Sweet Surrender

A few months back I was watching the Food Networks' Best Thing I Ever Ate where Giada De Laurentiis mentioned a small dessert shop called Sweet Surrender in Bakersfield.  Of course, my ears perked up when I heard Bakersfield!  I couldn't believe it! Since My Love moved here I have been looking for places to check out around the area, and since I will be making the move in the near future for Grad School I am determined to find some good spots in Bako.  So when a fellow sweets lover came to Bako to visit, I casually mentioned cupcakes, cookies, cakes and with smiles on our faces we made our way to Sweet Surrender.  Upon arriving, it was a little difficult to find because it's hidden behind a hardware store, but good thing we were patient.  Sweet Surrender is a cute little shop filled with candy, cookies, cakes, cupcakes, shoes and small girlie decorations.  It was definitely an experience and we spent a good 30 minutes in the shop trying to figure out what we were willing to pay for (everything looked too good!)  I finally decided on the following: Matterhorn Cupcake, slice of Red Velvet Cake and White Chocolate Bread Pudding with Carmel Sauce topping.  Below are the photos and my thoughts.  :)

Matterhorn Cupcake: the cupcake version of the Matterhorn Cake that Giada featured on the show.  I had read several reviews on Yelp about this cupcake mentioning it was dry or not as good, but I wanted to try it myself.  Well.... it really was just o.k. unfortunately it didn't live up to my expectations.  Hopefully the cake version is a lot better.  

Red Velvet Cake: SO YUMMMMMMMERS! It was moist , fluffy and wasn't overpowered by the cream cheese frosting. I thought this was great and wouldn't mind ordering a whole Red Velvet Cake in the near future.

White Chocolate Bread Pudding with Carmel Sauce topping: it wasn't the most visually appealing dessert at Sweet Surrender but they had samples out and I couldn't say no to a free sample! Once I took a bite, I knew... I HAD TO HAVE ONE.  This is a pretty dense dessert and can be overpowering at times, so it is best to be shared or eaten in small doses.  I got this dessert for My Love.  I knew he would go bananas for it.  When I gave it to him after dinner, he had reservations about it and even made fun of how ugly it looked.  Once he took a bite... he quickly stopped taking and continued to devour the bread pudding in the corner of the room so he didn't have to share with anyone.  That just shows ya, don't judge a book by it's cover... or in this case.. don't judge a dessert by the way it looks! There might be something beautifully delicious inside for you! If you are ever in Bako and stop by Sweet Surrender... GET THE BREAD PUDDING.. you won't regret it! 

Lazy Ox Canteen

As promised, I am trying to blog more often and I was lucky enough to go on a foodie adventure last night.!! I am sad to say that my foodie adventures are going to be decreasing in the upcoming months because I need to start saving dramatically due to the fact that I GOT INTO GRAD SCHOOL!!! Yiippppeee!!! I am very excited for the next chapter in my life! Unfortunately, my foodie adventures will be taking a hit BUT that just means I will be making more meals at home... hm....maybe I can write a couple of posts on how to jazz up ramen noodles... sounds like a good idea to me!

Anywho, to celebrate the news and to catch up, 2 of my favorite people took me out to Lazy Ox Canteen, a small gastropub located in Little Tokyo.  It had a fun and lively atmosphere and the only thing that was a little off putting for me was our waiter.  He would occasionally walk over to our table to check on us without saying a word. One time I even said hello to him as he awkwardly stood by our table.  BUT the food was sooooooo delicious and flavorful. I loved all the dishes we ordered and it was wayyy too hard to pick a favorite!  Food is served Tapas style which is great for sharing.  I will definitely come back to the Lazy Ox.

Lazy Ox Canteen  

flying dog schwarz beer and Prosecco 

the blushing bride to be!

iberico Ham with dense grilled bread... I LOVE CURED MEATS

blistered shishito peppers with mojama- not too spicy!!

yellow tail crudo with scallion, grapefruit and papaya salad- super super good!

anson mills polenta with creamed mushrooms and curry- so creamy and the texture was amazing! 

jerusalem artichoke with roasted apples and aged balsamic

our spread 

Nik's Martini Lounge

I've had this place on my list for months and this past weekend had the chance to go there with friends.  The game plan for the night: drink lots of martini's and experience the VodBox.  The VodBox at Nik's is literally a giant refrigerator filled with bottles and bottles of Vodka from all over the world.  Obviously, it was freezing in the VodBox so we put on parkas and hats before stepping in.  Out Vodkatour (I am pretty sure I misspelled that) Allyson was amazing! Very personable, extremely funny and lovely to have with us.  We sampled vodka that tasted like gummy bears, carmel and butterscotch and our favorite was the blood orange.  The entire experience was amazing. I highly recommend everyone to try this at least once in their life.  Food was top notch as well! Great filet mignon, amazing lamb, super tasty rib eye, and succulent duck.. O.M.G. oh, yeah.. their martini's... so good with a great balance of flavors.

