San Diego, CA - What to Eat

As you know, our vacations consist of a lot of eating, and San Diego was no different. In fact, it was one of my favorite dining cities, where we had one of our all time favorite meals! I recently was looking through photos to create our Christmas card, and asked Jesse if he thought anyone would appreciate a card of food pictures... ;)
I had a few places picked out ahead of time from Pinterest and other blogs. We met up at the end of the week with Jesse's brother and sister-in-law, who had a few food requests as well. Otherwise, we would search as on the go, depending on which side of town we were on. Here are a few of our favorites:

Chocolat Cafe and Gelato - gelato and ice cream shops are all over, but I think we hit the jackpot at this random stop. The gelato was so beautiful and vibrant. We picked four flavors to split and they were all equally delicious.

Extraordinary Desserts - This place definitely lives up to it's name. I've never seen such intricate and beautiful cakes and pastries! You can dine in for dinner and dessert, or order something sweet directly from the case.

Donut Bar - originated in San Diego, and now has multiple locations. Their donuts are huge! They claim to be the "best," but honestly they were kind of a dud. Until the guy behind the counter started passing out made to order Donut French Toast. This, my friends, is their best kept secret.

Considering you can see Mexico as you fly into San Diego, there is plenty of Mexican food and inspiration! We chose Los Panchos de Charly, in walking distance of our hotel, for taquitos and tostadas. I wouldn't say this is the place to go, but it was fresh and yummy, and really hit the spot.

Okay, now I must tell you about one of our very favorite places we've ever eaten. While on a city tour I overheard a local tell another couple the best place in their Little Italy district is Davanti Enoteca. I honestly had no idea what he said, but I repeated the syllables long enough to pull out my phone and save it. We walked over the next day for lunch and had an amazing Italian beef sandwich with dipping au jus. Such a simple sandwich, but out of this world flavor! We also chose a selection of Salumi e Formaggi (meat and cheese): taleggio cheese, cured Berkshire salami in truffle oil, and duck salami. Freaking amazing. One of the best things I've ever eaten. We returned the next day with Matt and Heidi for brunch and another round of cheese and meats.

After lunch in Little Italy, we returned for dinner that night, and decided on a whim for Buon Appetito. We both really wanted a good bowl of pasta. We lucked out and were seated almost immediately although there was a very long line. We were given a bread loaf and cup of marina. An incredible, fresh tomato marina, that has changed all future marina eating experiences. Few marinas will ever measure up, I'm certain. Jesse opted for the Linguine Boscomare (shrimp, scallops, clams in wine sauce), while I went for the Borsettini di Vitello e Funghi (pocket pasta filled with veal and mushrooms) in their creamy marina sauce. Y'all, if I had only one meal left in this life I would fly to San Diego for this pasta. No regrets. Oh, and let's not forget about the cannoli! We took Matt and Heidi here the very next night.

While exploring La Jolla with Matt and Heidi we made sure to eat an appropriate amount of dessert. One stop was the Baked Bear, a build-your-own cookie/brownie ice cream sandwich. Not a new idea, but we all approved of their flavors!

Another top contender on this trip was Hammond's Ice Cream. You can order in a cup or cone. Or if you're like us and can't decide want to try them all, you can have a flight of mini cones! Very unique and prominent flavors. We would definitely seek this place out again! Check out their website and drool over a few flavors like Vanilla Rose and Lychee Cream.

Lastly, Wow Wow Waffle, which had to be the most unique atmosphere. It was an outdoor restaurant, sort of in a large alley way between two other buildings. It had fun seating with large wooden tables and succulents all around. They gave the food truck vibe without actually being a food truck. But somehow they produced these delicious waffles from behind a curtain. Maybe it was magic. I dunno. They make Belgium yeast waffles (not your typical waffle batter) - is their thing. Since we were there for brunch we both started with something pretty ordinary as far as toppings go. Next we split a bacon/avocado/goat cheese waffle.

There was more food had, but these were the outstanding dishes. San Diego was a perfect trip. So many activities to do. It was a very clean city, and I always felt safe walking around even on my own. The weather was perfect, and the food top notch. We'll be back for you, SD!

Birmingham Restaurant Review - John's City Diner

I'm shuffling through older photos that I've taken while out to eat. This one is a little bit of a flashback. I had heard of John's City Diner, but after it was recommended by a classmate we put it on our list. It's been almost a year since we were there, but I remember just how delicious it all was.

