Mumm Napa

Visited Mumm Napa to taste some sparkling wine.

The view from the tasting room.

We each got a glass of different sparkling wine.

Out of the top 3 bottles, I really liked Blanc de Blanc (left).

The waiter was super generous and told us that he could pour us if there were any other wines we wanted to try. The bottle to the right, Cuvee M Red, is a sparkling red wine that I really enjoyed. It was very rich, fruity but not too sweet.

Opus Wine Estate

I don't think it's an overstatement to say that Opus One is one of the most famous wines from Napa Valley. I've had Opus One wine, many years ago, and remembered it being really great wine. Because I had never been to the winery (both my mom and sister had) we decided to stop by for a tasting.

Beautiful architecture.

Nice view.

Tasting for the 2006 and 2007 wines.

We ordered one glass of each ('06 and '07) and sat out on their upstairs deck to enjoy the view.

I was disappointed.

The tastings were very unpersonal, the tasting room was so plain with no character and the glasses were dinky (I expected Cab glasses atleast). And for $30/glass I just thought it wasn't worth it. AT ALL. Opus One now runs $200+ per bottle and I wasn't impressed with how it tasted either. Maybe my palette for wine has grown over the past couple of years, or simply because I've had much, MUCH greater wines more reasonably priced. The only good thing is that now, I can now say that I've been before. Probably my last though.

Anchor & Hope

We stayed in San Francisco the first night. There are tons of excellent restaurants in SF so it's hard to choose when you only have one dinner there. We all agreed on Anchor & Hope after having a great dinner there last year. We randomly found this restaurant hidden in a small ally in the financial district, on our way to a different place to eat. This place has great tapas-sized seafood dishes, a decent beer and wine list and was definitely a great find!

Exterior.

Bar Area. It's a pretty large restaurant and it's always packed.

Dining area.

Nice, chilled beer after a long drive. Cheers!

Left: Littleneck Clams, Lemon Verbena Fumet

Right: Sizzling Garlic Shrimp, Chile de Arbol & Parsley

Crispy Squash Blossoms, Four Cheese Filling, Basil Pesto & Tomato Vinaigrette

Top Left: Charred Baby Octopus and Butter Bean Salad

Top Right: (Main dish) Idaho Trout on Smoked Potato Puree

Bottom Left: Zuckerman's Asparagus

Bottom Right: Roasted Baby Beets with Goat Cheese Fondue

I haven't had a dish here that was disappointing. The menu completely changed from our last visit, so everything we tried was new. I was so amazed with their Squid Ink Risotto last time and was kind of bummed that they didn't have it. But this time, the trout really left an impression, the meat was cooked perfectly (SO moist) and had the perfect amount of sodium. May have been one of the best trouts I've had, ever.  

Road Trip up North

Haven't updated in a while...

Last weekend we took a road trip up to San Francisco and Napa Valley. I have a lot to update on!

Gorgeous blue skies.

Crossing the Bay Bridge to SF.

Vineyards in Napa.

Vancouver Scenery

Random shots around Vancouver.

Granville Island, English Bay, West End, China Town & Gas Town. The last photo is Brixton Caffe in China Town.

Vancouver Eats

I love yogurt. Out of all the yogurts I've ever had, Liberte tops them all. I usually prefer plain yogurt, but this mango-apricot flavor is amazing.

I have yet to see this in stores around here though.. boo.

Oyama Sausage Co. inside Graville Island.

Pate, salumi, proscuitto, cheese, sausages, they have everything deli!

A bit cruel...

Bought some pate and salumi to snack on in the hotel. Yum.

Fresh berries at Granville Island Public Market.

Terra Breads to pick up my favorite...

Blueberry White Chocolate Bread.

More like a sweet focaccia, the tartness of the blueberries and the sweetness of the white chocolate (baked in the dough) is so good. This is a must for me when in Vancouver. We were lucky this day because these came right out of the oven, just in time for an afternoon snack.

Beers inside the bar of Dockside Seafood Restaurant. The beers are brewed in-house. The view from the bar/restaurant is incredible and they have a beautiful patio area if the weather is nice. 

Good coffee/espresso at Trees Organic.

 The muffins (we ordered a cranberry bran) were also very good.

Phnom Penh

While browsing through lists of restaurants in Vancouver, Phnom Penh was literally #1 in every Southeast Asian, affordable and casual restaurant ranking. I thought it would be more Vietnamese , but it's actually more Cambodian style dishes. 

We went here on a rainy day. It's located on a street with nothing so it was a bit hard to find. Once we found it and stepped inside, there were already tons of people waiting.

Lots of awards on the wall. I was excited when I saw that Anthony Bourdain had eaten here.

Super casual interior.

"Butter Beef"

There is no butter used and the reason why they call it this is because the beef melts in your mouth like butter. It was basically beef carpaccio, and it wasn't as heavy as it looks and the acidic sauce was quite refreshing. Everyone wrote about this in reviews, so we gave it a try.

I also read about this "Cambodian Style Chicken Wings" (we got the 1/2 order) in a lot of reviews and seriously, about 95% of the tables order them. The wings are already flavored but tastes even better when you dip it in the lemony, peppery sweet sauce.

We also shared this bowl of Cambodian style rice noodles, which was super yum. This was my favorite.

Vij's

Before our trip to Vancouver, my mom was talking about Vij's, an Indian restaurant that she wanted to try. She read on a blog that there would be a line far before opening at 5:30PM.

The day we got there, we dropped our stuff off at the hotel, picked up some coffee and headed to the restaurant a little before 5 to find ourselves 2nd in line. We were chatting with a local couple saying that it was a little slower than usual because of the Cannucks' playoff game.

The line around 5:15ish. People just kept coming and coming.

Interior.

We were seated right after they promptly opened at 5:30PM.

Cute elephant lights on the wall.

Chickpeas in Star Anise and Date Masala on Grilled Kale.

Jackfruit in Black Cardamom and Cumin Curry.

Never had jackfruit in a dish before, and it was interesting. It had a texture similar to bamboo shoots and artichoke but had no flavor so it sucked in all of the spices.

Garam Masala sauteed Portobello Mushrooms in Porcini Cream Curry.

Wine-marinated Lamb Popsicles in Fenugreek Cream Curry on Tumeric and Spinach Potatoes.

This seems like their signature dish and did not disappoint. The lamb was so tender and full of flavor and went perfectly with the creamy sauce.

After our meal, I looked up the restaurant and found that it was quite famous. The food was delicious (of course), and their all-women kitchen staff uses very unique ingredients and blends of spices. But I think what makes this restaurant so appealing to make people want to wait for hours is their impeccable service. Soon after we sat down, they brought us homemade Chai Tea which was perfect, especially after the cold wait outside. Then while we browsed the menu and waited for our drinks, they brought small Indian hors d'oeuvres to munch on. Throughout our meal, they brought out about 4 or 5 different ones. That little thought makes for such a pleasant dining experience.