Hi guys!
I wasn’t able to pop in with an evening post last night recapping my day, so let’s back it up and cover last night this morning, shall we?
Heading to Jacksonville
My mom arrived in Ocala a little after lunchtime yesterday and we played with Sadie for a bit before making the two hour drive to Jacksonville.
A pit stop for some Dunkin’ Donuts iced coffee made the drive all the more fun.
(I spy with my little eye… Julie’s gum. Orbit Bubblemint, baby. My favorite.)
My mom got her iced coffee with a small amount of caramel syrup while I stuck with vanilla. I must say my mama made the right choice. Caramel is where it’s at!
Since our main appointment in Jacksonville is late this morning, we had some free time yesterday and I was able to get some work done on a freelance piece before we met up with my dad for dinner.
My dad’s company has an office in Jacksonville, so he arrived in town earlier this week for work. It was great that the three of us were able to eat dinner and spend the evening together. Gotta love family time! (We missed you, Les!)
Poe’s Tavern
Since I was just in Jacksonville last weekend for a barbeque with friends, when my parents and I began tossing dinner ideas around, I actually had a suggestion.
I spotted Poe’s Tavern in Atlantic Beach last weekend when we were leaving our dinner at Ocean 60 and thought it looked like a place worth trying.
On our walk from the parking lot to the restaurant, we spotted a baby tiger outside a neighboring restaurant.
Her name is Nicky and she currently lives at the Catty Shack Sanctuary in Jacksonville.
The Catty Shack rescues cats from serious situations, including maltreatment, illegal ownership or cats found in improper enclosures. (They do not breed, sell, or trade any of their animals.) The sanctuary is home to large cats including tigers, lions, cougars and leopards. They also told me that the sanctuary currently has two “honorary cat breeds,” including arctic foxes, and coatimundis. Coati what now? Apparently coatimundis are a raccoon-like animal.
Meet coatimundis:
Nicky the tiger was really friendly with the man who was keeping her company from the sanctuary and licked his hands and rubbed up against his fingertips.
Such a little sweetie pie!
After chatting with the sanctuary employees about Nicky (she only weighs 10 pounds more than Sadie right now!), my mom, dad and I walked to Poe’s Tavern and ordered some food.
I got the seared tuna salad that came with jicama, dried cranberries, cherry tomatoes and a delicious citrus ginger dressing.
I have a hard time passing on seared tuna whenever it’s on the menu and this fish was fantastic. I think my dad was a little jealous of my dish.
Dessert
On our walk back to the car, we spotted Happy Cup, a frozen yogurt shop that also makes smoothies, wraps, baked goods and more.
I sampled the frozen yogurt but all of it tasted rather icy and almost sorbet-like to me. I am a much bigger fan of super creamy frozen yogurt, so a whoopie pie from their baked goods selection quickly became my dessert.
The filling was the best! It also happened to be Whoopie Pie Wednesday, so it was half off to boot. Score!
After dinner, my mom, dad and I hung out together before heading to bed a little before 11 p.m. (Did any of you guys watch Modern Family last night? I DVRed it and am hoping it was a good one.)
And now I’m off!
I’ll check back in soon, but until then, have a great day, my friends.
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Awe the tigers are so cute!! And that tuna looks delish! Glad you’re having fun with your parents!
Dunkin is my favorite. I’m a hazelnut girl, but I should try the caramel!
So jealous you saw a tiger!! They’re my favorite. What great work.
You guys have the coolest restaurants in Florida!! I would have gone with the tuna in a heartbeat as well. Sounds like you had a great day!
I’m a coffee newbie and never know how to order at Dunkin Donuts – maybe I should order with a shot of syrup. It sounds so “duh” but I never have! I always order mocha or something and never like it. Such a cool animal organization!
aww that baby tiger is adorable!! it sounds like you’re enjoying your time with your parents. great choice on the whoppie pie! yum!
I want to take that baby tiger home! So precious. And now I’m craving Dunkin Donuts Iced Coffee with caramel, yum!
I missed Modern Family also! That will be my lunch break entertainment if it’s too rainy to go for a walk.
apparently, last nights Modern Family is one of the funniest there has been in awhile! naturally, i cant WAIT to get home to watch it!
Modern Fam was really funny and sweet! I found myself tearing up at the end!
I just tried jicama for the first time last night and I was a fan! Looks like a delicious dinner with good company. Have a great weekend 🙂
Sounds like a fun day! If you’re ever in the jacksonville area, you should visit amelia island!!!! its really close and fernandina (the town on the island) has the BEST fudge shop ever! 😀
I’m so glad you tried out Poe’s! So many yummy places to eat, we need to start a check list!
That seared tuna looks tasty. And my desert craving has officially set in for the day after seeing that whoopie pie. Froyo for lunch, perhaps?
