Sound Bites 20.0: Northern California

I'm A few weeks ago, HC and I drove up to San Francisco and "wined and dined" (ok, not always wine) our way around northern California.  Here are some of our favorite places from our road trip.


San Francisco

If you like cheese... 

• Cowgirl Creamery Sidekick Cafe & Milk Bar serves breakfast until 10:30am.  We ate these very filling breakfast items:  

  

  Baked Egg Sandwich / Cheese Toasties

• Baked Egg Sandwich with sauteed mushrooms, Gruyere & herbs.  Added pancetta bacon 
  I had to get this because I love mushrooms.  I almost questioned adding pancetta, but everyone thought I was crazy not to, so I did it and I definitely don't regret it.  
• Cheese Toasties - open-faced grilled cheese made with Calbot Clothbound Cheddar with caramelized onions & maple mustard
  Not as small as the name implies.
• Poached Egg on cheese grits
  I thought this was a side item, but it was filling enough to be a meal.  
• Ferry Plaza Farmers Market takes place at the Ferry Building every Saturday (8am - 2pm) and Tuesday & Thursday (10am - 2pm).  I wish we hadn't eaten so much for breakfast because some of the cheese stands were generous with their samples.  

If you want some oysters without the long wait...

• Hog Island Oyster Co. actually has a stand at the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market.  You can order from their Raw Bar or even take some home!  
  

If you like creative and tasty bar bites...

• ABV has a standout food menu.  What we ate: 

  

  Goose Salame / Kimchee Fritter

• Goose Salame
  I've never tried goose in the form of salami before and it was great.  Glad it wasn't just the meat alone. 
• Kimchee Fritter
  I thought this would be in the form of several small fritters, but I guess it was listed as a singular fritter, and it was...one big fritter. 
• Falafel Lamb Dog
  So, I thought this was going to be a hot dog of some sort.  I have to admit that I was disappointed when I saw it arrive in the form of two corn dogs because I dislike corn dogs, but to my surprise, it was delicious.  Using falafel to replace the corn bread (which is what I hate about corn dogs) was genius.  This was one of my favorite dishes here.  I was actually craving it the rest of the night.   

If you want good cocktails...

Gran Cobbler / Cool Runnings / Coffee Cup /
El Vampiro / Spanish Negroni

• Forgery has been open for almost two months now.  It's not really close to much, but don't let that deter you because the drinks are great and so are the bartenders.  We drank:
• Gran Cobbler - Gran Lusso Vermouth, raspberries, absinthe
• Cool Runnings - Appleton VX Rum, Byrrh, grapefruit, nutmeg
• Coffee Cup - Coffee-infused Bombay Gin, Pimm's, Thai chile, ginger ale
• El Vampiro - Fidencio Unico Mezcal, Manzanilla Sherry, Creme de Cassis, salt 
  It was my cousin's birthday, so the bartender surprised him with his name in his cocktail! 
• Forged & Bound - Wild Turkey 101 Rye, Montenegro, Galliano Ristretto, green chartreuse, bitters 
  Yes, there was a snake in HC's drink.

If you like toast...

• Trouble Coffee has a damn good cinnamon toast...and coffee, grapefruit juice, coconuts, and a small assortment of pastries.   Hear the fascinating story behind the shop on This American Life. 
  

Sonoma

If you want to pack a picnic...

• Lazzini's Market has a great selection of made-to-order sandwiches, local wine and beer, and the kind of snacks that would make any Whole Foods customer happy.  We got this to munch on with our wine later in the day:
• The Godfather sandwich - hot BBQ tri-tip, pepper jack (HC swapped out the cheddar cheese), pepperoncini, red onions, BBQ sauce and mayonnaise on a soft French roll
  The amazing smells coming from the BBQ grill outside may have been a factor in us ordering this sandwich, but I'm glad we did because the tri-tip was SO good.  Definitely want to try their other BBQ items next time. 

If you like bubblies...

