We met online, and then went out of town together...

and I lived to tell about it! Ha! This isn't a catfish story. (And yes, I do know what Catfish is now.)

I met Stephanie online a few years ago before moving to Alabama, and on my birthday back in June we met for the first time for dinner with our husbands. Since then, we've had lunches, dinners at each other's houses and even attended a Pampered Chef party together, but who knew that I would trust her enough to go out of town with her for a long weekend.

Right after meeting Stephanie on my birthday, I roped her into speaking to a group of food bloggers this past Friday in Little Rock. She's still speaking to me, so I'm assuming she still likes me after a total of 13 hours in the vehicle (to and from) and our adventures while we were there.

We turned our road trip into a girls food trip, and now you're about to drool over all the deliciousness that we consumed.  

I picked her up just after 9 on Thursday morning and we set our sights on Memphis, TN. Since Stephanie is THE ultimate food blogger, I left it up to her where we would stop for meals. And trust me, this girl can pick the best.

Memphis BBQ Company — we left in a BBQ coma. Because we were basically starving upon our arrival, before we even ordered drinks we ordered their Cheese Fritters. One word — FANTABULOUS! And the honey dijon sauce they were swimming in, well, I asked if they bottled it (which they did not). She went with the BBQ sampler platter (brisket, pulled pork, ribs, mac and cheese, baked beans and cornbread) and I decided on their famous burger with juke sauce. I tried some of her platter and loved the pulled pork and the cornbread was so creamy and smooth. My burger she said was delicious. I took a bite and decided it wasn't for me because I've not been in a meat mood here lately. Overall, it was the perfect kick off to our food weekend!

Big Orange — home of the best, fanciest burgers I've ever devoured. And the best part was I could pair my delicious burger with waffle sweet potato fries. I asked for ranch to dip them in, but ended up loving their version of comeback sauce dripping off of them. And Steph's burger was full of flavor — BBQ, cheese and topped off with crunchy french onions.

Bravo — and I can honestly say, BRAVO! I'm not a huge Italian fan unless I'm cooking it at home myself, but this changed my mind of restaurant Italian food. We went with the Crispy Mozzarella Ravioli. They brought them out with two separate sauces: marinara and horseradish. I wasn't a huge fan of the marinara sauce, but man I loved them with the horseradish sauce. Stephanie decided to mix the two together and it was the ultimate! Seriously, if you go and get this appetizer, just go ahead and mix the sauces together... you can thank me later. I decided on their homemade pepperoni pizza and she went with their spicy pasta.

But the best part about our dinner at Bravo was having dinner and lots of conversations with my friends, Linda and Randi from Passionately Rivalicious. Linda's husband Mr Bobby was also in attendance, and he fit right in with our group! I've known these sweet ladies for over two years and just let me tell you, they have a passion for what they do. And they LOVE football. Which every true Southern does, right? Right after they sat down, Mr Bobby yelled out to one of the ladies passing by. Y'all will not believe it, but it was one of his sisters from Louisiana. They hadn't seen each other in quite a few years and it was so sweet to see that reunion! And to think, it all happened right there in Little Rock while we were eating. Definitely a God thing!

After dinner we took a few photos and hugged and squeezed each other a little more. It was so nice getting to meet the voices I've been conversing with for so long.

We cut our girl's trip short by a day because I was having some major swelling in my feet and ankles. They are almost back to normal today, but I'm still taking it easy to get them back to normal.

If you are in the Little Rock area, I highly suggest Big Orange and Bravo. And if you are in the Southaven/Memphis area — Memphis BBQ Company is a must! Now, who's hungry?

***All the photos were taken by myself and Stephanie.***