Full Tilt and El Sombrero

After sleeping in a bit this morning, Dan & I headed up to Cleveland High School to catch one of our nephew's lacrosse games. They were up from Lake Tapps to play against some Seattle teams, and did an outstanding job. I was really impressed by the level of play - great strategy and excellent passing - and it was fun to learn more about a sport I knew almost nothing about (other than what I learned watching the new 90210).



Afterwards, we headed to Full Tilt Ice Cream in Columbia City to help our friends Julie and Kynan celebrate the 4th birthday of their daughter, Rowan.



If you haven't had the chance to check out any of Full Tilt's 3 locations (they also have shops in White Center and the U-District), I highly recommend it. In addition to a selection of house-made ice creams ranging from the exotic (ube and Mexican chocolate) to the expected (vanilla), they also have pinball and old-school video games, like Ms. Pac Man, Pole Position, and Q-Bert. I indulged in a hazelnut cake cone and played some Galaga, while Dan opted for ube and Pole Position.



It was great fun to spend time with Julie & Kynan - and the birthday girl, of course - who was smiling ear to ear, bouncing around, and clearly enjoying her special day. Having only nephews, it was fun to experience a girly birthday party - with unicorn playmobile, princess costumes and pink cupcakes being the order of the day. I was particularly taken aback at the care and time she spent opening gifts.



After the party, Dan & I headed down the street to El Sombrero for some dinner.



We started off with Mango margaritas. We'd never tried the flavored margaritas at El Sombrero before, but after delicious guava and lilikoi margaritas while in Hawaii, something fruity and tropical sounded great. Dan's not a fan of blended drinks (generally), so we were happy to learn we could have them on the rocks.



After treats at the birthday party, our appetites weren't voracious - and we've learned our lesson from all our previous visits to El Sombrero that the servings are significant and you either need to be hungry or have the self control to save about half your meal as leftovers.



So our approach was to order one platter to share - Carnitas Y Camerones. It was perfect, given the variety and size, and more than enough for us both along with chips, salsa and margaritas.