In-N-Out

And this is it...the last post from California. How could I go to CA and not try In-N-Out? We walked in and I told Jeff I would need a few minutes to look over the menu and decide, he then proceeded to look at my strangely and point out the obvious, "there are only three choices Jenna, it can't really be that hard." I didn't realize that In-N-Out kept it simple and stuck to what they were good at: a hamburger, a cheeseburger and a double cheeseburger (fries as well, of course).

We decided to get the full effect...two doubles, two fries, two drinks, BAM! In-N-Out has good quality food as far as fast food goes, they try to keep most of the processes in house and serve fresh cut fries! I definitely noticed a difference in this burger. Unfortunately, my stomach did not agree but Jeff offered to drive the whole way and let me rest when I needed to.

Goodbye California, we had a great time and we will visit again!

The Caprice

This was hands down the best restaurant of our trip. The food was good but the view made this night absolutely unforgettable. The Caprice is a restaurant in Tiburon...across the bay from the Golden Gate bridge. If you would like to stare across the water at the bridge as the sun sets while eating really good food, please come here! Thank you so much to my dad for this recommendation!

So here is our table up against a window, looking at the bridge

Some sort of green concoction with Madori liqueur in it.

Looking great, as always!

Ahh, I am wearing black and grey...what a surprise!

The restaurant was pretty small which allowed for almost every table to have a view of the bridge.

So here is where it gets good. The bridge, the sun setting and a few local fisherman...beautiful!

Jeff chose our wine and it was so good. A really crisp white, not to sweet or acidic.

Another view of the sunset. So calming!

The City

Jeff ordered escargot. Yuck! I will admit I tried some and it actually tasted really good but I could not get over the texture thing.

Since Fall rolled around I was craving butternut squash soup. The spider-web design was beautiful.

Night on the city

Mussels

Pork Medallions and potatoes sides. I will admit the dinner was not the best thing I have ever had, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

~Comfort~

Best dining experience I have ever had :)

Dipsea

After a beautiful tour of Muir Woods, home of some redwood trees, Jeff and I were ready for some food. Our host, Marcia, recommended Dipsea as a good place to eat and we were glad we tried this comforting country cafe.

Water, water everywhere in CA.

I felt like this is a place where everyone knows your name. Very quint.

Chocolate malt...Jeff's favorite!

Jeff got the Reuben with salad instead of fries (way to make me look bad!)

I had a turkey and caramelized onion sandwich with fries, of course!

And by the way...HAPPY THANKSGIVING! I hope you are wearing your stretchy pants

Oranges and Eggs

I realize that this breakfast is really nothing special. Eggs and oranges; but the serenity of this picture makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside :)

Poor Pairing

Baseball, a nice glass of wine and....caramel corn? What the heck was I thinking? Congrats to the S.F. Giants for winning the World Series (shouldn't it really be called the U.S. Series...just saying). What are odd food or drink pairings you make?

Gelato - Ferry Building

Happy Monday to you. Has anyone been to the Ferry Building in San Francisco? It really is a pretty neat place to eat. It is pretty much an indoor farmer's market with shops and restaurants. They had fresh baked breads, local cheese, grass-fed beef and GELATO! Yum! Now I can't remember what Jeff got, but mine (the bottom picture) was a malt ball flavored. Amazing, right? The flavor of malt balls with a few actually malt balls to add texture.

City View - Dim Sum

Jeff and I wandered around China town in an effort to find some good Dim Sum. There were TONS of places but I wanted to make sure our Dim Sum experience was a good one. We ended up walking into a hotel and asking the concierge what the best place to go was. He said hands down City View.

Dim Sum restaurants are a little different. You sit down and they bring by carts full of food for you to choose from. Often times you have no idea what the food is, then you ask, and you still have no idea what the food is. The whole process is quite an experience and you have to stay flexible and be open to try new foods.

Then they stamp a price area and you pay when you leave

Pork Buns...one of my favorite dishes!

The inside of the bun

Chive and Shrimp dumplings

An inside view

Egg Rolls - A classic.

Jasmine rice in a lotus leaf.

A very interesting presentation, the result was a very thick, flavorful rice.

So this was one of those things I thought I would never try...SHARK FIN. It was interesting in texture (stringy) and had a unique taste. Jeff liked it but I don't think I will be having more...ever.

Dumplings

Haha Glutinous Puff...perhaps not the best thing for me to order

But of course, I did it anyway!

It was filled with some kind of vegetable...unknown to me, perhaps Taro

So these steamed pork dumplings were the one thing I had to have and we could not find them! I made person after person with the carts stop so I could look at their loot. I finally found them :)

And dessert - Sesame balls. Jeff was so excited about these, he could have ordered 20 of them, but I wouldn't let him.

They were filled with some kind of caramel/almond paste.