Out and About: A Girly Weekend at the Domain

**Disclaimer- I have been buried alive in work, and am so far behind on posting anything exciting. This is from 2 weekends ago.**

I celebrated the 30-something birthday of a good friend who drove into town for the weekend. My sister booked a room at the Westin at The Domain, and we treated it like a little "staycation". It was so much fun!!! The hotel was nice, and it was perfectly located- close enough to all the fun shops and restaurants. They even offered a shuttle service making it quick and easy to get around.

I'll be honest, I haven't spent a ton of time at The Domain. There are some really great shops there, but it's not the most convenient place for me to shop. I've eaten at a few restaurants before, but that's about it. There really is a little bit of everything though, and it's totally worth spending a day there.

On Friday night I met my friend and sister at the hotel room and then shuttled us all to dinner at 2nd Bar & Kitchen downtown. I have heard nothing but good things about the two bars connected to Congress, so I was really excited about eating there. We weren't sure if we would go to Bar Congress, or 2nd Bar & Kitchen. But once we got there, the choice was easy. Bar Congress was darker, quieter, and full of couples. 2nd Bar & Kitchen had a more open space, with lots of people hovered around the bar and in tables. We waited for maybe 30 minutes at the bar and sipped on drinks. Our table was ready just as our order of truffle fries were, so we carried them with us to the table.

The menu had plenty of options, and I thought overall the pricing wasn't bad. Entrees were just over $20, but you could also get salads or pizzas for less. There were even a few vegetarian options. I chose a beet salad and a pizza, while the other girls got short ribs and a flank steak. Everything was delicious!!! Our server, Moe, was absolutely wonderful, and so attentive. His interaction with us made the evening even more fun. I can't tell you how much I appreciate good service. We finished dinner with several good desserts, my favorite being a pumpkin cheesecake in a jar with homemade graham crackers for dipping.

I had to get up and run the next morning, so I called it an early night while the other two had some fun people watching at the W bar. Running 8 miles the morning after a big meal and a couple of glasses of wine was no fun, so I was a little slow joining them the following morning. I made it back to The Domain in time for lunch at California Pizza Kitchen, followed by a little shopping. We then walked down the street to watch the UT/Texas Tech game at The Park. They are known for having a great brunch, but it's also the perfect sports bar. They have good food, reasonably priced drinks, and a huge patio area where we got to enjoy the game AND the perfect weather. Even better was the Horns beating the Raiders in one of their best played games of the season.

White sangria with St. Germaine. Yum!

Sisters

After a quick nap, another friend (who recently had a baby) came out to join us for another dinner. We haven't seen her in awhile, so we were glad she could join us for the evening. We headed over to Sushi Zushi where we had reservations. Let me just say this- after the amazing dinner we had on Friday night, I was extremely disappointed by our experience here. To the point that I might email the manager. I already had to approach him at dinner when our server had not acknowledged us after far too long. I hate to do it, but nothing chaps my hide more than poor service. When you add sub-par food on top of that, it's even worse. But the company was great, and that was really all that mattered.

After dinner we walked over to Cru Wine Bar for some birthday fondue dessert and a nightcap before making our way back to the hotel. We were all exhausted from the festivities, so we called it a night and went to bed.