The Culinary Tour

It started off with a trip to Sublime Donuts (again), where I got an A-Town mocha eclair and their amazing lemon-mint tea. Again I kept the bottle.

The next day, Sunday, we went to Aroy Thai for dinner. I had Pad Thai and an iced Thai coffee. The coffee was very good, as was the dish. The Pad Thai was well balanced, without too much peanut, but the green onions could have been more present (it tasted like they weren't fresh), and a slice of lime would have given the dish a splash of freshness. The décor was a blend of modern and Thai (or what most Americans would assume to be Thai. It looked to me like it was trying too hard, but I really don't know).

Today we had a breakfast of eggs, ham, and cheese with great hazelnut coffee and peach jam. Lunch was a fajita and a goat brat. The later was more mellow than typical brats, something I appreciated greatly. We also made cinnamon rolls with a maple-coffee frosting, from Pioneer Woman. They were much softer than other cinnamon rolls I've had.
Dinner was one of those life-changing things. We went to Bailey's chocolate bar, a place specializing in deserts, with an extensive bar in the front. The first bowl brought to us held four chocolate chip cookies the size of half-dollars. They did not need to be any bigger. These cookies served as a teaser for their incredible deserts, and set the mood for the small but so, so satisfying dishes that would follow.
We selected four cheese from their cheese menu: Rustico (with red pepper), Port Salut, Camembert Delise, and Black Diamond Cheddar from Canada. These were served with flatbread, focaccia, spicy mixed nuts, and dried cherries. This was the most incredible thing. We couldn't believe what we were eating, and any attempt that I might make to describe what we experienced would fall insultingly short. After that we had two pizzettas, the Missouri (local mushrooms, roasted garlic, Mahon, Asiago, and Gruyere), and the Eighteenth (local sausages, whole-grain honey mustard, and Cheddar). Both were fantastic, and put anything I have ever made to shame. They had definite personalities to them.
Afterward came desserts of the Bailey's Chocolate Bar (chocolate cake layered with Bailey's butter cream and covered with chocolate ganache), Robin's Signature Passionfruit Cheesecake (light and tangy passionfruit cheesecake on an almond shortbread crust with toasted, unsweetened coconut), Crème Brulee, and Chocolate Inebriation (layers of chocolate cake accented with chocolate stout, bittersweet chocolate ganache, and cinnamon ice cream). These were, of course, delicious, but by this time we were delirious from cheese and pizza, so we were less enthusiastic.
But that cheese changed my life.