Blue Plate

This past week my boyfriend and I went out for dinner at the always satisfying restaurant Blue Plate. It has become a safety restaurant for us. It’s not too expensive, it’s not too far, and it’s not a Mexican restaurant. This tiny little nook on Montana raises the bar for comfort food. Unlike most restaurants that offer breakfast, lunch, and dinner, everything I’ve tried on the Blue Plate menu has been delicious and I always leave satisfied. This time around I ordered:

Matzo Ball Soup - Simple and delicious. It came with oyster crackers.

Chicken Chow Salad - I love this salad. Romaine lettuce, grilled chicken, grilled vegetables, feta cheese, avocado, cucumbers, and tomatoes. I could eat this everyday.

Coconut Ice Cream Ball - Vanilla ice cream rolled in toasted coconut served with chocolate syrup on the side. I never enjoyed coconut until recently, but it is as if a whole new world of delicious combination possibilities has opened up. Usually when I “share” with my boyfriend, he takes a bite and puts his utensil down. This was not the case, but instead turned into a barbaric spoon scooping war. Seriously. Chocolate syrup was shed. On the table, on the plate, on the floor, and on the face. Everywhere.

Blue Plate
1415 Montana Ave
Santa Monica, CA 90403-1711
(310) 260-8877

West / 4th Jane

I read some great reviews about the recently opened West 4th / Jane gastropub in Santa Monica. A few of the articles mentioned their extensive beer list, so of course I went to check it out. They did have a great beer list, but just know before you go that all the beer is bottled! And, maybe research the beers found on their multi-paged menu before you go because it does not offer descriptions other than location of origin. Unfortunately, our waitress was not able to describe the beers either and had to go up to one of the owners to ask for help. Even worse, she came back saying “he said that beer was good.” I fully believe this situation was just part of the learning curve that occurs when opening a bar, and I hope and encourage that they quickly learn. (Let them drink to learn! Nothing beats drinking learning games. I think that’s how I am going to get through the next few years). Also, I hope they start a Happy Hour.

My palate is currently evolving to include darker beers, so it was quite the gamble on whether I would like the Californian Telegraph Stock Porter or not. The owner was correct though, it was good. A 750 ml marriage between fresh brewed ale with aged oak ale forming a unique glass of good drinkability. I was able to pick up hints of coffee and chocolate.

If you love bottled beer and know your beer, this is the place for you!

West 4th / Jane
1432 4th St
Santa Monica, CA 90401-2309
(310) 395-6765

Riva Happy Hour

With no better day to celebrate than Friday, I met up with my roommate and my boyfriend at Riva for happy hour.

With my subjective well being high, I ordered the only glass of red available at the happy hour price of four dollars:  Sangiovese Vignedileo from the Marche region of Italy.

The attentive waitress brought the bottle to the table and filled my glass in front of me. Delicious.

For food, we ordered the House Made Meatballs ($6) and the Margherita Pizza ($8). So yummy. I especially enjoyed the pizza’s thin sourdough crust.

You can find happiness at Riva on weekdays from 5:00-6:30pm. However, I must recommend that it is a great restaurant to eat at any hour.

Riva
312 Wilshire Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90401
310.451.7474 (RIVA)

Pinkberry Friday (It’s Free!)

Pinkberry is releasing their new flavors today: Coconut and Passion Fruit

To celebrate the new flavors, Pinkberry is giving out free yogurt from 5-9pm. My co-worker and I went at 4:50 and waited about 10 minutes in line. The sample is a size small with 2 toppings.

I chose Coconut with mochi (Japanese rice cake that has gummi like texture) and shredded coconut. Definitely my new favorite flavor. Hope you get your free sample at your local Pinkberry!

Edit: Sad news everyone, but these new flavors have replaced the Green Tea flavor. Pinkberry only serves: Regular (tart), Pomegranate, Coconut, and Passion Fruit. It’s an unjust world.

Proverbial “Carrot”

Incentive.

Fudgy Brownie Cupcake (fudge brownie cake, vanilla bean frosting, and Valrhona cocoa dust)

 
Vanilla Bake Shop
512 Wilshire Blvd.
Santa Monica, CA 90401
310-458-6644

Santa Monica Classic 10K

The easiest part of this race was the running. It was everything else that made it hard. Correction: Technology made it hard. My shuffle, Shuffley, refused to turn on when the race began. This made no sense to me because I turned it on 30 minutes prior to ensure it was working and that there would be no repeats of Shuffley trouble (San Diego Half Marathon). Shuffley might be a race-ist. Or, maybe Shuffley is just race shy, because Shuffley did not work. Thus, I started the race upset. I tried to focus on the running, but I kept getting distracted and discouraged by the beautiful noises of others. For instance, the lovely woman that took deep, loud, vocal breaths; each time she exhaled, she panted out the words “oh my god.” I was too frustrated to find humor in this situation at the time and only grew more annoyed and conflicted. I couldn’t sprint ahead because that would ultimately lead me to burning out. And I couldn’t slow down because that would compromise my own time. Instead, I distracted myself with random thoughts. Like, what if that dog, that I guess was allowed to be racing, poops on the course. I would definitely be the one that stepped in it. Fortunately, the blasphemous breather disappeared in my dust, the dog never went to the bathroom, and Shuffley finally turned on around mile four. Shuffley’s resurrection significantly increased my speed and mood. I was able to recover some of the lost time and finished the race in under an hour (which means that I ran the race faster than I train). So, yay.

Now… the good stuff.

It has become tradition for my roommate and I to go out to Father’s Office II for post race celebration. After the Santa Monica Classic, I did not think tradition was going to be upheld. Instead, I took a 2 hour nap, went grocery shopping, and lounged around. That is until I got the text message from my roommate asking if I wanted to go out. Of course I did! Here are the highlights:

1. Carafe of Melville “Vernas” Pinor Noir ‘07

2. Rare Yellow Fin Tuna (a special that quickly sold out after I ordered it) - yuzu cherry tomato “ceviche”, shiso, and cilantro sprouts.

3. The Bruery Saison Rue

Recession.

A birdbath alternative.