Restaurants – KBStyled

5th & Taylor – Nashville Restaurant Review

kbstyled — Tue, 08 May 2018 14:11:00 +0000

Photography by Madi Flournoy Henderson

Featured Restaurant: 5th and Taylor

I’ll always remember the first time that we ate at 5th and Taylor…we were relatively new to Nashville and didn’t know much about the Germantown area but we had a list of places that we wanted to try. Peter and I ate there for dinner and I remember thinking how good it was…especially the sausage biscuits (a MUST HAVE if you eat there).

Since my first time, I have been there for many other occasions, the last occasion being a girls night out! You can enjoy 5th and Taylor for any occasion and this time of year the patio is open, which makes for such a pleasant dining experience outside as well.The space is warm and inviting with unique and interesting art throughout. My most favorite thing about the decor at 5th and Taylor is the candlelight. It makes you feel as if you are in your own home having an intimate dinner with those closest to you. They have the best fiddle leaf fig trees too!

During our recent visit, Chef Daniel prepared several amazing dishes for us. Of course we had to start with the sausage cheddar biscuits and as I said, these are a MUST. I can promise you, try these one time and you will crave them every time.

After devouring the sausage cheddar biscuits, we enjoyed two different salads. The first salad was an octopus salad with an avocado vinaigrette. The Spanish octopus was served frisse, avocado, lemon supremes, and crispy sunchoke. Think fresh, light, and delicious! We really enjoyed this salad!

Next up…a beet salad! I’m not a huge fan of beets but I’ve got to tell you, if I’m ever to eat beets, it will be this particular salad. The beets are roasted and served with avocado, orange supreme, caramelized onions, olive oil, and micro greens. Before the beets are strategically placed on the dish, they are tossed in a herb and citrus vinaigrette. This salad takes beets to a whole new level!

Now onto the main dishes that we tried. The first dish was wild caught halibut which was panseared until crispy and lightly browned. It was served with braised watercress and spinach with a calabrain chili. It was light airy and satisfying. The flavors were delicious!

The second main course that we tried as the Venison. At first I was timid to try this as I had only eaten venison a time or two before but it looked so delicious so it was hard for me to resist. I’m so glad I tried it! The venison is free range from New Zealand and it was served atop of caramelized leeks, maitake mushrooms and hen of woods mushrooms. It was finished with a black trumpet demi glaze and a huckleberry gastrique. In other words…it was delicious and the various flavors made for a perfect combination. Oh…and I can’t forget, we were served some of the most delicious mashed potatoes I have ever eaten…also a MUST to any main course that you may order!

This is only a tiny peek into the variety of dishes that Chef Daniel and his team create! I highly recommend that you put 5th and Taylor on our list of restaurants to try. You won’t be disappointed! Make sure you call ahead and make a reservation!

And while you are there, plan to go to the Back Corner if you are looking to take your night from dinner to dancing! The Back Corner is a really fun spot off the beaten path!

As always, thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you have a great day!

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L.A. Jackson – Nashville Rooftop Bar

kbstyled — Wed, 14 Mar 2018 05:31:00 +0000

Photography by Madi Flournoy Henderson

YELLOW TIE NECK DRESS || TASSEL EARRINGS || HANDBAG || RINGS

Spring is near which means everyone will be coming out of hibernation soon and enjoy more sunshine, longer days, and hopefully much warmer temps! Nashvillians and visitors alike will begin to fill outdoor restaurants tables for apps & drinks after work, weekend dinners, and evenings out on the town.

One of my personal favorite spots to spend time (from Spring through Fall) is L.A Jackson at Thompson Nashville, which is located in the Gulch. L.A. Jackson is known for it’s chic rooftop bar and it’s delicious craft cocktails! They also offer small plates if you want to enjoy an app while enjoying one of their craft cocktails. Their frose is one of my personal favorites…you’ve got to try it, soooooo good!

The bar is large and spacious…there are plenty of places to sit inside and there is an open walkway that opens up to the rooftop bar. Once out on the rooftop, you will be able to find cozy benches and chairs that create an inviting space so you can truly enjoy a great evening out!

