working life.

it's been two weeks working full time at yelp. I've actually really enjoyed it. lot's of new friends and a really relaxed working environment. a pretty exciting change. one that I desperately needed. not that I am this pathetic, friendless person, but I can't wait to hang out with co-workers outside of work.

and my yelpitory? dallas, tx! cool stuff. but this means living on central time in the pacific time zone. not to mention, trying getting to work at 7:00-7:30am. as a result, I officially turned to coffee. and they serve both peet's and philz! because I want to be a pretentious coffee drinker, I've been going at it black. and I've actually grown to like it. (saved calories too.) my favorite? philz wonderbar. so delicious as is.

also found out that the ceo of yelp, jeremy, is vegan. interesting tid-bit. his dog, darwin, hangs out at work on the 10th floor (the top floor of our building) and feeding him is pretty fun. I forgot the breed.

on the catch up, some things I've done:

charlene came home for spring break, which meant a break from "diet." not a good thing! extreme cheating included creamy chicken marsala, junior's devil's food cheesecake flown from new york, my own chocolate cheesecake, homemade french fries, fudge brownies, homemade classic yellow cake with chocolate butter-cream, and birthday dinner (veal, lamb, filet, and both cheesecake and apple spice cake to share for dessert) -- basically no holds bard.

 

 

 

 

 

 

on another note, turning 23 next week marks the end of my 65 day "diet." I know I won't reach my goal, but we shall see how far I get! losing weight is tough. but a new lifestyle of 80/20 diet and attempted daily workouts is what it takes.

blogging about food always stimulates my appetite. I want these right now. dipped in red robin's poppy seed honey mustard. yummm...

winesday on sunday.

hassle with posting pics on blogspot, hence the unfortunate delay.

 

awesome trip to go "barrel tasting" in sonoma. tasting the wine before it finishes aging. they really like you to taste the barrel before heading inside and tasting the finished product. it was rainy, but we managed to stay dry. stopped at la boulange for coffee and food for the road (croissants, sandwiches, hotdogs in puff pastry, and macarons). yanik offered to be the dd, which was really nice of him! definitely owe him one there. they special non-alcoholic sparkling fruit drinks for him which were actually very delicious, and at times better than the wine.

shazadi, brandon, yanik, elita, ferris, and myself. wineries included hanna, balletto (my favorite), redcar, dutton, and russian river vinyards. the pinot and syrah were at the top of my list. also enjoyed the chardonnay.

this one place looks like costco!

 

rock salt.

 

redcar had the coolest wine tasting room. very comfortable.

 

brandon was quite the expert since his family owns a vineyard.

this pig happens to be caught in the act. much more visible once you click it...

food and wine. delicious. and these hot dogs were a great surprise. condiments included. had two. I didn't touch the roast of port loin and whole grain mustard. some other cheap places didn't even have food (i.e. dutton!) but others had nice bread and cheese (e.g. redcar with a 1/4 wheel of parmesean served with sourdough).

 brandon's old high school hangout. mom's pies. a quick stop before heading home.

pie for the road! a little tart, so I ate it with nutella I got from la boulange. good combo. ferris captured me in my natural  state. life.

next time: napa!

fries.

french fries have been on my mind for some time. I have been primarily thinking of the fries from central market in austin, tx. similar to the ones at the now closed blakes on telegraph. I watched food network all weekend for "comfort food" weekend. anne burrell made fish and chips -- both from scratch. even sandra lee made french fries from scratch, and she is one to just open a bad and call it semi-homemade. so, I decided to make my own from scratch. we had potatoes, we had oil, and we had a food thermometer. let me say that they came out perfectly! I only made a small batch (2 small russet potatoes) since they're not too healthy to consume on a diet, but I'll make more next time and take some pics. I couldn't get over how good they tasted, as they could easily rival a real restaurant's. no joke. followed the same technique (soak in water, dry completely, fry twice) and they were very crispy on the outside and light and pillowy on the inside. just a little salt, pepper, and pinch of both garlic and cayenne. from potato to fry, it took less than an hour. worth a try for any french fry enthusiast. I definitely feel less guilty consuming these than I do ordering them out. craving them now...and its only 10am. yum.