Five Forks: Rockford, IL

We found Five Forks on Yelp while looking for something to eat in Rockford, IL. Five Forks is a tapas-style wine bar & restaurant, although don’t let their designation lead you to believe it’s in any way Spanish- small plates is all. 

We ate:

-Bacon wrapped figs with almonds and honey

-Braised lamb with cilantro polenta

-Trio of beef

-Capital Blonde Doppelbock beer (WI)

-Creme Brulee with fresh berries

The food was tasty, and the service was great. Servers come around with a basket of fresh bread to choose from, with a variety of different flavors including rosemary potato, parmesan, and multigrain. Along with some dipping oil (seasoning was okay- had better). 

Grandma's Bakery: White Bear Lake, MN

We went to Grandma’s with my Uncle Rick for some breakfast before hitting the road back to Illinois. 

We had:

-Grandma’s coffee blend

-Lemon doughnut

-Maple and bacon long john 

Mmm...these were delicious doughnuts! I had the lemon, which was filled with a tasty lemon jelly and topped with lemon icing. It was a good combination of sweet and tangy, but not too sweet. Karl had the bacon topped maple long john- an interesting combination of sweet and savory. 

I didn’t try the White Bear cookie, but it’s certainly adorable!

Lindey's Steakhouse: Minneapolis, MN

Lindey’s doesn’t win the decor award, but it is certainly delicious! The lunch menu consists of four items, one of which was this delicious steak sandwich, as recommended by my uncle. Apparently the dinner menu is equally short. The restaurant has large signs on stands with their four dinner items that they simply place in front of the table instead of passing out menus. 

I had: 

-Steak Sandwich with grilled mushrooms

-Chips

Mickey's Diner: St. Paul, MN

Mickey’s Diner is a St. Paul institution. Apparently Mickey's is famous for their 30 minute limit on taking up space in the dining room, but the small crowds the day after the holiday made the notoriously rude waitresses pretty friendly. 

We had: 

-Fry two combo (eggs over medium, bacon, and wheat toast)

-Pancakes, eggs & sausage

If you don’t mind some serious butter (on it, fried in it), this was a delicious breakfast!

Roma Restaurant: White Bear Lake, MN

Among other things, Roma serves up 10” wood-oven grilled pizzas. Delicious!

I had: 

-Balsamico Pizza- with gorgonzola, candied figs, prosciutto, and arugula 

Washington Square: White Bear Lake, MN

Nothing like Mexican on the 4th of July! Washington Square Restaurant is in the quaint downtown area of White Bear Lake, MN. It was warm out, so we sat on the patio and enjoyed dinner. 

We had: 

-Fish tacos with fruit salsa, guacamole, cilantro, rice & beans

-Beef chimichanga with rice & beans

-Kayak beer

Winzer Stube: Hudson, WI

Happy 4th of July- from Germany! The Winzer Stube features all sorts of German delicacies. 

We had:

-Potato pancakes with apple spread

-Rahmschnitzle (pork schnitzle with cream sauce) with spaetzle and cabbage

-A delicious German beer (I forgot the name)

Best meal of the week!

Wisconsin Cheese Madness!

We tried Wisconsin cheese in all its forms. In Stevens Point, we had some fried cheese curds and corn dogs at the Riverfront Rendezvous festival. We also tried some chive & garlic cheddar cheese curds- the best by far of all the cheese curds we tried. 

On the road we also had some local snack and cheese sticks- quite delicious, and some dairy fresh squeaky cheese curds (maybe a few too many of those!). 

The Stockholm Inn: Rockford, IL

The Stockholm Inn in Rockford specializes in Scandinavian food, namely, the Swedish pancake. We had breakfast and enjoyed the signature dish. We also posed for photos with the Stockholm Inn Sock Monkey. Did you know that the sock monkey originated in Rockford? One trip to the Stockholm Inn and you’ll know all about it!

We had:

-Swedish Pancakes with eggs and bacon

-Swedish Pigs in a Blanket

A note, skip the eggs and stick with the cakes. 

Mykonos Greek Restaurant: Altamonte Springs, FL

Mykonos is a small Greek restaurant in the Altamonte. 

We had: 

-Greek Sausage & peppers

-Corn soup

-Braised lamb shank

-Lima Beans

-Baklava

The lamb was not the best thing I’ve had a Mykonos. It was a little too heavy on the sauce, although it was well-cooked. The soup was creamy and had an interesting flavor I couldn’t quite identify. One of the best foods at Mykonos are,  oddly enough, the lima beans. They are so tasty! I don’t even really like lima beans, but I’d go there just for them! The dessert, baklava, was delicious and flaky. 

Bosphorus Turkish Restaurant: Winter Park, FL

Bosphorus, named for the straits separating Europe from Asia, is on Park Avenue in Winter Park. 

We had: 

-Lavas bread with hummus & tzatziki 

-Mixed Grill

-Moussaka

The moussaka was tasty, but I wished I’d gotten the lamb kabobs that were on the mixed grill plate my husband got. Everything on the mixed grill plate was delicious. The lavas bread is crazy- it comes out of the oven hollow and huge! The hummus & tzatziki were very good. The service was okay, and the restaurant is super loud and little crowded. But, I would definitely return and try something new. 

             

          

Homemade: Margarita Kabobs

Celebrating the last day of school!

We had:

-Margarita Kabobs: Chicken marinated in tequila & margarita mix with onions and peppers and an orange marmalade tequila sauce

-Grilled Corn on the Cob 

-Grilled Pineapple

-Homemade guacamole

              

Homemade: Ribs!

My first ever ribs! I had no idea it was so easy to make ribs. I basted these with Paula Deen’s barbecue sauce, and cooked them for about 2 hours. 

Fall off the bone delicious!

Hatsuhana: Apopka, FL

Hatsuhana is a pretty good Japanese restaurant & sushi bar. 

We had:

-Edamame

-Miso Soup

-Bento Box- with tempura shrimp, sashimi, teriyaki salmon and salad

-Sampler (I think it had one of everything on the menu!)

-Asahi beer

It was definitely tasty, and the service was very good. I would go back, especially since our favorite local Japanese restaurant has been closed for about a month. :(