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BlogHer ’12 Sponsor Silliness and Swag

Here goes my third recap post of my BlogHer ’12 NYC weekend…the sponsors at the conference itself, which took place Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. If you missed my last two recaps of my Physique 57, YogaWorks, and Chobani SoHo experiences, you can still go back and read them!

If I could sum up the BlogHer conference in a few nouns they’d be…information, inspiration, and sponsors. I know that a conference is meant to be a teaching tool, and BlogHer certainly served as that. However, you really can’t go to a blogging conference without expecting (and hoping for!) some fun sponsor action. After all, who doesn’t like swag?

Laid out the haul on Sunday night when I got home.

Yeek, I need to settle down and stop going out-of-chronological-order in my recaps 😛 when I left my house on Thursday, I thought I had a lot of baggage.

Completely posed self-timer pic…

That is, until I ended up hauling these babies from taxi to train, and then from train to car. My shoulders fell off.

Damn you, swag. Yet I love you.

Room Awesome

I arrived and check-in at the New York Hilton was seamless, though elevator travel throughout the conference (it should not take 15 minutes to find an open elevator!) was not. My room was OK…the bathroom was a bit dingy, the humidity was kinda out of control, but what are you gonna do? I got an amazing deal and didn’t have to do anything to organize it all. I’m eternally grateful to “Room Awesome”‘s planner, Stephanie of The Froggy and the Mouse. What a sweetheart…all of my roomies were actually (Melissa of Growing Up Geeky and Linette of The Kid’s Fun Review).

Stephanie, a fellow planner/organizer!

Expo Hall Experience

I unfortunately arrived too late to see Obama give the opening address to BlogHer participants, but badge pickup went super quickly (thanks to BlogHer for offering an affordable student rate!) and after a much needed post-travel shower, I made my way to the first conference party (apparently these are a BIG part of BlogHer, but I had no idea until a month beforehand and never ended up attending any others), Evening at the Expo. Essentially just the same Expo Hall that was open the entire conference…WITH WINE!

You mean these tickets I got with my badge buy WINE?!

I visited eons of sponsor booths throughout the conference’s three days, though Friday and Saturday had no wine (le bummer). My favorite sponsor experiences were those with people in silly costumes and/or the opportunity to dress up in silly costumes myself.

Me and the Dole banana!

One row back…another banana, this one from Jamba Juice!

Wendy of CT Bloggers would only be in photos in which she was “disguised”! So she was kind enough to pose with me at the Wholly Guacamole booth 🙂

If you like it then you shoulda #PutAWheelOnIt at the Gorton’s Seafood booth! Bummed I never made it back to try some samples.

The folks at TMobile must’ve thought taking the above photo would be a pain for me because they gave me a massage afterward to say thank you. I mean, that’s awesome, but I would’ve done it for “free” 😛

Oh yes, I’ve got milk. Wait, not really! But I do have these milkmen.

This guy was supposed to be a Smith Brother. I called him Abe Lincoln. Promoting the upcoming Spielberg biopic?! No? Oh.

I find it hilarious that Danny DeVito voiced the Lorax and literally has the same exact build as him/it.

Plenty of Perks

Fun photos were not the only activities available to bloggers at sponsor booths and suites. Since I listened to some T-Mobile reps’ shpeals on the latest apps (and put on a feather boa), I received the treat of one of my first massages…and I went to a very special place, I have to say. It was just pure heaven. Too bad I’m too cheap to ever purchase another massage, ha!

Starbucks gave private demos of their new home espresso beverage machine, Verismo, to small groups of bloggers. My demo guy was fabulous! I wasn’t a fan of the drinks produced by the Verismo machine, because I drink my coffee black. Just way too much milk (and 2%, which has a rich taste I’m not used to) and not enough espresso. Still, the machine did create some incredibly frothy, aromatic milk out of a powdered K-cup style insert. I think these machines will be really popular among those who prefer espresso beverages to coffee…think of it as the Keurig for the espresso drinker.

The Verismo brewed this beverage for us!

The perk of the Starbucks suite was the $5 gift card I received on my way out. I don’t go to Starbucks a lot anymore but when I have no local cafe options, they are definitely my go-to over Dunkin Donuts, so I know I will use this. They also have more convenient hours than many local cafes.

Me and my sample, my new friend, and the Verismo.

Bailey’s Creamers reps were passing out mini cupcakes…I selected red velvet, Ginawent with s’mores.

Love the tower 🙂

Didn’t sample any of their products since I don’t like sweet drinks OR creamers, but I did sample some coffee-colored OPI nail polishes in the form of a complimentary manicure– already much needed!

My manicurist was so sweet and we chatted the whole time!

She was a bit baffled by my request for a “disco nail” but did a wonderful job! I’m now a disco nail addict.

I have no clue why Bankrupting America (a non-profit with a mission to distribute easy to understand, creative educational materials about our nation’s economy, something we definitely need more of) was serving Skinnygirl‘s original and peach margarita flavors.I think they wanted to attract people to their booth. Shameless free-drink-if-you-talk-to-us, but I’ll take it. As in, I’ll take a peach on the rocks, please.

I made friends (aka was a Chatty Kathy with) the Bankrupting America rep and asked her to pose with the drink server (he was in a James Bond costume, I’m pretty sure).

And CouponCabin.com clearly knew who they were dealing with when they gave me this shirt…

Coupon Caitlin FTW!

T-Mobile also gave me cake pops and Terra chips. They really spoiled me! I spent about 5 minutes searching through the cake pops trying to decipher which was a red velvet, then gave up. I have yet to eat the one I selected but when I do I’ll update you all as to what flavor I got (because you’re riveted).

These were later devoured during a session. Shared with Theodora and Ashley, who immediately asked where they could get some too.

Plethora of Products

Meg, are you liking the alliteration this post is pumping out?! I talked to a boatload of brands, and a few of them stood out to me.

Monthly subscription services for food samples are usually above my budget, though they do offer tasty and high-quality products. From what I saw, Love with Food offers the same quality for an excellent price point – $10 a month! I hope to do a full review on the blog soon! Even better…for each box bought, they donate a meal to a hungry child. The website’s product page features beautiful photographs and SO many treats I want to try.

I already know I’d like to try the dried sweet corn and the cute whale tail shaped chips!

Dannon had the sweetest rep, Janelle, working at their booth. Maybe I just thought that because she recognized me instantly and said she loves my blog?! 😛 They also put up with me when I frantically ran to them before my writing clinic session, sputtering that I was staaaaarving, and could they spare a snack? Why yes they could!

