ASHEVILLE, NC

Over the weekend, Ben and I drove down to Asheville, NC to visit his family and home town. It's a long drive (about 8 hours with a stop to eat), especially when we got a late start on I-66 after a few detours. But we HAD to have the detours because one of them included getting some steamed crabs from B J's Crabshack in Chantilly (BEST crabs around.) His folks have to go at least 4 hours (to Charleston, SC) for the nearest steamed crabs, so when Ben goes home, he brings some of those delectable decapod crustaceans down in the cooler.

We have trouble travelling past Catawba, VA, without stopping at The Home Place to eat. It is worth the wait. There is plenty of seating outside on their big front porch and all around the property. You can stroll over to check out the pond, or just sit on one of the rocking chairs on the front porch. For fun, you can guess how many times the man announcing the various names over the loud speaker, who's tables are ready, will say the last name of the tardy party before moving on to what you hope is YOUR name. It is roughly 10 minutes off of I-81. (I got to see a huge rainbow on that part of the drive -- from end to end!)

Asheville is just BEAUTIFUL, nestled in the mountains of western North Carolina. Did you know that it was actually a shorter drive for us to get to Asheville than it would be to go from Asheville allllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll the way east to the Outer Banks of North Carolina?

Ben's family home is right out of a cozy book. His mom and dad were waiting for us when we got in, along with 3 cats (I was in heaven!) I became particularly fond of "Little Man" day one, and then "Marmalade" on day two. When was the last time anyone prepared you dinner with a bouquet of flowers and a "welcome, we're glad you're here" card? I was stunned. His folks are very sweet; I can see where Ben gets his demeanor.

Saturday was spent visiting his friends and exploring a bit. On Sunday, I went to a one-of-a-kind church called "Jubilee". It is kind of a blend of many religions. I was able to pick out the "most Catholic" part. It was very warm and welcoming and the music was FANTASTIC -- I love it when churches mix in modern music!

Before we left on Sunday, we enjoyed our steamed crabs. This was my first time pulling them apart and got some great lessons from some real pros! One caveat, though: I wish I hadn't taken biology in college. So much about eating seafood for me is getting over the mental stuff -- I know what all that gook was that I had to scoop out of the crab!

We took some pics in front of the house before we left. We even were able to join hands and make a big circle around one of the big Oak trees.

The weather on our trip couldn't have been finer. Sunny warm days became cool autumn nights. I love this time of year!!

We rolled back into the DC area just in time for me to get a couple hours sleep! Much love to Phebe and Douglas -- I had a wonderful time!

CONEY ISLAND, in CUMBERLAND

I just came across this picture from my trip to Cumberland a few weeks ago and wanted to let you know about their "Famous Weiners Since 1918." It is just down a side street off Baltimore St. (the pedestrian mall) on Liberty Street.

As soon as I walked in I was greeted enthusiastically with "Hey it's Kim Martucci". I was like "You watch?" I don't know why this surprises me, but it always does.

You see Gino in the picture? He's the owner. The stacked hot dogs up his arm is how they all carry them there. It's the Coney Island way. The restaurant has been in the same family since WWI. How about that? So, the next time you're in Cumberland, drop in and say "hi" to Gino. Tell him "Kim Martucci sent me!"

VEGAS, BABY!

I just got back from Sin City. The motivation behind the trip was a belated birthday gift for Ben. I was out of town for his birthday and suggested I take him to see "O", one of the Cirque du Soleil shows that never travels. (Most of it involves water and amazing pool that constantly changes shapes, deepens, and can appear as not being a pool at all, so you can see why it would be difficult to take this show on the road.) "O" permantly resides in Vegas.

We booked our Orbitz trip which landed us at the MGM Grand on the strip. Funny, both Ben and I thought we were staying at New York New York until the day before. But no worries as both are right across the street from each other and we were quite pleased with our room.

MAJOR SIDE NOTE: I count steps. Perhaps you've seen my pedometer during the show. Maybe you saw me throw one of my defective pedometers across the studio in exasperation? Anyway, I try to shoot for 10,000 steps a day. Well, Ben and I didn't know just exactly how much walking we were in for in Vegas. How's 25000 steps a day suit you? NO JOKE! Just to get from our hotel room, down to the lobby and across the street to NY NY is an easy 1000 steps. So, to go there for lunch and back is a quick 2000 steps! The first day I made the mistake of wearing my wedge sandals that were a bit loose -- owwwwwww!

But back to the rest of the trip.....

