We pulled it off!

Yes, we're hitched! The Big Fun Wisconsin Wedding is behind us. As StfRon's brother-in-law put it, we pulled it off!
Despite some bumps along the way, everything went wonderfully. The weather cooperated beautifully.
We hightailed it north to the UP Sunday afternoon. Along the way, we decided to stop for some take out, and what could be more appropriate than pasties? We found a restaurant called Rosies At Tylenes along our route and ordered two pasties and two iced teas.
It took probably 15 minutes for the pasties to be prepared. And man, were they huge! The nice, flaky pastry was filled with beef, carrots, potatoes and rootabagas and was piping hot, served with a side of brown gravy and creamy cole slaw. We ended up sharing one since they were so large.
The service was very friendly and the restaurant had older decor, a nice hangout for the locals or a quick bite. Plus, the free Wi-Fi was a great bonus.

Takin the show on the road

Tomorrow morning we are hitting the road for our Saturday Big Fun Wisconsin Wedding. Sunday, we plan to head north to Mackinaw City and Island, and Monday we're bound for the east coast.
I won't be blogging locally for a week or two, but I hope to find some great places on the road to blog about during , or maybe just blog about our trip.
If you know of any places we should check out in Wisconsin, Michigan, New York state or points beyond along the east coast, let me know!

Nick-N-Willy's Pizza

OK, so they are not exactly local, but their concept is unique enough, and I don't think they are putting great Mom and Pop pizza joints out of business...
Nick-N-Willy's, with locations in Peoria in the Metro Centre, and off Allen Rd. near the Super Sh!it-Mart, is known for the take & bake pizza concept. You pick up a pre-made pie, toss it in your oven when you get home, and you have fresh gourmet pizza on the table in no time flat.
Dining in, you used to get served a large slice of pizza. Must have been some complaints on the portions or something, because now you get a personal pizza when you dine in. My favorites include the Big Kahuna and the Outback (mmm...bacon).
There are so many great topping combinations to choose from. Nick-N-Willy's also has great salad selections and unique sandwiches. Plus, they carry a huge cookie you can take and bake.

While I'm blogging an N business, I want to give some kudos to Nikki's Cookies of Milwaukee. I was on a quest to find something local, but not perishable, to put in some welcome baskets for distribution at the hotel for our Big Fun Wisconsin Wedding. While in the Milwaukee Public Market, I finally spotted it: Nikki's Cookies! Made in Milwaukee and preservative free to boot! I got online when we got home and ended up ordering them direct from Nikki's Cookies website. They have lemon shortbread cookies, cinnamon butterfly cookies and even Key Lime shortbread cookies, to name a few. I have seen these cookies from time-to-time locally, mostly at tea room gift shops and the like.
I placed an order, and also threw in some toffee cookies for my dad. My order arrived neatly packed a few short days later, complete with ice packs for the toffee cookies, and a handwritten note. In this day and age of Internet shopping, it's rare to see a handwritten note.
In my ordering frenzy, I hadn't realized that the toffee cookies were considered "chocolates" and you are supposed to order a $5 ice pack to keep them cool during shipping in warm months. The note simply stated that they had added the ice pack free of charge to make sure my cookies arrived in the best condition possible, and reminded me that for future orders I should add an ice pack. I appreciated them taking the extra effort to make sure I was pleased with my purchase.
Of course, I sampled a pack of the cookies as well, to make sure no one would be disappointed. Very good!

Paparazzi

I remember hearing of the mysterious Paparazzi restaurant in Peoria Heights when I was in high school, but I never had figured out where it was. This was in the days before Google Maps and all of those great things.
A few years back, I would take walks down Harvard Ave. to Prospect (Harvard changes into Lake), and lo and behold, tucked next to some industrial buildings, there was Paparazzi.
My friends and I booked our Christmas dinner there a few years ago, and I finally got to check the place out.
Dining there, you almost feel like you are in a basement or something, albeit a great basement. The cement block walls are painted in thick bands of green, white and red in honor of the Italian flag colors. Black and white photos grace the walls.
The service is always wonderful when I visit Paparazzi, the last time being Saturday night. I had my usual dish I settled on after my first couple of visits, the stuffed filet of sole. The sole is stuffed with spinach and cheese, then broiled to perfection. It's served accompanied by a tomato half stuffed with ricotta cheese and herbs, which I use to dip my fish in.
The house wine prices are great here, about $3 for a glass and $14 for a bottle, and they serve it in the stubby European glasses, which I think is a cool touch. Buca di Beppo (gasp...a chain!) does this as well, and we love it there. We love it so much, in fact, we're having our wedding dinner there in July, after our Big Fun Wisconsin Wedding.
Back to Paparazzi...StfRon has also settled on his favorite dish there, the lasagna. It isn't as meaty as some, so, based on a great recommendation from our waitress one time, he orders it with a side of meatballs. Perfection, says he.
And last, the icing on the cake...Paparazzi's desserts. They are Divine, with a capital D. They have a gelato of the day, cannoli, rum cake, and the be all to end all chocolate mousse, if you ask me. This mousse is FANTASTIC! It tastes to me like it has the cannoli filling mixed in with the chocolatey goodness. It isn't as whipped as some, but the flavor is excellent. We like it topped with the raspberry sauce, and we're in heaven. Several times I've had to hold myself back from licking the glass they serve it in!
Paparazzi features live music some nights, and the prices can be reasonable for dinner. Keep in mind that salads, soup and I think even bread, cost extra.
We have been turned away before due to not having reservations, so if you plan to check it out, you might want to call ahead.