I recently have become discouraged (lazy) about making dinner. Instead, I have been buying a premade salad and a side of chicken at Whole Foods. They have a pretty extensive salad selection, but my current favorite salad is the Kale and Beet. It is the perfect blend of romaine, kale, feta cheese, cranberries, red beets, gold beets, red onion, and a sweet dressing that I can’t quite remember right now and am too discouraged (lazy) to research…
A few weeks ago my boyfriend and I went to the popular Hillstone Restaurant, R + D. I had accepted the fact that this is the latest hot spot on the west side and that we were going to have to wait 30-40 minutes by embracing it with a glass or syrah as we stood awkwardly around. The restaurant, similar in design and decoration to Houston’s, does not have bar stools around their waiting tables by the window. I ended up unattractively leaning against the table. However, after we checked in with them when 20 minutes passed as they had asked us to, they brought over a pail of french fries to tide us over courtesy of the house. Not too shabby.
Their menu is limited and different than Houston’s (a menu which I also enjoy). My boyfriend and I shared the meatballs (even though the waitress told us the chips and guacamole appetizer was the best; my boyfriend isn’t a big fan of guacamole).
I ordered the seafood speciala of New Zealand Blue Nose Sea Bass. I have never had Blue Nose before, but wanting to get more Omega-3 in my life along with experience a new taste, I took a chance. A delicious chance. This fish is interesting because scientists didn’t start collecting information on it until the 1980’s, so nobody really knows much about it’s history. Which I guess, also makes it not the best time to be eating it because of what little is known about it’s history and population status. Oopsie.
R + D was only offering 2 desserts on their menu. A pots de creme and a carrot cake. The latter is a dessert I do not like, but the former is one that I always seem to enjoy. I also knew my boyfriend would enjoy the chocolate custard texture of it, so that’s what we got. I was surprised at how much my boyfriend liked it for someone that always poo poos ordering dessert. I would happily order this meal again.
R + D Kitchen
1323 Montana Ave
Santa Monica, CA 90403
(310) 395-3314
I don’t know BBQ well at all. I rarely eat it. It’s not that I don’t enjoy it, it just never happens. My boyfriend however loves it and even stated that it was his favorite “food.”
We were on the hunt for dinner and driving down Pico when we saw Mr. Cecil’s tin can shack and thought it was probably the best bet for the night. The place is very small and has pictures of pigs all over the walls which honestly make the whole experience a little conflicting; cute happy piggies on the wall and dead, delicious piggie on the plate. Sorry, I didn’t take pictures of the walls. I was too sad.
I avoided this porcus conflict by ordering the Samara’s Southwest Salad - grilled chicken, salsa, corn, on a bed of lettuce with bbq ranch dressing. The salad was good, but not worth 13 dollars.
In order to make my experience more bbq-ey I also ordered a single beef rib. I don’t know anything about beef ribs, but I did know that this giant rib had more fat on it than it did meat which was a little disappointing. Maybe that’s just how it is supposed to be though and that is the wonders of beef ribs. The bbq sauce is nice, but both my boyfriend and I agreed that it wasn’t the best ever. Would I go back again? Sure, it was fine. But, I would also like to explore other bbq places in Los Angeles first…
Mr. Cecil’s California Ribs
12244 West Pico Boulevard,
Los Angeles, California 90064
310-442-1550
I rarely ever crave Chinese food, but a few days ago it felt like the best idea ever. Panda Heaven is a random restaurant near the Coventry Mall in Pottstown, Pennsylvania that serves both Chinese and Japanese food. The staff is always friendly and the food reinforced that it was the best idea ever.
House Chow Fun - Delicious wide noodles.
Pennsylvania Roll - I forgot to write down what was in this roll, but it was quite yummy.
Fortune Cookie
Panda Heaven
118 Coventry Square Mall
Pottstown, PA 19464
(610) 970-6953
Every year my family follows the Pennsylvania Dutch (Deutsch) tradition of serving Pork and Sauerkraut for New Years Day. It is a long held belief that this meal will help bring good luck for the upcoming year. I’ll eat to that!
About a week ago my boyfriend and I baked some cookies!
We made NY Time’s Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookie (I found the recipe at Diana Takes A Bite). I really enjoyed these cookies, but my boyfriend found them a little too salty. Which is funny because it seems like he adds salt on everything else he eats.
Then the Gingerbread Cookies. I found the recipe online at the Recipezaar. I don’t own any cookie cutters, which made this to be a fun opportunity to practice our creative, free hand drawing/cutting. I really liked the gingerbread. It was not too sweet, but not too boring. I enjoyed making thicker cookies (less crunch and more chew).
Classic Gingerbread Man
Gingerbread Quadrapus
Gingerbats (And the Dark Knife)
Heart & Mustache
I know I know… a Chipotle review? Well, there are 2 valid reasons for me posting about this (McDonald’s owned) fast food chain:
1. My parents have never been to Chipotle (I don’t think they have even seen one or have heard about them before); although more common in the big cities, they have not hit the farmlands of Pennsylvania yet. So they have no idea how amazing their baby sized burritos, lime seasoned chips, and chunky guacamole taste like. I have never met a person who doesn’t like Chipotle. And I don’t know if I want to meet that person.
2. I ordered the quesadilla! There has always been talk about you being able to order it even though it is NOT on the menu (like the “secret” Grilled Cheese at In-N-Out Burger). Although I have discussed it with many people, I had never met anyone that had ordered it. I don’t blame anyone for not knowing either, because usually people order the burritos which are incredibly large and leave very little room for extras like their aforementioned yummy chips and guacamole or this unlisted and mysterious quesadilla.
Last time I was there I wasn’t in the mood to gorge myself with a giant burrito. Instead, I ordered the soft tacos: chicken, steak, and barbacoa. I don’t go crazy with the toppings: tomatoes, corn, and hot sauce. Sadly, my corn tortillas and meat were a little cold.
And the plain cheese quesadilla that cost approximately 3 dollars (I think 2.75-2.95). Although it is priced close to a taco truck quesadilla, it is not as tasty and a little lacking in cheese. However, since it is rare to find quesadillas this low in price that aren’t from a taco truck, it makes it much more appealing to order at a Chipotle instead of at Mexican restaurant for 8 dollars (which still doesn’t taste as good as a taco truck!). Also, I’m sure Chipotle’s quesadillas would taste better if I had added more toppings, maybe.
Mmm… Chipotle!