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McWino Birthday

Last Tuesday was my 35th birthday.  I had just gotten home from LA and Jes was still in NYC.  Luckily, I have some pretty good friends at work and they were happy to celebrate with me on a school night.  In February, we had a Happy Hour on my roof with wine and Chicken McNuggets.  We had such a good time that we decided to have Round Two for my birthday.

We ordered McNuggets and fries, packed Oreos for dessert, and had 4 bottles of wine to share.  Didn’t finish it all but it was fun trying.  It was also the last day of the heat wave in SF, which made it perfect for a rooftop HH.

The girls and I had a fun time snacking, drinking, and laughing and they all made it home safely.  I had a great birthday and went back to work the next day feeling happy to be a year older.

Here are the photos.

My Weekend at Home

Last weekend I flew home to celebrate my 35th birthday with my brother and the rest of the family.  I hadn’t been home since end of January so it was long overdue and perfect timing since Jes was in NYC for work.  I took some extra days off so I had the flexibility to score the $39 one-way fares.  My flight to LA wasn’t until Saturday afternoon so I actually got to enjoy a warm, sunny day in SF.

In the afternoon, Ryan drove me to SFO (thanks, dude!) and I flew a quick hour and 10 mins to LAX where Brother and Joy picked me up.  They drove directly to Beverly Hills to take me to Paulette.  It’s a place selling French macarons and they were so yummy!  They were about to close to all they had was lemon, coconut, and violet cassis.  We all got one of each and sat down at the Starbucks across the street to enjoy them with a nice cup of coffee.

Before dinner, we walked around The Grove and got a quick drink at a bar down the street from the restaurant.  Dinner was at AOC and Ben and Tiffany joined us for a feast of French tapas.  My favorites were the bacon-wrapped dates and the peach salad with burrata.  I hadn’t been there in over 4 years and it was just as yummy as I had remembered.  When the server asked us if we wanted to see the dessert menu, we kindly declined because we were headed to MILK for dessert!

It was just a few blocks away and I was delighted by their selection of ice creams and other tasty treats.  I opted for the coffee toffee on a cone while the others had Nutella and a grasshopper, which is mint ice cream sandwiched between two pistachio macarons.

I also had to try the cajeta and corn ice cream, which was like cold corn soup with bits of caramel corn mixed in.  Yum yum!

On Sunday, it was unpleasantly hot in Southern CA.  I was up pretty early so my mom made me some Kanom Krok.  Yesh!!  Around 10:30, I met up with Patti at a Korean-owned French pastry place.  It was really cute and I picked up a few treats to take home.  Patti and I got caught up over coffee in a nice air-conditioned place.

For lunch, we made arrangements to meet up with Pish, Debbie, Katie, and their new baby Kyle.  He was just born the day after Jes’ birthday!  My parents were also there and brought along some friends.  Jonathan and Janelle also joined us and brought Noah and their new baby girl Naomie.  We stuffed ourselves silly with Thai food and it felt like Thanksgiving with the non-stop arrival of food to the table and all of us seated at a really long table.

Later that day, we went to the Cerritos Mall to cool off but it was so hot outside that the mall was just mildly cooler inside.  Did I mention how fancy that mall has gotten?!  It has a brand new Nordstrom and even an Apple Store!  Whut?!  We then went to Pish and Debbie’s new house in Irvine where we hung out and Katie showed off her pink room and closet full of cute dresses.  For dinner, we met up with the Suminos at Uoko.  The boys had played baseball all day in the heat so they were all tired and sweaty.  But that didn’t keep us from devouring a ton of sushi and guzzling ice cold Sapporo.  I went home with the biggest stomach ache.

On Monday, there was record-breaking heat with Downtown LA reaching 113 degrees!  Whut?!  In the morning, I had another one of my favorite treats called Sakoo Sai Moo.  My mom ordered a bunch before I arrived and they were so yummy.

