Thursday, July 11, 2019

Confessions of a Foodie by Belle Calhoune



Okay! I'm about to come clean. My family loves to eat out at restaurants. In good times and in bad, we tend to seek comfort in a nice restaurant where we can eat and talk and bond. There's something about eating at a new venue that feels particularly exciting to us. Will the food be good? So-so? Do they serve Sangria? Are those Yelp reviews truthful? Will it become a family favorite?

Chicken and waffles seem to be all the rage at the moment and we've enjoyed some all around the world. The best had to be Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles in California.






For me, food is a joyful thing. And I've come to realize it's something to celebrate. When my brother was terminally ill he lost his appetite. For the first time in his life he didn't want to eat and the smell of food made him sick. I think it reinforced to me the idea that life is short and one never knows when things in your life will change. SAVOR the moments...as well as the food.

These are some pictures from our Paris trip. I smile when I look at the earthy looking dish with the potatoes. It was really exciting to enjoy different cuisine.

















Earthy French food..it was delicious.




My daughter and I at a cafe on the Champs Elysees! We enjoyed the best mussels. 








Sometimes I decide not to post all my dining pics on my author page because I don't want to give the impression that we eat out all the time. It's usually for celebration purposes, and since life has been good lately, we've had a lot to celebrate. Praise the Lord! But in the future, I'm going to share more, because enjoying food is a wonderful thing. Recently we celebrated Fourth of July at my sister Karen's house and she brought out a dessert my mother used to serve us. It brought back all those wonderful childhood memories and it felt like my mother was sitting right there with us even though we lost her back in 2000.







When I was growing up in a family of seven we rarely ate out. I totally understand why. I wouldn't eat out if I had to pay the tab for five kids either! But when we did it was usually while on vacation or the occasional seafood outing in Cape Cod where we had a summer house. We recently took my dad out for father's day at a seafood place on the South Shore of Boston. There's nothing better than fried clams and scallops!


Fried Scallops. Sheer perfection. No one does seafood better than Massachusetts.



I still believe dining out as a family is a celebratory thing. Graduations! Honor roll! My daughter's first big job in New York City! A film deal! We celebrate it all! And I love it.


A different take on chicken and waffles at my niece's graduation celebration.



Spicy fish taco wrapped in lettuce.

Italian food. Lasagna, one of my all-time favorites.


Who among us doesn't love a churro? With chocolate sauce?




Calamari, one of our favorite dishes. 



French toast with flair!



Apple crumble with vanilla ice cream.



Bolognese...my all time favorite meal. I've eaten it in more restaurants than I can recall.




Edamame. It's so good...and good for you.



Dining out is enjoyable for my family. It allows us relaxing time during which we can catch up on the day to day stuff and talk about goals and dreams. Recently we went out for Mexican food and I spotted this sign. It still cracks me up!!! 













12 comments:

  1. Just finished breakfast, but seeing these delicious photos have made me hungry again. Thank you for sharing them.

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    1. Hi Mary. They make me hungry too. It's funny how pictures evoke such strong sensory memories. I really enjoy taking pictures of food. My husband is so used to it now that he says aren't you going to take a picture? I think plating of food can be done so elegantly.

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  2. Like Mary, I'm so hungry looking at all those photos!

    This is a funny thing to jump out at me from all the photos you posted, but the bistro in Paris has Eggs Mayonnaise( oeuf mayonnaise) on the menu. I remember that from my honeymoon in Ireland because my husband used to order it all the time. I'd never heard of it before, but he loved it.

    Thanks for sharing your photos, but especially these thoughts. "I think it reinforced to me the idea that life is short and one never knows when things in your life will change. SAVOR the moments...as well as the food."

    So very true.

    And I love the taco sign.

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    Replies
    1. Hi Cate. That's so funny. I didn't even notice that dish. We got mussels and a few other things that meal. I love eggs but mayo is not really my thing. Yes, I really did learn to savor food after my brother's illness because so much of the time as women we are trying to lose weight. While I am trying to get healthier but goal is never to deprive myself in a punitive way. I've accepted the fact that it's okay to enjoy food. I'm not sure the American culture readily admits that. Blessings.

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  3. YUM!! You made me hungry with all those great pics! I love to travel to try new food!

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    Replies
    1. Hey Danica. I'm hungry now too. We really need to get a great meal together in New York at RWA. If we do, I promise to snap pictures of it.

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  4. What great pictures. I have never understood the Chicken and Waffle thing. Of course I have never tried it either. But I'm also a boneless breast girl if I eat chicken. Tacos!! Is it a taco without a tortilla? LOL Now I'm super hungry. Do you have a favorite place to eat in New York? I'll be there soon.

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  5. Hey Jolene. Well, it's chickens with waffles lol. DEEEEEELICIOUS! The taco is on a bed of lettuce rather than the tortilla. I guess it's a healthier option. It was super yummy too. I love a bunch of places in New York City. Last RWA I really liked going to Virgil's BBQ...it's not too far from the hotel. And of course I love Junior's Cheesecake.

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  6. Loved your blog, Belle, thank you so much for sharing. But it was too much for me seeing all that food, and I had to drag my husband (well not really) to our local gourmet ice cream shop for a delicious shake.

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    1. HA HA Marie. I'm glad it inspired you to get a shake. Shakes are one of my favorite indulgences. And summer is made for ice cream and shakes. Thanks for popping in and looking at my pics. Blessings.

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  7. Fun food. I love to eat out! I really don’t like to cook if I have a choice. It is fun to be adventurous and try new places. Especially when traveling. Though I won’t do muscles. Or most fish. The chicken and waffles sound delicious.

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    Replies
    1. Hi Terri. It's so fun to eat out! And I love seafood. I guess it's the Cape Cod in me. Chicken and waffles are so yummy and every place does them in a different way.

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