Light ‘n Fit Vanilla used to be a daily snack for me in college. Now the line is too sweet for my tastebuds and also tastes less real than I’m used to…but in this situation, the Light ‘n Fit Greek variety held me over til lunch and did its job. I also sampled the Oikos Blueberry – yummy, but again too sweet for me. I picked up a coupon so I can get one of the plain tubs though!

Imagining I’m eating the yogurt with its rep John Stamos…

The Michael Angelo’s reps let me try some of their prepared meals and I really enjoyed talking with them (and eating their Italian food with red wine, duh).

Their products are made with natural ingredients, many of them are very light (unlike most pre-prepared foods), and were created with the influence of Michael’s mother, Sara’s, recipes.

The eggplant parm (left) and lasagna (right) were amazing and tasted homemade.

I got a coupon for a free item and asked my mom to add it to her grocery list asap!

Of course I needed a photo of me eating.

Someone left a giant box of Popchips outside her hotel room and declared that they were first-come, first-serve. I got served…with a snack for the train ride home on Sunday (and brain fuel for my paper).

They were SO GOOD. I try not to count calories but I have to admit the fact that the whole bag was only 100 immediately caught my attention.

The Dole booth was super elaborate, complete with a tiki hut and fruit carvers. And that banana you saw earlier.

I felt smug that my shoe choice at the Expo Hall party on Thursday night was a perfect match for their booth.

That is a bowl of banana USB drive keychains.

I obviously took one home. I doubt I’ll ever use it as anything other than a keychain but come on, it’s a banana, and now my keys are #Fitfluential with one keychain each for #EAT, #MOVE, and #ENJOY. I just need a #SLEEP keychain!

Reebok sneaker, Dole banana, and a Life is Good keychain (hiding).

Wait, Dole makes food?! Just kidding. I pounded these Pineapple Real Fruit Bites before Saturday morning’s Physique 57 class. They made for good fuel and I had a great workout, and again the calorie-noticer (not counter…trying not to!) in me liked the 90 calorie serving size. However, these still have more artificial ingredients than I am used to (though there is some real pineapple in there) and I’ve seen recipes for similar products on sites like Lean Green Bean. If anything, enjoying the Real Fruit Bites has inspired me to make my own, more natural version at home.

Finally, I got to test out the Bowflex CoreBody Reformer, which looked pretty silly to me until I stepped up onto it and felt my core engage as I struggled to balance. And to think the Olympic gymnasts do flips on beams a million times higher and a zillion times thinner?! The helpful rep also showed me the book of exercises it comes with – soooo many, and much of them I never would have thought of on my own!

Not exactly workout attire!

It’s really portable too and can be packed up and carried on one’s back with a strap. CoreBody workout DVDs are also available to pair with your reformer. An ideal piece of home workout equipment for someone living in a small apartment or working with a tiny workout space!

Best For Last

I met a very special someone at the Coupon Cabin booth…as Fitfluential’s Community Manager Robin Elton put it, inception happened at BlogHer 2012.

Kate Plus 8, meet Cait Plus Ate! Kate Gosselin officially knows of this blog’s existence, loves the name, and is actually really cool and chill to talk to. WOO HOO!

I didn’t even find out Kate Gosselin would be appearing at BlogHer on Friday until the night before while waiting to get into the Evening at the Expo Hall. Another brush with fate! I never imagined that when Rachel gave me the idea for my blog’s name, one day I’d actually be TELLING Kate Plus 8 about it!

Would you have been as down as I was to take silly photos at the sponsor booths?

Do any of the products I tried or perks I received strike your fancy? I had to find a creative way to ask that question!

Have you ever gotten the chance to do something you truly NEVER thought you’d get to do?

Fitness Magazine Meet and Tweet

What a whirlwind the last several days have been! Thanks again for being so patient with me while I have been busy living life to the fullest 🙂 now it’s time to share my experiences with you all! Or at least, one of them!

Starbucks bold with a splash of steamed skim and cinnamon powder. Kthxbye.

On Wednesday, my best blend Heather and I stopped at Starbucks for caffeine (she let me try a sip of her black Blonde Roast – didn’t think I’d like the lighter brew, but surprise, it was PERFECT black!) and hit the road for the NYC Fitness Magazine Blogger Meet & Tweet!

Heather decided to be completely normal and make her choc protein pudding oats in the car 😉

This is a normal blogger thing to do!

The last hour of the ride was a bit of a nightmare since a) we had to pee and b) my butt had become completely numb from sitting for so long and c) we were moving at a crawl thanks to rush hour. Seriously, the body is NOT meant to sit for that long!!! Once Heather and I parked (I used a Groupon for the parking, $16 for the entire day, had to brag about it), we begged the attendant to let use use the employee-only, toilet paper-less bathroom. Desperate times, friends.

Ahhh much better!

Before we were able to relieve ourselves, Heather shot a silly vlog, which I begrudgingly agreed to be in for about .02 seconds. For your viewing pleasure…

Swear I’m not a tourist.

We were so excited to finally arrive! My heart was poundingas I entered the building – I could hear all the chatter going on upstairs, and could hardly believe I was about to walk into this amazing event.

We got our name tags, picked up our (first) bag-o-goodies, and set out to visit the booths that had been set up by the event sponsors.

Awesome display by Reebok, including spot to try on their RealFlex Transition sneakers!

I stopped by Reebok’s table first and was excited to meet Johnice Graham of their marketing team. Hello, dream job! She was so kind and told me I’d be seeing her in a couple days at their #RBKFITBLOG event! Of course I had to take a picture, which you may recognize from the blog’s Facebook page(new default!)

Next, I was BEYOND spoiled by Oakley!!! They had a booth set up where we could try on some of their new active wear sunglasses. They’re made for the active woman who likes to keep things fashionable at the same time – pretty sure that’s almost every female FitFluential Ambassador! Then the awesome ladies at the booth informed me that I could take home a pair of my favorite style. WHAT?!

Is this real life?

And a special shout-out to Jaclyn, an amazing PR girl I met at the Oakley booth. She was so cool and down to earth. I hope we get to hang out again soon!

Thank you Oakley!

I was also spoiled by Birkenstock! They gifted me a pair of their Madrid sandals in brown. I was honestly skeptical at first – I wasn’t sure if they would really be my style. However, my favorite pair of brown leather sandals broke a few months back, so this timing seems pretty perfect! I’m excited to break them in and will update you guys on how comfortable they feel on my feet.

Thank you Birkenstock!

