  • hike! -- there are hundreds of hiking spots just minutes away, all levels and all beautiful

shopping

  • city creek
  • trolley square -- look for tabula rasa and cabin fever
  • chic and unique
  • the green ant
  • antoinette's -- for vintage jewelry
  • 900 south 900 east -- look for hip and humble, children's hour, koo de ker
  • 1500 south 1500 east -- look for the king's english book store

summer brings even more to do. i love my city in the summer time. there is always a festival to attend. the greek festival, the arts festival, movies in the park, food truck thursday, concerts in the park (specifically twilight in pioneer park and the red butte series), the farmer's market, bike gangs.

man i love this place.

11.09.2011

that's why we never get tired of salt lake.

 i'm completely in love with my new city life.

probably because it is vaguely reminiscent of my life about a year ago.

{last year.}

{this year.}

oh and i have a new tattoo, which is just oh so city.
right?

8.15.2011

what i eat at work: the jvdge cafe.

{please pretend that i took this picture at jvdge's and forget that i really got it from here.}

last week we ate at the jvdge cafe for lunch. i love this area of salt lake, especially it's bustle during the lunch hour. watching the jimmy john's delivery boys come back and leave again on their bikes is one of my favorite lunch past times.

the jvdge building was built in 1906 by mary judge. it's a charming building. most charming are the colorful ceramic tiles and big windows that look out into the busy city. the balsamic chicken sandwich was pretty charming as well with sauteed mushrooms, provolone, and garlic mayo.
mmm ... 

try it out. thank me later.

7.27.2011

is it too late to tell you what i did for pioneer day?

good.

cause i had to tell you about:

-everyone in the salt lake city police department {including female officers} wearing fake mustaches in the parade {and if you know me, you know that this made my day}.


and


{mmm.}


we also:
-saw midnight in paris again. it was still good.
-took a much needed dip in a cool pool.
-ate ny style pizza.
-watched a modern marvels on frying {i just love the history channel}.
-enjoyed the now traditional circle firework show, which included fireworks with names like psychadelic mojo and jealous condor.
-took in our nightly castle addiction, which has apparently become 2011's summer smut series.

7.20.2011

i know you are but what am i?

looking for something to do in salt lake this weekend?

i have an idea!

come to the summer of 35 mm at the tower!

this weekend they are showing one of my all time faves: pee-wee's big adventure.


what's better?

{they're playing labrinth in two weeks if you're a bowie fan, or if your name is shannen camp.}

7.15.2011

what i eat at work: the curryer.


we saw this little gem a few weeks ago when we walked over the jimmy johns{oh so good!} on 3rd.
their clever name is what first caught my eye.
the other thing that caught my eye is that they are an indian food street vendor, two things that are unique in a little city like mine. especially street vendors with tandoori ovens. I've missed my indian food excursions since i moved back to utah from dc.

oh naan, how did i live 22 years of my life without you?

so if you're ever on broadway and main around lunch time, give it a try.

like um on fb and get their menu and discounts!

7.14.2011

there is however,

explosions in the sky.



my almost most favoritest band is coming to pioneer park to serenade me at dusk.

be jealous.

or you could come if you wanted ...

pioneer park in salt lake
music starts at 7pm.

7.06.2011

as an ambassador of the beehive state.

i feel it is my duty to show you the ropes.

i recently read salt lake magazine's best of the beehive and promptly created a
"things i wanna see after reading salt lake magazine's best of the beehive" list.

i'll share.

11901 south 700 east
draper, utah
moving back to utah from dc, a big empty space fills my heart where trader joe's used to belong. pirate o's is described by sl mag as the "utah version of trader joe's." i hope they're right.

613 east 400 south
slc, utah
"the best milkshake"

102 north university ave
provo, utah
my sister talks about this place quite often. apparently they have the best water because it is filtered "through a japanese-made kangen filter that adjusts its ph balance to a perfect 8.5".

i love me some TOMS. but is it just me, or do they lose coolness as baby-boomers start wearing them {no offense baby-boomers. i love ya!}. never fear, slc has their very own twist on the canvas kicks.

where my obsession with bikes came from, i do not know. but i do know that this is PERFECT for my bike gang.

