It's been a dry couple of months..

Since returning from Semester at Sea (now feels like a magnificent dream), I have been so bored.  Sure, I have plenty of school, graduate school applications, I have attained two jobs and quit one, and am interning at an art gallery.  However, none of the fun stuff over here!  I recently got accepted into the birthright trip to Israel and will be embarking on said journey come January.  Until then, I've got Vegas (next week for my 21st) and New York/New Jersey (since I'm leaving for Israel from New York, why not?) for New Years.  Until then, I'm biding my time with a job at Nordstrom, a gallery internship, full-time school, and loathesome graduate applications (I still have yet to submit a single one).

Restaurant Review: The Blue Stove, Thousand Oaks, California

My father and I decided to try a new restaurant on our lunch date today; I suggested The Blue Stove, a restaurant hidden in the back of the second floor of Nordstrom in The Oaks mall.  I must admit, I believe it is a rarity to find a restaurant worthy of review in Thousand Oaks, but I was impressed.

It is a casually upscale-looking restaurant, comparable to the decor and lighting of P.F. Chang's.  As it is tucked away behind the Brass Plum teens section of the department store, I was surprised to see how crowded it was at 1:30 in the afternoon on a weekday.  We waited for about five minutes before we were seated, and then proceeded to brood over the menu, unsure of what to order.  The menu is organized into sections: the first is salads and such, the second is heavier dishes, and the third is small sharing plates.  My only complaint is that their setup makes it difficult to order; the menu is not exactly cohesive, with tortillas and green mole co-mingling with lamb, risotto, and pot chicken.  It's very tapas-style.

We settled on the caramel chicken wings, pea and asparagus risotto, and lime and cilantro chicken tacos.  We were served quickly, and although I was at first surprised by how small the tacos were, my father and I were delighted by how satisfying they were.  Apparently, they are the most popular item on the menu, and it is obvious why.  I am not a fan of lettuce and I had planned on only eating one, but they were DELICIOUS and I ended up eating two.  The taco shells were extra crispy and warm, and the queso sauce, lime, cilantro, chicken, and peppers blended perfectly together.  The lettuce was left behind on the plate.

Next, we received the pea and asparagus risotto.  Sublimely enhanced by the lemon included on the plate, I found that the rice and asparagus were both cooked perfectly and the flavors were harmonious together.

Finally, we were served the chicken wings, which packed a flavorful punch.  They were incredibly messy and my sloppiness felt out of place in the restaurant, but they were divine.

The plates were very small (through not incredibly expensive--about $6 each), and so we had plenty of room for dessert.  I had trouble deciding between the pineapple ginger sorbet, banana chocolate creme brulee, and chocolate raspberry cake.  My father chose for us the creme brulee, which was served in a large, flat dish with fried bananas and chocolate syrup on top.  I have never been a huge fan of creme brulee, but the banana-chocolate combination intrigued me; I was very pleasantly surprised by how delicious it was.  A bit too much sugar coated the custard, but the bananas really made the dessert quite excellent.

I left the restaurant just full enough; if anything I might have gone with a lighter dessert, but all of the food we ordered was incredibly savory and flavorful.  I am happy to know that there is a yummy and relatively fair-priced restaurant within my grasp here in Thousand Oaks--and since I just applied to the Nordstrom accessories department, I could very shortly have a discount there.

Restaurant Review: Gjelina, Los Angeles, California

My first Los Angeles review is of my recently-discovered new favorite: Gjelina.  Located in Venice, on expensively quaint Abbot Kinney Boulevard, Gjelina is categorized as Mediterranean in flavor; I am not quite sure that it follows Mediterranean cuisine too closely, but the wide variety of flavors and options do mimic the diversity of said region.

Gjelina is rather small, with several smaller tables and two large tables for parties to share or for the larger groups.  It reminded me of Magnolia, which I blogged about several weeks ago, in decor: plenty of wood, and such quirks as the alcohol bottles for water serving and dish towels instead of napkins.  However, Gjelina is much lighter and more airy in terms of atmosphere.

