Too much to do

This weekend was a blur of house cleaning and volunteer work for Historic Charlotte, getting the gallery space ready for Artevation. But in between all the work and charity events I did find time to eat. Friday was spent filling nail holes and cleaning the space, which was easily made up for by a birthday party for Shakespeare hosted by Collaborative Arts; the fine people that bring you the Shakespeare on the green. We got some munchies and beer as the actors did a few scenes from various plays and then asked for money and, more importantly for me, volunteers. I have always wanted to do stagecraft.

Saturday began with a quick run to the market, where it is officially asparagus season, and the Mrs. couldn't be happier. So we picked up our veggies for the week and then hit the Harvest Moon Cafe for some pork carnitas, which were quite tasty with back beans and a beautiful cilantro creme, as well as a pulled pork sandwich that I would easily trade an organ for. I am not from the south so I am not married to the vinegar sauce and this was far from it. It was a sorghum molasses sauce similar to Texas style but sweeter, but it was subtle enough to let the flavor of the pork through. The rest of the day was spent painting. For dinner we decided to go back to The Liberty. It was packed, so we found a spot at the bar and checked out the "new" menu which looked an awful lot like the original menu. I got a Hercules and we ordered some blue cheese chips and devils on horseback. The DoH were excellent and the chips could have been, if they weren't so stingy with the blue cheese sauce. For my entree, I really wanted a burger, but as predicted the county caught them and they are now only cooking to medium. I was heartbroken. It was fine, just like every other burger in Charlotte. The Mrs. ordered a strawberry-goat cheese salad that had, I'm not kidding, three slices of strawberry. I'm not sure I can give them another chance. We will see.

Sunday we got up and decided to have some brunch at Foskoskies, which keeps being labeled as Plaza-Midwood, but is actually in Shamrock Gardens. It is a little off the beaten path but well worth the effort. The Mrs. got the special, which was strawberry pancakes with a dollop of strawberry ice cream on the side. This easily countered the miserable showing at The Liberty. They were light and slightly mooshy from the syrup and ice cream. I ordered the biscuits and gravy, a subject which I consider myself somewhat of an expert. These were the best i had ever put in my mouth. The Biscuits were just the right texture, soft with a hint of al dente, and the gravy was not your average gravy. It was spicy and tart that complemented the sweetness from the biscuit perfectly. It was probably Anduoille sausage and a hint of Cheyenne that gave it the heat. I made dinner at home Sunday. I roasted a chicken and sauted some asparagus and scallions; with some couscous on the side we had dinner.