Adult Spring Break Part III- San Diego

At the wedding on Coronado

After a few days in San Francisco and then LA, Brady and I enjoyed a quick 2 hour drive down to San Diego. After the 8 (or 9) hours of driving down the coast I think anything would have felt short in comparison! We spent one evening in the Gaslamp District in San Diego and then headed over the bridge to Coronado where we attended the wedding of two of our Chicago friends. A few highlights...

Blue Water Seafood Market and Grill: Brady and I went for their famous fish tacos after seeing a segment on the Food Network. They offer about 10 different varieties of fresh fish and the fish is then grilled and served as either tacos, a sandwich or on a salad. The people that worked here honestly couldn't have been nicer and the tacos were terrific.

Filippi's: Brady and I went to Filippi's with friends who were also in town for the wedding. It's in San Diego's Little Italy area which I had no idea existed. This was such a cute neighborhood, full of restaurants and bars. We settled on Filippi's after reading rave yelp reviews and weren't disappointed. This is a family owned pizza joint serving up great pizza, pasta, and cheap wine. When we left there was a massive line down the street so were definitely on to a good thing and got there at the perfect time!

Burger Lounge: This was another great find. Super simple menu, a few burgers and salads, but Brady and both loved our food. Brady went with the turkey burger and I had a veggie salad. I recreated the veggie salad last week and ate it for about 4 nights straight.

Hotel del Coronado: We stayed across the street at the Glorietta Bay Inn which was cute and a fraction of the price but if you are on the island, touring the Hotel del Coronado is a must. This place was absolutely beautiful. Brady and I walked around the grounds, along the beach and I fell in love with the coolest garden. Maybe someday :)

View of the Hotel del Corando from the beach.

Adult Spring Break Part II- Los Angeles

After enjoying the weekend in San Francisco, Brady and I picked up our rental car and headed down the Pacific Coast Hwy 1. It was an absolutely breath-taking drive, a little scary at times and definitely not the quickest route to Los Angeles, but it was well worth it. Along the way we checked out Monterrey, Pebble Beach, and then stopped in Carmel to check out the town and to walk along the beach. Carmel was darling, very quaint and full of charm. About 8 (Brady says 9) hours and one stop at In-and-Out Burger later and we arrived in LA.

We stayed at the Beverly Hills Hilton which is such a cool hotel. It's recently been renovated but still maintains it's old-Hollywood feel. While in LA, we checked out the Santa Monica area which was full of cute shops and restaurants, went to a live taping of Jimmy Kimmel where we sat front row and talked with Jimmy Kimmel, drove down Rodeo Drive, and tried our best to spot a celebrity (no luck).

Before we left LA, Brady and I ate at Ink, Michael Voltaggio's (a former Top Chef winner) amazing new restaurant. Our meal was hands down one of the best I've had. I loved the creativity and thought that went into each of the dishes and it was fun to see Voltaggio working in the kitchen. Ink is a small plate restaurant so it's great for people who like to try new things. We had 6 small plates and a dessert which was the perfect amount for two people. We went with the following dishes:

carrots, coconut ice, cardamom soil, carrot juice curry
crab, charred avocado, whipped fish sauce, mushroom chicharron - One of my favorites
beef tartare, hearts of palm, sea bean chimichurri, horseradish, rye - My least favorite but I tried it :) 
brussels sprouts, pig ears, lardo, apple - Another favorite, can't go wrong with brussels sprouts & pig!
halibut, asparagus green tea, egg yolk gnocchi - This was the perfect spring dish.
lamb shoulder, lamb’s quarters, tongue, vadouvan, yogurt
apple, caramel, burnt wood ice cream - LOVE IT!!! 

Brady and I also tracked down the Kogi BBQ Food Truck via Twitter and enjoyed some awesome Korean bbq tacos. I am not positive where we heard about Kogi BBQ, perhaps Bourdain??? Not sure, but whoever it was I owe them a big thank you. These tacos were so good that I dug right in and then realized that I should take a picture, oops!

Kogi BBQ Truck

Adult Spring Break Park I- San Francisco

The sign of a great vacation is not wanting to leave, already looking forward to the next time you go back, (and still being in a relationship!). Brady and I just returned from a 10 day vacation in California and we had the best time. It was just what we both needed to recharge the batteries. We visited multiple cities throughout California, drove down the beautiful Pacific Coast Hwy 1 most of the way, met up with all of our Chicago friends for a fun wedding, and ate and drank very well! I have a lot of restaurant reviews so I decided to break this post into a few.

