FoodFash

Adventure Begins in the Kitchen

@GrubRestaurant LA

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Over the years, more and more of my friends have headed West, which makes for both a fun and busy LA vacation.  I was too jet lagged for Baily‘s 90s themed birthday party on Saturday (huge bummer!), but was thrilled to find out that we’d be able to meet for an extended, chat-filled lunch before hopping on the redeye flight to Tampa.

We took the advice of a friend and checked out Grub.  As soon as we walked in, we could tell it was a place you could sit and chat for hours.  The server immediately brought over a lovely little basket filled with pretzels, veggies, and dip, which was both good and bad.  Good because it was so darn cute and satisfied that raging hunger that inevitably hits me the second I step inside a restaurant.  Bad because it fulfilled the raging hunger and allowed Baily and I to do a crazy amount of catching up before even beginning to browse the menu.  Regardless, our waiter was patient with us and I was thankful for that.

Everything on the menu appealed to me in some fashion, but the bold red letters stating “Voted Best Tuna Melt in LA!” lured me in.  The tuna melt was as good as mine and Baily went with the crab cake salad.  The tuna melt had a real tuna patty (no canned stuff here) and tasted like a super hearty, extra comforting grilled cheese sandwich.  The pesto added that touch of herby-ness that I’m always a fan of.  And it was large enough to take home leftovers that were equally as good two-ish hours later.

So, yum food and welcoming atmosphere were totally A+ in my book.  But what ended up being my favorite part of the Grub experience was how social the restaurant was before and after our visit.  We tweeted up a storm and they were genuinely interested in our visit and what we thought of our meals.  It was so smart on their part, so twenty twelve.  I dug it.

Til next time Grub folks!

Hours In Portland

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As soon as I dropped off my luggage at the airport hotel, I changed out of business attire and into the adult version of recess clothes.  There was no level of exhaustion that was going to prevent me from spending a few hours in a town that topped my list of musts.

I have always heard such great things about Portland, but the city ended up being much more than I had expected.  There were restaurants, shops, and most importantly, pedestrians, on every corner of downtown.  I found a quick comfort within the bustling streets.

I also found quick comfort within this red coat!

I spent a couple hours adventuring before landing at Clyde Common, the first restaurant that grabbed my attention during a mini Google sesh before leaving the hotel.

I started with the golden beat soup, which was one of the more uniquely delicious dishes I’ve ever had.  I know there is absolutely no way I can recreate this at home, but I’m sure going to try.  Golden beats, apple cider vinegar, Greek yogurt, salt and pepper?  I could be way off, but that’s the starting point I came up with as I ate every last bite.

Next up was broccoli rabe with guanciale, lemon vinaigrette, pistachio, and fried egg.  Something about this dish was a little too bitter for me, but the egg was so cool I didn’t mind.  When I read fried egg I anticipated an ordinary breakfast egg, not the breaded and fried soft boiled egg that arrived on the plate.

And lastly, the cavatelli with root vegetables, crème fraîche, nutmeg, and celeriac espuma.  If this had been the only dish I ordered, I would have eaten it in its entirety.  The flavors were wonderful, but it was entirely too dense for my already full belly.

Even though I had a completely enjoyable evening, four hours in Portland was a total tease.  I would love to come back this year, especially for a mom/daughter trip when the weather warms up a bit.

Have you taken any family vacations recently?

Squares At Square One

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For weeks, I’ve been excited about the Tampa Food Truck Rally.  And as we pulled into the Hyde Park Village parking garage, it was apparent that the rest of Tampa was excited as well.  The pictures don’t quite do it justice, but it was CROWDED!

Like… Really crowded.  And the combo of crowd and heat and vendors running out of food and our extreme hunger, well, it wasn’t good.  We headed out, but I must point out that our trip wasn’t a waste.  Val, Amber, and I were all a tad bummed that we didn’t get to chow down, but we were more excited to see such a turn out – Tampanians are eager for cultural opportunity!

We consolidated cars and decided on Square One for lunch.  Might as well cater to our fried cravings, right?

I ordered the portobello burger that was topped with lettuce, avocados, and sundried tomato mayo.  It was one of the more perfect shroom burgers I’ve had.  I’ll definitely keep Square One in mind when looking for a lunch place with a meaty crowd.

Val had the French onion soup, which looked super tasty as well.

And then we got our square on at Square One.  Amber pulled out her mustache app while we were waiting for our food to arrive and this is what happened…

Why is the mustache thing so overdone but still so funny??