• Iron Horse Vineyards has a great collection of sparkling wines that you can enjoy while taking in their gorgeous view.  My favorites wines were: 
• 2010 Ocean Reserve - 100% Chardonnay
  I usually hate Chardonnays on account of their butteriness (One time I had a Chardonnay that was so buttery it tasted like popcorn. Gross).  I didn't even notice a hint of butter in this wine.  $4 from the sale of each bottle goes to National Geographic's Ocean Initiative.  I love Nat Geo photos and ocean photography, so this bottle was practically begging me to buy it. 
• 2010 Rainbow Cuvée - 69% Pinot Noir, 31% Chardonnay 
  Its release celebrates diversity. 
  

If you want to have wine by a stream...

• Arista Winery has a peaceful Japanese garden along with other spaces where you can relax with your wine.  We enjoyed their: 
• 2014 Ferrington Vineyard Gewurztraminer, Anderson Valley
• 2013 Smokey Ridge Vineyard Zinfandel
  

If you want to impress someone...

• Gary Farrell Winery's Terrace Tasting allows you to enjoy a stunning view of the Russian River Valley from their terrace with a wine flight and cheese pairing.  If you can't get a reservation, the view from the tasting room is still impressive.  
  

If you really love beer...

• Russian River Brewing Co. has pretty much the biggest beer sampler I've ever seen in my life.
  
    

Carmel Valley 

If you have a special event...

• Holman Ranch* is popular for weddings, but they're also equipped to handle events like corporate retreats and relaxing getaways. We: 
• explored the wine cave and got to try some wines from the barrels.  The cave naturally provides cool temperatures, which are effective for storing and aging wines. 
  
• toured the vineyards and the lovely property.
  
• dined at the restaurant they own, Will's Fargo Steakhouse.  It reminded me of The Hitching Post II.  Will's Fargo doesn't just serve steak, they also have: 
  
• French Onion Soup
  In the past I've found this type of soup to be overly heavy on the cheese and extremely salty, but I really liked this version.  Not too salty and the cheese was good.  I actually wish I had more soup when I finished it.  
• Goat Cheese Ravioli, garlic, tomato, Parmesan cream sauce
• Roasted Free Range Chicken, "Sauce Marchand de Vin", potato gratin, mixed salad
  I wouldn't normally order chicken at a restaurant, but this one was actually pretty tasty and I liked having a break from the meat with some salad and potato.
• Warm Truffle Cake, Holman Ranch olive oil ice cream 
  I overheard a guest raving about the ice cream on the way to the restaurant. 
• went to the game room and joined some other guests playing pool and throwing darts to the soundtrack of a jukebox.  I can see why this room is known as the groom's favorite room.  
  
• slept in charming, western-themed guest rooms.  The tranquility of the ranch reminded me of camping...but with the comforts of a hotel. 
  
• ended our stay with a morning hike.
  

More about Holman Ranch:

• Local Adventurer
• Thee Getaway Gal

Song Pairing:
Gooey by Glass Animals

* Holman Ranch was a media sponsored trip. 

Sound Bites 19.0: Central Florida

The last time I was in Central Florida was about 20 years ago.  A lot has changed over the years (hello Wizarding World of Harry Potter!), but some things stayed the same (like my unwavering love for Epcot).  Revisiting the places I went to as a teenager was even more fun as an adult, and part of the fun was discovering new food and drinks.  Here are some of my favorites. 

Food:

• mug of Clam Chowder, Oyster Roll (Celebration Town Tavern) - the restaurant is located in Celebration, a town that thinks it's in New England and is so perfect and clean it's no surprise that it was developed by The Walt Disney Company.  Now I've seen cups of chowder on menus before, but I've never had the soup come out in an actual cup.  I have to say, I liked it.  Having a handle made it easier to pick it up and scoop every last bit of clam chowder.  It was creamy and hearty.  I don't usually eat oyster crackers, but I really loved the saltine cracker flavored ones served here.  The Oyster Roll was overflowing with delicious fried oysters on a delicate split top hot dog bun. 
• Chicken Filet Sandwich, Chili Tots (Moonlight Drive-In) - eating a somewhat disappointing burger the night before turned me off to burgers that day (even though Moonlight's burgers sounded great).  The better-than-Chic-fil-A sandwich was ideal with its perfectly crispy and moist chicken.  And how have I never had chili tots before?  Loved it!   

