smile from the belly up

this morning a few friends and i hit up the santa clara farmers market. it had been awhile since i had gone to one so i was so happy we were able to go. i purchased asparagus, broccoli, onions, zucchini, basil, bread, fresh noodles, and i ate a piece of corn on the cob. on the way to the market i'd seen a sign that said bbq & pizza, this intrigued me. so when we couldn't settle on what to eat for lunch we decided to try the bbq place for which i'd seen the sign earlier. it was called h. butlers bbq and it was just what it said on the sign and more. the menu had so many options. they had a breakfast buffet of fried chicken, waffles, bacon, sausage, biscuits, gravy, potatoes and grits.. but the catch to getting the buffet is that everyone at the table must get it. so i'll be going back soon to let you know what i think of it. i ended up ordering the bbq chicken pizza since pizza it sounded so good but i was able to try a few other dishes thanks to my friend who ordered something different. i tried the bbq chicken and beef brisket, both were good but in my opinion the brisket was the best item ordered at our table. the brisket was juicy, tender and there was plenty to go around. it came with a side of homemade bbq sauce that had a wonderful unique flavor. for now that is what i'd recommend but i'll be back for the chicken and waffles soon and let you know how they compare to roscoes. after lunch we just relaxed for the next several hours.

luisa's place

for lunch i picked up food for me and a few friends at luisa's place. it's a peruvian restaurant all the way at the end of grant in san lorenzo. i ordered us lomo saltado which basically means really good steak and onions served over amazing rice with a side of french fries. the flavor of the rice alone is worth stopping in for but when you add the rest of the meal it's a place you must try. i think it's overpriced but the food is so good that you'll overlook the price and enjoy every bite. not that i tried it but they also serve mexican food and they have inca kola.

thirty and feeling dirty

bang bang bang.. tap tap tap.. these are the noises i heard on my windows and door at 12 am this morning. i froze for a moment not understanding what was going on but once i got my butt up off the couch and stopped watching 13 going on 30 i went to the door. it was nine of my friends and they dressed me in a black cape, a fuzzy neck thing, a princess crown, a birthday headband and of course my pajamas and house shoes. i was in shock but laughing all the way as they whisked me away for a birthday midnight meal/breakfast at ihop. i ordered the ham and cheese breakfast sandwich on sourdough and french fries and they also brought me a birthday sunday. it was such a surprise and it was the best start to a birthday i've ever had.my office decorations that i didn't want to take down and my crazy fun polka dot balloons that i loved!!for lunch my friends at work took me to lunch. we went to mexico tipico in union city and i ordered the 3 item plate with a pork tamale, beef enchilada, chicken flautas and rice and bean. the place looks like a 2 story house but the food is good!! the salsa is hot so if you don't like hot ask for the mild salsa when they bring out the chips.alexis made an amazing red velvet birthday cake!! the perfect amount of moister with great flavor and topped with superb homemade chocolate frosting. the cake was a huge hit with everyone in the office. my only wish was to have a second piece but before i knew it there was nothing left.
wow that's a lot of candles!
alexis likes to spoil me (and i love it!), she also got me this fun gift. i've had my eye on her mom's for sometime now and she knew that it'd be the perfect gift for me. i absolutely love it and i can't wait to give it a try. i'm not even sure how you say what it is but they look amazing and she got me the cookbook too. they are basically pancake balls filled with chocolate, fruit, cheese and/or anything else you can think of. stay tuned for the posts to come now that i've got a fun new kitchen tool.
then off to five guys burger for dinner. it just opened in fremont and i have been waiting to hit it up for the past few weeks. the only time i've ever had it was in new york last year so i was really excited to hit it up again. the burger did not disappoint and it was as mouthwatering as i remember. thank you thank you thank to whoever brought this establishment to town!i can't say it enough but thank you to all my friends for making my BIG day a great one! i couldn't have asked for anything more. i was able to spend it with great friends plus the entire past 24 hours revolved around food, now that's what i'm talking about!! don't be jealous that my friends are better than yours hahahaha. seriously this was the best way to ring in the next decade.

