Elizabeth Tabler’s “No Thank You” Bite

By: Elizabeth Tabler

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Profile of a black and white goat

Source: Through the Wire Pen | Penelope Peru Photography P³

Elizabeth Tabler of Before We Go Blog delights us with her passion fueled by her “inner goat.”

Source: Elizabeth Tabler

I try to embrace my inner goat as often as I can. Meaning, goats eat just about anything; so I will try just about anything once. It is my passion for the unexpected and the exciting that leads me on food quests.

Frequently, people get stuck in a rut. We do the same things, read the same type of things, and eat the same kind of things.

There is a level of contentment in the routine and the comfortable. I mean, why try a new cereal when your typical brand is always so tasty and convenient?

Whenever the opportunity presents itself, I leap into the unknown of the culinary. We live in a golden age of culinary treasures. Two hundred years ago, most people would not and could not travel more than 20 miles from their homes. It just wasn’t feasible. Now, I drive twenty miles to get my favorite kind of mochi. We live in a grand world.

As a way to test myself and my inner goat, in years past I have set challenges for myself. How do I learn about something?

Challenging my Inner Goat

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Goat eating lettuce

Source: Goat Eating Lettuce | Penelope Peru Photography P³

One year, I set out to try at least fifty new kinds of fruit. Did you know that there is a type of apple that looks like a watermelon? Green on the outside, red inside, and tastes like apple candy? Or, there is a type of lemon that tastes like a lemon, but has all sour removed from it. That was a strange experience.

One year I decided to learn everything I could about whiskey. Whiskey was such a foreign thing. I mean, only men from the south drank whiskey.

I learned two fundamental things on my whiskey quest. The first thing is whiskey tastes better iced with a bit of water in it. It has something to do with the chemicals in the whiskey molecule. SCIENCE!

The other thing is Whiskeys from Islay Scotland taste as if your old aunt has been smoking Virginia Slims and you decided to lick her ashtray. It is an experience not quickly forgotten.

Culinary treats aside, my adventures have allowed me to get my family and friends involved. Much to their dismay and detriment. 

I went game night at a friends house armed with a large box of Bertie Bots Every Flavored Beans. If you are a Harry Potter fan, I think you should try this just for the entertainment experience. However, just be warned the flavor of soap does not leave your mouth even after two beers. It is the type of thing that lingers awhile.

On my honeymoon, I declared that we were going to eat Buffalo Wings in Buffalo New York. I have this obsession with trying the originator of a type of food.

My new husband drove me for two hours across the state of New York so I could come into a very fancy restaurant and sit down to a massive vat of highly sauced and spiced buffalo wings. It was one of the most glorious moments of my eating life. There is a reason why this placed originated the buffalo wing. It was heaven on a plate.

Passions dictate my experiences. It is the passion to be bold and step out of the box. I know that it is a small thing in a world of people doing the amazing, but when looked at in aggregate, these small and significant experiences add up to greatness.

Plus, they keep me finding my new favorite thing. You can’t put a price on an experience like that.

My advice, when faced with your comfortable plate of broccoli or a lightly spiced (though completely exotic) dish of Bok Choy, is to try the Bok Choy. At least once. Consider it the “No Thank You Bite.” You can look at it on a menu and remember that it was akin to eating grass or say, “Ah, yes. I remember having that. I loved it; I’ll have two please.”

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Profile of a white goat

Source: Profile of a Goat | Penelope Peru Photography P³

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Bug’s Two Cents

An apple that looks like a watermelon and tastes like candy? Why, I’ll have to take a bite out of that myself!

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Goat eating an apple

Source: Goat Eating an Apple | Penelope Peru Photography P³

Elizabeth Tabler’s blog is a bookworm’s paradise. It is loaded with beautiful, well-written, thoughtful reviews.

I am elated to share Tabler’s passion here on The Burgundy Zine and I’m definitely intrigued, to say the least! I’ll be sure to steer clear of Scottish Whiskey and keep an eye out for more exotic fruits on my next trip to the grocery store.

In the meantime, I encourage you to check out Tabler’s blog and challenge your very own inner goat!

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