• Braised Pork (Be Our Guest Restaurant, Magic Kingdom) - since we were unable to get dinner reservations, the quick service lunch was the next best thing.  We ordered our dishes on a touchscreen, and our food magically (well by a homing beacon rose) found us.  The 8-hour Braised Pork, chef's favorite, was extremely tender and the gravy was good on everything.  The dishes were a bit inconsistent with one out of three having hardly any gravy, but the server was nice enough to bring out a whole bowl of gravy (yes, I was jealous!) just for Jennio.  I was glad she shared some of it with us.  With three elaborate dining rooms based on Beast's Castle, we couldn't stop ourselves from taking photos of everything.  
• Pineapple Float with Orange Vanilla Dole Whip Swirl (Aloha Isle, Magic Kingdom) - pretty much an Orange Julius Dole Whip in pineapple juice.  Drool....  Wish Disneyland had this.  Oddly, you're not allowed to bring in Dole Whips, or any food for that matter, into the Enchanted Tiki Room, which is one of my favorite pastimes at Disneyland. 

  

  Jennio holding Dole Whip float

• Italian Chili Cheese Fries with Granma's Classic meatballs (Jimmy Meatballs Truck) - I feel like meatballs are the drunk food of the moment, so having them on top of fries with our Cigar City beers was perfection. 

Drinks: 

• Butterbeer (Butterbeer Cart, Universal Studios' Islands of Adventure) - tastes like butterscotch whipped cream atop cream soda.  It was so good, I had to have a second one before the night was over, regardless of the high sugar content.  Worth it.  
• Real Pineapple Milkshake (Moonlight Drive-In) - like having an Orange Julius milkshake, but with pineapple and pineapple pieces.  Mmmmmmm....
• Schöfferhofer Grapefruit Beer (Sommerfest, Epcot) - refreshing for the warm Florida weather.
  
  
• Cookie Dough brown ale (Cigar City Brewing) - if Disneyland was a beer it would be this.  It smelled and tasted like whatever they pump through the air on Main Street.  I regret not bringing a growler of this home.  

Song Pairing: 
Believer by American Authors

Sound Bites 18.0: Beach Hopping @ Hermosa, Redondo, Manhattan Beach

Hermosa Beach

HC, Wing, and I started out with "mimosas in Hermosa" (the theme that inspired us to go to the beach in the first place) at Scotty's on the Strand.  Scotty's is a cute diner with a nice view of the beach and was the least fratty place (one pub offered 32oz mimosas! :x ) we could find.  Oddly, a waiter started putting down new place settings before we even paid the bill.  There were other empty tables around, so I didn't really understand the need to rush us out of there.  Maybe it was because we only ordered mimosas and a plate of fried clams, which were decent, but made me wish we had ordered their hash browns instead.


Redondo Beach

We decided to do our own lobsterfest with Quality Seafood's great September Lobster Special.  $18 for a 1/4 lb lobster, giant ear of sweet corn, large baked potato, and melted butter.  If you're thirsty, you can even add $2 to get a Pabst tallboy!  This is way more affordable than the lobsterfests I've been too AND you get bigger sides.  This is the last weekend before the special ends, so check it out, especially if you missed all the other lobsterfests.  Just make sure to go to the register where they sell the raw seafood.  We made the mistake of waiting in the long line for cooked food.  We just assumed the longest line would be for the affordable $18 lobster special.  I was surprised people were totally unaware of the lobster deal.

After lunch, we quenched our thirst nearby at Naja's Place.  With 88 beers on tap, it was hard to decide what to drink.  Apparently, it gets rowdy after lunch.  The bar was so crowded when we left, I almost ran into a girl dressed up as a cupcake.  I didn't ask...


Manhattan Beach

HC introduced us to Fishing with Dynamite.  I loved the seaworthy decor and the artwork, as seen behind my refreshing Innocents Abroad cocktail (the sparkling cocktail w/ Starr, passion fruit, lavender & Thai basil reminded me of a passion fruit mimosa).  In addition to our afternoon drink, we had a few "snacks"...

