dinner at the vintage steakhouse

i like the theme/decor of the place…it’s like you are eating inside of a train! and it’s right next to the amtrak so you’ll randomly see the train flying by sometimes just a few feet outside your window

outside, they had a mini garden growing their own herbs. not sure which one this is?

inside, they had interesting hanging artwork that you could purchase. one of these days i’ll be rich enough to own real art to hang on my walls

time to order

while we wait, we munch on fresh baked bread and butter

unfortunately, i wasn’t too impressed with their bread….and i usually love fresh bread

i decided on the rack of lamb

again, i was disappointed. i’m not too big a fan when restaurants overpower their meats with a sauce so that i can barely taste the meat. i was also disappointed with their sweet potato fries….how do you mess that up?? but they tasted like they had been sitting out and a quarter of them were drenched in the lamb sauce deeming them unedible. the best thing on this plate was the creamed corn. but so small! boo.

on the other hand, boyrobot ordered the 16oz ribeye with the twice baked potato (after the waiter kept pushing it on us). but now i see why, both were delish. the ribeye was soooo tender and wonderfully marbled. one of the best steaks i’ve had in a restaurant actually. i realize now, always get the house specials. rarely will you be disappointed.

i also realized at this point that i could never be a food photographer. when i get my food….i want it in my tummy! i don’t really want to be futzing around with ISO and aperture settings while my food gets cold. i don’t know how those food bloggers do it.

which is why i also don’t have a picture of our dessert, white chocolate mousse with blackberries. sounds yummy right? well i’m asian and i don’t like my desserts too sweet. which this surely was. should’ve went with the peanut butter creme brulee!

despite the so-so food, it was a fun night. boyrobot always makes me laugh and we dreamt up some money making schemes that will never see the day of light but are fun to think about. love these times.

this weekend was graduation weekend for two of my cousins:

christine from ucsb

amy from ucsd

so, so proud of them!!!!

i basically spent the whole weekend driving from one end of socal to the other, spending lots of time with my family and eating SO MUCH FOOD. i think i gained 10 lbs or something. it was all worth it though. good food, good family, GOOD TIMES!

while i was at amy’s graduation, i went around shooting pictures of some of my family. sorry if i missed ya…couldn’t get everyone since some were camera shy while others were too busy shooting their own pictures. i still love you too!

g-pa: my cousin think he looks like a turtle. cute, right?

myra: my mini me. ’nuff said.

randal: always down for whatever and so sweet!

eric: wow…had no idea he was getting into photography. i took a glimpse at some of his pictures, amazing! anyways, he always surprises me, in a good way!

brian: sorry other cousins but brian is THE COOLEST. love this kid to death.

mason: this kid is smarter, more worldly than should be allowed for his age. always teaching me a thing or two!

uncle dan: always full of good advice

my pops: best dad ever!!!

boyrobot: my better half who was with me this whole weekend with my crazy family. that deserves a medal in itself.

the beginnings of vietnamese coffee ice cream thanks to two awesome housewarming gifts – a bodum french coffee press and cuisinart ice cream maker

vietnamese coffee ice cream recipe by david lebovitz

ingredients
1 cup (400 g) sweetened condensed milk
1+1/2 cup water
1/2 cup ( 1.3 oz or 40 g) + 1 tbsp dark roast ground coffee, divided
1/3 cup whole milk

method
brew a very strong coffee with 1+1/2 cup of water and 1/2 cup of ground coffee.
whisk together the condensed milk, espresso, milk and ground coffee.
chill the mixture thoroughly, then freeze it in your ice cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

sorry there is no “after” picture, but did you really expect me to stop and snap a photo before eating this??

i love food. but i’ve been in a rut. we keep eating at our favorite places over and over again. not that i’m complaining since our staples are cheap and yummy. but it’s time to get to know our ‘hood (orange county) a little better. i present to you:

oc weekly’s 100 favorite dishes

we’ll be going down the list, one by one, once a week. i think i will declare sundays as our food adventure day. tell us if you are down to join us! we are starting with #100: jerk carnitas torta at the crosby

yum.

happy jumpintheocean day!

i just bought just dance for the wii.

i so can’t wait to have a dance off with boyrobot.

today boyrobot introduced me to this san francisco treat:

uh HELLO. why have you kept this little piece of heaven from me???? in all the years we’ve been dating and now married….i have never seen or heard of this ice cream.

i thought i knew you.

*for the unfortunate (before today) like myself, this is mint ice cream sandwiched between two oatmeal cookies and covered with dark chocolate. it’s called “it’s it”. strange name…but oh so fitting. i get it now.

Tags: elephant

Tags: elephant