The first time I ventured into this spot, it was about 3 PM and crowded; my friend Torie and I were seated at one of the larger tables, side by side, across from and next to other patrons.  The side-by-side arrangement was a bit awkward, but worked out in the end when the guy next to me passed me his homemade ice cream to finish.  I marveled at the menu for quite awhile before deciding what to order; it was lengthy and had a significant variety of foods and flavors.  I was delighted because there seemed to be far less of what I dislike (onions, mushrooms, beef) than in other restaurants of similar caliber.  I ended up with the artisan cheese plate (a must for me if it is on any menu) and a side of sunchokes (a bit like artichokes but harder in texture).  The cheese plate was delicious, although I have no idea what I was eating and would have preferred some sort of explanation before digging in.  I was pleasantly surprised by the honeycomb that was included on the plate, as it went marvelously with all of the cheese and on the cranberry and walnut toasts.  Also included: almonds, dates, and deliciously oily olives.  I also devoured an interesting orange substance included on the plate, though I do not know what it was (again, some kind of introduction would have been welcome).  I found that the sunchokes, as well as all of the vegetable sides, are probably best shared; they were spicy and very good, but I could only finish about half before I tired of the flavors.

Now, about the ice cream.  Like I said, I did not order it nor did I see it anywhere on the menu, but I was handed a bowl with two small scoops by the person next to me and I was floored by how unique and delicious the tastes were.  The first was an almond-butter flavor topped with salt, and the second was a mint chocolate chip, though not conventional by any means.  The mint was poignant and fresh, not like the sweetness one usually receives from the ice cream flavor.  I recommend asking about the ice cream to anyone going; the scoops are tiny but the flavor is huge.

I went again to Gjelina this weekend, with James.  I was excited to introduce him to my new favorite, and we arrived at about 11:30 AM on Saturday.  We started with coffee (J) and orange juice (me).  The coffee received rave reviews and I must say, the orange juice was impeccable.  I had to, of course, re-order the cheese plate, and this time it was very different.  There was a brie, and James detected that one was sheep's milk; the final two were a cheddar and a bleu.  Again, I really would have liked to have been told what was being served to me.  We loved the cheddar and the brie most (two of my favorites altogether), and again the honeycomb dominated.  I ordered a prosciutto and melon plate for myself--a nice brunch, I thought, while James decided to order heavy and settled on the Niman lamb burger with french fries.  My plate arrived fresh from the charcuterie straight away, but we grew dismayed at the significant wait that accompanied the lamb burger.  I sat, tempted by the fresh melon and prosciutto, waiting for at least fifteen to twenty minutes before James's plate arrived.  We had hit the point where he said, "two minutes and I cancel the order" when the burger was set in front of him.  Also annoying was our over-attentive waiter, who came by more than enough times to ask if our food was satisfactory.  It was.  For the hassle we endured, our food was more than worth it.  My prosciutto was absolutely magnificent; there was hardly any fat on it and it was pure flavor.  Prosciutto and melon is one of my favorite combinations and although it is a simple dish, Gjelina did a fantastic job.  The cantaloupe was light and juicy, almost like the one I ate on the beach in Italy, and its sweetness paired perfectly with the salty ham.

James's lamb burger was also very good, and it tasted almost like pork sausage (to me).  The french fries were nice as well, but what caught our eye was the pizza being served at the table next to us.  We drooled and plotted to order pizza next time we were there, as apparently it is infamously good.  

So, for next time: cheese plate (I cannot help myself), beer or wine (I'll likely be 21 by then!  Also, they are a beer-and-wine-only establishment), and pizza (any kind, any kind at all).  The mushroom and truffle-oil looks very good, except that is it, of course, mushrooms.  The devil.  Anyway, Gjelina: high marks, very good.  Go!  And enjoy the boutique-y Abbot Kinney stores afterwards; the boulevard provides a nice way to walk off the food that just put a smile on your face.

