West Coast Road Trip 2

…so after the aquarium, we went to Kokkari Estiatorio for first dinner. The appetizers and the dessert I got were pretty awesome. I’m pretty tempted to say the dessert I got (the galaktoboureko, which I pronounced “galactic burrito”), was the best I had the entire trip. The main dishes were good, but out-classed by what came before/after. Overall, highly recommended.

Road Trip 2012 178

Road Trip 2012 183

Road Trip 2012 184

Road Trip 2012 189

Road Trip 2012 190

Second dinner was at Commonwealth, which I feel was good, but we were already somewhat full from Kokkari, so probably couldn’t fully appreciate it.

Road Trip 2012 195

Road Trip 2012 197

Road Trip 2012 204

Road Trip 2012 209

Road Trip 2012 210

In the morning, we discovered the place we had planned to eat at, Red Door Cafe, was closed, so we went to Brenda’s French Soul Food. Their breakfast was alright. I liked the beignets, but the rest were okay. I hear their lunch/dinner is pretty good though.

Road Trip 2012 212

Road Trip 2012 213

Road Trip 2012 218

Off to Los Angeles we go, where we meet up with Beika to eat at Animal. Very recommended. We devoured many creatures.

Road Trip 2012 225

Road Trip 2012 232

Road Trip 2012 236

Road Trip 2012 219

For a late night snack, we went to a ramen place, which was pretty good. It’s Sam Approved.

Road Trip 2012 246

Road Trip 2012 244

The next morning, we did first lunch at a Korean place, Seongbukdong. Recommended. It was very solid.

Road Trip 2012 250

Road Trip 2012 251

Road Trip 2012 254

Road Trip 2012 256

Road Trip 2012 257

Next up for second lunch, a visit to Umami Burger. I enjoyed the Manly Burger pretty well!

Road Trip 2012 264

Road Trip 2012 265

Road Trip 2012 267

Finally, for third lunch, because we’re crazy, we get sushi at Sushi-Gen. It was a good deal, but nothing crazy.

Road Trip 2012 270

Road Trip 2012 268

For dinner, we go to Angelini Osteria, which I enjoyed pretty well. I would go back. The desserts were tasty. Allegedly, Nancy and Grace saw Justin Timberlake here, but Nancy took an extremely poor photo of the sighting, so it’s impossible to verify their claims.

Road Trip 2012 275

Road Trip 2012 277

Road Trip 2012 282

Road Trip 2012 283

Plus, TC really hit it up with Grace:

Road Trip 2012 286

Road Trip 2012 288

Road Trip 2012 289

Road Trip 2012 295

More dessert at Diddy Riese Cookies. It was so-so.

Road Trip 2012 297

The next day, we went to Mole of the Gods. They were closed when we first rolled up and we were about to leave when they opened their doors. We were lucky of our timing! They were very good.

Road Trip 2012 298

Road Trip 2012 300

Road Trip 2012 303

Then, we take off to Phoenix where our first stop is the renowned Pizzeria Bianco. Highly recommended, especially the Rosa (we got two and added prosciutto to one).

Road Trip 2012 307

Road Trip 2012 308

Road Trip 2012 311

Road Trip 2012 315

For dinner, we headed off to Binkley’s, which surprisingly was the best meal of the trip. It was freaking amazing and extremely competitively priced. I highly urge anyone in Phoenix that is prepared for a very long, awesome meal, to go to this place. The food wasn’t quite as unique and various as Alinea, but at a fraction of the cost and spectacular on pure “OMG-that-tasted-awesome.” Mark says that the chef was ex-French Laundry, but if our experience was any indication, he’s completely surpassed them. I’m serious. This place is so awesome, we’re going to watch for cheap Phoenix tickets so we can return on some random weekend. Plus, hotels in Phoenix are cheap!

