What I Ate Wednesday #126: We Ate It All

No really, aside from breakfast, we haven’t eaten at home in a week. If there was food to be had, we had it! [And then some..] But don’t worry, we all got in our 10,000 steps pretty much daily. Plus, I dragged Mom to barre again. It was a tougher class this yesterday than it was last Thursday and I bet she’s cursing me right about now.

Mom and Dad are heading home today and I’m bummed. I can’t believe a week went by so quickly and it was so nice having them here. Anytime I told people that all of our upcoming visitors would be staying with us, I got a “ohhhh, geeze!” But we loved it. It also didn’t hurt that my mom can’t sit still so she was always cleaning something up or putting something away! I’m so not ready to get back to real life but for their last day, we made sure to make it nice and relaxing.

[Post-Barre Breakfast]

Our first trip to Mama’s Royal Cafe on Broadway was delicious! They’re pretty well-known around here and now we know why. I got their special omelette, chock full of kale, sweet potato, and gruyere with a side of fruit, potatoes, ACME sour levain toast, and lots of coffee. We’ll definitely be heading back there for breakfast or lunch soon.

[Lunch]

Oh. I did say lunch, right? Well, after hiking through Mountain View Cemetary in Oakland [sounds bizarre, but it really is a beautiful place.. and much of a hike!] we made our way back to Cato’s Ale House for a brew and late lunch. I had the roasted beet salad with feta, candied walnuts, and chicken. More importantly, however, the 21st Amendment Kilt by Wildfire Scotch Ale is deeeelicious!

[Dinner]

Late lunch calls for a late dinner. We’d planned on cooking, but that didn’t happen once over the course of the week. Instead, we walked down to Ohgane, a Korean BBQ restaurant, for dinner. My parents had never been to one and this was our first time trying this particular restaurant. We went through multiple rounds of the little banchan plates along with the Galbee [short rib], chicken, and shrimp. The charcoal grill at the table was fun and gave the meat such great charred flavor. Another repeat restaurant, for sure!

Like I said, I’m bummed that my parents are on their way home today but it’s been such a fun week full of amazing food, lots of walking, and just great quality time together. I can’t wait for them to come back again.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be doing hours of cardio and eating boiled chicken and asparagus for the rest of week 😉

Food for Thought

Do you go out to eat with visitors or prefer to cook at home?

Sunshine, Group Asses, & Red Thai Curry

Oh man, Monday already, huh? We had absolutely beautiful weather this past weekend and even though we had a ton of packing to do, we also wanted to take full advantage of the sunshine. Saturday we went into San Francisco. It had been almost a month since the last time we spent time in the city; we didn’t go in with much of a plan but to just walk around and enjoy our time outside.

One of the first things we passed was this fabulous sign. Take note.. always be careful of where you place your specials.

Would you like a $99 special on some group asses?

The city was hopping and by the time we made it to Blue Barn Gourmet for lunch, it was packed! We ordered our lunches to-go but snagged a table by the window while we were waiting. I’d been to Blue Barn by myself when we first moved out to California but had never taken Nathan. It was so good!

Winter salad with brussels, roasted squash, grated parm, pomegranate arils, pine nuts, and smoked salmon.

We continued our hike through the city and made our way over to the Golden Gate Bridge. It was a pretty clear day and the scenes were awfully nice!

You’d think by now we’d be better at taking selfies..

The Palace of Fine Arts was looking pretty wonderful too. We laid out a blanket and as soon as my my head hit the blanket, I was out cold! Clearly I needed a nap.. ha!

We stayed in for dinner; I made a chicken and broccoli stir fry with red Thai curry sauce over spaghetti squash and it was delish. I added some sriracha to the sauce and it gave it a nice kick. I will definitely be stashing this recipe away to make again soon!

We did a bunch of cooking over the weekend in hopes of keeping this week super easy. We don’t have a specific meal plan for this week because we’re moving Saturday and are trying to keep our dishes to a minimum without going out a ton. It’s going to be a crazy nuts week but we’ll be in a new place soon and we’re definitely ready for another new experience! And on that note, let’s do this thing!

Food for Thought

Did you do anything fun over the weekend?

Five Things Friday {12/26}

Happy Friday, friends! I hope everyone is able to enjoy a nice 4-day weekend!

