The Golden State.

Eric's birthday was a few weeks ago and we celebrated at one of his favorite eateries: The Golden State.

Located on Fairfax, between Melrose and Beverly, you could totally walk right past the place without ever knowing it exists. Much like my social life in high school.

The inside of the restaurant is small. There are maybe 10 tables in the whole place, and some of them are only two-seaters. 

We walked up to the counter and briefly looked over the menu. There aren't too many options, but I had looked online, so my chins were already quivering with excitement at the thought of a good burger. 

The guy working the counter was friendly and welcoming. He didn't rush us as I took my time deciding on a beer. I got the Victory Swing, btw. Great summer drink.

Eric and I both ordered The Burger. With a description like "Harris Ranch beef, Fiscalini Farms cheddar, glazed applewood smoked bacon, arugula, aioli, ketchup" it seemed like the perfect choice.

I'm just going to cut straight to the chase here:  This was the best burger I've ever had IN.MY.LIFE.

The meat was tender and juicy and flavorful. I didn't detect any spices in the ground beef, which meant it naturally tasted fucking delicious, which is totally crazy because I'm not a fan of "meat flavor" and guess what I totally loved it.

The bacon was thick and cooked perfectly. It wasn't soggy or charred.

The combination of the aioli and ketchup added just the right amount of savor and sauciness that it enhanced, not overpowered, the burger itself.

Also, I'm pretty sure the bun was a brioche. A freshly baked, almost-sweet, carby piece of brioche heaven.

The whole thing just tasted clean and naturally delicious. Not heavy or pumped full of flavorings.

Not much talking took place once our food was delivered.

If you're in the area, try to stop in. Let me know what you think. Seriously. Those burgers are the shiznit.

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The Red Door Restaurant and Wine Bar.

On my last visit to San Diego, Morgan arranged a dinner for a group of BlogHer attendees. Somehow, I lucked out and made it into the group.


We took a couple of cabs from the downtown Marriot and about ten minutes later we arrived at The Red Door Restaurant and Wine Bar. When the first half of our 11-person reservation arrived, the waitstaff was a little confused. When the second half of our reservation arrived, the waitstaff was a little frantic. From what I could tell, it seemed like maybe someone forgot to make a note in the RSVP book about our group.

Fortunately, the manager came straight out and got to work. She apologized to every one of us and offered us complimentary drinks. Thankfully, the wait wasn't very long and we ended up getting the whole bar-room area to ourselves.

The exterior, and even interior, of Red Door looks like a house. It's broken up into three separate rooms- the first is the bar/ dining and the other two are just dining. The overall decor is very cozy, lots of natural lighting, and has a feel like you're sitting in someone's living room. It's on the small side- I would say maybe 10 or 12 tables max. This would be a great place for a quaint, intimate meal and also possibly if you're looking for a small venue to rent out for a cocktail party (or something like that).

Because our reservation was a prearranged event to showcase Red Door's new happy hour menu, our food consisted of appetizers and cocktails. -Which totally worked for me.

Appetizer #1: Red Door Sliders

"char grilled meyer natural ground beef on ciabatta buns, american cheese
lettuce, tomato, carmelized onions, house burger sauce with shoestring fries - $8"

This burger was good, but I think it may have been too toasty for me. Most of the buns were blackened and I'm not really a fan of char-grilled flavor, in general. Keep in mind, this all comes down to personal taste. I'm sure this burger would be perfect for many people, but I don't think I'm really a "fancy burger" kind of person.


Appetizer #2: Steak Skewers

teriyaki glazed charolais ny steak - $5

Again, these weren't really my thing. They seemed a little... overcooked, in my opinion. The teriyaki glaze was flavorful and sweet, but I just wasn't a big fan of how the steak was cooked. Too tough and chewy.


Appetizer #3: BBQ Pulled Pork Quesadilla

"mozzarella, parmesean and romano cheeses housemade bbq sauce
and onion straws - $5"

Now this.... THIS is where the money's at. These quesadillas were by far my favorite item that night, and to this day I cannot stop thinking about them. The craziest part is, I don't really eat pork very often (unless you count my bacon addiction) and I can't believe I almost passed on this appetizer all together.

The cheese combination creates this great, salty-yet-mellow flavor. The pulled pork is moist and not overpowering. They use corn tortillas, which is less commonly seen than its cousin, the flour tortilla. -But definitely much better, in this case. And it's fried perfectly so the edges are crisp, while the center still has a bready texture. Finally, the bbq sauce is sweet and tangy- a great topper for this delicious plate. I would strongly recommend ordering the BBQ Pulled Pork Quesadilla if you try this place out.