Brady and I flew into San Francisco. We stayed at the Hilton Financial District which I thought was in a great location. It's right in the heart of Chinatown which is a lot of fun and must see in San Francisco. Just a few blocks away you'll find the Italian area and Union Square which is great for shopping. As for restaurant recommendations, I have a few...

Ferry Building Marketplace- I loved this place!  The Ferry Building is located along the water and is full of cute food related boutiques (olive oils, cookware, etc), bakeries, cafes, and flower shops. This is the perfect place to grab lunch to-go and head out to the pier and enjoy the view. I highly recommend the Cow Girl Creamery shop, it was still Lent so I had a sandwich with fresh goat cheese, sauteed mushrooms, and fig jam. I will be recreating this sandwich soon, it was so simple yet absolutely delicious.

Caffe DeLucchi- Terrific Italian food in the Italian neighborhood. The food was authentic, fresh and very reasonably priced.

Tonga Room- Brady and I saw this place on Anthony Bourdain's show The Layover and knew that it was a must see. We went for happy hour and had a great time. The restaurant has a Polynesian theme and looks like something that belongs in Disney World, not inside the San Francisco Fairmont Hotel. The decor is kind of cheesy but there is something about drinking a tropical drink with an umbrella in it that just screams vacation!

Mission Chinese Food- I have read about Mission Chinese Food in numerous food magazines and was so excited for the opportunity to give it a try. I will spare the long story about how this place got started but it's a really cool concept. Basically, a couple started serving Chinese food out of an already established Chinese restaurant's kitchen. The food is Americanized Chinese food or "Chinese-nouveau" as they call it, and honestly the best Chinese food I've had. This is an absolute must for anyone visiting San Francisco in my opinion.

South Beach Getaway

Ah vacation... such a wonderful thing. Brady and I returned last week from a long weekend getaway down on South Beach, Miami. The trip was just what we both needed. Relaxing on the beach, sitting on the hotel balcony with cocktails, and dining at fun restaurants was the perfect cure for the February blahs.

I blogged about our first trip to South Beach last April but we tried some new restaurants (and revisited some favorites from last time) so I thought I would share my latest recommendations. We stayed at the Hilton Bently Hotel again which we love. See my review of the Hilton Bentley Hotel here.

Restaurants

OLA Miami
OLA Miami is a fun Latin American restaurant located adjacent to the Sanctuary Hotel. I have always been under the impression that I wasn't a fan of ceviche but OLA Miami made discover my love of ceviche. We ordered the Mixto Ceviche which consisted of shrimp, octopus, and cobia in lime and orange juice, with jalapeno pepper, cilantro and kalamata olives. The ceviche was served with a little side of fried yucca which made for an interesting and incredibly tasty appetizer! I ordered a chicken dish that to be honest I didn't love. I should have known better then to order chicken at a restaurant, especially one in Miami with so many great seafood options, but I ordered the chicken and wasn't wowed. Brady had duck served with crispy rice with edamame, raisins and pine nuts. Brady liked the duck and we both loved the rice side dish. While my chicken was just so-so, I would definitely recommend the restaurant. The ceviche was awesome and there were numerous dishes that I wish I had ordered!

Sardinia Enoteca Ristorante
When you think of South Beach you typically think seafood and Latin food. It turns out you can find really great Italian food as well. Brady and I always love a good Italian restaurant so we decided to try Sardinia which was voted one of the best restaurants in South Beach. We loved our meal at Sardinia. They had a great wine list, they are known for their extensive wine selection, and a charming atmosphere. Brady ordered Orecchiette with wild boar sausage and rapini pesto. I have no idea where I would find wild boar but I'd love to make this at home, I'm going to have to do some research. I ordered Pappardelle with homemade ricotta, tomatoes and black olives which was light and simple but had great flavor. Another perk of Sardinia was it's proximity to Purdy Lounge, a fun lounge we visited for after dinner drinks next door!

Lolita Cocina and Tequila Bar
Lolita is a new restaurant that recently opened near the Hilton Bentley. We walked by the restaurant a few evenings and thought it had a fun atmosphere so we made last minute reservations. Lolita opened within the last couple months so the service wasn't perfect but the food and fun atmosphere made up for it. Since I am now a fan of ceviche, we ordered the Tres Ceviches which included three different types of ceviche and was the perfect way to get my ceviche fix before leaving town. I ordered the Mercado Verde, two wild mushroom, sweet potato and zucchini enchiladas with a green and red sauce. I loved the combo of veggies and will definitely be making my own version of this soon. Brady ordered Carne de Vaca, two short rib enchiladas in a mole sauce that was AMAZING. This will also be a dish that I will be recreating. You can never go wrong with short ribs but then add the rich mole sauce and you have a real winner!