I also met up with Sandy, Linda, her 1-year old Christian, and Shaun.  We had brunch and got caught up.  I was so relieved that it worked out.  Sandy didn’t have to go to work until 1:00 and Linda was working the night shift.  Around noon, I headed down to Orange County.  I had to get my teeth cleaned.  Pish made me an appointment and so I went.  His new hygienist is nice and I left there with no cavities!  Woohoo!

Afterward, I met up with Marie and we picked up the boys from school a little early so that we could take Cole to the doctor for his Kindergarten check-up and shots.  I got to hang out with Brandon in the waiting room and we had a good time playing with the ball maze and he got a little snack too.  It felt like old times…hanging out with Marie and the boys while she does her errands and daily things.

For dinner, we went to Lawry’s for our birthday prime rib and creamed corn.  Yum yum!  My mom and I shared a slice and Brother and I got the usual birthday cake and song from the servers.  It was a nice way to end the last 3 days of gluttony.  Check out the free cheesy digital photo they gave us at the restaurant.  Pretty funny.

The next morning, it was our birthdays and time for me to go back to SF.  On the way to the airport, we stopped at Brother’s new office to check it out and to give him a big birthday hug.  It’s right next to LAX so it was perfect.  We had enough time to hang out for a bit and then I was back on a plane to SFO.

By the way, I got a nice surprise in my suitcase.  I was putting my laptop into my suitcase after going through security and found a pink birthday card from my mom.  It was cool.  I think I still like surprises. 🙂  On top of that, as I was waiting to board, I got texts from Ryan and Michelle who made arrangements to pick me up from the airport.  Thanks Michelle!!!

So there you have it.  I had a great time in Cerritos and I’m so happy that everyone was around that weekend.  I loved meeting the new babies and catching up with my family and friends.  Trips like these make me miss home the most.  I moved to a great city where lots of my friends are but I also left a bunch of people behind too.  *sigh*  At least I know they’re only an hour and a half flight away.

Here are the photos from the weekend.

An Evening of Food and Wine

Last night Project by Project SF held their 1st Annual Plate by Plate Event to raise funds for APA Family Support Services.  I volunteered to be one of their photographers so I got to attend at no cost and tasted food and wine from local restaurants and wineries.  It was quite a production and Susie didn’t seem to rest all night.  I bought Jes a ticket but he ended up having to volunteer for a couple hours too.  He somehow got roped into pouring champagne at the front door for a good hour or two until I said something to one of the organizers.

I also got to meet Chef Dominique Crenn of Luce.  She competed for the title of the Next Iron Chef and Jes and I have had many awesome dinners at her restuarant here in SF.

The food was tasty and the wine was flowin’ all night. I some pretty yummy appetizers and had a really yummy lemon cupcake with raspberry frosting (pictured above).

They also had a silent auction and we won tickets to an SFPC Christmas performance for $20 and I scored a bag for $20. The Lams bid on and won a painting that one of their friends created.

There were a few “celebrities” in attendance too.  I didn’t recognize any of their names so I had to look them up ahead of time so that I knew who to take photograph.  One of the girls was Jamie Chung from the movie “Grown Ups” and “Real World San Diego” (above) and the other was Tammy Jih from Amazing Race.

The DJ was spinning all night and there was also a band playing during the latter half of the event.  It definitely was quite the party and we had a good time.

Here are the rest of the photos I took last night.

EuroTrip: London, Sept 7

On our last day of our EuroTrip, we had to say au revoir to Paris and take the train back to London.  As usual, it was a pleasant ride with a window view, the movie “Eurotrip” on my laptop, and macarons from Laduree.

We tried coconut, hazelnut, espresso, and pistachio.  My favorite was coconut and they all were so light and airy.  Too bad they got a little smushed in my bag.  Paired with a glass of red wine, it was a perfect snack.

When we arrived in Londo, the Tube station was utter chaos.  There was a strike that weekend and everyone (including the locals) were scrambling to find alternate routes.  We were lucky to have our hotel near an open station and a line that wasn’t disrupted.  We stayed at the brand new H10 Waterloo and it certainly did not disappoint.  It had all the latest technology including USB and HDMI ports in the wall and an espresso machine.  We also had a lovely view of Buckingham Palace and part of the London Eye.