1. We kicked off our Christmas day with our second annual dim sum brunch at Lai Hong Lounge. We figure there’s a reason Jews eat Chinese food on Christmas, but we wanted to one-up it with dim sum and it’s just so darn good! We kept a bunch of faves from last year, too.
   

   BBQ baked pork buns.. these are my fave!

   

   Dry braised green beans are SO good.

   

   Garlic pea shoots.

   

   Pan-fried mixed mushroom bun.

   

   The prettiest Christmas duck I ever did see.

   

   Duck bun all wrapped up!

2. No trip into Chinatown is complete without a stop at Rogue and a walk by the water.
   

   The Bruery – Seven Swans a Swimming Quad

   

   Such a clear, beautiful [and windy] day!

3. I’ve been powering through some sort of cold or something this week so I’ve spent a lot of time on the sofa the past couple days. I’ve also done my best to make sure I’m getting my greens and proper fuel to get better fast. I decided to whip up this smoothie on a whim and it was awesome!
   Chocolate Cherry Protein Green Smoothie
   
   Ingredients
   – 1/2 bottle Cherry Charge Mamma Chia Energy drink
   – 1 bottle Chocolate Light Core Power
   – 1 scoop Skoop A Game
   – 1/2 english cucumber
   – 1-2 handfuls spinach
   – 4-6 ice cubesBlend it all up and enjoy! It would also be awesome with some frozen cherries in there too.. next time!
4. We watched The Interview on Wednesday night. I’m not really sure what all of the craziness was about but I’d say if you’re in the mood for a silly, chuckle here and there kind of Seth Rogan movie, go for it. Pretty much what you can expect from him. On the flip side, Gone Girl. Watched that last night; you need to watch it, too. Best movie I’ve seen in a while.
5. If you are in the bay area, or know anyone in the bay area, looking for a personal trainer, I’m running a special in January. First 1-hour session is $50, normally $80, and if you purchase a package of 10 sessions, you get 10% off. If you’re not in the bay area but still want to train with me, check out my 4-week personalized training package!

Hope you enjoy your last weekend of 2014!

Food for Thought

Any fun weekend plans?

What I Ate Wednesday #111: 24 Hours in San Francisco

Have you entered my WIN Detergent giveaway yet?

If you had 24 hours [or maybe just a little more] in a city, how would you explore? Or on the other side, how would you show someone around? I mentioned the other day that my friend, Jordan, was visiting over the weekend for work. We had Friday evening as well as all day Saturday to take him out and show him the city. He’d never been to San Francisco before so Nathan and I had our work cut out for us! No problem though; we let our taste buds lead the way.

[Friday Night]

First stop was for beer at Thirsty Bear. Nathan and I had been before but it had also been a few years since. Let’s just say next time, we’ll pass.

We more than made up for that with our Moscow Mule pitcher from B Restaurant. Jordan said it might have been the best cocktail he’s ever had!

After some strong drinks, Fresh Roll was the perfect dinner. It’s like a Chipotle-style Vietnamese restaurant and it was delish!

[Saturday]
We started our day at 10 a.m. for a dim sum brunch at Yank Sing in the Financial District.

Steamed Pork Buns

Seafood Basil Siu Mai.. my fave!

Shanghai Pork Dumplings

Shanghai Pork Dumpling

Taro Cake

From there, we stopped at Tout Sweet in Union Square. That was one of Jordan’s only requests, and it just so happens the owner and winner of Top Chef Just Desserts was doing a demo and book signing that day! We made a second stop back there in the afternoon to say hi 😉

Raspberry Peanut Butter Macaron

Jordan & Yigit

They’re famous for their macarons and having been disappointed when we bought the real deal in Paris on our honeymoon, Nathan and I had our doubts. These macarons, however, were fabulous! I may have to get more if we go back again.

After sweets, we trekked over to the Mission for a beer..

.. a few relaxing minutes at Dolores Park..

.. and our final stop in the Mission, El Farolito for some amazing Mexican!

The biggest plate of al pastor and beans I’ve ever seen! And demolished 😉

We waddled out of there and hopped onto a train and then a bus and into the Fisherman’s Wharf area all to see the beautiful bridge.

We finished our night in North Beach with a proscuitto and parmesan pizza from our favorite place, Il Casaro.

Best Italian-style pizza since Italy!

