Atmosphere is Everything

There's a Tex-Mex spot near my house that's pretty good. It's called No Mas. It's located up in the art district, up in Castleberry Hill.

(I did some research on Castleberry Hill. It was the red-light district before the Civil War. YIKES).

Anyway, I like it well enough. They have the BEST veggie tacos. I simply love them. They fill them with grilled squash... something like that. All I know is that they are GREAT.

They have a multi-page menu that's a lot to take in. But I always judge a spot on it's veggie tacos.

Anyway, it isn't the food that gets me... It's the atmosphere.

Atmosphere is everything.

And it most likely has something to do with the fact that the cost of the food is a tad bit higher than your everyday combo special from the local Taco Bell.

This place has the best decor I've ever seen in a restaurant.

And I took some pictures the last time I was there for some takeout.

This is the area where you order is a placed where you can just go for dessert and coffee/drinks (from what I understand).

Amazing artwork.

These lights are interesting.

They have a multitude of deserts.

I have never had their desserts, but they look pretty good. Maybe one day.

How awesome is this railing?

I just stared at this artwork. It looks like we might step straight into Mexico if we walk throught those big doors.

We'll step straight into... somewhere.  Or maybe we will just step into a storage closet.

And here's the dining area on the patio.

It was a bit cold that day. Hence no one was eating out on the patio.

Plus it was a weeknight. Quite a few cars in the parking lot, but everyone was inside.

I love going there just to... look. I see something different every time.

And I love their veggie tacos. 

But they surely take atmosphere to another level. 

Happy Moments: Mexican Juice!

So I like to stop at one of my favorite spots from time to time whenever I am in the south suburbs.

I can't pronounce the name of the place. I just call it "La Ox"!

I don't go anymore for the mexican food, though. Well, they have good tacos and burritos. And other stuff I can't pronounce.

They even have a beef chittlerling taco.  There is also a goat taco and a beef tongue taco. And there's a taco stuffed with pork skins. Not sure why anyone would want that. I'll let ya'll work that out. Just give me my bean taco or burrito. Please and thank you. 

This is where the Mexican folks go after church. So you KNOW it must be good.

And I like their salsa bar. They have some type of chili paste that completely vacates my sinuses. Really though.

But I was sitting there with Sam when she was here, actually picking up a menu and looking through it, and I found out they have JUICE...


You know, I don't look much at the menu, but I looked through and figured it out.

I thought those were margaritas or something.  But it's a big azz glass of juice. You can get carrot juice, beet juice or orange juice...

Or a mix of all three.

GLORY!!

I got a mix of all three:

That was good. It tasted like it was straight out of the juicer. That did NOT come out of a bottle. No way.

It is pricey ($6.50), but it is AWESOME. Give me that and some of that good mexican music they have going over the loud speakers, and I am GOOD.  That's a happy moment. I know a little spanish by the time I come out of there!

Thank goodness I don't roll up that way much. It's only a 20 minute drive from my house, but you know how much I hate being in a car too long. And that's too long.

But that juice... That's what I get from now on when I go there.

 Damn the tacos and burritos!

Farmers Market Fun!

This was a super busy weekend for me, but a happy one nevertheless...

I spent Saturday morning with my Play Mama A!! Blogger Adrienne of Adriennne's Little World!

It was good to see her and the chirrens. It sure was. I just wanna hug on them when I see them. They one of the reasons I don't blow a gasket when I'm around my own family. They sure are. Thank ya'll. Ya'll so special and therapercuetic.  (yes I made up a word just then).

Anyway, Mama A has been all excited all week long because she was coming up for blogger Monique's wedding on Sunday (Congratulations, Monique! *throws glitter*).

And she arrived a day early for a day of shopping. And she'd been hollering all week about going to the Dekalb Farmer's Market. So we were going for a little field trip to the Market. Oh joy!

She was all dressed up when she arrived. I didn't understand this at all.

"Why you all dressed up?" I half asked, half hollered.
"I'm not dressed up. This is a maxi dress!"

Maxi dress. Baby blog sister Serenity_23, a shoe and hair and clothes fashionista, had to explain what that was to me a few years ago. I still don't get it. The dress was long. A long dress means that we must be going to a play or banquet or something.

I am a tomboy. I don't understand such things. We were going to the farmer's market. And that means a lot of walking. I thought she should be wearing some sneakers and shorts or something.

But if Mama wants to wear a long dress, let Mama wear her long dress!

I asked her the same question I ask everyone who wants me to take them to the farmer's market on a Saturday...

"Are you sure you want to go? Because it is quite crowded on a Saturday. Are you sure?"

"Yes I am. We will get there when it opens!"

"Alright," I said, as I always say.

We didn't get there first thing. And that was alright. We got there around 10, I believe, which is still a good time.

I love Dekalb's Farmer Market.

I have been going there for 20 years. A classmate and I didn't have much money some 20 years ago. We lived out that way and we would stop in and get a loaf of fresh french bread and pinch off of that and eat it on our way home, which was some 3 miles down the road.

Long french bread baguettes were a $1, back in 1990.  They are $2.99 now in 2013.

Inflation. Sigh.

Anyway, we arrived, and she said what people say when I take them for the first time...

"I'm overwhelmed. I'm overwhelmed. I'm overwhelmed!"

What do you want to see first, Mama? The fruit, or the dry stuff?" I asked.

"I don't know," she said. "I'm just overwhelmed! I'm overwhelmed!"

"I understand that," I said. "Let's just please keep the buggie moving."

Yes. Keep the buggie moving. Because there were a lot of people there. Yet it wasn't as crowded, because it was a little after 10 o'clock. I've been there when it was butt-to-butt crowded like in a club. It is best to go when one can peruse, as if perusing fine art in a museum.

We managed to navigate our way through the place.

No photography is allowed in this place. I have been busted plenty of times. She and the kids were snapping pictures, though.

"Yo, if they run up on ya'll, I'ma act like I don't know ya'll," I warned.

This didn't stop their picture snapping.

Here are a few pics I found on the internet, though.

It was about that crowded when we were there. In another 2 hours, it would be 3 times as many people, which is annoying. That butt-to-butt club feeling is not a good thing while shopping. Sigh.

The kids (and Mama A) were especially enthused with the live seafood area, like this little girl here.

I am not impressed by the live seafood. I don't usually trek over that way. Although there were some live crawfish that looked a little tasty.A few minutes of those suckers boiling in some crab boil would make for some good eating!!!

The cabbage area is near the spices and seasonings...

Play Mama was very overwhelmed by the long spice and seasoning wall... I couldn't find pictures of that wall, but someone took a picture of the dry grains and flour area:

I always take her plenty of yellow grits and rice whenever I go down to visit her. She got some for herself on this trip!

We even went through the hot food bar. I purchased some curried chicken samosas for them, and they liked those.

All in all, it was a good time. It was only a couple of hours of time together, but it was a good couple of hours. Always glad to see them!

I had been wanting to play a song for her son AJ, but I keep forgetting. I remembered when we were in the truck and I played it for him.

It is my song of the week... AJ Scratch by Kurtis Blow.

LOL. Poor AJ. He remained calm while hearing this song. I don't know if it was calm or shock. I was singing REALLY hard, so I know that in itself would traumatize any child. Yes indeed.

I tell you one thing, though.

You best not EVER let me find a song with my name or nickname in it! I would be sanging it HARD all day long!

"LadyLee!!!!???? Ladyleeeeeeeeee!!!!!"

*hard fervent rockette kicks*

LOL.

It was sooooooo good to see Mama and the chirrens. We had such a good time!

I sure do hope ya'll come back so we can do it all over again!