while i was in kickboxing this morning, i realized that i've been an absolute horrible host, barely seeing my lovely guests this whole weekend! granted, they showed up last-minute, but that doesn't mean i shouldn't make the most out of their visit. i mean, who knows when i'll get to see them again? (*sniff* *sigh* *sniff*) so i decided to shift my plans around so that i could take them out to one of my favorite brunch places in LA, jack n' jill's in beverly hills. i mean, who wouldn't want to end their oh-so-so-cal trip in 90210?
after some quality directions from moi (confirmed by their garmin GPS), we found our way to a not-too-packed jack n' jill's. (thank god for late risers!) i've taken folks to both the beverly hills and santa monica locations, but i must admit to enjoying the beverly hills space much better. when we first walked in, we were directed by a waitress to a table toward the front of the restaurant. neither i nor michelle were pleased w/the location. after beckoning the most-likely-semi-deaf waitress several times for assistance, we were quickly helped by a not-deaf waiter, who showed us to a lovely booth upon request.
once we were comfortably seated (w/soon happily bouncing up and down), we were able to soak up the menu. michelle went light and chose the yogurt parfait, which she was surprised to receive in a tall glass. but aren't all parfaits served in tall glasses? i do believe they are! at any rate, the waiter was quick to bring us a bowl upon request. soon went halfway b/w light & heavy, going w/a veggie omelette & some delicious cornbread. i decided on the pecan citrus salad & some mini blueberry muffins. however, i was floored when i realized my half-portion could've fed a small family. thank god for to-go containers.
jack n' jill's - http://www.eatatjacknjills.com/
even though jack n' jill's pastries are AMAZING, the crowds were getting a bit nuts and we decided to stroll off our calories instead of taking in more. except for a few streets, beverly hills is generally pretty dead, especially on a sunday. however, we did manage to run into several scantily-clad santa clauses on our way down rodeo drive. i'd wanted to say 'only in LA,' but god knows that could just as easily happen in NY. as we wandered through the streets, we found our way to sprinkles, which i've been meaning to check out for MONTHS. the flavors all sounded absolutely delectable, but i ordered the chocolate coconut and the black & white to go. S&M were super generous and offered bites of their red velvet & vanilla. both were SUPER moist, and not too sweet. in other words, DELICIOUS. no wonder bridget's so into them!
sprinkles cupcakes - http://www.sprinklescupcakes.com/
as soon as our sweet teeth were satisfied, we roamed the streets a bit more, being drawn in by all the sale signs. (well, at least i was.) i swear it's a fight to keep myself from whipping out the credit card these days. i don't know how i delude myself into thinking i can afford stuff. (*sigh*) in fact, as i waited on the anthropologie line, i decided to drop everything in my hands and make a bee line for the door. soon seemed shocked that i didn't put everything back in their places, but i don't think he realized my state of anxiety at that point. plus, i'm sorry, that's what salespeople are for. they're not just there to occasionally help people. they're there to put stuff back when people like me freak out about spending their non-existent funds. and i'm glad i saved myself too, b/c we walked into lululemon next and i found fabulous workout pants for less than $60! YAY R&D discount! better yet, i think i can even reverse these babies, thereby essentially purchasing TWO pairs of pants for $60. yes yes, i know i'm a rock star.
since S&M left a few hours ago, i've been sitting here @ iso working on my blog, when i really should've been working on board stuff. it's another half hour or so till dinner time though, which hopefully means i can get some work in. otherwise, it's going to be a long night tonight. thankfully, it's been a lovely weekend, so i really can't complain. it's all about taking life one day at a time. why fret? you're just going to go grey faster. (sorry, mom.)
Sunday, July 6, 2008
catching up over katsuya
so i apologize to all of my loyal readers for disappearing from the blog world over the past three weeks! to convey my physical and emotional exhaustion, here's a detailed breakdown of my travels, trials, and tribulations starting on the 13th of june:
6/13 afternoon - happy hour w/the FIT folks @ el cholo - fun folks, never enough time together, didn't even get to order a sweet corn tamale (what a travesty)
6/13 evening - dinner w/jenee & dad @ buddha's belly - our last meal together for a very long time (*sniff*)
6/13 night - friendship miscommunication & meltdown w/a certain miss j (*sniff*)
6/14 - sanja's wedding in LV w/some ice ice baby action (check out TLC's rock the reception on 7/26 - FYI that i may be on TV!)
6/15 morning - brunch @ farm house cafe in SD w/jerry & teresa (& teresa's tummy) followed by my first baby registry trip ever (yeah, yeah, don't get any ideas)
6/15 afternoon - kim's graduation brunch w/kim in full blueberry regalia and most folks in tears
6/16-6/18 - a way-too-long (in so many ways) trip to lake arrowhead, made worse by the thought of not seeing most folks again (or at least not for a very long time), made ever-so-slightly better by a trip to green field churrascaria in west covina
6/19 - a so-not-long-enough day of rest ending w/dinner @ C&O w/eri & camelia, a last-minute run for travel toiletries, & a red-eye (thank god for ambien) @ 2AM to costa rica
6/20-6/27 - a week of heat, humidity, and high schoolers - no comment necessary
6/28 - casey's wedding in menlo park, which was lovely, though i got no sleep due to heavy snoring in my hotel room (totally uncontrollable, but it sucked anyways)
6/29 afternoon - lunch @ cafe borrone w/shilpa & saurabh followed by swimsuit shopping @ the santa clara ross (totally random, i know)
6/29 evening - a nice catch-up dinner w/kel @ tomodachi
6/30 - FINALLY settled back into things, and thrilled by my first swim class @ the SAC pool
7/1 - excited by my first GSO meeting of the summer, but saddened by my last visit to kim & de'sha's apt in palms (*sob*)
7/2 - a way-too-short relaxtation break w/amy (who i've decided is way more tolerant of annoying people than i'll ever be)
7/3 - a way-too-short jamba break w/julie (who's off to help build a church in riverside - talk about humbling the rest of us) followed by my first FIT class of the summer, a long day @ the office, & 2 back-to-back transfer workshops (as well as a frantic call from a stressed SP nixxing my ride to T&D's bonfire @ dockweiler)
7/4 - THANK GOD FOR ALONE TIME (@ cafe 50's) AND POWER NAPS (2x in a day), especially when out-of-town HS friends can't make decisions (though who am i to talk?) and last-minute houseguests roll in at 2AM (damn that holiday traffic)
before i end on today's activities (a happier note), let's highlight some key eats (not mentioned in previous blog entries):
el cholo
http://www.elcholo.com/
relaxing atmosphere, delicious guac & chips, the most amazing sweet corn tamales EVER (which de'sha & i had @ the last TWO taste of SM events)
buddha's belly
http://www.bbfood.com/
yummy asian fusion, nice decor, adorable waiter - this place is running head-to-head w/PF chang's (which everyone knows i love)
farm house cafe
http://www.farmhousecafesd.com/
really creative food for the hungry (including a yummy pain perdu w/lavender honey that tersa ordered and a pretty luscious lobster eggs benedict that jerry inhaled) - if you're not hungry, you're up shit's creek b/c there's nothing light here but fruit salad (WTF?!)
green field churrascaria
http://www.greenfieldchurrascaria.com/westcovina.htm
who doesn't love a good meat buffet? - if you're a vegetarian, no worries b/c this place has an immense (and delicious) salad bar; if you're a carnivore, just make sure not to fill up on all the veggies & carbs before the meat comes (mmm....)