Appetizer #4: Shrimp Creole

"mexican white shrimp sautéed with onion, celery, green bell pepper, garlic.
cajun spices, white wine & cream served over crispy polenta - $8"

I don't have too much to say about these guys because I'm pretty weak when it comes to spicy food. I only had one bite, just to get a feel for what I was missing out on. Based on my one taste, I can tell you the shrimp was perfectly cooked, not gummy at all. The shrimp itself tasted great... but those creole spices were a bit too spicy for my fragile palate. But for people who like spicy food, I would recommend these.


The Red Door Restaurant and Wine Bar is located at 741 West Washington St., San Diego.

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Post Rapture Recap.

I'm not really sure how this whole "rapture" thing works, but I know I'm still working a 9-5 and paying bills and bitching about how my jeans are too tight. So I'm assuming it never happened. Unless it actually did happen and I'm in an alternate universe that mimics life on earth, which is just crazytalk so I'm going to pretend I never even mentioned that. But I WILL assume that if I lost any readers over the weekend it was because their asses got raptured. Or ruptured.

Since everyone was all up in arms about the end of the world, I decided to jump on the bandwagon and plan for the end. And by "plan for the end", I really mean "pamper myself and eat a ton of shit".

Saturday morning Boyfriend and I splurged our faces off by going in for a massage. Now, before you say it, I know what you're thinking. Yes, I AM poor and NO I can't afford to live this lavish lifestyle. BUT. My massage was actually paid for by my good friend Kim- it was her gift to me for being in her wedding. And Boyfriend's massage was a birthday gift from me because his birthday was just last week. Anypoor. We went to The Massage Place, which neither of us had ever been to before. If you've never been and you've always wondered what's like, it's totally worth it. The massages are muuuuch more affordable than they would be at a spa. They're inexpensive because they don't splurge on any of that spa-like environment shit. Not in the slightest.

They have several locations, but the one we went to was basically a counter with a receptionist and five separate massage rooms. The room I had was furnished with a heated massage bed with sheets and a blanket, a little shelf-bookcase thing where you can put your clothes and purse, and a boombox playing meditation music. My massuese was a hippy from New Jersey who was shoeless and used coconut oil that left me smelling like empanadas. I wanted to eat my own arm off by the time I was done, it seriously did smell like someone was baking pies. She was very sweet and chilled out when I squeeked "umm... a little easier please...?" My massage lasted exactly one hour from the time she started. It was very relaxing and I could tell when I met up with Boyfriend in the lobby that he was very relaxed as well because he looked like he was crazy drunk.

After our massages, we headed out for a picnic at Malibu Winery. I'd been here once before for my friend Danielle's graduation. I knew it was a BEAUTIFUL location and very popular. And if it's good enough for the rich hipsters of Calabasas and Malibu, well, it's good enough for me.

No children allowed at this rapture party.


They have two of those adobe huts where they offer wine tastings. The one we got consisted of Sparkling wine, Chardonnay, Rose, Merlot, and a specialty wine they created for The Tour of California bike race. Now, I'm NO wine connoisseur. In fact I usually think wine tastes like heartburn. But I decided if I'm about to be raptured, this is probably a good time to check off "drink wine" from my bucket list.


Everyone was out doing pre-rapture celebrations.


With our food from Blue Table, and a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc, lunch was PERFECT. I had the Caprese panini and Boyfriend had the Italian sandwich. Both delicious, but I think I'll get the Italian next time. We also got chips and a sausage and asparagus side dish. All totally worth it.


Yours truly and Boyfriend. I had to throw this one in.


Coincidentally, I ran into my friend Kristen, whom I haven't seen in years. I say coincidentally because she is the BEST at pimping out my blog. Just the day before this picnic, her Facebook status was a statement about how everyone should "Like" my blog before the rapture comes.


My view once I realized I'd had enough to drink and was ready for a nap.

Boyfriend and I headed back home for a much needed wine-coma.

That night, we met up with my BFF, along with Boyfriend's brother and one of his friends for birthday-week drinks. With this being the rapture and everything, I decided to go out with a bang.

Strongbow, potato skins, and steak salad. Salad because I'm on a diet, you see.

So, that was my rapture weekend. Did you do anything end-of-the-worldy?

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Alright, I'm Back to Talking About Food. Also Known as: No More Butt Talk.

Before we get to the real deal Holyfield...

Remember that social networking/ blogging site I told you about, Studio30Plus?? They asked me to be a guest writer for their blog magazine. (Looks like all those colonoscopies are finally paying off, amirite??) Check it out here.

