Last month was the second annual Food Truckin’ for Josh Cares  down on Fountain Square. Over $33,000 was raised for Josh Cares, an organization that make sure no seriously ill child feels alone and afraid while hospitalized. It is estimated that over 1,500 people gathered on the square during the three-hour event to sample food from 10+ Cincinnati food trucks. I can attest to the large crowd, as it was packed upon my arrival just before 1 PM.

Crowded Fountain Square for Food Truckin’ for Josh Care

I was only able to sample food from one truck, but fortunately it was one that was new to me.  Joseph Garcia, owner of Texas Joe, was born and raised in the heart of the South, Houston, Texas. According to his website, “His food comes from generations of family home cooks that didn’t measure or use recipes.”  With the exception of the tortillas, Garcia prepares all the items on his menu from scratch. He offers quesadillas, tacos and tostados with a variety of meat: including chipotle pulled chicken, braised beef brisket and 12-hour hickory smoked pork.

Texas Joe – “The Legal Mexican”

Unfortunately it seems that Texas Joe was working with an abbreviated menu for the food truckin’ event. The only thing on the menu for the day was tacos (1 for $4), however they were not the standard tacos either. Normally the tacos come topped with black bean and corn salsa, shredded cabbage, and grated cotija cheese, which sounds awesome! The tacos for this day did not have the salsa or cabbage but were instead served topped with a mix of sautéed vegetables. Both the chipotle chicken and the vegetables tasted good, but they did not blend well together and I found it to be a rather odd combination.

Chipotle Chicken Taco

I really wish I could have tried to taco as advertised on the standard menu, as it sounds so much better than the funky combination I was served on this day. The food was freshly prepared and tasted good, but I feel that it wasn’t a very Tex-Mex  inspired dish. I look forward to seeing Texas Joe out again so that I can try the true “Legal Menu.”

I bought tickets for Bunbury  last year at the conclusion of last year’s festival after having a great time and being guaranteed the lowest prices. The down side to buying this early is that you have no idea who is going to be playing when the lineup is eventually announced months later. In addition future plans can sometimes take place on the same weekend, like what was supposed to happen for my family this year. We had tentative plans to be out-of-town during Bunbury and after what I considered to be a lackluster lineup announcement, I went ahead and sold our tickets to some friends.

ZZ Ward on Main Stage

Fast forward to this past weekend and as the festival approached I starting digging into the lineup a little more and finding bands that I wouldn’t mind seeing perform live. Then our plans to be out-of-town fell through and I started  thinking about buying a single day ticket to attend Friday, but I just couldn’t convince myself to spend $70 for the single day ticket after originally buying the three-day pass for just over $100 last year. Fortunately I was able to secure a free pass into the festival on Sunday to experience at least a little of Bunbury’s third year.

Robert DeLong on River Stage

I arrived just before  4pm having no idea that some bands were pushed back due to severe weather earlier in the day. This was good news for me as I was able to walk right in and see The Lighthouse and the Whaler perform on the river  stage, which was fortunately back on the banks of the Ohio River this year. Last year this stage had to be moved up out of the floodplain due to high water. The serpentine wall provides a great natural setting for a concert with its steep steps and tiered seating areas. The disadvantage is that sometimes this natural amphitheater can cause the volume to swell a little too loudly, but that is worth the risk due to the ideal setting and great backdrop.

Young the Giant on Main Stage

Bands set times were cut just a bit in an effort to squeeze everyone in and the curfew was pushed out so that the headliners could still play full sets. I spent the middle of the evening bouncing primarily between the river stage and the main stage, which was moved to the other end of the grass of Yeatmans Cove Park. With the move they had to take out the  western most entrance to the festival, but as I mentioned last year this stage had to be moved somewhere else. In the old orientation, the stage and crowd  created such a bottleneck situation as the evening went on. I was so glad to see that the stage was moved, and I’m sure many others were too, even if it meant longer walks to get inside the gates.

Flaming Lips on Main Stage

I really enjoyed the stretch of music provided by Red Wanting Blue, Kopecky Family Band, ZZ Ward, Robert DeLong, and finally Young the Giant. These bands all alternated between the main and river stages, which are within close proximity to each other. So even though the following band would start immediately after the prior, I was still able to catch nearly all of their sets. The night was closed out with the Flaming Lips, who I have seen a couple of times before. As I experienced at these past shows, their set was much more about the stage show and theatrics than it was about the music. The fireworks were a nice touch though.

I saw enough continued improvements to visit the box office and purchase tickets for next year. Bunbury is worth the risk of buying tickets without knowing the lineup.

A couple of weeks ago my neighborhood and surrounding areas in Cincinnati suffered a major power loss. This wasn’t  the first time I’ve lost power at home during work hours, forcing me to find a coffee shop to work from for a few hours, but this was the first time all of my neighborhood shops were also without power. A friend of mine suggested heading towards either the University of Cincinnati or Xavier University, and while on my way toward UC I drove past  Café DeSales, who appeared to have power.

