A Crazy Great Meal in NYC : Momofuku Ssam

February 28, 2020November 29, 2016

Today, I am in a New York state of mind – Our son is leaving for NY on Thursday, my friend Leisa is joining her mom, sister and niece for a girls trip on the 4th, my friend Meg is leaving Friday and Craig and I are leaving on Dec 11th. New York is so fabulous this time of year that many special trips are planned for the Big Apple in December! While in New York City a trip to Momofuku Ssam will impress and delight you.

Oh Momofuku!

Even if you don’t know what it means, Momofuku is delicious in any language. The Momofuku restaurant group was created by David Chang in 2004 with its first restaurant, Momofuku Noodle Bar. As a multiple James Beard award winner, Chef Chang and his team have gained world-wide recognition for their innovative take on cuisine, while supporting local, sustainable and responsible farmers and food purveyors.

Most foodies will tell you they have heard of Momofuku, although they may not “have had a chance to go”. But it will be on their list and Momofuku Ssam should be on yours too! Actually ALL of his restaurants should be on your list!

A Baseball Adventure: An Insider’s Tour of Dodger Stadium

November 21, 2016

On a rare rainy Sunday in Los Angeles, Craig and I took an insider’s tour of Dodger Stadium. It was an exciting event organized by the UCLA Bruin Alumni and the timing was perfect. We were all licking our wounds from Saturday’s butt-kicking by USC.

It is never a happy day when my Bruins lose a football game to our cross town rivals, but the Trojans certainly and expectedly, outplayed our team. That’s enough of football, so let us switch over to America’s favorite sport, baseball.

Recently, I have written about the Dodgers and our meeting with our beloved Vin Scully, but today we were privileged to receive a fabulous behind the scenes tour of Dodger Stadium. The tour guides enthusiastically showed us all over the stadium, the dugout, the field, the bull pen, the Clubhouse (no photos please) the weight room, the media room, Vin Scully’s Press Box, a luxury suite and we finished by eating a Dodger Dog from the Top Deck. Simply amazing. Two hours of Dodger statistics, trophies and memorabilia was most certainly a little bit of heaven on earth for Craig and I.

Here is what we saw on our tour of Dodger Stadium ~

A Magical Meal on the Beach by Outstanding in the Field

November 15, 2016

Outstanding in the Field ~

One year ago, almost to the day, we attended our first Outstanding in the Field community dinner. Outstanding in the Field is a mobile culinary feast that travels the US and the globe to bring together local farmers, culinary artisans and food lovers to share an outdoor, farm to table meal. At each location, at these “restaurants without walls”, Outstanding in the Field chooses a local chef to manage the meal preparation to spotlight the local farmers, fishermen, ranchers and vintners. This group effort promotes the love of great food and celebrates ingredients that are chemical free and lovingly prepared.

Last year, we sat on a farm in Hollywood, CA (yes it does exist) with 150 other engaging, happy foodies, drinking wine by the light of mason jar candles, while eating a farm to table meal fit for a queen.

Seattle Art Museum – The Spectacular Yves Saint Laurent Exhibit

November 4, 2016

Seattle Art Museum ~

Are you planning a trip to Seattle in the next few months? Don’t miss this extraordinary exhibit at the Seattle Art Museum Yves Saint Laurent – The Perfection of Style.

If my dear friend Shari, who is a Seattlite and a Seattle Art Museum volunteer hadn’t told me, I would have missed it! So now it is my turn to share with you this AMAZING fashion adventure.

The exhibition only runs from October – January 8, 2017. But just in case you live near by or want to plan a trip to my favorite city in the Pacific Northwest – Here are the details ~

Happy Halloween! ~ Elaborate Old Cemeteries in New Orleans

October 31, 2016

Cemeteries in New Orleans are big tourist spots.

Yes, they really are! On our small group tour of the city, we stopped at St Louis Cemetery #3. It was a scorching hot day, with a vibrant blue sky and impressionist clouds. If the sky hadn’t been so spectacular, I don’t know that I would have taken so many photos.

Since today is Halloween and New Orleans celebrates this holiday to the extreme, it seemed fitting to share these photos with you. Many of the enormous stone-carved family tombs cost tens of thousands of dollars to create and there were some (I did not photograph, unfortunately) that were even over $100,000.