As I was saying...

I'm sure I've bragged mentioned it before, but I spent a short time living in London a few years back. It was through the Bunac program and although it was hard being away from all my friends and family, it was a GREAT experience. I met some really cool people that I'm still friends with today (and one not so cool person who won't lose my number- Michael, I'm talking to you) and we usually meet up a few times a year.

Since we all became spoiled when it comes to tea (Thank you Savoy and Ritz Carlton), we always meet up for an Afternoon Tea. This time we tried a tea room we've never been to before: Royal-T in Culver City.

This place has an industrial feel to it- raised ceilings, exposed ductwork, cement flooring. The front section is more like an art studio-slash-gift shop. This area alone gives Royal-T some major street cred.

The view when you first walk in.

In the art studio area...


A section devoted to everything Barbie. :::Droooooool:::


Mini chandeliers.


My FAVORITE item in the shop: The Little Wanderer by Yoshitomo Nara. It has wheels underneath and when you drag it backwards, it winds up and wobbles across the floor. :::Mega drooooools:::

Some art pieces on the way to the dining area.

The crowning glory at Royal-T???

All the waitresses are super Asian (and by "super Asian", I mean beautiful and courteous and have tiny voices). Their uniforms look like Alice in Wonderland had a baby with Flo from Mel's Diner and that baby decided to move into Anime land. These girls are seriously cute and immediately I pretended I was super Asian just like them.

Royal-T offer about 10-12 teas to choose from. I ordered their namesake, the Royal Tea, which was basically a sweetened black tea steeped in milk.

I've never been a plain tea/ plain coffee drinker, so I had a feeling I was going to like this little diddy. Well let me tell you, my tea was fucking delightful. I ended up drinking nearly the whole pot by the end of my visit. Now, if you're not one for cream and sugar and bells and whistles, this may not be the right one for you. But if you're like me and try to make everything taste like candy, this drink is the perfect choice.

The High Tea (This is totally a misnomer based on some quick internet research I conducted. It should definitely be called the Afternoon Tea.) consisted of four finger sandwiches, a slider, and some mini desserts. I substituted an extra egg salad and curry chicken salad sandwiches instead of the lox and seared tuna because those raw fishes make me nervous. I wasn't crazy about the curry chicken mostly because I didn't know ahead of time it was going to be a CURRY chicken salad (the waitress only called it "chicken salad"). And the egg salad wasn't much better- it had almost no flavor at all. BUT! The kobe slider was SO good, it almost completely made up for the duds in the sandwich department.

The portions seemed tiny. Surprisingly though, they got the job done and I didn't even eat all of my meal.

One of the desserts was this brown spongey thing. I had a few bites and really liked it. My mouth couldn't put it's finger on where I knew the flavor from, but I still knew that I liked it. My friend Tricia said it was a Green Tea Flan. Hm. Interesting. Not something I would have ordered on my own, but it was good nonetheless.

(I have lazy eyeballs. I already know.)

On our way out, we spotted an exhibit based on Warhol photos.



Guests were encouraged to go into the photobooth, attach one of their photos from their photobooth strip to an index card, and clip onto a prehung string for all future patrons to see. Well, since the camera loves me (naturally), we were all over that shit.

Ta-da!

Also important to note: Royal-T is available as a rental space. (Click here and watch the video to see what this place is really about.). If anyone plans on throwing a party here, I'm totally available.

Overall, a great experience at Royal-T, but mostly because of the art scene and novelty of coolness. I would give this place 3.5 out of 5 chins.

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Aye Dios Mio

These last few days have been a real doozie. Yesterday Keef and I got in a fight. Today, my sister and I got in a fight. Now I'm watching Intervention because I need some lolz (this is my fav Intervention vid). This crazy broad weighs only 92 LB's and she's talking about how disgusting and fat she is. And she's traumatized because someone called her a moron. Ok, I'm being insensitive, I realize this. I apologize to any of my new friends who may have an anorexia or bulemia. I'm not actually this dumb when it comes to les disorders d'eating. But seriously, I just really want some ice cream.

What's happened to me- I've totally lost track of my foodness. Let's get down to brass tactics: My food intake has been total shit lately. Well, I mean, shittier than usual. Thankfully, Keefy made me a big, fat, greaseball of a burger with oven chips and they were just what the doctor ordered. And by doctor, I mean belly. Sometimes I call my belly Doctor.


