Americanized Italy

Why, thank you!

^ This was nice to see the morning after a night out. With a rudely growling stomach, three of my roommates and I went out on a mission looking for some food to fill it.
"The Diner" is where we enjoyed a delicious brunch Friday afternoon. It sits on a little side street near the Duomo, and has a very American and modernized feel compared to the authentic/rustic Italian cafes that neighbor it. 

 At first glance of the menu, you’re immediately brought back to America and it’s delicious diner food!

You can't really read that, can you? Damn it, Kelsey.

They serve build-your-own omelets, waffles, pancakes, smoothies, milkshakes, hamburgers, bagels, bacon egg and cheese sandwiches, and a whole lot more. I’m pretty sure I salivated on my menu while reading through it. Of course, the first thing I ordered was an iced coffee because it’s pretty much impossible to find them throughout Florence. The go-to caffeinated drinks here are usually tea, cappuccinos, or espressos, not watered down coffee. The look I get every time I ask for one is quite hilarious. Whatever, I feel sorry that they don't get to experience Dunkin' Donuts and their artificially flavored coffees. These Italians don't know what they're missin'! (Insert: Sarcasm) 

I then ordered a bagel, toasted with cream cheese because that is another thing that is hard to find around here. It was indeed presentable when delivered to me. It was sprinkled with parsley for a nice, Italian touch, served with a concentrated berry jam, and potato fries with HEINZ ketchup- the American way!


Speaking of American food, Thanksgiving is approaching in a month or so and my brother just reminded me of a pumpkin cheesecake I made last year. The cheesecake wasn’t ready by the time we ate dessert, but luckily my brother had his bachelor party that night. Saying that those boys were in desperate need of food upon their return back to his apartment is an understatement. Needless to say, Thanksgiving leftovers were the perfect way to finalize their night, so I brought the cheesecake along with the leftovers to his place (what a sista). I have never seen food devoured so quickly. I am certain they liked it even though half of it ended up on the floor. I actually found stuffing a few weeks later tucked under the cabinet. Success. I won't go into what happened during his bachelor party, but let's just say I needed to apply concealer on more faces then my own. ;) Then B got married.

Johnston kiddos at rehearsal dinner!

The end. :)