The Fifth Annual Kansas Food Truck Festival // Hometown Happenings

Whew, I'm going to post something today that is not a linkup! Look out! :) I have TWO book posts scheduled for the next two Mondays as well, so I hope y'all enjoy those! Plus a suuuuper special announcement late next week!! :)

The first weekend in May was the fifth annual Kansas Food Truck Festival! It is put on by a local food pantry to get some extra funds pre-summer season. Did you know that food pantries have the most need for donations during the summer?! And it is the time of least donations. So, get out there and donate to your local food pantries this summer! :) We have gone to the festival all five years! See year one, year two, year three, and year four.

This year KC and I ended up with a good sized group of close friends who wanted to join us. It ended up being such a good number of people and we got a lot of good catching up in! :)

We usually get to try a ton of good food at the festival, but KC and I decided that this year we should try to split more things, so we could try more things. That makes sense... right? Well, even though we did that, I think we tried about the same amount as usual. ha. This happens every year. Honestly, the food this year wasn't my favorite... but the weather and company couldn't be beat.

When we got there, we knew that Bon, Bon! had a cocktail club inside of one of the galleries down there again. So we stopped there first to get cocktails. If you've read any of the other posts, you'll know that I had been missing the great cocktails from the Artillery Bar the first year, so it was great to finally have some back, even if it is from a different vendor! I had a Frose (frozen rose with something..., strawberry powder, edible flowers), Kyle opted for the Pineapple Margarita (Pineappel Juice, Tequila, Sage Salt). Later in the day he had a mint julep as well. They were all really good! I wanted to go into Bon Bon for a painkiller... but alas they were not serving the full menu. Which makes total sense.. I've just been jonesing for one!

The first truck we tried was JB's Tacos, we had some delicious ones last year, and wanted to get these before the line got long. We accomplished our goal, but sadly they did not have the veggie tacos that I fell in love with last year. They were still pretty good though.

The second truck that we tried was called Fine Thyme Foods. We tried the wings and the Gouda "nachos" KC didn't love the wings, but the nachos were pretty good.

The third truck we visited was called Taste of Brazil. I was really excited about this truck... but it was only ok. I think I didn't put enough chimichurri sauce on mine, but it was ok. We also tried another dish from that truck that others had purchased. It was basically a pastry filled with chicken and cream cheese and then fried. LOL.

Lastly we waited in line at a smoothie truck FOREVERRR for a "Pineapple Paradise" which comes in a pineapple... obvs. How festive! + it was refreshing in the heat! I could only have about 1/4 because it had banana in it... and I am SO SADLY allergic. How cute is it though?!

We did try another tiny s'mores crèmes brûlées from the Torched Goodness truck before we called it a night at the festival.

We ended the evening at Celito Lindo, on Cinco De Mayo -- which was a little embarrassing and accidental... but we got chips, guac, queso, margaritas, and I got a quesadilla... because I honestly didn't eat that much at the festival... and we chatted for a while. They had live music, and the band seemed to be having a blast so that was fun. It was a nice evening!

I guess my goal of trying more things didn't quite work out (again!), but I feel good about what we had. The cocktails were great, and all of the food was decent... but not amazing. Next year I hope to try some more new trucks! We'll see how it goes! :)

Have you ever been to a food truck festival?

What did you do last weekend?

XO,

Alexandra

Here in My City

Here in my city we keep it "weird". We're a blue dot in a red state.

In my city, middle aged pony-tailed men in v-neck vests (no shirts) ride through the city on lowrider bikes, a basket behind them tows records, or farmer's market goods. A Russian math professor brings his family to Rudy's for the Wednesday night special. The hippie with the "honk for hemp" sign gets honked at. Cowgirls and boys line up outside The Granada to see a country band, tipping hats as they wait. Old men meet up at coffee shops to discuss philosophy and physics. Millennials do cross fit next to Milton's. The Jewish Community Center holds a blintz brunch, and my friend will donate her hand crafts to the silent auction. The ice cream line at Sylas and Maddy's is filled with students and grandparents, and people with their dogs. A local dance teacher, a poet, a potter, and a scientist have lunch at Wheatfield's. Suburban homesteaders till their yards, plant their plants, and provide for their families. Little Free Libraries are filled to the brim. The women at the downtown Methodist church hold a breakfast cafe for the homeless. Students from Native American reservations, small towns, big cities, Asia, and the Caribbean discuss their classes at the university. Outdoor lovers pack up their bikes and kayaks and head to the lake. Mohammed serves up steaming falafel and gyro with his brothers, and then comes to ask you how everything is at Aladdin Cafe. The brewery is packed night after night. Black Lives Matters and Equality signs hang in the windows of local businesses. The same are posted in resident's lawns. Your barista has gauges so big you can see through them, but she doesn't make you feel uncool. Kids loiter at the library in the summer. Laughing, skate boarding, reading, being young. The Lied Center is packed when a ballet or scholar comes to town. A turquoise-locked twenty-something walks her cat down Mass. street. Dub step violin, saxophone jazz, haphazard theremin, and acoustic guitar music spreads out from street corners, benches, and alleyways. La Tropicana serves up delicious enchiladas, and the family who owns it chats with the regulars, holding babies, asking how life has been. Soccer moms with mini vans drop their kiddos off for gymnastics, tae kwon do, mandolin, and baseball.