:]

International Food Rewind

So, while I wait here, metaphorically drooling with anticipation for my restaurant outings this weekend, I decided to include an update that is long overdue: my favorite meals of the summer.  I traveled to eight different countries and had some very, very delicious food while I was in them.  Thankfully, I took pictures of and blogged about most of the stand-out meals, so I remember them quite clearly.

In the first country, Spain, I had some rather incredible food; in particular, their gelato was the best I have ever tasted (that includes Italy!).  The best meal I had there was in the city of Cadiz, next to the beach in a tiny all-white restaurant that sold high-class, elegantly-prepared food for street cheap prices.

An exerpt from my former blog will adequately explain the experience:

"I pointed out a restaurant I had been eyeing, which was all white and, by the plating, looked expensive. Upon entering, we realized that although the food was good and plated beautifully, it was CHEAP. Dirt cheap. Dirt DIRT cheap. We had salmon rolls with cream cheese, walnuts, and raisins as an appetizer, as well as three cheese ravioli and salmon toast with cheese and anchovies. Jill had a glass of wine and I had a beer, and the entire bill was 16 euro..."

I was not entirely sure what was inside the "three cheese ravioli," but I am fairly sure it was fois gras, and it was absolutely divine.  As you can see in the photo above, they gave vastly generous portions, and I could not finish it all.  It was three euro for the entire plate.

In Italy, the food was, of course, incredible.  Authentic Italian food is not famous for nothing; however, it is quite expensive!  I had many good meals in Italy; the first night, in Rome, I had a delicious pasta e. fagioli whose taste was dampened by its ridiculous price.  The second day in Italy, also in Rome, my friend and I spent hours looking for an open restaurant at 3 PM until we located a pub serving antipasti.  We noticed their 'snacks' section of the menu and immediately gravitated to it, ordering a bruschetta sampler (Jill) and crostini with prosciutto and mozzarella (me).  Jill's bruschetta was impeccable, and the most notable was the piece that included olive tapenade (always a favorite).  Mine was also amazing, and it had been exactly what I had been craving at that time.  Italian mozzarella is really quite special, and I left that restaurant fully satisfied. 

The next night in Italy, this time in the port city of Civitavecchia, we settled into a restaurant on the beach to order some classic Italian dishes.  I could not make an adequate decision, and so our waiter opted to make it for me.  He brought me a plate with a giant chunk of parmesan on it accompanied by sliced apples and pears.  I have a significant fondness for both fruit and cheese and was floored with happiness when served this 'meal.'  The waiter proceeded to tell me that authentic Italian parmesan has more protein than meat in it and that I was getting my entire day's worth.  As a non-beef eater, I was unable to try the tortellini with beef sauce and pepperoni pizza ordered by my dinner comrades, however both were raved about.  Other Italian meal notables include: the five-euro salami and mozzarella sandwiches in Capri (where NOTHING is five euro), the half a cantaloupe and Italian beer I ate alone on the beach in Civitavecchia (infinitely superior to mediocre American cantaloupe), and the July fourth dinner spent in Capri (perhaps it was the wine that made the food taste good, but three months later I will not discriminate).

Croatia was the land of surprises, and the amazing food served there was no exception.  The following excerpts describe several of my experiences:

"We found this fantastic restaurant (the first place we spotted) and I had lentil soup and we shared a cheese plate. We each had a beer and she had something I cannot remember...and our bill was just thirty-two dollars."

"We stopped at a relatively expensive place, where I ordered a mozzarella salad and shrimp risotto, but the salad was overpriced and the risotto was al dente, which is not my preference.  Steph and Jill liked their dinners very much, however, and thought the prices worth it."

We also had a delicious pizza meal one night out in Dubrovnik's Old City.  The pizza in Croatia is quite comparable to that of Italy's, and I heard from my friends for weeks about how the pizza we had in Croatia was the best they have ever had.

