Tradewinds Tavern sets sail at MCM Elegante

A curved wall of TV showing poker was just one conversation piece at the new Tradewinds Tavern at MCM Elegante Hotel. I can’t believe I was so focused on shrimp skewers and boudain balls at the Beaumont Chamber of Commerce opening that I missed chocolate martinis. Tradewinds has a beautifully stocked wine cellar and several separated sections perfect for after-work meeting. They also boast 45 beer varieties.

We liked it, and dim sum

As much as my family loves Asian food, we’d never had dim sum, where they roll around a cart of little samples and you order from there. Kim Phung Restaurant in Houston was our introduction and we loved that we could try so many flavors in one seating. We were bold enough to try chicken feet, which were spicy and good, but all those little bones sure felt weird in the mouth.

Lunch kit

I know plenty a grown woman who still gets misty-eyed over Barbie. I’m not to old to carry a part of her with me, one of Mattel’s new lunch kits. Her logo is on a cute purse-styled floral and striped pack that could hold a third-grader’s sandwich as fashionably as a teen’s cell phone. I’ve been toting lettuce wraps and fruit along with Crystal Light in the accompanying Thermos sippy cup. If you don’t have a little girl who needs one, consider it a conversation starter in the break room. Wal-Mart, Toys R Us and Walgreens are carriers; the suggested retail price is $7.99.

Beer is for breakfast

Maybe you’re heading to the new movie “Beerfest.” If so, you may be interested in a recipe from The National Beer Wholesalers Association. They have an easy lager syrup designed for cheese ale waffles:

Sweet Lager Syrup

1 1/2 cups light brown sugar

3/4 cup lager beer