Martini's

Hummus, Olives, Feta, Grilled Artichokes, Pita Bread

Nik's Famous Oysters

Duck

London Broil 

VodBox baby!

Mastro's Steakhouse

Wow it has been way too long since my last update! Epic fail on my part but so much has happened since my last post! I had many foodie adventures and I was extremely excited to share them with you all.  I made braised short ribs for the first time, made beef stroganoff with leftover short rib meat and ate at Bottega Louie.  But I was swamped with endless piles of paperwork from work! :(

Also, I got a Macbook!!! Very exciting!!! But I am sad to say that because of the change I have lost ALL my foodie adventure photos!!! :( So I am starting from scratch again.... no worries though! All is well :)

I was able to savage a few photos because they were still saved on my PC, so at least I have that.  So, for the past few months, I have been wanting treat my family out to a fancy steak dinner and at the time I was debating between Cut by Wolfgang Puck and Mastro's Steakhouse.  Both, I would say are excellent choices and needless to say.. I had a hard time deciding but I ultimately went with Mastro's.

I am glad we went to Mastro's.  My family had the opportunity to get dressed up and eat very well.  This was the first time in a long time my Mom went out to dinner with us.  My Mom is way old school, she doesn't believe in dining out often.  She would tell us, "Why go out for dinner when we can make dinner at home? It's going to be cheaper and you know our food will taste better." Most of the time... she was right.. Moms.. they always have the answers.  Enjoy the photos and I promise I will start blogging more often!!!

Seafood Platter of Tiger Shrimp and Oysters 

Steak Tartar with capers, shaved parmesan, cesar salad with a very strong anchovy flavor and toasted bread  

Wagyu Tomahawk Steak- hands down THE best steak of the night but it comes with a steep price tag, $98.00 but it can be shared!!! 

Close up of the Tomahawk

Rack of Lamb

Bone-in Rib Eye Steak- very good, even though my piece was a little chewy.  I loved the nice crust on the steak.  

Halibut Steak with lemon: very moist and tasty

Family Style Sides- Garlic Mushrooms, Creamed Corn, Asparagus, Sauteed Spinach and Lobster Mashed Potatoes. All worth a try.  

Bread Basket- loved the pretzel bread!

Since Mom came to dinner we wanted to celebrate the moment! Happy Non-Birthday Mom!

Mastro's Famous Butter Cake- Butter, Sugar, Ice Cream... need I say more?

Flourless Chocolate Cake- It tasted like fudge and was a bit too rich for me that night

Mastro's is a dimly lit restaurant, so GG showed me that the flash was way too bright! 

One person that enjoyed the bread basket more than anyone: GG.. yay for cracker like flatbread! 

GG and my Mom

Drago Centro and Syrup

This year for my birthday, I didn't want to do anything too extravagant and over the top.  I had mixed feelings about this year... celebrating 26 years on this Earth after all... I know 26 isn't a high number, and I have so much to look forward to, but nonetheless.. I got some of the birthday blues.  So after a bit of convincing I decided to DO IT UP! At the end of this month, I will be having a co-celebration with my dear friend Chef ChaCha and our very good friends will be joining us.  On the day of my birthday, 2 of my friends, David and Cruz, wanted to take me out to Bottega Louie in DTLA.  I was extremely excited!!! I had never been to Bottega Louie and had been dying to go.  We got there about 9pm and there was an hour and a half wait.  I would have stayed and waited, but at that point I was going to pass out from starvation (not exactly the type of attention I wanted on my birthday).  So after some quick thinking and yelping, Cruz suggested Drago Centro, an upscale Italian restaurant. The service was friendly and prompt but the food... to die for.  I had THE BEST pasta experience I have EVER had.  It was one of those foodie moments that you think about days after you leave the restaurant.  Its been weeks now, I am still think fondly of my experience at Drago Centro.   Even though it's a pricey joint, it was worth every pretty penny.  In case you want to check it out: Drago Centro

l’insalata di farro: farro, chick peas, olives, pancetta, champagne vinaigrette.  This is NOT what I expected when I ordered this salad.  I was expecting a regular salad with mixed greens as one of the main components, but this was a great surprise and I enjoyed every tasty morsel!  I loved the crispy pancetta placed on top!   

il salmone: salmon, crispy polenta, asparagus, peas, salsif.  The salmon had a great sear and tasted great! I loved the crispy polenta that is wrapped up!

la bistecca: new york steak, rapini, pomme delphine, saltimbocca sauce.  A favorite at the table a well!

