Chanel Rain Boots

I'm not crazy about Chanel, but when my I accompanied my girlfried to the store to pick up her slippers ($440?! SERIOUSLY?!  They're slippers!), I saw them on the shelf and it was love at first sight!

1)  Black patent
2)  Rain boot
3)  Heel! (On a rain boot? Unheard of)

SO I take a look at my then husband to be with the best puppy dog eyes I could muster and he said..... "Don't you already have 5 pairs of black boots?!"  Sometimes men don't understand.  I. Had. To. Have. Them.

So I got them.  And for a heck of a lot less than I expected.  *happy dance*

Welcome home ladies!

Posted in Napa

And San Fran...

Only in Hawaii...

Home Cookin'

fried rice. two eggs. happy tummy :)

Skin Care Chick

It's official!  Since I love to tell people what to do--about their skin anyway, it's only fitting I now write down my commands. ;)  Please subscribe to my feed here and enjoy!

check check ... check it out!

mmmmmoco.....chili mmmmoco....

No hamburger. 

Thank goodness I can find this frozen. My little piece of Hawaii.  In a bowl covered in carbs.

Nom Nom Nom...and repeat.

It has been approximately two weeks since I began my food adventure.  Let's call it an odyssey because it just sounds more grand.  Homer ain't got nothing on these meals.

Granted, there has been a wedding, travels overseas relocations, etc but I choose to focus on the food part of the adventure.  When in cities such as Napa or San Francisco, it really is all about your meals.  To evidence my supreme involvement, there were times I didn't even take pictures to document my meals.  I know, shocker, right?!  I must have been delirious.  I was just too darn busy gorging myself on love.  So the following is a little trip down my stomach's memory lane.  My homage to the dishes that made my knees weak, my belly full and my pants a little tight.  Thank goodness San Francisco is also a walking city...

So we touchdown at the San Francisco airport and no more than 15 minutes away in San Mateo, Copenhagen Bakery awaits us.  This the the Burlingame area where all the couples are hapa and yuppie is not just a term, it's a way of life.  From the compact SUV to the Maclaren stroller to the golden retriever this town says private school all over it.  It also says, YUMMY!  Copenhagen's pastries are unbelieveable.  The perfect amount of sweetness, significant filling (I  dislike pastry that is just dough) and enough variety to keep a schoolroom of 3 year olds entertained.  I'm not a total fan of the omelettes, but pancakes and waffles are good to go.  Waffles here are firm on the outside and just a touch chewy inside.  I have issues with waffles that want to break my teeth or rip open my tongue.  We love waffles, they should love us back.  Copenhagen waffles do that in spades.

    
With bellies full and eyes closing, we made our way down to Napa.  This bride to be needed some shut eye before the big day.  And some noshing.

To Yelp's credit, we were able to find a fantastic restaurant not far from the courthouse when Shawn and I obtained our license.  The meal was excellent, the wine outstanding, but one dish was simply exquisite.  Soy braised pork belly.  *shiver*

I know not everyone is a fan of "the other white meat" but I'm in the camp with Anthony Bourdain who says that pork is pleasure.  This pork belly is seasoned perfectly, just a touch on the salty side so when mixed with the watermelon and tomatoes, the blend is unreal.  Warm pork belly, cool juicy fruit.  It's times like these that I wish I had a secondary stomach so I could store more.  Then again, I may not be able to fit in doorways so thank goodness for small miracles.

The next day was our wonderful, intimate wedding.  Gorgeous, and everything I could have hoped for--especially knowing that the man I married is my best friend, my playmate and my strongest supporter.  BRIX restaurant and vineyards is amazing, both location wise and food wise.  Matt Guyot, Director of Sales was excellent!

All food were delicious from the hors d'œuvre to the appetizers, etc.  Just got one shot of my salmon, served with a sweet corn succotash.

Not that I wasn't on my iPhone, I just had other things to take pictures of (i.e. my groom!)  Definitely a new generation wedding by the smart phone usage :)

Post wedding bliss not only included my spiritual joining with my husband, but it also meant I could eat without having to worry if I would fit in my wedding dress!  Woo hoo let the games begin!!!

