Browse Month: July 2006

shuck, suck, and…chuck

On Sunday, we drove to Hog Island Oyster Co. located in Marshall, CA. The drive was long and almost nauseating but well worth it. Vyl and Bang reserved a picnic table and bbq and we all brought fixins for the oysters along with kalbi, watermelon, and plenty of wine/champagne. When you get there you buy raw oysters from guys at the counter and they give you a rubber glove and knife. It’s literally a day of shucking and sucking. I shucked a couple oysters myself and luckily didn’t lose a finger in the process. Raw oysters are actually pretty good. Vyl made a couple good sauces to top the oysters but I think my favorite was the basic cocktail sauce/lemon juice combination. I also enjoyed a bit of kalbi, rice, and kimchee to compliment the rawness.

It was a very pleasant setting with lots of good friends who drove over from the East Bay and SF. Susie and Victor even made it after Susie finished the SF Half Marathon that same morning. Unfortunately, I got a little too much sun and my shoulders burned a bit. On top of that, all the driving on the winding roads, dehydration, and the airplane ride kinda caught up with my by the end of the plane trip home. I kept my composure on the parking shuttle and then let it all go in the trashcan in the parking lot. Once more at home, a quick shower, and a nap made it all better by 10 pm. Ah…it was a good trip. Oh yeah, thanks for the ride to the airport, J!

swirl, sniff, and sip

On Saturday, I woke up early to go for run with Vyl. It was a little chilly and it even sprinkled a bit but it was pretty nice being outside and enjoying the scenery. We ran past the Palace of Fine Arts, up through Presidio, and back. Vyl seriously kicked my ass on that run. We did hill after hill including the famous Lyon Street Steps. My lungs and heart were not happy while my legs kept wanting to go. I think we ended up finishing 4 miles with my lungs weezing and my legs not feeling the burn at all. Weird. The reward in the end was a stop at Starbucks and Noah’s Bagels…mmm.
…
For the day, I went to Napa with Jes, Bang, and Vyl. We were late to our 11 am cave tasting at Del Dotto but it actually turned out well considering the wine wasn’t very good and the winery seemed a little shady to me. Later we drove to St. Helena for lunch at Giugnis Deli. I tried to replicate the awesome prociutto/fresh mozerella sandwich from my favorite deli in Berkeley but it came up a little short. The prociutto, however, was noteworthy. After lunch, we went to Sequoia Grove and bought a chardonnay that had the neat buttery finish that we like. Then we stopped at Hall, which was recommended by the guys at Sequoia Grove. We were looking for a good Sauvignon Blanc for the oysters on Sunday and came up short. The wine tasting ended at Mumm. We FINALLY got to do a tasting there. Everytime we go we try to go there at the end for some champagne and end up skipping it because we’re so hammered. Well, this time we were still rather sober at 3:00 in the afternoon and in the mood for something refreshing. We each liked the Blanc de Blanc that we bought for the oysters and then the Cuvee M to take home…that one was especially yummy.
…
On our way back, we stopped at the outlets, where I got a pair of $29 strappy sandals to wear to dinner. Dinner was at Fringale. It was a special request made by Jes since we hadn’t been back there for several years and he was missing their special frisee salad. Usually when he obsesses over something like this, it often comes up short. This time it actually lived up the hype. We all ended up getting one and it sure was eggy, fatty, and delicious. I also had the corn soup (A+) and lobster ravioli (A-) that had real lobster it them.

refreshing

I just settled into the Bangs’ apartment and how nice it is to be on vacation! Not only am I hundreds of miles away from Irvine but it’s refreshingly cold here (right now at least). I’m wearing the shorts and t-shirt that I went to work in and found myself freezing my tail off as we waited for our ride at the airport curb. Awesome. As we drove through Oakland, across the Bay Bridge, and through SF, I realized how much I missed the Bay Area. Or maybe I’m burnt out of Southern California and the heat. Whatever it may be, I am officially on vacation! I just uploaded the last part of my camp assignments, have a hefty glass of wine next to me, and life is good. Let’s all take a moment to say “Aaaaaah”. Thank you.

I need July to end.

Summer school has been rather hectic. I don’t know why I’m sounding surprised. It was like this last year too. *sigh* I just have one more day to endure and then I’m officially on vacation…at least from this job. I need a manicure.  Hm, that was random.
…
I’m looking forward to our short trip to Napa this weekend. It was a last minute trip but it’s going to be a hoot. We’re going wine tasting with the Bangs on Saturday and then having a little BBQ in Marin on Sunday. The featured food item will be oysters…and kalbi and other stuff we can put together. I’m also looking forward to bringing my camera up there and seeing what kind of pictures I come home with. Where is that macro lens when I need it most? Haha.
…
Monday is the first day of Camp and I’m looking forward to it but not really. It’s been a bittersweet year since I had no intention of working in August this year until the fateful day when they sucked me back in. It should be fun but I’m just not looking forward to driving 100 miles per day. Jes might have to live the single life for a few days if I decide to stay in Cerritos for two weeks.

Fun with Fish Sauce

One of my favorite TV channels is The Food Network. Lately, many of their shows have been featuring traditional dishes that were passed down from generation to generation. Well, our mom is a wonderful cook. She makes, I think, the best Thai food ever! That’s probably what contributes to the “magical house” the most. Anyway, in hopes of learning a thing or two, I invited the family to my house and my mom prepared 4 of our favorite dishes. While she cooked, my brother and I watched closely, took video clips and photos, and took notes of ingredients and techniques. It was like making a cooking show for my mom. She made some pretty classic comments about her techniques that make it real “home cookin'”. For example, she was frying some sliced onion and we asked her, “What are you doing?” She replied, “I just do this to make it brown.” Haha. That’s awesome…let’s try writing a cookbook like that. She would also ask if we had something like lemon juice. I’d tell her that we didn’t have any and she’d say, “OK, we don’t need it.” There will be no list of ingredients or measuring spoons in this cooking show. Well, the dishes turned out great…just as I remember. Boy did we have a feast! I’m hoping to have several more of these afternoons so I can document and keep her recipes going for years and years. Thanks Mommy! You rock!

HOT

Are we still in California? Cuz it’s been at least 95 degrees everyday for the past week and the humidity is killing me. If it’s going to stay like this for a while, I might as well move to Hawaii. One of the reasons I wouldn’t live in Hawaii is the humidity. It drives my skin crazy with heat rashes and all kinds of ailments. Well, we’ve got all of the heat, humidity, and no clear blue waters to snorkel in. I’m feeling slightly gypped. (Is that how you spell it?) Anyway, this morning I woke up to the sound of thunder and there was lightning up in the sky as I was walking the dog. OK. That’s it, time to pack up and move. Luckily we have A/C and we’re not afraid to use it. We just got our electricity bill last week and it was a whoppin’ $200. So worth it at this point.