It was a long, fun, and very filling day and I’m glad we were able to show Jordan so many areas of the city and our favorite spots to eat in such a short period of time. So…… who’s visiting next?! 😉

Food for Thought

What are your favorite restaurants to take visitors?

Familiar Faces and Sunset Views

Good morning, friends! Have you entered my WIN giveaway yet? It ends Thursday at 11:59 pm PST so make sure to get your entries in!

We had a really fun and totally exhausting weekend over here. My friend, Jordan, came to San Francisco for work but since he was here for a couple of extra days, we got to spend some time together. It was so great to see a familiar face [even though we will be seeing him again in just 2 short weeks!]

Nathan and I both had some work to do on Friday, but we definitely made up for that Friday night. Moscow mule anyone?

Aside from the drinks, Friday was pretty tame.. especially in comparison to Saturday! We went all over the city in an attempt to show Jordan as much as possible in such a short time. Obviously when we show people around, it’s all about the food. There was dim sum.

There was beer.

There were fabulous sunset views.

And that’s just the start! Between this past weekend and Thanksgiving next week, I will absolutely be watching my extra snacks this week haha! Yesterday, Nathan and I started the day early, went for a nice walk, hit the gym, and got our lives back together. In just 1 week, we’ll be packing our bags and heading back to Baltimore for 2 weeks and I’m psyched! But for now, gotta focus on getting through the week.

Weekly Meal Plan

Sunday – Asian quinoa meatballs with roasted broccoli and baby bok choy
Monday – Thai chicken satay salad
Tuesday – Leftovers
Wednesday – BBQ chicken with roasted brussels and caramelized shallots
Thursday – Leftovers
Friday – Out!
Saturday – Leftovers

Food for Thought

What’s your favorite way to show someone around your city?
Did you do anything fun over the weekend?

Chinatown Hops

Bar hopping is not a new concept, especially to this corner of the interwebs. Saturday, however, we did a little different kind of hopping; we hopped around Chinatown for some dim sum! But before we get into that, I got to spend a little extra time with Nathan on Friday. He worked from home so we took a little lunch break to try a new Mexican place.

Pork al pastor salad with extra guacamole!

It’s a good thing we got out when we did because I wasn’t feeling so hot later that night. All I wanted for dinner was a big bowl of mac and cheese [you know, the kind with the powdery cheese..] and some roasted brussels. Seeing as how we had none of the above [don’t worry, that was remedied on Saturday!], Nathan made me a delicious egg, cheese, pork, and ketchup bagel sandwich. And, of course, some chocolate chip cookies on the side. What a guy 😉

I can’t remember the last time I had a bagel before this.. YUM!

Thankfully, my bagel-wich did the trick and Saturday I was up and ready to go for some dim sum Chinatown hopping. First up was the finger food.

The biggest baked pork bun I ever done seen!

Chicken & pork shumai + Shrimp & chive dumpling

That pork bun was ridiculous. We split one because they were so big! The dough was so soft and a little sweet, kind of brioche-y. Oh man, I could go for another right about now.. Anywho, then we went for some of the hot food.

Chinese BBQ chicken.. not the prettiest, but one of the tastiest!

Chinese BBQ Pork.. I loved Nathan’s enthusiasm ha!

Alright, so maybe we hopped over for some beer after our Chinatown excitement.

Pumpkin beer + stout. It’s that time of year!

And then we went for a little walk to the water where I finished a half marathon.

I WIN!!

Ha! I couldn’t believe they still had everything up from 2 weeks ago.. obviously I had to go for it.

Such a beautifully clear day.

Saturday was awesome; exciting but relaxing. I wish everyday could be like that. Yesterday was pretty darn relaxing too and after the gym I picked up a little treat that my mom sent out to me.. just a package of my favorite local Baltimore granola!

Apple quinoa granola is just that exciting.

I have a feeling that bag isn’t going to last too long. But in the meantime, I should probably do something about the rest of my meals.

Weekly Meal Plan

Sunday – Crunchy stuffed buffalo chicken with ranch roasted potatoes & broccoli
Monday – Lemon tarragon turkey burgers with baked onion rings
Tuesday – Pomegranate jalapeno chicken with bacon pomegranate brussels sprouts
Wednesday – Leftovers
Thursday – Honey balsamic chicken leg quarters with caprese stuffed portobellos
Friday – Out!
Saturday – Leftovers

Food for Thought

Have you ever tried dim sum before?
What’s your favorite comfort food?