We'll start at Travigne.  We had eaten at Pizzeria Travigne a number of times and it was always wonderful (then again, it's pretty hard to mess up pizza).  However, at my mother's urging, we decided to give the original a shot.  Michael Chiarello was always fun to watch on Food Network, and I had high hopes.  Unfortunately, I may have set them too high.  Not to say that Travigne was anything other than very good but with so many options in Napa Valley, one must stay on one's toes.  The restaurant itself is well done with beautiful rich booths and dark wood, whimsical posters adorning the walls and slick service.  We indulged in the carbonara (6 out of 10, it could have used more seasoning), their signature shortribs (7 out of 10, I wanted to be wowed), caesar salad and the mozzarella a la minute.  Now this was interesting.  Since it's made to order the mozzarella comes out warm and it served tableside with EVOO on toasted brioche.  Rich, but not sinfully so and hearty, I give this dish a thumbs up.

On a side note, it always amazes me how many wine are on the menus of restaurant in wine country.  With so many vineyard you would think that people would be wine-d out, but such is not that case.  I, on the other hand, think I am still wined out. :P  In fact, my liver is still silently weeping to itself.  Wuss.

In San Francisco the gluttony continues and I am beyond thankful for the "walkability" of the city.  We hit the old faithful spots, including Mocca on Maiden Lane, which is amazing.  How amazing?  Check out my Yelp review here.  And feel free to drool over this...

Tri Tip Steak Sandwich and Seafood Salad

So many meals, so little time, only so much room in this stomach of mine.

Now one meal above all others takes the cake.  It takes whole whole damn table, linens, silverware and all!  I met Kevin Lee almost a decade ago when he was working at the Westin St. Francis in San Francisco at the Compass Rose, the coolest cafe of all.  They had a fab band that played, the Bob Dalpe band.  Very Sinatra.  Long story short, we founded a solid friendship over a love of food and Hawaii.  So Kevin does this amazing thing and takes us all over the city for pupus, drinks and dessert, one of which my new husband wanted to "bathe in."  That would be the butterscotch pot de creme.

The next day, he blows it out of the park by taking us to the restaurant his brother, Lawrence, manages.  Enter Mercury

Here's how it all started.  We're aimlessly walking through Chinatown, buying up a storm and I say to Kevin:

Me:  "What should we eat for dinner?  Prine rib?  Crab?  House?"
Kevin:  "Tough choice.  I'll tell my brother to pick up crab and we can eat at Mercury."

HEAVEN!

and not only did we eat, we feasted!

How it begins

Salt and Pepper Crab and Garlic Noodles.  Crustaceans eat your heart out.

Seriously the best crab I have ever had.  The best garlic noodles.  Best. Dinner.  Ever.  The company is what made the food even more delicious.

I was so sad to have left San Francisco, but if I didn't I'm afraid i would eat myself into a coma.

So off to Houston we go and just a few more pics of yumminess for the road.

Pappasito's Cantina is a must for Tex-Mex grub.  Giant portions.  Delicious.  Can't Complain.  Bonus:  Margarita the size of my head--$5.50.

$10.50.  No joke.  

As a parting shot, I give you exhibit 238132948239 showing the iPhone is made to take food pictures because DAMN, I'm not a great photographer but every picture I take with this gadget looks like Thomas Keller waved a magic wand over it.

Until next time, may your taste buds know only goodness, may your company always be great and may your waistline remain small.

It's Official! You can call me Mrs. Miller. Nicole Miller that is...

If fairy tales took place in Napa Valley and starred hapa couples, then I just lived mine.

Evil queen?  Check.  Frogs?  Check.  Prince Charming?  After much communications and understanding each other, check.  Princess?  Duh! CHECK!

  Complete with fairy godmothers (a.k.a my family who made everything possible), an intimate guest list (we knew everyone there) and a stunning setting (thank you, BRIX Restaurant, Garden and Winery), I married my Prince, and best friend on October 5, 2010.

Who doesn't love shoes?!

Pucker up and blow!

Mother knows best.

