Mmm...food.

Damn, are we in the work week already? I must say that I'm pretty blessed to have the weekend off. It is slightly odd that someone in the service industry, like myself, has their weekends off. In lieu of that, I've been eating out a lot lately. And, I thought it'd be nice to share, and slightly brag, the list of places that I've been to over the past few weeks.

Trust me, I wouldn't list these places if they weren't noteworthy. So, if you ever feel so inclined to spend a pretty penny, I do highly recommend any of these.

I ate at Commis last night =] Definitely affordable for those with the college-burdened/Sallie Mae-owing wallet. Cute little spot tucked away on Piedmont Avenue in Oakland. I personally think we sat at the best table in the house...the two top at the front of the house overlooking the street. Naturally, the pretty lady gets to see the street *points to self*, while my other half got a good view of the open kitchen. Let's just say we both got to look at what we wanted to look at. We were to choose one dish from each course, total of three, and we got the wine pairings. All-in-all, the two-top probably runs around $180. Not bad considering how delightfully tasty everything was. I gotta say, I felt like I was Goldliocks...everything was juuuuuust right.

A couple weeks back I ate at the Bouchon Bistro in the Napa Valley, which is a product of French Laundry (haven't been there yet, and I'm not sure if I'm up for it), also in the Napa Valley. Oh! Oh! Fun Fact: The movie Ratatouille is loosely based off of Executive Chef Thomas Keller's kitchen at the French Laundry. I don't lie. Watch the behind the scenes, duh! Anyway, Bouchon was good. I wish that I could give a real critique on the food, but tastes are just as new to me as the next guy. What I will say, though, is that it was a perfect late lunch food for four people who had been drinking wine all day. My friends and I shared a few apps and two entrees. Since we pretty much shared everything, the tab didn't do too much damage.

I also did some wine tasting. I honestly didn't know that wine tasting in Napa was so cheap! At Domaine Chandon (Yountville, CA), it was only $25 per person which includes 4 half glasses. I didn't eat anything before I went here...so four half glasses was more than enough. Check out their commercial. Pretty clever if you ask me.

Side note: Why do companies that distribute alcohol make people enter their birthday's before they are granted full access to the website? I mean, seriously, that's just stupid for two reasons:

1. how the fuck are you going to know if the person who is trying to gain access is really over 21? You gonna make them hold up their ID to their webcam so you can check it yourself? Puhhhhlease. And...
2. not even porn sites ask for birthdays...not that I know anything about that. *Pause* Maybe. *Looks Away* Whatever. That's besides the point. What the hell are we trying to teach our youth nowadays? You can't look at stupid websites that display alcohol that children probably don't have access to, but you can have sex...or at least live vicariously through whoever is givin' or gettin' it on the porn. I'm just sayin'. Am I the only one who has issues with that?

Moving along...

V. Sattui Winery, Napa, CA. We went here after we went to Domaine Chandon. I don't think it was a good idea for any of us to have gone here because we were drinking on empty stomachs. This inevitably meant that Jenny got the rosiest cheeks ever...AKA Asian glow. I really hate that term, but it's the only real way to describe it. Walking into this place I seriously felt out of place. It was weird because it looked wayyyyyy more laid back than Chandon, but no one wanted to help us. We were barely even greeted. I really resent the fact that judgment is passed right away when a group of young minorities walk into a place that they're not typically found in. I mean, we all have the right to be there and have a good time like everybody else. You don't gotta be shady or act like you don't want my business. Only I'm allowed to be mean to Asian people. But that's because I am Asian and we're probably related. Just keeeeding. Anyway, each of us were able to taste 8 different wines for about $10 per person. Pretttttttty good. They have a bottle called, Madera. I recommend it. It has a little bit of brandy in it. When I took my first sniff at it I felt like I was slapped on the face, but the taste was really surprising sweeter than how it smelled. That's a weird word to look at, smelled.

Last but not least, the Boon Fly Cafe, Napa Valley, CA. Probably the best burger I've had in a long time. Our server wasn't really that experienced because he had to keep going back to ask his superior the questions that we were asking. I forgive him, I remember what it was like cocktailing and serving for the first time. Customers always seem to ask the most off the wall questions the first time you serve. Like, fuhhh, I don't know. So, I can understand why he was so jumpy. It was pretty expensive for a shared dinner and apps, $140 for a four top. Nonetheless, it was still tasty and I was accompanied by good people. Half of the enjoyment of a good dinner is to be there with good people. So, I consider myself lucky because I don't know anyone who isn't worth having sit across from me as we eat. Check out the virtual tour, though. Go in all directions: up, down, right, left. Kinda makes me feel like I'm in outter space.


Well, that's all folks. I don't know if I'm eating out next week...or if I plan to. But there's something that I do plan on attending that has some food there...
Ninja will be doing a cooking demo and providing samples. It's gonna be dope...and it would be really nice to see some familiar faces. I don't know folks from the hood. I'm afraid of the hood. Hit me up. I'd love for you to join me.


All photos taken from the respective venue.