Road Trip 2012 325

Road Trip 2012 326

Road Trip 2012 328

Road Trip 2012 329

Road Trip 2012 332

Road Trip 2012 333

Road Trip 2012 335

Road Trip 2012 337

Road Trip 2012 338

Road Trip 2012 340

Road Trip 2012 342

Road Trip 2012 347

Road Trip 2012 349

Road Trip 2012 350

The next morning, we go to Vegas! On the way, a quick photo-op at the Hoover Dam:

Road Trip 2012 352

After getting to Vegas, we eat lunch at Comme Ça. It was not bad.

Road Trip 2012 361

Road Trip 2012 365

For dinner, we went off the strip to Kabuto. Would definitely go again. I felt bad I couldn’t eat that much because we had a late lunch.

Road Trip 2012 367

Road Trip 2012 371

Road Trip 2012 373

Road Trip 2012 375

Road Trip 2012 377

Brunch the next day was at Bouchon. I liked it a lot.

Road Trip 2012 380

Road Trip 2012 381

Road Trip 2012 387

CRAP! I just realized I didn’t get a group shot in front of Bouchon. DARN IT!

Later, we met up with Olivia, where I gave in to being uncomfortable and had a shot. Woo?

Road Trip 2012 389

For dinner, we went to Cut. My steak was disappointing, unfortunately, as it wasn’t as marbled as I expected, but I tried some of the crazy stuff Andrew/TC/Mark got and it was pretty intense.

Road Trip 2012 391

Road Trip 2012 395

Road Trip 2012 398

That’s it! Mark and I finaled back in Austin with Greg at Uchi. I took it easy on myself and didn’t take any pictures there, so that’s it! Tata!

West Coast Road Trip 1

I probably won’t blog about the whole thing right now, but I’ll cover a few highlights and revisit. It took Sam and I roughly 14 hours to get to Seattle due to flights getting delayed/canceled, etc. The one nice thing about that is that I got upgraded to first class flying to Seattle from Houston. I’ve got a ton of pics here, but I’ll directly include a few…

One of our first stops as a complete group was to Nielsen’s Authentic Danish Pastries. The danish I got was, in fact, very tasty. Recommended.

Road Trip 2012 003

Road Trip 2012 006

Road Trip 2012 007

Prior to Sam, TC and I’s arrival, the group went to Serious Pie, but decided to go back again for first lunch. I had been there previously on a business trip and it did not disappoint the second time around. Recommended.

Road Trip 2012 012

Road Trip 2012 013

We walked around Pike Place Market, met up with Victoria, and then walked a mile and some to Pike Street Fish Fry and had some tasty “fish and chips” for second lunch. Recommended.

Road Trip 2012 018

Road Trip 2012 021

Road Trip 2012 022

Off to Portland we go, and after checking in to our hotel, we hit up Aviary. It was really good. Highly recommended.

Road Trip 2012 038

Road Trip 2012 040

Road Trip 2012 041

Road Trip 2012 048

Road Trip 2012 051

Road Trip 2012 055

For a late night snack, we hit up Biwa. For some reason we thought they closed really late, but we got there right as they were closing up but they sat us anyways. Though the food was good, can’t say it stood out any IMO. If I lived in the area, I could see myself going back, but I probably wouldn’t make a point of visiting again.

Road Trip 2012 058

Road Trip 2012 063

Road Trip 2012 065

In the morning, we waited a long time to eat at Tasty N Sons. It was worth the wait. Very recommended.

Road Trip 2012 073

Road Trip 2012 077

Road Trip 2012 078

Road Trip 2012 082

For lunch, we hit up Pok Pok, which was great. Highly recommended. Get the chicken wings. They were amazing. Afterwards, we got more dessert at Scoop.

Road Trip 2012 085

Road Trip 2012 088

Road Trip 2012 089

Road Trip 2012 095

Road Trip 2012 094

After that, we make the long drive to San Francisco…

Road Trip 2012 096

Road Trip 2012 099

Road Trip 2012 103

…and make a quick stop at Voodoo. It was alright.

Road Trip 2012 105

Road Trip 2012 106

Road Trip 2012 109

We arrive in SF really early in the morning, but wake up in order to get some Chinese baked goods at Napoleon Super Bakery, accompanied by Tiff, Alex, and Kelsey who were wonderful guides. The dan tats (all I cared about) were good!

