Lambrusco’Z To Go in downtown Tulsa. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Lambrusco’Z To Go’s sirloin salad. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Lambrusco’Z To Go in downtown Tulsa. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Owner Nancy Bruce, Lambrusco’Z To Go in downtown Tulsa. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Lambrusco’Z To Go in downtown Tulsa. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Lambrusco’Z To Go in downtown Tulsa. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Lambrusco’Z To Go in downtown Tulsa. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Nancy Bruce, the owner of Lambruso’Z to Go in Tulsa’s Brookside neighborhood, was looking forward to retirement. She even made an exit strategy – a five-year plan to divvy up her duties among her employees – after operating the popular Tulsa eatery for almost 30 years.
That changed, however, when about three years into that five-year plan, a friend showed her a property in downtown Tulsa. As soon as she walked into the space, it spoke to Bruce. Lambruco’Z in downtown Tulsa was born, and the new location opened in March in the Blue Dome District.
Since 1985, Bruce has prided herself on serving lunch-hour favorites, dips, fresh-made sandwiches and salads, cookies and other favorites that one-up the average deli.
“We want to be able to offer our downtown customers the same menu items that they have come to expect so that they can grab their lunch and head back to work,” she says.
The downtown menu is the same as Brookside’s, but the process has been streamlined to accommodate the busy downtown lunch rush. 114 S. Detroit Ave., Tulsa. www.lambruscoz.com
Mamaveca's Mexican & Peruvian Restaurant. Photo by Brent Fuchs.
Mamaveca’s lomito saltado is a Peruvian favorite with familiar touches.
Photo by Brent Fuchs.
Mamaveca’s Mexican & Peruvian Restaurant. Photo by Brent Fuchs.
Mamaveca’s Mexican & Peruvian Restaurant. Photo by Brent Fuchs.
Mamaveca’s Mexican & Peruvian Restaurant. Photo by Brent Fuchs.
You could go to any restaurant offering burritos, tacos and other staples of the Mexican food menu. Or, you could discover that there’s more to dishes from south of the border than quesadillas and refried beans. Mamaveca Mexican & Peruvian Restaurant has impressed Norman and the Oklahoma metro area with its Peruvian menu that includes varieties of ceviche and seafood-based dishes flavored with saffron, pepper sauces and traditions from the South America country. Mamaveca owners William and Monica Chunga, who are from Peru, spice up their menu with surprising takes on Chinese-style fried rice, sautéed noodles and tempura classics. And yes, there are Mexican classics such as tacos, fajitas and chiles rellenos, often served with sides of fresh sliced tomatoes, avocado, seasoned rice and refried beans. Ordered with a cool mango margarita or ice-cold Mexican beer and followed with the flan, dining at Mamaveca is a Latin American dining experience that many guests will remember well after the tab is paid. 2551 W. Hemphill Drive, Norman. www.mamavecasrestaurant.com
Guests enjoy Stonehorse Café’s Tulsa Tea, a tea service of scones, tea sandwiches and savory bites and sweets.
Photos by Brandon Scott.
Guests enjoy Stonehorse Café’s Tulsa Tea, a tea service of scones, tea sandwiches and savory bites and sweets.
Photos by Brandon Scott.
Tea is made in a French press at Stonehorse Café’s Tulsa Tea. Photos by Brandon Scott.
Stonehorse Café’s Tulsa Tea. Photos by Brandon Scott.
Guests enjoy Stonehorse Café’s Tulsa Tea, a tea service of scones, tea sandwiches and savory bites and sweets. Photos by Brandon Scott.
Stonehorse Café’s Tulsa Tea. Photos by Brandon Scott.
Guests enjoy Stonehorse Café’s Tulsa Tea, a tea service of scones, tea sandwiches and savory bites and sweets.
Photos by Brandon Scott.
Stonehorse Café’s Tulsa Tea. Photos by Brandon Scott.
When Stonehorse Café & Market owner Tim Inman and manager Amelia Eesley began looking for new ways to draw customers in during the afternoon between the café’s lunch rush and dinner, a longtime English tradition seemed the perfect fit. After three years of brainstorming, research and trial runs, Stonehorse’s by-reservation-only Tulsa Tea officially kicked off earlier this year.
Held Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m., Tulsa Tea has quickly become a favorite with Stonehorse guests. They can indulge in fresh-baked scones, a scrumptious assortment of sweet and savory treats, champagne, specialty cocktails and a variety of fragrant teas procured from Metropolitan Tea in Tulsa.
“It was Tim’s idea to make different things in bite sizes,” says Eesley, adding that the menu items, all of which are made in-house, include gluten-free options. “People have been really impressed with the food, and they want to try all of the different teas.”
A vacation to England in 2013 provided Eesley with the perfect opportunity to research ideas for the Tulsa Tea project. While she was in London, Eesley attended several teas and returned to Tulsa armed with ideas, many of which have been incorporated into or expanded upon for the Tulsa Tea afternoons.
