Greetings from San Francisco

Hi everyone! That's me down there... maybe you can't tell but it is, I promise!

<3

I recently took a short mini-break to San Francisco, one of my favorite cities in the world; full or culture, beautiful people, and most importantly, beautiful food. Every chance I get, I trek to this gorgeous city and make my way through the lists and lists of eateries. And boy, I was not disappointed this time around! Basically, this is just a massive foodie/ travel post; enjoy!

Nick's Crispy Tacos: a swanky restaurant and bar that serves to-die-for crispy tacos!

In the heart of the hustle and bustle of Chinatown:

If you can't get good dim sum in Chinatown, where else can you get it?

A plethora of good eats seen while meandering through Chinatown:

One of the best teas (Arabic tea) I've ever had at Kan Zaman:

Oh how I love those San Francisco nights:

Delicious sandwiches at Ike's Place, and of course we cleaned that plate real good!

Union Square:

Mmmmm hot ramen on a cold, cold day in SF at Katana-Ya:

A close up of the very delicious, but kind of overpriced ramen:

Pretty fall leaves at the Japanese Tea Garden:

A mini couples photoshoot at the Japanese Tea Gardens:

Fisherman's wharf at dusk:

Osha, a super trendy Thai restaurant with amazingly good Thai food (my fav was the roasted duck salad below):

Twin Peaks: the best view of the city and the perfect place for silhouettes:

Bob's Donuts: home of the most AMAZING crullers EVER!

My favorite worker at Bob's and the hardcore donut machinery:

Having fun on hotel rooftops with long exposures and sparklers:

What's a good brunch without mimosas and bloody marys?

Mama's and some fineeeee home-cooked breakfast/ brunch:

How could I NOT visit Paulette and grab a box of my French Macaron favorites??!?!

Sugar Cookies

Not feeling like much of a writer today, but on the upside here are some sugar cookies! The recipe is a hybrid of a couple I've found. These only took a quick zap in the oven and turned out super soft. I liked the addition of the almond extract and everyone who tried them said they tasted great! Something else I like about them: they keep really well so they make great gifts.

This was also my first attempt with royal icing, and though it was finicky and took some patience, the result was worth it. I mean just look at that Hello Kitty! Obviously I need some more practice but for a first try, I'd say I was successful. Now I'm just looking for ways to make royal icing taste better cause I'm not all for that sugary taste.

Merry little men:

Basic Sugar Cookies

Yields: about 20 - 30, depending on the shape

Printable Recipe

2 1/2 cups flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. almond extract

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt, set aside. In a mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy and light in color. Add the eggs, vanilla and almond extract, mixing until incorporated. Add the flour mixture, a little at a time until all of it is incorporated. Divide the dough into two and cover completely in saran wrap. Refrigerate for at least an hour to overnight before rolling. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375 F. Remove one package of dough at a time and roll to 1/8 - 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into desired shape and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Dough will soften quickly so work fast and always keep extra dough in fridge. Bake for about 7 minutes or until just barely starting to color at the bottom. Let cool completely on wire racks before frosting.

Oh no! Not Hello Kitty!

Swirly swirly swirly:

Royal Icing

Yields: about 2 cups

Original recipe can be found here.

Printable Recipe

2 egg whites

2 lbs. powdered sugar (not all may be used)

1 tsp. lemon juice

Combine egg whites and lemon juice in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add some powdered sugar and start to mix on medium-low speed. Keep adding the sugar a little at a time until the mixture looks thick like whipped cream and it makes soft peaks. Now it is ready for piping. To make it runny enough to flood, add drops of water and mix, a little at a time until the consistency is right for you.

Snowflakes:

Tailored Tuesdays

Oops! Wow, this was so late... enjoy!

1. Elizabeth & James "Double layer wool blend cardigan"

2. Acne "Wonder stripe jersey t-shirt"

3. Victoria Beckham Denim "Washed finish super skinny jeans"

4. Marc by Marc Jacobs "Kate leather shoulder bag"

5. Chloe "Flat knee high boots"

6. Kara by Kara Ross "Python pyramid cuff"

all images can be found atnet-a-porter.com

Mint Chocolate Puddles

I'm not a cookie baker. I like to bake everything else, and hey, I'll even try a yeasted thing every now and then but cookies? Not my forte. Why you may ask? I don't really know but for me, cookies are way too easy to ruin. They can burn within a second, the textures are harder to get right, they're just a tough cookie (no pun intended, ok maybe a little)!

I only have two cookies that I really love and can actually do well, which are these and these. But in the spirit of the holidays, cookies are just about the best thing to give and I figured I should give them another chance; I mean if not at Christmastime? Then when else (Did you notice the reference to Love Actually!) ?

