The Drop

                                             Happy Hour at The Drop in Martini Corner!

                                          The BEST bruschetta I've ever had! And unique specialty cocktails! 

A few of my girlfriends and I wanted to try a new place in KC for happy hour during the week. We decided to check out The Drop bar and bistro in Martini Corner. They are well know for their delicious and unique antipasto/appetizers, especially the bruschetta, and their specialty cocktails/martinis (which are only $5 during happy hour that lasts 3-7!). The bruschetta was to die for..seriously. The special during happy hour is choose any four bruschetta dishes for $15. The ones we tried that are in the photo above were:

*Brie, apple, balsamic cream, candied pecans
*Red grape, gorgonzola, port wine reduction
*Oven-dried tomato, smoked mozzarella, basil pesto
*Prosciutto, roasted garlic, romesco

Each of these bruschetta dishes were distinct and flavorful..I was very impressed! I definitely recommend The Drop for a classy happy hour were you can enjoy great quality food and drinks and fun music in downtown KC! Tuesday nights are Karaoke night if you're up for some fun entertainment as well! 

Superbowl Snacks!

Happy Superbowl Sunday!! I decided to make some quick and easy snacks this year for the Superbowl! Since it was a chilly/rainy day in Kansas, some comfort food was the perfect fit for the evening..I went with toasty ham sandwhiches and cheesy potato soup (Bear Creek Country Kitchen's Cheesy Cheddar Potato Soup) served with 'everything' flavored pretzel thins and Boulevard Nutcracker Ale. These two dishes pared very nicely for a yummy, yet healthy, football watching dinner (and great leftovers for the entire week!). 

Toasted Hamie-Sandies Recipe (photo above):
Ingredients:
*2 packages of sweet Hawaiian rolls
*1 lb. sliced deli ham
*8 oz. swiss cheese, sliced

ingredients for mustard topping:
*3/4 cup of butter
*1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
*1 1/2 Tbs. mustard
*1 1/2 Tbs. poppy seeds
*1 1/2 Tbs. minced onion

Directions:
Cut each roll in half sandwich-style. Place bottoms in 9x13-inch baking pan. Spread inside of rolls with mustard mixture (top and bottom) top each with ham and cheese. Place tops of rolls back on. Pour the rest of the mustard mixture all over the rolls. Bake in pre-heated 350-degree oven for 15-20 minutes. Enjoy!! :)  

Sweet Dreams!

Do you love frozen yogurt/soft serve ice cream?! I do! Peachwave is the new trendy place to go for chilly sweet treats in the suburbs! I enjoyed both the cheesecake and the cookies and cream yogurt flavors..and my favorite toppings were crumpled Andies mints, reeses peanut butter cups, Hershey cookies and cream candy bar, heath bar, chocolate syrup and peanuts..wow! They also have some fun fruity flavored yogurts, such as pineapple or strawberry, it you want to try something more unique. All the yogurts are low-fat/non-fat. If you are going for a healthier version they had a great assortment of fresh fruit toppings! I enjoyed the self serve part and fun/relaxed atmosphere. Kid friendly! Perfect for a quick ice cream date :)

Hockey Happy Hour!

                                    Not your typical Border showdown..KU vs. MU Hockey!!

One of my very best friends from highschool, Amy, and I have decided to start a new tradition of getting together for happy hour in KC (most Thursdays)! Of course I am thrilled about this and can't wait to share my experiences and adventures with you all! A couple weeks ago I received an email from KU promoting the athletics department and came across a link for the club hockey team, who plays at the Independence Events Center in KC, and were scheduled to play MU in a border showdown. Growing up as a competitive ice skater, I was always at the rink practicing, and the hockey players practiced right after my private lessons. I remember watching them skate so fast and fierce as I would wait for my parents to pick me up from practice, and I enjoyed the thrill of their scrimmages and I won't lie..those hockey players are pretty good looking too! ha, but honestly I really enjoy winter sports and especially hockey..the quick pace of the game/excitement of the crowd/fights and enthusiasm of the players! not gonna lie, but Mighty Ducks was one of my all time fav movies growing up! A couple months ago when Johno and I were in Boston, we tried to get tickets to an NHL game, Boston Bruins, but it didn't work out. I have been wanting to go to a hockey game for a while, and was hoping I would make it to at least one of the KC Mavericks games..but when I discovered this game, I thought what a perfect opportunity!! Since I am ABSOLUTELY OBSESSED with everything Jayhawks, this was just another awesome way I could show my team spirit..right?!! I just knew right away that Amy would wanna come along to the game with me, as I remember attending her brother's hockey games in high school and knowing she loves the Jayhawks too! 