We also went back to Prime One Twelve, definitely one of our South Beach favorites. We had another amazing meal and had a great time people watching. Prime One Twelve is the place to see and be seen and you never know what celebrity might walk through the door. To see my review from last year click here. We also revisited La Sandwicherie, a sandwich spot that it's a must when visiting South Beach. If it's not apparent by this long blog post, we ate and drank very well!

Le pain, le fromage, les olives et vin , j'aime la France!

I just got home from an incredible ten day trip to France with my mom. We spent 2 1/2 days in Paris (not nearly enough time), 4 days in Provence in the small town of St. Remy, and then 3 days on the French Rivera in St. Paul de Vence. I knew that I would love France but I had no idea how amazed I would be by the beauty and the charm that can be found throughout the country. It seemed like every time we turned a corner we were more and more in awe of a winding cobblestone street, ancient Roman ruins, or a view of the Mediterranean sea. I'm not going to lie, we also had moments that weren't quite so amazing, being lost in Aix-en-Provence, almost getting carsick on the worlds steepest drive up to the mountain top village of Eze, and my mom almost burning down Sacre-Coeur Basilica in Paris. But for the most part, the trip was perfect!

When we weren't touring the beautiful towns throughout Provence and the French Rivera, we were busy eating wonderful French and Italian food. At first I felt incredibly guilty eating Italian food, I kept thinking "we are in France, you can't order pizza in France!" But apparently because we were in the south of France the Italian influence is huge and everyone eats Italian. Needless to say, I quickly got over the guilt and enjoyed my pasta and pizza! As well as croissants, pastries, cheese and wine :)

Here are some photos of the great food we had while in France. Bon appetit!

Tarte Fraîches Berry (Fresh Berry Tart)

Soupe de poisson (Fish Soup- to eat, you rub garlic on the bread, add a little aoili and cheese and drop in the soup)

Le fromage

Crumble aux pommes (Apple crumble)

Salade fromage de chèvre avec du lardon et du pain grillé et fig confit (Salad with bacon and toasts with goat cheese and fig confit)

La viande bovine avec les abricots et olives (Beef with apricots and olives)

Les crevettes avec risotto (Prawns with risotto)

Pain au Chocolat (Croissant with chocolate)

Fromage pizza en Italie (Cheese pizza in Italy- we crossed over into Italy one day!)

If anyone is considering a trip to France feel free to email me, I have lots of recommendations for towns to visit and places to stay along the way!

Food and Fun in South Beach

Brady and I went to South Beach this past weekend and it was the perfect getaway. 85 degree weather and relaxing with mojitos on the beach was a nice change from our busy schedules (more Brady's than mine) and the less than desirable spring weather we've been experiencing lately in Chicago.

A few highlights and recommendations if you are considering a trip to South Beach...

The Bentley Hotel
We stayed at the Bentley four nights and I thought it was a great hotel. Our suite was beautiful, with marble floors and a big wrap around balcony overlooking the ocean. The hotel has a full service Cuban restaurant, a beautiful pool surrounded by lounge chairs and cabanas as well as private beach access.

Champagne and cheese plate on arrival, can't beat that!

Prime One Twelve

We ate at Prime One Twelve on Friday night and it was excellent. We started off with drinks at the bar and snacked on crispy bacon that they offered instead of the usual bar nuts. Great idea, although probably not the most Lenten friendly bar snack, oops! We were seated outside on the patio and had the perfect table for people watching. I was sure we'd see a celebrity because when we walked by the restaurant the night before Dennis Rodman was standing outside. Apparently, Prime One Twelve is the go-to restaurant for celebrities and athletes in South Beach, unfortunately no celebrities came in while we were there. 

The food and service at the restaurant was terrific. Brady and I shared a huge salad and then he had a steak and I had soy-marinated sea bass which was delicious. Unfortunately we were too full by the time the dessert menu came around but next time we go back I am skipping the salad and going for the fried Oreo dessert, it sounded amazing!

La Sandwicherie

Saturday afternoon, after a great day at the beach, Brady and I headed to La Sandwicherie, a tiny open air sandwich bar that Brady's friend recommended. I loved it! It is so cute and I loved that they had misting fans which were perfect after our hot walk there. The sandwiches which are voted "Best in Miami" are enormous and cheap which is a rarity in pricey South Beach! Plus they offer black olives and cute mini French pickles as toppings, huge bonus in my book.

The Villa by Barton G (inside the Versace Mansion!)

The highlight of the vacation was a surprise dinner inside the Versace Mansion at The Villa by Barton G. Brady made reservations months ago and it was well worth the planning. I couldn't have been more surprised and excited. The experience was phenomenal. Not only was it awesome to go inside the Versace Mansion (it's closed off to tourists) but the food was excellent. 