chef ryan scott

after work my friend and i headed to danville to have dinner at esin. my friend who went with me happens to work there and she found out that the executive producer of top chef made dinner reservations for 14 people from the bravo network. naturally we went to check it out ourselves and see the action firsthand. they were in town for a cooking demonstration happening in san francisco and i tried to get tickets but they were already out by the time i heard about it. so i thought maybe i could sneak my way into their conversation and charm them into giving me tickets so i could attend the big event. we were sat at a table right next to them and we waited and waited. i kept looking and listening but there was no opportunity to slide my way into their conversation. even though i couldn't charm them with my flirty personality i was able to catch the eye of the hottie chef ryan scott. that's right we made eye contact several times and even if he was only looking at me cause he thought i was a creeper in my book it still counts. after we finished appetizers, dinner and dessert we were still lingering hoping that somehow we could find an in. then it happened.. they were ordering dessert and i used my whit to jump in. next thing i know chef ryan scott ordered me a dessert and sent it to my table. i know what you must be thinking, she already ate dessert lol ok really more than likely you are wondering how'd i make this all happen. well i jumped at the small window created the the waiter, chef scott and my friend. i'm not sure that i can fully explain how it went down but it somehow worked out perfectly. when the dessert arrived their entire table sang happy birthday to me. we didn't get tickets to the demonstration but in my opinion this was a better and more personable.i got the new york steak (ordered medium well but it sure looked rare when it arrived.. nothing my microwave couldn't fix when i got home), carrots, fresh peas and a super tasty potato cake which was my favorite part of the entire meal. for dessert i ordered the brownie which was delicious then i also ate the cherry something that was sent to me by chef scott.. don't judge me.ps i tried a clam today and didn't like it.. surprise surprise.. i'm now convinced that anyone who likes these disgusting creatures must also like to chew on rubber bands and that is just nasty!

farewell sunday

today we gathered for dinner to say good bye to a few members in our family. my little sisters were headed down to la to visit my younger brother for a few days before flying home to florida. also my older brother and his wife are headed to pennsylvania for the next few months. we ate tri-tip kabobs, chicken kabobs, broccoli salad, pasta salad, potato salad, baked beans and corn on the cob. luckily i had an extra pair of hands in the kitchen cause the preparation for kabobs is very time consuming! my helping hands even made an amazing pasta salad with pesto sauce, sun dried tomatoes, olives, feta cheese, salami and artichokes. she made fresh pesto.. did you know that pesto is made with pine nuts? i sure didn't. unfortunately i hardly took any pictures of the food but here are the few i did happen to get. thanks to my helping hands with the prep work and also to my boy since diapers for manning the grill!!

broccoli salad

salad
1 bunch broccoli flowerets
½ cup chopped red onion
1lb cooked & chopped bacon
½ cup sunflower seeds
½ cup raisins
½ cup grated cheddar cheese

dressing
¾ cup best foods mayo
¼ cup sugar
2 tblsp. apple cider vinegar

mango cobbler

hummm... i'm not sure that i can say this adventure was a success but i was interesting. not only was it interesting but it tasted ok too. i think that if i ever make this again i'm going to make a few changes. i cut up 5 mangoes, added 1/2 a can of crushed pineapple, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and sugar. i then poured the mixture into a pan where i had previously laid a pie crust. i then topped with a cobbler topping consisting of butter, brown sugar and oatmeal. if you don't know me i think you should know that i'm not a baker. i happened to have lots of ripe mangoes and i knew that i needed to come up with some way to use them. one thing i'd correct if i do this again is that i'd pre-bake the crust before adding the fruit mixture. like i said it turned out fine but the bottom crust didn't cook completely. i think there was too much juice from the super ripe mangoes and that's another thing i'd change is i'd drain more of the juice.