Decorator Show House

Last night my friend Mary, my daughter and myself went to see the Decorators' Show House. We had gone to see it for the preview showing before they did all the decorating, so we wanted to be sure to see it when it was done.

It looked really nice, although some of the items I couldn't imagine in my home. The most bizarre item of the night was the glass mobile over the crib in the baby's room. Not too practical! I was surprised by the number of people there on a Tuesday night...I can't imagine what it's like on the weekend.

The show house will be open until May 22nd, admission is $20. It is located at 360 Depew Avenue, Buffalo

Fun at the National Museum of Play

A couple weeks ago my husband, me and our youngest son spent the day at the National Museum of Play (Strong Museum) in Rochester. Our son, who is almost nine, just loves that place. You really need to spend the whole day there to fully enjoy it.

One of the newer exhibits, e-Game Revolution, features video games from the last 40 years or so. My son just loved playing the vintage game..okay, my husband and I liked them too...only we remember them when they were new. sigh.

My son also enjoyed the Tinkertoy exhibit, since he loves to build things. And no trip to the museum would be compete without visiting the kid-size Wegmans, Reading Adventureland, and Sesame Street. The museum is also home to the National Toy Hall of Fame. For more info, visit their website http://www.museumofplay.org/

Upcoming events include the RIT Big Shot Project on Thursday May 5 at 7:45pm, an outdoor community photography project (bring a flashlight). There will also be a performance of If You Give a Mouse a Cookie at the museum Friday May 6 at 6pm and Saturday May 7 at 11am and 1pm.

National Museum of Play, One Manhattan Square, Rochester 585-263-2700

Check out my articles in Longweekends Magazine

I have four articles in the current issue of Longweekends Magazine, a regional publication which covers several states. My articles include the National Buffalo Wing Fest, Olcott Beach Carousel Park, Rock City Park and the Little League Museum in Williamsport, PA.

You can view these articles, along with many others, online at www.long-weekends.com. Click on New York and it will take you to the page with the first three articles; scroll down to the one you want to read and click on it. The Little League Museum article is under Pennsylvania

Good food in unexpected places

Last week I mentioned that I had a good meal at the Grill at the Dome at the Paddock Chevrolet Golf Dome. This week I found an even more unusual place to have a good meal...the car wash!

Delta Sonic at Maple and Niagara Falls Boulevard serves one of the best turkey sandwiches I've ever tasted. It's actually their signature menu item. It's piled high with REAL carved turkey, like the kind you'd eat on Thanksgiving. Yummy!

They have a store and cafe in the waiting area, so while you get your car detailed or get an oil change, you can enjoy a bite to eat. You could even come there if you weren't getting your car serviced. Take out is available.

You place your order via a touch screen, addling toppings such as lettuce, tomato, onion, and cheese. Condiments include their cranberry mayonnaise, my topping of choice. Since I was having my car vacuumed and shampooed, I had time to have lunch. I've been here before and had the turkey sandwich, so I planned to take the car in at lunch time.

The other foods on the menu looked good too, pizza, sandwiches, salads, paninis, soups, and more. Someone was thinking when they put this cafe in here. If you re going to sit and wait, might as well have something to eat.

Good food at the Grill at the Dome

Sometimes you find a really good restaurant in the most unlikely place. My friend Tess suggested that we go out for a fish fry today. I didn't want to travel too far from her house, so I googled restaurants in Amherst/Tonawanda and saw that the Grill at the Dome at the Paddock Chevrolet Golf Dome was not too far from her home. A quick look at their website showed that they served a Friday only fish fry, so we thought we'd give it a try.

The food was really good! The fish fry was enormous and served with coleslaw and choice of potatoes. Several people at tables near us were enjoying wraps, lwhich ooked really good and also enormous. The menu also has burgers, sandwiches and other pub food, as it is sort of like a sports bar. Definitely a place I'd like to return to. One could even shoot a bucket of balls before or after lunch!

The Grill at the Dome, 175 Brompton Road, Tonawanda, 716-504-4745, http://www.thegrillatthedome.com/

Good restaurants to try

In the past week my daughter and I tried out a couple of restaurants we had never been to before.

Uncle Joe's Diner in Hamburg is a '50's style diner with really good food and enormous portions. They have a variety of comfort foods including salads, wraps, burgers, sandwiches, wings, and home cooked diners like rotisserie chicken, roast beef, roast turkey with stuffing, and Joe's home-made meatloaf. They also serve pasta and seafood dishes. I had the hamburger, which in our opinion, was the best burger we ever tasted! My daughter had the chicken fingers, which were also very good.

