Tag: San Francisco

[Food Porn] San Francisco v1

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To me, there’s nothing quite  refreshing as going back home and visiting family; it gets my head right and puts my heart in check.  From roaming the streets of Chinatown to watching the Mountain Dew Skateboarding Tour  to going out and dancing the night away at Ruby Skye with my favorites, San Francisco has a little something to do – and eat – for everyone.  One of my dad’s favorite things to do while I’m home is find new and exciting places to eat. According to him, I used to have quite the adventurous appetite but somehow as I grew older I started getting picky – it’s gotten to the point that most of my favorite restaurants in Los Angeles know what my ‘usual‘ is.  So, much to my father’s delight I let him make most, if not all, of the food decisions over the weekend and my stomach couldn’t be happier.

Friday was the first full day I was in the city – granted, it was a little tainted by the fact I had to do some work from the apartment, but no matter – the simple fact that I essentially can work from anywhere is fabulous!  For lunch, I visited him at work in the Symantec headquarters so I could finally meet his lovely coworkers, and then we ventured off to find our lunch!  We bounced a few ideas around, but once we walked past Osha Thai our decision was made.  The best part about Osha, besides how amazing the food is, is there are a few different locations in the city – so wherever you happen to be, you won’t have to venture far to get that yummy Thai food in your belly.

We started off with some delicious drinks – my dad got a Thai Iced Coffee while I sipped on a Green Tea Mojito, super refreshing – and appetizers.  There are a few Thai places in LA that pride themselves on their Duck Spring Rolls so it’s a good point of comparison – and oh my wow, they were amazing! I would’ve taken a picture but we ate them too damn fast.  For our main course we split a steak salad and dug into some of the best massumun lamb curry ever.

Massumun Lamb Curry from Osha Thai

Bummer and Lazarus: Tequila, Ginger Beer, Cucumber, Chilies

There’s a bit of a food tradition my dad and I have when we visit each other; it’s 5 letters long and is the best thing ever…if you guessed sushi, you’d be correct!  Literally every time we get together, we collectively crave it.  So this time, I let him to the picking and choosing of where to go – there are so many good sushi places in SF that you really can’t go wrong.  This time, the choice was Ame at the St. Regis Hotel.  Now, we’d gone under the premise that this fusion Japanese food was going to be sushi – well, (a) wrong and (b) I’ve never been so happy about my dad being wrong, ever!  First of all, Ame is one of the only Asian influenced Michelin rated restaurants in San Francisco – and their modern American take on cultural Japanese food is mouthwatering.

I started off with a Bummer and Lazarus, a signature drink from their incredibly extensive cocktail menu; they literally have a drink for everyone – beer, sake, wine, mocktails – you name it and they have it. We split a few appetizers but they were a little on the small side and between all of our appetites they went very fast.  Next up was the main course – I was pretty overwhelmed by the menu and there wasn’t any sushi per-say, so thank goodness they have a ‘Taste of Ame’ sashimi plate that comes with lots of delectable goodies like a sunomono salad with uni.  I’m not exactly a sashimi fan, but after eating here I might become one!

Taste of Ame Sashimi Plate

I was beyond stuffed after my entree, but I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to try their beer donuts, if the establishment wasn’t so damn posh I’d suggest calling it the Homer Simpson because it essentially combines his two favorite things.  The donuts came with some of the richest chocolate sauce I’ve ever had covering the entire plate and a healthy chunk of Stout Ice Cream in the center. Omnom…

Beer Donuts with Chocolate Sauce and Stout Ice Cream

When we woke up Saturday morning we were all still full from dinner the night before so my step-mother and I took an adventure out to Chinatown during the day to get our walk and talk on.  After a few hours strolling around, I got a huge craving for BBQ Pork Buns – and I was definitely in the perfect location to fulfill it.  We walked for literally a minute and stumbled into Gourmet Kitchen to snag a few and I basically devoured them like it was my job.

BBQ Pork Buns

It’s always bittersweet to say goodbye to my family and the city that I love, but doing it over a great brunch at Prospect makes it so much easier. I usually go for the Eggs Benedict, but I was in the mood for something different and hearty – making the Prospector a shoe-in.  Bacon, eggs, potatoes, sausage and corncakes – such the well rounded American breakfast, but get anything at Prospect and you literally can’t go wrong.  Beyond making a great breakfast, it was also delicious as leftovers when I got back to Los Angeles that night.

The Prospector

Oh, Snap: San Francisco’s Chinatown

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While I was in San Francisco last weekend, my step-mother and I took a lovely stroll through the streets of Chinatown.  Our primary mission was steamed pork buns and a new purse, but we ended up roaming around for over three hours – simply breathing in the city and taking in the beautiful Autumn afternoon.