Grain Foods Foundation, a non-profit, had a gorgeous spread of carb-y deliciousness set out for all-day snacking. The organization aims to spread awareness of the importance of grains and bread in the diet. Though some may avoid certain grains for dietary restriction reasons, I think it’s good that a non-profit like this exists to spread word to those that may avoid grains because of the “carbs are bad” notion that I myself have fallen victim to in the past.

Nut butter and jelly party!

Cream cheeses and veggies! I combined cucumber with the lox cream cheese – awesome.

Water and juices, mini pitas and naan, as well as plenty of toasters for those who like their carbs accompanied with carcinogens (me).

My favorite part – hummus, tzatziki, guac, pesto, and bruschetta spread!

One of the coolest parts of the event was hanging out with the grains as well – soccer champ Mia Hamm! Heather, Bess, Mattie, and I waited anxiously to meet her.

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Mia was so kind and gracious. I thanked her for inspiring girls everywhere to get out there and be active, and she signed a soccer ball for me!

I also had the chance to interact with some other brands! I sampled the strawberry banana V8 V-Fusion Smoothie flavor, and liked it, surprisingly! Usually those kinds of drinks are way too sweet and fake-tasting to me, but this smoothie tasted natural and didn’t make me feel like I was drinking a dessert. I also checked out the new Schick Hydro Silk razor at the Schick table, and was pretty excited to hear I’d be receiving one in the end-of-the-day goodie bag. It even has a little imprint right above the head for your index finger to rest, and the blade itself points at an upward angle when the razor is resting, so that it doesn’t come in contact with the surface of your shower. Little attention to detail like that impresses me!

Of course you know I’m going to talk about the lunch spread. Well, it rocked my taste buds off. OK, so I’ll be a little more descriptive.

Fresh salmon with dill and lemon wedges!

Fruit salad; house salad with cucumber, radish, shaved asparagus, and green goddess vinaigrette; farro salad with grilled peaches and hazelnut vinaigrette.

Love this shot of an iPhone salmon tweet happening!

I helped myself to salmon and the house and farro salads! I’d rocked fruit for breakfast that morning so skipped the fruit salad.

Despicable. Absolutely horrendous.

Thanks to Gina for modeling the signature drink of the day, a fresh lemonade!

After the last info session, I was pleasantly surprised to see that another wave of food had been set out, this time in the form of  artfully-arranged snacks!

You know me…I have to try everything! So I helped myself to one of each type of the below pictured healthy snack “cones” – veggie crudites and apples with brie!

My favorite part of the day was the MEET part of this Meet & Tweet. No, it was not the free stuff. Not even close. How often do I get the chance to meet SO many friends for the first time in one place? And how often do I get to chat with the faces behind the blogs I’ve been reading for, in some cases, years?

Heather, Julie, and I

Peanut Butter Fingers is one of the first blogs I ever started reading, and Julie was kind enough to help me write my blog’s disclaimer back in September when I first got started. That fact alone should have been enough to assure me that she would be incredibly sweet and down to earth, but if it wasn’t, I was completely convinced the second we said hello. The voice Julie’s readers follow each day truly IS hers!

Courtney, me, and Meredith

I’ve also been reading Sweet Tooth, Sweet Life for a very long time, but I’ve gotta say, even the longest of readers could not realize how BEAUTIFUL Courtney is until he or she met her in person. Seriously, this girl is so put-together and an incredible beauty! Photos on the Internet do not do her justice. Meredith writes a newer blog, Dare You To, with a really unique concept. Each post DARES her readers to try a different challenge, and whether it’s something completely foreign to them or something they already may have been doing, it’s still extremely inspiring and a great source of discussion! I was glad to get to meet Meredith in person so that I could tell her how much I admire the idea – and just hang out and chat! We had so much fun. Check out this GORGEOUS photo taken of her during one of the panel sessions (by Fitness Mag photographer Steven Meyer).

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

I’m also kicking myself in the face (if I really could do that it’d be pretty impressive, no?) for not getting a photo with the CEO of FitFluential, Kelly Olexa. How humbling and awe-inspiring to FINALLY meet in person the woman who brought me into this Ambassador program and made so much possible. THANK YOU KELLY!

Me, Heather, and Meredith

I had the pleasure of eating lunch with Jill, Natasha, Heather, and Danielle, who I seem to be determined to pull towards me with all my might in the below photo .

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Me, Heather, Natasha, and Jill.

Jill is a YouTube superstar (I envy her composure and poise in her videos), and Natasha does social media for Physique 57. I fangirled hardcore when she handed me a pass for two complimentary classes. A must-try next time I’m in NYC!

Me, Katie, and Heather.

Where do I begin with Katie? Seriously…where? I’ve been a Healthy Diva Eats reader for over a year because she writes a blog that is fun, fabulous, and fit. Well, the writer behind the blog is all three of those things and more. I have never met someone I felt so comfortable giving a HUGE hug to right away. I could have hugged Katie about a thousand times more than I got to throughout the day. She is such a kind, genuine, HAPPY person with an infectious personality. I already miss her! I’m so thankful the Fitness Mag photographer captured our first hug!

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

And another example of a beautiful human being, inside and out, is Carla Binberg. After finding my first blog ever, Kath Eats, I literally googled “healthy living blogs” because I was so excited to find more. MizFitOnline is one of the first that popped up, and I’ve been a follower ever since! I have always been attracted to Carla’s style of writing and REALLY hope she comes out with a book ASAP so I can bury my nose in it for hours. She has always been so willing to help out other FitFluential Ambassadors by connecting them with brands, giving them advice, and just delivering inspiring messages every day. Carla does blogging in her own instantly-recognizable-as-Carla’s way. Her readers will never find another blogger out there like her. I felt like I’d known her for years the second I introduced myself.

Yay!!!

Throughout the day I ran into Nicole, Michele, and Cassandra. Nicole is a talented baker and soon-to-be mommy who blogs at Making Good Choices. She is beyond adorable! So is Michele, an already-and-soon-to-be mommy who blogs at NYC Running Mama. I’ve been chatting with her in the FitFluential Facebook groups for awhile so saying hey in person was surreal! Finally, Cassandra shares her genius recipes at Breakfast to Bed. I literally said, “Oh my God! You’re a genius!” when I met her, before even saying hello.

Heather, me, Nicole, Michelle, and Cassandra.

Shout outs as well to Christy and Maria, both amazing women who I didn’t get pictures with 🙁 but if you guys have some please send them my way?!