C&O trattoria
http://www.cotrattoria.com/
yummy italian just 10 steps from the beach, made all the better w/delicious garlic knots & random singing of "that's amore!"
cafe borrone
http://www.cafeborrone.com/
huge menu, vast amount of outdoor seating, hilarious order-taker who suddenly had flashbacks to his previous night of debauchery - shilpa & i had delicious omelettes and shared an alice's-teacup-worthy scone (see previous blog entry), saurabh had a fabulous veggie melt that we all decided to partake of (thanks saurabh!)
**********
as for today, i must say that i had a very lovely (and exhausting) social butterfly day. it started w/brunch @ ford's filling station w/soon & michelle -- a last-minute selection stemming from soon's desire to try something "californian" (little did he know that his mention of "zagat" and his questioning of "gastropubs" would bring on my look of severe disdain). we lunched al fresco (which soon considers "californian" enough) and admired the hardwood ceiling w/the rotating fans. i went the lighter route and ordered the split pea soup (w/yummilicious bacon bits) & my favorite lentil salad. soon enjoyed his first baguette-based french toast w/strawberries & bacon. michelle made a nice dent in her flatbread w/shrimp & hummus. both partook of some yummilicious cocktails as well. (damn my intolerance of alcohol!) after our lovely catch-up lunch, michelle suggested some coldstone (which i haven't had in ages), but we were happily sidetracked by gelato @ ugo. i loved being able to get 2 flavors in the kids cup and i decided to try the coffee & conetto. totally delicious w/o being too sweet. a perfect way to end lunch on a hot summer's day. good call, good call.
ugo - http://cafeugo.com/
S&M (oh what a combo) dropped me off just in time to catch seok-kwee & aida @ mr. noodle. it's been almost a decade since i've seen my first piano teacher (and the only one to which i ever had any loyalty). i was procrastinating from working on my dissertation proposal one night several months ago and decided to google seok-kwee in the hopes of locating her whereabouts. after perusing many pages, i realized that she might still be at creative labs (where she started 17 years ago, i found out @ lunch). i emailed the HR director w/my info, asking her to pass it along if seok-kwee was still w/the company. and lo and behold, i got a lovely reply from my beloved piano teacher just a few days later! we've been in communique the past several months and we decided to meet up while she was down from SF this weekend. especially since she's heading back to singapore soon for work! i grazed on some of the chicken from her noodle dish, while she, aida, & i laughed over random stories and updates from the past 17 years. who would've ever thunk?
mr. noodle - http://www.misternoodle.com/fmain.htm
after that, i raced over to border's to find em, who was in the area earlier than expected. we decided to head over to brentwood and catch up over drinks @ coral tree. it's been AGES, so it was great to fill each other in on the latest happenings, including em's decision to stay out west for b-school!! WOOHOO!!
coral tree cafe - http://www.coraltreecafe.com/
after swapping stories for an hour, we decided to walk around the neighborhood to locate our dining destination. i was truly not hungry at all, but as soon as we spotted katsuya, i decided i could definitely eat. i'd heard about katsuya for months now and it was cosmic that our random stroll took us here. it was also cosmic that em needed to eat early b/c the place was pretty much packed by the time we left. (FYI that i've never seen so many teenage guys in fedoras before!) at any rate, the decor was cool & minimalist, as were the waitstaff, who were all dressed in gray jersey outfits. it was really quite fascinating. our waitress was quite reserved, but very efficient, which is key.
i decided to kickstart the night w/a nice cucumber & watermelon fruit elixir. i'm always quite impressed when non-alcoholic drinks are available, especially when they're not just fruit juices. my fruit elixir was highlighted w/a bit of mint, which made it a nice palate cleanser throughout the meal. em & i went family style, picking the eggplant stuffed w/miso & almond (which had a great mix of textures), the miso-marinated black cod (which was perfectly cooked), and the spider roll (which was delicious in all its eel-ness). the whole meal was amazingly delicious and well-presented. em even captured the food on film, so hopefully she won't keep the photos hostage for too long. we decided to end the meal w/a creme brulee trio (coffee, vanilla & hazelnut), w/coffee being my absolute favorite. (em was afraid of having too much, for fear of not getting to sleep.)
one of the things i liked best about katsuya was the fact that anyone could go in. em & i were dressed in summer dresses & skirts, some folks rolled through the doors in sweats, and other folks were dressed to the nines. an older lady had her dog sitting on her lap and pawing the table. there were couples and families -- and tons of kids even! (FYI that i love that kids have been trained to eat sushi. btw, whoever hasn't read ruth reichl's magazine piece about her son & sushi should definitely seek it out.)
katsuya revels in coolness on multiple levels. which makes it a DEFINITE returner. for a more relaxing time (and some good people-watching), make sure to get there early. em & i were able to get in on a whim w/o reservations, but calling ahead of time may be a good idea. we were also able to dine al fresco, which was lovely for summer, though the interior seemed quite amazing, based on quick glances on my way to the ladies room.
katsuya - http://www.sbeent.com/katsuya/
6/13 afternoon - happy hour w/the FIT folks @ el cholo - fun folks, never enough time together, didn't even get to order a sweet corn tamale (what a travesty)
6/13 evening - dinner w/jenee & dad @ buddha's belly - our last meal together for a very long time (*sniff*)
6/13 night - friendship miscommunication & meltdown w/a certain miss j (*sniff*)
6/14 - sanja's wedding in LV w/some ice ice baby action (check out TLC's rock the reception on 7/26 - FYI that i may be on TV!)
