Posts Tagged ‘food’

Five years later

Posted in travel blog on 08/29/2010 05:24 am by Queenkv

MONTEREY BAY – Ten years ago, I visited Mark in Monterey Bay during his business trip. He was attending a conference at the Monterey Bay Conference Center.

This weekend, we’re celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary in Monterey Bay. This time, I’m writing lecture materials for my Russia trip inside the bar next to the conference center.

Both times, we managed to mix business and pleasure. I know I’m lucky to have a husband who understands my need to work on this special weekend. I know the importance of taking a break and enjoying the beautiful weather, wine and food in Monterey and beyond.

Celebrating our 5th Wedding Anniversary
Ten years later, Mark is still surprising me. He set up a lovely anniversary dinner at Peppoli. It’s a classy Italian restaurant off 17 Mile Drive. We ended the evening with a decadent flourless chocolate cake and espresso gelato.

Driving more than 1400 miles

Posted in BonVivant, cali_lovin, travel blog on 05/30/2010 08:24 am by Queenkv

When you get older, leave your ordinary life behind and hit the open road.

Highway 1D in Mexico
I’m trying to get used to the fact that I’m officially in my 30s: married, working, domesticated and totally reliable. We have a good life in Cow Town and we have stable jobs. After a few bumps in the road, I am happy to be working as a journalist.

So when May rolled around and we stared at the reality of turning a year older, we decided to celebrate with a couple of weekend getaways.

In fact, it took us two weekends and 1,000+ miles on my hubby’s Corolla to celebrate our birthdays in May.

DSCN4839.JPG
At the beginning of the month, we took advantage of my 3-day weekend (a prelude to my 10-day work week in the newsroom) and drove to Lake Tahoe. We left the chains behind and looked forward to hiking on the cliffs next to the lake, all under sunny skies.

Ordering seafood in Baja

Posted in cali_lovin, travel blog on 05/24/2010 08:30 am by Queenkv

COVINA,CA – Move over, Rachel Ray and forget about $40-a-day.

My hubby and I enjoyed fresh fish, beer and beautiful beach views in Ensenada for $20.
God bless the 12 pesos-1 dollar exchange rate.
Ceviches de Camaron from Los Primos #fb
As part of my birthday weekend, I wanted to make this picture a reality: watching the waves crash as I enjoyed fresh fish on a Mexican beach.

Weekend of Eating

Posted in cali_lovin on 01/23/2010 02:32 pm by Queenkv

(Side note: The job hunt, social media video projects and Google Reader distractions have pushed me behind on this blog and my little videos. I’m playing catch-up. I’m also grateful for everything that’s keeping me busy while I live a life of leisure in Cow Town)

Good times in Vacaville: We rang in the New Year at home with our friends. Our last meal of 2009: Beer-can chicken, salad, garlic bread, lasagna and plenty of sparkling wine & beer.

My Fierce Men for New Year's Eve. Wooby Tom Mark and Andrei #fb

When we hook up – that usually means plenty of good eating and drinking. Someone said we should spend the New Years weekend eating every three hours.

Mission Accomplished.

On the first day of 2010 – we had something to satisfy meat lovers, savory cravings and sweet teeth. I loved the scent of bacon grease and sourdough pancake batter taking over my kitchen. My Daisy enjoyed watching Mark and Andrei work off the cork on the bottle of Barefoot Brut Sparkling Wine. We had to have our mimosas with the first meal of the New Year.

First Day of 2010 from Kris Vera-Phillips on Vimeo.

Weekend of Bacon

Posted in BonVivant, cali_lovin on 01/17/2010 02:03 pm by Queenkv

This weekend, Susan introduced me to Guanciale.
Love at first whiff.

2 Pounds of Bacon and Guincla. Getting ready for pasta goodnesss
In San Francisco, we fried up 2 pounds of porky goodness last night. The fatty smoke warmed up the kitchen and left our clothes smelling yummy.

Pasta, Mushroom and Wine
After saving all the juicy guanciale and bacon fat, Susan showed me how she did Pasta all Carbonara: raw eggs, Parmesan cheese, fried bacon bits and of course – all that rendered fat. We also baked garlic bread and sauteed some mushrooms and onions with garlic salt, thyme and butter.

It all added up to a delicious, hearty, gourmet dinner in the Mission.
Pasta alla Carbonara

Good times.

Fall Flavors 2009

Posted in BonVivant on 12/02/2009 04:30 am by Queenkv

Finally. December.

I’m trying to keep track of all the amazing food we sampled over the past few months. So far, I have tweeted several gourmet experiences. Now – I’ll try to sum up some of those dining adventures, beyond 140 characters.

Charcuterie
We did a Thanksgiving Lunch at the Bistro in downtown Sonoma. I needed a relaxing afternoon after spending 10-plus hours in the newsroom. This Charcuterie plate had a lovely mix of foie gras, pork tartine and sausage. I loved spreading the rich foie on white bread.

Davis Dim Sum
We continue to head east for comfort food in Davis. I enjoy the handmade noodles from the Noodle House. I always order these dim sum plates as appetizers: pork BBQ buns and onion pancakes. These hearty flavors fill me up on a chilly autumn day or soothe my stomach after a night of drinking.

Chicken Fried Bacon
In Berkeley, we celebrated Scott’s birthday at T-Rex BBQ. I had to try the chicken-fried bacon. Crazy! A bit chewy and I managed to sample some hints of bacon goodness in this hor d’oeuvre.

Photo Friday: Fast Food

Posted in BonVivant, cali_lovin, photo friday on 10/02/2009 05:01 am by Queenkv

I have a lovely three-day weekend ahead of me. I’m helping my best friend tie the knot in San Francisco.

So…I have some time to show some lovin’ for Photo Friday.

BBQ Buffalo Burger
The topic: “Fast Food.”
I have a healthy/gourmet twist to that theme with this BBQ Buffalo Burger. It’s from Burger Me in Truckee. It has this amazing hearty flavor and it’s all lean meat. The tangy BBQ sauce also hit all the right spots for me.

Have Meat? Will Grill!

Posted in BonVivant on 05/31/2009 07:11 am by Queenkv

Meet the Baconator on Twitpic What happens when you combine 2-pounds of bacon, chorizo sausage, spicy Italian sausage and a new grill? A Bacon Explosion! I found out about this amazing culinary invention from an anchor I worked with in Topeka. She’s now reporting at one of the best stations in Kansas City. I’m also amazed people were willing to grill in the middle of a Midwest winter. Brr…

“It makes you feel a little dirty…but it’s good,” from a KC bacon fan.

He’s right.

Gourmet Flavors on Valentine’s Day

Posted in BonVivant, cali_lovin on 03/08/2009 07:26 am by Queenkv

We did the Wine and Chocolate Festival last month in Lodi. This is becoming a tasty Valentine’s Day tradition!

Wine and Art
We stumbled on some new wines, art and of course, yummy bites of food. At the Vino Piazza, the wine server let me go behind the wine bar to get a closer look at these sketches from Dumbo. He said the animator was a big fan of Lodi wines.

This is a look at the drive into Lodi’s Wine Country on Highway 12.

Valentine’s Day in Wine Country from Kris Vera-Phillips on Vimeo.

Must Love MSG

Posted in BonVivant on 02/24/2009 12:49 am by Queenkv

I’m excited about Bourdain’s “Disappearing Manhattan” show. New York’s a fantastic place to eat and Bourdain knows where to go for good food, beyond the tourists’ traps.

Since it’s on during my sleepy time, I’ll probably watch the rest of it after my morning show.

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