rias de galicia, barcelona.

dinner at rias de galicia. my favorite meal from our last trip.

this fine dining seafood restaurant has fresh seafood, prepared simply, and cooked to perfection.

 

we started with iberic jamon. the REALLY good kind.

served with toasted crackly bread, buttered and smothered with fresh tomato pulp. YUM.

amuse bouche from the chef, bite sized breaded and fried fish.

gillardeau no.1. sweet and creamy.

 

yellowtail tataki.

 

grilled fresh octopus. SO GOOD. the sight char and smokiness from the grill added layers of flavor. amazing texture. i don’t think i’ve ever enjoyed octopus as much as i did with this dish.

seafood soup.

baked fish.. i forget which kind… but it was flaky and light.

pork ribs. crackly skin, amazing glaze, hints of honey and rosemary. omG. seriously… YUM.

paella. a bit on the salty side, but i still enjoyed.

local mini strawberries with cream and ice cream.

if you’re in barcelona, def check out this place. oh, and the service was wonderful.

 

xx j

mother mash, london.

pies at  mother mash.

we LOVE savory pies. so we looked some places up when we were shopping around Liberty, and ended up here.

check out the menu.. this is how it works.

i chose the cheesy mash, the days’ special pie of beef and ale, and the traditional gravy.

b chose the champ mash, traditional mince beef pie, and the onion gravy.

we also ordered a side of cauliflower cheese. delicious.. baked gooey and creamy, LOTS of cheese.

fentiman’s ginger beer. not too sweet, strong ginger taste. i like.

a pic of the meat filling in the steak and ale pie… drooL…

everything was good. no complaints.

must return on our next visit to london.

xx

sawa sushi

sawa sushi in sunnyvale.

the sushi was amazing. but if you research online, sawa gets very mixed reviews for service. its lOve, or hate.

its better to know how sawa works, and read up on this place before you come.. or else suffer the wrath of the chefs attitude and rejection. in my opinion, he does not warm up to strangers easily. i feel that he appreciates those who pay attention and enjoy the fish, and is not afraid to berate picky diners , or those who have no idea what kind of establishment they have walked into.

located at a strip mall in sunnyvale, chef steve prepares fresh omakase sushi, and clearly caters to regulars. being a first timer, we were lucky that our fellow diners knew some regulars that also happened to be there.. i can say that when i first walked in, i got a weird look from steve and his wife..  a sort of ” do i know you?” i can see how some first timers negative reviews on “service” are not unfounded.. but, lucky for us, we got excellent service, with a bit of steves cold yet funny ‘tude.

i guess there are a few unspoken rules.

make reservations. then double confirm them.

don’t expect to order.

expect to pay about $125 and up for your meal.

no hot tea.

if you can deal with that, then the experience is excellent. i truly enjoyed it.. the pictures speak for themselves.

UNI atop toro, was tO die for. the fruity sauce on the side seemed to be based of asian pear, and was a bit spicy. at this point i gave my compliments to the chef- great fish takes long practiced skill to find.

scallop, fresh and sweet. simple light ponzu complements the natural flavor.

this- ok. so. i made the “mistake” of asking if there was ankimo- (i mean, the uni was so good, that i wondered how the ankimo would be here,) and got a weird look and a “eh!!huffpuff” sound from the chef.. eek. i was worried that i had offended. but, he came back a few minutes later, and in a conspiring tone, let me know that he indeed did have a bit, that he was preparing for tomorrows vip guest.. and he was willing to share since i asked!  it was amazing as well. creamy…

hamachi kama. baked to melty fatty perfection.

a complimentary treat for us, some side cuts of a super grade toro that another baller table had pre-requested.

salmon + ikura with a creamy sauce. one of my favorite dishes of the night.

if you love and appreciate sushi, go to sawa.. but try to go with someone thats dined here before and understands how it works. i will def be visiting again.

xx

http://sawasushi.net/

muracci’s japanese curry.

muracci’s in los altos.

best hamburger steak curry ever. you need to call in and order it ahead, as it takes about half an hour to prepare. muracci’s is usually packed, with a waiting line.. so either come earlier or later than the lunch/dinner rushes, or call in with a reservation.

that said.. here it is.

hamburger curry. the meal is served with a small salad, and comes with either white or brown rice.

the pickled veggies. i LOVE the red radish.. so i order and pay for an extra large side portion of it, as its an integral part of my meal.

closer shot of the hamburger steak.. perfection.

 

be warned that their curry is on the spicier side.. so their mild, for me, is already hot enough.

