Last night, in celebration of all the fall birthdays in the family, I went with my family to Blue Hill at Stone Barns. Living in New York City, I don’t get much of a chance to eat local foods prepared so beautifully and cleanly. It was definitely on the list of most memorable meals I’ve had—we ordered the 8-course tasting menu, which was insane, but delicious.

Me, Julia, and Melina—my honorary second sister & fellow Sagittarius

They were really great about working with the fact that Chris and I don’t eat meat. Since I eat fish, though, I was hooked up with some a few bites of Maine lobster at one point. Though Maine seems a little far to be considered “local,” I wasn’t going to complain.

Honestly, though, I think the standout was a grilled brioche, served with fresh ricotta and marmalade made of greens. I also couldn’t get over the itty-bitty beet sliders. The desserts were out of this world too.

On her blog, Born in the Doorway, my sister does a pretty good re-cap—with pictures! I tried to take a few but it just wasn’t happening.