John's serves upscale Southern dishes that walk you down memory lane at your grandma's house. The restaurant has a modern diner feel. Our server was very knowledgeable of the menu and suggested some of the most popular items. When we try a place for the first time, I sometimes like to get the dish that everyone raves about unless there is something else screaming at me from the menu. I went with the suggested mac-n-cheese, but I couldn't bite the bullet for the meatloaf. It's supposed to be awesome, but meatloaf just seems like a cop-out meal to me. I'll have to give it a chance next time, though.

(He loves me, y'all. Even through my "hey, lean over there so I can get you with the cool wall" moment.)

What I ordered: Not Your Mama's Macaroni and Cheese (Original) and Fried Okra

What he ordered: Cripsy Duck served with mashed potatoes and collard greens

When we try new restaurants, we frequently will order a few items and share them all so that we can try multiple dishes. And we NEVER order the same thing. That's mostly my doings, because even if we both want the same menu item, I can't pass up tasting two dishes instead of just one. So I'll always have a back-up choice. Obviously we were never that couple who fought over sharing fries. ;)

Everything was delicious, cooked and seasoned well. We liked how the fried okra was kept as spears and the batter wasn't too thick - something somewhat unique. The mac-and-cheese hit all the comfort food notes. I can't believe it's been a year since we were here! We will definitely have to go back soon!
Bonus, outside is one of the city's murals, which is a perfect photo-op!

Overall Rating: I kind of feel bad only giving 4 bowls because we really enjoyed John's, but remember 5 bowls is for "wow! knock your socks off! this food completed my life!" kind of food.

Birmingham Restaurant Review - Real & Rosemary

A couple months ago we went to Real & Rosemary. They opened earlier this year, and I was excited to try them after hearing the buzz about this new spot in Homewood. They pride themselves on using simple ingredients to revamp familiar southern dishes.

They have a cute and clean look inside, but the tables and curtains give it a homey feel.

What I ate:  Fig and Collard Salad. The collards were tender, although raw, and it was a great combination of flavors. The figs were dried and very delicious. There were a few too many on the salad to be such a strong flavor, but at least you got one in every bite.

What he had: Plate of turkey with sides of sweet and spicy slaw and the vegetable succotash. The turkey looked plain, but it was super moist and flavorful, and came with gravy to dip. The sides were just okay; he liked the slaw, but wasn't impressed with the succotash. If I remember correctly, they were out of polenta cakes that day, so this wasn't his top side pick anyway.

Not pictured, was the orange blossom lemonade we had to drink. It was amazing! Super refreshing and you could definitely appreciate the orange flavor! If you enjoy Urban Cookhouse's strawberry lemonade (which has quite a following), you will probably like this. Tart and sweet - a funky version of a classic summer drink.
Overall, we enjoyed Real and Rosemary. We didn't feel we had to rush back to try more dishes; for that I'll give it 3/5 bowls. However, I have been back with friends since this initial visit and had the meatball sub with the polenta cakes and more orange blossom lemonade. Again, everything tasted good, and I would go back to try a few more menu items.
Overall Rating:

Since this is my first restaurant review, let's define the rating system:

1 Bowl  = A complete miss. We wouldn't recommend it.

2 Bowls = Ehh... it was okay. Sufficed as a meal, but nothing to write home about.

3 Bowls = Satisfying experience. Generally good food and enjoyable, but somewhat forgettable.

4 Bowls = Nice! Fully satisfied, and we would definitely recommend and return!

5 Bowls = A place that truly wows us and exceeds our expectations!

Seattle / Food

By now we all know we love finding good food, and vacation is no exception. In fact, it's a priority on vacation to eat some of the best meals in town. Sometimes this takes determination and patience to wait in long lines, but my taste buds are rarely let down. Seattle is home to a sprawling selection of good food and drinks, so I thought I'd follow up my last post with our foodie experience. I got over being embarrassed of photographing my meals long ago. Jesse doesn't mind so much either, except he is usually ready to dig in while I find just the right angle where the food looks as good as it does in person (or at least, I attempt).

