I look forward to a lot of things on the Fourth of July: hanging out with my family, eating lots of great food, and watching fireworks.
This year was more of the same and we also got to watch the Dodgers beat the Mets on television. To celebrate the win, I stuffed myself with a third plate of food (tri-tip, pork chops, baby back ribs, rib eye, potato salad, macaroni salad, BBQ beans, and pancit).
I would’ve done the same if we’d lost.
Pictured above: my wife’s annual edible flag.
I impressed my wife today by showing off my samurai-like oyster-shucking skills. We spent a wonderful day in Ventura at the laid-back The Jolly Oyster, a beachside stand that serves up fresh oysters, clams, and crab claws. Unfortunately, they were out of crab claws, so we stuffed ourselves with raw oysters (shucked them ourselves!) and steamed Manila clams (we had the Jolly Oyster’s kitchen take care of that).
We ate, we laughed, we played oversized chess and checkers, we ate more, and we walked on the beach. It was one of those perfect summer Sunday afternoons that you don’t want to end, with good food, good music, and good times with the one person in the world who I’d want to be with for a day like this.
I used to eat at the original Habit Burger Grill in Goleta during my college and post-college days. Thanks to a giveaway on the Mad Hungry Woman blog, I was able to experience some of the Habit’s tasty wares in Upland tonight.
My wife and I love the Habit and are creatures of habit whenever we dine here. For me, it’s the basic Charburger with fries; for her, it’s the Santa Barbara burger with fries. We always get a container of malt vinegar to dunk our fries. Tonight we considered ordering something different, but ended up ordering the usual.
It’s great seeing how much success the chain has enjoyed and it’s nice not having to drive a few hours for that delicious Charburger goodness. One day I might order something new, but I doubt it. As long as it tastes the same, I’m content with the same old, same old.
My wife and stepdaughter treated me to an early Father’s Day celebration today. It was exactly what I wanted to do: spend quality time with my family.
We had all-you-can-eat Korean BBQ, chatted, and played Scrabble. The day was a perfect gift: simple and meaningful.
White Rabbit’s sisig burrito
I was in the Valley yesterday, so I had dinner at White Rabbit Cafe, the brick-and-mortar version of the famous food truck. The cafe’s been here for a few years now and it’s nice to see them growing (they just launched another store in Las Vegas).
Ever since I used to track their location via Twitter, White Rabbit has consistently served delicious Filipino fusion food. My favorite is still the pork sisig burrito; the pork is flavorful and it’s packed with garlic rice and a fried egg. It’s not the best sisig you’ll ever have, but it’s a great way to introduce people to Filipino food.
My fantasy football league has had trays of White Rabbit’s lumpia, sisig, and rice on its annual draft day potluck party a few times. I can think of no better recommendation than, “White Rabbit fed my 12-man fantasy league and the food was gone before the draft was finished.”
Boba Ave Express
We went to Boba Ave Express in Arcadia today. It’s the first drive-thru boba shop in Los Angeles County and I’m surprised it’s taken this long for this to appear. Given the lack of parking throughout much of the 626 area and the popularity of boba, this seems like a game-changer.
I remember my first experience at a Starbucks drive-thru and this feels the same way: ultra convenience for a totally unnecessary product.
I can’t wait to go again.
There’s a thing going around on Facebook about who your true soulmate is, but tonight I found a better indicator of soulmate-iness: Waiting together in an hour-long line for free pizza.
Today Blaze Pizza gave you a free pizza if you followed them on social media. It was our first visit to Blaze, but my wife and I both preferred it to Pieology. Blaze had me when I saw they offered whole roasted garlic and Kalamata olives as toppings, so we’ll be back as paying customers soon.
I was in the Santa Barbara area today and stopped off at one of my favorite spots in the world: Surf Dog. It’s a hot dog cart on the Carpinteria Bluffs, where owner Bill Connell has been serving up delicious and affordable hot dogs for two decades. He’s a friendly guy and will offer you some Red Vines while you decide what to eat.
Pictured above is my go-to meal: Polish sausage with chili, sweet onions, and sauerkraut. You can eat at the cart or take your food across the parking lot to enjoy the ocean view. Nothing has changed over the years, from the comfort food served from the cart to the mellow vibe shared by Bill and his customers.
Free doughnuts make me smile
I had no idea that National Doughnut Day had such a long and military-influenced history (read about it here). Apparently, the day has been recognized since 1938, but doughnut shops giving away donuts on the first Friday of June is a relatively recent phenomenon.
Today, I stopped by Dunkin’ Donuts. There was a line out the door so I decided to drive-thru and pick up my favorite coffee and score my free doughnut (one for every drink purchased). The drive-thru wasn’t moving much quicker than the one in the store, but I eventually had my breakfast. Even though I’m not a fan of the food at DD, the coffee is consistently good and I was happy to be celebrating with the rest of the nation.
Note: I usually go with “donut” as my way of spelling these fried slices of heaven, but in honor of this special day, I’ve decided to heed the Grammar Girl’s advice and go with “doughnut.”
Every year around this time, I crave mango ice cream. Summer is getting closer, but my craving comes from an unlikely source: the Los Angeles Lakers.
I’ve been to the last eight Lakers championship parades, dating back to when Magic Johnson led a rally in front of the old city hall. I was at the Forum when Pat Riley made The Guarantee. I was on Figueroa and 7th for the ShaKobe years.
After a few of the parades, my brothers and I made it to Little Tokyo for lunch and dessert. We’re fans of a little nondescript ice cream shop tucked away in the Japanese Village Plaza. They serve a delicious mango ice cream and it always tasted the best on warm June days, especially after a parade.