Uncle Joe's Diner, 4869 Southwestern Blvd., Hamburg 716-648-7154 www.unclejoesdiner.com

We ate at Salsarita's Cantina last night, a Mexican chain restaurant, which has 80 locations in 17 states. There are three location in the Buffalo area: 110 W. Chippewa in Buffalo, 3901 Union Road in Cheektowaga, and 4375 Transit Road in Clarence. Menu items include burritos, quesadillas, tacos, nachos, Mexican pizza, and salads. Everything is made to order. I had a chicken quesadillas and my daughter had a salad in one of those big shells. Both were very good.

Wine and Art Weekend

Here is a copy of a press release I received a few weeks ago about Wine and Art Weekend in Lake Erie Wine Country. Sounds like a fun event!

For Immediate Release March 16, 2011 Contact: Julie Pfadt, executive director (814) 746-8414 Lake Erie Wine Country to Host Popular Wine & Art Weekend

Lake Erie Wine Country, an association of 23 wineries between Silver Creek, NY and North East, PA, announces its annual Wine & Art Weekend which will be held Saturday, April 9th and Sunday, April 10th. Guests will enjoy wine tasting while perusing works of art by 37 member artists of the North Shore Arts Alliance in Chautauqua County and the North East (PA) Arts Council.

Many of the artists will be on hand at the 21 participating wineries to display, sell, and demonstrate - from painters and sculptors to photographers and glass artisans. Featured artists include eleven members of the Chautauqua-Lake Erie Art Trail, the North Shore Arts Alliance’s signature event.

This is a FREE EVENT. No tickets or reservations are required! Event hours are 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. each day. Guests are invited to stop at any of the participating wineries in any order to enjoy wine and art--a natural pairing. For winery locations or other information, see: http://www.lakeeriewinecountry.org/, www.facebook.com/LakeErieWineCountry . For more information on participating artists, see http://www.northshoreartsalliance.com/.

Lake Erie Wine Country, formerly the Chautauqua-Lake Erie Wine Trail, is a non-profit organization founded to “support and to market the wine and grape industries in Chautauqua County, New York and Erie County, Pennsylvania through the promotion of excellence in wine products, in winery and associate member facilities, and in the tourism experience in the region.”

Featured Artists at New York Wineries:

Blueberry Sky Farm Winery: Susan Wolfe (Painting) and Audrey Dowling (Painting)

Johnson Estate Winery: Lilla Johnson (Painting) and Sue Murphy (Jewelry)

Liberty Vineyard: Lori Deemer (Photography/Painting) and Susan Mackay (Painting)

Mazza Chautauqua Cellars: Linda Yates (Painting) and Denise Williams (Stained Glass)

Merritt Estate Winery: Patrick Del Monte (Wood Turning) and Barbara Del Monte (Photography) and Steve Lax (Photography)

Noble Winery: James Hoggard (Photography) and Susan Wolfe (Painting)

Quincy Cellars Winery: Trenton Lutes (Photography/Painting) and Nancy Nixon (Painting)

Schloss Doepken Winery: Featuring a work by Nancy Nixon (Painting)

Sensory Winery: Mo Ferree (Painting), Trenton Lutes (Photography/Painting), and Nancy Nixon (Painting)

Seven Vines Winery: Bill Karrow (Photography)

Sparkling Ponds Winery: George Petrella (Painting)

Vetter Vineyards Winery: Thomas Annear (Painting)

Willow Creek Winery: Steve Yunghans (Painting), and Sara McCutcheon (Jewelry)

Woodbury Vineyards: Thomas Janik (Photography)

Featured Artists at Pennsylvania Wineries:

Burch Farms Winery: Zach Cacchione (Glass Artist), Heather Hakel (Painting) and Jack Paluh (Painting)

Courtyard Wineries: Sue Rochester (Painting), Tom Ferraro (Painting), Sandi Elkin (Painting), and Christine French (Mixed-Media)

Lakeview Wine Cellars: Laura Nelson (Ukrainian Egg Painting), Peggy Campbell (Photography & Mixed Media), and Sara Frye (Stained Glass)

Mazza Vineyards: Bob Jensen (Metal Sculpture)

Penn Shore Vineyards: Mary Hamilton (Watercolor), Jason Abrams (Glass Artist), and Toni Kelly (Watercolors & Calligraphy)

Presque Isle Wine Cellars: Tajana Roehl (Photography), and Tamara Maas (Painting)

South Shore Wine Company: Vanessa Mazza (Mixed Media), John Ballard (Woodworking), Ed Bernik (Photography)

Julie Pfadt Executive Director Lake Erie Wine Country (814) 746-8414

Office Hours: part-time, generally mornings, or by appointment http://www.lakeeriewinecountry.org/ www.Facebook.com/LakeErieWineCountry @LakeErieWines on Twitter