This post is for you, Karrie!

After you mentioned clam chowder at well-known Pismo Beach eatery, Splash Cafe, I remembered that I failed to mention that we had dinner there last night during our pit stop in this small beach town in my previous post.

Well, after hearing so much about Splash Cafe and reading all the reviews on Yelp, we knew we had to taste their clam chowder in a bread bowl.  My friends and the Boyfriend really loved it, but I found it a bit too thick and buttery rich for my taste.  But don’t take my word for it - I think clam chowder is traditionally supposed to be this way, no?

And in the spirit of overly caloric food, we also ordered fish tacos and chili cheese fries (my total diet buster).  The fish taco was a little dry but the piece of battered cod was definitely a whole and healthy portion.  As for the fries, I don’t think there’s any way you can possibly screw it up - between the four of us, we devoured every bite!

All in all, I can see how this little cafe is so popular among locals and tourists, alike.  It’s no nonsense, with quick and easy food made to order and it’s completely satisfying.

Next time I’m in Pismo Beach, I’m sure my friends will lure us back to Splash Cafe - and that’s okay with me

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Last night, the Boyfriend and I ventured out for Korean barbecue at a new spot - something we’d never done before without our Korean friends.

My uncle had recommended a couple of restaurants on Garden Grove Blvd. (or mini Koreatown in this city, if you will).  We stopped by Shik Do Rak and found ourselves sitting in front of a menu where we had no clue what to order.

But never fear, the servers were really great, surprising spoke English and helped us out with what the regulars usually get - a complete combo meal for two with thin slices of beef and cubes of short ribs, along with mushrooms and onions, some sort of spicy soup and all the sides that you normally see while eating Korean fare - kimchi, pickled cucumbers, daikon, and some flat tofu-like item that’s supposedly a fish cake from reading the reviews on Yelp.  Doesn’t matter, I loved it because the sides are my favorite part!

One thing I didn’t love was the price.  Our dinner for two set us back about $60 after tax and tip.  While the beef was good, and enough to fill us both up, they were a bit stingy considering this should have fed 2-3 people.  I don’t have a huge appetite and I can only imagine if we had a 3rd person with us that it would leave us wanting more.  I also wished that they had pre-marinated the beef a little bit.  My favorite part about Korean BBQ are all the yummy spices!

All in all, it was a good dinner - but would we go here again?  I think we’ll try our hand at a couple more places before we venture to Shik Do Rak again.  Korean BBQ seems to be plentiful in this neighborhood for sure.

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Ever since I’ve been unemployed, I’ve been kind of sitting on my arse and snacking way too much, mostly because I’m looking for something to do.  What’s worse is it’s holiday season and I won’t can’t say no to all food and all the trimmings.

Right now I’m down in Orange County and my aunt is out of town, so there’s no one to cook.  You would think that this would help me eat less but all I want to do is go to the grocery store and buy junk to eat for the next 10 days because no one will know 

Well guys, you’re gonna be proud!  I just got back from the grocery store but instead of all that bad-for-me food to snack on, I picked up a few of my favorite fresh fruits and brought them home to make fruit salad.

Those of you who know me will know that I’m kind of obsessed with my favorite quarterback, Peyton Manning.  Finding inspiration in one of his many endorsements this season, I remembered this hilarious Mastercard commercial and decided on the fruit salad.

This was so easy to put together (took me less than 15 minutes to cut everything up) and is so much healthier for me to snack on at 10pm when I’m drooling over what the Top Chefs are making.

There are no rules to fruit salad, just pick your favorites so there’s no excuse not to finish every last bite and enjoy some healthy eating in between those decadent holiday treats!

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I love cooking and everything about it.  The Boyfriend and I always say that when we move into our own house we’d have a huge kitchen with all the fun appliances and tools for cooking we could ever ask for.

So even though I can’t take advantage of Macy’s Friends & Family discount of up to 20% for my home this year, a girl can always dream right?  Here are my favorite kitchen tools that you might want to put on your wish list or give as a gift to the favorite folks in your life:

Every kitchen needs the basics, so why not start off your collection with this OXO Good Grips 10-Piece Everyday Kitchen Tool Set ($60 US on sale) complete with items you use in everyday cooking in a concise caddy to keep it all together.

The Boyfriend is always talking about getting a good set of knives for the kitchen and I just spotted this set at a great value! J.A. Henckels International EverSharp 13-Piece Cutlery Set is a huge bargain at $60 US on sale right now - if we were to get each knife individually, it would cost over $200!

All year long during the holidays I love to bake cupcakes and decorating them for Valentine’s Day, Halloween, Christmas, you name it.  This Martha Stewart Collection 5-Piece Cake and Carrier ($39.99 US) lets me bake a ton at a time and tote them around to the office or to holiday parties in a cinch.

Macy’s Friends & Family Event starts tomorrow December 10th and goes through December 15th so you’ll tons of time to shop til you drop!

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On Wednesday the Boyfriend and I went out for a fun dinner at Circa in San Francisco to celebrate our anniversary.

We weren’t looking for anything frou frou so we were excited to grub on favorite American classics, prepared with a contemporary twist.  The menu had so many yummy sounding options that we decided to have our dinner tapas-style and order a bunch of small plates to share instead of full entrees.

First to come out of the kitchen were these cute Maine Lobster Corndogs with a mustard beurre blanc.  For me the batter was way to sweet and I was a tad disappointed that it was literally a batter piece of lobster.  I think I would have enjoyed it more if it were a hearty lobster-style sausage or something.  The beurre blanc on the other hand was delicioius!!  I’d love some of that every day to use as a dipping sauce.

We also had a Tropical Snapper Ceviche served in a crisp tortilla cup with fine dices of mango, pineapple, and peppers accompanied by warm house tortilla chips.  This dish was also a little too sweet for my liking but served as a lighter option to snack on in between the other richer dishes.

One thing I was really looking forward to were the Angus Sliders with Black Truffle and Brie.  But when we got there the menu had changed slightly to include Bacon & Cheddar-stuffed Angus Sliders, instead.  Nonetheless, we couldn’t resist anything stuffed with bacon and order those as well.  While they were delicious, I feel like they were mini burgers I could have made at home.  Tip to the restaurant: make your own buns.  They’d seem more authentic that way.

And finally for my two favorite dishes of the evening: Smoky Tomato Soup with Grilled Cheese Bites and Lobster & White Truffle Mac n Cheese.

The soup was a tad on the smoky side but had lots of yummy tomato flavor to make up for it.  My favorite part was dipping the crispy, cheesy grilled bites into it.. it’s enough to make you feel like a kid again!

The ooey gooey mac and cheese was my absolute favorite of the night.  Made with shell pasta with generous chunks of lobster, topped with crunchy bread crumbs and then baked to perfection, I had to try really hard not to wolf the dish down in three spoonfuls, LOL.  Even the Boyfriend liked it and he’s not even a mac and cheese fan!

Now what anniversary dinner would be complete without dessert?  We stayed true to the evening and ordered the Dessert Sampler.  Why else?  So we could try a little bit of everything, of course!  We had (from L to R) Pumpkin Cheesecake, Espresso Creme Brulee, Black and White Bread Pudding topped with vanilla gelato, and Brioche Doughnut Holes served with whipped cream and a rich chocolate sauce.

My absolute favorite was the bread pudding, not too sweet and the perfect balance between warm and cold gelato.  Yum!  The Boyfriend also finished off the creme brulee before we headed home for the evening.

Overall, the food wasn’t mind-blowing, but everything was done with lots of fun and taste.  I think this will be a fun happy hour spot with my friends in the lounge area.  More mac and cheese, please!

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