 

xx

http://www.muraccis.com/indexLosAltos.html

angelini osteria.

lunch at an old favorite.

an early bday celebration for b, at his favorite italian in LA.

the bread basket, and antipasto on the house. i love their thin, crispy flatbread, with tons of olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette. we devoured the basket within minutes.

b ordered proscuitto with cantaloupe. the melon smelled sOo good that i wanted to take a bite.. but i forced myself not to… if i had an allergic reaction then the rest of the meal would have been ruined… but seriously.. fragrant.

the tricolore salad. light and simple.

short rib ravioli, with sage and butter.

spaghetti chitarra alla norcina with fresh truffles and sausage. the fresh, chewy pasta was the highlight of the dish for me, and a great texture to go with the waxy truffle.

as always.. angelinis never fails. yuM.

xx

la esperanza

la esperanza, in torrance.

i was craving pupusas, an el salvadorian dish, so i looked up the closest restaurant nearby, and gave it a go. when i arrived at the jumbled strip mall i wasn’t sure what to expect, it looked like it might be a hole in the wall.. but once i stepped through their heavy wooden doors, i could tell that they took pride in their restaurant, and it showed through their interiors and decor.

their pupusas were larger in size than i expected, at other pupuserias i’ve visited, they are about 2/3 of the size. the stuffed corn tortilla comes in a variety of fillings, my favorites being pork + cheese, and chorizo.. so that’s what i stuck with. and i was very happy with what i got.

great texture, fragrant hot corn tortilla. nice light sear.

sweet plantains, with sour crema. here they have a side order that comes with beans.

before i loaded up the pupusas with curtido, a fermented cabbage slaw.. i like to think of it as a latin kimchee..

then pour on some of the traditional watery salsa.  i like to top it off with a bit of the crema.

ta da! .. sO good. but the serving was so large, i couldn’t finish.. i could only eat about 1 1/2.. plus the plantains of course. after i took this last picture, i got too busy eating that i forgot to snap one of the filling.. the cheesy pork was my favorite, being lighter in flavor. the chorizo was good as well, but the heavy chorizo flavor overpowered the corn and the curtido, which i really enjoy.

to compare cuisines.. its similar in format to the japanese okonomiyaki, another one of my favorite dishes.

la esperanza was very reasonably priced, and their service was friendly and attentive. i’ll definitely visit again.. next time ill try to remember to get a pic of the filling.

xx

http://laesperanzarestaurants.com/

viks chaat & market.

this was my second visit to viks chaat market in the east bay.. there isn’t really anywhere else you can get indian “street food” like this. i LOVE everything here, the spices and flavors are such a refreshing change from my usual palette.

cholle bhature. this is before the bread fell, its light and somewhat crispy.. to eat, break off pieces, and eat with the pickles and cholle sauce.

mixed vegetable pakoras.

keema (lamb) samosas- i couldn’t eat this because i’m allergic, but b said it was really good.

i mean.. it LOOKS sO good, right? yuM.

pani puri. my fave! partly because its so cute.

to eat, you crack open the top, and its a hollow shell, fill with tamarind chutney sauce, garbanzo beans, potato, spiced water.. etc. and eat in one bite.

lOve.

xx

http://www.vikschaatcorner.com/

sushi on the run

my favOrite sushi bar in the bay area.

SUSHI ON THE RUN in los gatos.

chef nobo has been preparing fresh, amazing sushi since i was in high school. this is the ONLY place that i will willingly order “rolls.” his restaurant is teeny, and only sits eight at a bar, so if you don’t make the first seating, you need to wait about 45- an hour for the next. he only opens up shop after his sushi rice is prepared to the correct temperature..  you can see him through the glass window fanning away the sushi rice in the big bamboo container before his assistant turns the “closed” sign to “open.”

on our recent stay in norcaL, we went twice for lunch.

the “yellow rose” roll. yellowtail, avocado, garlic, scallion. sO good.

now, THIS is how nobo prepares his sushi. one pc of his sushi is easily 2 at any other restaurant.

i like to order uni + avocado handrolls..  he makes mine with shiso.

hamachi, fresh the day we ate it. we watched him slice this off the fish.. insanely fresh, great texture.

UNI. my obsession continues.

“paul’s passion” roll. yellowtail, avocado, scallion, tobiko, chilli.

i LOvE.

xx

 

http://sushi-on-the-run.com/

portola valley lobster shack.

lobster rolls!

my mom took us to this gem, in portola valley near palo alto.

its my new favorite place for new england clam chowder. their “chowdah” is not as thick as many others, and has generous amounts of clam and chunks of potatoes. the creamy flavor is addictive.

the maine lobster rolls are generously portioned, fresh and light. my favorite is the bread roll- buttered, toasted and thin.

check out the texture of the bread “roll.” amazingly yum.

lOve it.

xx

http://www.oplobster.com/locations.htm

sprinkles ice cream

my first visit to sprinkles ice cream.

i have so many eats to catch up on, after being away from cali for so long.

friends took me to sprinkles ice cream on the newport coast- i didn’t even know about this! i’ve been missing out.

heres a pic of all our orders.. yes, theres a sundae with a frosted cupcake top in there.

i ordered the red velvet ice cream sprinkles sandwich- with a double chocolate and a red velvet cupcake top.

 

super indulgent. a bit too much for me..

next time, i just need the red velvet ice cream. its amazing on its own.

xx