Last, but CERTAINLY not least of the people I met…the Editor in Chief of Fitness Magazine herself, Betty Wong! Telling people who do so much, especially careers that you are interested in, is a beautiful and special thing. Even if Betty hears it all the time, I still feel good knowing that I’ve told someone I admire exactly why I admire her and how she inspires me. And what’s even cooler…Betty also seemed very admiring and thankful to Heather and I for being there!

Betty, me, and Heather.

There were many informational panels going on throughout the day. I spent most of my time meeting and tweeting with bloggers and brands, but did catch a couple of the sessions. Fitness Fashion Director Argy Koutsothanasis presented an array of ensembles that combined fitness and street fashion. I was essentially obsessed with the blue and yellow Reebok jacket and pencil skirt combo (pictured below), and got a chance to awkwardly tell its model that very fact while waiting in line for the bathroom.

We also heard beauty tips from Fitness Beauty Director Eleanor Langston and the very funny Laura Geller. I can tell Laura was an actress – she’s a true entertainer!

My very favorite panel of the day was easily the last one, with Carla, Kelly, Julie, and Tina – How to Turn Your Blog into a Business.

Obsessed with Julie’s sneakers.

Very interesting tidbits I learned during this session:

  • Jessica Simpson reads Julie’s blog!
  • It’s not worth your time to get TOO into catering your blog to be SEO-friendly. There are little tips and tricks that always help, but inserting keywords in certain places on purpose or constantly changing your structure and wording to attempt to manipulate Google is not worth the time since their algorithm changes a ton.
  • Tina feels the same way as I do about the best part of blogging – the FRIENDS!
  • Carla’s number one freelancing tip is to pitch something that only YOU would be able to write. Make yourself valuable to brands!
  • My favorite simple quote from Kelly during the panel – “Be who you are!”

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

I did my best to live-tweet the panel’s advice using the #fitblognyc hashtag!

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

After the panel wrapped up, there was a Kiwi Sweat Pop-Up Fitnesss workout called Tabura planned, but Heather and I decided to head out to Time Square’s Oakley Store with Bess and Mattie for a meet-up with the Tone It Up trainers. I heard the workout was really fun though!

We hopped in line to wait for our swag-bags. Heather looked cute, while I decided to pass the time by making awkward faces.

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Finally it was our turn!

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Just a glimpse of our bag’s exteriors made us very happy girls.

Photo: Steven Meyer (courtesy of FITNESS Magazine)

Can you believe how much Fitness Magazine and the event sponsors hooked us up?!

I’m essentially obsessed with the bag by Sonia Kashuk. You can get her stuff at Target! On our way to Times Square, Heather, Bess, and I got a ton of questions about where we got our bags.

Reebok RealFlex Transition sneakers – in my favorite color!

I can’t wait to try these bad boys out. Everyone knows I love hot pink workout gear!

Sensational swag in-my-bag!

Ahhh – look at it all! My swag bag also included:

  • SunMaid Raisins, Pure Protein and Nature Valley bars, and Lipton Tea & Honey packets
  • FiberOne 90-calorie brownies (I can’t wait to try these in plain Greek yogurt, there’s a choc chip and a brownie flavor!)
  • the latest issue of Fitness (my sister is reading it right now and gives it two thumbs up!)
  • Element AM & PM Yoga for Beginners DVD – looking forward to using this when I need a wind-down or a good stretch to supplement a workout
  • “Drop Dead Healthy” book by AJ Jacobs, who was at the event during a panel – I plan to read this, but I think my parents want to first!
  • two CamelBak bottles, one with a built-in filter and one without – I gave the one without to my sister, and she is VERY impressed and in love! I plan to do a giveaway for the one with the filter because even though I know they’re worse for the environment, I prefer to drink out of recyclable plastic water bottles. Nothing else will do for me!
  • Blow Pro Faux-Dry dry shampoo
  • Dogeared star necklace – this one made my sister pretty jealous and I felt bad because I’d never heard of this brand before, but it’s so pretty!!! I can’t find a photo online but will tweet it when I wear it!
  • Hand in Hand Orange Blossom sustainable soap – after getting my first piece of sustainable soap at CT Veg Fest recently, I can’t wait to use this!
  • Vichy lotion – gave to my sis, not my thing at all, a caffeine-containing lotion meant to make cellulite less severe and firm the stomach. However inside of box has creative packaging – diff ab moves printed on the inside! Glad to see a company not putting for the illusion that their lotion alone will “work miracles”.

As I mentioned briefly above, some of the bag’s contents are honestly not my thing so be on the lookout for a giveaway or two coming soon!

OK, but this band definitely IS MY THING. Heather got Sweaty Bands in her bag but I didn’t get any in mine, and after hearing I’ve always wanted to try them (especially after I watched Maria ROCK hers at #RBKFITBLOG), she was kind enough to give me the one I’m wearing above. THANK YOU HEATHER! Another goody my sister is very envious of.

Crazy bag lady – I walked from Fitness Mag to Times Square with this stuff!

I’ll definitely be doing a giveaway for the yoga mat I’m holding above, because I already have a yoga mat! This one is brand new and was gifted to us by New Media Strategies, the partner firm that helped put on the event. They were the world’s first social media marketing firm…true innovators! Samantha Pepi, the Senior Promotions Manager for NMS that helped keep us bloggers informed about the event, did an amazing job and chatting with her at the NMS table was very fun. I hope it was fun for her too, since we kept making her take pictures for us! 😛

And then…Heather, Bess, and I were off to the Tone It Up meetup in Oakley’s Times Square location! The whirlwind day was only just getting started! MORE TO COME!

What part of this event would you have enjoyed the most? If you attended, what DID you enjoy the most?

Have you tried or ever wanted to try any of the products mentioned in this post?

What question would YOU have asked the members of the blogger panel?

Taste of Wethersfield

A couple of weekends I attended yet another glorious tasting event – a local, reasonably priced tasting from the Wethersfield Historical Society called Taste of WethersfieldAnyone who’s been reading my blog for awhile can surely tell that I love going to these things. I’m all about trying small samples of as much as I can. There is so much out there to taste! Other events I’ve gone to include:

Since a lot of people seemed to enjoy my last Fashion Friday post, I’ve been trying to remember to take more outfit pictures before heading out to events or meals. Is this something you guys are actually interested in seeing?

Top: Forever 21

Necklace: J. Crew outlet

Watch: Fossil

Pants: Urban Outfitters

Heels: Steve Madden

 My good friend Kim is a Wethersfield native, and she agreed to join me on this lovely Saturday evening. She was definitely familiar with a lot of the places in attendance!

