Apollon Restaurant, one of the best places for Mediterranean food in the Valley, surprised me last night. Maybe stunned is the word. On this first visit since they remodeled in 2008, I expected the food to be good. But it was far more than good - it was terrific. Even stunning - that's the best way to describe the fish. I love fish, but am so often disappointed since most chefs overcook it and often fail to do anything really creative with it. Not at Apollon! The orange roughy with a pesto coating was absolute perfection. So moist, fresh, tender, hot and beautifully seasoned. The thick layer of pesto on the perfectly cooked fish was a pleasant, fresh green color, unlike the dark pesto one buys in jars. Must have been made fresh on site - delicious. The veggies on the plate were also perfect. Broccoli at the point of perfection - not overcooked or undercooked, with a delicious touch of butter and seasonings, plus perfect asparagus and thick, tender carrot strips. The ornate toasted spiral of mashed potato was a bit dry - hard to avoid when achieving the aesthetic effect it delivered.

My wife tried the spanikopita was truly pleased. Perfect crust, flavorful interior - beautiful and delicious. Very large serving - took some home for our son.

A slight weakness was in the two house dressings provided with the salad. Very nice concepts, but the flavor was too weak for my palette in both (one was a creamy dressing based on feta cheese, and the other a vinaigrette with ground Kalamata olive). The house salad was fine - though I never get why Greek salads have to include a pepperoncini that nobody eats. (Well, almost nobody, right?)

The warm home-made bread at the beginning of the meal was presented with a paté of artichoke heart and Kalamata olive in, I think, a mayonnaise base. Delicious and creative.

Service was excellent. Our waitress was friendly, pleasant, and very responsive. Was also pleased with the energy and courtesy of our greeter who also came by to replenish water and help out. Interior is beautiful, and while there were plenty of people, was quiet enough for a pleasant conversation.

The meal for two came to $41, including tax (before tip).

Apollon is just around the corner from the Performing Arts Center and just across the street from the Appleton Public Library. Some patrons park at the library (metered parking) for easy access to Apollon, though you should have the decency to check out a few books if you're going to do this.

Many visitors to Appleton and the Fox Cities are surprised by the Outagamie County Airport (ATW), an unexpectedly large airport serviced by United Express, Midwest Express, Delta Connection, and Northwest Airlines. There are direct flights to Detroit, Minneapolis, Chicago, Atlanta, Denver, Cincinnati, and other locations. There are eight gates with plenty of power outlets for business travelers, and a cafe, a restaurant/bar, a cheese shop and some kiosks and vending for food. There are also several rental car agencies here with the rental just a short walk from the baggage claim area.

Appleton is also a leader among traveler-friendly airports in that it provides FREE WIRELESS! No more paying through the nose for a few minutes of online access - it's all free at ATW. Sweet!

One tip for locals who need to park here: I suggest just going straight to the short-term parking lot. It's a little more expensive than long-term parking, but the long-term lot is often rather full, requiring drivers to wander aimlessly up and down aisles before finding open spots. But if you do want to save a little money, open long-term stalls are often found on the far northeast side of the lot, right next to the main entrance of the lot. They tend to be missed since they depart at an angle to the main lanes up and down the lot.

Happy traveling!

Appleton's The History Museum at the Castle is a great place to visit to learn about history in the area. Hosted by the Outagamie Historical Society, the History Museum at the Castle features the "A.K.A. Houdini" exhibit and other material on Houdini), plus a host of other community events such as lectures, workshops, magic shows, etc. Another permanent exhibit is "Tools of Change: The Work, Workers, and Tools of the Lower Fox River Valley, 1840-1950."

They will be opening a new exhibit, Sports and Spirit, on May 21st. Here's a description, kindly provided by Tiffany Niederwerfer, Director of Marketing and Public Relations:

From Little League to tavern leagues, individual athletes to teams, players to fans, Sports & Spirit will highlight how organized sports create and strengthen Fox Valley community ties. One-of-a-kind artifacts, multi-sensory activities, and audio-visual technology will deliver a powerful experience that will engage visitors of all ages. Come see the exhibit on opening night!

I'm also looking forward to the 2009 Silent Film Series offering a fantastic collection of early black and white silent films. Appleton organist Frank Rippl will compose an original score for each film to be played on The Museum’s 1926 Austin pipe organ during each performance. The Silent Film Series is presented in partnership with the Packerland Theatre Organ Society and Wisconsin Public Radio. The first event will be held Monday, June 8th, 6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m., featuring The Thief of Bagdad. It's a 1924 Douglas Fairbanks classic. $7 per person.

The museum is located in a beautiful old stone building at 330 East College Avenue, Appleton, WI 54911. Phone (920) 735-9370. Admission for adults is $5, $2.50 for children ages 5-17, $4.50 for seniors and $12.00 for families (free for children under 5 and members). Closed Mondays during the school season, open Mondays during the summer.

I'm genuinely delighted with the professional and helpful tax preparation service we received this year from Brandon Butler at Watermark Financial, Inc. Watermark's tax service has earned our trust and appreciation year after year. I continue to be surprised at how reasonably priced the service is. We've had some complicated issues in the past couple of years, and Brandon sorts through everything, resolves all the nuances that would take us forever to do, and gets things done with precision. Great service!

Let me know of your positive experiences and recommendations for other services, too.

Watermark Financial is in Appleton at 2555 E. Calumet Street (access is via Matthias Street on the south side of Calumet, near the Unitarian Universalist Church. Phone: 920-734-2555. Watermark can also help you in setting up a business or with other financial services that require, say, a CPA.

The IRS is expected to become increasingly tough on taxpayers. Make sure you get solid professional help.

Appleton North High School's Performance Dance Team was named best in the U.S. at the National Dance Association's National Championship finals in Orlando last Saturday. Wow! Congrats to Appleton North, to coach Kim Thompson, and the amazing young women on the team!

Twelve teams from high schools and middle schools in Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and Iowa gathered at Appleton's Xavier High School on Saturday, Feb. 28, 2009, joined by spectators and friends for an intense day-long robotics competition. The teams of students had spent hundreds of hours in designing and building their own robots using combinations of metal parts, plastic Lego components, fabrics, wires, wheels, gears, motors, control systems, sensors, and other tools. The robots had to be able to perform specific tasks such as gathering hocky pucks and depositing them into a central receptacle, with two-team alliances competing against opponent teams. The competitions occurred in brief rounds (30 seconds for the programmed autonomous phase and two minutes for the remote controlled phase) inside a playing field that had some hazards and tasks to complete. In the heat of battle, some robots would fall, get stuck, or face other problems. It was an amazing day watching these teams battle each other.

Congratulations to the Burnin' Rubber team of Lincoln Middle School in Mount Prospect, Illinois, which took overall honors. I was pleased, however, to present the Think Award to the Steelers of the Conserve School in Land of Lakes, Wisconsin, for the best notebooks (laboratory notebook style) describing their journey of several months. They did great in the team-versus-team competitions also, and came so close to victory. Congrats also to Team 217 (the "Kinetic Ploar Bears") from Hortonville Schools in Greenville, Wisconsin, who won the prestigious PTC Design Award.

Many thanks to Marc Couture who organized the event and the many others who made it possible. Thanks also to Xavier High for graciously hosting, and to the sponsors (including Innovationedge, where I work). Here are a few of my photos from the day:













And a summary from Animoto: