Today was the best day ever. The food was a part of it. Decided that I'd done enough work for a weekend and needed to treat myself with some impulse shopping. Brought my baby along with me for the company - a good plan, that. We started by looking for a craft. That's funnier than you think it is, but only if you know the inside joke. Didn't find one, but that didn't matter. Lucky jeans fit me amazingly well and since I have decided to embrace my weight, I bought them. An exceptionally sycophantic sales clerk merely added to the enjoyment. Found the perfect purse - sometimes they do just jump out at you - and bought it. I bought one for my daughter, too. Now we're twins!
Okay, I know you are wondering when the food is coming. Zov's in Newport Beach makes the best Mac & Cheese known to mankind. Chicken and mushrooms and bacon and cheese and a sprinkle of goodness baked on the top. Don't share this. Eat it all yourself.
We started with, of course, a bottle of wine. Found another Pinot Grigio that was at least as good as the blue screw top wine that Trader Joe's refuses to sell me anymore. Split a bottle of that; of course, I forgot the name. Then the aforementioned M&C along with a Rosemary Lamb salad. Way better than it sounds, and it sounds great. What an amazing combination of flavors! Nothing exotic - lettuce, peppers, a great dressing, and the rosemary lamb - but a perfect blend. Someone was thinking on that one.
After great conversation, mutual amusement and the end of the wine, we applied a nice finish with the apple pie, ice cream and caramel drizzle.
Haven't enjoyed an afternoon this much in a while. Need to do this more often.
That and I bought Batman seat covers for the truck yesterday. A good weekend.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Friday, March 25, 2011
Pei Wei 3/25
When you've got a taste for Chinese, you've got a taste for Chinese. I found it very interesting that the Chinese food I had in China tasted nothing like the Chinese food in California. There, it was noodles with some sort of brown sauce and bits that were supposedly chicken or pork. It was really hard to tell. And, of course, the ubiquitous rice. For every meal. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Very slimy and very boring. California Chinese is way better. It has recognizable food things and fresh vegetables.
Pei Wei is a favorite when you want something fast, but fresh and tasty. I like the sweet and sour shrimp with brown rice. The sweet and sour sauce is not slimy, but nicely tangy. The shrimp is plump and not over-breaded. The honey chicken - also a good one, assuming you like chicken. Nice little bits of chicken that you can snag with chopsticks without fighting! I like the rice bowls and the noodle bowls, too, but didn't eat all that much in one night.
The soda dispenser is the coolest. All techno and spiffy with screen buttons and stuff. You can mix and match your flavors - great for making suicide sodas, or even something drinkable! A bucket of fortune cookies (I will find my inspiration to my goals in the next movie I watch, apparently; not sure what to see next, now. I was thinking of "Paul", but now that seems kind of inappropriate as I do not want to spend my life in an RV with aliens) is a great plus. Not that I need to eat a zillion cookies, but I get the sense that I am playing a part in fate/destiny/fortune when I get to pick out my own cookie. OK, so I'm easily amused.
So, if you're not sure you like pseudo Chinese food, try Pei Wei. Might not really be Chinese, but it's really good!
Pei Wei is a favorite when you want something fast, but fresh and tasty. I like the sweet and sour shrimp with brown rice. The sweet and sour sauce is not slimy, but nicely tangy. The shrimp is plump and not over-breaded. The honey chicken - also a good one, assuming you like chicken. Nice little bits of chicken that you can snag with chopsticks without fighting! I like the rice bowls and the noodle bowls, too, but didn't eat all that much in one night.
The soda dispenser is the coolest. All techno and spiffy with screen buttons and stuff. You can mix and match your flavors - great for making suicide sodas, or even something drinkable! A bucket of fortune cookies (I will find my inspiration to my goals in the next movie I watch, apparently; not sure what to see next, now. I was thinking of "Paul", but now that seems kind of inappropriate as I do not want to spend my life in an RV with aliens) is a great plus. Not that I need to eat a zillion cookies, but I get the sense that I am playing a part in fate/destiny/fortune when I get to pick out my own cookie. OK, so I'm easily amused.
So, if you're not sure you like pseudo Chinese food, try Pei Wei. Might not really be Chinese, but it's really good!
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Challenge of the Donuts
The battle was determined after watching 'Adjustment Bureau' and realizing that fate and destiny just might play a greater role in existence than previously given consideration. That and driving out of the parking structure puts one right in front of a donut shop.
The quest to determine the best donut between two establishments that both offered drive-thru service was on. Oh Those Donuts! and Dippity Donuts: the contenders. It was first thought to get the same kind of donut at each place and do a comparative taste test, but as we explored this idea, we determined that it would be better to have a wider variety of flavors and styles in order to better evaluate the overall goodness of the donut shop.
Custard filled, covered with chocolate - in a circle, not a bar - was the first pick at Oh Those Donuts! Nicely plump, with just a smidgen of delicately oozing custard peeping out, the chocolate was layed evenly and appearance-wise, this seemed a winner. The chocolate cracked sweetly when the donut was cut in half (sharing purposes) and revealed that it was, truly, spread evenly without undue thin or think spots which would have detracted from the overall flavor blend. The custard was, we think, actually vanilla pudding, but this was acceptable as it was fresh, creamy, and not overly sweet.
The next selection was a cake donut covered in white icing with multi-colored sprinkles - also from Oh Those Donuts! Again, appearance was a definite plus. The icing was even, the sprinkles evenly distributed, and the cake seemed nicely plump. Surprisingly light, one could taste the oil it was deep fried in, but this was not necessarily a complete thumbs down. The icing was sweet and the sprinkles crunchy - a very fresh delight.
Destiny? Fate? Que sera, sera. Eat more donuts.
The quest to determine the best donut between two establishments that both offered drive-thru service was on. Oh Those Donuts! and Dippity Donuts: the contenders. It was first thought to get the same kind of donut at each place and do a comparative taste test, but as we explored this idea, we determined that it would be better to have a wider variety of flavors and styles in order to better evaluate the overall goodness of the donut shop.
Custard filled, covered with chocolate - in a circle, not a bar - was the first pick at Oh Those Donuts! Nicely plump, with just a smidgen of delicately oozing custard peeping out, the chocolate was layed evenly and appearance-wise, this seemed a winner. The chocolate cracked sweetly when the donut was cut in half (sharing purposes) and revealed that it was, truly, spread evenly without undue thin or think spots which would have detracted from the overall flavor blend. The custard was, we think, actually vanilla pudding, but this was acceptable as it was fresh, creamy, and not overly sweet.
The next selection was a cake donut covered in white icing with multi-colored sprinkles - also from Oh Those Donuts! Again, appearance was a definite plus. The icing was even, the sprinkles evenly distributed, and the cake seemed nicely plump. Surprisingly light, one could taste the oil it was deep fried in, but this was not necessarily a complete thumbs down. The icing was sweet and the sprinkles crunchy - a very fresh delight.
On to the next place - first choice at Dippity was the cinnamon roll. A giant whorl of poofy goodness looked very appealing. Splendidly brown with that clear glaze that crackles when you poke it called forth and make this a player on the field. The swirls broke apart beautifully; at first impression, it seemed that there was a dearth of cinnamon, but upon tasting, such was not the case. Very light, not oily, with a pleasant appley aftertaste (maybe from sitting next to apple crullers?).
The last was the standard jelly filled. The raspberry filling was merely adequate - too much like cheap jam - and definitely brought down the overall rating on this one. The donut itself was light and fluffy, nicely iced, but expectations were not met on the gooshy filling.
So, between the two: Oh Those Donuts! is the location of preference, unless you want a cinnamon roll, then go over to Dippity. As to overall selection, Oh Those wins, as well. A well-lit, open establishment with clean cases and lots of choices. Dippity is a smaller place, a little dingy and maybe a third the choices.
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