Awkward posing with the event mascot.

We were greeted right away with a selection of beers: Shock Top Raspberry Wheat, Wheat IPA, and Lemon, as well as good old Sam Adams Summer. As a beer experimenter I went with the beer I thought it was most likely I’d like, the Lemon. It tasted like…Shock Top tasted the last time I tried it. Donde esta la lemon?

Let’s move onto the wine – now that’s more like it! At the below table I sampled Edna Valley Vineyard Merlot, described as complete with “aromas of cocoa powder, black cherry, & plum balanced with fine tannins and acidity”. I don’t know about the cocoa, but it was certainly well balanced and tasty.

The below Amarula Cream Liqueur was one of the most delicious liqueurs I’ve ever tried! It was like an amaretto coffee. It’d pair so well with a dessert pastry. Or poured over a huge piece of tiramisu. Someone try it and get back to me!

Wethersfield’s Starbucks was there too – not exactly local/slow food, but still yummy. They were serving coffee, including their new Blonde Roast (which is too light for this blonde) and pastries! I’ve had the below chocolate chip walnut banana bread in the past at my previous favorite study location from my days at UConn, the Starbucks on campus.

I’ve also seen the below double chocolate brownies and lemon loafs in the display case of many a Starbucks location.

I elected to sample their newest petite pastry offerings (I’ve never even seen these in stores before since I started passing up Starbucks for local cafes), the brown sugar walnut (left) and chocolate hazelnut (right) tarts. To my surprise, I preferred the brown sugar walnut. Perhaps that’s because the chocolate hazelnut tart had no hazelnut taste to it whatsoever – it just tasted like a Milano cookie.

Let’s get to some area restaurants! City Steam is a really cool brewery/cafe/restaurant in Hartford with daily bar specials, comedy shows, a diverse menu, and its own brand of beers. I’ve eaten there once before and it was a pretty good meal! Not amazing, but not bad by any means. There is definitely something for everyone on the menu.

The Naughty Nurse Amber Ale, the original beer from City Steam, is available in bottles in liquor stores. During my Integrated Marketing Communications class last spring, one of the owners of City Steam even brought a six-pack in (to pass around, not drink…) and spoke with us about marketing. I wasn’t as interested in marketing and branding in the food and drinks world then – wish I could go back in time now and listen all over!

Naughty Nurse is the variety of beer I opted to try, since the newer option, Blonde on Blonde, is a “very hoppy pale ale” (seriously, the label even says that word-for-word) which is almost sure to equal me disliking it. Kim and I both liked the Naughty Nurse (ha) a lot! We detected a chocolate/caramel taste, and the employee working the booth did confirm our suspicions about the caramel.

My eye wandered immediately to the right, toward the next booth over, Carmela’s Pasta Shop of Wethersfield. I hadn’t heard of it, but Kim confirmed for me that they are thought of by many as the best source of homemade pasta in Hartford! Thankfully the staff was serving up freshly made ravioli. Their sauce was to die for and the ravioli were perfect! Some of the best I’ve ever had. I’d love to try a squash or pumpkin ravioli from Carmela’s…I wonder if they make any in the fall? I hope to get to Carmela’s sometime this summer to bust open a bottle of wine and enjoy some good old-fashioned Italian cooking!

I was happy to have the chance to sample another specialty cocktail from Onyx Moonshine, after having tried their delicious cider-based cocktail last fall. This grassroots liquor company has a factory right near me in Manchester, CT! Onyx is being served at more and more bars and restaurants not only in its home state, but in RI and MA as well. The cards at the bottom of the below photo detail a different Onyx Moonshine cocktail for each season!

 The pitcher below was filled with a refreshing concoction indeed – the summer cocktail Shinin’ Tea: one part Onyx, two parts sweet iced tea, and fresh-squeezed lemon juice. I didn’t detect a hint of the moonshine, but not because there wasn’t any in there – it sneaks up on you! Danger! The founders, Adam and Peter, also informed me that their moonshine is a great component in many recipes, like steak tips. That sounds amazing!

 I really expanded my beer horizons during this event and sampled my first Hooker Brewery beer (made right nearby in Bloomfield, CT), the Watermelon Ale. I’d heard less than favorable opinions of it and was fairly surprised to find that I enjoyed it! So refreshing and as Kim said, “it tastes like I just sucked on a Jolly Rancher and chased it with beer”. Yup, that’s about right, but it wasn’t a bad thing.

Tschudin Chocolate & Confections of the wonderful Middletown, CT had some impressive sculptures in the making! I don’t exactly know what the one below is because clearly it was in-process when I got the photo, but check out that construction hardware!

I can’t believe the bamboo in the photo below (on the right) is ALL CHOCOLATE! How cute is the googly-eyed iPhone? Kim and I each took a nibble of some dark chocolate discs from this booth. Mmm, it paired SO well with red wine from the next table over!

That table was run by some lovely ladies of Cork & Brew in Southington, CT, the only place in the state where you can make your own beer and wine! They even have free classes Saturdays 10am or 1pm by appointment! I’m not sure what kind of wine the red was that I tried, but it was VERY fruity. The white was a Green Apple Riesling – SO SWEET. Way too sweet for me, but yummy for a couple of sips from the small cup.

Cork & Brew seems to be the PERFECT destination for a girl’s night, bachelorette party, 21st birthday, and more! I love the idea. Guys can even get into the whole beer thing! You can also buy the supplies from them, take them home, and make your beer and wine all the time!

How amazing and cute are those cork holders?! They have them available in the store (not online yet unfortunately) and have Mother’s Day Gift written all over them!

Kim and I had successfully hit up almost all the downstairs booths, so we went upstairs and were greeted with a much livelier atmosphere! An excellent live band was playing and plenty of patrons were dancing; it was so cute!

There was also a silent auction happening upstairs. I actually didn’t see this in my event program until the next day, but look at this auction item – such a cool idea!

We tackled the upstairs drinks first – plenty to choose from at the below table. I sampled Lunae Moscato, the first Moscato ever to be infused with natural fruit “essence”, whatever that means! It was way too sweet for me and didn’t taste that natural, to be honest. And then we had Chopin Vodka, which I didn’t have a chance to try at Taste of the Nation: New Haven (their booth was shoved into a random corner that I didn’t notice at first), so I was excited to have the chance to sample it here. Each variety of Chopin is made with different “grains”, which in turn determine how much it tastes like…well…vodka. I went for the most potent, the potato vodka. I LOVE potatoes after all, so how appropriate! Yup, this definitely tasted like vodka. Not something I’d order straight up but I’m sure it’d make a smooth cocktail! Kim thought I was crazy for even trying a sample of it straight.

