Saturday evening Ben and I got to babysit my niece and nephew, and what started out as a drawing with sidewalk chalk and making funny faces in the mirror kind of night, ended with Ben talking Evie off the proverbial ledge after a too-tired-to-sleep, too-hungry-to-eat, full-fledged baby meltdown.
We split up and while I fixed Finn spaghetti then played with him at bath time, Ben the baby whisperer jiggled, swayed, and shushed poor Evie til there were no more tears and sleep finally came, then stood planted in the dark playroom not moving an inch, lest she wake up and start crying again, until my brother and sister-in-law came home.
Uncle Ben was ready for a drink after that! ;)
Truly not feeling like going home after babysitting duty, we decided to go grab a drink and dinner at a new bar in town – The OP!
The OP is my JAM, y’all!* Short for “The Other Place”, the OP is a bar/pizza place that started in Cedar Falls, home of my alma mater the University of Northern Iowa, that recently opened a new location here in town. I could NOT be more pumped about this!
Afterall, The OP is where my friends and I spent a healthy chunk of time in between classes and studying (you know, all the pesky business involved in getting a higher education,) making some of my favorite college memories.
FAC? The OP. Ace a test? The OP. Break up with a boyfriend? The OP!
It was 1 in 1 out nearly every night of the week, (gosh, remember 1 in 1 out?) but the ones in the know knew not to leave before the closing song played, when the whole bar sang, chanted, and cheered along before piling out and then on home.
While the new OP in town is a tad more family friendly shall we say, they’ve still got an awesome menu, and hey, a cold beer’s a cold beer!
Normally I order a Taco Pizza and The OP’s famous breadsticks whenever I’m back in Cedar Falls visiting, but Ben and I were in the mood for something light when we arrived on Saturday night, and the California Quesadilla with Honey-Balsamic Dipping Sauce on the new menu was calling my name.
Melty mozzarella cheese, seasoned chopped chicken breast, chewy sundried tomatoes, tangy artichoke hearts, and creamy avocado slices are sandwiched between gluten-free or regular flour tortillas, cooked until golden brown, then sliced into wedges and served with a quick honey-balsamic dipping sauce.
With food this good, I can see myself making many more “grown up” memories at the new OP!
The combo of these ingredients is really light, yet super tasty. Grown up bar food, if you will!
I sort of want to smother myself in this dipping sauce too. It is SO good.
Kind of tangy, kind of sweet, it’s the perfect accompaniment to these quesadillas.
*Honorable mentions also go out to Suds and Tony’s Lounge, (RIP).
I didn’t know the OP did quesadillas!
Btw, think I saw you and Ben on a walk yesterday late afternoon while I was biking! Either that or you have a twin couple!
It was probably us! SO HOT, right?!
Not as bad as RAGBRAI a week ago, but it definitely sweat drenched!
Holy Goodness! I just want to swim in a vat of that Honey-Balsamic Dipping Sauce! YUM!
YUM! These look so delicious. I bet that honey balsamic dipping sauce pairs well with a lot of other dishes. I made a quesadilla dish tonight–chicken, pesto, goat cheese, crushed red pepper and skim mozzerella cheese. Yummy too! I will definitely have to try this recipe though. Thanks for being awesome!
I love your blog but I wanted you to know that for some reason every time I visit, I get to your page and then I get one of those pages telling me my computer may have a virus and telling me to “click here” to start a scan. It has happened to me about the last 3 or 4 times I’ve come here. I have to use the back button to get back to your page. Just thought I would let you know. It doesn’t happen to me anywhere else.
Hey Michele! For some reason my website is triggering malware already living on people’s computers. The site itself is clean (I’ve had it scanned by 4+ different companies.) What you can do is download and run the program here: http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/download/malwarebytes-anti-malware/ (I’ve done it – it’s safe) then remove the “POP.” file that should come up. Let me know if that works!!
Thanks for the info! I am ashamed to admit I don’t know anything about malware but I am running the scan now. So far nothing has come up but it’s still scanning. My email got hacked a few weeks ago and I think that is when the problem started. Thanks again for your help! I will read more about it.
Same thing with my computer but ran this scan and found a virus-quarentined it and now I’m good to go without any messages!
Here’s some more info: http://www.symantec.com/security_response/writeup.jsp?docid=2004-112111-3912-99
This is what the scan found “Rogue.Link” whatever that means? Anyway, I can get here now without getting that other page so thanks!
Ok great! Glad it worked for ya!
Ahhh…Memories. Loved the OP, Suds, Sharky’s and Tony’s. Those were the days on the hill! Can’t wait to try the quesadilla
Aw, sounds like Ben will make a great dad! It’s hard work to rock and soothe a crying baby! That honey balsamic sounds delicious.
These look AWESOME! I made quesadillas with avocado, cilantro, a little onion, and pepperjack cheese a while back and fell in LOVE. avocado is my favorite
I love the OP! I’m a student at UNI right now and love the shout out :)
yay! OP! i am a block from the hill! makes me hungry… :)
Hahaha, I really had to think about 1 in 1 out for a bit. I feel like this happened to me a solid 3 NYE’s in a row. December 31st in Wisconsin, waiting in line to get into a bar to watch the ball drop? Totally worth it, of course!
We have an OP right in our neighborhood that we all walk to…..love it!! My finance and our friend did their inferno challenge Saturday night and won spots on the wall of fame. Oh the glory!
My favorite combo at the OP is also the taco pizza and bread sticks! They are the best!
Oh, how I love the OP! :) Never can get back there enough!
I think I know what I’m having for dinner tonight now ;)
And 1 in 1 out. Wow. Those were the days!!
Omg. Those look so good.
Oh my goodness, what an adorable baby girl. That’s also a MUST TRY quesadilla! Yumm-o!
I was equally excited about the OP opening a restaurant in DM! I hoped it would be more of an homage to UNI with its decor and such but the pizza is equally delicious and it’s nice to have a piece of Cedar Falls here. Whenever I go I always see a UNI alumn!
Have you checked out Tony’s on Main yet? It’s pretty awesome :-)
oo i love the combo of flavors in the quesadilla. Thereis a crepe place in the town I used to live that had something similar called the Quirky Albuerque. ha!
your neice and newphew are too cute!
haha, love the shout out! What about Sharky’s?? :)