However, the most delicious single item of food that I ate in Croatia was on the island of Lokrum, right off the coast of Dubrovnik.  There is one restaurant, and upon entering (a relative term, as the restaurant was all outdoors) we marveled at a fresh fruit salad being made for someone else in front of us.  We vowed to return, and did so after cliff jumping for three hours.  Nothing, and I absolutely mean this, could have been more satisfying than that fruit salad.  It consisted of freshly cut peaches, apples, kiwis, pineapples, and pears piled atop one another with a scoop of incredibly delicious vanilla gelato and embellished with whipped cream and strawberry sauce.  I sitll fantasize about this fruit salad, because it was, genuinely, so much more than that.  We also ordered a corn and bean salad, and although it was very good, paled in comparison to the concoction we had in front of us (we each had our own).  The peacocks wandering freely through the restaurant also did not hurt the experience.

Next was Greece, where two meal-moments stick out in my mind.  The second day I spent in Greece, I spent on the beach with two friends of mine.  After three hours of sun that would turn into a burn, we settled into a beachside restaurant for an exhausted meal.  Although the french fries and red-pepper hummus I ordered made a simple lunch, it made an incredibly effective one.  Tom and Brady consistently dug into my meal, although each had a full gyro plate in front of them.  Greece has the best french fries in the world, and I say that with conviction; the spicy red pepper hummus was the perfect dip for the perfect french fry, and I remember it fondly.

On the third day, Steph and I went to diner at some side cafe on the street next to our port.  We expected little, but what I received was amazing.  We first ordered a large block of feta as an appetizer.  We piled salt, pepper, and olive oil on top and enjoyed it with a fork and french fries.  I saw sausages hanging in the window, and requested a meal including two of them.  Placed in front of me was two gigantic sausages, sliced open longways over a bed of french fries, served with hummus, pita, and Greek yogurt (see above).  I could only finish one sausage, but I certainly cleared the rest of the plate.  It was one of the most satisfying meals I had the entire summer.

Turkey also had incredible food: comparable to Greece in content, though it differed in quality.  The french fries in Turkey were not very good, but the meat was incredible.  We went to a hookah bar in Istanbul the first night, and along with our apple hookah and tea, ordered a sampler appetizer plate, french fries, and hummus.  The result was very, very good, but I still have absolutely no idea what was on the plate and what I ate.  When paired with bread, everything on the plate was fantastic (though I avoided anything that looked like beef or onion).

For lunch the next day, we stopped by a hole-in-the-wall joint next to the tram after receiving a tip about the delicious sandwiches there.  The three girls I was with each ordered said sandwiches, but I opted for a "kabob," which in Turkey is simply shredded chicken atop a bed of rice.  Mine was served with french fries and brightly colored peppers, and I had forks all over my plate from the other girls, dissatisfied with their carrot, lettuce, and sparse chicken sandwiches.  The entire meal, including the diet coke, was two dollars.  I went back the next day.

In Bulgaria, the food was much better than expected.  Sushi is surprisingly popular there, and we visited a particular sushi restaurant that had its own private beach for its patrons to enjoy.  After spending several hours on the cabana beds tanning, my friends and I sat down to order.  The sushi menu is short and sweet, and I ordered a simple salmon maki with avocado maki.  Notably, the seaweed in Bulgaria is actually quite good, compared the chewy American seaweed that I refuse to eat.  We also ordered a side of white cheese fries (very good in Bulgaria; comparable to Greece) and a fruit salad for dessert.  Like Croatia's, Bulgaria's fruit salad was rather epic, and included three different flavors of gelato and was twice the size of the Lokrum island jewel.