Inside

Once inside I found a few others already setting up a workspace at  the neighborhood coffee shop and deli. After ordering a cinnamon roll from the counter, I found a table and started my work day. Hours later power was still not restored to our house  and it was well after my normal lunch time. Fortunately  Café DeSales offers a variety of sandwiches and salads for lunch, in addition to breakfast items being served all day.

Chicken Salad Croissant

I was pleased to find a chicken salad croissant sandwich on the menu, always a favorite of mine. It is served with lettuce and tomato along  with a side of chips, potato salad, or pasta salad. I chose potato salad, which is a large serving in a plastic cup. Both items were tasty and better than I would expect from a place that is predominately a coffee shop. I ended up spending my entire work day at  Café DeSales and would gladly do it again in the future.

Before leaving the Smoky Mountain area a few weeks ago, we parked the car for one last hike. Kim’s brother Chris and his girlfriend Kirbi joined us for our last night in our cabin and came along for the hike to Laurel Falls.

On The Hike

This is one of a few paved trails in the park, so we were able to push our stroller up the trail and we saw many others doing the same. Parts of the trail have a steep drop on one side, so you’ll want to be careful with your little ones.

At The Falls

It takes about an hour and a half to cover the  2.5 mile round-trip hike to see the cascading waterfalls. The falls are 80 feet tall and a bridge crosses over the water stream about half way down. You have a great view of the upper falls from the bridge and shallow pool on the other side. The bottom half of the falls are hard to see, though you can walk right up to this edge and peak your head over.

Laurel Falls

The parking lot at the trailhead was very crowded, so it’s best to get an early start if you want to beat the crowds, otherwise you may find yourself having to hike extra just to get to the trailhead. Better yet, I’ve read that there are more scenic and less visited waterfalls in other ares of the park.

Gatlinburg City on Dwellable

After a long afternoon exploring Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies a few weeks back, my wife and I were able to walk the streets of Gatlinburg and get both of our kids to fall asleep in the stroller. We quickly took advantage of the situation to enjoy a peaceful early dinner at the Smoky Mountain Brewery.

Outside

Even with the address in hand, we walked right past the restaurant and brewery on our first trip down the street. It sits back off the  parkway behind Calhoun’s and the Cherokee Grill. The outside of the building looks like a ski lodge and offers multiple levels of dining.

Beer Sampler

Since we wanted to keep the kids in the stroller to let them sleep, we were asked if it would be alright if we ate downstairs in the small kitchen dining area. We occupied the only table but our server never once forgot about us. We enjoyed a sampling of their beers while looking over the food menu ($5.75 for 5 5-oz pours). Their main stay beer offerings seem to cater toward those who enjoy lighter beers and I was not impressed by them. However the porter was great as was  the featured IPA. Plus their beer is also ridiculously cheap!

Chicken Reuben

For dinner I enjoyed the chicken Reuben with sauerkraut, sour cream, and cheese on grilled rye bread ($9.75). This was not a standard Reuben  at all. I’ve had turkey Reubens many times, but never one made with chicken. The chicken was thick sliced and the sour cream was not really noticeable. Some thousand island would have really made this sandwich great, but it was still good as is. For the included  side I chose the honey-mustard potato salad, which was awesome!

Chicken Cheese Philly

My wife ordered the chicken cheese Philly with fires ($9.75). The sandwich was a very large portion and filled with loads of grilled peppers and onions. I stole a few bites of the sandwich and it tasted great. The bread was fresh and soft, and the filling was piping hot. The fries were your average shoestring variety, and I would definitely recommend the potato salad instead.

The Smoky Mountain Brewery is a somewhat hidden spot just off the main thoroughfare through Gatlinburg, but it is well worth a stop for a meal and some beer.

During our vacation a couple of weeks ago my wife and I made sure to balance things that we wanted to do with things that we knew the kids would enjoy. Fortunately we found something that all of us could easily enjoy,  Ripley’s Aquarium of the Smokies  in Gatlinburg.

Trey

The aquarium has numerous exhibits from tropical rain forests, to ocean reefs, a massive shark lagoon, and an interactive penguin playhouse. The underwater tunnel for the shark lagoon features a 340-foot long glidepath, that allows you to move through the exhibit without moving your feet. Our three-year-old liked this so much we had to do it twice!

Paige

The kids also really enjoyed the discovery center with puzzles, touch tanks, and other interactive displays. We spent the better part of three hours here and we even rushed through some of the exhibits. For those with longer attention spans, you could easily spend the better part of a day at the aquarium, and you will likely want to as tickets can be a little on the high side, $27 for adults. Also the crowd seemed to build as our visit went on, so arrive early to avoid the rush.

Gatlinburg on Dwellable

What a start for Team USA in the World Cup last night! Kim and I took the kids down to Fountain Square to watch the match versus Ghana. All of the round-robin games will be televised there  on the big screen  and last night there were easily thousands in attendance.

GOAL!

The next two events are Sunday, June 22nd from 12 PM – 9 PM, game time at 6 PM, and Thursday, June 26th from 11 AM – 4 PM, game time at 12 PM. I’m hoping to make it down for another fun game watch party.