I know what you're thinking. YES, we're having burgers again. That's what life is like being married to a burgerholic. Had this been 2 years ago, I would have screamed and cried and taken 20 Nytols, but today the Doctor has to come to accept this unhealthy way of living. But to my credability, the burgers were served on Kaiser rolls and only had Lawry's seasoning salt, so they were like totally healthy burgers. And the oven chips were just a generic store brand because Keith is boycotting Ore-Ida. He thinks they suck. In my opinion, they all taste the same. These were ok, just needed more salt. Which reminds me, did anyone else see on MSN that the FDA is thinking of regulating salt? Salt. Salt. Ok, we're talking about SALT, right...? Seriously, are there people out there who need their salt regulated??? This news is blowing.my.mind right now...

Anyway, that's it for tonight, folks. Despite the hilarious comedic roll that I'm on, it's time for bed. And if I don't get enough sleep, people will fear the wrath and I will look like death.

Paaaaayce.

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Blue Table

I've totally redeemed myself!!! Not only is today's entry chock full of pix, I have not one, but two SpEcIaL GuEsTs!!! First, introductions...


Everyone, this is cZimm. We work together. And eat together.


And this is Guy. We also work together. And eat together.

Today's lunch was at Blue Table thanks to cZimm's suggestion. And what a suggestion it was. This was just the all-natural, detox-from-deep-fryness my pores were begging for. BT has two locations, one in Agoura and one in Calabasas (which happens to be right next to a certain famous family's clothing store). It's a small, shabby chic kind of place with some wooden tables inside and bistro tables outside. They also sell cutesy kitchen items like teas, candies, and jams.

I ordered the Roasted Turkey Breast Sandwich which consisted of turkey, brie, arugula, roasted red peppers, and sun-dried tomato aioli all on ciabatta bread. OMG, this sandwich was SO good. I was pleasantly surprised when it showed up at my table and wasn't a big solid slab of turkey breast. I hate that. If I wanted a big fat chuck of turkey, I would have bought myself a Butterball. Instead, this was nice, thin slices of turkey, gooey bites of brie and just the right amount of aioli to soften up the ciabatta. I didn't really touch my salad because that's not how I roll. But if I had, I'm sure it would have been nice. I think my meal and strawberry lemonade came out to somewhere around $11.


cZimm's description of her sandwich:
" I got the Grilled Chicken Breast Sandwich with arugula, red peppers, and garlic aioli. It was delish! It was accompanied by a small salad. I think I ate a few leaves of my salad, but was much more interested in inhaling my sandwich. I had a blood orange sparkling soda, which the guy at the counter pointed out, "Oh, nice pairing." So I was excited to take a bite of my yummy sandwich and wash it down with my nicely-paired soda. I definitely would order this again, but I want to sample the rest of the sandwiches there first. Great place and good fun with friends!"

Guy ordered the Steak Sandwich, consisting of steak, sauteed mushrooms, and chimichurri sauce on a baguette. This is what Guy has to say about it:
"At first, I thought it was too small. But it actually filled me up. The steak was better than most and the chimichurri was awesome."

Overall, Blue Table was a smash hit and gets a whopping 5 out of 5 chins! Good work, BT. I forgot to mention, it's located right next to the Canyon Club so it's totally convenient for some totally cliche* entertainment .

And if you're looking for the perfect gift for your Italian friends, look no further...

*I love them with all my heart.

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Okay new friends, I'm gonna give it you straight: We had McDonald's for dinner. I know, I know, I can already hear you saying "We're still in week one and you're already having McDonald's??" This happened because A) Keith was picking up dinner on his way home, B) I was starving and desperate, and C) I don't get paid till Friday. To make up for this all American snoozefest, I will share all of my foods from today with you. Well, all except my breakfast. It was too early for cameras and thinking.

I worked from home today so I had the impossible task of looking for something to eat in my own kitchen. ...wtf? This is like getting blood from a stone.

My depressing lunch consisted of- wait for it.... a baked potato. -That I didn't even cook long enough so it was slightly crunchy. And despite the pounds of cheese/ butter/ salt/ pepper I dumped on top, it tasted like shaz. My suicidal potato was the worst meal ever and ruined my life.

I ended up throwing half of it away (The potato half, that is. Obviously the cheese was still totally edible.) and a couple hours later treated myself to my latest midday obsession: Butter pecan ice cream. Mmmm, I've had this treat almost every day for the past 2 weeks and the honeymoon is far from over with this dairy delight.

After all these sad foods, I was desperate for a dinner I could totally pig out on. Keith ended up bringing home Mcdizzle and eventhough it wasn't really that great, I didn't complain. I couldn't complain because I was busy inhaling my quarter pounder value meal.

