Food and Flowers

Our night away to Grand Marais included fabulous food (as all visits to Grand Marais do!) and on this night we opted for The Crooked Spoon Cafe. We noticed this spot on our last trip up, but couldn't squeeze it in lest we would not be able to squeeze into our clothes! Our meal began with the most beautiful French Onion Soup topped with puff pastry and gruyere. My entree of pan roasted bone-in chicken breast and buttermilk mashed potatoes was delectable as well. I always find myself coveting whatever my husband orders as he usually orders shellfish of some kind when we're out. I was diagnosed with a shellfish allergy a couple of years ago so I can no longer prepare it at home which I loved to do frequently. He ordered these gorgeous Bronzed Jumbo Sea Scallops with Blood Orange-Coriander Gastrique and Blue Crab and Sweet Pea Risotto that you see above. I could only try a teeny taste of the gastrique as it's the only part of his meal that didn't contain shellfish, but it was heavenly!

Our trip also included lots of beautiful flowers to admire. These white lovelies were seen at the scenic overlook in Silver Bay where we were marveling at the fog covering Lake Superior.

The lupines are in full bloom all along the North Shore and we captured these on the way back along the roadside north of Two Harbors. On our trip up to Grand Marais, these lupines were surrounded by a camera club trying to preserve the all too brief blooming beauties.

Michigan Munchies

My husband and I are spending an extended Memorial holiday weekend in Michigan and at the end of our first full day with our friends here in Sault Ste. Marie we headed out for burgers at an institution here - West Pier. They have ginormous burgers which are great, not great for you, but great nonetheless. I ended with a wicked stomach ache that evening, not because the burgers weren't good but as they were so good I kept eating long past the the point at which I should have stopped! West Pier is even mentioned as one of the best burger joints around Lake Superior in the current issue of Lake Superior Magazine.

I took this pic as I immediately noticed the imaginative spelling of burger in a few different ways on the same sign. My friends said they had never noticed it before!

Fast forward to the next day and our visit to Mackinac Island and an entirely different culinary experience. Following a couple of hours of exploring the island and feeling the need for some sustenance, we stumbled upon Bistro on the Greens on Mission Point as we were searching for another restaurant entirely. We were so happy we did! It was the cherry on top of an exceedingly beautiful and perfectly relaxing day. My husband laughed at me taking photos of our food, but they were so beautiful in their simplicity and presentation that the experience had to be recorded! Taste did not disappoint either and I made the decision right there that from now on, at least once a week I was going to prepare only grilled bread with feta and roasted garlic for dinner. The staff and service there was fantastic as well along with the fabulous view of the great lake on a gorgeous summer day!

Our visit here certainly consists of more than great food, but for today I wanted to make sure to remember these memorable food moments.