Hey guys,
Hope y'all had a wonderful weekend!
I've probably mentioned before that I really like Restaurant.com. They sell $25 restaurant gift certificates for $10, and they often have 80% off sales, so I usually buy the $25 cert for $2. Deal!
They're having this nice little promotion now. I can enter up to 30 friends' email addresses and they'll send you a free $10 gift certificate. (Of course, expect to be getting emails from them.... that's why I use my spam email address). But they're not that frequent.
So, if you'd like the free gift certificate, let me know. If I don't already have your email address, private message me with it.
Much love,
HapaLove
Hey all my wonderful neighbors,
Happy Thanksgiving! I hope that you are all enjoying the holiday, have much to be thankful for, and are close to family and friends... if not physically, at least in spirit.
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday... I just love the togetherness of sitting around the table, and of course you all know my thing with food. :) This year is extra special for me, because it's my first year hosting my family. I am really enjoying all the cooking, because I've always wanted to do all these recipes my way. And I'm thankful for getting a break from traveling this year. No traffic!
I'm thankful for all of you... I've been on Vox for a couple years now, and it's been a hoot. The interactions have been great and even resulted in a couple of "real life" friendships. And, I'm happy to say, my Vox has been pretty much Internet-weirdo-free. I enjoy hearing what's happening in all y'alls lives, and I hope you're having a terrific weekend.
My present to myself this Thanksgiving - taking today off. It takes all the stress out of the prep. Ah, what a fine day.
During the past couple of years, the honey and I have been trying to shift our priorities a little bit and focus on eating good food. I'm not boycotting any particular kind of food, or non-organic, or anything like that, but in general, we've put a little more of our budget towards buying locally grown vegetables and pastured meat and dairy products from pastured animals when we can.
Now, it's a lot easier to do this in southern California than in most areas. California, I think, is really the land of milk and honey. We have access to a broad diversity of food year-round. So, why not take advantage of this bounty, I figure.
The growing local food/slow food movement has been great, in terms of broadening our access to these foods. It's easier now than ever before to find a farmer's market, get a CSA subscription, find out what's in your food both at the grocery store and in restaurants. I hope that this translates into the passing of a better food safety bill. I also hope that market forces can shape the future of our food system. Already, we are starting to see a rapidly growing market for ranchers that produce pastured meat, and local farmers. I think that's great.
Over the last couple years in particular, I've learned that cooking is an art that one can never master. Even the world's best chefs haven't mastered every type of cuisine - it's just impossible. There's always something to learn in cooking. And yet, simple cooking is always pleasureful. Just taking a few really good ingredients and making a simple dinner is sometimes the most satisfying activity I can think of. In Italy more than anywhere else, they get that.
Cooking and sharing good food, to me, is also a vehicle for friendship and love. Sharing thoughts and experiences over a home cooked meal is a wonderful way to deepen a connection with someone. Cooking for someone is a very tangible, gratifying way to show my friends and family that I care.
I'm thankful for all the good ingredients we have in this state, and for all the people who've helped me learn how to cook, and for those who come over and enjoy my cooking. (or smile and pretend to!) Good food, a simple pleasure.
So far, I am on schedule with my Thanksgiving game plan. Having hosted lots of dinners and get-togethers, I've learned from many failures the importance of advanced planning... so I can get out of the kitchen and actually spend time with the guests! So, with an ambitious menu this year, I figured planning was essential.
This weekend I got done what I could - set the table, made placecards, did the food shopping.
Last night, I made pie doughs and vanilla ice cream. Cooks Illustrated's secret to perfect pie dough is to replace half of the cold water you normally use with cold vodka. I think it helps keep the gluten from breaking down or something like that. And I use half butter (for taste) and half shortening (for flakiness).
The vanilla ice cream secret is just to do the French style -- which requires a heaping 6 egg yolks (for about a quart of ice cream). But hey, it's Thanksgiving, and we're not eating diet food. I also went all out and purchased a vanilla bean to give it extra flavor and those little specks... damn thing was like $8. For one.
I've gotten my routine down pretty well now. That tends to be hard for me. But now (knock on wood), I'm making time to go to the gym in the morning, walk the dog, and cook dinner when I get home. And still have some time to zone out for a little in front of the TV and read before bed. It's feeling great...
The honey went on a boys' trip to Vegas this weekend. This gave me good reason to focus on getting productive and preparing for Thanksgiving. And watching some chick flicks.
After a restful night at home on Friday night, it was go-go-go starting at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday. Bucky had his first group training class. I am happy to report he was a very good boy. A little scared of the other dogs, but no outbursts.
