Week in Pictures: 8.27.2012

I'm two days late in posting my pictures from last week, but better late than never, right? The week was spent at home and was all about eating good food whether it was at a fancy place or from a food cart. Actually, a good portion of my life in general is devoted to eating tasty things.

Collage One, First Row
- On Tuesday night Frank and I grabbed a quick dinner at Seoul Street, which is a tiny laid back Korean restaurant in town. I am addicted to their kimchi fries. This time we got them topped with bacon.
- During lunch on Wednesday I stopped by Lowe's for a little blinds shopping for my dining room. I always laugh when people stare at me dressed up in my office clothes while I am at a home improvement store.
- Thursday night Frank and I headed to Logan for one of their wine dinners. They are an amazing local restaurant and about every two months they pick a wine region and prepare a set five course menu around wines from the region. The dinners are a huge splurge (like my whole grocery budget for a month back when I was in grad school huge) but so worth it to go a few times a year. Thursday night's theme was California wines and the first course was calamari stuffed with shrimp mousseline in a Szechuan sauce. Amazing!

Collage One, Second Row
- Possibly my favorite course of the wine dinner at Logan was the lamb kefta over a fennel pollen scented funnel cake with pickled blueberries. It was so inventive and delicious.
- Friday evening we went in the opposite direction and headed to Mark's Carts (our local food truck area) to grab dinner with some friends. I tried the banh mi sandwich from San Street and while it wasn't as tasty as the banh mi I got from street vendors in Vietnam last summer (what? no liver pâté?!?) it was still pretty good. I really liked the crisp that the daikon leant the sandwich.
- The big surprise on Friday night was that while we were hanging out at the picnic tables eating at Mark's Carts a woman sat down at the table next to me with a huge stack of hand drawn maps of Michigan. She caught me looking at them and gave me and the other girl at my table one for free. Awesome, don't you think? She said that she adapted the map from a children's book from the 1930s, updating some of the items associated with each part of the state. I can't wait to figure out a way to incorporate it into my house.

Collage Two, First Row
- Saturday night was the last Saturday in August which means only one thing in Ann Arbor: it's the last German Park of the summer. German Park is located on the outskirts of Ann Arbor and is a rec area out in the woods with a large pavilion, a bunch of picnic tables and some other small buildings. Three times a year (the last Saturday of June, July and August) they host a public picnic. Attendance is usually about 2500 people and there is always a long line to get in.
- The best thing about German Park is the food and beer. I got a bratwurst, German potato salad, spätzle and of course a pretzel. Several German beers are also on tap and sold in buckets to share with your table.
- People usually stake out their spot among the picnic tables by laying out a tablecloth. Since German Park starts at 4 pm it isn't uncommon for people to bring cards or games while hanging out. 

Collage Two, Second Row
- Another fun aspect of German Park is the dancing. There is a polka band that plays the whole time. Some choreographed dances are also performed by dancers is lederhosen and dirndl which is fun to watch, too. 
- On Sunday night Frank and I went to dinner at Frita Batidos for an eve Commemorative Dinner. Frita Batidos is a Cuban inspired restaurant run by Eve Aronoff. She also used to run a lovely restaurant in town called eve which closed a little while back. For the evening the regular fare at Frita Batidos was replaced with a seven course meal inspired by the menu from eve. I loved eating at eve so it was really fun and tasty. The first course was a duo of delicious cold soups. I especially liked the ceviche topping the avocado soup.
- My favorite course from the dinner was a seafood lasagna. It was amazing and a nice cap to a wonderful week of awesome food.  

What were you up to this past week? Do you have any fun summer festivals in your home town?