Snacks:

• 1/2 Dozen Peruvian Scallops - some of the best scallops I've ever had
• Sampler Platter - each oyster on the bar.  Wing and I raved about the Kiwi Cup and Coromandel oysters (both from New Zealand), so we were easily persuaded to order more.  Also, loved the ponzu sauce.  I want it with all my oysters from now on. 
• 1/2 Dozen Kiwi Cup & Coromandel - I wanted to try the Kiwi Cup oyster as soon as I read the name.  It turned out to be my favorite oyster off the sampler.  It was crisp and clean.  Wing loved the Coromandel, but I found it a bit salty, though not as salty as the Sweet Petite, which made my mouth pucker.  It was not sweet, merely petite
• Pretzel and Chocolate Bread Pudding - because HC can never leave without dessert.  I'm not really a fan of bread pudding, but this dessert changed my mind with it's mixture of hot salted caramel and cold house made ice cream.  Plus I love pretzels. 

  

  Scallops // Kiwi Cup // Bread Pudding

HC Recommended:
We were too full to try these since we did each have a whole lobster for lunch!

• Maryland Blue Crab Cake - in - house dill pickles, whole grain mustard remoulade
• Key Lime Pie - graham cracker crust and kaffir lime meringue

I see a lunch or dinner here in my future...

It was a fun beach hop, but due to scarce free parking, next time I would park at Manhattan Beach and then make my way over to the other beaches.  However, if we stop at Fishing with Dynamite first, we might never make it to the other beaches.  

Song Pairing:  High Living by Toro y Moi


More Fishing with Dynamite Reviews: 
EstarLA 
Gourmet Pigs
Kevin Eats
LA Weekly
ShopEatSleep 

EMP Museum @ Seattle, WA

Andy is not impressed by the architecture

EMP (formerly known as Experience Music Project) Museum, designed by Frank Gehry (it's supposed to resemble the vibrancy of music, but to me it looks like the Disney Concert Hall threw up on it), is what the Grammy Museum would like to grow up to be.  It features an amazing stage for concerts and impressive, interactive displays on music and pop culture.

If I lived in Seattle, I would definitely become a member of this museum.  Hell, I'd probably even volunteer there.  Hm, looking for job openings...

Favorite Exhibits:

• Can't Look Away:  The Lure of Horror Film
  
• Scream Booth



HC, Fiona, Sin, Andy's tongue

• Philip Worthington's interactive shadow monster installation.  Monster parts grew and changed with our movements.  

  

  Me on the right

• Old movie posters
• Movie and TV props  



Rubert Giles' spell book in Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Photo via EMP

• Commentaries on Michael Jackson's Thriller and Evil Dead 2 (one of my fave scary movies).  Learned that Evil Dead 2 was one of the most successful horror sequels, which I found amusing because it's pretty much a remake of the first Evil Dead (commentary even admitted this right when I was thinking it!) 
• Icons of Science Fiction
• Putting on costumes to pose in the compositing special effects installation
• So, this is how much of a nerd I am.  The Dalek (major recurring enemies in Doctor Who) was the first thing I rushed over to see.  I got super excited about it, and naturally no one knew what I was talking about. Looked much less threatening in person.
  

  

  Dalek from 1988 ep of Remembrance of the Daleks. Photo via EMP

• Command Chair from Star Trek:  The Original Series
• Neo's coat from The Matrix.  Didn't realize how tall Keanu Reeves is.  He's like a foot taller than I am!
• Rifle from Men in Black
• Superman suit.  So much spandex...
• Concept sketches of Darth Vader's helmet
  
• Displays of science fiction books that actually got me curious to read them.  Putting The Forever War on my To Read List. 
• Nirvana:  Taking Punk to the Masses



Kurt Cobain during soundcheck 1992

• An abundance of information on Nirvana and the Washington music scene.  
• Personal photos, handwritten lyrics and letters, demo tapes, album covers gave insight into Nirvana.  There were remnants of a guitar smashed by Kurt Cobain that were reunited for the first time in years that gave me chills.  
• Had no idea Death Cab for Cutie was from Bellingham, WA.  We were there the day before! 
• The listening stations allowed me to check out bands I had always heard about.  And even though I'm behind the times, I think I could get into The Posies and The Young Fresh Fellows.
• Guitar Gallery:  The Quest for Volume
• Is a must for anyone who plays or loves guitars 
  
• Jimi Hendrix:  An Evolution of Sound
• Had no idea he used to play with Little Richard
• The Rolling Stones
• Because of my age, I've only ever known them as old, wrinkly rockers.  It's hard to remember they were actually young and attractive once.  