If traveling to Nashville, you must stop by L.A. Jackson to enjoy the views and one of their craft cocktails. I suggest that you eat at Marsh House first and then make your way up to the rooftop. If you missed my post about Marsh House, also in Thompson Nashville, you can check that out HERE.

As always, thanks so much for stopping by and I hope you have a great day!

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Marsh House at Thompson Hotel – Nashville Dining Experience Review

kbstyled — Thu, 01 Mar 2018 01:46:00 +0000

Photography by Madi Henderson

DRESS || MOTO JACKET || BOOTS C/O EUGENIA KIM || RINGS || EARRINGS

Since 2012, the year that we moved to Nashville, I’ve been on a personal mission to experience some of Nashville’s top restaurants. So much positive change has taken place over the last several years and there are more and more amazing restaurants popping up all over town. As you can imagine my list of restaurants continues to grow and I haven’t even scratched the surface yet.

On my list of top restaurants to try was Marsh House, which is located inside the Thompson Nashville hotel in the ever so popular Gulch area. The first time I visited Marsh House was for a breakfast meeting so I only got a very tiny taste of their menu (I’ve got to say their biscuits and jam are HEAVENLY).

My second visit was for lunch and we got to taste test their weekly lunch specials in addition to a few other dishes and it was quite the culinary experience!

Marsh House is located in a prime location of Nashville as I mentioned, called the Gulch. This is a very popular area for locals and visitors alike. You can certainly dine and shop your way through the Gulch…this area has so much to offer. Thompson Nashville is a chic modern hotel situated in the Gulch and Marsh House is situated in the lobby of the hotel. Not only do I highly recommend that you consider staying at Thompson Nashville when visiting Nashville but I also highly recommend that you eat at Marsh House and that you enjoy the popular rooftop bar, LA Jackson. The views from LA Jackson are something to see (more on that coming soon)!

Let’s dive into our experience at Marsh House…

You first should know a bit about Executive Chef, Nathan Duensing. We spent some time chatting with Nathan, as he presented each dish to us, and I’ve got to say we were so impressed with his background and his culinary knowledge/experience. Nathan grew up on a farm so he knows first hand what it takes to grow and preserve food. Learning much from his Grandfather & Father, Nathan took that knowledge and has applied it throughout his successful career as a Chef. He understands the importance of high quality food and he also works with local Nashville farmers as often as possible to bring fresh locally sourced produce/meats to the tables at Marsh House. Much of what is offered at Marsh House is influenced by traditional southern cuisine with a hint of Louisiana flare.

The atmosphere of Marsh House is chic and modern with a touch of urban charm. There are different textures, colors, and elements to the restaurant that easily make you feel like you are dining in style. It is a comfortable, not stuffy at all, atmosphere. Marsh House is one of those restaurants that you will go to for a business lunch, date night, girls night out, and everything in between and leave there feeling like you had the best experience from start to finish. It will be a memorable experience and Marsh House will be a place that you will want to recommend to others and return to as well!

We went for lunch during the workweek and were pleasantly surprised to learn that Thompson Nashville offers complimentary valet from 11am-3pm during the week. Being able to take advantage of this complimentary service made it so easy to drop in for lunch and it also added to our overall positive experience!

Okay…whose ready to talk about food?! If the pictures didn’t make your mouth water, I’m not sure what will.

We started off with their rolls…I mean rolls are rolls but these rolls are not just rolls. Could I possibly say ROLLS anymore in a sentence. With every bite we could taste how fresh they were. So light and so delicious. It would be easy to eat an entire skillet of these but we had to pace ourselves because we had a lot more to try!

Here comes Monday’s lunch special…

Red Beans & Rice – this dish wasn’t just your average red beans & rice…it was the most flavorful red beans & rice I have ever had! The pork chop was mouth watering and so tender. The combination of the dishes flavors served with a side tomato cucumber salad was…sigh, what good southern cooking dreams are made of! A bite of this and a bite of that…YUM!