There are two seating areas, the dining room which seats about 8 tables and the courtyard. Our reservation was for the courtyard but it turned out there was a wedding reception that evening. The dining room was absolutely beautiful, the walls are covered in pebble mosaics and the tables are set with Versace's personal china collection. Even though we couldn't eat outdoors as planned, I was able to sneak a partial peak at the gorgeous courtyard and garden area thanks to a nice bodyguard. Besides housing a restaurant, there are also 10 luxury hotel rooms available, including Gianni Versace's master bedroom (kind of creepy in my opinion). 

The Dining Room- check out the beautiful china! (photo taken from website)

The Courtyard (photo taken from website)

I think the thing that I loved most about the experience was the fact that the food lived up to feeling of luxury and glamor that you sense walking into the mansion. The food is deemed "refined continental cuisine" and had a touch of molecular gastronomy which was fun. Brady and I shared the Maple Glazed Barramundi and honestly if we had been anywhere else I would have considered licking the plate clean, it was amazing. For our main course Brady had the Rack of Colorado Lamb and I had Bread Crusted Diver Scallops. Both entrees were delicious. Eating at The Villa was definitely a once in a lifetime experience and one that you shouldn't miss out on if you are in South Beach!

In front of the mansion

Delano South Beach

Prior to our trip I asked friends for recommendations and drinks at the Delano Hotel was on everyone's must list while in Miami. Such great advice! The Delano is beautiful and turned out to be a great place for pre-dinner cocktails. The decor inside the hotel is very minimalistic with interesting pieces of furniture and artwork sporadically displayed. The real highlight is the pool area though surrounded by giant lounge beds and private and semi-private cabana's. I can definitely see why the Delano is on everyone's must list, it's swankier than places I would normally hang out but it was fun to pretend to be cool for the evening :)

 

 

Out by the pool at the Delano

I'm sad the trip is over, it was tough for us to come back to reality. I think the sign of a good vacation though is that you leave wanting to stay or at least come back soon and we both definitely felt that way!

A West Coast Thanksgiving

Yesterday I came home from a week long family vacation in California. I didn't do any of the traditional Thanksgiving cooking this year but I did a lot of eating so I thought it was still blog worthy.  Our trip started in Sonoma County where we explored beautiful wineries and took a hands-on cooking class at Relish. The cooking class was definitely one of the the highlights of the trip for me. It was great that while we were miles away from home my family could still spend the evening in the kitchen together. 

                                                 Chateau Ste. Michelle, Sonoma County

                                                       Ferrari-Carano, Sonoma County

The theme of the class was Moroccan and my family and I, as well as a few other couples, prepared a meal consisting of Moroccan Flatbread, Pomegranate Glazed Moroccan Lamb with Dried Apricots and Bay Leaves, Halibut and Pumpkin Tangine with Chickpeas and Oil-cured Olives, Saffron-Orange Couscous, and a Fig-Orange Tart with Pistachio Crust for dessert. I thought all of the food turned out delicious but I will tweak a few things when preparing these items again and at that point I promise to share the recipes!

From Sonoma we headed to San Francisco where we spent two days exploring the city.  We ate steamed Dungeness crab at Fisherman's Wharf, sampled Sourdough Bread at Boudin Bakery, had fresh pasta at Trattoria Pinocchio in Little Italy and awesome fish tacos at Fog City Diner. We also explored China Town which was a very eye opening experience, ie. grocery stores with roasted ducks, chickens and other unknown small birds hanging in the store front.  

       This is as close as I came to seeing turkey this Thanksgiving!

                                                        Chinese Fortune Cookie Factory

After spending two days in San Francisco we flew down to Orange County where I had ample opportunities to enjoy more fish tacos.  Unfortunately the weather was too cool to take full advantage of the beach but we bundled up to walk the trails along the beach and watched as surfers braved the cold.  We drove along Pacific Coast Highway and explored Newport Beach, Laguna Beach and Dana Point,.  I think the highlight of the trip for my brother was when he spotted Lauren, aka LC, Conrad's parents home from back in her Laguna Beach days.  That was as close as we got to a celebrity spotting...

While this was not our traditional Thanksgiving spent at my Grandmas house eating turkey, dressing and pumpkin pie it was a fun trip exploring a part of the country I had never been and it was so nice to be with my family.  I am now looking forward to what the rest of the holiday season will bring- making Christmas cookies, walking through Lincoln Park Zoo's Christmas light display and a traditional Christmas at my Grandma's!