Anyways, I've seen these cookies for a while and they've always been on my 'to do' list and I finally decided to give them a try. And guess what? I wasn't disappointed! These guys cook up pretty fast, so I over-baked a few, but just make sure to pull them out when they look puffy and fragile because once they cool down, they'll be firm enough. AND make sure to refrigerate them as per directions. I got a little impatient and baked them anyways and I think that was the reason for my flat cookies. BUT they were delicious nonetheless. Super chocolate-y, rich but not too rich and of course, loved the mint! Perfect when warm with a cup of milk!

Chocolate Mint Puddle Cookies

Yields: 35 - 40 cookies

Original Recipe can be found here.

Printable Recipe

12 tbsn. butter

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

2 tbsn. water

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

2 eggs

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

3 packages (4.5 oz.) Andes mints

In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the sugar, butter and water, stirring occasionally until melted. Remove from heat, stir in chocolate chips until melted, set aside to cool for 10 minutes. Pour chocolate mixture into a large bowl and beat in eggs, one at a time. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir into the chocolate mixture. Cover and refrigerate dough for at least 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease cookie sheets. Roll cookie dough into walnut sized calls and place 2 inches apart onto prepared cookie sheets. Bake for 8 - 10 minutes, be careful not to over bake. When cookies come out of oven, press one mint into the top of each cookie, let sit for 1 minute, then after softened, swirl with the back of a spoon to make a patter with the green filling of the mint wafer.

Close up!

Happy holidays everyone!

Ike's Place {San Francisco, CA}

Ah, Ike's Place. There isn't much you wouldn't like about this place upon first introduction. It's a small joint housing thousands (okay, I exaggerate) of delicious sandwiches. I finished mine, above, in mere seconds flat (see, that's that exaggeration again)!

I think no matter which way you go, the sandwiches here, that is if you like sandwiches, will please you. There's a choice for everybody out there, heck, there are even choices for those who don't even exist yet. But one thing is for sure, ask for extra dirty sauce - it's the bee's knees.

Yelp

Website

Kan Zaman {San Francisco, CA}

I wandered into Kan Zaman on a cold afternoon, trying to escape the cold rush of air. Inside, I was greeted by a charming, Middle Eastern-ish joint. To warm my soul, I ordered a Arabic coffee. One friend ordered an Arabic tea while the others decided to warm up in another way: beer.
The Arabic coffee was wonderful, warm and earthy but the real star was the Arabic tea. One of the best cups of tea I've had, and my first encounter with the type. The tea had fresh mint flowing around and was herb-y and delicious. They also offer hookah here, if you'd like.

Yelp

Website

Zazie {San Francisco, CA}

Zazie is one of those places that you just immediately like right when you get seated. It's small, warm and has this unbelievable neighborhood charm.
You move onto the food, and that charm just keeps on coming. The food here is made with love, you can just taste it. It's simple food that's fresh and just darn delicious.

I chose to munch on polenta topped with wilted greens, a poached egg and a simple tomato sauce, served alongside some greens. Everything was executed perfectly and it was a nice, hearty breakfast.
My ultimate favorite though, has to be their famous gingerbread pancakes. I don't even really love gingerbread as a flavor that much, but these pancakes were fantastic! Fluffy, lightly spiced and perfectly paired with some lemon curd, mmm.
We also tried their French Toast Tahiti, challah bread which was stuffed with caramelized bananas and walnuts. Definitely decadent, which I don't prefer for breakfast, but tantalizing nonetheless!

Yelp

Website

Osha {San Francisco, CA}

Most often, I like my Thai restaurants (or actually, all Asian restaurants, for the matter) to be hole-in-the-wall, super authentic places. When I was visiting San Francisco, my friend told me to try Osha. Since I almost always listen to friend recommendations, I decided to give it a try. Entering, I was first put off guard by the upscale, modern decor. Though quite soothing, definitely not what I was expecting.
With the modern atmosphere and ambience, you pay a bit more, which I don't mind too much as long as the food is good, because there's nothing worse then paying for ambience AND bad food. Luckily for me, I was in for a ride! The food at Osha was delightful, full of flavor, kept traditional in some dishes and strayed modern in others. I could not have asked for a better dinner.

Above, the green curry fried rice was probably the least spectacular of all the dishes we had, but that doesn't mean that it wasn't good. Below, the Spicy Catfish was the star of the night: tender, flaky pieces of fish covered in a lush sauce that really knocked out your tastebuds. Soooooo delicious.
The green curry, below, like it's cousin the green curry fried rice was good, but again, nothing spectacular.
The most appropriately named, Volcano Beef, was everything and more. Incredibly tender pieces of beef in a volcanic sauce, haha sorry I had no other way to describe it! This one definitely was a looker!
And the Pad Sew Ew, something you can find at almost every Thai restaurant. This was quite possibly the best Pad Sew Ew I've ever had. Incredibly flavorful and the noodles were perfectly cooked, chewy with a bit of bite.
My second favorite of the night was the Duck Salad, wow, just wow. Mixed with greens, grapes, and cashews, I was constantly kept on my toes with all the fresh flavors!

Yelp

Website