HappyCakes Cupcakery Made Me Happy!!!

Ok,so here's the deal - we simply drove by this "bakery" on our way to Wal-Mart.

I'm abso addicted to cupcakes, so I had to go check it out, but the Bunny was fighting me hard on it. (I asked him to help me stick to my plan & he does his best)

The name sounded kinda familiar, so while the Bunny was in Wal-Mart & Lowe's

I do what I do best and hit google to find out WHY this name was soooo familiar.

And that is when I discovered that HappyCakes was not only a contestant 

(more than enough reason to go) 

but the winner of Season 2 Episode 21 of CUPCAKE WARS!

So with that ammo in place - I made my point and got to visit the cupcakery.

I'm totally bummed that I forgot to take a picture of the outside, but it's not much of a miss

cause it is simply one location in a strip mall strip from the outside.

But you walk inside and oh my goodness!

The yummy scents fill the air and you can almost taste the butter and sugar.

So that explains the butter scent!

So the menu is a bit different than any other bakery I've been to.

The have a flavor schedule and those are the cupcakes available on any given day.

So there isn't any "Hey hon - stop by HappyCakes and pick me up a German Chocolate" cause it might not be on the menu that day. Of course a smart consumer checks out the schedule and then decides on what to get.

Or you could be like me and go 

"Hmmm one of each and double the strawberry & german chocolate, please"

Hey don't judge me these little gems are $3 a piece (and worth every freaking penny)

or you can get one dozen (that's 12 for those of you not fond of math) for $29.

Today's offerings are:

Strawberry Cream

Brown Sugar Maple

Oreo Overload

Hummingbird

Vanilla Dream

Hot Chocolate 

German Chocolate 

Chocolate Indulgence 

Chocolate Tuxedo 

and Black Velvet

They get packed up so pretty in this very deceptive simple package.

Close up of the label cause it made me smile!

It was almost impossible to wait until we got back to the campground to try one of these.

Out of the 12 I got to sample at least a bite of three. 

I had a German Chocolate one that has simply transformed my idea of what this traditional cake is supposed to take like, the Bunny had a Strawberry Cream that tasted like sweetened strawberries & cream, while the Rents split a Hummingbird that was perfectly nutty and delicious.

If you are ever in the area - totally check them out - because they are amazing!!!

Rioz

Okay, so let me tell you about Rioz

If you are a carnivore - this is the restaurant for you!

You come into a beautiful establishment - totally like upscale city.

And you get seated.

On the table, there isn't an actual menu - well it looks kinda like this

And a card that has a red & green side.

               

Your waiter comes over and takes your drink order

then tell you to hit the salad bar.

Not the typical salad bar bar though

there are several side item type selections on this bar

And sushi!

When you sit back down - that is when the fun starts.

Flip your card to green & you get swarmed

(sometimes it feels that way :) )

with men carrying large skewers of meat.

They sit this little drip dish down and present

Beef, Chicken, Pork, Fish, Lamb, or yummy grilled pineapple!

Using the little tongs provided, you grip the meat (cooked to perfection)

and they slice off a piece.

This goes on & on, until you flip the little card to red.

You can flip the card from red to green & back again as many times as you wish,

you can revisit the "salad bar" as many times as you wish

This was our 3rd trip here & I still have to say one of my all time favorite places to eat in Myrtle Beach.

Casual Jack's and a surprise

So BF wanted to go on a date date today

(gotta love our weird schedules, most of our dates are lunch dates)

So I got up & got dressed

and we headed to Casual Jack's.

Now we've been here before & have found simply

the friendliest servers in town

and really good food.

Today was no different on that aspect.

I started our meal off with an X-Rated Flirtini

Must say this is not one of my top 10 beverages.

It had a very bitter bite to it that I did not enjoy.

For the starter, BF wanted Bacon Cheese Fries

and OMG these were about perfect!

Crispy fries loaded with cheese & bacon.

Served with ranch dressing.

Simply yummy!

For my meal I chose the Butcher's Cut Ribeye medium rare.

It comes with Garlic Mashed Potatoes - uh YUMMINESS

I could totally nom nom nom an entire bowl of these.

But I was massively disappointed with the veggies - they were ugh!

BF got the Steak & Ribs with fries and baked beans.

According to him one of the bestest plates he's had out in awhile.