6/15 morning - brunch @ farm house cafe in SD w/jerry & teresa (& teresa's tummy) followed by my first baby registry trip ever (yeah, yeah, don't get any ideas)
6/15 afternoon - kim's graduation brunch w/kim in full blueberry regalia and most folks in tears
6/16-6/18 - a way-too-long (in so many ways) trip to lake arrowhead, made worse by the thought of not seeing most folks again (or at least not for a very long time), made ever-so-slightly better by a trip to green field churrascaria in west covina
6/19 - a so-not-long-enough day of rest ending w/dinner @ C&O w/eri & camelia, a last-minute run for travel toiletries, & a red-eye (thank god for ambien) @ 2AM to costa rica
6/20-6/27 - a week of heat, humidity, and high schoolers - no comment necessary
6/28 - casey's wedding in menlo park, which was lovely, though i got no sleep due to heavy snoring in my hotel room (totally uncontrollable, but it sucked anyways)
6/29 afternoon - lunch @ cafe borrone w/shilpa & saurabh followed by swimsuit shopping @ the santa clara ross (totally random, i know)
6/29 evening - a nice catch-up dinner w/kel @ tomodachi
6/30 - FINALLY settled back into things, and thrilled by my first swim class @ the SAC pool
7/1 - excited by my first GSO meeting of the summer, but saddened by my last visit to kim & de'sha's apt in palms (*sob*)
7/2 - a way-too-short relaxtation break w/amy (who i've decided is way more tolerant of annoying people than i'll ever be)
7/3 - a way-too-short jamba break w/julie (who's off to help build a church in riverside - talk about humbling the rest of us) followed by my first FIT class of the summer, a long day @ the office, & 2 back-to-back transfer workshops (as well as a frantic call from a stressed SP nixxing my ride to T&D's bonfire @ dockweiler)
7/4 - THANK GOD FOR ALONE TIME (@ cafe 50's) AND POWER NAPS (2x in a day), especially when out-of-town HS friends can't make decisions (though who am i to talk?) and last-minute houseguests roll in at 2AM (damn that holiday traffic)
before i end on today's activities (a happier note), let's highlight some key eats (not mentioned in previous blog entries):
el cholo
http://www.elcholo.com/
relaxing atmosphere, delicious guac & chips, the most amazing sweet corn tamales EVER (which de'sha & i had @ the last TWO taste of SM events)
buddha's belly
http://www.bbfood.com/
yummy asian fusion, nice decor, adorable waiter - this place is running head-to-head w/PF chang's (which everyone knows i love)
farm house cafe
http://www.farmhousecafesd.com/
really creative food for the hungry (including a yummy pain perdu w/lavender honey that tersa ordered and a pretty luscious lobster eggs benedict that jerry inhaled) - if you're not hungry, you're up shit's creek b/c there's nothing light here but fruit salad (WTF?!)
green field churrascaria
http://www.greenfieldchurrascaria.com/westcovina.htm
who doesn't love a good meat buffet? - if you're a vegetarian, no worries b/c this place has an immense (and delicious) salad bar; if you're a carnivore, just make sure not to fill up on all the veggies & carbs before the meat comes (mmm....)
C&O trattoria
http://www.cotrattoria.com/
yummy italian just 10 steps from the beach, made all the better w/delicious garlic knots & random singing of "that's amore!"
cafe borrone
http://www.cafeborrone.com/
huge menu, vast amount of outdoor seating, hilarious order-taker who suddenly had flashbacks to his previous night of debauchery - shilpa & i had delicious omelettes and shared an alice's-teacup-worthy scone (see previous blog entry), saurabh had a fabulous veggie melt that we all decided to partake of (thanks saurabh!)
**********
as for today, i must say that i had a very lovely (and exhausting) social butterfly day. it started w/brunch @ ford's filling station w/soon & michelle -- a last-minute selection stemming from soon's desire to try something "californian" (little did he know that his mention of "zagat" and his questioning of "gastropubs" would bring on my look of severe disdain). we lunched al fresco (which soon considers "californian" enough) and admired the hardwood ceiling w/the rotating fans. i went the lighter route and ordered the split pea soup (w/yummilicious bacon bits) & my favorite lentil salad. soon enjoyed his first baguette-based french toast w/strawberries & bacon. michelle made a nice dent in her flatbread w/shrimp & hummus. both partook of some yummilicious cocktails as well. (damn my intolerance of alcohol!) after our lovely catch-up lunch, michelle suggested some coldstone (which i haven't had in ages), but we were happily sidetracked by gelato @ ugo. i loved being able to get 2 flavors in the kids cup and i decided to try the coffee & conetto. totally delicious w/o being too sweet. a perfect way to end lunch on a hot summer's day. good call, good call.
ugo - http://cafeugo.com/
S&M (oh what a combo) dropped me off just in time to catch seok-kwee & aida @ mr. noodle. it's been almost a decade since i've seen my first piano teacher (and the only one to which i ever had any loyalty). i was procrastinating from working on my dissertation proposal one night several months ago and decided to google seok-kwee in the hopes of locating her whereabouts. after perusing many pages, i realized that she might still be at creative labs (where she started 17 years ago, i found out @ lunch). i emailed the HR director w/my info, asking her to pass it along if seok-kwee was still w/the company. and lo and behold, i got a lovely reply from my beloved piano teacher just a few days later! we've been in communique the past several months and we decided to meet up while she was down from SF this weekend. especially since she's heading back to singapore soon for work! i grazed on some of the chicken from her noodle dish, while she, aida, & i laughed over random stories and updates from the past 17 years. who would've ever thunk?
mr. noodle - http://www.misternoodle.com/fmain.htm
after that, i raced over to border's to find em, who was in the area earlier than expected. we decided to head over to brentwood and catch up over drinks @ coral tree. it's been AGES, so it was great to fill each other in on the latest happenings, including em's decision to stay out west for b-school!! WOOHOO!!
coral tree cafe - http://www.coraltreecafe.com/
after swapping stories for an hour, we decided to walk around the neighborhood to locate our dining destination. i was truly not hungry at all, but as soon as we spotted katsuya, i decided i could definitely eat. i'd heard about katsuya for months now and it was cosmic that our random stroll took us here. it was also cosmic that em needed to eat early b/c the place was pretty much packed by the time we left. (FYI that i've never seen so many teenage guys in fedoras before!) at any rate, the decor was cool & minimalist, as were the waitstaff, who were all dressed in gray jersey outfits. it was really quite fascinating. our waitress was quite reserved, but very efficient, which is key.
i decided to kickstart the night w/a nice cucumber & watermelon fruit elixir. i'm always quite impressed when non-alcoholic drinks are available, especially when they're not just fruit juices. my fruit elixir was highlighted w/a bit of mint, which made it a nice palate cleanser throughout the meal. em & i went family style, picking the eggplant stuffed w/miso & almond (which had a great mix of textures), the miso-marinated black cod (which was perfectly cooked), and the spider roll (which was delicious in all its eel-ness). the whole meal was amazingly delicious and well-presented. em even captured the food on film, so hopefully she won't keep the photos hostage for too long. we decided to end the meal w/a creme brulee trio (coffee, vanilla & hazelnut), w/coffee being my absolute favorite. (em was afraid of having too much, for fear of not getting to sleep.)
one of the things i liked best about katsuya was the fact that anyone could go in. em & i were dressed in summer dresses & skirts, some folks rolled through the doors in sweats, and other folks were dressed to the nines. an older lady had her dog sitting on her lap and pawing the table. there were couples and families -- and tons of kids even! (FYI that i love that kids have been trained to eat sushi. btw, whoever hasn't read ruth reichl's magazine piece about her son & sushi should definitely seek it out.)
katsuya revels in coolness on multiple levels. which makes it a DEFINITE returner. for a more relaxing time (and some good people-watching), make sure to get there early. em & i were able to get in on a whim w/o reservations, but calling ahead of time may be a good idea. we were also able to dine al fresco, which was lovely for summer, though the interior seemed quite amazing, based on quick glances on my way to the ladies room.
katsuya - http://www.sbeent.com/katsuya/
Friday, June 13, 2008
ramblings about fatigue
i am soooooooooooooo tired now. i'm sitting at the window covering eva's shift and i'm so glad i have all the wonders of technology to keep me awake right now. i'm not quite sure why i do this to myself. this meaning staying up till 2AM and waking up 5.5 hours later. i've done this twice this week and i'm, simply put, a hot mess.
i suppose i always think i can get more in a day than i actually can. which causes me to end up flaking right and left when my body decides to tell me that i can't get it all in. so apologies UP FRONT to any and all of my lovely friends that i've ever done that to -- and will likely do to again. (i'm sorry, but seriously, this is an inherent fault that won't be disappearing anytime soon!)
it's not that i appreciate doing this to myself, especially when my eyes slowly start to droop and my perfect posture (LOL) is impossible to maintain (sorry, elisa!). and i have a headache. and my contacts won't go in. (no thanks to kelvin for his granny glasses comment the other day. BRUTAL, i tell you, BRUTAL.) and i'm crabby pants. i hate being crabby pants. (unless i seriously hate you, then i don't really care. AND i can blame it on no sleep!)