“Ours is not a classic English tea – it’s a tea with a twist,” Eesley says.
Helping to put that Tulsa twist on afternoon tea, Stonehorse pastry chefs Morgan Barkley and Amara Gray frequently rotate tea menu selections and tailor them according to which fruits and vegetables are in season.
“We’ve had a lot of comments on the tea menu – people are amazed that we make things that small,” Barkley says, adding that the tiny treats are prepared fresh each tea day, with many of them going into the oven just as guests arrive.
Some of those tiny-but-tasty teatime treats include orange spice scones studded with black currants, mini red velvet cupcakes with cream-cheese icing, coconut-chocolate rochers, chocolate financiers, madeleines with lemon curd, strawberry Bavarian tarts, chicken salad profiteroles, goat cheese served on puff pastry with red bell pepper tapenade, deviled eggs, lox served on fennel crackers with cream cheese, red onion and fine herbs and prosciutto-wrapped asparagus spears.
The bite-sized treats are perfect for sharing and allow guests to sample each item as well as take extras of their favorites, Barkley says.
Guests also receive descriptions of teas and Stonehorse’s signature cocktails. A typical tea menu will include green, black, white, mint and Darjeeling tea varieties, Eesley says, noting a particular guest favorite, Lychee Congou, a leafy black tea infused with the flavor of lychee fruit.
Rather than being the stuffy, formal affair that some people picture when thinking of teatime, Tulsa Tea is designed to be a relaxed, fun event, ideal for both small get-togethers or group events such as birthdays, baby showers and business meetings, Eesley says.
“We’re really excited about the Tulsa Tea project,” she adds. “It’s a fun way to spend an afternoon.” 1748 Utica Square, Tulsa.
Stonehorse Café invites you to its uniquely Tulsa teatime.
Every Mother’s Day, we celebrate all the wonderful women in our lives. Whether she’s a spouse, mother, grandma, mentor or friend, show her she’s appreciated by making her something delicious and guilt-free.
Take advantage of the fresh, juicy berries abundant at farmers markets and grocery stores. Full of antioxidants, vitamins and other essential nutrients, strawberries pack a nutritional punch.
Besides being low in calories and high in fiber, strawberries contain flavonoids, known to help fight heart disease. And along those lines, strawberries contain antioxidants that can potentially prevent strokes because they stop blood clots from forming. Those same antioxidants are also helpful in preventing cancerous tumors from forming.
Eating strawberries can help regulate blood pressure, blood sugar and lower cholesterol.
Indulge you moms – their hearts will be appreciative in more ways than one.
Chilled Strawberry Soup
3 c. fresh quartered strawberries
1 c. fat-free evaporated milk
½ c. light sour cream
3-4 tbsp. honey
1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
¼ tsp. lemon zest
¼ tsp. orange zest
Low-fat whipped topping or light sour cream and strawberry slices, for garnish
Combine all ingredients except garnish in a food processor or blender and blend until smooth. Strain soup through a fine mesh strainer to remove seeds. Repeat this step to remove as many seeds as possible. Chill soup for at least eight hours or overnight. Serve in small bowls. Garnish as desired.
Cheese coney, Robert’s Grill. Photo by Brent Fuchs.
Fried onion burger, Robert’s Grill. Photo by Brent Fuchs.
One day out of the year, the onion burger is placed on a pedestal, and the town of El Reno celebrates its existence by cooking one weighing more than 750 pounds. Lore tells us that El Reno’s Fried Onion Burger Day Festival was born when a local proprietor mixed onions into ground beef and patted it out to make it look bigger. It was the Great Depression, and meat was expensive, but onions were not. The result became a local favorite and tradition carried into today by small-town diners like Robert’s Grill. Route 66 favorite and long-time establishment Robert’s Grill has a basic menu of burgers, coneys, fries, tots, chili and sandwiches. What’s not advertised is the “show” – customers get to watch as the cook throws beef patties on the grill with fresh-cut onions and smashes them together before building the burger on a bun. With this kind of flavor, the onion burger deserves all the kudos it gets; and with each order, Robert’s Grill keeps building its hard-earned reputation for simple goodness. 300 S. Bickford Ave., El Reno. 405.262.1262
Owner David Woodard serves up heat and smoky-sweet spice at Knotty Pine Barbecue. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Knotty Pine BBQ. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Knotty Pine BBQ. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Knotty Pine BBQ. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Knotty Pine BBQ. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Knotty Pine BBQ. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Knotty Pine BBQ. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Owner David Woodard serves up heat and smoky-sweet spice at Knotty Pine Barbecue. Photo by Brandon Scott.
Back in the early 1940s, Knotty Pine was a rough bar in a tough part of town, and David Woodard’s grandmother used to carry a blackjack to club unruly drunks. But the delicious barbecue soon became known citywide, and crowds of eager eaters kept the drunks at bay. Every day, the line of hungry patrons snaked out the door and down the block. Woodard’s first childhood memory is of stacking sheets of paper used to wrap the ‘cue. He was 5 years old, and the stack seemed to reach the ceiling. Today, Woodard helms the legendary Tulsa barbecue at a new location.