We spent the day hanging out along the River Thames.  Lunch was at the top of the OXO Tower where I had sausage made of kangaroo and mushrooms.  The sky was so cool with big fluffy clouds leftover from the morning rain and there was a nice view from the restaurant.  After lunch, we took a walk and we saw all the different bridges along the way.

We made it all thew way down to the London Tower Bridge, walked across it, and then hopped on the ferry for a discounted rate because of the strike.  Jes even got a bottle of beer for the ride. How nice.

The captain of the boat gave us a little tour along the way and was pretty entertaining.

The ferry dropped us off at Big Ben, which was back at where we started and all we had to do was walk over the bridge to the London Eye.

We boarded our pod along with 5 other people and had plenty of room to move around.

It takes 30 minutes to make it all the way around and you get the most spectacular bird’s eye view of London.

Once we disembarked our pod, it was time to rush back to the hotel to change for dinner.  Because of the strike, we had to call a cab to take us to the restaurant.  We ate at Hibiscus, which was just around the corner from Gordon Ramsey’s restaurant.  We had the tasting menu and my favorite dish was a huge ravioli that contained a soft egg hidden inside.  It sat on black rice puree and had bits of black truffle on top.  For dessert, we were asked to taste it first and I thought it was butterscotch.  It turned out to be a mushroom tart!  Whut?!  Crazy.

Here are all the photos from our last day.

EuroTrip: Paris, Sept 6

We spent Jes’ 35th birthday in Paris and he woke up a little grumpy because he was feeling old.  But he quickly got over it and he had a fantastic day after all.  The day started at the Louvre.  After watching the movie “Eurotrip”, I’ve been wanting to go and was looking forward to seeing a Robot Guy outside of the line.

Unfortunately (and fortunately), we knew where to find the “secret” ticket kiosk inside the mall next door and got in through the side entrance without having to stand in line.  We also arrived a little after it opened so it was not as crowded as when we left.  No Robot Guy for us…oh well.

We saw all the famous pieces including the Mona Lisa!! It was a relatively small painting in a huge room and it was covered by a plexiglass shield and blocked off by a velvet rope.  From the back of the room it looked like a movie star surrounded by the papparazzi.

I managed my way up to the front of the crowd and got some close-ups of the painting with my zoom lens.  I admit that there was something really surreal to see it in person.

Here is The Winged Victory of Samothrace.  Cool, isn’t it?!  We also saw Venus de Milo and Grande Odalisque.  We spent probably 2 hours wandering the huge museum and were ready for lunch.

It was raining by mid-day so we went back to the hotel for an umbrella and found ourselves at the Jardin des Tuileries.  They don’t allow walking or sleeping on the grass so they supply a bunch of reclining chairs throughout the park.  It also has a few cafes where we stopped for a snack.

From there, we were able to find the Place de la Concorde and the Obelisk with the Arc du Triomphe in the distance.

We walked up the Champs Elysses and stopped at Laduree to pick up some French macaroons.

It was busy inside with a long line of people hoping to pick up a treat from the place that claims to be the creator of the macaroon.  Fancy.

We also walked by the Louis Vuitton store where there was a looooong line of shoppers outside of the store hoping to buy a really expensive bag.  We were also approached by a Chinese woman claiming that there was a limit to the number of bags that you can buy there.  She asked if we would stand in line and buy a bag for her.  It sounded like fat scam and we blew her off.

For Jes’ birthday dinner, we had a reservation for L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon.  The chef is a legend and it was one of our splurges on the trip.  We were truly not disappointed and pleasantly surprised at all the dishes and the casual bar-like layout.  Everyone sat at a sushi bar and we got the tasting menu.

My favorite was a martini glass filled with an egg custard at the bottom with a mushroom foam with mushrooms on top and a little soft-boiled egg hiding inside.  It was like a chawanmushi on crack!  So tasty.

