Mangia Restaurant • Kenosha • 5717 Sheridan Rd

Garlic "butter" & bread, Lamb Gnocchetti, Rigatoni, Arctic Char with Asparagus & sweet potatoes.

Mangia's is a great little Kenosha restaurant opened by the owner of Chicago's Spiaggia. It is cute, quaint and friendly. I loved the lamb gnocchetti- what's not to love gnocchi, goat cheese and lamb? Everything was delicious but the best part is the Garlic "butter" and bread. It is the consistency of hummus, not overly garlicky but oh so tasty!

cookies & cream cheesecake cupcakes, yes please!

Basically these are mini cheesecakes with an Oreo treat in the bottom. Easy, tasty, I will definitely be making these again.

Frontier • 1072 N. Milwaukee Ave Chicago, IL

Char-grilled oysters, Thursday night special $10 dozen oysters, pulled Boar sandwich (AMAZING!), shrimp & grits.

Everything we ate was delicious. I love, love oysters and you can't beat a dozen for $10. The char-grilled oysters aren't something you find around Chi-town too often. We had to get them, they were good but not as good as New Orleans. The Boar meat sandwich was sooooo good, try it! Shrimp and grits, this was a side dish you could make a meal out of.

The menu is fairly small with tons of goodness. The ambiance is cozy, wooden but still modern and cool. The crowd and staff is laid back. The food is reasonably priced. And they even have vanilla porter beer on draft, ginger beer among other tasty drinks.

A new favorite spot for me.

Who knew stuffed shells were so easy?

Well I didn't. I know this just looks like cheese and sauce but there are some delicious meat stuffed shells under there. The hardest part is making sure you have enough homemade pasta sauce.

at home: meatloaf cupcakes & french onion macaroni bites

The "frosting" is mashed potatoes with bacon and chives. This is a great way to make meatloaf without having a brick, and they look super cute!

Girl & the goat, simply delicious

The Girl & the Goat simply put is delicious. The atmosphere is warm and cozy, the staff helpful and pleasant and the food could never be bad, I must try everything! These photos are from the shared plates of three of my favorite food lovers: first, is a simple oyster (this was good and I love an oyster but probably my least favorite since everything else was so darn good). Second a chick pea fritter, this was amazing and so flavorful. Third was an octopus dish,-zesty, zingy and I would have licked the plate but didn't want to embarrass myself. Fourth, chicken little, this is chicken pate with a carrot butter and fresh baked bread, if there is one thing I think you must try- it's this! Fifth, a beet salad- light and simple. Lastly is a lamb flatbread, this was a burst of flavor and the lamb was so good paired with the crunchy, tangy veggies. All good, better than good.

Some of my favorites from China

I had some amazing meals while in China and I can't mention them all but here are some photos of my favorites from crab soup filled dumplings, to freshly stuffed wontons, to traditional tea at the famous Shanghai tea house including these beautiful quail eggs.