We didn't realize it at the time, but we could have just as easily eaten at chef Todd English's "Olives" right here in DC at 16th and K, than travel to the Bellagio in Vegas to do so. But, then we wouldn't have been able to see the fountains in Lake Bellagio dance to the music either. Oh, that's right, we didn't see them at the Bellagio, either. Turns out it was too windy and the last performance for the fountains happened right as we were waiting to be seated...sigh. But it was STILL beautiful! I enjoyed watching the strip's lights slowly come on as the sun went down. We enjoyed the Cubano Flatbread and this amazing chocolate cake (it was like a lava cake and had raspberries) -- ALL ABOUT YUM!

Let's see...we took in "Second City" improv -- that was FUN! Audience interaction made it real. If you like "Who's Line is it Anyway", then you will like "Second City" at the Flamingo.

"Zumanity" was our second Cirque show that we took in on our last night. How ADULT of us... It, too, was fun. There was audience interaction at this show as well. I don't like "plants" in the audience and something tells me these folks, chosen from the audience ,were just regular folks who had no idea they would be up on stage and encouraged to ... um, well, do things they thought they wouldn't do up on stage! (What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, right?)

And to make our looooooooooooooong day of travelling back to DC a LOT easier, wouldn't you know it, Ben just happened to sit across from his friend, Scott, from church who was so kind to give us a lift home from National (sparing us from the metro and cab.) Nice.

NOTTI BIANCHE

Executive Chef Brendan Cox previewed his Fall Menu for us this week at Notti Bianche on New Hampshire Ave. between 24th and 25th NW. I actually felt like I was participating on TLC's Top Chef -- We were served multiple (yummy) mini-meals and they were all paired with wine. Since I don't drink, I had to skip that part. Kind of cheesy, huh?

These opportunities are fun for me because I get to rub elbows with "foodies" who actually write about the restaurant scene and whatnot for a living. It is an instant opportunity for me to ask etiquette questions as the "situation" is unfolding.

Erin Hartigan, food and dining editor for Washingtonpost.com, was especially helpful when I said "Okay, I morally object to veal and the next dish includes veal. Should I just politely tell the waiter 'no thank you' when he goes to place the dish down?" Erin said I should do what makes me feel the most comfortable. She suggested that accepting the dish will at least allow me to play with it and not make it uncomfortable for the other folks dining and wondering why I wouldn't have a plate. So that quickly solved my dilemma.

Then there was the "which fork do I use?" dilemma. You know how they put a small fork on the outside and a large one on the inside at the place setting? In math, when you have a set of equations that are within parenthesis, you work your way out -- start inside the innermost parenthesized part and work outwards. Well, in food, it's the opposite. Following Erin's lead, I used the small fork on the outside that was replaced every time.

Of course, no dinner would be complete without my buddy Tommy McFly from Mix 107.3, bumbling with me through the food etiquette dilemmas. I enjoyed his look of panic when some Foie Gras was placed before him (another food item I am morally opposed to.)

All in all, what I *did* eat was delicious. The company was even better.

ALPACAS AT RIVER'S EDGE




You have have have to hear about this place! I had no idea what an alpaca was until last weekend. They are some of the most docile creatures on the planet, prized for their "fiber" (kind of like sheep's wool, only much higher in quality.) Alpacas at River's Edge is a working farm on 35 acres. Among the beautiful Alpacas there are horses, goats, dogs & cats.




Barb Buehl is the incredibly gracious host who was more than happy to show my entire family around her farm. When you first go into the barn, where they happened to be hanging out last Sunday, they perked their heads up alomst in unison. They have long, slender giraffe-like necks with the cutest mops of "fiber" on the top. Some of them have their hair trimmed so that you can see their eyes. The others? Well, I'm not quite sure how they see.

In the barn we were in, Barb had all the ladies and one fixed male stationed together. About 4 or 5 were expecting at any minute. Barb showed us the sonograms. The gestation is about 11 nonths! They are very curious and timid. They will come over to find out who you are. If you are very still, they will come and take a sniff of your breath and let you pet them. What a treat that is! Some are incredibly soft. Ben and I enjoyed our time so much -- I think he hit it off really well --check out the picture above - -Love at first sight!



Barb keeps a group of 1 year old boys separate. They happen to be around my nephew, Zac's, height. Alpacas are valued for many things including: fiber quality, color & pedigree. Use of micron count or hand softness is also a measure of the fiber.


Should you ever find yourself out Cumberland way, Barb's farm is only about 20 miles away, right on the Potomac River. What a fantastic time. Click here to go right to her website. Enjoy the pictures!