Road Tripping with the Family

Truth be told, I was not raised in a house where healthy food was king. I remember many meals saturated with frozen pizza or kids cuisines and take out. Healthy snacks were also not readily available, but what fun were carrots or fruit anyway? So, when I was delegated to be the one to prepare for our 3 day/2 night trip to Cape Cod, I was a little too excited to go back to my snacking roots and pack up some road food for our 6 hour drive.
List of goodies:
Plums
Good and Plenty
Vitamin Water
Kind bar-pomegranate almond
Luna Bar-chocolate dipped coconut
Cookies and Cream CHEX Mix
Twizzlers
Baked Sugar Snap Peas
Iced Coffee and Munchkins (picked up 1/2 way through our journey)




As I write this list, I am quickly realizing that my road snacks as a 29 year old are drastically different than of a 9 year old. I may have thrown caution to the wind and indulged in some munchkins and CHEX mix, but a younger me would have chased that with a regular coke and thrown in a bag of chips. All good things, but I would live to regret it, making it less enjoyable. This was a weekend away however, a weekend of indulgence, but my conscience still reigns in my mind.
One of our must haves on this trip according to Doug's niece was a sweet treat at The Ice Cream Smuggler. The Ice Cream Smuggler is an institution located on the Cape where on any given day, a rotation of 50+ ice cream and yogurt flavors are available for consumption. Absolutely worth the detour if you aren't near by if not just for the experience.
I would say that my flavor choices in ice cream are pretty predictable. Whenever I indulge in full fat ice cream, you can be sure that one of three things will be in that cup. You will either find something coffee flavored, minty or with cookies or chips throughout. Luckily, on my first trip to the Smuggler, I was able to get a few of these items within my two scoops. My first scoop was a bright green mint cookies and cream that they had named "grasshopper". My second scoop was called "peppermint stick", a flavor reminiscent of the signature ice cream I used to share with my father at Peppermint Park in NYC. Wonderful memories shared there, but it is now a Dunkin Donuts. Clearly there was a minty theme for me that afternoon, but a summer afternoon for me demands flavors that are refreshing and full of fun. My choices had both. The rose hued peppermint ice cream was smooth and creamy with flecks of crushed up peppermint stick candy throughout. Grasshopper was a crisp mint ice cream with huge hunks of dark chocolate cookies throughout like little mud tracks.




The Smuggler's ice creams were all hand scooped by what looked like high school kids working hard at their summer jobs. You have to love that! This group of girls were full of joy, infectiously positive and sweet. All traits that were similar to the product they were selling. I left their happy in the reality that this is what a small town ice cream shop should be. It felt like home with just the right amount of kitsch thrown in. I look forward to going back again one day.
Although I am not a lover of seafood, Doug is. I am slowly allowing seafood into my life, but for now crab is the only item that i would order off a menu. For our second evening in the Cape, we ventured to a seafood shack situated within a marina in Dennis, MA. At Sesuit Harbor Cafe pictured below, there were absolutely no frills. It is a family owned and operated restaurant overlooking the harbor. I loved the vibe because it wasn't phony. They were offering good food in a great location.








Sesuit had a great atmosphere. All seating was outdoors at picnic tables dotted along the inlet. 3 young female servers ran around shouting out numbers for orders to coordinate with patrons who had grabbed a seat after paying. Finding seats was an art and took patience. The environment and feeling of this place was perfect, we felt comfortable and free. There was an hour wait in line just to get our order in, but the blow was lessened when we learned that we were able to hang in line with a clear plastic glass of Sauvignon Blanc in hand. I may have forgotten to mention that the restaurant was also BYO. Score!




We had gotten a heads up that a quaint little liquor/wine shop was just down the road from the marina, so prior to getting to the restaurant I was able to purchase the perfect New Zealand wine to round out our meal.




No surprise, I opted for a garden salad with grilled chicken at dinner while Doug indulged in raw oysters. He enjoyed the flavor, depth, and texture of these little buggers, but found that each consisted of some shard of shell. Bummer. However, the pictures I took say it all. Good food, beautiful scenery and amazing company made this a truly memorable dinner in Massachusetts.








I have found that there is something insanely rejuvenating about traveling outside of the boroughs of New York City. On this trip in particular, the crisp dry air and abundance of kind folks mixed with a slower pace made for a wonderful 3 day weekend. Throw my future husband into the drivers seat of a rental car and the furry kids in the back seat with me, and you have a recipe for a great time. This experience reaffirmed to me that road trips are really about spending quality time reconnecting with the road while in the presence of those you love most. Oh yea! Let us not forget, road trips are also great ways to nurture your cravings too! Happy Eating to all!

Location:Brooklyn,NYC