I haven’t done one of these Friday Favorites round-ups in awhile, so I figured it was time to share some of the things I’ve been loving lately.
Noodles & Company
A few weeks ago, I was invited for dinner at Noodles & Company to check out their new menu and kids options. The restaurant chain is relatively new to Massachusetts, and lucky for me there’s one less than ten minutes away. I’d gotten take out from there a few times but this was the first time my family had the opportunity to sit down for dinner at the restaurant.
Here’s what you need to know about Noodles & Company: all their menu items are made-to-order with fresh ingredients…nothing artificial here (including the noodles, sauces, soups, condiments, bread and dressings). It’s all REAL food.
And while the word “noodles” is in their name — covering all sorts of global dishes, from pasta to Pad Thai — they also have amazing salads and appetizers and sandwiches, which we got to experience firsthand during our dinner.
One thing I appreciate about Noodles & Company (besides the all natural ingredients) is that most of their dishes are customizable. Want to add tofu? Pork? Chicken? Meatballs? All are options. Which makes it a very easy place to eat as a vegetarian. And it’s tasty.
My favorites? The Japanese Pan Noodles with tofu, Bangkok Curry, Thai Curry soup, and the Med salad without chicken, which had the yummiest yogurt dressing.
And let’s talk about the kids meals. At $5 a pop, they won’t break the bank, and they are some of the healthiest kids meals I’ve found, offering one “entrée” (of course my kids went with macaroni and cheese, which is actually — gasp — noodles and cheese, nothing from a powder), two healthy sides (broccoli and strawberries for Buddy, strawberries and strawberries for Mimi), and a choice of Horizon Organic plain or chocolate milk.
Even better? You can order online and the just run in and pick it up, which is probably how we’ll continue to eat there (we rarely go out to restaurants any more). With a dearth of good take-out options in our neck of the woods, trust me when I say I think we found our new go-to for those quick weekday meals.
The Limited “Drew” Pants
Confession: until recently, The Limited was one of those stores I used to walk right past in the mall. But a friend began raving about their Drew style pants, and since I tend to have trouble finding well-fitting work pants, I went to check them out. And they are awesome!
Here’s why. First, the material is on the thinner side, which I find is more, hmmm, forgiving than thicker, stretchier material.
Second is the pockets. Or the lack thereof, which makes me happy because I HATE pockets on my pants. Sorry, but they’re never flattering. And what woman really uses pants pockets?
And third? It sits somewhat low on the waist and comes in different leg styles — straight leg, bootcut, flare, etc.
I have the Drew straight leg (picured above) in both navy and black in the regular length (which had to be tailored slightly for heels, a small price to pay for fabulous pants) and the bootcut in petite length to wear with flats. Although they tend to retail between $70-80, their pants tend to go on sale pretty regularly. I just grabbed a pair yesterday for 40% off.
Leopard Wedges
I secretly love animal prints as accessories. Belts, bags and, yes, shoes. I’d been coveting these leopard wedges on Sole Society for quite some time and finally bit the bullet.
I view leopard print shoes as a neutral, and they work just as well with jeans as they do with work trousers and dresses. I tend to wear them when my outfit consists of black, white, camel, mustard, and other rich solid colors. And did I mention they were crazy comfortable?
I think these will be a new closet staple.
Fabletics Tights
Maybe it started when I began going to barre class, but last winter I became obsessed with printed tights. If they’re made of wicking material and have compression ability, then that’s icing on the cake.
The team at Fabletics sent me a few pairs of printed tights recently — a pair of floral capris and an camouflage-style pair of longer tights, which I wore to barre class the other day and got so many compliments on!
I threw on a black hoodie and the tights were totally fine for running a few errands after class, too. I haven’t really run in these yet, but since the material is wicking and have compression, I suspect they’ll be great for winter running, too.
Peppermint Tea
I received this tin of Peppermint Bark tea from the Republic of Tea in a swag bag from the recent World Market grand opening and initially dismissed it and pushed it aside, thinking, Ugh, tea, whatever.
Then I got sick with pneumonia.
I don’t know about you, but when I’m sick, I crave tea…and when I have a cough, all I want is mint tea.
Um, this stuff is incredible. Mint tea with a hint of vanilla and even chocolate flavoring. It’s become my new after-dinner go-to in lieu of a dessert or something sweet.
What have you been loving this week?
P.S. I try to be totally transparent, so as I stated above, some of these were complimentary items I received, but I wouldn’t have included them here if I didn’t really love them.