I know this lovely young woman who has a....tempestuous relationship with her mother.  The other day I was surprised to find this posted on her Facebook.

At age of 4: Mom knows everything! At 8: Mom knows a lot! At 12: Mom doesn’t really know everything. At 14: Mom doesn’t know anything. At 16: Mom doesn’t exist. At 18: She’s old fashioned. At 25: Maybe Mom does know about this! At 35: Before we decide, let’s ask Mom. At 45: I wonder... what Mom thinks about this? At 75: I wish I could ask Mom about this....

It's so "on it!"  There are days when I look at my mom in frustration and other days I look at her in awe.  She's strong, determined, stubborn, petulant, generous, childlike and demanding all in one small package.  This is the woman who chides if I'm relaxing to much, then in the same breath scolds me when I get sick from working too hard.  But there is one thing I never doubt, she loves me endlessly and would do anything to make sure I'm happy.  

You drive me nuts mom, but man, I love you. 

Get In My Belly!!!

Life is full of pleasures.  We are told that we are "fearfully and wonderfully made" (Ps. 139:14) and those wonders allow us to revel in so may amazing things.  Now don't get me wrong, I am moved by symphonies, awed at sunsets and love to indulge in massages, but none can compare to the joy of eating.  Every slurp, smack and drool speak to my most base interntion--satisfy myself.

I'm a born again foodie.  When you're a child I don't think you can really appreciate the complexity of taste and texture.  It's like taking a child to the Colosseum and expecting them to understand the magnitude of history.  As a kid I understood yummy and not yummy. Coke, YUMMY!  Maybe it's more like sugar and not sugar.

As a tween/teen, I gave in to society and wanted to be thing so I cut out sugar, fat, etc.  Mayo on your sandwich?  No, thank you, just vinegar.  Ugh.  What the hell was I thinking?!

My father was a chef.  My grandmother has a catering business.  My mother majored in Home Economics/Nutrition and used to cook 12 course meals for guests.  My godmother ran high end restaurants.  How could I NOT love food?!  (Well, I did love food but I loved my skinny jeans more. )

My best friend told me over dinner that her husband tried to give her advice on cravings.  He said that whenever she saw something delicious, tell herself "Nothing tastes as good as thin feels."  It worked for a while until she met the butter cake at CPK and that basically blew the mantra to smithereens.

So I'm going to say something I never thought I would say....thank goodness for my ex.  He resurrected my love for food and man it came back with a vengeance!  A twenty pound vengeance, mind you.

"Fat is flavor." 

An oh, was he right.  He was a chef, a budding sommelier and a glutton for everything--good and bad.  I learned the difference between European and stateside butter (ooooooooooooohhh European butter...), how mayonnaise could make everything better, how truffles could enhance the most simple of foods and even how delicious a fried egg could be.

I've since dropped the 20 pounds (and about 200 more when I left him) but kept the love of food.  Bring on the bread!  Extra dessert! Appetizer?  YES!!!  Funny thing, I'm skinnier now than when I was a food nazi. :P  God has a sense of humor, I'm telling you.

Even more than the food itself, I love the combination of good foods and good friends.   I've been blessed with both in my life, and to top it off, an amazing family and a man who takes such good care of my heart.

Breakfast?  I'm in.

Cafe Kaila

Dinner?  Let's go!

Sweet Home Cafe

Dessert?  Do you even have to ask???

Don't just bring home the bacon, baby!  Fry that sucker up and let's EAT!!!

Fresh Starts

It's Day 7 of my realizing that I'm leaving Hawaii.  Granted, I was fully aware of this event a few months ago but now that the day is fast approaching it seems amazingly...real.  This isn't leaving for that summer trip to Spain (which was super fun), nor is it the big leap to college (which was even more fun), this is the big time, as in I'm creating a new life in a new place in a new state!  Aloha Honolulu...

Howdy Houston!

Perhaps this is the reason I've jumped on three or four posting sites within the week (Yelp, Foodspotting, Blogspot).  I feel like there's so much to say and I just wanna say it!  Will people read it?  Not so sure about that, but I know that I'll be reading, reminiscing and writing so I can remember.