  

  Keith Richards before he was an old pirate

• Sound Lab
• Where I listened to Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) over and over again and learned how to mix 

Sound Bites 14.0: Oahu, Hawaii

My first time in Hawaii was filled with eating, beaching, and exploring.  I was surprised by the Japanese influence on architecture (some of those apartments and houses looked like they were imported from Tokyo), the lush vegetation (Oahu felt like buildings and streets were just plopped down into plant life, whereas LA has always felt like greenery was struggling to survive in the city), the strong sunshine (I got sunburned sitting in traffic on the way to North Shore), and the beautiful, blue, smog-free skies. 

Here are some of my fond memories of full bellies:

Breakfast: 

• Coco Puff  (Lilha Bakery) - I'm not usually a fan of coconut, but my friend said this bakery was famous for coconut cream puffs and, I have to say, they were deliciously sweet with a chocolate surprise in the center.  

  

  Right: Coco Puffs. They are larger than they appear

• Portuguese Sausage Breakfast (McDonald's) - after my first time having Portuguese sausage, I instantly became

  

  Top: McDonald's. Bottom: Sunny Side Bakery

  a fan.  I still can't decide which I love more:  SPAM or Portuguese sausage. Unfortunately, I accidentally ordered the meal without SPAM, but it was still good.  I love how rice is offered almost everywhere on the island.  The included soy sauce was great on the eggs! 
• Fried Rice Special with Vienna Sausage, Portuguese Sausage, Scrambled Egg; Pear and Peach Combination Pie (Sunny Side Bakery) - 3 of us shared this.  I can't even imagine one person finishing the Fried Rice Special alone.  In hindsight, we should have ordered the egg fried instead, but the scrambled style didn't detract from the tasty fried rice.  Surprisingly, it was the first time we had seen a different preserved meat on the menu:  Vienna sausage.  The bakery is known for their pies and no surprise, we ate it all in its flaky goodness before I could snap a shot.  First time having Hawaiian Sun (I tried Passion Orange drink).  I'm officially addicted.  

Lunch:

• Udon with Okra, Curry Udon with Chicken & Eggs (Jimbo's Restaurant) - friend

  

  Top: Udon w/ Okra. Bottom: Curry Udon

  loved her cold thin udon (first time I had ever seen thin udon).  The simplicity of my Udon with Okra allowed me to appreciate the fresh noodles (made daily, says their sign) although it would have been nice if the okra pieces were cut bigger or left whole.  Jennio's Curry Udon was divine in scent and flavor. 
• Poke (Tamura's Fine Wine & Liquors) - not only do they have a good selection of wine, beers, and liquors, but they always have delicious poke!  Wish we had had more time (and stomach space.  This was pre-lunch) for a rice bowl. 
• Long Rice Chicken (Helena's Hawaiian Food) - one of my favorite Hawaiian dishes.  I could eat a huge bowl of it and have this as a replacement for chicken noodle soup. 
• Shrimp Scampi (Giovanni's Shrimp Truck) - best shrimp scampi I've ever had (so good we ate this at both locations) and loved how they topped the rice with garlic.  We could have scared off vampires after this meal.
  
   

Dinner:

• Steamed Ahi Belly (Sushi Ten) - never seen this on a menu in LA before.   I was unused to the
  
  oily sauce the fish was sitting in, but by the end, I wish I had more belly and sauce. 
• Hula Dog (Hula Dog, formerly Puka Dog) - they were very friendly there even though we rushed in 10 minutes before closing.  How did I order my dog? 
1. Taro and bacon bread:  this was a special.  I don't usually like taro, but for some reason I loved taro everything in Hawaii, especially this bread with bacon bits!
2. Polish sausage
3. Garlic lemon secret sauce - mild
4. Pineapple (love pineapple anything!) relish, lilikoi mustard:  sweet and tangy sauce that burst out with the first, and ensuing, indulgent bites
• "Award Winning" Side Style Famous Fried Rice, Pan Fried Island Pork Chops (Side Street Inn) - a mountain of delicious fried rice with char siu, Portuguese sausage, bacon, and veggies.  I regretted not ordering the "Works", which included lup cheong and kim chee.  Ketchup seemed out of place on the pork chops plate, but worked surprisingly well with the crispy chops.
  