OMG. i need a nap so badly. AAAHHHHHHH!!!
i suppose i always think i can get more in a day than i actually can. which causes me to end up flaking right and left when my body decides to tell me that i can't get it all in. so apologies UP FRONT to any and all of my lovely friends that i've ever done that to -- and will likely do to again. (i'm sorry, but seriously, this is an inherent fault that won't be disappearing anytime soon!)
it's not that i appreciate doing this to myself, especially when my eyes slowly start to droop and my perfect posture (LOL) is impossible to maintain (sorry, elisa!). and i have a headache. and my contacts won't go in. (no thanks to kelvin for his granny glasses comment the other day. BRUTAL, i tell you, BRUTAL.) and i'm crabby pants. i hate being crabby pants. (unless i seriously hate you, then i don't really care. AND i can blame it on no sleep!)
OMG. i need a nap so badly. AAAHHHHHHH!!!
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
chan dara thai & top chef chicago finale
after many many MANY rounds of emailing, lisa (god bless her) successfully rounded up the ladies for a yummy celebratory meal at chan dara thai tonight. lorelle (our resident fashionista) was unable to attend due to a last-minute, all-expenses-paid trip to BARCELONA. yes, i repeat, BARCELONA. her presence was missed, but thankfully, we were able to find a last-minute addition in the form of dr. jenee. who was back from her brazilian paradise to walk the walk at the GSE&IS graduation this weekend. alongside her will be the absolutely amazing dr. kim. who's yet to try on her blueberry garb, but who'll look more fabulous than a cherry on top of a sundae i bet. the rest of this glam dinner party included myself, miss d, and miss jenn (along with muffin, of course). as we like to say (fairly regularly i might add), our table was (as always) the epitome of benetton ads. hot and mod. LOVE IT.
considering that i'd been up till 5 in the morning configuring my new and adorable sony vaio, i was pretty much exhausted ALL day. i felt awful meeting up w/miloni before dinner (awful for her, i mean, considering i was so moody) b/c i was already a complete mess and definitely in no mood to walk around. unfortunately, that's exactly what we ended up doing! and i had no energy (or will) to ask whether we could sit still for a while. hopefully, we'll get to touch base again before she heads to singapore b/c i was a total bore! (i mean, one can't be socially upbeat ALL the time, right? *sigh*)
thankfully, lisa was lovely enough to pick me up from westwood for dinner. and it was absolutely amazing to see all the girls together again. i don't remember the last time we'd all been in one place at the same time. especially what with jenee gallavanting off to brazil and all. (oh, how we miss you!!) to top things off, we all looked super cute (moi especially b/c i needed a pretty little outfit to offset my limited brain function) and were ready for some yummy eats! jenn, de'sha, and i had been to chan dara before for her bachelorette dinner (which was OH SO YUMMY) and all of us had been back at least once already. plus, lisa had actually made the reservation in person when she herself checked out the restaurant several weeks earlier. (i love it when people enjoy my recs!)
we kickstarted the night with two orders of the peking duck rolls (which de'sha and i have been raving about FOREVER) and one order of the shitake shimp. both were delicious, but the duck rolls DEFINITELY deserved a standing ovation. in fact, dr. kim and dr. jenee were quite infatuated with the sauce (which miss d suggested might be a mix of plum and hoisin sauces). aside from jenn (who had a slightly reserved palate b/c of muffin and decided to focus her taste buds on the panang curry w/chicken), the rest of us decided to go in family style with: the pineapple fried rice w/beef, the seafood pad thai, the crispy mango chicken, and the roasted duck (my pick over the spicy pork shop, only b/c i'm in love w/all things duck).
the pineapple fried rice was AMAZING -- totally infused w/tropical flavor. the pineapple wasn't too sweet and the dish was a perfect blend of sweet and savory. seeing as how noodles really aren't my thing, i didn't have too much of the seafood pad thai, though i did notice that it looked very monochromatic on the plate. a big wash of taupe i'd say. thankfully, the flavors were good, though the presentation definitely needed some tweaking. the crispy mango chicken and the roasted duck were both very scrumptious -- well-seasoned, well-cooked, and well-decorated on the plate. the chicken wasn't all gross and breaded (a.k.a. panda express) and the duck was perfectly crispy w/quite a bit of meat (as in, it wasn't all skin). and w/some room left over in our tummies, we decided to end the night on a sweet note, w/some sorbet and creme brulee. i was a bit shocked when they ran out of the coconut cake (especially since we were eating at a super early 6pm). but, in retrospect, it was probably a good thing -- to keep my tummy from ballooning out even further! (and yes, i DO care about my figure!) all in all, the meal was DELICIOUS. and definitely worth paying extra for fancy thai food. i mean, we should all treat ourselves every now and again, right?
before i forget, the highlight of the night was the fact that JULIE ANDREWS was at the table RIGHT next to us. in a white cap and track suit!! OMG. ok ok, breathe breathe....
chan dara thai restaurant
http://chandarawestla.com/
after i got home, washed up, and prepared myself mentally, i got to watch the top chef finale! thank god i posted a note making sure that no one i knew would even THINK of telling me who won before i got to watch! b/c all i can say is that steph TOTALLY DESERVED THAT!! woohoo! HALLELUJAH! i can't believe lisa even THOUGHT she could beat steph and richard. i mean, she's clearly delusional and should've been off the show many episodes ago. i mean, who enjoys being around negative energy like that? ewww....
before i fall asleep on my computer, let me say that this was the funnest night of girl gab in AGES. and FYI that i think folks need to dish out regularly. not even for the sake of gossip being shocking and juicy. (though that's always a bit of a perk!) but honestly, what you're thinking is what you're thinking. don't feel guilty about it. guilt is a wasted emotion.
exit dr. ngai.
considering that i'd been up till 5 in the morning configuring my new and adorable sony vaio, i was pretty much exhausted ALL day. i felt awful meeting up w/miloni before dinner (awful for her, i mean, considering i was so moody) b/c i was already a complete mess and definitely in no mood to walk around. unfortunately, that's exactly what we ended up doing! and i had no energy (or will) to ask whether we could sit still for a while. hopefully, we'll get to touch base again before she heads to singapore b/c i was a total bore! (i mean, one can't be socially upbeat ALL the time, right? *sigh*)
thankfully, lisa was lovely enough to pick me up from westwood for dinner. and it was absolutely amazing to see all the girls together again. i don't remember the last time we'd all been in one place at the same time. especially what with jenee gallavanting off to brazil and all. (oh, how we miss you!!) to top things off, we all looked super cute (moi especially b/c i needed a pretty little outfit to offset my limited brain function) and were ready for some yummy eats! jenn, de'sha, and i had been to chan dara before for her bachelorette dinner (which was OH SO YUMMY) and all of us had been back at least once already. plus, lisa had actually made the reservation in person when she herself checked out the restaurant several weeks earlier. (i love it when people enjoy my recs!)
