Foodie Post #4: The Bitterness of Good-Byes Soothed by the Sweetness of Kaminsky's

Okay, it's official. In two weeks, I'll have to switch my "Current city" section on Facebook from "Charleston" to "Columbia." As mentioned in many previous posts, the feeling is truly bittersweet; I'm so ready to hit the ground running the second I get to the Capital City... but, oh, the wonderful Holy City! I miss you already.

There are several VISTAs who began their term around the same time I did, and it seems like every other week I'm saying good-bye to someone. As much as I hate hate HATE farewells, I do believe in a proper send-off with lots of good food... a kind of physically manifested sense of comfort through a happy tummy. In this particular case, we ventured to Kaminsky's, a dessert cafe and bar, as a final (delicious) hoorah for my VISTA pal, Ashley. Located in the heart of downtown Charleston on Market Street, Kaminsky's boasts freshly prepared, "most excellent" dessert. I had never even heard of the place; but the second I walked in, I was so happy my camera was on hand. It most certainly deserved a picture post.

First of all, I had a very vague concept of the joint; I was told "it's like a dessert place." I pictured this quaint little coffee shop type set up, and I guess it kind of was -- but with dark furniture, low-lighting, a full bar, lots of local art displayed on the walls, and waiters dressed in formal black serving attire. It's attached to the T-Bones Steakhouse restaurant, so it pulls in traffic from that side as well as from those simply looking for a treat. Bonus? We happened to get there early enough for my favorite time of the day: happy hour! Certain drinks were half-off or had special pricing, and some of the desserts had a couple of bucks knocked off. And while I had every intention of indulging already, I really didn't need the extra push... but when in Rome!

Oh my goodness, I could feel my pancreas start to freak as I glanced over both the dessert and "adult beverage" menus. Usually I go straight to one or two main things and become instantly obsessed, but this time I was infatuated with the entire sha-bang. Luckily I got there a little earlier than everyone else, so I had plenty of time to carefully gauge my sugar-tolerance. Once everyone arrived, I had finally settled on my selections: The Toll House cookie pie and a glass of (get this!) ChocoVine.... a special Cabernet wine blended with Dutch chocolate. Holy mother of Beethoven! I thought that only existed in my dreams!

Excuse the grain on the first picture; I didn't want to ruin the chocolaty perfection with my flash.

It was beyond delicious and our waiter, Damien, was gracious enough to heat up my pie upon request. The warm chocolaty, doughy pie went so well with the chilled glass of wine. The ChocoVine honestly tasted more like alcohol than chocolate (and that's not necessarily a complaint), but it still had the velvety liquid consistency of a dark red wine. My friends went for equally as scrumptious choices, and it was fun to pass the plates around and sample our wares.

Ashley & Kelly with their marvelous martinis.

Michelle, myself, and Jyn!

And such a 'sweet' fare-thee-well for Miss Ashley it was. All in all, I give this a 9 out of 10... the only reason I'm not giving up the extra point is because it was only 7pm and many of their desserts were scratched off the list because they sold out of it. But the service was excellent -- seriously, ask for Damien; he was a total gentleman, had a great sense of humor, and was spot-on the whole night despite us asking tons of questions. Their beverage menu is pretty expansive, even if you just wanted a 'plain' cocktail or a beer (they have a great variety of fun imported ones, too!). They also had plenty of non-alcoholic drinks to choose from if you wanted pure sugar instead of the alcoholic variety. And, of course, their desserts are all amazing and served in huge portions; at $5-7 a selection, it's a steal.

So, would I recommend Kaminsky's?

You bet.

Expert Tip: Always bring the best company. =)

Now, as far as the post-Kaminsky's diet and exercise plan... you're on your own. My suggestion? A long evening walk down the Battery... or rolling yourself home and immediately putting on a favorite pair of stretchy pants.

My Big Debut! 'Breakfast at Target' Gets a Joan Rivers-worthy Facelift.

The old look.

Roll out the red carpet and throw on a sparkly ensemble... the new blog premiere is here!

Okay, so maybe it's not Hollywood worthy, but I'm happy with the new look and think the change is pretty stinkin' snazzy. It took me longer than I anticipated (hence the slack in actual postings), but I'm always my own worst critic and dwelled on the picky details more than I probably should. But after John's approval and letting it froth in cyberspace over the weekend, I decided it's time to officially unveil the new look.

Aside from the new layout, which I hope will be conducive to the many pictures I hope to add, you'll find a few new tabs that explain more about the actual blog and myself. My hope is this will bait and hook new readers (I'm reciprocal follower and love stumbling on new blogs!), and that this will also shed some light for you long-time readers. And, you guessed it: Feedback, whether good, bad, or totally indifferent, will be taken into full consideration and most appreciated!

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The newly launched site couldn't have come at a better time. Things have been stressful over the last few weeks since I got back from vacation. On one hand, I've felt this incessant need to fully experience everything that's going on while still in Charleston; on the other, I'm itching to get to Columbia and get settled quickly into my new life as a grad student. It's exhausting. In between it all, I've been a basket-case worrying myself into sleepless tizzies over other chaotic worries:

- my Level 3 improv recital is 9 days away and I don't feel ready... at all.

- I'm already missing lots of my Charleston peeps.

- the new transition will send me from poor to poorer ("starving" artist to "ravenous," if you will) with the highly potential debt of school, living expenses, funding an upcoming trip out of state to celebrate a good friend's nuptials, and replacing an ailing computer looming darkly over my head.

- packing... makes me want to yakkity-YAK.

- dealing with the wanna-be bureaucrats in the financial and admissions departments of my chosen institution of higher education has already been a daunting experience... it's bound to get worse.

