We’re Road Trippers

As soon as we landed in California, we hit the ground running. We had a weekend to adjust to the 3 hour time change, Nathan started work that first Monday, and I started the apartment hunt. We really haven’t had time to slow down during the week [hello there, lack of blog posts..] and on the weekend we road trip! There’s so much here to explore and it’s our way of relaxing. Not to mention, it’s nice to get out of the hotel for the day.

Nathan had a big trip planned for us on Sunday and tasked me with picking up a few things from the store on Friday; we were picnicking on the beach! We drove south past San Francisco to Pacifica for our first stop where we went for a little hike by the water.

Such beautiful views!

It was so nice to be able to walk out by the water in December and not freeze! Definitely new for us 😉 There were a good amount of people there surfing, but it was certainly not a busy beach!

Looks like some of our honeymoon pics 😉

After Pacifica, we drove about 15 minutes further south to Gray Whale Cove Beach. It was just as beautiful there and even more secluded. There might have been about 10 people on the beach the entire time we were there. Perfect time to break out the wine!

Almost the only people there!

Short sleeves in December!

And then it was lunch time.. Friday’s selections!

Charcuterie, cheese, bread, and wine. What more do you need?

I grabbed some [not so] spicy salami, salami with fennel seed, and turkey pastrami. I knew the meat had to be the base, so after picking that out, I went for the cheese and ended up with a lighter, but flavorful gouda and a super fresh parmesan. We were totally spoiled with parmesan in Italy so we’re especially picky but this was from a wheel that was just cut open and it was fabulous!

The topper of the tower is the best bread ever. We’ve been trying to get a loaf of this foccacia bread from Liguria Bakery about 3 or 4 times but every time we go, they’re closed! This bread is so wonderful that they have a line as soon as they open. We got there on Saturday about an hour after opening and they were already sold out of the mushroom bread! I got a loaf of rosemary garlic and a loaf of onion. It’s honestly the lightest, fluffiest bread I’ve ever had.. nothing compares and I think it might be dangerous to be so close to this place now 😉

And because we can’t go a weekend without trying a new brew, we had to make a pit stop on our way back to Half Moon Bay Brewing Company. It was the perfect way to round out the trip.

Gray Whale Cove Beach. Loved the waves crashing on the rocks.

Can’t wait to see what’s in store for next weekend!

Food for Thought

What’s your favorite way to relax on the weekend?

What is the best bread you’ve ever had?

Monday Already?!

Wow, that weekend kind of flew by, huh? I’ve definitely noticed the days getting shorter and I’m already missing summer. I had to take advantage of the last weekend of summer and we had a marvelous time!

Friday night, we went for dinner and drinks with our friends, Adam and Jessie.

Blog, meet Jessie. Also note my navy dress/yellow sweater combo and her yellow shirt/navy sweater combo. Not planned.

We actually go out with them quite a bit, but apparently I’m really bad at taking pictures of more than my food or drink. Not this time!

Despite my original plan to get a Musket Ball, I asked for the bartender’s recommendation and ended up with the Lost Cargo. The drink was pretty good, but if you happen to get a sip without any of the toasted spices, it was a little bland. There’s always next time..

Lost Cargo – Peg Leg Imperial Stout, bourbon, Fonseca port, old fashioned bitters, & toasted spices.

The greatest beer nuts in all the land! Glazed with an amber syrup made from their beer.

Charcuterie and cheese. Need I say more?

We followed that up with dinner at My Thai. The food was wonderful and they also had a fun list of cocktails! I’d already started my night with a cocktail so it’s not like I could switch to beer or wine at that point, right?

The Eye Opener – Woodford Reserve Whiskey, Thai Organic Honey, Cucumber Liquer, and soda water

Pad Woon Sen – Chicken and shrimp with bean thread noodles, egg, and veggies

And what’s one more drink? Off to Oliver Speck’s! While I’ve heard lack-luster reviews about their food, the drinks did not disappoint!

Ziggy Piggy – Pig’s Nose Scotch, Domaine Canton, muddled fresh plum & mint, simple syrup, ginger beer, & candied bacon

Saturday we went over to the Fells Point Farmers’ Market for the first time ever. Peter’s Inn sells their famous BLT at the market and Nathan has been dying to try it. We made it just in time; he got the very last BLT of the day and we quickly learned why they’re so famous. All of the ingredients were so fresh and I’ve never seen a sandwich so loaded up on bacon! I can’t believe I forgot to snap a picture..

I did, however, remember to document German beer fest at Max’s. Nathan and I shared a bunch of samples and treated my cousin’s boyfriend to a little 1 liter birthday gift 😉

Round 1

Round 2

Das boot!

I finished off the weekend with tons of food prep for the week! I made the Healthy Jalapeno Sweet Potato Chicken Chili but swapped out the chicken for ground turkey that we had. I also added extra tomatoes and some zucchini. I might have made enough to last us through the winter! I also made some lemon basil tofu, roasted a spaghetti squash, and packed all of my meals and snacks to take to work with me for an extra early Monday morning.

All in all, I’d say it was a successful weekend! Is it Friday yet? 😉

Food for Thought

Did you do anything fun over the weekend?

Foodie Friday: Honeymooning in Paris

I truly believe that my feelings of blogging post-honeymoon made it far too real that I have to come back to real life. I didn’t want to come back from the honeymoon; in fact, I still don’t want to be back. But here I am [guess I have to be a grown up again, huh?]. And it’s time to finally recap some of my amazing experiences!

Honeymooning in Paris

Nathan and I are huge fans of Anthony Bourdain. We watch all of his shows and when it came time to research restaurants for the honeymoon, that definitely came into play. I recall watching his Paris episode of The Layover and seeing a place called L’Avant Comptoir. I was immediately intrigued by the small [some may call it cozy] atmosphere, the shared bread baskets [oh my gracious, the bread in Paris..!], and the menu—cards with pictures and names hanging down from the ceiling.

The whole restaurant!

The menu hanging from the ceiling.

This was a place I had to go. Every time we talked about Paris, I told Nathan I wanted to go to the place with the hanging menu. And I am so glad we did! In fact, we liked it so much, we went back a second time!

We lucked out both times, getting spots right up at the main bar area [on the left in the photo above]. We ordered a couple glasses of wine and fudged our way through ordering a few plates to share. My apologies for the picture quality.. tight quarters called for the easiest camera I could grab [my phone] and the fastest picture I could take!

Beef carpaccio

Fried chicken & frites [Nathan’s fave!]

Fabulous cheese & fig preserves

Chocolate pot de creme

Holy cow. It was absolutely amazing! I only stole a bite or two of the chicken because I know how much Nathan loves fried chicken. I stuck to the beef and cheese.. no complaints here! It was also one of the cheapest meals we had in Paris! All of the plus 2 glasses of wine for 29€. Seriously, we couldn’t even find lunch for that cheap!

Our second time back we were a bit more adventurous. We’d already filled up on a couple beers beforehand so we weren’t quite as hungry.

Andouille

Foie gras

Neither of us ever had foie gras before but we saw someone order it the first time and I decided we had to give it a try. It was fantastic! It had a nice sear on it and was paired with roasted red pepper and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. If that’s what all foie gras tastes like, I could eat it all day long!

If Nathan and I make it back to Paris, I will definitely be stopping here again [whether he knows it or not!] It was not only some of my favorite food that we had on the honeymoon, it was also one [or two] of my favorite experiences. If you’re going to be traveling, hit up Mr. Bourdain for some tips. He knows his stuff!

Food for Thought

Are you a fan of Anthony Bourdain? Do you ever consider any of the traveling food shows when you go away?