we kickstarted the night with two orders of the peking duck rolls (which de'sha and i have been raving about FOREVER) and one order of the shitake shimp. both were delicious, but the duck rolls DEFINITELY deserved a standing ovation. in fact, dr. kim and dr. jenee were quite infatuated with the sauce (which miss d suggested might be a mix of plum and hoisin sauces). aside from jenn (who had a slightly reserved palate b/c of muffin and decided to focus her taste buds on the panang curry w/chicken), the rest of us decided to go in family style with: the pineapple fried rice w/beef, the seafood pad thai, the crispy mango chicken, and the roasted duck (my pick over the spicy pork shop, only b/c i'm in love w/all things duck).
the pineapple fried rice was AMAZING -- totally infused w/tropical flavor. the pineapple wasn't too sweet and the dish was a perfect blend of sweet and savory. seeing as how noodles really aren't my thing, i didn't have too much of the seafood pad thai, though i did notice that it looked very monochromatic on the plate. a big wash of taupe i'd say. thankfully, the flavors were good, though the presentation definitely needed some tweaking. the crispy mango chicken and the roasted duck were both very scrumptious -- well-seasoned, well-cooked, and well-decorated on the plate. the chicken wasn't all gross and breaded (a.k.a. panda express) and the duck was perfectly crispy w/quite a bit of meat (as in, it wasn't all skin). and w/some room left over in our tummies, we decided to end the night on a sweet note, w/some sorbet and creme brulee. i was a bit shocked when they ran out of the coconut cake (especially since we were eating at a super early 6pm). but, in retrospect, it was probably a good thing -- to keep my tummy from ballooning out even further! (and yes, i DO care about my figure!) all in all, the meal was DELICIOUS. and definitely worth paying extra for fancy thai food. i mean, we should all treat ourselves every now and again, right?
before i forget, the highlight of the night was the fact that JULIE ANDREWS was at the table RIGHT next to us. in a white cap and track suit!! OMG. ok ok, breathe breathe....
chan dara thai restaurant
http://chandarawestla.com/
after i got home, washed up, and prepared myself mentally, i got to watch the top chef finale! thank god i posted a note making sure that no one i knew would even THINK of telling me who won before i got to watch! b/c all i can say is that steph TOTALLY DESERVED THAT!! woohoo! HALLELUJAH! i can't believe lisa even THOUGHT she could beat steph and richard. i mean, she's clearly delusional and should've been off the show many episodes ago. i mean, who enjoys being around negative energy like that? ewww....
before i fall asleep on my computer, let me say that this was the funnest night of girl gab in AGES. and FYI that i think folks need to dish out regularly. not even for the sake of gossip being shocking and juicy. (though that's always a bit of a perk!) but honestly, what you're thinking is what you're thinking. don't feel guilty about it. guilt is a wasted emotion.
exit dr. ngai.
Monday, June 9, 2008
literati, rustic canyon & air conditioned supper club
after staying up till 2AM to write a super funny blog entry, i was DEVASTATED when i lost the WHOLE thing. i must admit that this wasn't the first time it's happened, so i really should've been more careful. but seeing as how i'd had the loooooooongest day (what w/taking my uber challenging PT exam at 8:30 in the morning, not eating anything substantial until 2PM, and being out at bachelorette activities ill 1AM), i was soooooooo not having any of this blog entry being erased business. ARGH!!
needless to say, i'm feeling a bit calmer now, but definitely not as excited as i was last night about writing. plus i'm groggy from only 5.5 hours of sleep, seeing as how i'd been up so late. (ARGH!! lingering bitterness. can you tell?)
let's start by saying that my PT exam was TOUGH. not that i'd expected any less, but it was HARD. i wish i could've left saying i aced it, but god knows that wasn't going to happen. the biggest thing was that i was STRESSED OUT. i don't think any of us seriously thought we'd need the whole time. but when the old guy next to me left w/30 minutes on the clock, i started to worry. and that's when most of the second guessing happens. i wish i'd stuck with some of my instinct answers, but then again, when your instinct doesn't read all the answer choices (*sigh*), that's not always the best way to go either. all in all, i think it went OK. but i wished i'd left feeling more confident about it. when you're left counting how many questions you might've gotten wrong and wanting to go through your textbook, that's just not a good sign. at any rate, i'm prepared to re-take the exam in glendale this summer. i'm just not as prepared to dish out another $285!! i mean, that's a whole plane ticket! *sigh* at least i know this will all blow over before the summer's out! or at least i hope so.... AUGH! i wish i could get it out of my head! like eri says, maybe i need hypnosis....
anyways, moving on.... considering that i took the exam on 1/2 a mocha and a biscotti, i was starving by 2PM when i met up w/netta for a late lunch. we decided to head to literati, which i found out later she'd never been to before! i guess mel and i had been talking it up at some point, so i'm glad we settled on going there, especially since i hadn't been in AGES. i decided on the iced tea and the portabello panini w/roasted red peppers on wheat. a PERFECT summer veggie combo. we sat outside in the sun and gabbed about all the nonsense in our lives. of course, we were simultaneously distracted by the nonsense in the street (wilshire & bundy, i believe) where a BARQ's 2-tiered monstrosity sat in the middle of the intersection for a VERY LONG TIME. worse became worst when the idiots on the top tier started squirting stuff from the top windows onto the passing cars below. CAN WE SAY JUVENILE?! i swear i was up in arms and totally ready to call the police. unfortunately, i only had the UCLA PD on speed dial, so i guess that was that. eventually, the bus moved. thankfully, my back was turned, so i wasn't even paying attention after a while. i swear i can't stand idiots. (like the one in my PT class, who shall remain nameless, though anyone who from class who reads this blog should know FULL well who i'm talking about. UGH!) at any rate, back to my food tale. the last thing that i want to mention about literati (beyond the fact that i've never had anything NOT yummy here -- love the double negative) is that the desserts are AMAZING. i was still hungry after i inhaled my lunch, so i ran back in and picked up the chocolate chip banana bread, which i swore to netta that i wouldn't finish, but which inevitably i found room for in my tummy. totally moist and deliciously filling. mmm....
oh! before i forget, literati has an adorable fine dining restaurant in the back of the cafe. i've been and it's delicious. if you go, you MUST order the duck. you MUST.
literati cafe
http://www.literaticafe.com/
after getting through several loads of laundry (WOOHOO!) and a quick run (which i SO needed), i was out of the house again for casey's bachelorette activities. after asking me for some recs, casey settled on rustic canyon, which i'd been waiting FOREVER to go to. considering that the plans had been on the calendar for a while, i really should've saved more room in my tummy. thankfully for my wallet, i was still pretty full from lunch and settled on a lighter meal for dinner. btw, considering that we were 30-60 minutes late for dinner (don't even ASK), i found the waitress to be quite helpful and accommodating. unlike the hostess who came off as an uppity sorority girl when she advised us that we needed to be out before the 9PM seating (who didn't even show up on time! if at all!) btw, why does EVERYONE eat so late?? isn't it bad for digestion??
