Tired....Foodie Mom's blog is much less detailed on restaurants than the other foodie blogs....because working moms are tired! :) It's enough trouble to get out for a date, let alone type about it (let alone take glorious scrumptious pictures and upload them). So I ain't no mmm-yoso. But here's a quick take on my glorious visit to Farmhouse!
THANK YOU, MUSEUMGIRL!! FARMHOUSE CAFE IS LE BOMBE!
Was suspicious of this place for a while. Annoying music on website. Menu never looks that good to me.
But Museumgirl said: "It's scrumptious....Trust me and go!"
Naomi Wise: kept pimping Chef Olivier. He's always with the Confab too....
So today, Cute Husband and I hit Next to Normal while grandma watched Super-Toddler (best musical about mental illness EVER - no, seriously, it was amazing). Then we went to Farmhouse.
SCRUMPTIOUS-O!!!!! Loved everything about it. Cute, chill, small...like a real neighborhood restaurant in France, not all glamour-y like Tapenade.
Bread: Yum (Bread & Cie)
Mustard-Greens/Cured Yolk/Anchovy Salad (takeoff on Caesar): crazy good. Mustard greens were amazing. Loved the cured yolk. Almost left the anchovies on the plate (eating them all by themself - normally too much - so salty). BUT best...anchovies...I ever ate. Totally clean and light, not too salty. Farmhouse really does source things from the best places.
Seabass/fingerlings/mushrooms: Chef Olivier did a spectacular revision of the menu for me - this was a special and is normally made with mussel broth. He did it with a plain ol' beurre blanc for me. IT WAS SO PERFECTLY COOKED AND DELICIOUS.
CH's Steak with broccoli and pommes dauphinés: He liked his but was less wild than me. However, he left his pommes over, so I scooped one up. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? It was, as the young folk say, SICK! Delightful texture - and was that some cinammon? Crazy delicious, never had a pomme dauphiné like that ever.
White Burgundy by the glass for me: a delish Macon-Vinzelles. YUMM!!!
DESSERT
--Finally I hit something that wasn't perfect. I wasn't that crazy about his butterscotsch pot de crème. After eating Blue Ribbon Artisan's butterscotch pudding, this clearly was nothing special. However, CH loved it and thought it was the best part of his meal.
I ordered almond panna cotta. MMMMMMM.....
I left Farmhouse a very happy Foodgirl (though I was somehow wishing for a 4th course).
I hope to go back - thanks, MuseumGirl and Naomi Wise for pushing the restaurant!!
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Toddler Review: Tio Leo's (Carmel Valley), plus Viva Pops redux
What would you get if you took Coco's, and:
--added a full bar
--had better service
--made it Mexican
--put it smack in the middle of Carmel Valley by the 5?
That's right: you'd get Tio Leo's!
Super Toddler decided tonight that he wanted to try Tio Leo's. We went to a park in Carmel Valley and on the way home, he inquired about that "reh-trant", and said he had never been there before and wanted to try it. Sure, it's next to the Area Formerly Known as the Pumpkin Patch, but how he noticed it and knew it was a restaurant was a puzzle (til he confessed that he asked his nanny and she clued him in).
Tio Leo's....huh....we pass it all the time but never tried it. Yelp has some mixed reviews ("Awesome chips and salsa! I still come from LA!" v. "Are you on drugs? It's worse than Chevy's). So why the hell not see for ourself, esp. because ST was pretty well-behaved today.
As I said, it's like Coco's with all the stuff above (which is not a bad thing when dining with ST). VERY relaxed but at the same time kind of unhip and diner-like. NOT VERY crowded on a Sun. night, VERY friendly and efficient service. It was the anti-Chevy's! (In our experience, you wait forever there and it's mobbed).
We all started with:
--yummy chips and salsa (not sure I'd drive from LA, but perfect level of spiciness and very tasty), plus some smooth and non-spicy guac for ST
Foodgirl got:
--grilled eggplant tacos w/black beans (not bad! very healthy too)
--sangria (why the hell not? and it was pretty good)
CH got:
--carne asada plate: he liked it but it was way too much food
ST got:
--quesadilla (gobbled it up)
--strawberry smoothie (first time trying a smoothie: he liked it but pronounced it too cold-->he'll be back to lemonade next time).