In my city, my friend walks downtown with her two foster daughters. They see what I've described to you. One of the girls has just moved here, it's her third day. She's walking through this weird, accepting, foreign place. She's smiling, she's enjoying the weather, she's got a baby pink flower crown on, she's a bit reserved. Someone yells the n-word out of a car window at her as they drive by.

I couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe that this could happen here in LFK.

This is not my city.

My city is not filled with hate and anger.

But here's what I know:

In December, The Arts Center will put on "A Kansas Nutcracker" the children who attend dance classes there will be the mice, the grasshoppers, the other animals in the show. The children will all look different from one another, but they won't see it. They will just see their friends, they will see other mice and grasshoppers.

In August, the Headstart kiddos will start school. The classes will be filled with ESL kiddos, kids of foreign university students, white kids, black kids, Hispanic kids. They will all learn their letters, their numbers, and how to set the table for lunch. They will all laugh at funny books, make paintings and sculptures, they will all run on the playground. They will all sing, and nap (sometimes). Many of them will be going through hard things like divorce or an incarcerated parent. Many of them will be angry or sad sometimes. They will all learn and they will all grow. At graduation, they will look around, and they won't see color, they will see their friends. They will see other Headstart graduates.

This is my city.

This is the FUTURE of my city.

So, people of LFK, of the US, of the world: please keep spreading love. Please keep spreading tolerance. Please keep teaching your children those things too. Please foster environments of diversity, growth, and learning. Please keep making a difference where you live. Please keep being allies for groups who are discriminated against.

No matter how tolerant your city, state, etc. is, these things can happen anywhere. We have to be the ones to bring light to dark situations. The ones to leave things a little better than we found them. When I say "we" - I don't mean twenty-somethings. I mean EVERYONE. It's not enough for the twenty-somethings to do these things alone. We need the children, the elders, the middle-aged, the teens to do it too. We all live in this world, we can all do our part to make it better.

What are you doing in your city or town?

What ideas do you have to foster love and tolerance?

How do those who are involved gain the support of other generations who think it is not "up to them"? Or that it has to "start with twenty-somethings".

Just trying to share a bit of what's been on my heart these past few weeks (and longer).

XO,

Alexandra

Juliet's Wedding Weekend! // May 2017

Whew! How was your weekend?! KC and I were lucky in that we got Monday off as a holiday. Thank you to all who served and serve our country, and those who gave their life for our freedom. As with every Memorial Day (and Veteran's Day), I'll share one of my favorite organizations that helps veterans: Companions for Heroes. Shelter pets + veterans = a great cause in my book. Check out their website!

Moving right along, last week/weekend was super busy for us, but for an exciting reason: one of my very best friends got married! :)

Thursday: The Bachelorette Party!

Thursday I left work a little early with my friend Jessica and we drove into KCMO for a bachelorette evening. We started the night at Escape KC - another break out room in town. We did the 221b (Sherlock) themed room, and it was pretty fun, but very different from the other three rooms I've done. We broke out with 10 minutes to spare like pros. At one point they wouldn't give us a clue because we were doing "too well'. - rude.

After that we went to dinner at Oliver, which I had never been to. It was lovely and the food was great! I got the yummiest cocktail (The Namedropper - gin and grapefruit) and then I got the Hanger Steak with roasted veggies. Both were AMAZING! We had a great time chatting and eating.

Then we ubered out to Westport to get some drinks. We went to several places, Ca Va (a champagne bar), Off Key (a Karaoke bar) and Westport Saloon (a hipstery country bar...?) had some great drinks and laughs. The night got pretty wild, which is not my thing... but we were all there for Juliet.

We ended the night at a hotel on the plaza. It was a great if not rough night for everyone! A big thanks to Jessie, the groom's sister for all of the planning! :)

Friday: The Rehearsal Dinner!

Around 3 on Friday we met at Bon Bon! near the venue for drinks and then walked over for the rehearsal. I tried some sort of tropical coconut/pineapple drink and it was completely amazing. We did the rehearsal at the wedding venue. It was good to know what was expected, and was pretty much like a typical wedding rehearsal.

