When my husband, C.J., and I moved to Bixby a couple of years ago, we weren't aware of all the great places to eat in this suburb of Tulsa. If it wasn't along Memorial (the main stretch of road that runs straight through Bixby and Tulsa), then we didn't know about it. Luckily for us, a kid in a pig costume and teenager holding a small sign on the corner of the road yesterday, led us to try this restaurant- Jake's Place, which surprisingly has been in business less than a year.

Located on the corner of Armstrong and Breckenridge, we recognized both the waitresses as we walked in, a mom and daughter, who were members of the gym CJ used to personal train at. Then we recognized the sauce bottles on our table. The memories started flooding back to this past fall at the Blues and BBQ Festival held every year here (http://www.bixbyrotarybbq.com). For $5, you can sample all the BBQ you want from the vendors who enter into the competition for Best BBQ and I had voted them #1 for best flavor and best sauces! Why hadn't we come here before?!?!?! I could kick myself! Everyone is the restaurant was serenaded by a guitar playing prodigy- a 13 year old boy playing blues music and hits of Santana on his electric guitars (yes, plural "guitars"). Nearly all the tables were full and it's no wonder why...

DOWN TO BUSINESS

I ordered an appetizer of homemade, hand cut, beer battered portobello mushrooms which comes with homemade ranch dressing ($6). These 'shrooms are Phenomenal- with a capital P! Think they'd give me the recipe for the batter? I'll be dreaming about these tonight and thinking about the time we'll meet again.

For my main dish, I ordered a sliced brisket sandwich with a side of cheesy garlic mashed potatoes ($7). Let me tell you, the meat was so tender and juicy it broke and slid off my fork several times. It was flavored so deliciously, it didn't need sauce. My sister might kill me for saying this because she's a manager at a local chain bbq restaurant, but hands down, this brisket is the best I've ever had. About my side: Now...I love potatoes and I love cheese and I've had them many different ways, but I don't think I've ever had them sooo good at a restaurant. Have you ever tasted a dish so good, it sent a chill all over your body? And you catch yourself eating each bite slowly because you want to savor each spoonful? Yea... I was enjoying my plate so much, I didn't even think to ask CJ for a bite of his pulled pork sandwich and fries (also $7) and although I did give him a bite of my brisket, I almost didn't because I wanted it all to myself. He asked our waitress if they put crack in their food because he quickly became addicted. =)
Because everything I'd eaten up to this point was so...so...so so good, and against the pleadings of my full stomach, I couldn't pass up dessert. So I ordered a small glass filled with cheese cake, strawberry topping, graham crackers and whipped cream. Every bite was savored. What a great way to top off a great day. Earlier I watched a foreign film, my first, called Heartbreaker and I loved it! Two great finds in one day! I also watched Julie & Julia for the first time today which makes me feel dumb for writing another blog about food, but oh well, right? It's my blog and I'll write about whatever I want!!! Anyone who reads this would be a fool for not eating at Jake's Place regularly.

Today for lunch, my husband and I met with some friends and family at Caz's Chowhouse located at 18 E. Brady St. in Tulsa. When you first walk in, the restaurant looks small but there's a balcony with more tables and chairs. I loved the interior decor- some walls were brick, and others were painted red, navy, and yellow. There's a cozy gas fireplace and jazzy music playing softly over the speakers. Not only is the atmosphere great, the the food is delicious. The plates are large and truly inexpensive for the amount you get. I definitely recommend this place to anyone looking for a great time and great food.

After lunch we went shopping at Tulsa Hills Shopping Center and ended up at Peach Wave. It's a self serve frozen yogurt shop where you choose from a dozen different yogurt flavors and top it with as many toppings as you want. Once you're finished with your delicious creation, they weigh it to decide how much you pay. I had their white chocolate yogurt with bananas, strawberries, and crushed snickers on top. It was so good! This place is much like Orange Leaf and Fresh Berry.

A few of my friends are ready to start book club again soon so I'm hoping my next post will be about a book we decided on. Talk to you soon!

So, last year was crazy! Book club took a halt, I had a baby, got laid off of work as soon as my maternity leave was over (can I sue?), like many Americans I went on unemployment but not for long, started a day care out of my home, and read a ton of books (or at least what I consider a ton because I hadn't read a book voluntarily since Harry Potter in seventh grade. Every book I've read since then has been assigned by teachers or professors). I read the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series, The Lost Hero, and The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan. I also read Dear John by Nicholas Sparks, Charlie St. Cloud by Ben Sherwood, Inca Gold, Shockwave, and Atlantis Found by Clive Cussler, Saint by Ted Dekker, and a book I try to read every year, Was God on Vacation? by Jack Van der Geest.

Due to a decrease in income, I didn't get to eat out much but my husband and I did try a few new restaurants - The Apple Barrel in Bixby and Shiloh's of Tulsa are two that come to mind first. Both serve an array of "home cooked" dishes (I'm not sure if they are actually made in the restaurant or made elsewhere, frozen, and shipped to the restaurant). And they have really great prices.

As far as my goals for this year, they're not concrete yet. I'm definitely going to read more books but I don't have any on my list yet and I'm looking forward to trying new restaurants but haven't heard of any good ones to try. If you have any recommendations, let me know.

Update: Some other goals I've decided to add to the list are to buy new furniture (sell off the old and de-clutter. I've been watching a lot of episodes of Designed to Sell on HGTV) and a new car...maybe two (one for me and one for the hubby).