Overall, a perfect toddler option. Assuming no one gets sick (see some other yelpers :)), we'll be back
Oh, and we hit Viva Pops again this weekend (so hot!). Foodgirl likes to try something different every time; ST likes always strawberry, but they were out of it.
So ST got blueberry-lemonade-mint, and his Mom got Earl Grey (bergamot on a popsicle - YESSSSS!). We were both happy campers.
--added a full bar
--had better service
--made it Mexican
--put it smack in the middle of Carmel Valley by the 5?
That's right: you'd get Tio Leo's!
Super Toddler decided tonight that he wanted to try Tio Leo's. We went to a park in Carmel Valley and on the way home, he inquired about that "reh-trant", and said he had never been there before and wanted to try it. Sure, it's next to the Area Formerly Known as the Pumpkin Patch, but how he noticed it and knew it was a restaurant was a puzzle (til he confessed that he asked his nanny and she clued him in).
Tio Leo's....huh....we pass it all the time but never tried it. Yelp has some mixed reviews ("Awesome chips and salsa! I still come from LA!" v. "Are you on drugs? It's worse than Chevy's). So why the hell not see for ourself, esp. because ST was pretty well-behaved today.
As I said, it's like Coco's with all the stuff above (which is not a bad thing when dining with ST). VERY relaxed but at the same time kind of unhip and diner-like. NOT VERY crowded on a Sun. night, VERY friendly and efficient service. It was the anti-Chevy's! (In our experience, you wait forever there and it's mobbed).
We all started with:
--yummy chips and salsa (not sure I'd drive from LA, but perfect level of spiciness and very tasty), plus some smooth and non-spicy guac for ST
Foodgirl got:
--grilled eggplant tacos w/black beans (not bad! very healthy too)
--sangria (why the hell not? and it was pretty good)
CH got:
--carne asada plate: he liked it but it was way too much food
ST got:
--quesadilla (gobbled it up)
--strawberry smoothie (first time trying a smoothie: he liked it but pronounced it too cold-->he'll be back to lemonade next time).
Overall, a perfect toddler option. Assuming no one gets sick (see some other yelpers :)), we'll be back
Oh, and we hit Viva Pops again this weekend (so hot!). Foodgirl likes to try something different every time; ST likes always strawberry, but they were out of it.
So ST got blueberry-lemonade-mint, and his Mom got Earl Grey (bergamot on a popsicle - YESSSSS!). We were both happy campers.
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Escondido Children's Museum
Not a food post (we ate at home :)) - just a note that the Escondido Children's Museum is awesome! Never had been before, and ST happily spent 2 hrs. there.
Friday, January 7, 2011
Fabrison's Crepe Cafe (Little Italy): Mmmm....buckwheat!
Have been working too hard even over the holidays....Needed to get up from the computer and have a yummy outing! There are lots of new crepe cafes in San Diego lately, some claiming to have real crepes with buckwheat.
And those who know me know: I am all about the buckwheat!!
Tried Fabrison's Crepe Cafe today on India Street at the very start of Little Italy (Ash St.). SUPER-YUM! Outstanding buckwheat crepe made with swiss, egg whites, and mushroom, just as I ordered it, with a oil-free roasted red pepper sauce on the side (and some harissa on the side for good measure). The crepe and the two sauces were outstanding, as was the delectably French-vinagrietted side salad (ate it all up...).
True: I was slightly hungry when I finished, but that's b/c I was very hungry before and I didn't order a dessert crepe.
But I'll definitely designate it as a spot for meetings friends who live south.
MMMM.....BUCKWHEAT!!!!
And those who know me know: I am all about the buckwheat!!
Tried Fabrison's Crepe Cafe today on India Street at the very start of Little Italy (Ash St.). SUPER-YUM! Outstanding buckwheat crepe made with swiss, egg whites, and mushroom, just as I ordered it, with a oil-free roasted red pepper sauce on the side (and some harissa on the side for good measure). The crepe and the two sauces were outstanding, as was the delectably French-vinagrietted side salad (ate it all up...).
True: I was slightly hungry when I finished, but that's b/c I was very hungry before and I didn't order a dessert crepe.
But I'll definitely designate it as a spot for meetings friends who live south.
MMMM.....BUCKWHEAT!!!!
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
MIHO Gastrotruck!! (roving, SV, CV)
New Year....New place to try!
