THE FARMHOUSE : FARM TO TABLE DINING: EATING OUT

We were tired and hungover after our New Year Eve revelry. All we wanted to reach out for, was a plate of  comfort food. A comforting Brunch to be precise. It was crazy cold in Kansas City that morning and we wanted food which also warmed our souls along with warming our bellies. THE FARM HOUSE was an obvious choice. We had been planning a visit to this restaurant ever since we saw a Travel Channel episode, Anthony Bourdain was visiting the GREEN DIRT FARM in Missouri for a day and THE FARMHOUSE was featured in that episode.

THE FARMHOUSE is a Farm To Table restaurant or as they put it, TIP TO TAIL DINING in the River Market area of Kansas City. Its all about promoting the local farmers and not letting any part of the produce go to waste. So what could have been regarded as scraps,could have ended up in the stock pot. Farm to Table dining,is surely one of the latest culinary fads. Needless to say, we are happy victims of it, having frequented quite a few local joints,who believe in the same.

The decor was a mix of old school and eclectic.And the brick walls surely made for a great backdrop to all the quirky art work around.The menu of the restaurant is seasonal as with all farm to table restaurants in a bid to promote whatever is fresh that time of the year. Moreover its quite interesting to see the names of the places which have provided the food about to reach your table. Chalkboards featured in the names of all the farms who are associated with the restaurant.

As GREEN DIRT FARM was one of the reasons why we were there in the first place, it made sense to start off the meal with the CHEESE PLATTER. Three local cheeses from Missouri which had been created at the same farm. These cheeses are served with seasonal accompaniments and some yummy house made crackers. The Apricot preserve and the Balsamic reduction were just perfect with the aged cheese. It was surely a work of art.

I am a girl who loves her meat and potatoes. So when I saw HANGER STEAK AND FRIES at the menu, I knew it had to be on my plate. The meat was from another local farm, ARROWHEAD GAMES where it had been perfectly aged. It was served with blue cheese butter and salsa verde. That Blue cheese on the steak was the bomb. Pickled onions to cut through the grease and house cut fries. What more could I want?! It was food coma on a super high.

We were almost full, but we can always squeeze in some dessert. My cousin opted for  JUDE'S RUM CAKE which was served with ice cream and caramel sauce. Very English and very old school. But nice and light.

My husband opted for the FLOURLESS CHOCOLATE TORTE. This had to be the best dessert of the three we had ordered. Before I could take the customary picture needed for this post, someone had laready dug into it. My two year old kept saying,"More More."

 I opted for the HOUSE MADE BREAD PUDDING. Yes that's how it looked like. I confirmed with my server, if this was actually what they called the Bread Pudding. It looked like Beignet to me. And thats where the restaurant let me down totally. After such a lovely first and second course, my dessert was a complete dampener. It was dense and chewy and by no means a Bread Pudding. I am all for Fusion and experimental cuisine but this is something else.

The overall experience  was great . The food and the ambiance will surely have us back again in no time. Our table was ready when we reached at our reservation time. Service was pretty swift and our server was very friendly and chatty. She came up with suggestions for our daughter,as they had no Kid's Menu from which we could order the regular chicken nuggets and fries.

If you're planning to go, I would suggest that you make reservations, as it can be pretty busy and it does not have tons of seating area. Its almost like a compact Bistro.


THE FARMHOUSE
300 DELAWARE STREET
KANSAS CITY,MO
WEBSITE: http://www.eatatthefarmhouse.com/

0

SEPHORA CREAM LIP STAIN : REVIEW : BEAUTY

I am one of those people who loves a great Red Lip and loves it a bit more if it happens to be Matte. MAC's Ruby Woo is my all time favorite. I am a Lipstick hoarder and have tried Red Lips from every possible brand I could lay my hands on. From my choice of Ruby Woo, you can take a guess that I prefer Blue toned Reds or a True Red. So while I have tried so many Reds, I tend to compare them to Ruby Woo.

Does it last as long? Does it look as good? Does it flatter my complexion? I have a warm undertone to my skin.I don't prefer Reds which make me look dated. And since I love Reds, I want to wear them without worrying. While the TOO Faced Melted Lipsticks were a letdown, the SPEHORA CREAM LIP STAINS were a perfect Winner.

I had seen Reviews of these on Youtube for quite some time. It seemed to be a hit among the UK Beauty Bloggers, who always picked it up, when they came to this side of the pond. But then Youtube Reviews can be misleading at times.

 
I finally decided to give them a go. I was more interested in shades of Red in the collection. I tried out 01 ALWAYS RED(matte bold classic red), 03 STRAWBERRY KISSED(matte bright pinky red),  10 MANDARIN MUSE(orange) on my hand.

