surprise date - patio edition

Saturday evening, we'd planned to stay in. Then, a little while after showing Wildcat Guy a scrapbook page I'd made that afternoon of my 2012 birthday dinner (eaten on the patio of one of my then-favorite restaurants back in Lexington), I was somewhat surprised to hear him say we should go out for dinner. When I asked him where he wanted to go - Crispelli's, a local pizzeria, he said - it all made sense, though. The one and only time we've been there, we ate on the patio.

I like it when I can understand my husband's logic!

Thus, it was off to Crispelli's we went! As yummy as I knew the meal I'd planned to cook would be, I am never going to turn down the treat of going out to dinner on a Saturday night with my love.

Something I appreciate deeply about our dinners out is being in a situation now where, after some very tightly budgeted months when we first moved to Michigan, we can be a little less frugal these days. I may not always order a cocktail with dinner, but it's nice to feel okay splurging when I see something tempting on the drinks list!

So while Wildcat Guy enjoyed his Italian margarita (complete with a floater of amaretto), I sipped on a Moscow Mule. Ever since I tried a Dark & Stormy on our anniversary vacation in 2014, I've found myself drawn to cocktails with ginger beer; and this did not disappoint. (On a side note, I also appreciated that the drinks seemed to be poured with a moderately generous hand - even if it meant my cheeks were strongly flushed only a few sips in.)

The last time we were here, we'd really enjoyed the pizza. So Wildcat Guy decided to build his own deep dish, topped with sausage, bacon, tomatoes, and caramelized onions. Those onions - mmm.

I had a harder time deciding, because the menu is just full of delicious-sounding options. In the end, I went with the flank steak sandwich; and nothing makes you feel quite as confident in your selection as having your server respond by saying, "Excellent!" 

And excellent, it certainly was. The sourdough bread was perfect, the meat was flavorful - I savored every bite of it.

Then, as if the good food and tasty drinks weren't enough, we went for dessert. Something I adore about Crispelli's is the way their dessert menu is a perfect reflection of the entire restaurant - a fun blend of elegant and casual. My love chose the chocolate mousse (which was thick and rich and perfectly chocolate-y)...

...while I went for the pure simple delight of a warm chocolate chip cookie. 

Just look at all that chocolate! Sigh. My mouth waters thinking about how yummy that cookie was.

And to bring the story full circle, I can't resist sharing a photo of our table. There's an indoor patio that joins two sections of the restaurant, and our table was on a little balcony-esque landing all on its own. That was fun, to have a somewhat private table. But if you look through the door in the background (labeled "Not an Exit"), you can see the table where we sat (on the outside patio) the first time we visited Crispelli's.

That made me smile one last time at the end of a dinner full of them.