Then the surprise.

We've been dating for 3 years 3 months

and while we have discussed possibly getting married in the 

future we've never really talked about it.

Today he surprises me with this:

an engagement ring!

Bonefish Grill

Okay, so BF knows me really well & tonight he asked out on a date. Then he did the surprising thing, he offered up a place to go. He is usually like where do you want to go, and never EVER makes a suggestion. Tonight he is hey, let's try Bonefish Grill (not something I would suggest with him cause he HATES seafood), it's something different & you said you wanted crab cakes. 

To start off - I am abso amazed by the way this place looks. It is simply stellar, like for Fayetteville, the look is like a 8.5. Now, I know this is a chain restaurant, but it is like high class for our not so little town. I loved the wait staff uniforms, a real class touch. 

To start out with they bring you fresh bread & dipping oil (didn't get a picture of that before BF dug in) and the menu is extensive but leans very heavy towards seafood. We did locate one appetizer that was beef based so we decided to split an order of Ginger Beef Dumplings and they were beyond anything I've had before (and I'm not just saying that).

My only complaint, salads were not included with the meal, but I just had to have the strawberry spinach salad (I'm addicted) and I loved the take on cheese - it is breaded and fried, so when you break open one of these delectable little balls you get gooey cheese. Mmmm, yummy!

My dinner was Maryland Crab Cakes with potatoes au gratin & whatever that stuff in the upper left corner is (I didn't like it), the crab cakes were perfect - just a little on the spicy side and fried to perfection, full of big chunky pieces of crab meat. Yum!

As previously stated BF doesn't eat seafood, so he decided on the Kobe Burger with home made chips. According to him, it is the best hamburger he's ever eaten. 

We don't usually get dessert, but both of us were dying to try the strawberry short cake and it was heaven!!!!

All in all - I definitely recommend this restaurant and TBH can't wait to go back! 

Joe's Crab Shack

Okay, so yes it was my sissy's birthday, but with all the other hoopla going on, she didn't want to go out tonight (Family dinner night is tomorrow night) but I decided I have to get crabs. No not *THAT* kind lol. The kind you eat, with garlic butter, and potatoes. Yum!! We set out kinda late, and when we got there they were jamming!!! Guess that's what I get for going out on Tax Refund weekend :) Anywho, Bunny doesn't usually have a problem hanging at the bar while waiting for a table, so that is what we did.

I told the bartender to surprise me with a drink - just sitting up same basic boundaries: tequila or rum, you pick. What I got was a superly superly sweet tie dye drink. It was good, but OMG was it sweet. Sweet enough to give you a cavity.

So then BF saw this dude pick up a Shark Bite from the bar & he asked for a shark. Had to snap a pic & send it to LM with the note OMG James caught a shark too!

Finally got a table (almost an hour later) but it's all good cause we were having fun at the bar. I ordered appies & got the crab & spinach dip platter cause BF don't eat NO SEAFOOD. Yeah I know why are we at Joe's then right, cause I LOVE it, that's why. FYI, if you have a Power Card from one of the local schools, the appetizer is free so why not splurge a bit.

Then the main course shows up and it is HEAVENLY! I'm never had a problem with the food here.

All in all it was a date that I would repeat, but next time I'm staying at the bar. Our waitress was a bit of a spazz and TOOK forever to come back to our table with anything. I just really don't appreciate having my appies & main show at the same time, especially when the Manager shows up and basically says that she put the order in backwards.

Hard Rock Cafe Review

Okay, so color me weird, when I go on vacation I love doing new/different things. Always have, always will. One of my biggest pet peeves is going out with someone and they want constantly pick the same types of restaurants that they have at home. Now don't get me wrong - I love Cracker Barrell and when I'm road tripping, I am just as likely to stop there to grab a bite as I am any where else, but once you are in the location that you going to. Pick something new! Okay so mini rant done.

This trip out it fell on BF to pick the new joint. (And he did a couple of times this particular day :) )So he picked...

So any way - I think the decor is simply stunning. Truly an eye candy experience.

Ashley waited on us and she was simply amazing - she came to the table all happy and bubbly. Totally understanding that BF was having a massive ADD and just could not focus. After a chuckle, she got the beverage & starter orders and headed off to put them in. She was not in any way pushy or grumpy.