Finally got to the MIHO Gastrotruck (http://www.mihogastrotruck.com/) on a day they were in Sorrento Valley (5600 Oberlin, not 5500 Oberlin as is posted :( ).
SO YUMMY!
Got local spinach-mushroom-goat cheese tart with broccoli soup. Tart: YUM!!! Soup: a little peppery but otherwise very yummy.
THEY WILL BE COMING TO HIGH BLUFF in Carmel Valley starting next Wed. Yumm!!!
Menu changes every week...can't wait to try them again!
Finally got to the MIHO Gastrotruck (http://www.mihogastrotruck.com/) on a day they were in Sorrento Valley (5600 Oberlin, not 5500 Oberlin as is posted :( ).
SO YUMMY!
Got local spinach-mushroom-goat cheese tart with broccoli soup. Tart: YUM!!! Soup: a little peppery but otherwise very yummy.
THEY WILL BE COMING TO HIGH BLUFF in Carmel Valley starting next Wed. Yumm!!!
Menu changes every week...can't wait to try them again!
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Return visits: Searsucker and Cafe 56
Which two restaurants do not belong in the same sentence: that's right, Searsucker and Cafe 56!
But both serve their purpose in their own way so each merited a revisit.
Searsucker: Still my fave restaurant in SD. A 3rd visit in early December only confirmed this. Went dressed to the nines before the office party - usually I go cazh' there. You can dress however you want there - and still have an awesome time and an awesome meal. Wine was outstanding, tried a new side (curried cauliflower - stunning). Love love love Searsucker for date night.
Cafe 56: Our second visit with Toddler. Not gourmet, but the best equivalent here of a Jersey diner. CBS news on the TV, Jackson Browne and Christopher Cross on the radio...big menu, and the food is actually good diner food. Last time I got mahi tacos, which were good. Today I got a very yummy veggie burger with fresh grilled mushrooms. ST enjoyed his pancakes and eggs (really good eggs) plus chocolate milk and fruit. Not a must-drive-to place, but very casual, good, chill, convenient place to take ST. A whole lot more homey and less-chainlike than Coco's!
But both serve their purpose in their own way so each merited a revisit.
Searsucker: Still my fave restaurant in SD. A 3rd visit in early December only confirmed this. Went dressed to the nines before the office party - usually I go cazh' there. You can dress however you want there - and still have an awesome time and an awesome meal. Wine was outstanding, tried a new side (curried cauliflower - stunning). Love love love Searsucker for date night.
Cafe 56: Our second visit with Toddler. Not gourmet, but the best equivalent here of a Jersey diner. CBS news on the TV, Jackson Browne and Christopher Cross on the radio...big menu, and the food is actually good diner food. Last time I got mahi tacos, which were good. Today I got a very yummy veggie burger with fresh grilled mushrooms. ST enjoyed his pancakes and eggs (really good eggs) plus chocolate milk and fruit. Not a must-drive-to place, but very casual, good, chill, convenient place to take ST. A whole lot more homey and less-chainlike than Coco's!
Saturday, January 1, 2011
San Diego Museum of Art Sculpture Garden Cafe by Giuseppe (Balboa Park)
Quick note: the SDMA Sculpture Garden Cafe, which used to be run by Waters, got taken over by Giuseppe Catering a little while ago. He's the guy that also does the La Jolla MCA cafe. LOVE the venue, used to be one of my fave places to take out of towners or get away myself....gorgeous art + Waters food. Took me a while to try it once the new guy came.
Took Mom during the holidays. Mom thought it was even better than Waters (oh no you didn't, Mom!). I wouldn't go that far, but it was fine. The venue is still the same. We customized a chicken + carmelized onion + roasted pepper + swiss sandwich to one with portabella instead of chicken. Was tasty. Excellent salad came with it. Service was slow, but they have a takeout counter where you get a more limited menu but can order and sit right down.
Would be toddler friendly if you order at grab n go counter. Same view.
Took Mom during the holidays. Mom thought it was even better than Waters (oh no you didn't, Mom!). I wouldn't go that far, but it was fine. The venue is still the same. We customized a chicken + carmelized onion + roasted pepper + swiss sandwich to one with portabella instead of chicken. Was tasty. Excellent salad came with it. Service was slow, but they have a takeout counter where you get a more limited menu but can order and sit right down.
Would be toddler friendly if you order at grab n go counter. Same view.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)