Exploring the simple pleasures in life.
After many years of effort, I have found that the key to true happiness comes with learning to enjoy the simple pleasures in life. It’s in the awesome feeling that you have when the garden is full of beautiful banana peppers. It comes from spending time with the people you love and sharing fantastic adventures with them. This Uncomplicated Life is my way of sharing my journey into finding and enjoying the simple pleasures.
A Covered Bridge, a Lake, and Waterfalls
Our next journey took us back to the Covington area. Having not made it to the waterfall on our last trip, I was determined to give it another shot. I had also found out about a very old covered bridge in the area since our last visit. Humpback Bridge is purported to be the oldest remaining covered bridge in Virginia. Crossing Dunlap Creek, It is the fourth in a series of bridges, the first built in the 1820s. Three bridges were washed away from flooding. The current bridge was built in 1857 and was actively used until 1929 when it was replaced with a "modern" bridge. The bridge remained mostly unused (other than to store hay) until the 1950s when it was restored and became a roadside attraction. Humpback Bridge is easy to get to, less than a mile from I-64. It is easy to see why the bridge is named Humpback as it is 4 feet higher in the center (I would imagine for counteracting the flooding that destroyed the first three bridges). The bridge is a peaceful spot with the gentle current of the creek passing under. The wayside is adorned with beautiful flowers and the bridge [...]
Crozet Pizza Review
On one of our recent ventures to the mountains, we stopped at Crozet Pizza for dinner. I had seen an article on Facebook about the spot indicating that it is the best pizza in the state. We walked in and received a warm greeting. Our server, unfortunately, was not as friendly. Service was adequate, but we did not get the impression that we were welcome. I love beer cheese and tend to get it anytime I find it on a menu. Of course, when I saw House-Made Beer Cheese with Local Lager on the menu I had to order it. The cheese comes with Bavarian pretzel sticks. The pretzels were soft and had a great flavor, but the cheese was absolutely the star of the dish. It was creamy and rich with a nice, underlying beer flavor. It was difficult to decide which pizza we wanted, so we went with a half and half. On one half, we ordered the Buddhist Pie, a white base with sun-dried tomatoes, red pepper, feta, and basil. We added Italian sausage to it as well. On the other half, we ordered the Cheeseburger Pie, with ground beef, cheddar, bacon, and onion. The pizza was a massive 16-inch [...]
Jack Mason’s Tavern Review
Our next adventure found us back in Clifton Forge, VA. We went to Jack Mason's Tavern for lunch. The restaurant is in an old building with a lot of character. In the beautifully decorated restroom is an old secretary desk converted into a changing table. I really loved the photos on the wall. My favorite was the one taken beside the building. Apparently, the building at one point was a garment factory. The photo was from the 1940s and depicts the women who worked there picketing on the corner outside. After we sat at the bar, the manager quickly greeted us. I started off with their special cocktail, a Mermaid Mimosa. The drink was not only delicious but also was a beautiful color. Our bartender, Michael, was friendly and conversational without monopolizing our time. We started with Fried Pickle Spears. They were piping hot and delicious with ranch dipping sauce. Chris ordered Fish and Chips, beer-battered cod with fries and a choice of salad or vegetables. The beer batter was crispy and light, while the fish was perfectly cooked. The house-made tartar sauce was yummy as well. The manager had told us about a tuna special. When I ordered the tuna as my [...]
Our Disc Golf, Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives Adventure Part 3
Part 1 Part 2 We awoke in Tampa and went to one of our favorite breakfast spots, Daily Eats. After breakfast, we crossed the bay and went to one of our favorite disc golf courses, Taylor Park. As we arrived at the park, we realized that we had left our ice packs at the hotel. We called the hotel and they found them when they checked the room. They agreed to hold them at the front desk until we could pick them up. Luckily, we would be driving right by the hotel on our way to Ocala. Taylor Park is a gorgeous course next to a lake, with palm trees, beautiful flowers, and an incredible variety of birds. There are two tees for most of the holes and several possible basket positions on each hole. The lake comes into play on five holes. As we arrived at the seventh hole we were suddenly surrounded by birds. A small flock of parrots swooped in and landed in the branches of the tree next to us. They flitted around and squawked at each other for a few seconds before flying out as quickly as they had flown in. There was no [...]