Below is our sampling of Seattle, listing what we had (not necessarily what you should order...unless I get demanding):

Skillet Dinner - "the burger" with bacon jam, arugula, bleu cheese; "the basic" burger with lettuce, house sauce, pickle, American cheese; sides of lentil soup and fries
Did you read that - bacon jam! That's what that aweful-looking pile of goop is, but let me tell you, it was awesome! The burgers were amazing - nice and juicy. The sides were great too. As stuffed as I was from eating most of my burger, the lentil soup was so good I wanted to finish it too!

Molly Moon's - I'm not even going to lie, I don't remember what flavors we had. Mine had something to do with apples. They are known for their Honey Lavender ice cream, but I was not a fan - it tasted too much like old lady soap in my opinion. As with any ice cream bar, sample away until you find your favorite! They have traditional and seasonal flavors, and a cute little freezer to buy by the pint!

La Panier - a small french bakery near Pike Place market. These guys have tourism down to a science. The line may be out the door, but only for a moment. Due to other blogs and food reviews, I knew I wanted a croissant, but I had to pick up a couple macarons from their pastries section too. Lemon and Passionfruit, I believe. We had one almond croissant, then on our last day in Seattle went back for a chocolate croissant (and another almond). If you are in Seattle, you must try these. Warning: no croissant will ever be the same.

Serious Pie  - known for their pizza, however they have an extensive biscuit menu for breakfast/brunch at their Westlake location. As a Southern girl, I have to admit I was a bit skeptical of the quality of these West Coast buttermilk biscuits. To test the fates, I ordered the Southern-most listed biscuit - fried chicken and tabasco black pepper gravy. Jesse had the ham, egg, cheddar, and apple mustard biscuit. These biscuit sandwiches were truly something serious. Their texture was a bit thicker (not denser) and the tops had a greater golden crust than the buttermilk biscuits I was raised on. The gravy had a bit of a kick from the tabasco and pepper. Overall - great dish. I only wish we had also been able to try their pizza.

Chandler's Crab House - oyster platter (not pictured!), crab bisque, grilled octopus, famous crab cake. This is one of Chase's favorite places, so he took us here for a fine dining experience one night. We started with the oyster platter to sample a few different types of raw oysters. I didn't realize there were so many types of oysters, but we could definitely taste a difference between them. The octopus was tender and cooked very well, with the tips a bit charred which enhanced the flavor. Then, the crab cake. It is nearly 3 inches tall, packed with fresh, delicious crab meat. The garnishes vary with the season and however the chef prefers to change the menu. We were so glad we ate here and enjoyed this special meal.

Beecher's - cheese curds. This was one of our last stops on our second run through Pike Place. You can stand outside the windows and watch the cheese-making process. Thankfully there is a separate line for their food menu and their cheeses. We walked right in and bought these super fresh and squeaky curds! Apparently they have an awesome mac and cheese, but we didn't have time to try it.

Lowell's - creamy clam chowder; mixed seafood grill.  As I mentioned in my previous post, we waited quite a while to be seated here. Lowell's is in the heart of Pike Place and therefore a very busy place. If you sit on the upper levels of the restaurant, you get a waterfront view with your meal. We were pleased with our lunch choices, but thought we could have gotten seafood just as good at other places. For the wait this restaurant didn't blow us away. I'd say, stop in and enjoy if you can walk right in, otherwise keep moving.

We tried to make the most of our meals for the days we were in the city. While camping, we had many dehydrated meals prepped over our camping burner or in the town of Forks. Yes, from the Twilight series. Those were not worth talking about though. Except for one of the reasons I love camping...

From Our Kitchen - Pinterest Inspiration

With my more relaxed summer schedule I recently experimented with a few new recipes.  I have a whole board on Pinterest dedicated to numerous recipes I thought looked delicious, with the hopes of one day making them all. My school schedule the past two semesters has not given me much time to spend in the kitchen during the week, so this summer I've been throwing in new dishes to try, and I marked a few off the list. Surprisingly, nearly everything we've tried turned out good.

When compiling this list to share, I realized all of my picks were from my top 3 food blogging sites: Damn Delicious, Chef-In-Training, and The Pioneer Woman.  All three of these use simple ingredients to create delicious meals, and then they photograph the food so well you just want to lick it off the screen. For real.

In each description below, click on the picture to take you directly to the original site. There is also a link to my personal printable version for my recipe binder under each image. (All images are those of the original blogger.)