Wednesday’s lunch special took us down to the deep south of Louisiana…

Shrimp Creole – if you like shrimp and grits, you will LOVE this dish as it is very similar. It’s spicy but not too spicy…the perfect combination of creole flavors. This dish is served with a grilled squash and beet salad which is truly the perfect compliment to offset the mild spiciness of this dish.

Thursday’s special…what a southern girls dreams are made of…

Fried Chicken – It’s not often that I eat fried chicken but this is hands down some of the best fried chicken I have EVER had. I don’t say that lightly because I’ve had some of the best. The method that Chef Nathan uses to flash fry the chicken creates a moist (yes, I don’t like that word either) and super flavorful dish. This was probably my favorite dish of the 4 that we tried and one that I will order time and time again! Everything about this dish was perfection, truly!

Friday’s special…finishing it off light and healthy…

Blackened Catfish – Opt in for a lighter lunch option with this dish…the fish was tender and cooked perfectly and the wild rice salad, roasted tomatoes, and sautéed spinach were the perfect compliments to this stand out fish. I LOVED this dish as well…it fought hard for the top spot! I truly felt that I was eating a very healthy lunch while still feeling very satisfied! You’ve got to try this one as well.

The only special that we did not try was Tuesday’s lunch special but I am certain that it would be just as divine as the other four. We also ate a side of their brussel sprouts and let me just tell you…I could have eaten bowl after bowl of just brussel sprouts. They were so dang good!!!

What I love most about the lunch specials at Marsh House, besides the fact that they are all freaking fantastic, is that they all only cost $15! You get a delicious hand crafted meal that will leave you feeling satisfied at such a great price! There aren’t many places that you can go for lunch, spend $15 dollars, and receive a high quality meal.

So for all of you who work in or near the Gulch area, you need to make it a point to lunch at Marsh House!

For those coming to Nashville to visit…stay at Thompson Nashville and dine in at Marsh House for breakfast, lunch, or dinner…I assure you that you will have a wonderful experience and be delighted with their culinary prowess!

As always, thank you for stopping by! Special thanks to the Marsh House team and Chef Nathan for such a wonderful, memorably delicious, culinary experience. We will be back soon!

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Fairmont Mayakoba, Riviera Maya – Resort Review

kbstyled — Tue, 06 Jun 2017 12:50:00 +0000

FAIRMONT MAYAKOBA, RIVIERA MAYA

Photo credit: Hallie Duesenberg

WOW…where do I begin! I’m pretty certain that I need to begin my review of the Fairmont Mayakoba – Riviera Maya by saying that this was hands down one of my absolute favorite resorts in Mexico! We’ve been fortunate to travel to various parts of Mexico over the years but we have never traveled to Riviera Maya and I’m so thrilled that I was able to experience this part of Mexico. I’m soooo excited to share my review with you all today…I LOVED my time at Fairmont Mayakoba so much and I cannot wait to go back! I’ve already told Peter that we need to start planning so he can go and enjoy the resort with me as well!

I’ll start with a bit about my travel…I flew from Nashville to Miami and then Miami to Cancun. The flights were rather quick and once I landed in Cancun, Fairmont Mayakoba had a car service waiting there for me for pick up (which I highly recommend that you work with the resort to organize). It only took about 35 minutes to get to the resort from the airport…again very simple and a very smooth transportation transport.

Once I arrived to the resort, I was greeted by the most lovely and friendly staff. They were eager to help and I could tell how proud they were to show me around the resort. After all, they have so much to be proud of…Fairmont Mayakoba is absolutely beautiful. From the moment I set foot on the property, I could immediately tell how clean and well kept the resort is. Again, everyone takes pride in this beautiful resort and it is evident in all of the special touches that you will discover throughout the property.