at any rate, the food was DELISH. i chose the sweet corn soup and the baby gem lettuces, both of which were perfectly light and summery. amy and jenny both went for the homemade pastas, which the waitress had warned would be quite small, so they both ordered the soup as well. the waitress was definitely NOT lying about the portions. even though they were quite miniature, the girls definitely enjoyed the flavors and i definitely enjoyed the scent of the bolognese wafting over from amy's plate! since we were in a bit of a rush to get out of there, casey and megan decided to end w/the cookie plate. considering that amy was still hungry, normally i would've gone all out for dessert. but given the state of my tummy and wallet, it was probably a good idea that we stuck with the cookies. there was enough for everyone to have 2 bites, and i decided on the shortbread and the chocolate -- both of which were quite delectable.
even though the food was good, i must admit that i found the menu quite uninteresting. i mean, i must've been impressed by SOMETHING if i'd wanted to go there so badly. but i'm guessing the inconsistency is due to the fact that the menus change over the seasons. granted, any good restaurant should really have menu items that appeal throughout the year. however, i'm willing to give rustic canyon another chance -- provided that i won't be disappointed!
rustic canyon wine bar
http://www.rusticcanyonwinebar.com/
after many attempts to find the address for this place (umm.... i believe some folks were in serious need of blackberry tutorials. i mean, what ever happened to 411?!), we finally located the air conditioned supper club in venice. granted, we COULD'VE gone to the one in SM if i'd actually KNOWN about the one in SM. (of course, i only found out that there when i was googling the website for this blog entry.) thankfully, our little adventure to the venice location was QUITE memorable. aside from casey being decked out in a tiara, a boa, and a "write on me" pink t-shirt, the rest of us were also nicely attired by megan in fluffy boas and blinking bracelets. yes yes, we were QUITE the crew. we spent much of the night going up to random gentlemen to ask whether they'd perform bachelorette-worthy tasks and sign off on casey's shirt. thankfully, we did get SOME dancing in. especially at the end of the night when some really fun tunes came on. my one goal for the night was to get casey and the girls up on stage -- and it was MISSION ACCOMPLISHED, BABY. WOOHOO!! anything to not have to watch the she-man show off his/her non-existent rhythm. ick! to be honest, the club was actually quite fabulous, considering that there was no cover before $10, the music was totally awesome, and only a few of us were randomly groped by disgusting men. (i mean, that's inevitable, right? oh, how i hate that that's true. *sigh* it's just so gross!) plus, casey ended up getting the attention of this really REALLY hot guy. i swear all of us were breathing a little heavy -- single or not!
air conditioned supper club
http://www.airconditionedbar.com/home.html
needless to say, i'm feeling a bit calmer now, but definitely not as excited as i was last night about writing. plus i'm groggy from only 5.5 hours of sleep, seeing as how i'd been up so late. (ARGH!! lingering bitterness. can you tell?)
let's start by saying that my PT exam was TOUGH. not that i'd expected any less, but it was HARD. i wish i could've left saying i aced it, but god knows that wasn't going to happen. the biggest thing was that i was STRESSED OUT. i don't think any of us seriously thought we'd need the whole time. but when the old guy next to me left w/30 minutes on the clock, i started to worry. and that's when most of the second guessing happens. i wish i'd stuck with some of my instinct answers, but then again, when your instinct doesn't read all the answer choices (*sigh*), that's not always the best way to go either. all in all, i think it went OK. but i wished i'd left feeling more confident about it. when you're left counting how many questions you might've gotten wrong and wanting to go through your textbook, that's just not a good sign. at any rate, i'm prepared to re-take the exam in glendale this summer. i'm just not as prepared to dish out another $285!! i mean, that's a whole plane ticket! *sigh* at least i know this will all blow over before the summer's out! or at least i hope so.... AUGH! i wish i could get it out of my head! like eri says, maybe i need hypnosis....
anyways, moving on.... considering that i took the exam on 1/2 a mocha and a biscotti, i was starving by 2PM when i met up w/netta for a late lunch. we decided to head to literati, which i found out later she'd never been to before! i guess mel and i had been talking it up at some point, so i'm glad we settled on going there, especially since i hadn't been in AGES. i decided on the iced tea and the portabello panini w/roasted red peppers on wheat. a PERFECT summer veggie combo. we sat outside in the sun and gabbed about all the nonsense in our lives. of course, we were simultaneously distracted by the nonsense in the street (wilshire & bundy, i believe) where a BARQ's 2-tiered monstrosity sat in the middle of the intersection for a VERY LONG TIME. worse became worst when the idiots on the top tier started squirting stuff from the top windows onto the passing cars below. CAN WE SAY JUVENILE?! i swear i was up in arms and totally ready to call the police. unfortunately, i only had the UCLA PD on speed dial, so i guess that was that. eventually, the bus moved. thankfully, my back was turned, so i wasn't even paying attention after a while. i swear i can't stand idiots. (like the one in my PT class, who shall remain nameless, though anyone who from class who reads this blog should know FULL well who i'm talking about. UGH!) at any rate, back to my food tale. the last thing that i want to mention about literati (beyond the fact that i've never had anything NOT yummy here -- love the double negative) is that the desserts are AMAZING. i was still hungry after i inhaled my lunch, so i ran back in and picked up the chocolate chip banana bread, which i swore to netta that i wouldn't finish, but which inevitably i found room for in my tummy. totally moist and deliciously filling. mmm....
oh! before i forget, literati has an adorable fine dining restaurant in the back of the cafe. i've been and it's delicious. if you go, you MUST order the duck. you MUST.
literati cafe
http://www.literaticafe.com/
after getting through several loads of laundry (WOOHOO!) and a quick run (which i SO needed), i was out of the house again for casey's bachelorette activities. after asking me for some recs, casey settled on rustic canyon, which i'd been waiting FOREVER to go to. considering that the plans had been on the calendar for a while, i really should've saved more room in my tummy. thankfully for my wallet, i was still pretty full from lunch and settled on a lighter meal for dinner. btw, considering that we were 30-60 minutes late for dinner (don't even ASK), i found the waitress to be quite helpful and accommodating. unlike the hostess who came off as an uppity sorority girl when she advised us that we needed to be out before the 9PM seating (who didn't even show up on time! if at all!) btw, why does EVERYONE eat so late?? isn't it bad for digestion??
at any rate, the food was DELISH. i chose the sweet corn soup and the baby gem lettuces, both of which were perfectly light and summery. amy and jenny both went for the homemade pastas, which the waitress had warned would be quite small, so they both ordered the soup as well. the waitress was definitely NOT lying about the portions. even though they were quite miniature, the girls definitely enjoyed the flavors and i definitely enjoyed the scent of the bolognese wafting over from amy's plate! since we were in a bit of a rush to get out of there, casey and megan decided to end w/the cookie plate. considering that amy was still hungry, normally i would've gone all out for dessert. but given the state of my tummy and wallet, it was probably a good idea that we stuck with the cookies. there was enough for everyone to have 2 bites, and i decided on the shortbread and the chocolate -- both of which were quite delectable.
