We are now having cooler temperatures in the metro Phoenix area and that means we can forking dine with dogs again.

Remember folks not all restaurant patios are dog friendly. You do need to call the restaurant and ask if your furry friend is allowed. You also need to know that there are some rules to dining with dogs. Dogs are not to eat off the restaurants plates. Dogs are not allowed to sit on the seats and are suppose to be close to you. Also it very FORKING important to know much of the food you eat isn’t safe for dogs to eat. No onions, garlic, wine, raisins, grapes, vinegar, avocados, chocolate, macadamia nuts and about a FORKING TEN other things. Please search for the current list of foods not safe for dogs.

The 14 1/2 year old has cancer that appears to be aggressive. Today he seems fine but I don’t know about tomorrow. Every day is his birthday now.  I’m going to take him out to forking eat as often as possible as long as I can. He loves it and deserves it! Many great years of cuddles and kisses. When I sat on the sofa he used to crawl up and wraps himself around my neck like the way cats do. When I drive instead of looking out the window like all dogs do he just looks at me. Many years of those big brown eyes just looking in right though to my soul. Years of him keeping the yard free of invading Hot Air Balloons that he loves to chase. Big loud unique, thundering, yodeling, beautiful barks at coyotes frightening them away. Years of digging bones in the yard that were all cleaned out by the younger dog when we got her. I grew up with dogs all my life but never had a dog before that was a food critic. I had years of him being a food critic. He actually seems to rate the food I give him. Very good leftover get eaten quickly and the bag gets licked. Ok-good just gets eaten, Not so good might get eaten but real slowly and I get that look from his face saying something like….”you didn’t do so good this time.” Sometimes this dog actually SPITS out food. If he doesn’t like it he forking spits it out. Then the younger dog eats it. He also knows when roasted meat I cook is ready. He use to sleep by the oven and leave a big puddle of drool, but now he goes for a cooler spot and wakes up and marches over to the oven just when I’m about to pull the roasted meat out. He is always partial to Italian Food. His first people food he ate was pizza. The 60 pound mixed breed dog was only about a five pound size at the time and climbed up your belly to get pizza. He has the keen nose of a beagle and the warm heart of a golden.

I will have a forking giant hole in my heart when he is gone. He is super forking special.

A few weeks back we went to his favorite patio Cucina Tagliani in Glendale AZ.

My husband (and dogs) had the Sausage Lasagna with a side of sausage and meatball. It was seasoned to their forking  liking and they were happy.

I had the Grilled Chicken Parmesan over spaghetti squash instead of pasta. The Chicken is figure friendly and isn’t breaded or fried just grilled. I think it’s great that they offer a meal with a healthy twist.

I like to slide the cheese on to the garlic bread sometimes but this time I slide it over the spaghetti squash to give it more flavor. The chicken wasn’t dry so I was happy and so were the dogs. The big glass of wine forking helped too.

Last week us and the dogs made it to Angelina’s Pho and Grill in Glendale AZ.

I had this insanely  delicious Chicken and Asparagus Salad. My husband had some Beef Pho that the 14 1/2 year old showed interest in.

Both dogs got treats from us and from our server. Both dogs were pleased.

Our latest venture out was on the Patio at A.J.’s Fine Foods in Glendale AZ.

My husband and dogs had a cheese burger platter and me and the dogs had a grilled chicken sandwich platter.

The chicken was tasty and the portion was very large and great for sharing but the chicken was slightly overcooked. I thought the macaroni and cheese was sort of uncooked floury tasting. I do note that usually it is better than that so it was an off day or from a new cook. Cold Slaw seemed fresh made and was incredibly drip free.

Dogs enjoyed what they tried.

I am “Forking waiting for my next piece. I don’t have all day”

They are wondering on where we might go to next week.