We started our evening on the Plaza at Kona for some happy hour drinks! Kona is definitely one of my all time favorite bars, especially for happy hour! Not only do they have great happy hour drinks- martinis/margaritas/wine/beer, but they also have appetizers and sushi to die for! (calamari is yummy and personally, I think the sushi is the best in town!) And reverse happy hour is always nice if ya wanna head back for round two or just get a late start! Amy and I had cosmos..which were quite tasty! 

After our drinks and enjoying the atmosphere at Kona, we headed to Independence for the hockey game! Dressed warm in blue and red we were ready to cheer on our Jayhawks! Tickets to the game were inexpensive for good seats, which is always a nice deal! We even got on the 'Jumbo'-tron 'Smile Cam' while watching KU score two goals in the first quarter! Even though it was MU that ended in a victory, overall, I would say it was a fun experience! The game and environment was really kid and family-friendly and very interactive with the audience, which I always like! For example, they had the fans 'dance for dinner' and receive a meal from the three 'cows' or chick-fil-a mascots. They also had activities between periods for kids/audience members to win prizes and held a 'throw-a-puck' activity to win prizes with donations going to the Ali Kemp foundation. At first it was kind of hard to follow the game because it is so fast pace, but I got the hang of it after awhile and really had a fun time! Also, we were handed a little booklet/newspaper with information about each of the hockey teams, current events in the hockey world, and hockey 101..where I was able to read up on some lingo and basics about hockey! Did you know that the hockey puck is made of rubber, but must be frozen before entering play to make it bounce resistant?! 

Overall, I really enjoyed the game and experience! Rock Chalk! I look forward to hopefully making it to a KC Mavericks game as well! 

                                          Quack Quack Quack Quack Quack, Mr. Ducksworth!

Johno's Bday Happy Hour

Yay! Yesterday, 2/2/2011 Johno, and I celebrated his 24th birthday with a bit of a happy hour at Houlihans! Not only were we celebrating John's big day, but also groundhog day, Shakira's bday and most importantly, National tater tot day ha! (If you know me, you know I can be a bit silly/sarcastic at times..so hang in there) Anyway we decided it was only appropriate to go big or go home! So we obviously started with pitchers of long islands, for each of us! (and the fact that they were on happy hr special for $4.50 wednesdays..hey good deal right?!) We ultimately choose Houlihan's because they sent out an awesome coupon for 50% off the entire meal after 4pm..mostly as a promo after the huge blizzard/snow storm of the century/ 'snowpocalypse'(the 'cool' term). Anywho, we were pretty pumped to get a good deal out of it! (andddd apparently so was the rest of the entire KC area population!) We arrived right in the nick of time..shortly after 4:15. I would definitely recommend arriving early cause just about ten minutes after being seated, the restaurant entrance started looking more and more like the 'main bar' of the Hawk in Lawrence...seriously, shoulder-to-shoulder, one-in-one-out! Those Houlihanians sure learned their lesson..you send out one 50% promo email and it's like one of those chain-letters and little do ya know...we could be experiencing ten tornados, a snow storm, flooding and world war III..but every dang person in KC will still be smashed together like sardines inside Town Center Houlihans! 

Overall, our experience was a success and getting there early was key! The long islands, although ginormous, were a bit on the sweeter side...but after gulping them down like kolade after soccer practice, we were def feeling a nice buzz! The food is always tasty as well..great small plates and appetizers! And our personal all time fav..chicken finger platter (yet without a doubt we order that at almost every restaurant we visit..gotta love those tenders!) I definitely recommend Houlihan's if you want good food with your drinks and want to stick to the suburbs (and see children under the age of 10 texting on their iphones at the table next to you ha)...it truly made for a fun-relaxed-yummy happy hour! 

All in all, we had a fun afternoon and evening from Houlihan's happy hour and joking around to having a dance party in car-ride home to reminiscing of our college shenanigans! Happy Birthday JohnoFrancie!! Had an awesome time helping you celebrate! :)

                                 Brothers- our first dance..i know, so romantic. haha i had to!

Cheers!!!

Hi Friends!! Welcome to my blog! I'm here to share with you all the things that I love and that inspire me each day! I have a number of things that I am very excited to share with YOU on my blog! I'm excited to share with you my ideas and experiences from travel to restaurants and food to photography and outings with friends and family! I also love discovering new things to do and see throughout Kansas City! Check out and explore what I am up to as I take on new adventures! Next month I'm headed to France to visit my younger sister for three weeks, and I will have lots to share and talk about as I plan for my trip! Okay..let's get going!! Hope you enjoy my little happy hour with a drink or two! Cheers! :)