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Kalo kerja itu yg penting seneng, nyaman, ikhlas. Perkara duit itu urusan nomer satu. Pie toh kik :| #hellofoodie #foodie #food #foodporn #hardwork #chef #like4like #foodgram #instafood #instafoodie #foodblogger

[hellofoodie]

Stones Throw - San Francisco

On a recent business trip to San Francisco, the concierge at the Fairmont booked us a table at Stones Throw for dinner.  We had an amazing meal, with probably one of the best bites of food I’ve ever had. I love meals like this! Squid Ink Conchiglie Pasta Spicy Capers, Clams, Calamari, Shrimp, Tender Greens The balance in this dish was perfect, hence my rating of the perfect bite of food. The acidity paired with the sweet and buttery seafood, and the freshness of the greens. Seriously amazing. 

Tomato-Braised Haricots Verts Burrata, Castelvetrano Olives, Firebrand Bread  Green beans at their finest. I ordered this specifically for the Burrata, and although I would have preferred just an appetizer of Burrata on the crostini, this was full of flavour and delicious. 

Photo Credit: http://darindines.com/2015/01/20/stones-throw/ & http://salepepeamore.com/2015/08/31/review-stones-throw/

I had the Scallops as my main, and although they were cooked to perfection, I discovered my slight dislike for Jerusalem artichokes. No thank you. 

Overall, the Squid Ink Conchiglie will go down as one of my favourite bites of food to date, and for that, I would return here on my next trip to SF. 

[hellofoodie]

The Stanton Social NYC

It was my 30th birthday last week, and my amazing husband cooked up a mini-getaway to New York City for a few nights. Neither of us had ever been to NYC, so we were both greatly looking forward to a totally different travel experience than what we’re used to, and of course the first thing I did was ask friends and family for dining recommendations. 

The Stanton Social came up from a number of people, and being a fan of celebrity chef Chris Santos, we decided to make this our special night out for my birthday dinner. To our surprise, we got a reservation for 7pm Friday night only the day before. 

From the moment we walked in, we knew we were in for a treat. The staff was trendy, tattooed, and welcoming. Something we often encounter in upscale restaurants is feeling unwelcome because of our own tattoos, so this place had a great feel to it. I couldn’t wait to eat! 

We had a couple of delicious cocktails to start; Grapefruit Hemingway Nolet Gin, lemon syrup, fresh lemon, muddled grapefruit, maraschino liqueur & a classic Old Fashioned (one of Matt’s faves). 

The menu at Stanton Social is all shareable small plates, and I must say, we really enjoyed it. One of us wasn’t disappointed in our choice, and wish we’d had what the other ordered - we got to share everything. Our server recommended sharing five dishes between us, but we opted to go with four (mainly because I wanted to make sure I had room for a sweet ending). 

Nori Spiced Tuna Poke Wonton - cilantro, avocado, crushed wasabi peas - My favourite dish of the night hands down. Simple, fresh, and great texture with the fried wonton. 

French Onion Soup Dumplings - Basically like little balls of french onion soup with a crouton on top. Bite into them and the flavorful caramelized onions & broth oozed out. The only thing I didn’t enjoy about this dish was the aroma of the melted cheese. I think it was Gruyere, and when you melt Gruyere, it smells like feet. 

Korean Short Rib Tacos - kimchi, gochujang aioli - I still don’t know if I like kimchi. I think I do, because these were really good. 

Mexican Sweet Corn Ravioli - roasted poblano crema, jalapeño, cotija, cilantro - My second favourite dish of the night. Anything pasta will easily win me over any day of the year. 

Warm Doughnuts - caramel, chocolate & berry dipping sauces - Yum. 

S’mores Panna Cotta - house made graham cracker, chocolate ganache - Yum.

Our table neighbours were super friendly and we chatted back and forth through the evening. We shared some of our doughnuts, and they shared this amazing invention of a dessert with us!

Movie Theater Sundae - brownie, peanut butter pretzels, popcorn ice cream, brown butter caramel - OMG Yum.

All food photos above borrowed from The Stanton Social twitter feed.

Happy Birthday to me!

[hellofoodie]

Kitchen Renovation

Any foodie can relate; cooking in a cramped, poorly laid-out kitchen is not the ideal scenario. We make it work, for the sake of good food, but every single day the space gets tighter and tighter. 

For the past few months, Matt and I have been tackling the entire main floor of our 1930′s home. Namely the kitchen and mudroom (down to the studs), but we refinished and matched the existing original hardwood on the whole main level, plus we couldn’t help but completely re-do the powder room while we were at it too. 

Here are a couple of “before” shots from before we moved in...

I’m not sure if I can pick a favourite new feature in my kitchen, but if I must, it would have to be the gas range. The pull out garbage & recycling centre is pretty awesome too. And the huge sink. Ok, it’s all my favourite. 

We still have a few finishing touches to do; mostly just painting all the new trim throughout and touch-ups here and there. Since the nice weather is here, our focus has been the exterior and gardens. We’ll get to it eventually. 

We are so happy with how the renovation turned out! Of course, no reno is easy, and none are completed without issues arising; and ours was no exception. I think that’s part of the reason we just haven’t finished up the finishing touches of paint...we are both so over it, and just need a break. I definitely wouldn’t suggest a major renovation of any sort in the months leading up to your wedding - but hey, we got through it and still married each other! 

[hellofoodie]

Blue Cheese Burger (makes 4-5 burgers)

1.5 pounds lean (but not extra lean) ground beef

2 ounces blue cheese, crumbled

1 egg

1/4-1/2 cup breadcrumbs

1/4 cup minced fresh chives

1/4-1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce

1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon dry mustard

good pinch of salt

Mix all ingredients together, and form into patties. Refrigerate at least 1 hour. Heat your BBQ on high, and cook burgers with open lid for about 5-7 minutes per side or until the juices run clear.  These were so amazingly juicy! The blue cheese has tons of flavour (and salt), so I paired it simply with a homemade basil mayo, red leaf lettuce, and some avocado on a fresh hamburger bun from my grocery store's bakery. 

[hellofoodie]

Mussels with Chorizo in a White Wine Tomato Sauce

I've always ordered this sort of dish in restaurants, but have never tried it in my own kitchen. Turns out it was super quick and simple, and easily as tasty as I have had in nice restaurants.

Recipe (halved for two people) here.

[hellofoodie]

Mini Veggie Lasagnas

[hellofoodie]

Garlic Soba Noodles with Crispy Tofu Fingers

Other than adding in some mushrooms that I wanted to get out of my fridge before heading out of town this weekend, I didn't change too much of Heidi's recipe. This is a keeper. 

Enjoy!