Local, Near and Far: Our journey of exploring the world.

Category: Reviews (Page 6 of 12)

Gear Review: Scarpa Mojito Shoes

Every Friday we take a break from our regular blogging schedule to allow the authors an opportunity to feature a certain topic they are passionate about. In the past you’ve read about art, studying abroad, experiencing culture through food, and the great burger adventure. Through this and other future posts we hope you’ll enjoy reading, we hope to share with you our personalities, passions, and interests on a more personal level.

When David and I were preparing for our Italy trip, we talked about doing some hiking between the cities in Cinque Terra. David had done some research and found out that there was a nice trail between the cities that was paved. Later on, we would learn that one of the trails was having some construction work done on it, and we would have a harder and more difficult hike through the Italian countryside, but that is a story for another day.

As we prepared for our trip and were thinking about the various terrains we would be on: asphalt, cobblestone, light hiking trails, sand, and some others, we started to think about shoes that would work best for this trip. Taking a backpack so that we could be mobile, we didn’t want to have the limited space taken up by several pairs of shoes. David had decided he was going to take his hiking boots, but I didn’t have any hiking boots at the time. That led me back to Backwoods to find a shoe that could handle the terrain and wouldn’t be too heavy.

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Lakewood Brewing Company

A few weeks ago, I was presented with another free Saturday, as Rebekah was working. After a great time the previous month checking out some new Fort Worth-area breweries, Shannon Brewing Company and Bearded Eel Craft Brewery (now closed permanently), I knew it was time to trek to the Dallas side of the craft beer scene. I met up with my good friend J-Higs, and had a tasty beer crawl across the eastern part of the Metroplex starting at Lakewood Brewing Company in Garland, and  finishing at FireWheel Brewing Company (now closed permanently), 20 minutes east in Rowlett.

First on the agenda, Lakewood Brewing Company. I had heard great things about this brewery, and I remembered enjoying its flagship beer: The Temptress. This brewery, producing great beer since 2011, is becoming big in the Texas craft beer scene and I wanted to know more!

Exterior of Lakewood Brewing Company

Let’s take a look at Lakewood Brewing based on our Brewery Grading Scale. Continue reading

Pacific Table Review – Fort Worth

After moving back from Chicago to the DFW area and with a newborn doing newborn things , Rachel and I were looking to have a nice date night. This was our first date night since the baby was born, so we wanted to do something special. Rachel did some research and we decided on Pacific Table.

Tucked away in the back of University Park Village, not far from Blue Mesa, is the wonderfully unique Pacific Table.  It is a restaurant that as you guessed, celebrates the Pacific Northwest. With a main focus on seafood, including sushi, Pacific Table also offers a variety of sandwiches, salads, and a few chicken and beef dishes.

Upon stepping into the restaurant, the modern interior and feel celebrates the Pacific Northwest. The option for  covered patio seating  is available which can be used in the winter and summer months as well as a communal table that is offered in case you want to get cozy with some strangers.

After arriving and being seated, we were greeted with wonderful service throughout the night. The waiter was knowledgeable and shared his recommendations. Because the sushi does not have a description of all that is in it, we had to ask several questions but the waiter was fantastic in knowing the answers and helping us decide. There were several people walking through the restaurant to make sure glasses didn’t get empty. Overall, the prompt and courteous service was a positive and helped make this an enjoyable experience.

Pacific Table sushi

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Firestone & Robertson Distilling Company

What exactly is bourbon? Being a beer guy, I don’t know much about liquors. But on a Tuesday night, I was going to get a lesson in bourbon at a local distillery in downtown Fort Worth! Joining Chris, Ray and some other friends for a tour of Firestone & Robertson Distilling Company, I was ready to learn and in this amazing environment, I picked up a basic education in bourbon.

Column Distiller

Column Distiller

Firestone & Robertson Distilling Company is housed in a renovated 1920s prohibition-era warehouse just south of downtown. This convenient location comes complete with plenty of street parking, making for easy logistics. The tour begins in the warehouse area, which is full of bourbon barrels, stacked neatly along the walls. The atmosphere is stellar!

It amazes me how distilleries operate. For at least 2 years, they don’t sell their product. After 2 years of aging, the product can be sold as bourbon. However, to be considered straight bourbon, the liquid must age at least 4 years. Firestone & Robertson (F&R) wants to bottle straight bourbon, so they must wait. FOUR long years.

The distillery opened its doors in 2012, and has since barreled their Texan take on bourbon. Outside of the staff, no one has tasted their aged bourbon since.

Before you can begin aging, you must first make the bourbon base. So, what makes bourbon, bourbon?

Fermentation Tanks

Fermentation Tanks

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Kids Who Care

Every Friday we take a break from our regular blogging schedule to allow the authors an opportunity to feature a certain topic they are passionate about. In the past you’ve read about art, studying abroad, experiencing culture through food, and the great burger adventure. Through this and other future posts we hope you’ll enjoy reading, we hope to share with you our personalities, passions, and interests on a more personal level.

When you can’t travel overseas, bring the world to you!

Here at From Texas to Beyond, we love to travel overseas; but as we all know, sometimes money, time, and other responsibilities limit these opportunities.  That does not have to stop you from experiencing and learning about our world.  In the DFW area there are hundreds, if not thousands of opportunities to meet people from around the world, feast on their traditional cuisine, encounter art, and experience music and dance performances that introduce you to different instruments and rhythms.

Arrival of the International Students

Arrival of the International Students

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