Busy Birthday

Today started around 9:30 am when I woke up.  I was having MAJOR guilt from leaving Sammy the fish at my office for a few days without any food friends (he was fed on Wednesday night so not that long ago)…so Matt and I set out a few minutes after we woke up to pick him up. 

After retrieving Sammy and cleaning his bowl (it was nasty), I set out for a 5 mile run.  Before heading out I had two Fig Newmans (I also snacked on 1/2 a Chocolate Mint Donut from Dunkin Donuts on our way home).

It was so windy out!  I felt like 3/4 of my run was spent running straight into the wind – it was hard.  My average pace was about a 9 minute mile so I was pleased with myself.

After a shower, I realized it was almost 2:30 – and I hadn’t eaten much all day.  We needed to go to the grocery store and run a few other errands before our dinner reservations in Providence so I ate a BIG bowl of cereal.  In the mix was: Three Sisters Graham Crackerz Cereal, Cascadian Farms Multi Grain Squares, Quaker Oatmeal Squares, and Kashi Island Vanilla.  I also sliced a banana and had some soy nut butter on the side for dipping

This really filled me up – I was stuffed.

After our errands, Matt and I headed down to Providence for birthday dinner.

We ate at a new restaurant tonight

Check out the mission of the restaurant:

We take seriously our obligation to our customers of providing the best each season has to offer. Our mission is to serve the best locally- raised foods available: vegetables harvested in season by local farmers who care about the health of their land and your food. Meats raised in sunshine on our New England pastures, with no inhumane confinement, antibiotics or growth hormones-ever. We work hard to avoid serving anything that’s been genetically modified, packaged in a factory, or transported very far. Our suppliers are small-scale New England farmers, cheese makers, and other food artisans we know by name. It’s our goal to provide warm, gracious service and share our dedication of locally harvested ingredients with our patrons.

However, our commitment to local extends beyond our plates.

We recognize that by supporting local artists creates balance and sustains the cultural life of our community. That’s why we actively support our local artists, from the tiny butter dishes on our tables to the large-scale photographs you see on our walls. The fact is, without the work of artists, our lives would be pale and colorless.

For you, the diner, it means that you’re not only enjoying a world-class meal in an elegant setting, prepared with the finest and freshest ingredients available, but that you’re also supporting small family farms and local artists in Rhode Island and New England. A dining experience at Local 121 is something both you and your taste buds can feel good about.

I ordered a glass of Sauvignon Blanc and Matt ordered a Riesling – mine was better. 

For an appetizer, we chose the Point Judith Fried Calamari -lemon-white wine butter, fresh herbs, house pickled peppers, fried lemon

The calamari were good – just a tad too peppery for me (I’m not the biggest fan of the banana peppers).

For my entree I chose the Pan-Seared Bomster Scallops – caramelized cauliflower, golden raisins, capers, pine nuts, brown butter (no pine nuts for me)     

What a horrible picture!  At least the scallops were good.  There was about 3 bites of caramelized cauliflower – I was disappointed – but the scallops more than made up for it.  They were cooked to perfection with a great flavor.

I would highly recommend Local 121 and hope to go back again – there were a few other dishes I wanted to try.

I had a great birthday – thank you to all those who made it so special!