Being forced to get up that early meant I had a lot of time that day. So I gave Bucky a bath (I think he's learning to like them now). Went to yoga at Yoga Swami, treated myself to a lox bagel at Pannikin, stopped at the tailor, cleaned my dresser, cleaned out the fridge and freezer. Washed all the dishes, did four loads of laundry, cleaned the kitchen, then did my Thanksgiving grocery shopping at around 5. Perfect time to go; it wasn't crowded. Had enough time to make dinner and watch a movie with Bucky (he likes chick flicks).
Sunday, slept in, took Bucky for a long walk, went to Target, put down a new rug, made the placecards for Thanksgiving (which took way longer than I thought), and set the table. Didn't have time to make pie crusts.
This will be my first Thanksgiving hosting my family so I'm really looking forward to it. My menu is a little ambitious, but I feel pretty prepared. Tonight I'll probably tackle the cranberry sauce. Whew!
Christmas shopping is stressful. I unsuccessfully lobbied the family a couple years ago to stop buying presents, and instead maybe just take a short trip or go out to a nice dinner together... or donate to charity. But everyone still bought presents, and you know, when people buy you presents, it's hard to not buy them something. But I think the family at least toned it down a notch.
This year, I was able to do about 85% of my shopping online. So stress-free. Amazon, I love you. No crazy parking lots to deal with, hallelujah. I just made a list of gift ideas, found them all on Amazon, and placed one giant order. I'm not sure, but it seems like this is a "greener" way to shop since the shipping is centralized, and I'm not driving all around town. Now I can spend the rest of the season doing fun things like baking cookies and drinking hot apple cider.
I remember working retail during the Christmas season, and I pledged to never do it again, because the rude shoppers really took the holiday spirit out of me. So if you shop on Black Friday or Christmas eve, I implore you, be extra kind to the staff, because I can guarantee you they are having a tough day.
Since there are way too many things I'm thankful for to rattle them off in a long, boring list, I'll try to select a few things and write about them more in depth this year.
"My Parents Were Awesome" -- this website did indeed remind me that my parents were (and still are).... yup, awesome.
My parents met in the Vietnam war. My dad was a stoic Irish Catholic New Englander, who volunteered because he already got his draft notice, and had recently dropped out of college because he didn't have money to continue. My mom was a once-rich Vietnamese French young woman from a family with royal ties, brought up in boarding schools, and with an independent streak since her father had left their family to fend for themselves.
Talk about a culture clash. Dad - a waters-run-deep, meat and potatoes kind of guy. Mom - expensive taste, was brought up to learn the classics in French, learned how to entertain and manage household staff, among other things. Dad didn't speak much Vietnamese and Mom didn't speak much English. When they went on dates, they had to bring my mom's four younger siblings along.
Crazy how love goes, but I guess it really bloomed when my dad was shipped off to Germany after his Vietnam tour. They began writing letters back and forth. Actually, I bet that was the best way for my dad to open up. When he was done with Germany (and the army), he returned to Vietnam as a civilian... which is... illegal. For love. How romantic!
Fast forward a bit, and my mom's pregnant with my brother, so she moves to Springfield, MA and my parents get married. When she arrived, she literally only had sandals... and it was winter. Brrr. Talk about reality slapping you in the face -- freshly married, baby on the way, poor, freezing cold, no car, and a New England culture that was a culture shock even to me when I moved from California!
They had a lot going against them, but they somehow made it work. And had a lot of fun throughout. I'll have to dig up some of the awesomely 70s photos of my Dad rockin' the sideburns and Mom in the hippy bikini. I have to say, my parents are totally responsible for the positive, hopeful outlook I have on love in general. They were always so into family -- we spent most of our time together when I was a kid. We really just hung out a lot. It was basic; nothing that cost much money, and that's probably what made it so good.
Yesterday I met some girlfriends for happy hour at Truluck's, a semi-new restaurant located in La Jolla, by the Aventine hotel. The honey had raved about their happy hour, so I had to give it a try.
I wasn't disappointed. The prices are ridiculous. Happy hour is 5:00 - 7:00, seven nights a week. Appetizers are half off, so they range from $4.50 to $8 each, and include such yummies as seafood, steak and crab sliders; stuffed Wagyu burger, warm goat cheese, and crab deviled eggs.
Cocktails are also half price, ranging from $4.25 - $5.25. The drink menu isn't all that cohesive. About half of the drinks are frou-frou "martinis"; the other half includes a mai tai, kir royale, a couple margaritas, mojito, and a long island. I'm only really in the mood for a mai tai in a tiki bar, and for margaritas in a Mexican restaurant... so I think they could replace these with some more sophisticated cocktails that would better match their ambience.