I stayed in a Signature Casita Room, situated within the beautiful tropical forest with beautiful views of the emerald green water canals that wind throughout the property. As you can see from the images above, the room was beautiful and spacious. Of course I was so impressed with the large spacious bathroom, the soaking tub, and the water canal view that I had right off of my ground level balcony. It was so peaceful being immersed right into the tropical forest. There was wild life all over and added to the feeling of a tropical vacation.

One of the best surprises that I received upon arrival was a fresh bowl of guacamole and cold cerveza as well. The guac was some of the BEST I have ever had…and for those who know me, you know how much I LOVE guacamole. It was honestly hard to stop eating it! When you travel to Fairmont Mayakoba, I highly recommend that you order the guacamole & cerveza from room service and enjoy a little snack while you are getting settled into your Casita…it will be the perfect way to kick off your vacation!

The resort is rather large so you either walk, travel in a golf cart, or ride bicycles that they have scattered throughout the property. Anytime a bicycle was available, I was riding it! So much fun! I would ride it to the lobby, down to the beach, and back and forth breakfast at La Laguna. There is so much to explore on the property and riding a bicycle to explore everything is the way to go. There is no charge to ride the bicycles but you do need to snag one when you can because everyone had the same idea!

I’m going to share a bit about some of the things you should plan to do/see while staying at Fairmont Mayakoba so scroll through the next handful of images to read more…

EL PUEBLITO, NATURE WALK, CENOTE

Early one morning I met up with a couple of other girls and Alfonso, who works at Fairmont Mayakoba, for a nature work and to explore more of the property. I’m so so glad that I did this because I got to see so much more that the resort has to offer.

We started on a beautiful nature walk…Alfonso shared a wealth of knowledge about Mayan history, the plants, trees, wildlife, and cultural rituals. On the nature walk you are able to explore a cenote, which is deep natural hole that is created from heavy rain and the erosion of limestone. There is ground water underneath. As natural light shines through holes to the bottom of the cenote, it creates this incredible luminous glow. In the images above, it will look like you can walk straight out onto solid ground but that is actually water and the ceiling is reflecting off of the water to create this incredible illusion. It was stunning and I truly enjoyed exploring the cenote.

As we walked further down the nature trail we came to a small town called El Pueblito. This town has the most beautiful chapel in addition to a marketplace and some adorable shops! El Pueblito is right outside of the resort but still within their property boundaries. It is easy to walk to from the main entrance of the resort and it is great for spending time at the chapel or doing a little shopping. Events and special activities also take place in El Pueblito so you can check their events calendar during your stay. Because it was early morning when we went there for the first time, it was super quite and very peaceful. The chapel is stunning and all of the buildings have such colorful bright walls! It’s really a very charming little town.

There is a also an 18 hole golf course on property and it is gorgeous. The course is well kept and many of the holes have such stunning views. If you love playing golf, you would really enjoy this golf course! And they actually host a PGA tour event every November at Fairmont Mayakoba!

A couple of other notable activities that the property offers is star gazing…it was cloudy the night I was supposed to do this but I can only imagine that it would be wonderful. And there is also a wonderful planetarium right in Playa del Carmen called Sayab Planetarium. This is a free educational experience to both locals and tourists…something to check out if you venture into Playa del Carmen.

I’m going to shift gears a bit and talk about the pools…scroll through the next several images to read more!

THE POOLS

Photo credit: Hallie Duesenberg

Photo Credit: Hallie Duesenberg

The pools…WOW THE POOLS! I’ve never been to resort with as many gorgeous pools as there are at Fairmont Mayakoba. At every corner there is another pool to explore! There are pools that are tucked within the tropical forest that are very private and quite and then there are main pools, several right near La Laguna restaurant and one that is beach front that is a bit busier. They have two infinite edge pools…one that overlooks the water canal and one that overlooks the ocean…so dreamy!!! I loved the pools so much that I had to go out for a late night swim one night and just float and look at the stars. I could spend every moment by their gorgeous pools! Of course you can order food and drinks by the pools as well.

Scroll through the next several images to read more about the boat tour and the Willow Stream Spa!

