East Coast Hangover

After spending a few days on the east coast, I'm officially spent. My time there was one of major consumption. Eat, drink, sleep, repeat. I probably at more meat and drank more alcohol in one week, than a normal month for me. With a half marathon coming up this Sunday, I only have a few days to snap out of this funk. Work is keeping me ridiculously busy and I managed to run 4 miles on the treadmill last night so, slowly but surely. Anyway, super busy as of late trying to squeeze too many hobbies/ daily grind stuff into one day. East coast highlights are coming soon so check back because they're gooooood.

Oyster Heaven at Tomales Bay

The Tomales Bay Oyster Company makes for a fun daytime outing if you live in northern California. This oyster company has a picnic area where you can buy oysters directly from the farm and walk over to your table to enjoy them with your favorite garnishes. They even have barbeque grills and you can bring your own food and hang out until about 5:45pm daily. If you don't arrive early, good luck getting a table. Luckily, we left early in the morning and arrived right around opening time. Early enough to nab a table right on the water. Between about 10 people, we had over 100 oysters and mussels. Fun times. I can't wait to go back with my family.

Street Food Phenomenon

It's been around forever, but how and why has it become a huge trend throughout California? Beats me, but guess I shouldn't complain and just get my grub on. These street vendors offer Korean tacos by Seoul on Wheels to chicken adobo by the Adobo Hobo and the list goes on. The trick with most of these trucks/ carts is they don't always have a set schedule of where they'll be serving their dishes which is why Twitter has come in handy for the masses. Lucky for me, I attended the Eat Real festival over the weekend in Oakland and had a chance to sample a few of these. Check out a few of the dishes we all tried...

Busy Summer Days

Summer is coming to a close and I have been very busy in all aspects of my life - hence my post have been minimal. Work has my hands full, I've picked up a new hobbie that requires a stringed instrument, weekend events galore (family, concerts, festivals & weddings, oh my), all the while, trying to get my still-new home in order.

So, just wanted to say, hope everyone is having the time of their lives this summer! Stay tuned for more :)

P.S. If you haven't tried Tara's Organic Ice Cream, you must. Yum. Next spot I've been dying to try, Scream Sorbet.

Burma Superstar: Samusa Soup

#17 Samusa Soup from Burma Superstar
7x7 The Big Eat SF 2010: 100 Things to Try Before You Die

This photo does not do the soup justice. With ingredients like samosas, lentils, falafel, cabbage and more, it really packs in the flavor. The samusa soup is hearty enough to be a meal in itself, but since I love this restaurant so much of course we had to order the tea leaf salad and a few more dishes also.

Burma Superstar: Tea Leaf Salad

#17 Tea Leaf Salad at Burma Superstar
7x7 The Big Eat SF 2009: 100 Things to Try Before You Die
.......................................................................................................

[photo by recipestap.com]

This is one of my new favorite restaurants. I cheated a little on this one - this challenge is for SF, but I went to the Oakland location. Same restaurant & food, different location. I haven't felt 100% satisfied after a restaurant meal in awhile. EVERYTHING I tried today (yes, I'm that excited about this place that I had to write about it immediately while the flavors still dance on my tongue), was absolutely delicious. My first time having Burmese food and it was a success. The Fiery Chicken, Tea Leaf Salad, Vegetarian Noodles - loved them all. Even their special beverage, the Burmese Cooler was tasty and refreshing. The Tea Leaf salad is unlike any other salad I've tried before. So many different flavors and textures that all complement one other. It's really a salad I can eat every day without getting sick of it. It had lettuce, sesame seeds, peanuts, garlic, lemon juice, fermented tea leaves, tomatoes and sunflower seeds. Mmmm... I'm so stuffed, happy and excited that I found a new spot (though obviously not new to many since there was a wait outside!). Burmese food = deliciousness. Everyone must try it if you haven't already.

Extra plus: the service was outstanding and the prices are reasonable. Can't wait to come back and try the Samusa Soup which is also on the 7x7 list for 2010. 

Yank Sing: Sesame Balls

#97 Sesame Balls at Yank Sing
7x7 The Big Eat SF 2009 & 2010: 100 Things to Try Before You Die
49 Stevenson Street
.......................................................................................................

[photo by Yank Sing]

Yank Sing is a go-to dim sum restaurant in the Financial District of SF. It probably doesn't beat other dim sum spots in the city (like so many of the Chinatown/ Sunset/ Richmond) that I've heard so much about, but it still has a ton of tasty treats to offer. My favorite items on the menu here are the soup dumplings & the sea bass. Be prepared to fork out a little more than the usual dim sum spot here also. Anyway, the point of this post is to highlight the sesame balls. The texture, for me, is what really makes it. Slightly crispy on the outside, and just the right amount of gooeyness on the inside. It may disgust you, but I actually enjoy the greasiness of this thing. It's almost as if a little oil squeezes out of it when you bite in. Yum!

JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge 2010

SEPHORA SUPERSTARS were in full effect this past Wednesday at the JPMC Corporate Challenge. We had a much smaller turn out than most companies in attendance & were lacking in the matching t-shirt department, but our team did a great job anyhow! Next year, we plan to start recruiting a little earlier and design shirts. Last year we only had a little over a handful of participants and this year we tripled that number.

As for beating records, I beat my time last year by about 2 minutes. I was aiming to just beat my time by 30 seconds, but I was able to pull through - success! In other running news, I'm officially registered for the San Jose Rock N Roll Half Marathon in October and the Corp Challenge definitely put things into perspective for me. I'm not ready for 13 miles just yet. Btw, registration is still open for the half marathon FYI!