Speaking of ambience, it's got a dark seafood/steak place kind of feel. It's a little bit generic, and the people there seem kind of generic too, I guess because it's business people and business travelers... no regulars, no real local flavor. But it's nice, not overly formal, and they have a good piano player/ jazz singer. I'll definitely be going back for happy hour. It would be a good spot for dinner, but the menu didn't seem super interesting to me.
The final word
(1-5 rating: 1=BAD, 2=mediocre at best, 3=ok, 4=wow, pretty good!, 5=one of my all-time favorites)
Food (Taste, Quality): 4
Value: 4.5
Service: 4
Ambience: 3
Memorable Experience: 3
Price: $5 cocktails and $5 appetizers during happy hour
Menu recommendations: nothing stood out, but it was all pretty good
Notes:
Would I make a point to go again, paying full price?:
Yes for happy hour, maybe for dinner. If you like steak/seafood places (that are not steakhouses), it would be a good joint.
I had a hunch about the current recession... that there's a big up side to it. Well, it's awful for everyone who has lost a job or been furloughed, and I don't mean to diminish that at all. But I think it's also returning our national consciousness to a more normal level. We're remembering that we need to save money, that we don't really need that flatscreen TV, etc.
Time magazine featured an article on the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index that seems to show Americans (after the initial shock of events like job losses) are actually getting happier. Charity donations are down, but volunteerism is up. We're spending less on Christmas, but we expect this year's Christmas to be as, or more, happy than last year's. And, though not in this article, it has been reported in several places that Americans' savings are at higher levels than in decades.
The feeling I most relate to is respondents who said they feel relieved -- relieved that our expectations for a middle-class lifestyle are more modest. Let's face it, no matter how immune you are to peer pressure, when everyone around you has a nice car, expensive stuff -- it's hard not to wonder why you don't. It's hard not to get at least a little bit caught up in the pressure. I think it was time to re-focus. For me, it was a reminder that I need to keep my savings account (my emergency fund) full, and to think harder before making big purchases.
San Diego Beer Week has just ended. While I didn't go to as many of the events as I would have liked, I went to Hamilton's Tavern and Alchemy on Saturday.
Hamilton's was pouring a bunch of Pizza Port brews, including two casked beers. Excellent. They had free barbecue and a whole roast suckling pig, but -- damnit! -- we arrived too late and all signs of the pig were gone. Sigh.
After a couple brewskis in the very crowded bar, we walked over to Alchemy. Alchemy is a pretty hip, schwanky little restaurant that serves some innovative cocktails, small plates, and a few entrees. There's a cool serpentine-shaped bar there, and I'd like to come back during the weekday after-work hours sometime.
I was really pleasantly surprised by the food -- I haven't been so pleasantly surprised since I ate at Market, one of my favorite restaurants in San Diego county. Alchemy was a little pricey, but the food was worth it. We had:
Calimari - I've actually never had it not fried. I realized what I was missing. The broth was incredible - lots of butter and white wine.
Stuffed squash blossoms - Cheesy, crunchy, delicious. This tends to be one of my favorite dishes. It was nice and crisp, not at all soggy or heavy despite being really stuffed with filling.
Charcuterie plate - Really, really good. They didn't serve the same ol' salami stuff that most places serve (which I love, but it was nice to see something different). There was chorizo, serrano, and duck. The portion is small, however.
Ceviche - Good, fresh, crunchy. Comparable to the good ceviches I've had in Mexico. No unusual spin on this one.
Avocado and corn salad - This dish wasn't my pick but turned out to be very satisfying. Lots of good contrasting textures and it was full of flavor. There was a base of creamy avocado and crunchy corn shaped in a ring mold topped with a salad. I'm not doing it justice, but I'd order it again.
Burger - The burger was full of juicy goodness. It was on some kind of egg roll or challah, which was the perfect buttery accompaniment; the whole burger was rather rich, but the richness was cut by the fresh, crunchy spiced pickles in the burger.
The cocktails looked really good too. My friend ordered the "dirty pickle" which is a martini with pickle juice and cornichons that was quite tasty.
The final word
(1-5 rating: 1=BAD, 2=mediocre at best, 3=ok, 4=wow, pretty good!, 5=one of my all-time favorites)
Food (Taste, Quality): 4.8
Value: 3.8
Service: 5
Ambience: 4
Memorable Experience: 4
Price: About $10 per small plate, $10-20 per entree, $10 cocktails
Menu recommendations:
burger, charcuterie plate
Notes: A little noisy, nice bar, great service.
Would I make a point to go again, paying full price?:
Yes