Snapshots

This week is officially known in my house as the “detox before retox” week. Just as when my parents were visiting, we didn’t mess around when Nathan’s mom was here either. Especially since we were celebrating Nathan’s birthday! We ran all over town and had a lot of fun trying new restaurants and visiting new areas of the city. Next weekend, we’re taking another long weekend to celebrate our first anniversary with a wine country getaway. So as I said, detox to retox 😉

I took a ton of pictures over the past few days so I wanted to share some of my favorites. Obviously, lots of food and drink made the cut!

Birthday fried chicken and beer. He was in heaven.

Lombard-ing

BIRTHDAY LUNCH! Just a boy with his pizza and beer.

Now excuse me while I eat my boiled chicken and steamed kale all week 😉 But really..

Weekly Meal Plan

Sunday – Nathan’s famous beer can chicken, roasted potatoes, & roasted brussels sprouts
Monday – Baked turkey meatballs with zucchini noodles
Tuesday – Leftovers [we have SO much food from all of our meals out!]
Wednesday – Roasted maple smokehouse chicken with roasted potato and asparagus lentil salad
Thursday – Leftovers
Friday – Rock Wall Wine Company Food Truck Frenzy [gotta kick off the anniversary weekend right!]
Saturday – Leftovers

Food for Thought

Do you ever feel like you need a good detox?
What’s on your menu for the week?

Mom and Dad Do San Francisco

I’ve been a bit MIA on the social media scene for the past few days since my parents have gotten into town, but I make up for it with pictures!

Wednesday

Biking is good for your ass.

First view of the bridge!

Biggest sweet potato I ever done seen!

Thursday

Feeding the fam before a day of drinking. Killer frittata!

Bear Republic beer samplers! #1 and #2 for the day.

Cheers!

Doin’ wine country.

Mom and Dad doin’ wine country.

Lagunitas beer sample #1.. #3 for the day.

Lagunitas beer sampler #2. Made it #4 for the day and Dad could hardly wait 😉

Friday

Dragged em to the beach.

The boys went climbing and we took a sit.

One of the many beautiful dishes at Iyasare.

Saturday

Ran around town with Mom while the boys took a rest day. So much good food!

Sunday

GET ME OUT! Oh.. there’s the door.

He looks a little too happy to be behind bars. Ha!

Blueberry kombucha on tap to top off a delicious lunch at The Plant.

Buena Vista Cafe. Home of the original Irish coffee.

Cheers! Again!

We may or may not be drinking and walking them into the ground. And you bet your butt we’re headed to more breweries and doing lots more walking tomorrow. But we’re having a great time and I love having them here!

Food for Thought

What is your favorite thing to do when you have out-of-town visitors?

Five Things Friday

Happy Valentine’s Day! Have any fun plans for tonight? We have done good stuff coming up in the next week.

1. My parents will be here in less than a week! I realize I mentioned this yesterday, but can you tell I’m excited?!
2. I stocked up on our Valentines Day dinner/dessert ingredients yesterday. On the menu:
   Appetizer: Truffle gouda with crackers and balsamic jam [from Italy!] .. Entree: Seared lamb with a cherry port sauce, Moroccan rice with pistachio and dried apricot, and roasted rainbow carrots .. Dessert: Cheesecake squares. But I can’t tell you the flavor because that’s a surprise for Nathan. There may or may not be pictures to share later 😉
3. I miss the snow a little bit but I have to admit it was awfully nice to be able to take a walk this afternoon when it was 65 degrees.
   
   My parents just got a little dusting.
4. Nathan surprised me last night by picking me up after work to go out to a point near our place and watch the sunset.
   
   It was a really crisp, clear night and such a nice way to end the day. Doesn’t hurt that he’s cute too!
5. This weekend is Belgian Beer Fest at Max’s. It is, by far, our favorite bar in Baltimore and Belgian Beer Fest is the best. Definitely missing that this weekend. We’re going to try to make up for it this weekend and while my parents are here.. I’ll report back.

Giveaway Winner!

Congrats to Tiff at Love, Sweat, & Beers! You’ve won my Peanut Butter & Co. 31 Days of Dark Chocolate Dreams giveaway!

Food for Thought

What are your Valentines Day plans?
Are you being hit by the crazy weather?