Friendships don’t magically last forty years …you have to invest in them. -Carrie Bradshaw

I am a firm believer in a good date! Whether it’s solo, with your man, or with your friends. A perfect time does your soul good! One of my favorite ways to Unplug is to have a date with one of my loves. I took a whole weekend and turned it into an opportunity to catch up over good food, drinks, music, and art with Ashley and Samara. Friday Night was spent enjoying Art and Food, and Saturday Night was spent enjoying Music and Food.

Unpluggd isn’t always about being alone. It’s more about Unplugging from the hectic part of your life, while enjoying things that give you peace. My friends and family give me peace. Art intrigues me and good food sends me drifting into paradise. I jumped at the chance to check out Cleveland’s Art Museum on a rainy night. To me that’s the perfect time to appreciate art. Luckily there weren’t a lot of other patrons in the Museum so we basically had the place to ourselves. The new exhibits were astonishing. After, we indulged in sushi from a great restaurant SASA not too far from my neighborhood. Ohhhhhh everything was amazing including the fries that were first battered in Tempura and then fried crisp. We left full, slightly tipsy, and inspired. Lots of catching up about life, work, and relationships made the evening memorable.

Saturday night proved to be amazing as well! My Bestfriend Samara and I had planned to check out Marble Room Steaks and Raw Bar for weeks. The reviews had been amazing when we looked them up. The restaurant is housed in an old Bank located downtown in Cleveland. Let’s just say the renovations were astounding as they have kept the original bones and character of a vintage bank, and mirrored it with dining elegance. The evening started off with great upbeat music that was accompanied with a saxophonist and violinist. I ordered the Tuscan Chicken and Macaroni and Cheese with Truffle Oil. Divine!!!!!!! Seasoned to perfection and abundantly served. The saxophone player made his way to our table and serenaded us for quite a while. After, my amazing waiter took me on a tour and gave me soo many facts pertaining to the history of the bank. I definitely recommend that everyone check out the restaurant as I plan to return as well.

I find it sad that most people don’t take themselves out on dates due to the lack of a significant other. Dining is not something exclusive to couples. It’s necessary because we as humans deserve pleasure. Who works 40 hours a week but neglects one’s chance of indulgence? Even if I had no one to go with me, I don’t mind saying “Table for one.” Friendship should be treated just as critically and passionately as your relationship or marriage because it’s a connection that adds to your life. I totally get that life gets the best of us. We get super busy and involved in our day to day that we don’t have time to call our homegirl to catch up on the latest. A quick text to schedule a meetup goes so far. We were literally looking forward to our date day for weeks. It was like Christmas for adults lol. Anywho...I challenge you to go through your contact log, find a friends number you haven’t seen in a while, find a cute spot, text them the details, compare calendars, set a date and reservation, meetup, turn your phones on silent, and Unplug over good laughs, food, and drinks. Cheers to you....