Our Disc Golf, Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives Adventure Part 2
Part 1 With a beautiful view of the water from our balcony, I intended to get up early to watch the sunrise. I did not manage to get up in time, but with the low-lying clouds, the sun was not visible as it crested the horizon. I sat on the balcony for a while, enjoying the early morning hustle bustle on the street, and was able to watch a sunrise of sorts as the sun rose above the cloud cover. As we walked to Maple Street Biscuit Company for breakfast, the streets were once again flooded. We enjoyed the beautiful Spanish architecture with the lovely Spring flowers blooming. As we walked around the night before, we found a Steam Punk Store, which looked to have some really interesting items for sale. On our way back from breakfast we stopped in and bought a few things for this year's Imagine Festival. As we loaded the car for the next leg of our journey, Chris talked to the valet. We asked him about the flooding and, apparently, it is a normal occurrence caused by the tide. We decided to take the scenic A1A Highway to Daytona. The trip takes a little longer than following I-95, [...]
Our Disc Golf, Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives Adventure Part 1
For the last six years, we have used our vacation to combine our love for disc golf with our love for food. We take a road trip to Florida playing courses along the way. The first year we ate primarily at restaurants featured on the TV show "Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives". It was a fun, albeit intense, vacation. We played two to three courses each day and had no reservations so that we weren't locked into a specific schedule. Over the years we have tweaked the trip to make it more relaxing. We have also explored DDD types of places to eat in addition to the ones from the show. This year's adventure started the day before our vacation began. When I went to pick up our rental car the rental agent asked her coworker to get the keys. He commented that the car we were picking up still needed cleaning and then asked if I would mind taking a Cadillac instead. Of course, I was alright with that. As we walked through the parking lot he asked if I minded that it was an SUV. A triple upgrade was a fantastic way to start our vacation. Our trip started in [...]
The Mac House Review
Our last food stop on vacation was The Mac House in Raleigh, NC. I heard about the restaurant a few months ago and put it on my list of places to go if we were ever in the area. As we had reversed our normal vacation route, we ended up in Raleigh at dinnertime so I was thrilled to check it out. The Mac House is a counter service restaurant in a shopping center. It was tricky to find, as the shopping center did not seem to have any road frontage. We followed Google Maps to find it, but it seemed that we had to drive through the back of the shopping center and then all the way around it to actually find the restaurant. It may have just been because of the direction we were coming from, but it seemed very confusing. The employees were friendly and helpful. They offer salads and a variety of grilled cheese but are best known for their extensive choice of mac & cheese dishes. Chris ordered the Supreme Pizza Mac, pepperoni, marinara, Italian sausage and white cheese sauce with basil. He chose Chicken Noodle Soup as his side. The soup was flavorful with a rich [...]
Poke Brothers Review
As we headed home from our vacation, we stopped in Greenville, SC at Poke Bros. for lunch. Located in a strip mall, it is nothing fancy. There is basic seating available and reminded me of a Subway, but with poke instead of sandwiches. They offer a variety of signature bowls but also offer a Build Your Own Bowl for a fully customized dish. First choose your base, either rice (several varieties are offered) or salad. Next pick your protein, either chicken or a number of seafood choices are offered or you can do half and half, which gives you two different proteins. Then add your ingredients, a nice variety of vegetables, your flavor, several different choices of sauces and finally your toppings, several choices of crunchy bits to top the dish off with. Chris went with the salad, marinated tuna and salmon with masago, ginger, carrots, green onions, seaweed salad, edamame, cucumber and tofu with sweet soy, wasabi aioli and ponzu topped with wonton chips, tempura flakes, and crispy onion. I was a little overwhelmed with picking my ingredients as I have never had poke before and wasn't sure what I should get. I finally settled on a salad with [...]
Duluth Diner Review
On the last day of our vacation, we knew we had a long day of driving ahead of us so we went to Duluth Diner for breakfast as soon as they were open. The owner, Amir, looked surprised to see us, but he was friendly and told us to sit where we liked. As he finished getting ready for service, we looked over the menu. While the word diner is in the name of the restaurant, it does not look at all like a diner. The decor is beautiful and looks much more like a nice restaurant than a typical diner. The food is very reminiscent of diner fare and is prepared with the speed that diners are noted for. It was obvious that Amir takes great pride in his establishment. Chris ordered the Breakfast Wrap, a bacon omelet with tomato and cheddar wrapped in a tortilla. The wrap was delicious and a great new way to eat an omelet. I had the Steak & Cheese Omelette. There is a choice of beef or chicken with onions, peppers, and cheese. I went with beef and opted for no peppers. When the omelet arrived it was full of peppers, but the [...]