Then we went to The Eldridge for the dinner. We had the chicken, which was lovely, and enjoyed a nice meal with friends. :)

Saturday: The Wedding!

Stole this from Facebook, so it's not super high quality....! Photo credit to Lauren Elaine Pearson

The makeup/hair/etc. began at noon on Saturday, and we had a great time hanging out ahead of photos and the wedding. Juliet brought back pretty robes for each of us from Taiwan. :)

OMG IS SHE NOT THE PRETTIEST BRIDE EVER?!?!?! GORGEOUS!!

Also from Lauren Elaine Pearson, stolen from FB.

We took lots of photos (that I can't wait to see!) and then it was time for the wedding!

The ceremony was lovely and so unique to the two of them. I loved seeing and hearing all of the little touches that they specifically chose for the occasion! The officiant was a Wiccan friend of the family, and so the ceremony was really filled with so many interesting traditions. It was perfect for the two of them and their unique relationship and interests.

The reception was great as well. So much dancing and fun!

Friends and family contributed hugely to the decor, music, toasts, etc. It was really cool to see how everyone came together.

The space was lovely, and the whole night was so happy. The night ended with dancing and a sparkler send off.

I asked Lauren Elaine Pearson to take a quick photo of us, she went above and beyond! I love this!! Next time we do a shoot, I want to do one with her! :) 

On Sunday and Monday we just vegged because it was a long (but fun!) weekend! :) We watched Big Little Lies, played games, and read a lot. :)

Looking for a great KC/NE KS photographer? Get in touch with Lauren at lauren[DOT]elaine[DOT]pearson[AT]gmail[DOT]com. She's amazing and will make you feel so so comfortable!

What did you guys do this weekend? 

Have you ever been in a best friend's wedding? 

XO,

Alexandra

The Fourth Annual Kansas Food Truck Festival // Hometown Happenings

Whew, this actually happened last weekend, but it's Show Us Your Books and Mother's Day, so I wanted to get those posts out first!

The first weekend in May was the fourth annual Kansas Food Truck Festival! It is put on by a local food pantry to get some extra funds pre-summer season. Did you know that food pantries have the most need for donations during the summer?! And it is the time of least donations. So, get out there and donate to your local food pantries this summer! :) We have gone to the festival all four years! See year one, year two, and year three.

This year KC and I ended up with a huge group of people who wanted to go too! We had 6 other people there, and it was awesome, though a little hard to stay together.

We usually get to try a ton of good food at the festival, but KC and I decided that this year we should try to split more things, so we could try more things. That makes sense... right? Well, even though we did that, I think we tried about the same amount as usual. ha, but it was all very good, so I guess I'm ok with it! :)

When we got there, we knew that a new(ish) restaurant called Bon, Bon! had a cocktail club inside of one of the galleries down there. So we stopped there first to get cocktails. If you've read any of the other posts, you'll know that I had been missing the great cocktails from the Artillery Bar the first year, so it was great to finally have some back, even if it is from a different vendor! My friend Lauren and I each had a Frose (frozen rose with something..., strawberry powder, edible flowers, and a pretty rose gold straw), Michael and Kyle opted for the Honey Bae Bee (Whiskey, honey, etc.). They were both really good and we definitely went back later in the evening for another round!

The first truck we tried was Bochi, we tried their stuffed wings last year, and knew we wanted to get one again this year. It was still super good, a lot faster than the year before! We shared a wing with the slaw on the side.

The second truck that we tried, JB's Tacos, had the longest line ever, and it took such a long time to order, and then we waited again to get the food. It was worth the wait, and luckily we were not hungry because we had wings before that! KC tried the street taco (steak), and I tried the veggie. The veggie was AWESOME! I've been missing the veggie since a local place closed that had the BEST EVER purple potato tacos. It definitely gave me a flashback, so good! :)

The third truck KC and Michael went to alone, while I hung out with Juliet - who was eating her veggie tacos and veggie nachos from La Parilla. (I didn't try anything from La Parilla, but I love their restaurant in town, and Juliet, Matt, and Lauren said it was good!). We also met up with Will and Cara at that point. They had just gotten a wing from Bochi, and then headed off to the waffle truck! Busy, busy! Eventually KC and Michael came back with Beaver Tails. A Canadian thing I believe, or at least we tried one first in Canada, on this trip. This time we tried some type of cheesecake flavor that had toffee/heath bar bits on it. Michael had banana nutella. A little more fried than I love, but fun to try again none-the-less.