BOAT TOUR & THE WILLOW STREAM SPA

Photo credit: Hallie Duesenberg

The boat tour around the property within the water canals is something I recommend that you do while staying at Fairmont Mayakoba. The staff will take you on a tour through the canals and share more about the history of the property, the wildlife, etc. It was a great way to see more of the property from the water and how cute is it that fresh coconut water was served?! Such a special touch!

I also spent time at the Willow Stream Spa and it was soooooo wonderful! Not only is the spa absolutely beautiful but the services are amazing too. The staff at the spa was accommodating and friendly and my therapist gave one of the best massages I have ever had. I’m pretty sure I fell asleep a couple of times…that is how relaxed I was. You really could get lost in the spa and spend a full day relaxing there. They have several lounge areas where they serve delicious fresh juices, etc and you can also relax in their sauna and the amazing whirlpool. On the second level, there is also a beautiful outdoor pool where you can spend some quiet time relaxing! The Willow Stream Spa was one of the most wonderful day spas I have ever spent time at and I highly recommend that you carve out some time for yourself while staying at Fairmont Mayakoba!

And now we MUST talk about the FOOD (and beverages(…oh my gosh the FOOD was sooooo good my friends! Scroll through the next several images and I will share more!

FOOD & DRINK

Photo credit: Hallie Duesenberg

Ater receiving the most delicious guacamole from room service when I checked in, I had high expectations for the food and I was not disappointed. Simply put…the food at Fairmont Mayakoba is AMAZING! From a delicious breakfast buffet and menu items at La Laguna, to the most delicious lunches and dinners at Las Brisas, to a fusion experience at El Puerto, you will be more than pleased with the various food options. Every single thing I ordered was so yummy and fresh! I honestly could have eaten my way through their menus had I had the time. One of my favorite things at Las Brisas was a pork belly flatbread…you must try this when you go. And of course, you’ve got to have guacamole at every meal!

Our experience at El Puerto was so wonderful. We ate dinner there one night and the miso black cod is a must have! The fried rice is also delicious and their signature cocktails are so unique as well!

What I love most is that you don’t have to leave the property…there are so many great options on site!

We also experienced a Mezcal & craft beer tasting…it was so interesting to learn more about Mezcal and their local craft beers. I recommend trying some of their local beverages while there as they are unique and refreshing! The mango mojito and of course the margaritas were two of my go-to beverages!

And of course, I must share more about the beautiful beach…scroll through the next set of images to read more!

BEACHFRONT

Photo credit: Hallie Duesenberg

The beach was absolutely beautiful…widespread, clean, and a great place to sit under an umbrella and stay for a while. You could walk in both directions to see more of the beautiful coastline and the water was crystal clear.

Beachside restaurant, Las Brisas, overlooks the ocean and it is a wonderful place to go for lunch or dinner. Some of my best meals were at Las Brisas (the lobster tacos and the pork belly flatbread are a MUST) and the staff at the Las Brisas bar knows how to make some pretty amazing cocktails (one of my favorites was the mango mojito and the spicy margarita)! One of their infinite edge pools is right in this area as well and it overlooks the ocean, which was so peaceful. I enjoy laying by the pool, looking at the ocean, and feeling the ocean breeze. Drinks and food can also be served both poolside and on the beach!

I can feel my feet in the sand now and I cannot wait to go back! I’ve been missing Fairmont Mayakoba since I returned home…it’s such a wonderful vacation spot!

For anyone who is looking to go to Mexico for a honeymoon, family vacation, girls trip, etc…I highly recommend that you consider Fairmont Mayakoba. As I mentioned before and for the many reasons as outline above, this is by far one of my most favorite resort destinations that I’ve ever been to. From the rooms, to everything the resort has to offer, to the staff, to the pools, to the beach, to the food…I give Fairmont Mayakoba 5 stars!!!

Okay, I’m off to start planning my next trip! Thanks so much for taking time to read today’s post…hope you have a wonderful day!

*Special thank you to the entire staff at Fairmont Mayakoba for making my stay so enjoyable and memorable…you are the best!

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