even though the food was good, i must admit that i found the menu quite uninteresting. i mean, i must've been impressed by SOMETHING if i'd wanted to go there so badly. but i'm guessing the inconsistency is due to the fact that the menus change over the seasons. granted, any good restaurant should really have menu items that appeal throughout the year. however, i'm willing to give rustic canyon another chance -- provided that i won't be disappointed!
rustic canyon wine bar
http://www.rusticcanyonwinebar.com/
after many attempts to find the address for this place (umm.... i believe some folks were in serious need of blackberry tutorials. i mean, what ever happened to 411?!), we finally located the air conditioned supper club in venice. granted, we COULD'VE gone to the one in SM if i'd actually KNOWN about the one in SM. (of course, i only found out that there when i was googling the website for this blog entry.) thankfully, our little adventure to the venice location was QUITE memorable. aside from casey being decked out in a tiara, a boa, and a "write on me" pink t-shirt, the rest of us were also nicely attired by megan in fluffy boas and blinking bracelets. yes yes, we were QUITE the crew. we spent much of the night going up to random gentlemen to ask whether they'd perform bachelorette-worthy tasks and sign off on casey's shirt. thankfully, we did get SOME dancing in. especially at the end of the night when some really fun tunes came on. my one goal for the night was to get casey and the girls up on stage -- and it was MISSION ACCOMPLISHED, BABY. WOOHOO!! anything to not have to watch the she-man show off his/her non-existent rhythm. ick! to be honest, the club was actually quite fabulous, considering that there was no cover before $10, the music was totally awesome, and only a few of us were randomly groped by disgusting men. (i mean, that's inevitable, right? oh, how i hate that that's true. *sigh* it's just so gross!) plus, casey ended up getting the attention of this really REALLY hot guy. i swear all of us were breathing a little heavy -- single or not!
air conditioned supper club
http://www.airconditionedbar.com/home.html
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
top chef chicago goes to puerto rico
all i can say right now is: WTF?! lisa gets to stay?! UGH!! oh how i want steph & richard to be the last two standing....
sex and the city - the movie!!
ummm.... what can i say? i was at the midnight show. i paid to see it a second time. i cried over and over. and it was set in my hometown. who CARES what the reviewers think?! i loved it! who couldn't use a little bit of fairy tale romance? *sigh*
thanksgiving in june & taste of the nation
i'll be quick b/c i wanted to make sure to plug these two things before i totally and completely forgot about them! FYI that this was THE most amazing weekend of eating possible. i had my (now) annual thanksgiving in june party (which was almost in june but had to get pushed up b/c of scheduling issues). once again, it was AMAZING. yet another perfectly brined bird (c/o MOI) and lots of deliciousness all around. highlights included: yummy yams c/o jenn, amazing butternut squash soup c/o dani, and a perfectly light cucumber & tomato salad c/o kim. the rest of the food? FABULOUS. *sigh* and a happy half birthday to me!
i rounded out the weekend w/taste of the nation in culver city. i'd been waiting MONTHS for this event (especially after last year when i was full before i got there and dealing w/heatstroke), but i got caught up w/maria at corner bakery for brunch, which put me at the event later than i expected. and considering that i'd forgotten it ended at 4 (and not 5!), a bunch of restaurants were already packing up their stalls by the time i did my second loop! sadness. thankfully, i'd gotten some SERIOUSLY delicious bites in my first loop -- OMG. and honestly, i could barely fit any more food in my tummy, so what the heck am i complaining about? i guess i'd preferred to have had ALL the options available to me, but other than that, i had an amazing time. aside from touching base w/dani & mark really quickly, i saw kirk cameron MC'ing, antonia (c/o top chef) competing, and cat cora (c/o iron chef america) judging! talk about being slightly starstruck!
http://taste.strength.org/site/PageServer?pagename=TOTN_homepage
i rounded out the weekend w/taste of the nation in culver city. i'd been waiting MONTHS for this event (especially after last year when i was full before i got there and dealing w/heatstroke), but i got caught up w/maria at corner bakery for brunch, which put me at the event later than i expected. and considering that i'd forgotten it ended at 4 (and not 5!), a bunch of restaurants were already packing up their stalls by the time i did my second loop! sadness. thankfully, i'd gotten some SERIOUSLY delicious bites in my first loop -- OMG. and honestly, i could barely fit any more food in my tummy, so what the heck am i complaining about? i guess i'd preferred to have had ALL the options available to me, but other than that, i had an amazing time. aside from touching base w/dani & mark really quickly, i saw kirk cameron MC'ing, antonia (c/o top chef) competing, and cat cora (c/o iron chef america) judging! talk about being slightly starstruck!
http://taste.strength.org/site/PageServer?pagename=TOTN_homepage
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
a long time coming -- from NY to LA to DC then back
to all my beloved fans, i've missed you all terribly! life's been a blur ever since i got back to NY, had a week at home in LA to catch up, and then raced out to DC again to visit neena and matt in their new townhouse (which is actually located in VA). even though i loved visiting with friends in new york, i definitely wasn't on vacation. i had to type out notes from my proposal defense (which of course gave me tremendous amounts of anxiety) and i had to steel myself against sylvia's comment that she'd expected my notes right after my defense rather than two weeks afterwards. i'm sure it's just my own insecurities veering their ugly heads, but needless to say, i can't ever seem to relax. (and as we all know, that totally sucks.)
thankfully, DC was a much more relaxing trip (even though i'd had to bring my RAND coding assignment with me). this was probably due to the fact that i decided NOT to lug my laptop with me across the country. (it's always such a pain taking it out for the stupid TSA screening. and speaking of which, i was on some sort of TSA hit list. which meant i couldn't print out my boarding pass the night before my return flight and that i was anxiety-ridden about needing to get to the airport earlier than usual. WTF?!) of course, neena was THE best hostess ever. and in addition to providing me with my own room AND bathroom, she even set up her extra laptop for me! it was absolutely perfect. i really couldn't have asked for anything more. i mean, there are really so so SO few people in the world that i can be totally and completely comfortable with. (especially when being comfortable means letting my inner brat out and being miss crabby pants whenever i feel like it.) and she's definitely one of them. THANK GOD for BFF's.
considering that i'm slowly beginning to forget the details of my travels, let's pick through some of the highlights, shall we?