Road Trip 2012 110

Road Trip 2012 114

Our planned lunch, Swan Oyster Depot, was unfortunately closed for Labor Day, so we hit up Shalimar instead where I got some brains to eat. It was tasty.

Road Trip 2012 116

Road Trip 2012 119

A few of us then went to get ice cream at Smitten which also was tasty.

Road Trip 2012 123

Road Trip 2012 120

Off to French Laundry we go, all dressed up!

Road Trip 2012 125

Road Trip 2012 126

Unfortunately, I can’t say I’d recommend French Laundry. While I don’t regret going, I wouldn’t go again. The food was good, but not good enough to justify the price (I’d much prefer Alinea), and the service was so formal, it was awkward. I guess some people may like that type of service, but I found it a bit stifling. We had a good time regardless though, and there were definitely a few dishes that were pretty tasty, I just can’t say I’d highly recommend it to anyone.

Road Trip 2012 128

Road Trip 2012 131

Road Trip 2012 133

Road Trip 2012 136

The next day, we go kind of crazy and book two lunches and two dinners. For first lunch, we go back to Swan Oyster Depot. I’m super glad we did. This place was awesome, especially the smoked salmon. Highly recommended.

Road Trip 2012 137

Road Trip 2012 141

Road Trip 2012 143

For second lunch, we went to a Burmese place, Burma Superstar. It was really good. Highly recommended. Nancy really liked the tofu.

Road Trip 2012 148

Road Trip 2012 151

Road Trip 2012 153

Road Trip 2012 144

After that, we hit up the Golden Gate Bridge and the Steinhart Aquarium.

Road Trip 2012 158

Road Trip 2012 160

Road Trip 2012 163

Road Trip 2012 164

Road Trip 2012 169

Road Trip 2012 171

Road Trip 2012 173

I’ll stop here for now. I’ll continue with first dinner tomorrow!

Life and Death

Well December was certainly a rough one, but I’ll try to stick to the positives on the blog. Despite the plethora of suck, there was actually a lot of silver lining too. I just wanted to say thanks to all my friends and family for being awesome. I’ll also throw a shout out to Bazaarvoice too for being so incredibly understanding and making things as easy as possible for me.

Now, on to the positives!

I’m sure it was a combination of things, but I finally broke down and got a puppy. Nancy says it’s about time and I’m two years late. Well, better late than never? =p I feel a little ashamed at not rescuing a dog, but my little shiba inu pup, Mozilla, is so awesome, I honestly can’t say I have any regrets. Sorry? =p

On Christmas Eve, Andrew, Nancy, Sam, Viraj and I hit the road. Here’s a short video of our trip to Arkansas to get the little guy:

And now, some photos. I made sure to wear my Mozilla Firefox shirt given the planned name I had for him.

Mozilla 002

Mozilla 007

Mozilla 016

Mozilla 018

Mozilla 021

Mozilla 022

On another topic, here’s a video of Oriana opening the Christmas gift I got her:

Bye for now!

Fin!

We’re done and back in Austin. Whew.

Stop 13 - Pappy’s Smokehouse:
RoadTrip-FullRes-137 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-133 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-134 (by owiber)

Stop 13.5 - Ted Drewes (for custard):
RoadTrip-FullRes-138 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-141 (by owiber)

Stop 14 - Interstate Bar-B-Q:
RoadTrip-FullRes-147 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-143 (by owiber)

Stop 15 - Korea House:
RoadTrip-FullRes-155 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-148 (by owiber)

Stop 16 - Uchi:
RoadTrip-FullRes-156 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-160 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-168 (by owiber)

Done:
RoadTrip-FullRes-173 (by owiber)

The rest of the photos are here.

It's really cold

Today was really cold but we made our stops.