- and, well, the lazy-hazy days of summer are coming to an end... always a very unsettling realization. =(

And after several mini break-downs and snotty-nosed, sob-filled Skype chats with John, I was scared of spending the next three weeks being completely out-of-sorts. But then I found much needed relief during a Friday afternoon yoga session in the form of a simple question: "What do you want?" My instructor, Mandy, used this question to center our focus for the class - what's something that immediately comes to mind? Anything! In honesty, the question caught me off guard, but my answer was straight forward and simple: "I just want it to work out."

And that's it. I know I can dig up the strength, energy, and positive attitude I need... I just want to be sure it will all turn out OK. As I sank into each pose and tried to shut off the ping-pong of thoughts in my head (the "mental chatter," as Mandy calls it), I realized I'd be no good to my future-self if I maintained my frazzled demeanor. And as it turned out, the weekend proved to be a very productive one. Not only were things scratched off the ever present "to do" list, but I was able to get in some much needed chats with friends and family... with each conversation I felt shrouds of the weight melt away, and it's certainly given me more mental wiggle-room to worry about more important things. I'm working hard to make sure this productive spirit serves me well into the week ahead.

Please accept my pre-apologies for being sporadic over the next few weeks, and I really hope there will be fun things to post in between it all. I'm already nostalgic for Charleston and get particularly caught up when I think how much I've changed this year. More importantly, I get teary thinking of the people who lent to that change and how terribly I'm going to miss them. But overall, I'm happy with my decision to return to Columbia and continue to develop my purpose in life.

... yes, I think it's going to work out just fine. =)

Foodie Post #3: BBQ Blues Cruise

Whew! So, obviously, I didn't quite get around to blogging as much as I hoped while on vacation. It's really hard to come up with a grammatically sound (much less, complete) sentence when you're intoxicated on saltwater breezes and sunshine... okay, and maybe the daily happy hour added to that. To make up for my slack performance, today's post is a double whammy: foodie post + tourist attraction review (x photos) = awesome comeback blog!

A few weeks ago, my friends Minh and Anne (you'll remember them from my foodie post about W.O.K.) and myself ventured to the Charleston harbor overlooking Ravenel Bridge to take part in the Blues & BBQ Cruise. We made sure to get there in plenty of time as we vowed not to be "those girls" who held up the boat. Though we arrived about 20min early, we were bested by several large groups who took up all the good spots. There are only a few actual family-sized tables; the rest are picnic style, which is fine if you're up for making friends (which naturally, we did). The boat is divided into two levels, the bottom being enclosed and "climate controlled" (we're guessing the climate they were going for was "rain forest," but it could've been worse); the top part is where you can find the bar and music.

So right as 7pm beckoned, we were off. Phase One immediately commenced: THE FOOD! Ahhh, BBQ: One of those magically delicious foods that's so simple but satisfies. I don't discriminate on what kind of sauce, either... vinegar, mustard, tomato... I love them all equally and shamelessly slather it over my pulled pork (don't worry, they have chicken, too). Tonight's dinner came from Home Team Barbecue, and I almost forgot to take pictures because I was so excited to dig in. It's buffet style, so you're welcome to go as dainty or heavy as you'd like... and at $40 a ticket, you BET I'm piling it on. Wash it down with ice cold sweet tea and bless my heart!, I suddenly feel the need to add "Lou" or "Mae" to my name...

On to Phase 1.2: SECONDS. Being the DHEC (but unfortunately not-so environmentally) friendly gals we are, we appropriately dispose of the first round and move on to the next. We get back in line and load up once more... only to find they've run out of forks. Say WHAAAT? No worries, we still have-- oh wait, no we don't. Jokingly, the young caterer dude says we can use two knives as chopsticks...

Are we sure about this?

(PS. My hair is pulled back in this one, thanks to the "climate".. I did not, in fact, pull it out from fork deprivation.)

Minh: "Allow me to demonstrate."

Here goes nothin'...

Success!

After our BBQ "fusion" and adjusting our attire to fit our amply stuffed bellies, we make our way up to the top deck to take part in music appreciation with the band, Shrimp City Slim, already in full swing. Phase Two: CRUISIN' TO THE BLUES. I'm definitely more a jazz girl myself, but these guys were lively and I found it equally as impressive they kept up such a great show despite the rocky boat ride. The boat is pretty tight and we had to stand awkwardly in a corner (NOT very enjoyable as I had made the stupid decision to wear heels), but the choppy waters ended up working in our favor. An older couple couldn't handle the wave action, so they left their seats at the front of the row, leaving us to do the polite 2min wait... then swoop in!

From there, it was a wonderfully breezy ride around the Ashley River, serenaded by lots of great music... and the occasional big boat. We couldn't have picked a better night, and it was definitely worth the price of admission. A couple of things to remember if you ever get a chance to go:

1) Get there WAY early to claim your spot if you have a big group.
2) If you are a sea-sickish person, I don't think I'd recommend it.
3) Heels = No good.
4) Keep your outfit simple... it gets HOT on the bottom deck.
5) Bring a good attitude. You'll be on a very tight spot with lots of other folks!
6) Bring a camera! You'll see gorgeous sunsets and awesome views of the Ravenel Bridge (the boat actually goes under it!). I actually have a LOAD of other pictures from the night; message me to see more.
7) Cash if helpful for the bar, tipping the 'Que dudes, and also buying your commemorative $5 photo... which, I so happened to have exactly $5 on me that night, and it was too cute not to pass up.
8) It's really great for a date, for groups, tourists, and locals alike. Just be sure to buy your tickets early and prepare for rain or shine!

(Tip: Can't see the photos very well? Click on them for a larger view!)