Aunt Fannie’s Review
While in Ocala we stopped into Aunt Fannie's for breakfast. It is a diner with tables as well as a traditional diner-style counter. We sat at the counter. Of course, on a Saturday morning, the place was busy. The servers were very friendly and the service was fast. Chris ordered the Sampler Platter, eggs, sausage, bacon and hash browns with cheese. The eggs were nicely cooked and the dish was good. The cheese on the hash browns was just a slice of American slightly melted over the top. I veered away from my Keto plan and ordered the Lil Belly Buster, a smaller order of biscuits & gravy with two over-medium eggs. While the eggs were wonderful and the gravy was tasty, the biscuits were very dry. Even sopping them with gravy did not take away from the dryness. We did have one major issue. Aunt Fannie's is obviously a place with a lot of regulars. While it was nice to see that the staff knew most of the customers by name and already knew what their orders were, it was not pleasant to feel like we were being overrun by the regulars. They had no respect for our personal [...]
Hardwood Smokehouse Review
In Ocala, FL we went to Hardwood Smokehouse for dinner. Located at the end of a strip mall, the restaurant is easily accessible with plenty of parking. When we entered the restaurant we took a few minutes to look over the menu. When we decided what we wanted to order we walked up to the counter and waited. We had probably been in the restaurant a full 10 minutes before we ever saw anyone who worked there. Once we placed our order we found a table. Our appetizer arrived quickly. We started with the Pork Towers, a twist on egg rolls. The fried rolls of deliciousness, filled with pulled pork, cheddar jack, and slaw, were my favorite part of the meal. They were crispy with a beautiful barbecue flavor and the jalapeño ranch dipping sauce added the perfect level of heat. We shared the Devyn's Sampler, a dish with pulled pork, chopped beef brisket, 1/4 smoked chicken with a choice of either three St. Louis ribs or 1/2 rack of baby back ribs. We opted for the baby backs and changed out the brisket for burnt ends. We chose slaw and mac & cheese as our sides. Everything on the [...]
Daily Eats Review
A few years ago we discovered Daily Eats in Tampa. It is a great spot for breakfast. When we first went four years ago the food was amazing, but the service was spectacular. It was actually the best service we had ever had so, of course, we have continued to go back every time we are in the area. This year we went a little later than we normally do. They were very busy when we arrived so there was a short wait. Our server was in training and did a great job under Jeremy's guidance. We started off with coffee and mimosas, Chris had apple and I had mango. Chris ordered the Create Your Own Omelette with onions, diced tomatoes, olives, feta, and salmon. He chose home fries as his side. The omelet was beautifully cooked with light fluffy eggs and plenty of filling. Daily Eats offers six different Benedicts. I ordered Benny the Green, multi-grain bread with smashed avocado and poached eggs topped with hollandaise and scallions. I can not bring my self to order anything else. When we first visited four years ago it was the chef's special. Three years ago it was on the menu and [...]
The Lucky Dill Review
During our recent visit to Tampa, we found The Lucky Dill. After the short walk from our hotel, we sat on the patio despite the chill in the air. There are patio heaters available, but it wasn't cold enough for us to need them. The biggest stand out to me for The Lucky Dill is the menu. It is a gigantic menu. It took us a bit of time to sort through all of it, even though Chris had looked at the menu online before we left the hotel. We started with Matzo Ball soup and The Lucky Dills (fried pickles). The soup had a delicious broth with a beautiful matzo ball at the center. The pickles are a must-have, with a crispy pretzel crust and almost creamy interior. The Zesty Cool Ranch dipping sauce was a nice touch with the sweet hot bottle cap pickles. Chris ordered the Second Ave. Special, a huge corned beef and pastrami sandwich loaded up with chopped liver. The sandwich was so big we could easily have shared one and still had leftovers to take with us. It was delicious. Personally, I would have liked more Russian dressing, but that is just nitpicking. I [...]
Ikaho Sushi Review
Just northwest of Orlando we had lunch at Ikaho Sushi in Groveland, FL, a small restaurant in a strip mall. Service was very matter of fact, not unfriendly, but also not welcoming. We started off with hot sake. Chris ordered Sushi & Sashimi, four pieces of sushi, six pieces of sashimi and a California Roll with soup and salad. The dish, plated beautifully, was fresh, delicious and plenty to eat. I chose the Shrimp Tempura Bento Box, with shrimp tempura, four pieces of California Roll, Gyoza, tempura-battered vegetables, soup, and salad. Again, the food was fresh and delicious. My favorite part was the Gyoza. While not fancy or an exceptional experience, the food was good and we enjoyed our lunch. Cost for sake, and two entrees $33.22.