My main entree was quail stuffed with foie and it came with Chef Robuchon’s famous mashed potatoes sprinkled with shaved black truffles.  It’s basically all butter with a little bit of potato and was super creamy and flavorful.  Mmmmm….  Anthony Bourdain just went to this restaurant on his 100th episode of “No Reservations” and raved about the same potatoes.  It was so neat to watch the episode the day after we got back from Paris!

We left the restaurant stuffed and happy.  By the way, there’s an awesome supermarket called Monoprix just across the street from the restaurant.  They price their items with a digital display and it’s sooooo clean and organized inside.

I loved browsing their fresh produce and selection of cookies upstairs.

Here are photos from this day.

EuroTrip: Paris, Sept 5

It’s Day Two of Paris and it happened to be the 1st Sunday of the month so all museums were FREE!!! Yippee! So in the morning we headed across the Seine towards Musee d’Orsay. On the way, we found a patisserie/boulangerie called Eric Kayes, which I had read about. I was pleasantly surprised to find it on accident and that they were open! In Paris, a lot of stores and shoppes are closed on Sundays and Mondays so it seemed like it was going to be slim pickin’s that day. But we were in luck. I got a tasty 3-tomato quiche and cappuccino and Jes got a ham and cheese sandwich and espresso. There was so much to see and try there. One day I will go back for some of their sweets.

At Musee d’Orsay, I found the famous elephant out front. It made me so giddy. The line outside was not very long and moved rather quickly. It was mainly for a security check since no one had to pay. Inside they were very clear that photography was not allowed. Too bad because the museum is in an old train station and so pretty inside!

But not to worry! I still managed to sneak a couple of photos with my iPhone. Heh heh. Part of the museum was under renovation so many of their famous works are actually in the de Young in SF right now!

We went a few months ago to see them but they still had the Ballerina statue by Degas and Van Gogh’s self-portrait in Paris. The rest of it will also be on display starting Sept 22 in SF. Can’t wait to go back!

Afterward, we took a little wine break on the Seine.  It was sunny and warm that afternoon.  What a change from San Francisco coldness.

The next stop was Musee Rodin.  It’s a much smaller museum that features a large mansion surrounded by a huge garden.  That’s where we saw the famous “Thinker” sitting atop a tall stand in the garden.  Apparently there are several copies of this statue (like the one in the Palace of Fine Arts in SF) but this was the original one.

It was time for another break so we walked down past Napoleon’s “eternal home” where his remains now live.  It’s basically a gigantic palace with canons lined up in front with a view of the Eiffel Tower.

We then found a pedestrian street called Rue Cler where we picked up some pastries at Maison Auvray and then sat down at Cafe du Marche, which is a hangout for locals.

There, we ordered a carafe of white wine and sat at a table facing the street.  It was a pleasant afternoon of just sipping wine and people watching.  The French really know how to hangout and relax.

Our last stop was a view of the Eiffel Tower from across the Seine at Jadins du Trocadero.  It’s right next to a Metro stop and is placed up at the top of a hill where you get a gorgeous view of the Eiffel Tower and Paris behind it.

We got there just around sunset so the sky was pink and later the lights on the tower came on.  So pretty!

For dinner, we found a place called Cafe Constant on rue Saint-Dominique in the 7th arrondissement.  It’s very small but filled with locals.  We were lucky enough to quickly snag a table for two in the sidewalk and it was perfect.

Our appetizer was a tartare of oysters, seabass and salmon seasoned with ginger and lemon.  Sounded a little scary at first but it was delicious!  My entree was “Patte Bleu” roast chicken with herby butter and pan fried new potatoes in tarragon.  I gotta say, the chicken was so much tastier than our chicken in the States.  Jes had langosteens wrapped in a thin pastry dough and then fried.  It was just as tasty.

For dessert, we had a classic homemade profiteroles with hot chocolate sauce.  It was so yummy and the chocolate was so glossy!  The prices were really reasonable at this cafe and their servers were super friendly.  This was definitely one of my favorite places on the trip.

Aaaah….and so our second day in Paris came to an end.  We rode Metro back to the hotel stuffed and exhausted.

Here are photos from this day.