Orange you glad I didn't say Banana?

Jon went to law school in Orange. He used to live a block away from "Old Town" and really, we never went. But in an effort to get out of the house, and away from the books we ventured to Old Town Orange. PLUS Jon had to drop off his VW Vanagon and his mechanic is in Orange.

We started out with breakfast - one of those meals that we really only do on weekends. Best place for breakfast in Old Town Orange? Watson's Soda and Drugs. Its a classic throwback to the 1950s soda fountains with vinyl booths, a jukebox that still costs a quarter a song, and of course, checkered floors.







Jon always gets both a milkshake and a vanilla coke when we're there. (He may have a drinking problem). Problem is, after Jon finishes his milkshake he never has room for the giant portions they have.









Jon had the french toast, which is giant, and comes with eggs - in case you're still hungry.












I had the Watson's breakfast - eggs, and potatoes/ham/green peppers/onions in a cheese sauce. And of course, homemade biscuits and gravy. I love the cheese sauce here and I'm not a cheese sauce fan. But its REAL cheese, so maybe that's why. The biscuits are light and fluffy and melt in your mouth, and they serve the gravy on the side which is perfect for dippers like me.

Of course, neither of us came close to finishing.

After breakfast, we went in and out of all the antique stores that make up Old Town. This is always a good time as Jon began picking out pieces for our home in Acapulco, our castle in Ireland, and our house in Connecticut. We took a break in the middle of the day to sit in the square and watch the fountain, before continuing on with our window shopping. We went into a great wine and cheese shop and picked up an interesting red and some cheddar soaked in cabernet. More on that later, we were too full last night to try them out. We also picked up another Thin Man movie to add to my collection - so exciting!

For dinner we went to PJ Abbey's, a converted Victorian Era Baptist Church. Its absolutely beautiful with stained glass window, and wood paneled, well, everything. All the chairs are oversized and none match the other tables. There's a live piano player and the food is as beautifully presented as the ambiance. We began with artichokes stuffed with cheese. These were incredible. Definitely a heart attack in the making, but they were perfectly fried, the melted cheese had a kick to it which complemented the buttery flavor of the artichoke.

For dinner Jon had the meatloaf. Poor Jon, he loves meatloaf and his evil wife never makes it.












I had Boneless Beef Shortribs in a honey hoison barbeque sauce. The meat was soooo tender. They gave me a knife, but I didn't even need it. And the sauce was sweet and smokey. Yum!

We walked back to the car, full and happy. When we got home we crawled in to bed and watched Nick, Nora, and Asta solve another mystery. It was a pretty mellow day, but sometimes those are the best kinds of days!