What an interesting restaurant! That is cool that you were so close to the tiger! 🙂
That whoopie pie looks yummy!
You are going to LOVE last night’s episode of Modern Family. It was hilarious and a bit of a tear-jerker.
Oh that tiger is cute!! And what a cool looking dish you god–yummy!
The tiger looks so cute! If you ever come back to Chicago head to Forever Yogurt. They have the creamiest, thickest most decadent fro yo ever! I have a mad addiction to fro yo. Have a good day! Love your blog 🙂
A baby tiger! I would have melted!!
Man, I need a Happy Cup in my town. We don’t have a single fro-yo shop that sells anything except fro-yo. What a simple concept of having wraps and salads- and then getting some dessert after your meal!
Modern Family was GREAT. But seriously- have you ever seen and episode that wasn’t great? I’m also a big fan of the show that comes on after!
I like that show too! I thought I was the only one. I think it’s hilarious that James Van Der Beek plays himself.
That’s a great photo of you and your mom; I think you look a lot alike in it!
The baby tiger is adorable! That sounds like an awesome sanctuary!
MF was soo good last night, as usual!! There’s a big announcement at the end, so hopefully no one spoils it for you in these comments…
That seared tuna looks AWESOME! Sounds like you had a wonderful time!
That tiger is so cute! I recently saw a white tiger in China and it really was gorgeous!
Haha, we had coatimundi when I lived in Panama (military family). Living in a tropical, foreign country you get to see a lot of INTERESTING animals. We also had these giant guinea pig-looking animals- I guess they are called capybaras but down there they called them nekes (“n” sounds like one that has a tilda over it)
modern family was hilarious and i couldn’t stop laughing the whole time…..pretty much sums up every episode.
I tried seared tuna for the first time last week and LOVE it. I literally said to it, “where have you been all my life?”. I also realized that I talk to food way too many times that a normal person should… hahaha
Posts like this make we want to live in Florida! It seems like a 24/7 vacation 🙂
can your mom and dad take in a roommate? can you get me a job in ocala and a visa to cross the border? 🙂
cause i will be there. just say it.
gosh, it looks beautiful. You mom is beautiful. And your dad is so fiercely handsome. No one wonder you and your sister are gorgeous.
seared tuna is a favorite of mine too – especially with sesame seeds!!
Enjoy your family time! 🙂
Idk about. Anyone else but I’m feeling incredibly nosy wondering what your main appointment in Jacksonville is !!! Who cares since its a reason to see ur momma and I know moms just make days better ! Have fun
Awww I love family time! My Mom is coming to my area this summer & I’m so excited :-). Nicky the baby tiger is adorable… and the seared tuna salad… HOLY YUM 😀
That’s so cool you got to see those cats!! And there’s a Poe’s Tavern on Sullivan’s island, and now I’m curious if it’s part of the chain. I thought it was the only one and named that because Edgar Allen Poe spent time on the island…
coatimundis are the weirdest things! They were all over the golf course in cancun a few years ago, it was crazy! Your evening looked amazing — good food, fam, and dessert? Love it!
Where is that tiger? I live really close to that little town center, I actually went to Happy Cup last night! Poe’s is really good, I love their veggie burgers.
Whoopie Pie Wednesday? My kind of holiday!
What a great day! Enjoy the time with your family Julie!
Ah! I’ve seen a pack (?) of coatimundis before! I live in New Mexico and was out hiking around with my husband at the family farm… we came up on a group of trees and Jake was telling me about this mysterious animal he’d seen only one other time in his life. I looked ahead and said, “Jake. Is that them?” Sure enough, there they were hopping from tree limb to tree limb. There was at least 15 of them. They’re like gigantic squirrel racoons. They’re so fast and those tales are so interesting!
What a nice day with your parents! Your dinner looks so yummy. I recently had tuna for the first time and couldn’t believe how good it was! Why did I wait so long to try it!
We have a Poes Tavern here in Charleston, SC. Not sure if it’s the same but it’s awesome! The best fish tacos ever. Everything is themed around Edgar Allen Poe (who used to come to Charleston a lot).
Sounds like you had a great time with your parents!
What a fun day with the fam! Modern Family was great last night, you’ll love it 🙂
That dessert looks amaaaazing!
Awe, what a cute tiger! Modern Family was awesome last night! Hilarious and yet a tearjerker at the same time.
I’m a huge Dunkin fan…yesterday was $1 iced coffee day in RI. I was all over that! haha
Caught the last half of modern family, it was great!
The Whoopie Pie looks so delicious! Is it just like a big oreo or something? (never had one before)
I must be extra ready for the weekend because I definitely read “have a great day, my friends” in the “stay thirsty, my friends” voice of the Dos XX dood
I live in Jacksonville and go to Poe’s ALL the time! One of my favorite places for sure! They have an awesome patio and the best sandwiches, We ride bikes there all the time 🙂