Vegas

I've been absent from blogging for a few weeks now and can't believe it's already March. So far, 2013 is racing by and I can't find the "Pause" button. Here are some photos from an amazing weekend in Las Vegas with Emily and my parents, eating delicious food and seeing some very interesting (sometimes beautiful, sometimes sketchy) sites.

View from the plane - hello, desert

Playin the slots like a champ

Red Rock Canyon hike

Smokey Robinson and some Aussies

Red Rock Canyon

Branzino crusted in sea salt at Milos

  

Carving the fish

Happy birthday, Mom!

Happy (noseless) Emily

The fish is flown in fresh every day

Rock Shrimp at Sushi Samba

Sea bass (wish I had a better picture) and steak with mushroom curry 

Sushiiiii

Tuna tacos and little dumplings with pumpkin

If only the country were smooshed together and I could visit her every weekend. Love you, Em!

Homemade Thai

On Friday night, Rob and I were hankering for some ethnic food. After some lengthy deliberation, we settled on Thai. After a quick glance through the pantry, we realized we could easily whip something up with what we had instead of spending money on take out. Dinner turned out pretty delicious (especially the chicken), so here's the recipe!

Thai Curry Chicken with Coconut Rice and Brussels Sprouts

Rice:

1 cup of rice (I used sushi rice but you can probably use any kind)
1 1/2 cups of coconut milk
1 Tbsp. of red curry paste
Salt and pepper

Rinse the sushi rice many times in water, swirling it with your fingers. Put the rice in a pot and add the coconut milk. Bring to a boil, then reduce to low heat. Cover and cook for ten minutes. Remove the cover, add the curry, and keep at a low heat for another ten minutes.


Chicken:

Chicken breasts (I used leftover rotisserie chicken which was perfect and easy)
2 Tbsp red curry paste
1 Tbsp powdered ginger
Salt and pepper
Coconut oil
Onion
Spinach
1/3 - 1/2 cup coconut milk
Lime

Sautee the vegetables in coconut oil and ginger. Add the chicken, coconut milk, and curry. Stir together until well combined and the flavors have settled (5-10 minutes). Squeeze lime juice over the food.

Brussels Sprouts:

B Sprouts
Ginger
Salt and pepper
Coconut oil
1 clove of garlic

Sautee the brussel sprouts in coconut oil and garlic. Add the ginger and cook until browned.

Enjoy!!!

Happy birthday, Robble Gobble!

Happy birthday to the greatest guy I know! 

 

Birthday scotch and cigars

 

"Coco Loco" Duck Mole @ 5Church

Brett and his Proscuitto-wrapped NC Trout @ 5Church

Birthday S'mores @ 5Church

The boys eating all the dessert

Happppppppppy happy birthday! 

I hope 24 is your best year yet! 

Weekend in Atlanta

This weekend, I went to Atlanta for the first time. Rob has training there for ten days which means I got to visit a new city without having to pay for a hotel room! I've wanted to check out Atlanta for a while now and am so glad I finally went. The city is way bigger than I had expected and full of all sorts of people. We had some amazing meals (most notably at 246 in Decatur, Fritti in Innman Park, and Highland Bakery), saw a hilarious improv show at Dad's Garage, and explored the city. I really, really loved everything I saw (and ate) and hope to go back and visit again soon!

Mural in Decatur (there are TONS of murals everywhere!)

Massive salami sandwich and pile of fries at 246

Most amazing bok choy I've ever had, plus two toasts with ricotta and veggies @ 246

Carmelized onion, pancetta and hot pepper pizza + arugula and proscuitto pizza @ Fritti

Corn-cilantro cakes with black beans, fried eggs, and queso fresco @ Highland Bakery (huge portion!)

Fried Chicken Benedict and amazing home fries @ Highland Bakery

Vietnam Grill

On Friday night, Rob, Brett, Blanchard and I to Vietnam Grill, an unassuming spot way down South Boulevard, to try some pho. I've been wanting to try pho for a long time, Brett has been begging for a pho date, and the stars aligned on Friday. I obviously did a lot of research before dinner. I'd never had Vietnamese before and wanted to get something authentic. Rob and I ended up "splitting" a bowl of pho with skirt steak and brisket, and their house special "bun" (basically just vermicelli with some meatballs, egg rolls, and chicken). By splitting, I mean we traded bites. When Rob and I plan to split something but he likes his more than mine, we never actually split. Lucky for him, I wasn't too hungry and the spicy pho filled me up enough, but next time...he betta watch out.

The pho comes with a plate of bean sprouts, basil leaves, lime, and jalapeno. There are also a bunch of sauces on the table (Sriracha, hoisin sauce, fish sauce, and a house-made chili sauce). I followed Brett's lead since he was the pho expert at the table and dug in. All in all, tasty and velvety, but almost too much so. The heat made my throat kind of scratchy (is that normal, pho people?) but I'm glad we tried it.

We got ice cream cones at a drive-through after to cool off our burning throats, and Rob and I ended the evening watching Source Code with a fire in the fireplace. Pretty pho-nomenal Friday night.

Bites Around the World: Korea

On Monday night, 11 of my co-workers and I headed to Cho Won Garden, one of the only Korean restaurants in Charlotte. Paul, an analyst from Korea, claims that this restaurant is pretty authentic (although it doesn't compare to the Korean food you can get in bigger cities like NYC) and took over ordering for the whole table. If I've ever had Korean food before, I was too young to remember what it was like, so this was a first experience for me.  It was a feast.

The waiter first brought out eight dishes for each section of the table. This really reminded me of eating at Arab restaurants in Israel, where the waiters bring our eight or twelve dishes full of vegetables and spreads right when you sit down. From the top right: bean sprouts, radishes in a spicy sauce, mixed vegetable kim chi, "egg pudding" (basically tasted like hard boiled egg white), seaweed with spicy sauce, beans, sweet potatoes in honey and sesame seeds (delish), and kim chi.

The waiter then brought out a big plate of clear, glass-like noodles stir-fried with vegetables and shaved beef. This was one of the best dishes (that's Adam going for seconds or thirds).

Next were the soups: spicy bean paste soup on the left and bean curd and seafood on the right. I loved the bean paste soup - it was salty and spicy and really, really good.

Some kind of spicy octopus and cabbage dish that came out steaming and sizzling like a plate of fajitas.

This is the "pancake" - kind of reminded me of a Chinese scallion pancake, but this had octopus in it. Also very good!

 
 

There's more...the waiter then brought out Korean BBQ (below) and Korean pork. Both were super yummy. Paul told us to make lettuce wraps and add the sauce at the bottom of the picture below:

This was legit SO much food, but we did a pretty good job clearing the plates. I'd definitely like to try Korean again sometime!