Bluegrass and BBQ in the District

One thing I've missed about the South?  BBQ

I have been missing my Whitts, Big Bob Gibson's, Dreamland and Jim 'N Nick's like crazy--  but, now Hill Country Barbecue Market in Penn Quarter has filled my BBQ void. (http://www.hillcountrywdc.com/)

The place has that "trying to be country" look, but I won't hold it against them.  The concept is really unique.  When you walk into the restaurant you are in the bar area.  The actual dining room is roped off behind the bar area.  When it's time for you to be seated at a table you are taken into the dining area and given a card with the entire menu on it.  The tables are set up to where you can eat at a table with people you don't know-- sort of cafeteria style.  Or, if you are a large enough group you can all sit at the same table.  

The waiter takes your drink order, writes it on your card, and sends you on your way to the food area. In the food area there is a butcher section, a "sides" section and a desserts section.  You get to pick out the meat, sides and desserts you want and they mark off what you got on your card.  I've been where there is a huge line in the food area and I've been when it was just a couple of people.  

The portions are MASSIVE, so sharing everything is a great way to try out all the different food.  I've tried the ribs, pulled chicken, Kreuz sausage (jalapeño cheese and regular), and the moist and lean brisket.  For the sides, I've tried the green bean casserole, mac & cheese, collard greens, corn pudding, sweet potato bourbon mash and the baked beans.  For dessert I've tried the peanut butter and jelly cupcake, the banana pudding and the bread pudding.  ----  I recommend everything!!  

My favorites would have to be the sausage, green bean casserole, mac & cheese, corn pudding and the banana pudding.  So, basically everything on the menu. 

They also serve Blue Bell Ice Cream (vanilla, strawberry, chocolate.)  This is apparently a huge deal to everyone here because they have never had it before. --I know, hilarious right?  My friends are addicted to this ice cream now and almost died when I told them that there is a creamery in Alabama and that it is in every flavor in every grocery store in the entire state of Alabama.  And that yes, there were more flavors than vanilla, strawberry and chocolate.  

There is also live music downstairs in the basement bar.  I had not heard bluegrass or live country music since I've been here and it was good to feel at home again.  People don't usually dance to live bands in bars the way they do down South (my boyfriend had never really heard of fraternity "band parties," which are a staples on game weekends, in bars, and even at high school sorority parties.  Oh how I miss you Alabama culture) and I got all nostalgic at the bar and started missing the bars back home.  A few older couples (much older, like 60) started dancing and I was dying  to get out there and start dancing.  The only annoying part is that there isn't an actual dance floor-- you just have to dance to the sides of the stage and off to the side of the tables.  Next time I'm either going to teach my guy friends how to dance to that kind of music, or I'm going to borrow one of those 60-year- old's husbands.  

The drinks are also amazing.  They had a bunch of bourbon specials, which the boys loved, and a bunch of mixed drinks to choose from.  My favorite was their spin on a Firefly and Lemonade, which was delicious.  

Ski and Snowboard Sale!

I've come a long way since my first snowboarding/skiing experience of falling down Brice Mountain.  With multiple ski trips under my belt, I'm loving skiing and living in an area where slopes are just an hour or so away.  I am happy to say I bought my first pair of skis, boots and poles!

Ski Chalet in Chantilly, VA is having a great 30% off sale (off the lowest price) and my boyfriend and I took full advantage of it.  Ski Chalet is known for their ski/board rentals and their big sale that takes place in September, but I think we made out with the better bargain.  During their September sale, the store takes a look at their inventory and puts all of the items that they have an abundance of on sale to get ready for the new season.  With this Spring Sale, the entire store is 30% off and you get one-on-one attention and advice from a personal sales consultant.

I just told the lady at the store a little bit about myself as a skier and she picked out the exact skis and boots that were best for me.  I ended up getting the 2011 Elan Snow Magic Skis with 9.0 TMD bindings (perfect for the beginner/intermediate skier) and 2011 Tecnica Women's Viva M8 Ski Boots.

I did price comparisons of the skis and boots online and let's just say, I made out like a bandit.  We went to the Ski Chalet in Chantilly, but there is also a store in Gaithersburg and one opening up in Seven Corners in the Fall.  You can also order online, but the staff was extremely knowledgeable and were a great part of the experience so I would suggest going to the store.   

