Blooms: Holiday Arrangement with Amaryllis & Orchids

The lobby of my office had such a gorgeous holiday flower arrangement, I had to share. I love the mix in this vase -- red amaryllis, pine branches, green leaves, tall red berries and a strand of white orchids. The orchid is a nice surprise in here, I wouldn't normally think of this tropical looking flower for a holiday arrangement, but somehow it works perfectly. So pretty and perfect for right before Christmas!

Grand Rapids Eats & Drinks: Reserve

I've decided to expand my Chicago Eats series to my hometown, Grand Rapids. My sister and I have a favorite place for wine and cheese that I wanted to share with you, Reserve. It's located downtown, right across the street from The Amway. Reserve opened two years ago in September, it started out as my sister's favorite place, but I love to visit when I'm in town too! They specialize in wine and carry something like 270 different kind of wines, including many selections from Michigan. Their food is always seasonal and often locally sourced.

The whole vibe in Reserve is very cool, it's definitely not a stuffy wine bar. I love the interior design, everything from the light fixtures to the chairs has a modern look. And I can't not mention the huge piece of art behind the bar, it was the winner from the very first year of Art Prize. It's so cool that the piece of art got to stay in Grand Rapids and be on display for anyone to see.

"Open Water" now hanging in Reserve, Image Via

Via reservegr.com

Chandelier close-up, Via reservegr.com

My favorite is getting a cheese plate to go with the wine, you can choose from a variety of ever changing cheeses and pick three or 5 to make a plate. The best part? The cheeses come with fresh Michigan honey and a chutney. The honey is To. Die. For. Oh my, the cheese, the bread and a little drizzle of the honey? Perfection. I think the honey deserves it's own post in the future, it is honestly the best tasting honey I have ever had. The honey is called Hasselman's Pure Michigan Honey. The cheeses come from the Midwest as well and no matter what kinds we get, they are always delicious.

The menu always features a few different tastings, one I had recently was all blended red wine. It's a great way to try a few new wines and learn a little about them too.

Oh look, it's a special edition wine from my favorite, L. Mawby, appropriately named "GR". Love the Michigan wines that Reserve carries.

There's one more thing to love about Reserve, they have an awesome outdoor roof deck. We don't have nearly as many roof decks in GR as Chicago, so I'm very happy Reserve has one. You can't beat sitting up there on a warm Summer night. Or even a Fall night like we did in October. They do have heaters so we can extend the outdoor season in Michigan a bit!

Reserve is a great spot for any occasion; happy hour, date night, dinner, wine tasting, girls night out or all of the above. And kudos to Reserve, they were mentioned in USA Today on Monday for their wine flights!

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Reserve GR
201 Monroe Ave. NW 
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
616.855.WINE
Website