Next I tried Finca La Linda Carte Reservado, a Syrah and Malbec blend from Mendoza, Argentina. There was also some Merlot in there. I love blends so much – you don’t really know what to expect until the first sip. And I especially love all the wines used in the blend, so it was no surprise when this wine put a BIG smile on my face, and I don’t mean because it got me a-buzzin’.

Another noteable red I sampled was the below El Coto Rioja. Rioja is a grape that I am relatively new to knowing about, but it was love at first sip since I first sampled some at Esca. This wine also seemed very CT-appropriate with its The-Hartford-like logo!

Reps from one of the newest spirits to hit the market, American Harvest, were giving out cocktails made of OJ, Sprite, and their organic vodka. I wish I could tell you whether or not this vodka was any good, but the cocktail completely masked its taste and was mostly juice and soda. Boo!

The good red wines kept on comin’…my last sip of alcohol for the evening, and it was a good last one, came from the bottle on the left in the below photo. It was Dreaming Tree Crush, a smoky red that really impressed me – and I felt that way before I was told by the booth’s operator that Dreaming Tree is the wine company owned by Dave Matthews! Dave sure can make good music AND good wine.

OK, I am not a drunkard, let’s get back to the food shall we? And what makes a girl crave pizza more than red wine? Answer: nothing. Good thing Village Pizza was posted up next to the booth with the Dreaming Tree!

It may not look the prettiest but the above pie with spinach and sausage, though not in possession of as thin a crust as I normally like, was so delicious. So was the below pie, fresh out of the oven (literally – Village Pizza is right across the street from the event venue, talk about local!) and complete with beefy, juicy tomatoes and perfect seasonings.

Next Kim and I found an unexpected booth – one run by grocery chain ShopRite. I honestly have always associated that grocery store with heavily discounted, low-quality items. However, I was pleasantly surprised by their offerings! The cheesecakes below were fantastic…it’d been way too long since I had a bite of cheesecake. That used to be my “reward” to myself after each calc exam I suffered through at UConn!

The melba toasts with fresh olive oil and balsamic vinegar made me feel quite classy!

So did the olive tapenade spread on these melba toasts – even though it may look a bit gross (I won’t say what it looks like…), trust me, it was delicious.

MELBA MANIA! The below toasts were spread with a spinach and artichoke hummus. YUM. However, I didn’t really taste the spinach or the artichoke. I just tasted salty hummus. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

My favorite combo, of course, was the cheese and fig jam pairing. I could eat sweet and savory things piled on top of bread ALL DAY.

Krause Catering passed out some delectable looking mini strawberry shortcakes. Instead of pound cake, they were made with BISCUITS! Biggest regret of the night: not deciding I wanted one until they had run out. And the event wasn’t even over yet! The picture below is Kim’s – she was a smart lady and grabbed one of these early.

Carbone’s, a Hartford landmark on “Little Italy” AKA Franklin Avenue, had some amazing meatballs. They didn’t look too pretty so I didn’t take a picture, nor did I get a picture of the prosciutto-wrapped melon we tried because the few pieces left on the tray looked lonely. However I did get a shot of this unique appetizer, cucumber slices topped with a salmon and tzatziki-like spread. So yummy! I had actually eaten dinner at Carbone’s the night before (hoping to have time to share THAT experience at some point…) and was glad the booth was passing out things I hadn’t already tried.

Next up, a place that I have been dying to try (I have a Living Social deal, but have been saving it for when the weather is warm enough to dine al fresco)…Puerto Vallarta! This Mexican mini-chain had a nice long table set up. Some of the offerings included this delectable app. It reminded me of a spring roll, except filled with shredded pork. YUM.

This sauteed chicken, pepper, and onion medley for fajitas was really good. I skipped the tortillas to avoid filling up on bland-ness (I already know what they taste like after all).

Costa del Sol of Hartford served up Mexican that was more my style – SEAFOOD-heavy stuff! On the left we have a gazpacho and on the right a cold ceviche with huge beans. I believe the ceviche was sitting in the gazpacho. The herbs on top had a strong flavor that wasn’t too overpowering. Two thumbs up to each sample!

One of my favorite places in Wethersfield is Lucky Lou’s Bar & Grill on Old Main Street. They have an amazing happy hour, fabulous seafood, and a gorgeous outdoor patio with live music that doesn’t piss me off with excessive volume. All these things are great, but what really puts the cherry on top is their ability to make a good sangria that doesn’t taste like a wine cooler. I had already tried their red last summer, so I sampled the pineapple coconut sangria on the left. I usually scoff at a white sangria, but WOW, I just wanted to take the pitcher down to Florida with me (because it was cold outside in CT) and drink it.

Like I said, they have fab food too. Didn’t fill up on any of that pasta, but I did have one of those balsamic-drizzled bruschettas. My mom and I ordered a full-size bruschetta last time we went, and it was to die for, so I had to have it again.

Ginza, a sushi and hibachi restaurant that I’ve dined at before, was JUST running out of sushi samples when Kim and I arrived at their table. Lots of places were out of stuff by this point! I tried a spicy tuna roll, and Kim had a California roll. Two thumbs up from both of us, though not the most creative or exciting thing ever (and white rice is blahhh). Their hibachi is very good though, I know this from past experience!

I drive by Aroma Bistro on Old Main Street all the time (it’s across the street from Lucky Lou’s) but have never been in. After trying their sandwiches, I think that will have to change ASAP. Check out the Grateful Pilgrim: turkey, caramelized onion, avocado, Dutch Fontina cheese, cranberry mayo. This goes above and beyond your classic “Gobbler” style sandwich with the addition of the avocado and a dynamite cheese. AND wheat bread!

The Garden Treasure was also awesome. I love a veggie panini that doesn’t skimp on the veggies. Sooo much veggie goodness, and basil pesto was a grand finale.

And finally, the Texas Roadhouse, which was MADE by the horseradish mayo and the perfectly crispy bacon.

LAST STOP! Did you think this night would never end? My stomach certainly hoped for just that. Alas, we got to the last table (that still had food left…), Comerio of Hartford. More pork! It was so amazing, slow-roasted to perfection.

And I honestly don’t remember what the dish below was. Something unique! But it was so good. Check out their menu – lots of interesting foodie finds like boiled bananas, gizzards, and stewed pig ears!

