I like Ike’s

So do you like seafood? Yeah? Me too. In fact I like it so much that when Mother Hen said that she had procured a gift certificate from http://restaruant.com/ we made a beeline to the Flagship Restaurant on Route 49 and Union Road in Millville, NJ. Here is their website for your surfing pleasure: http://www.ikescrabcakes.com/millville.html and here is the review that I submitted to Restaurant.com…

You know that secret for when you travel that you want to ask a local where the best spots are? Sure you do. Well I’m a local and I would like to pass along such a spot – it’s called Ike’s Seafood and it is worth your time. Ike’s prides themselves on their crab cakes, which are amazing but one of my favorite items on the menu are the Giant Clam Strips. My wife and I split a plate as an appetizer. I could make a meal on these alone but, if you have a yearning for seafood, then you will want to save room.

I started off with a cup of the Corn Clam chowder while my wife had her old standby, French Onion soup. She stole a spoonful or two of mine but that was all right. One of the arcane secrets to a marriage is to develop the ability to share food items.

My wife had the Crab Imperial and I had a combination of fried delights that included flounder, shrimp, scallops and one of Ike’s Famous Crab Cakes. My, my, my…

Splendid.

Their salad bar is good too but my wife and I went straight for the seafood. I suggest you do the same. Take it from this local; you will not be disappointed.

On the Road with Chick 1.0

Bad Wolf and Evil Chicken, after church this morning, attempted to grab a bite to eat. We stopped at Jim’s Lunch but unbeknown to us, Jim’s Lunch is closed on Sundays. We stood looking into the window at the cold grill and empty seats.

“We could go to Larry’s.” I said.

“Not the same as Jim’s.” She said.

“True.” I nodded in agreement. “How about we grab a cup of coffee from Bogart’s?”

“That would be great but…”

“But?”

“But I’m hungry.” She said.

“Me too.” I agreed.

“We could come back to Bogart’s.”

“Yeah,” I said, “I suppose we could.”

And after a series of adventures and misadventures, both of which I won’t go into here, that’s just what we did. We hit Bogart’s Books for a cup of coffee and to pick up a couple of books. She picked up a book called, “Emergence” by David R. Palmer and I picked up “DUNE” by Frank Herbert. The book that I bought her back cover reads as follows, “This is the saga of Candy Smith-Foster, a brilliant, witty girl on the verge of womanhood, survivor of a bionuclear war that destroyed most of humanity, first of a new stage of human evolution – homo post hominem. EMERGENCE is the story of her turbulent odyssey across a scarred America seeking others of her kind and a new future for the people of Earth.” Between sips of Gingerbread coffee and conversation, the book sounded good to both of us.

And then there’s “DUNE”. I have had a hankering to read this book for a long time now; a LONG time. I’m embarrassed to mention this but this marks my third purchase and attempt to read this book. I don’t know why there were two previous failures to launch concerning finishing this book but there were. Confidence is high this time out. We’ll see how it goes. I know that Paul is the Kwisatz Haderach and have an understanding of just how that happens – well... maybe I won’t lose the book this time.

After Bogart’s we did some food shopping went home and cooked dinner. She put the food away and I did the dishes. We had a great day, father and daughter. I am staggered by the fact that my little girl is about to turn 16. I am thankful beyond words for the wonderful day that the two of us had, the relationship that we have, and the amazing young woman that she is.

Thanks Angel, Dad loves you.

The Vintage Rose Tea Room

If you poke around this blog long enough you will begin to spot a pattern; there’s the movie stuff, the warped opinion stuff and the coffee stuff. I love the coffee stuff. I proudly post when I run into a great spot that I would like to share. Well today, Gentle Reader, I have found such a place – the trick is they do not serve coffee. Yeah, I know technically a blog about coffee should be about, well… coffee and while that is all well and good the Vintage Rose Tea Room is all about the tea.

I had the pleasure of visiting the Vintage Rose Tea Room today, which happened to be their 2nd anniversary. Who knew? I need to get out more and after today’s visit, Gentle Reader, so do you. The Vintage Rose Tea Room is a “Full service tea room & gift shop that serves afternoon tea & lunch.” I had the raspberry iced tea and a couple of scones with clotted cream and lemon curd. Fru fru? – you bet and unabashedly so (and a wonderful experience to boot). It’s worth your time. I’m looking forward to sharing the experience with Mother Hen and the 3 Chicks in the near future.

They are open Wednesday through Saturday from 11:00 AM – 4:30 PM and Sundays from 11:00 – 4:00. I didn’t have a reservation although I heard the ladies ask other patrons if they had them. If you were so inclined their number is 856-293-0500. You can check them out on the web here: http://www.vintagerosetearoom.com/ but the scones are better if you check them out in person.

…Oh yeah, they are also open for Millville’s 3rd Friday celebrations (which also happens to be tonight).

Maybe I’ll see you there.