Stop 11 - Primehouse:
RoadTrip-FullRes-107 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-090 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-099 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-100 (by owiber)

Millennium Park:
RoadTrip-FullRes-110 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-114 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-116 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-124 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-125 (by owiber)

Stop 12 - Wiener and Still Champion:
RoadTrip-FullRes-126 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-127 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-128 (by owiber)

I was obligated to get the country fried bacon, which was a bad decision in hind-sight:
RoadTrip-FullRes-130 (by owiber)

Day 5 Close

Last few days in photos, mostly:

Stop 5 - Rancho Alegre (Cuban food):
RoadTrip-FullRes-031 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-039 (by owiber)

Our next place was supposed to be a BBQ place called Allen and Son’s, but they were closed (not sure why) so we ended up at…

Stop 6 - The Barbecue Joint:
RoadTrip-FullRes-045 (by owiber)

This was the place that had the awesome chowder (smoked scallops + bacon):
RoadTrip-FullRes-044 (by owiber)

Gas stop:
RoadTrip-FullRes-047 (by owiber)

Tunnel!
RoadTrip-FullRes-048 (by owiber)

When we arrived in Newark, we slept in the parking lot for a few hours (before taking a train to NYC):
RoadTrip-FullRes-049 (by owiber)

Subway:
RoadTrip-FullRes-050 (by owiber)

Stop 7 - Tung Yi Fung (dim sum):
When we walked in, we knew it was a good place because everyone there was Chinese. I mean everyone. Mark says a white guy walked in as we were leaving, but he was a serviceman. They spoke Cantonese everywhere, so I just pointed at all the dishes we wanted.

RoadTrip-FullRes-060 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-052 (by owiber)

Mark approves.
RoadTrip-FullRes-059 (by owiber)

They sat us at a table with two older Chinese women who attempted to talk to me, but I just smiled and shook my head at them saying “sorry, I don’t speak Chinese.” After that, they discussed amongst themselves about how I did/didn’t look Chinese and stared at me a few times. Dim sum meal costed us $25 total for all of us including tax and tip. It was awesome.

Stop 7.5 - Baked:
RoadTrip-FullRes-061 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-063 (by owiber)

Stop 8: Maze:
RoadTrip-FullRes-073 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-064 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-065 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-069 (by owiber)

We slept that night under Penn Station in New Jersey then headed to Cleveland…

Stop 9 - Trattoria on the Hill:
RoadTrip-FullRes-074 (by owiber)

Mark had some wedding soup that was amazing:
RoadTrip-FullRes-076 (by owiber)

We are now in Chicago (or rather a ‘burb of) at Mark’s sister’s place after…

Stop 10 - Lou Malnati’s:
RoadTrip-FullRes-080 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-081 (by owiber)

After dinner, we had some frozen yogurt:
RoadTrip-FullRes-084 (by owiber)

Oh yeah, and it’s going to be freakin’ cold tomorrow.

Yatta!

We just crossed into Ohio. Lunch in Cleveland, then it is dinner in Chicago. At 3am I washed my hair in a rest stop sink. It was awesome. Pics from the last few days coming tonight.

NYC or bust

Today we went from Florida to North Carolina for some BBQ. I also had some sweet chowder that had smoked scallops and BACON. I could not resist and now I am really stuffed. We’re in Virginia now and making a mad dash to New York City. Eight more hours to go. :) iPhone blogging out.

Road Trip Day 2

Day 2 (and Day 1 as well) in photos:

Oliver’s iPod FTW!
RoadTrip-FullRes-001 (by owiber)

Locations bookmarked:
RoadTrip-FullRes-002 (by owiber)

More awesomeness:
RoadTrip-FullRes-004 (by owiber)

Stop 1 - Shiva:
RoadTrip-FullRes-012 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-010 (by owiber)

For Viraj:
RoadTrip-FullRes-011 (by owiber)

Stop 2: The Best Stop Supermarket
RoadTrip-FullRes-013 (by owiber)

Boudin!
RoadTrip-FullRes-015 (by owiber)

Got there just in time and just with enough gas:
RoadTrip-FullRes-014 (by owiber)

Stop 3 - Nonna Maria Cucina Italiana:
RoadTrip-FullRes-016 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-019 (by owiber)

Stop 4 - Clark’s Fish Camp:
RoadTrip-FullRes-026 (by owiber)

RoadTrip-FullRes-030 (by owiber)

Sleep, then day 3!