Finally opted for ALWAYS RED and STRAWBERRY KISSED as MANDARIN MUSE was pretty close to the lip color I was sporting on that day.

These lipstains have great color payoff. They are highly pigmented. They have a doe foot applicator which makes it easier to apply the lip color. The color goes in creamy and dries to  a complete matte. I got so many compliments when I wore both the colors. I just cant get enough of this product. Its very long lasting and lasted me the whole day almost. The best part is that it didn't rub off when I was having lunch or dinner with it.

I had swatched the colors on my hand and then I went on to get my nails done. The colors were so strong that the nail technician could not get them off totally even after the manicure. That quite proved how long lasting they were.

A constant fear with Red Lips is that it might spread when you are eating. I am not too much of a Liquid Lipstick fan as they need lot of touch ups. But this product clearly defies that.

I am surely going to go for other colors in this collection. At the price it comes for, its surely a must buy product. Good job Sephora. 

0

CHUNKY BLONDE HIGHLIGHTS : HAIR DIARIES

Its almost Summer and that just means that its time to change up the hair color. Warm weather calls for the hair color to go a lot lighter. I had been planning to opt for my favorite almost Platinum Blonde Highlights for quite some time. So when I had an appointment with the Hair stylist, I asked her if we could also do a color job along with the standard trim I was scheduled for.

Amanda, being the darling she is, accommodated my current demand,and we began discussions on which route I would be taking down the Blonde road. 

I sent in some inspiration pictures and we decided to go as light as could be possible. Having naturally black hair, its difficult to go Platinum Blonde in one sitting. It is a long drawn and complicated process and no one wants to fry their hair by over processing it. I had existing honey blonde highlights.

So Amanda added in foils for Chunkier Highlights and take me as blonde as possible.I had done Chunkier Highlights before and I always prefer it to the normal highlights. It compliments my naturally textured hair very well. And is very Summer appropriate. 

The foils stayed in till the desired color had been achieved. 

Then it was time to TONE.Amanda washed my hair with Purple Shampoo which tones down the brassiness in blonde hair. It stays on the hair for around 5 to 10 minutes to create its magic. 

After the hair was washed, it was time for the hair cut. We decided to leave the side swept bangs longer. As for the actual Hair Cut, Amanda opted for layers which would make my hair look elongated rather than assume the appearance of a triangle. Curly or textured hair can often take the shape of the dreaded puffy triangle and trust me there is nothing flattering about it. So the layers are added in to create an illusion of length and take off the volume as much as possible

Styled and ironed straight. I was in love with my new hair.The best part of the hair cut and color is that it can be perfectly styled straight or curly and look great both ways. 

And its pairing perfectly well with the recent tan I am sporting. As I had existing honey blonde highlights, I currently have three colors in my hair. Black, Honey Blonde and almost Platinum Blonde. The three colors create extra dimension and make the look more chic and polished. 

So if you're in Kansas City and want to go in for a Summer special color or cut, fix up an appointment . Trust me the stylist's chair is almost therapeutic.


STUDIO A SALON 
AMANDA POGUE
Website: http://www.studio-a-salon.com/
11708 WEST 95th STREET #102 
OVERLAND PARK, KS 66214

4

SPRING 2015 KC BLOGGER MEET UP AT HOTEL SORELLA

I had been Blogging for over 6 years in Kansas City but had no clue that the city had such a lovely network of bloggers. I have been guilty of over sharing and it was great to know, that there are others, like me. So when the evite for a Meet Up reached my inbox, I wasted no time, in clicking on Yes for the RSVP.

As it was my first event with the Kansas City Bloggers, I wanted to make sure that I reached on time, despite the snarly long lines at the Highway. Traffic moves snail slow when you have an important plan.

I am one of those people, who spend many a weekends at the Country Club Plaza,but somehow, I had missed that this Hotel even existed. Hotel Sorella's Roof top Bar Rosso played host to us and we were literally spoilt rotten.

Cocktails and Mingling by the pool side on an otherwise grey Midwestern afternoon is what makes it all pretty awesome. I have always prided myself to be a connoisseur of cocktails and it was great to see that the Bar Rosso's collection of Cocktails was really good. The bart tender could always whip up the classics but to venture out and have new and creative cocktails on your menu,is surely something which is going to pull me back.

I started the evening off with some Rossetini.

Then reached out for the Parisian Tart.

If you blog a lot about Food, then you will not miss an opportunity to chat up with the Chef,who had laid out an amazing array of appetizers.

Which later made way for bite sized desserts. The lemon curd filled mini tarts stole my heart.

Some more mingling and some more posing.

So many creative minds at the same place makes for one great evening.

A Huge Thank You to our Hosts and all the lovely ladies who made the evening so memorable. Cheers ladies !!!

0