“Bar Hopping”

Today was a lot of driving from dealership to dealership.  We also moved all of my belongings out of San Francisco.  I’ll miss living in the city (and my roommate Nicole!) but the convenience of my new place will be 100% worth it!  I think the stress of transition is making me crave sugar hardcore.  I kept “bar hopping”, you know hopping from bar to bar in between big meals.  No idea how I was able to eat so much!

First, I hit up this (chocolate) bar and finished it off.

Then I was on to this bar: Gingersnap Larabar – I’ve never had this flavor but now it’s easily one of my faves.  It reminds me of Anna’s Cookies which I loved growing up!

And let’s not forget the bar that gave me a sugar crash today: The Chocolate Dipped Coconut Luna Bar.  It’s a healthified, glorified candy bar.  But then again, my mom used to call me the candy witch when I was little.  I hoarded and ate candy in an “Is my child normal?” type of way.  Now I only only hoard Lunas and Laras.

In between all that “bar hopping”, we ate Mexican at a highly yelp-ed Mountain View Taqueria.

We got chips, guacamole and two kinds of salsa.  My mom got a Shrimp quesadilla and a fish taco.   That quesadilla looks wimpy from a birds eye view, but it definitely delivered.

The fish tacos were good but not too flavorful.  They were pretty though!

My sauteed shrimp taco and fish taco.  I polished off my plate and then ate half of my mom’s quesadilla 🙂 She’s not a big eater like myself.

Sauteed Shrimp Taco close-up

Let’s not forget the Indian.  We popped into Amber Cafe, the more casual sister restaurant to the fancier Amber (in San Francisco and San Jose).  I love Southern Indian food because they have more Gluten-Free Carb options.  I usually get Idli to start (Rice + Lentil patties) but I wanted something snackier to dip in the complimentary sweet tamarind and cilantro sauces.

My pappad (a.k.a. Pappadum) My mom  is more of a naan gal.  I would be too if naan didn’t have wheat.  I’ll stick to my fried lentil chips!

I ordered the Tandoori Salmon with Basmati Rice.  The salmon looks skimpy but they were actually huge pieces that were perfectly juicy, tender and charred on the outside.

My mom rolled with the Lamb Curry w/ Naan + Daal.  We ended up trading a little bit.  She gave me her daal, and I gave her my best smile.  Works for me 🙂

Tomorrow morning, we are going to tackle some more dealerships and have brunch with Matt’s family.  I’m so lucky to have my favorite people around me this weekend.

Do you go “bar hopping” sometimes too?  I try to avoid eating more than 1 bar a day (which is usually a late morning or late afternoon snack) because it’s so processed.  But, I do LOVE my bars.  During finals time in college, I would often camp out in Butler (our school’s library) with half a dozen Lara bars and a 4-pack of Sugarfree Redbull.  Kinda gross, I know! What can I say …Convenient energy sources can sometimes streamline studying.

What are your favorite dishes at Mexican and Indian restaurants? 

Mexican – seafood tacos (on corn tortillas), tamales!!!!, guacamole (obvi), crema fresca, roasted corn w/ cotija cheese + lime.  By the way, we called my dad tonight and he was his good friend Patty’s house for dinner.  If you’re in the NYC area, check out her restaurant Mexican Mama.  There are two locations.  Her mexican food was the only mexican that I grew up on.  Once I branched out, I realized that not all mexican is mouthwatering.  Mexican Mama ALWAYS is!!

Indian –  Idli, Dosas (thin crepe-like lentil wraps usually stuffed w/ potatoes etc.), Tandoori Salmon, Raita (yogurt sauce), Saag Paneer (sauteed spinach + paneer cheese).  Matt is an aloo gobi (cauliflower + potatoes) man.  My dad is all for lamb vindaloo.  My mom loves her curries.  And my brother always orders chicken tikka masala.  Our Fave Indian restaurants in NYC: our local shindig, Bombay Talkie and for more special occassions Tamarind