Time To Go Home

Goodbye, Philly!

I had an absolute blast visiting Philly for the first time. The little break was just was I needed and I loved seeing all the sights and eating all the delicious food. I didn’t get any cheesesteak OR cream cheese…but dinners at Stella, Square 1682 and James on 8th were fabulous. More on James on 8th in a second. Plus, I loved meeting so many of you for frozen yogurt on Friday. Thank you again for coming!

Speaking of James on 8th…..we ate there last night and it was quite the experience. The restaurant was in a really cool part of town (don’t ask me where; I have no sense of direction whatsoever) and seemed to resemble something I would find in either Savannah or Charleston.

  

I ordered what might be my new favorite cocktail…champagne with kir and peach with a bitters soaked sugar cube at the bottom.

Mom, can we make these on my birthday? Please?

Dinner, like that cocktail, made my heart utterly swoon. I started with a simple green salad—-

And then la piece de la resistance:

Gnocchi and macaroni & cheese got hitched and this was their love child. All I could do was smile and eat on. I had no say in this matter—it was out of my hands.

But then there was more! Salmon so buttery it literally melted in my mouth. The chef poached the fish in an olive oil bath for sublime deliciousness.

Note to self: try this at home. Stat. And in case you’re wondering, the fish actually doesn’t absorb the oil so it’s not like frying or anything like that. It’s actually a very healthy way to cook the fish and one of the most delicious preparations I’ve tried. I saw a recipe for olive oil poached salmon awhile back in an old issue of Cooking Light so I’m going to go hunt that down once I get home.

Dessert? Yes, please.

Espresso mousse with bruleed blood oranges and hazelnut nougatine. Pretty unbelievable actually.

In the end, we were at the restaurant from 7:30 until 11:30 but no one minded in the least. It was magic….pure magic.

I went to sleep in a pure food coma with a gnocchi-induced smile on my face but was rudely woken up at the hour of two am by some young hooligans next door who clearly had just come home from the bars and were shouting, blasting music and slamming doors. I took the opportunity to chat with the boyfriend for a bit, who was on the Vegas leg of his super-man-adventure-roadtrip, and then finally fell back to sleep at three.

If anyone has been wondering, Willis has been doing just fine and will be making the trip through Death Valley and into Yosemite today. Around 8pm last night this text message took place:

me: why do I feel like you are living The Hangover, minus tiger, plus basset hound?

the boy: hahahahaha Willis is just chillin.

It’s been a long day of traveling….for us all. Turns out California is quite far away from the rest of the world. I just landed after a solid 6 hours and now I’m trying to catch the bus back to Santa Rosa. I’m pooped. But TGFABP (Thank God For Au Bon Pain).

I got some oatmeal this morning and then this awesome salad to take on the plane for lunch.

My eyes feel like they are being super glued shut at its only 2:15 in the afternoon. Time for the rest of the long journey home!