Steph and I had another excellent Bulgarian meal in a ship-shaped restaurant.  We boarded and headed for the top floor, settling in for a delicious Bulgarian cheese plate followed by spicy chicken for me (Steph is not a fan of spicy).  As a devoted cheese fan, I was delighted with the enormous plate we were served (see below).  We were also given little toasts as well as three additional dipping sauces and free tapenade to enjoy it all with.  We enjoyed Bulgarian feta, goat cheese, and another kind (the names weren't listed, but flavor speaks louder than labels) with the tapenade and toasts and I most certainly did not need the chicken I was given afterwards.

Egypt was slightly disappointing; I was on a trip for most of the time and the food on the trip was not anything to speak of; I can thank Semester at Sea for that.

So, moving on to Morocco.  I was also on a trip in Morocco, and Semester at Sea once again disappointed me.  The first day, however, as I was wandering the streets of Casablanca, I came across these tasty little demons:

I'm not entirely sure how to spell it, but they are called what is pronounced like "bee-knee."  Or Beanie.  Or Bini.  Spelling aside, they were absolutely some of the most incredible tasting delights I have ever tried.  They are round, fried doughs sliced open longways; honey is then spread inside them and the entire concoction is dipped in sugar.  They even let me make one myself, but it didn't work out very well (it was harder than it looked).

We did have one rather fabulous meal while on our trip, however.  Right outside of Marrakesh, we ate at a very beautiful--and empty--traditional Moroccan restaurant.  The following exerpt describes it rather well:

"We enjoyed a Moroccan salad first: white rice, white beans, lentils, peppers, potatoes, chutney, and spicy sauce, yum. It was a giant plate placed in the center of our table, from which all eight of us took spoonfuls of the ingredients we wanted. I piled lentils, white beans, and spicy sauce on my bread and filled myself up before our second course, which was also incredibly delicious. We were served a plate with two different types of fried treats: triangular pastries filled with beef, and little rolls of cream cheese in a flaky crust; all was piping hot. I enjoyed my cream cheese rolls while the others devoured the meat triangles. Our final course was again family-style: a giant bowl-plate filled with cous cous, vegetables, and beef (they had chicken made especially for me, but I was far too full and gave most of it away). We finished with watermelon, which was the lowest point in my meal only because I am not a fan of the seedy fruit."

I have no idea how I LOST weight on this trip!  As you can tell, I had some incredibly amazing and fabulous food.

Anticipation

I thought I would update quickly to say that James is coming to Los Angeles this weekend and I am excited because that means: trying new restaurants!  After picking him up from the airport we will be heading straight for Gjelina, an Abbot Kinney jewel I discovered several weeks ago (my rule is that I must try it twice before I write about it, however).  I'd like to try at least one more as well in the two days James is down here; he is, after all, my favorite restaurant buddy.  I can't wait to share my finds!

The End of an Era (a Short Era)

It is a little off-topic, but because it kind of, sort of pertains to my travels (and I'm really really proud of it), I decided to include the completion of my very first scrapbook in this blog.  It took me five weeks and about two hundred dollars, but I have to say, it was worth it. 

I have started scrapbooks before but always failed to finish them.  I believe that this one is special because it chronicles a specific amount of time in my life--my ten weeks on Semester at Sea--and during this particular period of time I was blogging and photographing like mad.  I have detailed accounts of every day I spent in a foreign land this summer, which I subsequently printed, cut, and pasted into my 40-page long book of scraps. 

I also included photographs, which cost me a whopping forty-five dollars to get developed (I had to cut it down from 200 pictures, AKA $60, to 137), as well as random tickets, maps, receipts, stamps, postcards, and little colorful flowers I cut out by hand; it seemed too dull without them.  So this is the result: an over-stuffed, bright blue, forty-page scrapbook that was beyond worth the effort and that I know I will be more than happy I did when I can't remember exactly what I had for lunch on day 34, or what museum I visited in Spain, or what the island I went cliff-jumping off of in Croatia was called.  I am rather excited to have completed this task, and look forward to creating more in the future.  This time, however, I will venture out to a scrapbooking store and not settle for CVS pharmacy, where I had only one choice for just about everything.  My father is rather enthused to accompany me on my scrapbook-store outings.  The next one: my 4-day 21st birthday extravaganza, Vegas style.