While in the Great Smoky Mountains area last week we rented a cabin from Timber Tops. They offer everything from small one bedroom cabins to massive fifteen bedroom lodges, most of them hot tubs and amazing views. I was getting ready to pull the trigger on a standard one bedroom cabin but took one last look through the offerings and found a cabin called Bearly Wet.

Indoor Pool

The biggest selling point with Bearly Wet is the indoor pool on the lower level of the cabin! It also has one private bedroom and a loft space with two additional queen beds. Including a pullout sofa, the cabin sleeps eight.

Enjoying The Pool

For most  of our stay  it was just my wife and two young kids in the cabin, though her brother and his girlfriend did stop by on our last night. We still had plenty of space, though it should be noted that the loft does not have a bathroom, the main level bathroom is  inside the bedroom, and the only other bathroom is downstairs adjacent to the pool.  This isn’t an issue for one family, though it could be problematic for a couple of families trying to share the cabin.

Hot Tub With A View

We had an excellent stay in the Bearly Wet cabin and Timber Tops was very easy to work with. In fact we were offered a discount special when calling them which was not offered online. I would be sure to give them a call before booking to see what they can do for you. Also I would not hesitate to rent from them again, and this particular cabin comes highly recommended.

Pigeon Forge on Dwellable

After an exhausting day in Great Smoky Mountain National Park, my wife and I decided to order carry out for dinner. While she made a quick trip through a nearby grocery store, I placed an order over the phone with Bennett’s Pig Bar-B-Que. Placing the order was simple and the kind woman on the other end of the line said that our meals would be ready in five or ten minutes, which I think is a really quick turnaround. Upon arrival at the restaurant ten minutes later, our food was ready and the transaction couldn’t have been easier.

Ultimate Pork Shoulder Sandwich

Back at our cabin, I opened up the bag to find our individually packed meals. I ordered their ultimate pork shoulder sandwich with grilled onions, topped with sweet honey-bbq sauce, and served on garlic toast with pickles ($11.99). This included two sides and I went with fries and coleslaw. The meat was moist and tender. The sauce was too sweet for my taste, but the onions on my sandwich helped balance it out a little. The fries were still pretty crisp, even after traveling awhile in the Styrofoam container, and the slaw was pretty good as well.

Bar-B-Que Pork Shoulder

I thought I ordered my wife the Carolina pork sandwich ($10.49), but when we opened her box there was no coleslaw on top of the sandwich. No worries though, I just gave her some of mine to top off her sandwich. To round out her platter she chose bar-b-que beans along with  macaroni and cheese. The sandwich was roughly the same as mine, just on different bread and with slaw instead of onions. The beans were good but a little too saucy and sweet. The macaroni and cheese was surprisingly great.

Overall I would have liked to have tried some of the other sauces that the restaurant features, as I was not a big fan of the sweet honey-bbq sauce. Besides that fact, the food was good and I would not hesitate to eat at Bennett’s again. The service was also top-notch.

My family and I spent a few days last week exploring the  Great Smoky Mountains National Park and surrounding areas. Our first full day in the area was completely dedicated to the park. We first made the hour or so drive from our cabin to Cades Cove.

Black Bear

Within the first fifteen minutes we had our first wildlife spotting  along the eleven mile Cades Cove motor trail, a black bear. The bear was a little tough to see in the fairly thick wooded area, but take my word that the black spot in the center of my picture is indeed a bear. We also saw a few turkeys and white-tailed deer.

Methodist Church

In addition to the chance of seeing various wildlife in Cades Cove, there are a number of historic buildings dating through the 1800’s and very early 1900’s.  The kids seemed to enjoy exploring the Cable Mill area the most.

Cades Cove

Cades Cove is one of the most popular areas of the park, and traffic can move very slowly at times. We spent between two and three hours in the area and only made a couple of stops along the way.

Newfound Gap

All of my passengers in the car fell asleep pretty quickly after leaving the Cades Cove area. I decided to keep exploring the park and drove along the Little River Road to the Newfound Gap Road. I followed Newfound Gap  all the way up to Clingmans Dome, at which time everyone was up and ready for a little more exploring.

Mount Le Conte

The hike to the top of Clingman’s Dome is only a half mile, and it is paved, but it is really steep and provided a pretty good workout as I pushed our double jogging stroller all the way up the trail and to the top of the observation tower. At the top we had 360 degree views of the entire area, including Mount Le Conte, the third highest peak in the park.

Clingmans Dome

Clingmans Dome is actually the highest point in the park, and it is really cool that it is so accessible for all to see. I wish the sky would have been a little clearer, but I could still make out the cities of Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge with my naked eyes.

Appalachian Trail

The Appalachian Trail also crosses the area at the top of Clingmans Dome. As we were leaving the observation tower, we saw a group of four backpackers making their way along the trail, which was cool to see. Having visited the two most popular areas on the park on our first day, we spent the following day exploring Gatlinburg before returning again to the park the following day for a quick hike, which I will write about in the coming days.

Clingmans Dome Family Shot

Sevierville on Dwellable