Lemon Chicken (by Damn Delicious) - a quick & easy way to change up the ordinary chicken night. The only thing you might not have in your pantry is a couple of lemons. After zesting them for this dish, give 'em a squeeze and make yourself a glass of lemonade!

(Click HERE for my printable version of the recipe.)

White Chicken Enchiladas with Green Chile Sour Cream Sauce (by Damn Delicious) - rich and creamy enchiladas; toppings optional, but not really.

(Click HERE for my printable version)

Crab & Quinoa Spring Rolls (by Damn Delicious) - the original recipe called for shrimp, but since I'm allergic, I changed this to imitation crab. Don't turn up your nose! You can always buy fresh lump crab, but that can get pricey. Although I don't think imitation crab taste much like real crab, I like it's own flavor.  I know I said most of these recipes have common ingredients. This one calls for quinoa (which I've talked about before) and rice paper wrappers. I did have to go to an Asian market to get these wrappers, as Publix did not have them, but you might luck up and find them in Walmart or elsewhere?

(Click HERE for my printable version.)

Baked Corn (by Chef-In-Training) - I love corn. This stems from a deep love of my Memaw's freshly creamed corn from her garden. And I mean fresh. I remember helping bringing in piles of corn from the garden as she sat at this old wooden table outside her house shucking and washing corn cobs. Then they would get creamed by hand into glorious perfection. There was and is nothing like it to this day. Okay, okay... back to the recipe. It takes plain ol' whole kernel corn (which nearly makes me gag to just serve alone as a side) and dresses it up.  Similar recipes call for mayo and/or sour cream, so I like this recipe better since it cuts out on more fattening things like that.

(Click HERE for my printable version)

Spinach Artichoke Pasta (by The Pioneer Woman) - throw the "less fattening" idea out the window for this creamy pasta dish from Ree. She, butter, and cream are a love triangle that will not be broken. But, this classic dip turned pasta recipe was a hit at our Community Group one night, so I think you will like it too! You could also throw in diced chicken to make this dish more filling.

(Click HERE for my printable version)

Share any new recipes you have tried in the comments below, or let me know if you make any of these dishes and how well you like them!

Pittsburgh 2

I'm obviously behind (yet again) on blogging. But I wanted to fill you in on the rest of our Pittsburgh trip.

I thoroughly enjoyed my break, not having any schedule to follow, and lying around in a hotel room for several days.  I did venture out and explore the town we were staying in, and did a little shopping. I realize it sounds rather boring, but it was just what I needed to relax and recoup from this past semester.

On our second trip into the city we had quite the fancy dinner. Fortunately, Jesse's company covers his meals while on business, so we decided splitting the bill would be like a half-price fancy dinner, and declared it our anniversary dinner (which is next week!). We went to an amazing restaurant that resides on the top floor of an apartment building, which has a perfect view of the city. We arrived during the daylight hours and got to watch the city fall into darkness and light up in all of its glory. I love how cities look at night. It's funny how a city like Pittsburgh - decent, but not the cleanest and best looking city by day, can be so beautiful shining at night. And it's reflections off the adjacent rivers make it even prettier.

Back to the fabulous meal. Because, as you can see, we pretty much just eat good food on vacation. It's our thing. Everything was presented so beautifully, but I tried to refrain from being one of those people that photographs their food. (Although, I am that person.) I mean, I was trying to be a little more fancy than usual. So I just snuck out my phone every now. It seems to be a more accepted and inconspicuous way to capture snapshots of the yummyness before you.
We began with a trio appetizer of shrimp, crab cake, and a skewer of various fish. Then clam chowder, poured table-side into a bowl of the tiniest julienned potatoes I've ever seen. Followed by a house salad with fresh citrus dressing. Finally the entree - Hawaiin Nairagi with a mango chutney with rice and grilled bok-choy (aka - the most expensive fish I've ever consumed).

(I also ate the flower, because I could.) 

And it was on this very day that I ate the most delicious dessert I've ever had. If you know me, you know that says a LOT about this dessert. I sent a picture to a friend, and she questioned my judgement- there was no chocolate - how could this be?! Rightfully so, I told her, but it was true. This decadent dish is apparently "award winning" in this neck of the woods. It's called an Angel Food Cake Grilled Cheese. Which sounds disgusting, I agree. However, it was a "sandwich" made of angel food cake and mascarpone cheese, topped with fresh berries, sliced almonds, vanilla bean ice cream, and a swirl of raspberry sauce. I'm pretty certain the angel food cake was grilled in butter and sugar, which resulted in a nice, thin crunch with every bite.