I have almost NO complaints about this event. It was great, and for only $35, so worth it! However, I would hope that next year the restaurants are more prepared with enough food. I know that they donate their time and resources and that’s very kind in the first place, but the event was advertised to last until 9:30PM, and even by 8:30PM some booths were out! Of course, it’s very possible that the turnout this year was WAY more than last year! It’s really not a big deal – overall, it was a great event that raised a lot of money for a good cause. The Wethersfield Historical Society should be proud – thanks for bringing an affordable tasting event to the Hartford area!

Which of these tasty treats and drinks would you have liked to try?!

Ever had strawberry shortcake made with a biscuit? How cool is that?!

Orlando – Day Two

I woke up on the Monday of our vacation feeling good, and I was so excited and grateful! To play it safe, I did my favorite yoga video on Hulu, YogaWorks Body Slim. I was sweating by the end and also felt relaxed and stretched-out. I headed to Starbucks and, continuing the play-it-safe plan, opted for an iced decaf Americano with the teeniest splash of skim to protect my still-sensitive stomach.

The pool wasn’t crowded at all and we scoped out some excellent seats. I sat back and enjoyed the warm weather with my magazines, and also had my beloved Chick-fil-A chargrilled chicken sandwich with extra pickles for lunch, with no stomach issues.

My Grannan and George (grandparents) arrived mid-afternoon too, and I was so excited to see them! We all remained poolside til late afternoon. 

I continued to feel better, no doubt thanks to how cautious I was being and all the water I was chugging. I’d found out that one of my former co-workers from UConn, Matt, was staying at a nearby Embassy Suites with his mom – AND they have free happy hour every night! He invited me to be his guest, so I took my grandparents’ car over to see him.

I had a couple nibbles of chips, and that classy plastic mostly-empty cup you see there was formerly filled with red sangria. It was extremely – juicy. But what can I expect during a cheap happy hour?! I planned to have a more unique libation at dinner anyway! The best part was meeting up with Matt after not having seen him in so long, and also finally getting to meet his mom, who I heard plenty about while we worked together at UConn Dining Services.

I met my parents and grandparents at a restaurant with a Caitlin-approved food/drink menu – and bonus points, our hotel gave us a coupon for it!

Interesting outdoor seating "booths", complete with space heaters.

The new-ish restaurant, Atlantic Cove, featured a menu of traditional meat and seafood plates, sushi, and unique Asian-fusion dishes. Our waitress, Alexa, was an absolute SWEETHEART. She seemed a bit new and nervous, but was so respectful and accommodating! I was very impressed.

Talk about a drink menu! My choice jumped out at me the second I saw it.

The Basil Martini, made with Belvedere Red, vermouth, and infused basil, was just what I was hoping for and more. It was so amazingly smooth, tasted like spiked pesto, and was certainly worth its money in terms of strength! I have to admit that I sloshed a bit of this beauty on myself at the end there.

Yay Dad!!

We were served some pretty tasty bread with olive oil and herbs, which I definitely prefer to butter.

I knew I wanted to get my fill of seafood on this trip, but I could NOT for the life of me decide on which fish I wanted, and whether or not I wanted it cedar-planked or blackened! I quickly took to Twitter to ask my go-to foodie followers for advice, and though I went with the votes for blackened, I opted for a fish I hadn’t had in a while, snapper.

My dad ordered seafood soup, one of his favorite things to get before our vacation dinners, a Lobster & Crab Bisque, and he loved it. The bowl was cool too!

He also ordered his fish blackened, but chose grouper. Unfortunately the kitchen goofed and served it grilled instead, but he didn’t say anything, because it was still excellent.

My meal was amazing too! I got asparagus on the side and devoured my pineapple mango salsa, as well as my dad’s. I also picked at my grandpa’s crabcakes and my mom’s baked potato skin.

I still had room for dessert once we got back to the hotel, so I savored a tiny treat I’d picked up the night before at TooJay’s, one of their famous mini black and white cookies. I didn’t have one during my December Florida trip, so it was a necessity!

I went to sleep content and grateful to be feeling better. Until the next day’s trip recap!

Which of the fish options on the menu would you have chosen? How about the preparation method?

Have you ever had a classic black and white cookie from a deli? The ones from Starbucks don’t count! 😉

Career Fangirling

THE BLOG HAS A NEW HEADER! PLEASE CHECK IT OUT! Thanks so much to the lovely and talented Mai for designing it!

Can I just continue my nerd-dom and share how excited I am right now that the newest and youngest member of the Starbucks Board of Executives, Clara Shih, tweeted at me last night?!

I follow Starbucks Blogs because it’s a great source of news about one of my favorite brands, and Phillip (who runs the account) tweeted an article about Clara’s recent promotion to the Board. The article’s link isn’t working, but I found a comparable one here. I re-tweeted the article saying “a girl can dream…” and Clara reached out to me and made me feel completely inspired with just a simple tweet!

She is the CEO and founder of Hearsay Social, a social media startup that helps companies “quickly onboard, train, and successfully enable their local offices to create authentic conversations with their clients and customers in real time on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter”. AKA what I am most interested in using my marketing degree to accomplish!

The book worm in me is also excited to read Clara’s book, The Facebook Era. It may be used as a textbook at universities, but I know I’d enjoy reading it for fun. Sorry I’m not sorry – I’m totally career fangirling right now and I’m fine with it. Any inspiration is a good thing!

Chili with rabbit ears?

On a completely unrelated note, I owe you guys some food photos that have been hanging out in my camera for awhile. Pictured above is my mom’s amazing ground turkey/soy and bean chili, topped with fresh pico de gallo and scooped up with two whole grain taco shells.

Aerial view…

I was having trouble coming up with creative/pretty ways to display the meal, as you can see.

Not my food, but had to take a picture.

My friend Matt and I stopped by Giovanni’s the other night because he was hungry and my sister was working, so we figured we’d kill two birds and visit her while he re-fueled. He selected their “manliest” slice, the Stuffed Meat, but was rendered a bit less “manly” when the last two bites were a struggle. With my coaching, he got the slice down.

Also, I was a featured blogger last week over at fellow FitFluential Ambassador Matt’s blog, The Athlete’s Plate. Check it out! I guess my blog’s name has garnered me the nickname of “Cait” in the blog world, which is what my wonderful padre calls me, so OK by me!

Have you ever had a “fangirl” moment over Twitter?

Winter Storm Alfred

Hey guys! New responsibilities at work have me busy busy busy. Not sure how long I’ll be able to keep up this one-post-a-day thing but we’ll see!