“We want the old Knotty Pine regulars back, but we also want their children
… and their grandchildren,” he says. The regulars are glad to find beans, slaw and the famous secret sauce made the way they were a half-century ago. And the ribs, pulled pork, ham and brisket are even better. Working with Travis Jackson, a former chef at Polo Grill, Woodard and his wife, Brittany Woodard, discovered a way to improve the flavor. The meat is brined for 24 hours, then smoked daily. New sides, such as gumbo, tabouleh and chili, have made their way onto the menu, along with appetizers such as wings, hummus and homemade desserts. 6161 S. 33rd West Ave., Tulsa. www.knottypinebbq.com
"Bruce on Highway," print. Photo (c) Pamela Springsteen.
“Bruce on Highway,” print. Photo (c) Pamela Springsteen.
Tuesday, April 29, 6 p.m.
When he belted out “Born in the U.S.A.” in 1984, Bruce Springsteen had already made the albums Born to Run and Nebraska, works that set him apart from the greater musical mainstream for their storytelling and earnest concern for ordinary people and lives. But even as politicians left and right clamored in an election year to “Born in the U.S.A.” and its up-beat, anthemic choruses (neglecting the evocative words between them), the song still bore out its message – soldiers in war give their lives in more ways than one. Such songcraft is not unlike the work of Woody Guthrie, and that makes the Woody Guthrie Center in Tulsa well-suited to display the traveling exhibit Bruce Springsteen: A Photographic Journey. The exhibit features 45 images of Springsteen on the road and in concert taken by photographers Danny Clinch, Ed Gallucci, Eric Meola, Barry Schneier, Pamela Springsteen and Frank Stefanko. The exhibition opens Tuesday, April 29, at 6 p.m. at the center, 102 E. Brady St., in Tulsa’s Brady Arts District. In addition to the photos, the exhibit will include video interviews with the photographers, some of whom are scheduled to attend the opening to participate in a panel discussion at 7:30 p.m. A book signing follows at 8:45 p.m. Bruce Springsteen is on loan from the Grammy Museum through spring 2015. Admission is $25 and benefits the center’s education programs. For more, visit www.woodyguthriecenter.org.
Still from the documentary film "Freedom's School." Image courtesy Pivot Films.
Still from the documentary film “Freedom’s School.” Image courtesy Pivot Films.
Tuesday, April 29, 6 p.m.
A film about the 100 years of Tulsa’s Booker T. Washington High School will have its world premiere Tuesday, April 29, at Circle Cinema. Freedom’s School documents the history of Oklahoma’s first black high school and one of the top magnet schools in the nation today. Directed by Tulsa native Andrea Jobe, the film was produced by Pivot Films, which Jobe started with her husband, Robert Jobe. Freedom’s School draws the line from the school’s beginnings in 1913 and its perseverance through the Tulsa Race Riot and negative reactions to school integration. Ranked 74th in Newsweek magazine’s Top 100 public high schools in the U.S. 2010, the school continues to attract attention for academic excellence.
A red carpet entrance kicks off the event at 6 p.m. and includes the school’s jazz ensemble, pom squad and other student groups. Food trucks will also be on site. The film starts at 6:30 p.m. and will be followed by a discussion panel with the director and people interviewed in the film. Circle Cinema is located at 10 S. Lewis Ave., Tulsa. Tickets are $20 at www.circlecinema.com. Proceeds benefit BTW High School’s International Baccalaureate and Advanced Placement programs.
Get to know Tulsa’s eight Sister Cities Tuesday, April 29, at the Hardesty Arts Center, 101 E. Archer St. Savoring Sister Cities is back for a seventh year offering the delectable and interesting bits of Tulsa’s connections around the globe. The Sister Cities are Amiens, France; Beihai, China; Celle, Germany; Kaohsiung, Taiwan; San Luis Potosi, Mexico; Tiberias, Israel; Utsunomiya, Japan; and Zelenograd, Russia. Tulsa Global Alliance presents great foods from around the world, cultural presentations and entertainment from flamenco dancer Lexi Allen and jazz guitarist Ivan Pena plus a wine pull featuring wines from all over the world. Tickets are $10-$15 each and include two drink tickets and international cuisine. For more, call 918.591.4750 or go to www.tulsaglobalalliance.org.
Cain’s Ballroom welcomes dance pop duo Karmin, an act that had been known for its covers of other pop star’s hits. With the release of Pulses, Karmin’s first full-length album, in March, Amy Heidemann and Nick Noonan showed their own abilities as songwriters, no doubt honed from their time at Boston’s Berklee College of Music, where they met as students. On the road for their headlining “Pulses Tour,” Karmin take the Cain’s stage with a new single, “I Want it All,” on Wednesday, April 30. Bonnie McKee opens for the pair at 8 p.m. Tickets are $19-$35 at www.cainsballroom.com.