Across from the restaurant is a lookout point, so we stopped and took in the city one last time.

We also found a local frozen custard shop nearby our hotel. We might have visited it twice during our trip.

One night we were invited to Jesse's friend's house, who he met through the company that is doing this training last time he was in PA. He grilled us steaks and let us sample his homemade wines, then required us to leave with 2 bottles. Not a bad deal.

On Saturday I drove all the way back to Alabama by myself, leaving Jesse to return behind me. It was a long trips, but fun and I was a little proud of myself by the end. And sweet friends made dinner for me upon my arrival, so it was a good day!

Things I did/learned on this trip:
- Turnpike = toll road. Be prepared with lots of change. Then pray you find a toll booth with an actual person to break your only 20-dollar bill so you can continue on your way.
- Kentucky is among the most beautiful states I've seen (plus it has a castle). Miles of green pastures with perfect white fences, horses, and lovely homes in the distance.
- West Virginia is a close second with it's lush, green mountains.
- However, you cannot hold your cellphone in WV. Thanks to one road sign and one concerned citizen who honked at me.
- I drove across the Appalachian Trial somewhere along the way.
- I drove through two mountains (tunnels) as well.  One in West Virginia, then you pop out the other side into Virginia.
- I successfully tried not to get pulled over, carrying two bottles of wine in my front seat cup holders. Not sure if that was unlawful at any point along the way...
- If you look like a cute couple, you might just get your tab picked up. Yep, that happened. A sweet couple at a local pizzeria decided to treat us to dinner one night, unexpectedly, for that very reason. We explained it was a "business meal" and they should not pay, but they insisted. Then the lady told me I had I lovely accent. :)
- I cannot survive a 11.5 hour road trip without gum, water (which leads to frequent pit stops), and Christian radio (gotta keep it positive) or NPR. And phone calls to curb the boredom.

High Five for Friday

1. This week has been a little interesting. We spent Monday night huddled in Mike and Kelsey's downstairs apartment in case of tornadoes. Thankfully we did not have any damages in our neighborhood, and we were glad to have a safer place to stay.

(photo from original blog source, linked below)

2. I made this recipe this week, and it was pretty delicious. I'm not sure if anything with bacon can be bad, so give this recipe a try for a new pasta dish.  I was a little leery of the egg sauce, but it didn't have a weird texture and just made everything nice and creamy (without an overload of heavy cream!). I did also roast grape tomatoes to toss in too, which I think added a nice flavor to the mix. The roasted cauliflower was awesome - I would do that again as a stand-alone side.

3. Yesterday our Clinical Evaluation instructors, who have been with us for both Fall and Spring semesters held a little end-of-the-year party to recognize a couple of outstanding students, and then hand out several funny awards based on things they had overheard or seen us do throughout the year. I will spare you the names of the awards, as they are all corny, optometry-nerdy awards. We have all said and done some crazy things as we've been learning new skills along the way. And it's also been fun (and funny) to see how each other's personalities come out in various situations - whether it's the first time you see the retina with a certain tool and are blown away by what you see and feel like a rockstar, or when you freak out because you are stressed and feel like you suck at every clinical thing you've ever done.  We have a great class and it makes each day better knowing you have people going through this with you.

4. Today was the last day of class for spring semester! Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! (Insert any other expression of unbelievable excitement here!) Finals are next week, so keep me in your prayers and thoughts. Jesse too, bless his heart, for putting up with me during such a stressful week.

5. Also today, Jesse took a placement test that sets him up for begging a Master's program in business. He took several business classes in undergrad, but not enough to major or minor in it. He has recently been interested in going back to get his MBA for a couple of reasons 1) it can't hurt to have an MBA on top of an engineering degree  2) it could help my practice one day to have someone that knows anything about business since we get little to no business education in optometry school  3) his current company will pay for it- so why not?!  Since he didn't have all of the required classes to start the program, he could opt to take this placement test and if he passed, he didn't have to make up the courses, which would knock off a year of classes for him.  Well, he pretty much aced the test today and is now just waiting for registration to open to sign up for classes! I am so proud of him!  If all goes as planned he will finish the same year as I do. So from now until then we will be some of the most boring people you know. ;)

Happy Weekend!