Our first stop was to check out the architecture at the Wells Fargo at Post & Montgomery; the inside of the bank has great big columns, tall ceilings and sweeping archways – but my favorite part was the ceiling outside of the bank.

Next, we ventured off into the heart of Chinatown.  Los Angeles doesn’t exactly get the same seasonal shift as we do up in San Francisco, so it was lovely to see some color, both hanging from buildings as well as in the trees, against the grey sky that morning.

Found this little creature outside of an apartment complex and it looked so menacing and comical at the same time –

The one thing that struck me was how nostalgic Chinatown made me for Shanghai; especially stumbling across scenes like below where older women laughing and conversing while tending to their markets.

I’m a sucker for fabulous street art, so it’s only logical that I’d accidentally stumble across the remnants of a Banksy.  I was actually admiring the fantastic dragon mural when a friend pointed out that it wrapped around another artists piece. There are apparently 5 more Banksy’s in the city – next time I venture back I’m making it a goal to visit all of them!

 By midday, the sun had scattered the clouds away and it had turned into a lovely 70° afternoon; perfect temperature for our leisurely walk.

Last but certainly not least, I found this mural when we were finally on our way out…

[Roadtrippin’] It’s a California State of Mind

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For the past few weeks I’ve had little angel on my shoulder,  coercing me to get the fuck out of my overheated Los Angeles bubble and venture up north for an extended weekend of good food, great meals and family time.  But, whenever I was close to jumping in my car and cruising back home, the devil on the other side would start with the litany of excuses: I hate driving on the 5 – That’s too long to leave my cats alone for– gas prices are cray cray – etc, etc.  The fact of the matter is those are all very valid reasons for not wanting to hit the road – but at the end of the

day, they all start to sound like the same excuse, ‘I don’t want to.‘  It’s been a long past few months and there was a lot of apprehension about being isolated, and in the middle of nowhere, for an extended amount of time – but I’ve also come to terms with the fact that I over-saturate my life with connections.  My phone may as well be tethered to my side as a Siamese twin because I swear I’m always on it – Tweeting, texting, Instagram-ing and Facebooking; may as well just call me a walking, talking social media slut – I’ll take it.

I also, finally, took some my own advice: get out of my head and into my heart.

Being a creature of logic and reason is fine and dandy; but, emotions can’t be quantified, feelings can’t be measured and you can’t organize anxieties.

With this freshly pressed game plan in mind, I turned to packing up my troubles, both literally and physically. Piling clothes, jewelry, hair products and my work laptop in an over-sized duffel bag, I synced my iPod and kissed my cats goodbye.  The drive can last anywhere from  6 and 9 hours, so I had a lot of music to load in to get me through it.  For the first time, I wasn’t planning outfits or huge escapades – I was going to be comfortable and at home with the people I love. Yes, the 5 is awful  and gas prices aren’t going down – but the idea that the people I love are only a tank of gas away is so comforting.

When I hit the road, I double checked my route and turned my phone off for a while; I was on auto-pilot, my car was on cruise control and it was just the two of us and the highway.  I’ve had my new car since April and the furthest we’ve gone together is Ojai – this was our first big adventure and I had way too much fun.  There’s a feeling that I get from being in the open road, windows down and music up; my mind opens up, my stream of consciousness is deep and introspective and I almost get this runners high.  Maybe it’s a drivers high.  Either way, that drive cleared out my mental cobwebs and reset my system. Around 10 pm  I cruised into the city and it was bustling with lights and noise, roaring with personality as it always does.

San Francisco at Night

5 Roadtrip Essentials:

  1. Map I know I’m captain obvious but you should probably know where you’re going – just in case your phone dies, your partner in crime slash navigator passes out or you’re just horrible with directions.
  2. Music Make sure your playlist is twice as long as your total drive – if you’re like me, you probably have musical ADD and change a song halfway through…which means your playlist doesn’t last as long as you think it does.  Plan ahead and your head will thank you later; besides, how many times can you really listen to Levels*?
  3. Good Vibes If you’re no fun, your drive isn’t going to be fun! Besides, if you can’t have fun by yourself rocking out with an air guitar and singing lead vocals at the tippity top of your lungs – why would anyone else want to?
  4. Comfort Grub There’s nothing worse than hitting the road, getting super hungry and not being able to find a damn thing you want to eat or drink – well, save yourself the problem and do a little store run before you head out or save some money and make sandwiches at home.  Make sure you have something delish to wash it all down, and a few extra bottles of water – and you’ll have a happy heart, and stomach, the entire drive.
  5. Car Charger Phone navigation applications, especially Verizon’s – and I speak from experience, do a pretty good job of draining your phones battery.  Being lost in the middle of nowhere with no phone is kind of horrible, so do yourself  a favor and make sure you have a working phone charger.