Last night I was running super late after a doctor’s appointment, and so unfortunately missed a trip to Group Power. I was so bummed because I have a hard time motivating myself enough to get in a truly challenging weights workout solo, but spent some time on the elliptical, doing 3.5 miles, and finished two magazines that I’d previously started. I will be solo at the gym again tomorrow and I really want to just do a nice cardio/circuit weight workout that will get me nice and sweaty and sore. Any suggestions?

I have a lot of food photos to share from last week, when I was work-less and partially power-less, so let’s get to it!

For any New Englanders out there, I’m sure you felt at least a little bit of an effect from good old Winter Storm Alfred. I was one of the lucky ones – we lost power for only a few days, and since we don’t use a well, we never were without hot, running water. My office was not as lucky, but I can’t lie, the week off of work and class was, well, nice.

After one heat-less night of shivering in a ball in front of the fireplace though, wide awake at 4am, I knew that I would not be able to handle another night without power. That’s why we spent our last night with no electricity in a cozy hotel by the Mohegan Sun Casino. It was fun to have our own little “winter storm party”. We even headed over to the casino to have dinner at the Summer Shack!

I’ve eaten here once before at another night out to the casino with my parents. I love how many options their menu has. The seafood is so fresh! Most is local!

I did not partake in the bread basket, because though the Summer Shack has great seafood, the bread is nothing to write home about. There were a couple of plain rolls (my mom devoured them before the camera came out) and the above soft, Northern, sweet corn bread. Boo – bring on the crispy, Southern style! What kind of corn bread do you prefer?

My dad started with a gumbo special. It came with the most adorable side that I can only call a mini English muffin. I think my dad wanted crackers, but I was entranced by the cuteness!

Action shot!

He selected the breaded baked cod special, paired with jasmine rice. The fish was very well cooked and the tomato sauce it was baked in was so flavorful!

My mom ordered the swordfish special with broccoli and roasted acorn squash on the side. The tomato chutney sitting on top of the fish was out of this world. It was basically like eating a pile of the juiciest, freshest tomato I’ve ever tasted. She and I shared the squash and could not get over how good it was. It fit the Snowtober vibe perfectly.

I selected the cider glazed scallops appetizer with mixed greens and broccoli. Holy yum, the scallops were AMAZING! The broccoli was your typical steamed broc, nothing special, but the scallops stole the show.

As I’ve mentioned, I spent my days off during the post-storm-week working on the blog and writing my paper at Whole Foods. This meant some delicious $12 salads.

Edamame, many bean salads, falafel, green beans, pineapple, roasted veggies, a million other things.

I also spent some time at the Starbucks on Uconn’s campus, studying with Joe. I helped myself to their spinach feta egg white wrap, which I hadn’t had in forever, and forgot how much I loved!

Our first night with power back, my family celebrated by…using the grill, something that requires no power, to make dinner. Ha, oh well.

Broc, baked potato with Mariah's relish, turkey burger, grilled chicken

The next night, we made use of the newly powered freezer and had another delicious Newman’s Own Thin n’ Crispy pizza! My mom added grilled chicken to the veggie pie, just like last time. SO crispy and satisfying.

Paired mine with some leftover broc and black beans from Moe’s. I LOVE their black beans.

Had another slice after – couldn’t resist!

Were you affected by Alfred, in any positive and/or negative ways? Have you ever tried Newman’s Own frozen pizza, or Starbucks breakfast sandwiches?

Tennessee Recap: Part Five (Grand Finale)

Morning! I’m about to head back to work for the first time in over a week thanks to Snowtober. I really can’t complain. I was fortunate enough to have power back by Wednesday, and work and class cancelled. However, that doesn’t mean I can’t be bummed about going back to work. I’ll miss cafe days and morning workouts. What I am glad to get back though, is routine. I definitely thrive on it and now my days will be much more plan-able.

I don’t event feel like I am coming off a weekend – just a long vacation! It really feels like forever since I’ve gone into the office. It also feels like forever since I started telling you all about my trip, but I finally am gonna conclude my story today, so we will be back on track to regular posts tomorrow – I already have SO much to catch you guys up on that’s happened since I returned!

Anyway, so ended the surprise-extended Tennessee vacation. Yes, I’m on the level of calling this a vacation, not a trip. There’s a difference, agreed?

Monday (Halloween!) morning, I did a workout (30 minutes incline walking, random upper body free weights) and went to meet my sister at an Einstein Bagels on campus. I was supposed to start my paper, and ended up writing a paragraph and spending the rest of the time on the blog. Oops.

UT has SO many chains on campus. I can’t believe it! At UConn we just had a few chains in our Student Union, but their University Center has a ton, and this Einstein’s wasn’t even in that building. We had UConn-branded cafes, but they have branded cafes, and I like it better.

The Einstein’s was filled with the smell of toasted asiago bagels. The menu was impressively extensive! I kept it light because I was eating an early lunch, and had one of the best fruit cups I’ve ever bought (usually they’re sucky, but this one had a ton of fresh pineapple and strawberries) and a very good coffee with steamed skim milk.

Later I got to go to my second chain-mission, Chik-fil-a, for my very favorite fast food sandwich: the Char-Grilled Chicken Sandwich. I am OBSESSED with their honey BBQ sauce and pickles. Chik-fil-a is slowly spreading up north and is in Mass now, but still not CT. COME ON UP Chik-fil-a, we are ready for you!

Headed to the airport after that and spent the first flight with my book and a nonfat chai tea misto from Starbucks.

When we landed, we had a couple of hours to kill in between our connection, and I was STARVED. We passed a Chili’s and I knew immediately what I wanted – Mexican food!

My mom got a large Stella and we shared chips and salsa to start. They really hit the spot.

I ordered the chicken fajitas, because this Chili’s was a Chili’s Too and had a limited menu and didn’t offer the shrimp tacos I usually get. Change is good though, I was just a little chickened out (ha) after this meal after having chicken earlier for lunch! This dinner was, by the way, one of my earliest ever (4pm). Takes me back to the days of waiting for the dining halls to open for dinner at 4:15.

I didn’t have any of the tortillas or guac since I had filled up on some chips, but I did pour all the salsa on top of the chicken and veggies, as well as a side of black beans. I polished off that entire thing. Yes I think that made about four servings of chicken that day – ha!

Thank you for following my recaps of my little getaway – I hope you enjoyed!

Are you a Chik-fil-a fan? What about Chili’s? How are you feeling on this Monday?