It’s true!
Someone has asked me to contribute a guest post to their site!
So, hop on over to my cousin Lacey’s blog and check it out!
Blog
The Local Awesome
I’m sure some of you have been wondering what the “Local Awesome” category is all about, as it is officially the only empty category left on my blog. I figured a little explanation is in order while I get everything organized.
No matter where you live, there is always at least one local business owner doing their best to bring great product to the community, whether it’s a restaurant or even a tiny little gas station. These are people who deserve recognition and a little free publicity! So this is my plan; every other week or so (currently, my social life is very dependent on the weather) I will be interviewing local businesses and organizations that I think are…well, awesome…and taking some pictures and revealing them to my readers.
How many times have we sat on the couch and pouted, thinking, “There’s NOTHING to do in this town!”? Or, “Oh, I wish I lived in California, where they’ve got great fresh food and great wine and blah blah blah.”?
Well, the truth is, we’ve got some pretty superb businesses here in Nebraska, and they’re worried about serving you, not whether their state’s going to fall into the ocean or not.
If you have suggestions for awesome local businesses, shoot me an email! This is not a requirement but definitely a helpful criteria: if I can go in with $5 and come out happy, that’s definitely going to sway me. I will be able to hear Dave Ramsey yelling at me if I spend any more than that.
The first Local Awesome post is very close to going up, so follow along and hopefully you’ll discover a new favorite place to haunt!
P.S. Notice the picture of the GORGEOUS cheesecake? Yeah, that’s a teaser. Are you ready?
The Local Awesome: The Two Twins Cafe
When this whole “Local Awesome” idea popped into my head, the first place I thought of was the Two Twins Cafe.
What makes this place awesome? Well, there are a bunch of things that I could go into to describe the awesomeness of the Two Twins Cafe. I’m going to focus on four:
1. The food. My goodness, the food.
2. The dessert. I’m telling you, tears pop out of my eyes as I think about it. Big, fat, cheesecakey tears.
3. The staff.
4. The Twins.
For this particular instance, I’m going to focus on number four first, because, well, I just have to. Prepare to meet a couple of spectacular ladies.
Kim and Denise were kind enough to let me sit and visit with them (after they were closed, no less!) in order to get some quotes for the blog. I can’t tell you how refreshing it was to talk to these ladies. Not only are they fun, but they are down-to-earth, eloquent, andSMART. Since I’ve got kind of a one-track mind, I first asked them to tell me just what it is they love about their food. I have to mention that watching them complete each other’s sentences was a blast, and so, rather than specifying who says what, let’s just call it a combined effort.
Me: What do you love about your food?
The Twins: We take simple food and make it amazing. What we serve is fresh and available. The world doesn’t have to provide us with what we need; it comes from our locals. It’s the goodness of food that we can make amazing; that’s what we love about our cafe.
Taking the goodness of food and stepping it up to something amazing is exactly what they do. You like pancakes? Well howsabout some Banana Nut pancakes instead? You like soup? Hmmm…maybe you should try a steaming bowl of homemade Sweet Potato Bisque made completely from scratch.
This seems like the perfect time to talk about number 1. The food.
You see that marker board? That means they have daily specials. That’s right. And not just, “Hmm…Let’s make the chicken patty be the special today,” specials. I’m talking brand-new, original, made-from scratch specials you can’t find anywhere else. They’ve always got two homemade soups (These are my personal favorites. If I’m running short on cash, I have a bowl of soup and a roll and am totally satisfied.)
And now on to question number 2:
Me: What makes Lincoln, NE the place for the cafe?
The Twins: Lincoln expects great-tasting, home-style/comfort food. It’s a great, conservative town with great, conservative customers, but in its own way it’s also a very contemporary town. It’s got a relatively Bohemian mix of tastes, expectations, and affordabilities.
The cafe caters perfectly to that mix of tastes and personalities by providing delicious comfort food with a twist. If it weren’t for the amazing staff, however, (Number 3…Yeah, I know I’m jumping around…) nobody would get to taste any of it! One thing you’ll definitely notice about the cafe is how closely-knit and dedicated the staff is. Whenever I go in, I always see the same people working. As a girl from a very small town, that is something I can certainly appreciate. Being recognized and treated like an old friend when you walk into a restaurant gets a big ol’ thumbs up from this lady.
Okay. Are you guys ready for this? I’m about to talk about dessert. If you aren’t sitting down already, you probably should. I’m sure I’m going to have to eat some lame-o chocolate chips out of my cupboard after this simply because my mouth will be screaming for sweets.
Gourmet, full-fat (Sorry, dieters. This is the real deal.), decadent, and homemade. They’ve got everything from Bavarian Mint pie to Heath Bar cheesecake. And this stuff is made in house. No Cheesecake Factory imports here. Bread pudding, Red Velvet cake, cheesecake, cheesecake, and cheesecake!
Whew. I said ‘cheesecake’ a whole lot there…I need to take a break…to tell you about a little something called Boston Cream Pie. Homemade Red Velvet cake, held together by the most heavenly custard mortar you’ve ever had in your life, covered in chocolate ganache and topped with homemade whipped cream.
Tears of joy, I tell you. Tears of pure joy.
Okay, okay. Let’s focus here. When I asked the twins if they had any exciting future plans, they informed me that their big plans had actually just been realized. Until recently, the cafe was known only for its breakfast and lunch fare. Now, on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, you can visit the cafe in the evenings and indulge in a fabulous dinner. I had (remember, simple with a twist?) Chicken Fried Chicken with chorizo gravy and sauteed spinach. Some of my friends know about my relationship with gravy.
It is very serious.
If Pee Wee Herman told me to marry this gravy (and I weren’t already married to a wonderful man) I’d do it. No questions asked.
Okay. Dinner’s about ready at the Bonk household, and I need to wrap this up. One last thought from the twins:
It’s all about facets on the gem, and the gem is the cafe. When you look through one facet, you see breakfast and lunch, amazing dinner, great service, beauty, and us.
So that’s it. Don’t think, just go to the Two Twins Cafe. After you wake up from a deliciousness induced coma, you’ll thank me.
Office Space?
I need a portable, free office. This past month, I’ve actually started working. For real. Like, I write things for people and they give me money. Totally. Awesome.
And totally stressful. It’s been over a year since I’ve had to think of anything other than being a wife or a mom, and adding work into the mix has gotten my brain’s panties all in a twist.
I know, I know. “Waah, waah, waah. Lauren has to woooork.”
Well, hey, I’m not saying I can’t do it; I’m just saying it’s an adjustment and I’m a little frazzled. Dishes are piling up, baby toys are everywhere, and everyone’s just starting to get a little bit frustrated. Part of my problem is that when I sit down to work, I am constantly surrounded by the things that need to get done. This is distracting. Since I’m distracted, it takes me even longer to work and leaves me with less time to get any housework done.
Now, we don’t have room for an office in our apartment, so I need to go someplace that is fresh and new, and not distracting. I realize this seems like an easy fix. All I have to do is pack up the computer and go to a coffee shop, right? Well, this new budget plan that we are sticking to wants us to take any extra money we have and throw it at our debt with “gazelle intensity.” That means paying for coffee on a regular basis is just not going to happen.
This is where you guys come in. I need help. I know I can go to the library, but the one closest to us closes at six, and if I start driving too far I’m not really going to be saving myself any time.
Where can I go and get free wireless internet (and preferably be able to bring my own coffee) without having someone expect me to pay them for something?
There’s got to be some little gem of a place I can go, and I won’t know unless I ask. So, please. My poor, poor, ready-to-explode brain is begging you. Where can I go?