Legoland - Grapevine, Texas

If you're looking for something to do with the kids this summer Legoland is a lot of fun.

British Emporium

The British Emporium in Grapevine, Texas is a little home away from home for me and my English friends. Even if you aren’t a transplant from the British Isles, there's still plenty to entice you. Sheela and Alexandra welcome everyone into their little plot of England in the middle of Texas.

Their newsletter this month included a Christmas Menu (see below) which brought back many fond memories of Christmas in England. I’ll definitely be rolling out the pastry for sausage rolls.

Christmas Menus

The Great British Breakfast:

Let the day's feasting begin with a pot of full bodied British tea; Eggs, Proper Bacon, Bangers, grilled tomatoes & mushrooms, Toast, English Butter, Frank Cooper Marmalade and Tiptree Preserves!

Snacks, Anytime:

Bacon Sandwiches with HP Sauce; Banger Sandwich; British Cheese and Crackers; Pasties; Buttered Crumpets. Why not make your own Sausage Rolls - we have frozen sausagemeat and puff pastry!

Lunchtime
Our festive lunch is Roast Turkey, Paxo or Sausagemeat Stuffing, Chipolatas, Bacon, Aunt Bessies Roast Potatoes & Honey glazed Parsnips, Bisto Gravy, Colemans Mustard, Brussel Sprouts & Chestnuts, Steamed Veggies, Cranberry sauce. We also love Roast Lamb with Mint Sauce, Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding and Roast Pork with Applesauce!
Christmas Tea
Always a crowd pleaser in the afternoons, serve hot tea with Christmas Cake, Sausage Rolls, Sandwiches, Scones with Tiptree Raspberry Seedless Preserves and Clotted Cream, Walkers Shortbread
Supper Ideas:
Shepherds' Pie with Minted Peas; Bangers and Mash; Pie and Chips; Chicken Casserole; Roast Chicken with Paxo Stuffing
And for Dessert...
Christmas Pudding and Brandy Butter; Meringue Nests filled with Ice Cream/Cream/Berries; Sherry Trifle; Steamed Sponge Pudding and Custard.


Be sure to peruse their book shelves where my book – A Graceful Death – is for sale.

Grapefest 2010 - Grapevine, Texas

Grapevine has an old style Main Street that is fun to visit at any time, but especially during Grapefest. There is wine tasting, live music and a plethora of stalls to browse.  It's still hot and humid here and so my friend Elizabeth and I interspersed outside activities with visits to air conditioned shops. By the train depot are a few galleries. Vetro Glass offers unique creations along with a glassblowing demonstration.  Farther along is Archie St. Clair's studio with monstrous sized clay sculptures which are used to create a mold. Archie is an interesting character from "down under" and started his sculpting career when confined to a wheelchair. He humbly said he just started molding a handful of clay. His creativity is impressive. Many of his bronze sculptures are scattered around main street. Take a look at his web site here.  After stopping at Napoli's Italian Cafe for lunch and gelato. We ended our walk down Main Street at British Emporium. We chatted in our native language (English) with Alex who is one of the owners of British Emporium and enjoyed a little feel of "home" among dishes decorated with the Union Jack and Bakewell Tarts. Of course I couldn't leave without buying a jar of marmite.