Birthday

It was my birthday yesterday, so on Sunday I threw a big picnic in Elysian Park to celebrate.  It was a gorgeous day, perfect for lounging outside with a group of lovely people eating delicious food, playing charades, drinking mimosas, and hanging out with all the cute dogs in attendance.  I went a little crazy making food for the day which included my dream cupcakes with edible flowers on top, home made caramel with Cyprus sea salt, chocolate covered strawberries, sun-dried tomato pasta salad with mozzarella and basil, cous cous salad with Marash pepper & chocolate chip cookies with oreos inside of them.  It was laid-back and relaxing, which was exactly what I had in mind when I planned the day.
Yesterday, Brian (the most amazing boyfriend in the world) surprised me and took me on a ferry to Catalina Island for the day.  I had never been to Catalina before, so I was really excited.
After a smooth, hour long ferry ride, we arrived in Avalon.  As we pulled up, the town reminded me of a quaint seaside village in Italy, but with colorful, old California style buildings.
We spent our day eating ice cream, making friends with seagulls, speeding around in a golf cart in the cliffs above the town (nobody in Catalina has a car...everyone drives golf carts!), drinking strawberry mojitos, eating freshly shucked oysters and clam chowder, and enjoying the lazy quietness of the Island.
We watched the sun set on the Pacific Ocean on the ferry ride back home, and I wished that the day didn't have to end.
I saw some beautiful campsites on Catalina Island, and I definitely need to go back soon for some camping (and maybe grill some freshly caught seafood!).
It was a really fun & special day that I couldn't have asked for a more enjoyable birthday.


On another note, Scout & Pine is now on Facebook!  'Like' the page to get updated every time the blog is updated, or when I share other points of interest that otherwise won't be on the blog.

Restaurant Review: Waterloo & City

My brother took me to Waterloo & City for an early birthday dinner Wednesday night (I stopped my cleanse early, after completing 20 days without alcohol, caffeine, sugar, dairy, flour, gluten, red meat or salt, but that's for a later post!).  The casual atmosphere was different than I expected and the food was delicious and innovative.  Here are some photos, with a review to follow.

I was expecting the atmosphere at Waterloo & City to be more upscale and stuffy, given the original, farm-fresh gastronomic cuisine that had me drooling all over their menu.  It felt more like a cool, casual pub with a large dining space and a long bar full of boisterous patrons, rather than a pretentious 'see and be seen' type of place, which was really refreshing.   It's always nice to go to a restaurant where you can actually focus on your food & your immediate company and not have to worry about being fancy.
I immediately ordered a Pimm's Cup (such a treat), and my brother and I perused their mouth-watering menu and chose a few stand-out dishes to share.
We started things off with the Pork & Truffle Pate w/ Madeira Jelly, Cornichons and Toasted Brioche.
The Pate came in a small jar, with a thin layer of the Jelly on the top.  The Pate on it's own was subtle and delicious, and the sweetness of the Jelly added a nice touch, although when spread on the Brioche, I could barely taste the Pate.  I would have preferred a crusty baguette rather than a buttery Brioche, which stole the flavor away from the Pate.
We then shared the Yellowtail Crudo w/ Shallot & Ginger Dressing and Shishido Peppers.  At first we thought it would be weird to introduce a Japanese-influenced dish into a rather hearty meal, but we decided to mix-and-match flavors rather than stick to one genre.  The Yellowtail was absolutely delicious.  The Shallot & Ginger dressing only enhanced the flavor of the fish, rather than overpower it and the Shishido Peppers added a nice, spicy crunch.
For our Main Course we had the Rotisserie Lamb w/ Crispy Shepherd's, Sunchokes & Gremolata.   This was probably the best-cooked Lamb I've ever had.  It was so incredibly juicy and tender and packed full of flavor.  The Lamb sat on three crispy, fried Shepherd's Pies, which kind of blew my mind.  If I could eat fried Shepherd's Pie every day of my life, I would die happy.  I'm usually really picky with sunchokes- they have a really distinct flavor that definitely is not for everyone, but these were seasoned & cooked perfectly.  We also shared the House Fries w/ Harissa Aioli, which were good.
For dessert we each had a glass of the Moscato di'Asti, a very sweet, almost honey-flavored dessert wine.   We also had the Raspberry Neopolitan w/ Pistachios & Basil Lime Sorbet.  I am a fan of very tart desserts, and this was definitely very tart.  The buttery crunch of the Shortbread underneath the lemony sweetness was delicious.  The Basil Lime Sorbet was so refreshing, I wish I could eat this everyday during the summer.
Overall, Waterloo & City is a great place to experience thoughtful, beautifully-plated and innovative food while enjoying a casual, unpretentious, relaxed environment.

90 degrees

It was 90 degrees in Los Angeles today.  Yeah, I know that I just returned from Palm Springs and this may be entirely hypocritical, but honestly, I can't stand hot weather.  I don't want my life to feel like a 24/7 vacation. I feel happy when I wear scarves and thick socks.  When it's this warm outside, I don't take anything seriously and I make bad decisions.  I like feeling frigid and thinking frigid.  It's safe.  It's cozy.  It's not summer, where I feel obligated to start drinking margaritas at 10am and spend an entire day in the sun, where my skin ends up turning the color of a Julia Child's Lobster Thermidor.
It's also making me feel bi-polar because I'm supposed to be packing for a ski trip to Mammoth tomorrow.  I feel confused...and sweaty.  Very, very sweaty.
Today, I listened to this 'Surf City' song 1,000 times in a row and thought about all the amazing things I want to do to make this summer the most amazing summer possible: road trips, waterfall hikes, bbq's, outdoor movie screenings, beach trips, water balloon fights, craft nights, surfing sessions, camping trips, girl's dinner parties, dance parties, picnics, dodger's games, weekend getaways, home-made popsicles, slip-n-slides, backyard hangouts, hammocks, etc.



'See How The Sun' by Surf City (from New Zealand)