Not your typical spa day..

My first trip to a Korean spa started out like any other spa day.  I paid for my spa services, signed in, got a key to a locker in the locker room...and then came the orange spa-provided uniform and the 50 or so naked women.

Ok, I'll start from the beginning.  While trying to figure out what to do last Sunday my boyfriend suggested checking out this place he saw on Groupon called Spa World.  It's a Korean spa out in Centreville, VA, about 20 minutes away.  We looked at the website and it seemed really awesome. ( www.spaworldusa.com )  It boasted all of these different Poultice rooms and a massive pool area with jets, jacuzzis, waterfalls and saunas-- all for a $35 general admission.  The general admission gets you up to 24 consecutive hours worth of spa use as well.  We went to Yelp and read all of the reviews of the place.  It had great reviews, but mentioned  the fact that nakedness in the pool area was mandatory.  Well, we took a couple of hours to decide if we wanted to go and decided it would be worth it despite the awkward naked part.  (Thanks in part to the fact that I wasn't having a "I feel fat" day.)

When you get there you pay the general admission fee and sign up for any spa services you want (or you can sign up later) and then they give you a uniform -of a thick karate uniform style material- consisting of a short sleeved shirt and shorts.  Women wore orange uniforms, men wore yellow uniforms and children wore bright orange uniforms.  They also give you an electronic key that is attached to a bracelet that is used for your shoe locker and your clothes locker.  The key is also waterproof so you can get in the pool with it and it is used as as sort of a credit card if you want to purchase food or spa services.  

First you open your shoe locker out in the entry way and put your shoes in it.  Then you walk barefoot to the men and women's separate locker rooms.  There you can either change into your uniform and head to the unisex common area, or get naked and get in the pool area that is attached to either locker room.  I figured I'd get in the pool first.  My boyfriend opted for the common area.  

So, when I got in the pool area I saw about 10 showers lined up on the wall (with shampoo, soap and conditioner provided), a really big pool area in the middle, two jacuzzis and an ice bath in the back, a massage area on the far right, and this area where women were bathing while sitting on stools.  I found out later from someone I talked to at the spa that the bathing area where women were bathing on little stools is actually a traditionally Asian way to bathe instead of using a shower.  Over to the left was a dry sauna, a wet sauna, a "sunflower shower," and a drying-off area.  There were signs that said you had to shower or bathe before entering the pool, so I did.  I opted for the shower instead of the sitting area.  Then I got in the pool, which is called a Bade pool.  It was really relaxing and had waterfalls and jets in different areas around the pool.  After about 30 minutes of the Bade pool and jacuzzi I went to change into my uniform and head to the unisex common area.

The unisex common area has a large open space in the middle with mats on the ground, televisions on the wall, a juice bar off to the side and a small restaurant. This is also where all of the Poultice rooms are.  There are 7 Poultice rooms with descriptions of what they are supposed to do to you:  

In the rooms there are little wooden blocks for you to lay your head on or softer "pillows."  You can use these to lay down in the rooms or sit with your legs crossed.  Each room had an electronic thermometer on top of the door that told you how hot or cold the room was.  I liked to go into a few hot rooms and get a good sweat on and then cool down in the Ice Room.  

After checking out a few rooms we took a break and had a smoothie from the juice bar.  Then we went back and tried out some more Poultice rooms.  We took another break and ate dinner in the restaurant.  I had a sushi roll and my boyfriend had some sort of soup with beef and noodles.  Both were very good.  Then we decided to get a foot and leg massage.  Off to the sides of the common room were two sets of stairs.  The stairs to the left led to a men's sleeping room, a really wonderful workout room (that I hope to use on my next visit) and an arcade.  On the right was the spa services room where you can get massages in individual rooms, body scrubs, hand and foot massages, manicures, pedicures, waxing, etc.  We both got 30 minute foot massages for $45- tip included.  It was by far the best foot massage I've ever had, and I highly recommend it.  After that we relaxed for a little while longer and then headed home.  We ended up spending about 4 hours at the spa- although next time I'd like to make it an all day event.  It was an awesome experience and I can't wait to go back.