Veslo: Croatian Restaurant Review

When I started this blog I decided that I was going to focus on crafts, family, and my life in New York City. I know I have been lacking a bit on the New York City part, seeing as how I've enjoyed my country getaways quite a bit lately.  It is about time that I start sharing a little piece of my amazing city.  New York is known for so many different things and one of the most important things to me is diversity.  Cultures from around the world are all living together.  While New York is often referred to as a melting pot, I can not agree with this reference.  Yes people from around the world are all here in one place but they are not melded together.  Instead they find a way to hold onto their culture and traditions while sharing in the cultures and traditions of those around them.  I like to think on New York as a mosaic.  Each tile is beautiful in its own right, but when put together they form something even more special.

One of my favorite ways to get to know another culture is through their food.  (Yes, I know this may just be my Italian family food=love philosophy shining through, but I think there is more to it than that)  The food a culture serves can teach you about their location, their industry, and their traditions.  Living in Queens, the most ethnically diverse urban area in the world, I have been blessed with easy access to so many amazing cultures.  Recently, I had the chance to eat at a Croatian Restaurant in Queens.  If any of my readers are anything like I was you may be asking what is Croatian? Until a few years ago when I became good friends with a Croatian I didn't even know a country called Croatia existed. The geographic area has been under the control of other countries and cultures for a long time.  It is not until recently that Croatia has begun to show the world all that it has to offer.  And as I recently discovered, I was missing out on Croatian food!

Veslo is a little Croatian restaurant in Astoria Queens.  The second I walked in the door I was taken by the decor.  There is a modern bar in the front (with plenty of TVs to show the soccer games on), yet the rest of the restaurant speaks to rustic Croatian culture.  The world Veslo means ore in Croatian.  This is a fitting tribute to a culture strongly based on their relation with the sea.  The ceiling of the back dining room is lined with ores brought from Croatia.  The wooden tables, shelves lined with actual Croatian tributes to the past, and back patio all make it easy to imagine you are sitting in a foreign land away from the modern New York hustle and bustle.

The menu has a wide array of options, sure to please even the fussiest eater.  For a quick bite to eat you can sit at the bar and order classics like fish and chip, mini pizzas, and chicken wings, or you can be a little more experimental and Ćevapčići (a personal Croatian favorite) or truffle fries.  If you are looking for a sit down meal with friends there is an extensive lunch and dinner menu.  There is a large selection of seafood (once again referencing the nautical presence in Croatian culture) as well as many other meat, poultry, and pasta options.

Thanks to my friends sharing a little from their plates I was able to try a number of things from their menu.  While everything was good there were a few things that stuck out as a must try for any new comer.  Growing up in an Italian family pasta fagioli soup has always been one of my favorites.  Croatian food in many ways mirrors Italian cuisine (Croatia is in close proximity and was at one point under the Roman Empire).  Though pasta fagioli soup is often thought of as an Italian dish this restaurant served it with the tasty Croatian addition of barley along with the pasta (I was told Croatian's peasant roots mean nothing is wasted so it is not uncommon to find a wide array of ingredients in Croatia dishes).  Along with the soup, the stuffed cabbage was the best I have ever tried ( and I am not a big cabbage fan).  And for those of you who are fans of Goulask (also a peasant dish) you must try Veslo's.  It comes over homemade gnocchi and it is out of this world.  We were lucky enough to met the woman who was making each and every piece by hand, adding to the authentic feel of the meal.  My phone died so unfortunately I do not have pictures of the food, but I hope you enjoy the pictures of the decor.

I had a great time at Veslo, enjoying the decor, the staff, the food, and the company.  I would recommend if you ever find yourself in Astoria, Queens that you stop in (32-11 Broadway Astoria, NY 11106) and enjoy a taste of Croatia.

Gel Color Manicure

Being an avid crafter is not always easy on my hands.  My nails seem to suffer quite a bit.  I use to pay for manicures but got frustrated when they would scratch or chip a few days in.  Then I started painting my nails on my own... same problem.  While acrylic or silk tips lasted a little longer I don't like the damage they do to your natural nail. I know total girl problem right?!? Honestly while I am not super girly I do like to have my nails done.

I had pretty much given up on pretty nails until my mom suggested I try the color gel manicures.  She also works with her hands as a professional decorator.  If her manicure could stand up to the wear and tear of the wire in artificial trees and wreaths then this just might be the solution I was looking for.  I got my first gel color manicure three weeks ago.  The manicure consists of a clear gel layer, and then 2-3 layers of the colored gel polish, followed by a final top coat.  Between each layer you place your hand in a dryer.  While this may take a little more time than a regular manicure but when you leave it is dried and ready to go.

It is three weeks since I got the manicure and it still looks amazing (minus where my nail has grown out).  While the recommended time is a new polish every two weeks, I wanted to really put this manicure to the test before blogging about it.  It has withstood crochet needles, sandpaper and paint from the lawn ornament project, and even dishes.

Countdown to Family Road Trip

As my mother always says, "The family that plays together, stays together."  She takes our family time very seriously and has instilled in us the importance of spending time with family.  Whether it be dinners together, movie nights, or family vacations I would say we are closer than the average family.  Perhaps the "secret" to our success is the many road trips we have taken over the years.

When we were younger my mom would wake us up, often before sunrise, and pack us into the car, pjs and all.  We would fall back asleep pretty quickly and when we awoke we were in some distant place.  Day trips to Providence Rhode Island, Mystic Connecticut, the Poconos, and the Catskills were not uncommon.  We would stop at a rest stop, change and begin our adventure.  While these day trips were packed with memories all their own, the road trips to places like Virginia, Florida, and Texas make or break a family.  Hours jammed in the same car can lead to pointless bickering over who is on whose side, what radio station to play, and what temperature is appropriate.  Those hours can also lead to shared memories, unforgettable laughs, and new understandings.

While there are an incredible number of stories I can share about our road trips, I think I will save those for another day.  Today is about our family's latest vacation.  We began planning a few months ago to go to Florida for my sister Stephanie's 21st Birthday (Yes, while most 21 year olds would choose Vegas, Atlantic City, or some other party town, my forever-child-at-heart sister wants Disney).  We rented a large house and planned for our July getaway.  Initially we were flying down to Florida, but what fun would that be.  It was decided that we will instead once again be packing into the family Suburban and driving all the way down the East Coast.  Stay tuned for details of our crazy road trip!