The Rest of the Weekend

So, last weekend started with the Kid Rock Concert. But it didn't end there! Stephanie and Mindy planned a fun filled couple of days. Elizabeth was with Analise all weekend (a separate post about them is coming), so that left the rest of us to do adult things!

On Saturday morning, we started our day with drinks atop the 27th floor of the Westin Hotel overlooking downtown.

We had lunch at City Tap. This side of the table, Butch and his three girls shared pizza! "The boys" and I got something else. I can't resist a good eggs benedict. Unfortunately, these weren't all that good. The crab cakes were just okay, but it was the hollandaise sauce that wasn't right. It had Old Bay seasoning which isn't my favorite. It didn't really matter since we all have such a good time and it's more about being together.

After lunch, we went to Beercade. It's basically a bar where they have dozens of free video games and old fashioned pin ball machines.

I loved the books displayed on the ceiling. This should give you a hint. Notice the only book "of color?" Well, that's The Giving Tree, by Shel Silverstein---who happens to be part owner and responsible for the decor.

 A little something for Halloween. This one was pretty cool.

This old time photo greets you when you walk in Beercade. It was a fun place. They have many tv's going with football games, so the guys were happy. We spent about 45 minutes here. Then Butch and I left downtown while the "kids" carried on.

 They (Nicky, Stephanie, Sandy and Greg---Mindy is taking the picture) strolled on down Broadway to Dierk's new place and had a drink on the rooftop there.

I love this picture of my girls. Notice the cranes in the background? Nashville growth is still booming! But the traffic---oh my gosh! Downtown is cray cray for sure. But actually, the traffic is crazy just about everywhere now.

When Butch and I left, we picked up the "little" girls. Later we met at Stephanie and Nicky's for happy hour. We had a taste test of gin and tonics. We were trying to decide if Fevertree tonic (the only tonic they use in England) is really better than the regular "cheap" stuff. Hands down, everyone picked out the Fevertree as the best. Soooo, from now on, that's what we'll be using!

We had dinner reservations at Mangia---an Italian place. On Friday and Saturday nights, they have a set menu served family style with singing and dancing.

Both girls were a little bored as the evening went on for THREE hours! Oh my gosh! It was way too long. I even caught Nicky watching football on his phone! Butch was not at all happy when he found out how long it was going to be, but he made the best of it and danced quite a bit. The whole point of the evening is to serve an authentic Italian meal with all the courses. Dining for hours is the Italian way! The food was delicious---and way too much! They started with 3 appetizers, a salad, 2 pastas, 2 main courses and dessert---each served separately. They warned us from the start to "pace" ourselves. By the time dessert came, we were stuffed! And anxious to leave!

Thank goodness for the dance breaks! We had a great time, but it was an hour too long. And the amount of food was downright ridiculous! We ended up taking a lot of it home. They handed you paper bags with Italian donuts on the way out the door. I didn't get any, so don't know if they were good of not. Steph didn't think so.

It's one of those places that you only need to go to once. It's fun, but too long and pricey. Still, I'm glad we did it. It was an experience for sure. By the time we got home, it was 11. It was a busy weekend---but so much fun.

Whew! I'm tired!