octoberfest

so we decided that for one glorious mid-week night...healthy, homemade food be darned! it is october, after all. and that calls for a fest. when menu planning for the week, ben tossed out the idea of a little trip to brat haüs to celebrate all things beer and pretzels and sauerkraut and sausage. you can imagine his surprise when i replied with a, "sure, lets do it!" i think i scored some MAJOR points there.

i mean, it wasn't a completely altruistic move on my part. they have duck fat fries. so, naturally...i am game.

after a cloudy and rainy day here in the AZ, the weather was simply delightful and made for the perfect scene for our feast fest. we grabbed a table and enjoyed the cool breeze. splendid.

and would you look at that little face? the tongue. the total anticipation. just poring over that menu. she is so our kid.

elinor did some major people watching while she waited for the pretzel goodness to arrive. and ben and i chit-chatted and took a load off. oh yes, and ben got a big ol' brew fit for a german king. he was pretty darn happy. and can we talk about the pretzel? i have a major crush on pretzels. elinor does too, but mostly as a vessel for all the dips. she was a cheese dip and honey mustard monster. she even got in on the spicy mustard stuff.

see what i meant about elinor being our kid? every single picture of us from the meal was essentially a drool-fest. me and my beloved pretzel. ben and his sausage with root beer onions. give us some food i tell ya...we are a happy bunch. pleased as punch.

and then there is this. my new favorite picture for a couple reasons: 1) elinor's mid-sentence face and instinctual hand reach when she saw those fries arrive and 2) those crispy and salty fries with tasty dips. i want to eat those all day long. right? hey, when will duck fat fries with truffle aioli finally be recognized as they superfoods that they are?

it was a great evening.