THE REASON I fell in love with Drago Centro.  gli spaghetto allo scoglio: made with hard durum spaghetti, seafood ragout, spicy tomato, herbs. THE BEST PASTA I HAVE EVER EATEN!! In house made pasta was amazing! The pasta had a great chew or bite to it, the sauce has amazing depth of flavor and seafood was cooked to perfection! Just blogging about it makes me want to go back! Yes, it was that damn good!

After dining at Drago Centro we ventured over to Syrup Desserts. It was a great way to end the night and the atmosphere was very relax and you could tell they wanted people to stick around.  This bi-level dessert shop had a variety of board games tucked on a shelf for patrons to enjoy.

A portrait of DTLA painted on the upper level of the shop, if you look closely, you can see the games on the right side

amazing friends that took me on foodie adventures for my birthday!

Strawberry Shortcake.... yummmmmmmers

What does a girl want for her birthday? How about a birthday crepe and we call it a day. :)

Chicken Pot Pie

For the past few months, I have been bombarded with paperwork from work.  It is a part of my job so I try not to complain about it, and hey, I have a job, so I am happy.  But nonetheless, I get overwhelmed and frustrated at times with all this crazy paperwork.  So my escape from it all is to cook my little heart out.  I am usually not super confident in my cooking and there are a few things here and there that I am actually pretty good at.  One of those things: Chicken Pot Pie.  One of my favorite meals that is eaten out of a bowl.  I do little things here an there to change up my recipe and spice things up, but the main components are pretty consistent.  I always have a mixture of white and dark meat from a chicken, onions, mushrooms, chicken stock, some heavy cream and puff pastry dough.  I also add a variety of spices depending on my mood and what I have on hand.  Since I was swamped with paperwork, I cut some corners and bought a rotisserie chicken from Costco and frozen puff pastry dough.  I was happy with the results and my only regret is that I did not get a picture of the filling.  (Once that pie was done, I dug into it as soon as it was safe enough to eat!)

I made 4 pot pies and these were the ones that puffed up perfectly! The 4th needed some more love in the oven, so I popped it in while taking this photo.  Pot Pie consisted of: white and dark meat chicken, sauteed onions, garlic, mushrooms, sweet corn, a bit of heavy cream, chicken stock and paprika that was cooked in a pot prior to baking in the oven.  After filling the ramekins, I topped them with puff pastry dough, brushed on an egg wash and chives, then sent them into the oven.  20 minutes later they were ready! :)

This pot pie didn't fully puff up and there was a break in the dough while baking.  But I found it so beautiful. Plus it was a little peek-a-boo moment for the pie saying to me, "Hey, check me out! I am beautiful inside."  I added some sliced up baked potatoes rubbed with paprika, garlic salt and Cajun spices served with chives and Greek yogurt.  

Lomo Saltado

Lomo Saltado... a staple in Peruvian cuisine, that also happens to be one of my friend David's favorite foods.  When my dear friend found out that I had never tried Lomo Saltado, he quickly picked me up and brought me to his favorite place, Los Balcones del Peru in Los Angeles.  The entire meal was incredibility flavorful and I was inspired to make Lomo Saltado at home! 

The purple drink that is made with maze (I can't remember the name of it) and Inca Cola , both really yummy!

Ceviche BP (left to right): Ceviche with thinly sliced red onions, yucca and yam, Calamari. Supper Supper Yummy!! 

The dish that inspired me to make my own: Lomo Saltado! The fries soaked up the juices from the steak and veggies.  So so good!

My version of Lomo Saltado.  I looked up a few recipes, took the general ingredients and played around with it.  It came out great and I was so happy! I used Rib Eye Steak (marinated in rice vinegar, soy sauce, oil, garlic and pepper), tomatoes, sliced red onions (also marinated in the same marinate as the steak) and baked potato fries.  I will be making this again!! :)