   

Dessert: 

• Dole Whip (Dole Plantation) - wish Disneyland served whips with fresh pineapple pieces and in a pineapple cup / coin bank!
  
• Passion Fruit, Lychee, Raspberry with Dark Chocolate Chips Mochi (Bubbies Homemade Ice Cream) -
  
  great flavors and loved that some of them were dipped in chocolate.  Don't know why I haven't seen that here. 
• Pineapple, Coconut, Lemon Flavor with Azuki bean, Vanilla Ice Cream Shave Ice (Matsumoto Shave Ice) - cute shop (yes, we all bought something there. Great merchandise!) and featherlight shave ice with flavors you can actually distinguish, so it's not just coloring. 

Drink:

• Mai Tai (La Mariana Sailing Club) - lovely tiki hideaway that made a great Mai Tai.  Luckily, they start serving drinks early (11AM).  Unluckily, they close early (9PM).  
   
    

Song Pairings:
Mixtape 2.0: Ni Hao Hawaii

Sound Bites 6.0: Momfuku Milk Bar @ Manhattan, NY

I had to come here after hearing so much about it.  We picked up our snacks and ordered a few cocktails from the bar and enjoyed them on the mezzanine floor of Chambers hotel. 

What I tried:

• Blueberry & Cream Cookie - which was my favorite out of all the sweets I tasted.  It was deliciously moist and just like having a blueberry muffin in the form of a cookie.  Plus it was still good even after a few days! (OK, I admit it, I saved this cookie for last because I already knew it was good since Kung Food Panda brought one back for me when he went to NY).  A recipe for these delectable cookies can be found here.



Photo by Momofuku for 2

• Compost Cookie - aptly named seeing as it contained pretzels, potato chips, coffee, oats, butterscotch, chocolate chips.  My friend loved these cookies, so I tried it.  It was just too much for me.  I could taste a lot of the ingredients, but too much of a good thing isn't always good for my taste buds.
• Crack Pie - one of their most talked about pastries.  I took one bite and my tongue was overwhelmed by sugar.  It was too sweet for me.  I could envision my dentist asking about my new cavities.  A recipe for this compressed sugar in a pie can be found here. 

Sound Bites 3.0: The Woods, Dumont Burger @ Brooklyn, NY

I don't claim to be a food connoisseur (honestly I haven't eaten at even half the amount of restaurants that LA's most popular food bloggers have eaten at), but I think hanging with HC has made my palate a bit more particular.  Since I've become more interested in cuisine lately, I thought I could make some future posts, dubbed Sound Bites (formerly Savor the Sounds), about my forays into food writing.  Again, I'm not an expert, these are just my opinions.

The Woods

Photo via NY Press

We were wandering around Brooklyn (my first time in a borough other than Manhattan) and stumbled upon The Woods.  It was late afternoon and we entered because the decor we saw through the open window looked cool.  I was sick, so I was very disappointed I couldn't have a drink here, but they offer beers and alcohol minus the frills.  The place felt like it was a flea market, but with alcohol.  Liquor lined the shelves along with trinkets like animal skulls and odd statues.  It had a hip neighborhood bar kind of feel and a fantastic patio filled with picnic tables and benches merged with planters.

Photo by Plate of the Day

More:
Free Williamsburg


DuMont Burger

DuMont Mini Burger

I had the Dumont Mini Burger with sauteed mushrooms and fries.  Don't know why no one else has ever thought to cover their burger with grilled brioche.  The meat and mushrooms were so simple and delicious together.  Matt and his cousin both said it was the best burger they've ever had.  I think I have to agree.  I wasn't sure at the time, but even now I still can't think of having had a better burger.  The fries were kind of sweet and definitely the backup singers to the Beyonce of burgers, but that was alright because after the burger (even though it was a mini), I could barely eat anything else. 

More:
Chowhound
A Hamburger Today
NY Times
nyc.com
Plate of the Day