So Many Dishes

What a fun, if tiring, day! For the past several years, I have taken a group of friends from our church on a tour of Mounts Botanical Garden in West Palm Beach, where I am a volunteer guide. We did that tour this morning, on an absolutely perfect day. It was bright and sunny, with the temperature in the low 70s. Ideal conditions, lots of plants in bloom, and the frog sculpture exhibit made for a fun tour.

When I’m leading a tour, I usually don’t take pictures, but we spotted an atala butterfly. For some years, these were thought to be extinct because of over harvesting of its host plant. But the population has rebounded, although they’re still not common. So I was very excited to be able to introduce my friends to this unique butterfly.

After the tour, we headed down the street to Don Ramon’s restaurant for a delicious Cuban lunch. Nobody ever leaves hungry! I ordered lechon asado, shredded roasted pork with onions, black beans and rice, and plantains. I like to cook Cuban food, and I think my results are pretty tasty, but there are no better black beans than Don Ramon’s. I wasn’t thinking, and took the picture before I spooned the cup of beans over the rice. I think I brought at least half of what was on the plate home, and Ken brought home leftovers of his chicken dish.

Needless to say, we didn’t need much dinner tonight! But I have a great meal planned for tomorrow, so stay tuned.

Happy eating!