two (kind of) new places on washington
Like most children of the 90's with responsible parents, I was warned from a young age to never post any personal information on the interwebs. Like, even disclosing my last initial felt risky. But now it's 2018 and my phone correctly guesses where I'm going every time I get in my car, and Yelp has started sending me unsolicited restaurant suggestions in New Hampshire (and Facebook is tracking me or whatever anyway right?). Plus I've given some vague hints as to my whereabouts on here before. So basically, if you are trying to stalk me for some reason and haven't already figured out where I live...you are the worst stalker ever. I'm pretty sure 97% of my readers know me personally anyway. Which is why I feel totally comfortable telling you that I live "somewhere in the Washington Avenue area." We can't seem to figure out if this neighborhood is cool and trendy and up-and-coming or if it's lame again. But in the past few week or so, I've had the chance to check out two new places that have opened conveniently near my apartment (well, one new one and one that reopened after being closed for a longgggg time), and take some casual blog pics, obviously.
The Yellow Cup
Washington was actually a bit of a coffee desert, with Catalina being really the only non-Starbucks option, until a few weeks ago when this place popped up out of nowhere. The Yellow Cup is big and the space is bright with minimalist decor. And there's a cool geometric-patterned wall (but tragically no exposed brick or interesting light fixtures...how could I even visit such a place?!). In general, I am not a huge fan of quotes/words on the wall (actually, I mock such things mercilessly), but this one, admittedly, made me chuckle. My (drip, black) coffee was very good (I believe everything is locally sourced), and served in a yellow cup, which I appreciated. I also had a pretty delicious blueberry muffin, and after our second table relocation Royce (@_reezydoesit) bought me an orange San Pellegrino, which surely only further confused the people who were trying to figure out what on earth we were doing/if we were on a date. In typical Liz fashion, I somehow managed to spill it in my car, and now it smells weird. The WiFi worked great, and we were able to post up there on our laptops for a while and work on our blogs, until I had to abruptly leave for another commitment, because I once again, in typical Liz fashion, did a terrible job of timing my day. Obligatory parking note: on a Saturday morning/early afternoon, parking was very challenging. Pretty sure we technically parked illegally. On a Sunday morning around 9, it was no problem.
Beaver's
I've blogged about the other Beaver's location before, but this one has a totally different vibe. After being open for several years, it closed for a while for remodeling, and FINALLY reopened just a week or two ago. It's now more of a bar than a restaurant, but the food is still great. We sat at the bar for happy hour (all drinks half off), and ordered some of the cocktails listed on the wall. The bartender was super friendly and helpful; he recommended the Gin & Jam (SO GOOD). We also had a great conversation about Arrested Development (season 5 comes out May 29th, who's excited?!?!) and he didn't judge me too hard when I took my #basic artsy blog pis of my drink with the menu wall strategically in the background. There is a solid beer selection in addition to all the creative cocktails, and when the remodel is totally done (they were still working on getting things up and running), there will be another bar inside. There is still a great patio like there was before, but unfortunately it was raining the day we went. The menu was limited as well (the bartender informed us that a full menu is coming soon), but I ordered a literal basket of random fried things (pickles, jalapenos, okra, etc.) and it was exactly what I needed. I am so excited this place is finally open again! Not only, selfishly, because it's now one of the better food and/or drink options close to my apartment, but it's another great bar with legitimately great food and a fun atmosphere...hopefully it will help keep Washington Avenue relevant!
I was just about to close this by congratulating myself for going an entire post without any comments about how I basically live in New Hampshire now, butttt then I remembered that I have. LITERALLY YELP THINKS I LIVE HERE NOW. THAT WAS NOT HYPERBOLE. Sigh. I've been eating lots of bar food though (none of it quite as good as any of these places), and one of these days I'll bring you a comprehensive guide to burgers and probably coffee in Portsmouth, New Hampshire (no seriously, I've eaten burgers from at least seven different restaurants here so far). So, I know you are all looking forward to reading that extremely useful information.
Anyway. I'll see y'all this weekend, Houston friends.
<3 liz