My Top 13 Favorite Things to do in New Orleans

March 24, 2020October 27, 2016

For those of you who are familiar with New Orleans please understand that this is our first time and we have a lot to learn about this very unique city. We tried our best to dabble here and there to get a flavor for what the city can offer.

Go easy on me about the Big Easy! Like any big city you can have a different experience every time you go. I feel like we made a substantial first pass at New Orleans and absolutely need to go back, maybe in the spring time.

I really want to encourage all of you to go and see it for yourself! It is truly one of the most remarkable places in the U.S. that I have ever visited and shame on me for not going sooner!

Visit New Orleans to Eat, Drink and Be Merry!

A visit to New Orleans has been on our destination “to do” list for quite a while and we had actually planned a trip for this time last year, but had to change our plans.

We wanted to go on this vacation with our longtime college friends, Jon and Angela because not one of us had ever been!

Beautiful Doors & More in the New Orleans Garden District

October 24, 2016

Charming porch vignettes, cast iron scrollwork, colorful painted doors and magnificent homes line the neighborhood streets in the New Orleans Garden District.

Luckily we missed the rain, the humidity and bugs to enjoy nearly perfect weather on our first trip to New Orleans. The city is so amazing and we found that the most difficult part of visiting is finding the time to see it all! (Sorry it is impossible) We just loved it though, so stay tuned for many more details in the days/weeks to come.

Although through the majority of the trip the temperature was pleasant, on the first day we arrived, the sun was scorching with intense burn-your-shoulders kind of heat. We toughed it out while touring the city but we were so pleased at the relief we received at sunset. Fortunately, for the rest of our wonderful four-day trip, the weather fully cooperated!

7 Extraordinarily Brilliant Packing Tips for Travel this Fall

October 17, 2016

Don’t you always want to hear about a few handy packing tips? I sure do. I don’t know if these ideas are extraordinarily brilliant, but it sure is a great title!

We have several Fall trips coming up and I have started to plan what I will take with me and thought I would share a few helpful ideas. Packing for a summer trip has entirely different requirements, so for today this is just about the Fall.

An “Onolicious” Kauai Culinary Adventure: Eating House 1849

October 14, 2016

‘Ono – The word ‘ono with the okina means delicious in the Hawaiian language.

Onolicious – This slang word is a variation of ‘ono combined with the word delicious.

Eating House 1849

From the culinary pioneer of Hawaiian Fusion, James Beard Award winning chef Roy Yamaguchi, a new concept restaurant called Eating House 1849, was opened just two miles down the road from our hotel in Kauai!

It opened in 2015 and is located in Koloa at the Kukuiula Shopping Center on the south shore of Kauai in Poipu Beach. Eating House 1849 pays homage and was named after a restaurant that was in business in the mid 1800’s. Roy pays tribute to Peter Fernandez, a Portuguese immigrant and an early restaurant pioneer and his style of cooking to create this brand new (and delicious) concept.

We truly had no idea what to expect and the truth is that we tried to get a reservation at Roy’s where we have had many delicious dinners in the Hawaiian islands and in Orange County. After checking the Roy’s website, we learned that the restaurant had closed on Kauai and something else took its place. Totally unfamiliar with this restaurant, we charged ahead and made a reservation. We knew that if Roy was executing this menu, it had to be outstanding.

Emphasizing this Hawaiian culinary history and focusing on local farmers, foragers, ranchers and fisherman, Eating House 1849 performed like it had been there for years.

Desert Trip: An Epic Music Festival for All Generations

March 24, 2020October 11, 2016

“Close your eyes and I’ll kiss you, tomorrow I’ll miss you.” Paul McCartney

It has been a challenge for me to collect all of my thoughts and emotions that get tangled together over our incredible experience at Desert Trip. Nostalgic emotions emerged that bring back memories of high school, no responsibilities and the joys of being a teenager, sprinkled with rock and roll.

Since our kids were little Craig would say, “Who is the greatest band in the world?” The correct answer was always: “The Rolling Stones”. Music and concerts have always been a huge part of our lives, so when we learned the news that Desert Trip was created and coming soon, we knew that the experience of seeing these iconic classic rock bands from our youth was something we needed to share with our grown children.