Despite my best efforts to stay in my twenties FOREVER, last month I officially turned the BIG 3-0.  My friend gave me a card that described my turning thirty process perfectly.  First, shock.  “This literally cannot be happening! I just turned twenty last week!”  Second, anger.  I snapped at a few folks who tried to label me as “old.”  Then there was denial.  Yes, I refused to believe that thirty was upon me and continued to live in a space of twenty-nine and youth.  Finally, I reached a point of acceptance and said “ya know… I’m 30, but I still look pretty darn good!” *hair flips, smooches and leg kick*

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Hello thirty! *in my Carrie Bradshaw voice*

So how does a food blogger celebrate a major milestone?? With FOOD of course.  My celebration started on Wednesday and culminated with a trip to New Orleans, one of America’s greatest food cities.  Erika’s “Flirty Thirty” was an epic week of fun.  Here are the food highlights of my week long birthday celebration!

CAKE

It is not a party unless there is cake involved.  I asked a fellow HFBC member, Maple and Love to make a beautiful cake to commemorate this momentous occasion.  I ordered the “Duchess of Sprinkles Cake” one of her specialties, which is a vanilla cake with Oreo filling, topped with chocolate ganache, bits of Oreos and white chocolate pieces.  She also added some gold and blue details for good measure.  It was amazing to say the least!

 

Tiny’s No. 5

Before heading to New Orleans I had a small dinner with a few friends in Houston at Tiny’s No. 5 in West University.  I have written about this place before. The beautiful decor, garden aspects AND BOMB CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES! Tiny’s and the original Tiny Boxwood location offer great private spaces for events such as baby/bridal showers, small weddings and of course birthday dinners.  Tiny’s food was amazing per usual.  After dinner we hit up some local bars. My birthday fell on a Wednesday and some how Houston managed to turn a Wednesday night into weekend nights!  I had a small moment of feeling twenty one again *sighs.*  The next day, my body said NOPE you are definitely thirty, HA! I was beyond grateful to have the following day off from work.

New Orleans

Nine of my girlfriends traveled from all of the country to celebrate with me in New Orleans! I felt so loved.  I made my first trip to New Orleans last March and wrote about it here.  On this trip, I visited a few of the places from last time, but also made an effort to find some new New Orleans gems.

My blogger friend Syretta, curator of Fashion Crazed Foodie told me that I must stop at Castnet seafood for a local spot with great po’boys.  As I waited for my food, she popped up at Castnet! So of course we took a picture.   I ordered a catfish po’boy and fried stuffed crab.  My friends ordered fried shrimp and fried oyster po’boys.  We left nothing but the crumbs! All of the seafood was fresh and seasoned perfectly.  Syretta was right on the money with this spot!

Next up we had to stop at a Fat Tuesdays to get the weekend started right.  Frozen daiquiris for everyone!!!  Half of us spent our early twenties in Columbia, Missouri where the frozen daiquiri shop, Trops, is king, so we felt right at home at Fat Tuesdays!  We headed back to our AirBnb, drinks in tow and had a good ole time with my snapchat filter.

With a group of my bestest girlfriends all in one city, brunch was a MUST.  We headed over to Court of Two Sisters for their Jazz Brunch buffet.  Complete with mimosas,  a jazz band and a beautiful covered patio.  I snapped all of my food but forget to save my pictures *hangs head in shame.* For the most part, this was more of a lunch or dinner buffet with few breakfast items.  There was an omelette counter, but then short ribs a few feet away and not a pancake in sight! Despite not being typical brunch fare, I did find several items to enjoy including the homemade biscuits, grits and catfish remoulade!.

Every time I say that I am heading to New Orleans, everyone always mentions Port of Call‘s burgers, so I went and waited for over an hour to see what the hype was about.  Thankfully, I enjoyed a large cocktail while I waited.  Once inside, we sat in what felt like an old sailor haunt.  We intended to make a late night run to Cafe Du’Monde for beignets, so we each decided to split the signature baked potato and burger meal.  The portions were pretty large. I will be honest and say the burger did not pack the wow I expected with the seasoning.  Once I added my own toppings I was pleased, but as I have explained on this blog before, my favorite burger spots pack the flavor in the meat not the toppings.  I am glad to say I tried it though!

We spent much of our nights on Frenchmen street instead of Bourbon.  One local described Bourbon as the spot for the rookie drinkers and Frenchmen for the “grown folks.”  Well as a newly 30 year old, Frenchmen seemed more appropriate! Frenchmen had a similar setup as Bourbon and was equally crowded.  The major difference I noticed were the live bands that seemed to be the Frenchmen focal point.

I took Monday off to recuperate from the weeklong celebration.   My thirtieth birthday really was my best one to date!  I enjoyed time with good friends, great food and drinks plus I got to travel as well.  All jokes aside, I truly am embracing thirty and all that the next decade has to offer!