The Lunch Belle / Belle Voyages

06/02/2026

If I learned anything from my 17 years supporting executives on Wall Street, it was how to MacGyver my way out of a problem.

Case in point: pre-takeoff in Amsterdam, I ran out of sanitizing wipes and found myself using one of the socks from my KLM Business Class amenity kit to wipe down my airplane pod.

Was it elegant? No.
But did I get sick? No!

Because NO ONE has time to get sick on holiday!

05/29/2026

Croatia: food, wine, more food, more wine…repeat as needed.

One of my favorite things about this trip was just how DELICIOUS everything was!
Incredible local wine, spectacular oysters (and mussels) straight from the Adriatic, the best-ever bread with every meal (as God intended), and the kind of farm/sea-to-table freshness that makes you immediately order “just one more thing.”

And those seaside vibes? Heaven. On. Earth.

05/19/2026

05/19/2026

😬 Slightly horrified that I didn’t at least throw on some rouge before filming this, but the in-flight behavior I just witnessed was such a plane faux pas that I had to report live!

Here I am in all my travel-ick glory with full-on judgey face engaged because…no.

I cannot believe this even needs to be said, but please ⚠️ Just. Don’t.

05/15/2026

Some cities are best seen by car. These are NOT those cities.

In honor of National Walking Month, I’m highlighting four cities I love for pounding the pavement: NYC, Paris, Rome, and Vienna.

When a city is easy to explore on foot, the whole trip just feels different.

05/08/2026

The only thing better than living your bucket list life is bringing the people you love along for the ride.

In honor of Mother’s Day, I’m sharing a handful of destinations I love that lend themselves beautifully to a multi-generational girls’ escape - thoughtful, celebratory, and designed to be enjoyed together.

05/05/2026

🍸 Texas Tornado
Sweet and a little salty…just like me.

It’s essentially the marriage of my two favorite cocktails - and somehow, it just works.
A Mexican martini is one of those drinks that sounds a little gimmicky…until you try it and realize it’s actually excellent.

Hailing from my home state of Texas, it’s an Austin classic: tequila-based, served up in a martini glass with a salted rim, but with just enough of a twist to make it feel more interesting than a standard margarita.
You’ve got tequila and the other usual margarita suspects, but the real differentiator is a splash of olive brine, which gives it that subtle, savory, almost dirty-martini edge.

Done well, it’s bright, crisp, a little briny, and not overly sweet - which is exactly the point..

Ingredients (1 cocktail):
3 ounces blanco tequila
1 ½ ounces Cointreau
1 ½ ounces fresh lime juice
½ ounce Castelvetrano olive brine (from the jar)
Splash of fresh orange juice
Lime wedges and olives

How to make it:
~ Add everything to a shaker filled with ice and shake hard until very cold.
~ Strain into a chilled martini or coupe glass with a salted rim.
~ Finish with a couple of olives and a lime wedge.

Perfect for Cinco de Mayo today, or save this recipe for the next time you are serving a Mexican dish!