Everyone knows I love a good city market.

It's such a cool gathering space where you can relax, get some work done and get a tasty bite to eat.

At St. Roch Market, there are a ton of great vendors. Let's go!

Coast Roast
This place had delicious coffee, including this iced coffee.









Fete au Fete
This is southern cuisine done right. I ordered "Trash Grits," because of course - creamy cheese grits with smoked pulled pork, grilled onions, smoked gouda, siracha sauce, and a poached egg. Wow.









Bittersweet Confections
The "caramel trio" that I got from here will haunt my dreams for life. And that cheddar scone was good, too!

Arnaud's Restaurant is a fine dining establishment in the heart of New Orleans.

In 1918, a colorful, French wine salesman named Arnaud Cazenave opened the grand New Orleans restaurant that bears his name with a commitment to serving quality Creole cuisine. Arnaud believed, quite simply, that the pursuit of the pleasures of the table is as worthy as anything else one chooses to pursue in life. 

Sixty years later, in 1978, Arnaud’s was acquired by Archie and Jane Casbarian, the second family of proprietors the restaurant has ever known. Casbarian sought to return Arnaud’s to the roots from which it had strayed by both restoring the property and reinvigorating the cuisine. In so doing, Casbarian brought world renown and widespread acclaim to Arnaud’s. 

Presently, Arnaud’s Restaurant is being operated by a fourth generation of owners, Katy and Archie Casbarian along with their mother Jane. They, too, remain committed to carrying on the traditions originated by Arnaud Cazenave. More importantly, they are committed to staying true to the vision of their father as the restaurant nears one hundred years of operation.

I made reservations at this fancy restaurant after Kaitlynn already headed out of town, but the staff made me feel completely comfortable.

The menu is elaborate, and every single item sounded delicious.

First, some fresh, warm bread! I love this - every restaurant here does it!

I ultimately decided on "Crabmeat Karen" - Delectable Louisiana crabmeat and mushrooms baked in puff pastry. Served with White Wine Sauce.

And, oh my gosh, look at how cute this thing is.



It's like a potpie with crabmeat and mushrooms. You can't really go wrong with that.






And then they convinced me to get pecan pie. I couldn't help myself: Old Fashioned Pecan Pie - Served with whipped cream, spiced pecans and Salted Caramel.

I think I had to roll home this night.

Sweet Charity is one of my favorite events of the year. Hosted by Faith in Action of the Greater Kanawha Valley, this event benefits seniors in the local area. What does that mean? Helping take them to doctor's appointments, the grocery store, helping fix little household projects and more.

Area bakers come together to bring their sweetest sweet to battle it out for who has the best bite. With a panel of celebrity judges, music, live painting, silent auctions, this event truly goes all out.

This year, seven entrants competed: Delights by Davis, Cafe Appalachia, Chef Holly McCallister, Sugar Momma Sweets, Edgewood Summit, Ms. Goovy's Kitchen, and Rock City Cake Company.

Celebrity judges included Quincy Wilson, Chef Paul Smith, Steven Keith, and Amanda Barren.

Adam Harris hosted the event, and Steve Himes played music. Ian Bode painted the event live. Mea Cuppa Coffee Bar was there, and United Diary Milk supplied milk.

It was truly an amazing collaboration - plus incredible sponsors who donated money and products.

When I wasn't running around like a crazy person, I was trying to snap some shots of treats.

Ms. Groovy's Kitchen - ice cream bar with a variety of brownies like strawberry, topped with vanilla or chocolate ice cream, whipped cream and things like: sprinkles, bananas, strawberries, fruity pebbles, syrups and more.


Rock City Cake Company - three kinds of cupcakes: white chocolate raspberry, banana pudding, and the sugar coma.

Chef Holly McCallister - this was a blueberry lemon treat.



Edgewood Summit - banana bread pudding

Cafe Appalachia - pecan cups, orange cupcakes, and more

Sugar Momma Sweets - ice cream-themed cookies

Delights By Davis - red velvet brownies, blueberry brownies

When I was walking back to my hotel, I passed "Cafe Beignet," and decided to get my coffee fix.

This small shop is sweet looking, and even had live music while I was there!

Café Beignet is a cup full of New Orleans’ best European traditions. For two hundred years, New Orleanians have savored every sip of their rich coffee accompanied by delicate, crisp beignets (ben-yays). 

These golden squares, usually dusted with powdered confectioner's sugar, can best be described as a cross between a French pastry and an American doughnut. In New Orleans, beignets are enjoyed at a breakfast, for dessert, or any time for a special treat. 

New Orleans’ Café Beignet provides a grand cafe setting outside and in, and the best coffee and beignets anywhere. Breakfast Served All Day. New Orleans Cajun Specialties and Fried Seafood Also Available.

So, I ended up actually getting a hot chocolate. But it was fabulous!

As a girl scout alum, I nerd out a little bit when it's Girl Scout Cookie Season. The cookie offerings change a little bit from year to year, but the mainstays remain the same.



Since I was a kid, my favorites were Samoas. And Tagalongs. And I've added Thin Mints into the mix as I've gotten older.

But what I didn't realize until a few years ago is that there are two major bakeries who supply the Girl Scouts with their cookies - and they make slightly different versions of our favorite cookies.

There's ABC Bakery and Little Brownie Bakers, and the local troops decide which bakery they go with. Most of the ones in the tri-state area are Little Brownie Bakers.

So that means I've become familiar with Samoas, Tagalongs, Do-Si-Dos, and Trefoils. And, in recent years, they've added Savannah Smiles (crisp, lemony cookies dusted with powdered sugar) and S'mores (Sandwich-style with frosting and fudge; hints of maple).

Meanwhile, those who are used to ABC Bakery know Samoas as "Caramel deLites," Tagalongs as "Peanut Butter Patties," Do-Si-Dos as "Peanut Butter Sandwiches," and Trefoils as "Shortbread." And when they introduced their lemon cookie and their s'mores cookie, they were totally different.

Instead of a crisp, lemony cookie dusted with powdered sugar, ABC makes "Lemonades," which are shortbread cookies with a lemon icing. Instead of a sandwich-style cookie with frosting and fudge for "smores," they've made a chocolate-covered graham cracker with a layer of vanilla and marshmallow.

But, with my local girl scouts only using Little Brownie, there was no way for me to try the other kinds. That is, until I visited Kansas and saw Girl Scouts set up outside and stumbled upon the fact that they use ABC Bakery. So of course I had to at least try the s'mores and lemon cookies.











Here are the s'mores cookies and the lemon cookies compared.