Restaurant Review: Cha Cha Cha, San Francisco, California

Another one of my Haight-favorites (and quite possibly my favorite restaurant in the entire city) is Cha Cha Cha, a Latin (Cuban?) restaurant at Stanyan on the end of Haight.  There is also one in the mission, but I have not visited and would likely be biased in favor of the Haight outpost anyway.  James and I have eaten at Cha Cha Cha many times and have tried just about everything on the menu, yet still we have a hard time ordering (yes--just about everything is THAT good).

The restaurant is crowded, with tables, people, and random "stuff."  Decorations are stuffed onto the walls, crooked and colorful, and the table cloths are made of plastic and busily patterned; all of this adds to the character of the restaurant.  Upon entering, the restaurant will probably be very crowded (for dinner at least)--come prepared to either squeeze into the bar or stand outside, in which case: dress warmly.  Wait times vary significantly; I have waited anywhere from five minutes to an hour in what seemed to be similar crowds.  Make the most of your wait time by ordering a pitcher of their infamous sangria from the bar; it is the most delicious sangria that I have had outside of Spain.  James likes to eat the fruit inside, but I don't recommend it for those who are sensitive to the taste of alcohol.  We counted last time, and a large ($20) pitcher will serve about fourteen small glasses, which, depending on your sensitivity to it, will be good for 2-3 people for the entire meal.

(courtesy the Cha Cha Cha website)

The first time I visited Cha Cha Cha I ordered the black bean soup; it is served with sour cream, and when paired with bread can be a meal in itself.  Trust me, though, you will want to order as many things as possible!  Other favorites from the appetizer menu include: Jamaican jerk chicken, the grilled marinated chicken wings (nice and spicy), the fried new potatoes (infinitely better than they sound), and Spanish rice and black beans (simple yet effective; the black beans at Cha Cha Cha are as superior as black beans can be).  My absolute favorite appetizer, however, and the dish that keeps me coming back nearly every time I'm in the city, is the fried platanos maduros.  I have a deep-seeded love for fried plantains and crave them often, and Cha Cha Cha does one of my best-loved dishes very well.  They are served with the black beans (more of a black bean puree) and sour cream--add a dash of salt and enjoy!  They are an absolute must for anyone who tries Cha Cha Cha.  One appetizer I will advise against is the ceviche; I am not a fan of ceviche in general, but James describes it as bland and lacking in character--two adjectives I do not prefer my food to have.  I have also not tried the mussels or the calamari (not huge on seafood), but James fully endorses both, for all those underwater creature lovers out there.  Honestly, it is hard to go wrong with anything on the menu.

Generally, I've always stuck with a variety of appetizers to share between the table rather than order an entree (primarily because I enjoy the different options), but I have tried the arroz con pollo, which was good, however not fantastic.  Also, the pargo rojo (red snapper) is notable, however the negative comments include it's small size.  The lechon asada (roast pork leg) is probably the best entree to go for, although I have not tried the remaining two; the pork is tender and delicious and it includes my favorites: plantains (although, to be fair, so do the other entrees).

For dessert, absolutely try the el mango tango mango.  It is just big enough to satisfy the sweet tooth without being too filling.  I haven't tried any of the other desserts yet, but I certainly intend to.  The service is fine, however nothing special, and often the host will be absent when you first enter.  Patience is key, especially if it is crowded.  The food is very, very worthy.  Prices are not exceptionally high, but a bill can easily surprise you as all those appetizers and all that sangria quickly adds up. 

I love this restaurant, and I have recommended Cha Cha Cha to everyone in or visiting San Francisco; if you only go to one restaurant there (and are a fan of Latin cuisine), absolutely visit this one.