3920 washington blvd
ogden, utah
um, i looked on their menu and they sell egg creams. that right there sold me.

157 east 900 south
slc, utah
one of our taylorsville dayzz festivities was pulling out the old record player and dancing to rosemary clooney by the chimnea. i wouldn't mind if all my nights were exactly like that one. not a bit.

but it doesn't stop there. i also made a
"things i'm glad i've seen and i think that you should probably see too" list.

i'll share.

1043 east 900 south
slc, utah
LOVE! great place to buy gifts for your favorite people {me}. great jewelry.

254 south 200 west
slc, utah
one of my very favorite restaurants. their goat cheese bruschetta appetizer: divine. sl mag, along with my sister, suggests their cream soda, made with madagascar vanilla and cane sugar. mmm.

126 crystal avenue
slc, utah
"the nucleus of the salt lake art scene". if it wasn't for my super artsy family and their super artsy art shows, i would have never been able to lay eyes on the super artsy art that lies within these walls.

-jeff lambson
jeff lambson is the curator of contemporary art at byu's museum of art. he used to work at the hirshhorn in dc for goodness sakes! he is responsible for THIS exhibt, which is MARVELOUS!

another shout out!

creepy ghost town with 100 year old cemeteries AND the place in which butch cassidy rides a bike through town with etta place.

330 trolley square
slc, utah
the classiest place to buy a birthday card, where i was introduced to wayne thiebaud, and home of my vera bradley fix.

now go out and get some beehive on ya.

7.05.2011

i realize i never wished you a happy 4th of july.

sorry.

i will now give you a briefing of how i celebrated our nation's birthday. there was none of this, as in previous years, but it was still swell.

saturday
-wake up early, too early for saturday
-go to farmer's market
-have the time of your life
-especially enjoy ruby snaps' almond white-chocolate chip cookie
-go to bikram yoga
-feel as though you might die
-feel as though you are the shiiiiiiiiii because you finished bikram yoga
-feel great, but really sweaty



-all of the sudden, feel as though you might die again
-blame it on the fact that you didn't drink enough water before you perspired half your body weight
-sleep it off
-wake up just in time to party with the woods
-party with the woods
-sleep

sunday
-go to church
-get really important things accomplished there
-eat a delectable meal afterwards
-lounge for too long
-drive 100 miles to the spiral jetty



-be afraid that aliens might abduct you in this strange land, far from civilization



-get home safely despite your fears
-skype mama walt for an hour
-laugh the whole time
-try to watch 500 days of summer
-stop watching 500 days of summer because your computer shuts down voluntarily
-be happy that you just bought an imac
-fall asleep
-dream about your new imac

monday
-sleep in too long
-think that it is probably because you went to sleep at 2am
-help mom with her blogging masterpiece
-be persuaded by paige to put on your swimsuit
-drive to grandma's to go swimming
-dance around in your new swimsuit for a while
-decide to jump in
-decide it is too cold to jump in
-jump in anyway
-regret it
-jump in again
-get out of the pool because it is raining on the 4th of july!
-go to the indoor pool
-go see the most abstract film you've ever seen
-love it because 1) it's pretty 2) it's at the broadway
-admire the sign at the concession stand that says "edamame: they make an independent film better"
-think about the movie that you just saw for hours on end
-eat a fitting meal for the 4th - texas roadhouse
-love that
-get home just in time for the circle firework show



was that long?



hey, happy 5th of july.

7.04.2011

the farmer's market.

one of THE BEST things you can do in salt lake in the summer!
{the farmer's market in pioneer park, salt lake city} 


{my very first kouing aman! mmm}

{i'd come to the farmer's market just for this right here: two hipsters entertaining us with their own bike-drawn piano. LOVE it!}

{fresh peas.}

{free books.}

{and valet bike parking.}

{brought to you by the one-and-only
SALT LAKE CITY.}