So that was it for my day. Less than riviting, I know. But I'm hoping to have some more interesting lunches coming up in the next few days. Hint: I will have my first lunch guest! Exciting, isn't it?!?! I know, I'm the only one who's excited. I don't care.

...Time for some other nonsense...

Has anyone seen this show called Minute to Win It? Keith and I just watched it for the first time and it was total shit. Why is it that they always cast the most annoying assclowns to be contestants on every game show these days? Maybe it was the quarter pounder talking, but Keith and I ended up cheering on the contestant to actually hurt herself instead of to complete the task. Keith even said, "I wish she would twist her ankle." The saving grace of tonight's episode was a challenge called Bobblehead where the contestant had to clock over 125 motions on a pedometer that's placed around her head. I don't even want to link you to the M2WI website because then I would be racked with guilt for leading you to such garbage. However, I will lead you to a youtube of somebody demonstrating it in the comforts of their own home.

You can thank me later for that one.

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i won't be hanging out with brent for a while.

Today I was so busy doing God knows what (my blog.), that I completely lost track of time and didn't eat lunch. Luckily, I had some Gardetto's in my desk. And with the exception of all those GD rye chips, it really wasn't that bad.

Needless to say, I was STARVING by the time I got home from work. Since neither Keith nor I was interested in playing the always-a-hoot "What do you want for dinner?" "I dunno, what do you want for dinner?", I made the executive decision to go with Brent's Deli. Brent's has two locations- Westlake Village and Northridge. The Westlaker is the nicer, newer version, but the Northridger has more character like you'd probably run into Jerry Stiller or Joan Rivers. That's right. I said it.

One thing you should know about Brent's: Their portions are huge. Like seriously wasteful kind of huge. Keith and I ordered a plain (that's how we roll) ham and cheese sandwich to split with a side of fruit and two orders of steak fries.

The sandwich was meh. It wasn't horrible, but I've had better there. And the fries looked a little like they'd spent too much time in the tanning bed. Also not the best. I'm eating the fruit right now and it's actually pretty good- fresh and sweet. Not soggy and onion-tainted like some fruit selections. (Eating fruit at 10:30pm... I'm practically begging for coeur brulee...)

However, there is another item that I usually get that is always a good deal: French toast with a side of turkey bacon. I think that meal is around $9 and always fills the spot. Also, I have two friends who love the cabbage soup. Maybe try one of those two options to get a real appreciation for this place.

The upside to Brent's is that they have large servings. The downside is that it's kind of on the pricey side for what they're serving- which seems to be on par for deli's en generale- and the food is pretty bland. In tonight's case, bland was what I happened to be looking for. Pricey was not. Our split sandwich and two orders of fries came out to $21. And I just about threw a fit when none of the three hosts/ hostesses would acknowledge my presence, despite me being 12 inches away from them. That kind of stuff irritates me. I worked as a hostess loooong enough to know it's not really that hard to smile and say "Hi, I'll be right with you".

Overall, not my best experience with Brent's. Tonight would get 2 out of 5 chins. Next time, I'll stick with the french toast and turkey bacon. Turkey, you see, because I'm on a diet.

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linner at the counter.

Keith and I took our sweet time dealing with the general public today and didn't actually leave the house until 5pm for linner. Linner is obviously late lunch/ early dinner. It was rainy and gloomy and felt like London weather and what meal better says "London" than... Burgers. Well, if you're married to Keith every weather says burgers.

We went down to The Counter in Studio City. We've been to this location once before and both Keith and I really liked it. There are lots of cool shops nearby and there's even a Baskin Robbins next door, for maximum chin supremacy.

I was less than thrilled with our waitress, but since I'm not here to namebash, I will just say that her first name started with a C and ended with a C. Take that, waitress.

I've been to The Counter around 5-6 times and I've been very happy with all of my choices. My initial exposure was to their namesake- The Counter burger- which consists of a beef patty, provolone, lettuce, tomato, fried onion strings, and sauteed mushrooms. Be forwarned: you will feel like you just ate a Mac truck and by the following morning your face will look like a pepperoni pizza- Meatlovers Style. But sometimes, you just have to accept the side effects and eat a really greasy burger. Today, I opted for lighter fare and ordered a turkey patty, swiss cheese, avocado, mixed greens, and a side of tzatziki sauce.

As you can see by the photo, I didn't really go too light on the "lighter fare" as we started out the meal with cheese fries. They could have been melted for a few more seconds, but overall, they were still a deep fried delight.

The bill came out to around $30 for two burgers (both with a $1 add-on topping), one order of cheese fries, and two sodas.

Great place to check out, especially if you're going to spend the night booze cruising. If you're planning on going to spin class, maybe take a rain check.

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