1) neena schlepping ALL the way out to BWI to pick me up, especially when she's not used to driving that far in unknown territory. (babe, you're an absolute STAR.) us picking up and munching on supermarket goodies. (who ever said great meals HAD to happen in restaurants?!) us catching up on her luxurious couch while initiating her into the cult of food network. this night was pretty much meant to be, especially when she realized that she knew the challenger on her first episode EVER of iron chef america. it was even better when i realized that she'd mentioned taking me out to one of jose andres' many joints in DC while i was in town. AAAHHH!!! plus, she's now hooked on food network. woohoo! TIVO, here she comes!
thankfully, DC was a much more relaxing trip (even though i'd had to bring my RAND coding assignment with me). this was probably due to the fact that i decided NOT to lug my laptop with me across the country. (it's always such a pain taking it out for the stupid TSA screening. and speaking of which, i was on some sort of TSA hit list. which meant i couldn't print out my boarding pass the night before my return flight and that i was anxiety-ridden about needing to get to the airport earlier than usual. WTF?!) of course, neena was THE best hostess ever. and in addition to providing me with my own room AND bathroom, she even set up her extra laptop for me! it was absolutely perfect. i really couldn't have asked for anything more. i mean, there are really so so SO few people in the world that i can be totally and completely comfortable with. (especially when being comfortable means letting my inner brat out and being miss crabby pants whenever i feel like it.) and she's definitely one of them. THANK GOD for BFF's.
considering that i'm slowly beginning to forget the details of my travels, let's pick through some of the highlights, shall we?
1) neena schlepping ALL the way out to BWI to pick me up, especially when she's not used to driving that far in unknown territory. (babe, you're an absolute STAR.) us picking up and munching on supermarket goodies. (who ever said great meals HAD to happen in restaurants?!) us catching up on her luxurious couch while initiating her into the cult of food network. this night was pretty much meant to be, especially when she realized that she knew the challenger on her first episode EVER of iron chef america. it was even better when i realized that she'd mentioned taking me out to one of jose andres' many joints in DC while i was in town. AAAHHH!!! plus, she's now hooked on food network. woohoo! TIVO, here she comes!
2) neena, ale, and i munching on some OH SO DELISH cupcakes in georgetown. i chose the chocolate hazelnut since it came with the chocolate ganache AND the hazelnuts. mmm.... these little yummy bites of goodness were definitely worth waiting in line for. i'm just not sure they were worth getting wet for! especially when the rain started coming down hard several hours later. needless to say, it was memorable walking across the bridge back to roslyn as we braced ourselves against the raindrops and the winds. don't we sound heroic?!
georgetown cupcake
http://www.georgetowncupcake.com/
3) dining out with jeremy and brown at brasserie beck. totally delicious and definitely work schlepping all the way out to DC for. i've always felt horribly guilty (and sad) for not being able to make it to their wedding, so as soon as i bought my ticket to DC, i knew i had to make plans with pretty much the most adorable couple i know. i swear their love story is almost as romantic as the notebook. (and god knows how much i love cheese!) before i forget, the atmosphere at this place was FABULOUS, as was my grilled trout and gratin of brussel sprouts. we ended the night with the yummy pear tarte tatin, some luscious whipped cream, and the most adorable pic! (bronwen, i'm still waiting for our fab shot!)
brasserie beck
http://www.beckdc.com/
4) catching up with ann chang -- one of THE most delightful and impressive people in the world -- over lunch at coastal flats in the tyson's corner mall. she's graduated from le cordon bleu in paris. she's worked at the ritz carlton in DC. she's had a baby girl. and now she's on her way to a phd in public policy. i mean, how much more rock star can you get?! (this doesn't include myself and neena, of course.) talk about trying to keep up with unbridled enthusiasm. whew! i'm exhausted.
coastal flats
http://www.greatamericanrestaurants.com/coastaltysons/
5) doing the touristy thing all day with neena! the last time i'd been to DC, i was a little girl with motion sickness stuck on a tour bus with lots of annoying asian people. needless to say, that was THE single reason i hadn't been back to DC in so many years. thankfully, neena helped me clear out some of the cobwebs by showing me around town. even though it was a bit hot out for me (considering that it'd been freezing and raining for several days), i loved all the walking.
as a side bar, i must say that the metro in DC completely FREAKED ME OUT. i couldn't remember the last time i felt so congested and TRAPPED. i swear neena thought i was going to hyperventilate or something. ugh! you'd have to experience it to know what i'm talking about. and i really wouldn't wish it on anyone for very long. eek!
aside from the walking, my favorite parts of the day were: eating at the native american museum (OMG!), going on the carousel ride (GIDDY UP!), and schmoozing it up with lincoln (at the memorial, silly!). neena had heard that the mitsitam cafe at the native american museum was supposedly AMAZING, so that was our first stop in the city. and we were NOT disappointed. the selection was endless, and with our eyes bigger than our tummies, we tried a ridiculous number of dishes, which were all FABULOUS. our huge meal definitely left us prepared to walk off the calories.
mitsitam cafe
http://www.nmai.si.edu/subpage.cfm?subpage=dc&second=visitor&third=inside#museumcafe
as we trekked through the national mall, we found a random carousel and we HAD to go on it. let's just say we were adorable, ok? ok. and even though the gems at the natural history museum and the height of the washington monument were all quite impressive, i must admit that i still preferred cozying up to lincoln. there's just something about him that speaks to me. *sigh*
after our visit with him, we raced off to jaleo to meet joe and abe, both of whom were unreasonably late. thankfully, neena and i were totally ready to munch at the bar while we waited. we actually ended up trying quite a few things, including a glass of sherry that neena had to sneak ice into (who serves sherry lukewarm?!) and an absolutely amazing dish of watermelon and tomato (mmm...). most of the other dishes were yummy as well, though it's been too long now and i can't seem to remember what else was noteworthy. oh well. i guess you'll just have to check it out yourselves!
jaleo
http://www.jaleo.com/
6) chomping on some healthy veggies w/neena for our last meal together! sadness. after making several U-turns, we finally found our way to sunflower cafe. we'd seen it in the night, so we had trouble locating it in the day. FYI that we were still SO full from the day before that we weren't sure we could get any more food into our tummies. shockingly (or not so shockingly), we somehow managed. honestly, i found the dishes a bit too saucy for me, but perhaps i just picked the wrong thing. like a tomato dish when i hate tomato dishes. i mean, seriously? seriously. i fear that i must've been suffering from leftover food coma. at the end of lunch, neena mentioned frozen custard. and i almost puked at the thought of eating anything more. this just means i'll be back for more delicious eats, right?
sunflower cafe
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
santa monica classic
even though i've been uber excited for weeks about running my first 10K, i almost forgot to blog about it! (BLASPHEMY!) thankfully, i remembered as i was writing it in my INDD apple in the lobby of wooden yesterday. and i must say that i did quite well -- based on MY standards at least. my final time was 1:03:03 and my overall pace was 10:10, both of which i'm really proud of, especially since i used to (and still sometimes) say i hate running. the weather was a bit nippy, but it was quite nice once i started running. i must admit that i was a bit overwhelmed by all the elbows at the beginning, but i was OK once everyone spread out. the race passed by so quickly that i really don't have too much to say. except that i LOVED the shirt! i got one earlier in the mail and it looked great over my long-sleeved grey tee with my grey lululemon pants. so i was uber excited when i got a SECOND one at the end of the race! (for those of you who haven't seen me in it yet, i'll be sure to show it off again in upcoming weeks.) needless to say, i'm pumped for my second 10K in brentwood over memorial day weekend. i'm just praying and praying and praying that it's not too hot! eek! keep your fingers crossed, folks!
http://www.santamonicaclassic.com/
http://www.santamonicaclassic.com/
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