After that we made it to the Jamaican truck. The line was quite long, so we went in for more cocktails while KC held our place! When we made it up to the front we ordered our jerk chicken with beans and rice, and it came pretty quickly! It was really really really good. Not gorgeous by any means, but it was so tasty! :)

Lastly, while friends got some cocktails, we tried another tiny s'mores crèmes brûlées from the Torched Goodness truck before we called it a night at the festival.

We ended the evening at Matt and Lauren's playing King of Tokyo. It was a nice break from the hustle and bustle. :)

I guess my goal of trying more things didn't quite work out, but I feel good about what we had. The cocktails were great, and all of the food was really good. Next year I hope to try some more new trucks! We'll see how it goes! :)

Have you ever been to a food truck festival?

What did you do this weekend?

XO,

Alexandra

The Third Annual Kansas Food Truck Festival 2016 // Hometown Happenings

Last weekend was the 3rd Annual Kansas Food Truck Festival. It is put on by a local food pantry to get some extra funds pre-summer season. Did you know that food pantries have the most need for donations during the summer?! And it is the time of least donations. So, head out and donate guys! We've been there all three years, and always have a great time! See year one and year two.

This year KC and I went with our friend Michael, (a veteran, all three years!) and we got there right when it started (rare!). There were more trucks, and indoor crafts this year which was fun. We tried three new trucks which was good... it's always tempting to go to the same trucks when you like them! haha

The first truck we tried was "Twisted Taters." The menu was solely loaded fries. KC and I had the "Idaho" which was basically like baked potato toppings (sour cream, cheese, bacon, green onion). They added nacho cheese... which I am not a fan of. Michael tried the "Gyro" which had gyro meat (but it was like ground meat..?), feta, tzatziki, etc. Both were just ok, not super great. As far as trucks go.. this one was just silver, and the logo reminded me of hotwheels and flame paint jobs on cars. Overall, not our favorite truck, but a new one.

The second truck we tried was called "Bochi," and specialized in stuffed boneless chicken wings. OH. MY. GOODNESS. I'm not even a huge wing person... but the flavors here were awesome! We had an option that was stuffed with fried rice and veggies, and covered in a sweet/sour sauce. I don't remember what Michael chose, but both wings came with some slaw on the side. It had some incredible thai/fusion flavors that were just awesome. Nom. This was hands down... the best thing we tried! I will have a hard time NOT going back to this one next year! The guys also split an order of crab rangoons. KC said they were a tiny bit overshadowed by the wings (since they were so good!) but that he liked those too. The truck was pretty much just red... and we hadn't gone in the past... but you know; how cool the truck is does not determine how good the food is. 100% proven here!

Boy, it was freakin' hot....! I don't know about you, but it's hard to be hungry when it's hot. So, not the greatest for eating, eating, and more eating. Oh well, you cannot stop us! :P We sat in the shade (when we could) and chugged bottled waters!

So naturally, we stopped at the ice cream truck next. It was basically like an ice cream truck that travels around a town. It was pretty typical, it had bars, pop sickles, sundaes, sno cones...etc. Nothing too original. The boys each got a sundae and I tried some of KC's. It was good, but nothing special... it was just ice cream. The truck was just white with the picture menu. Nothing unique about it.

The last truck we tried was called "Plantain District." It was a really popular truck, the line was huge, and they served Cuban food. KC and I split a Cubano sandwich (pork, swiss, pickles, sauce, ham) and plantain chips. They also had rice and beans... which I wanted to try, but was definitely not hungry enough to have! The food here was really good, I am glad that we tried something new. Especially after seeing "Chef," I wanted to try a Cubano! :) This truck was yellow and green. It wasn't super artsy, but it was decorative and fun to look at. 

At this point we were all three stuffed, and super warm. Though we had our eyes on burrito bowls, burgers, kebabs, etc...we decided to duck out early, and get some margaritas downtown. Before we left, I went into the craft area, and purchased some macarons from a local chef. I love macarons... so I had to. We bought a box, and all of the ones I have tried so far are good! A teeny bit grainy, but not bad. :) Michael had not had one before... so he tried one.... and proceeded to eat it very slowly and make weird face... verdict is still out...? Once we got downtown it was nice to sit, and drink something cold, and just chat. 

I wish we could have seen more trucks and tried their food... but clearly there was NOT room for more food! Guess we will have to try the other trucks next year! (and not eat ANYTHING beforehand!). 

Aside from the heat... the only other downside was that The Artillery Bar still was not back. Their cocktails were so fun and beautiful. Now there is just the option of beer, wine, soda, and water. Oh well, I suppose it was too hot to be drinking yet anyhow. Maybe next year.

I also missed The Jeweled Gypsy accessory truck. : / 

Have you ever been to a food truck festival?

What did you do this weekend?

XO,

Alexandra