Lark Creek, Walnut Creek

5/6/14

After finding our intended lunch destination with it's lights off, my husband and his parents and I found ourselves inside Lark Creek.  I believe my last time dining in here was on my 21st bday (over a decade ago), and I remember lunching on their nice patio out front.

My husband walked in first this afternoon, and a party of four whom we held the door for followed behind him.  Even though the hostess greeted my husband first and saw him enter first, she sat the other party first. We had absolutely no idea why, but perhaps because we were still walking in and not at his side (?)

A black napkin was offered to my husband to match his pants.  Very nice.  Water took forever to arrive but refills were prompt.  Bread was delicious but the single tablespoon of butter wasn't nearly enough for the five rolls. We let our waitress know we had under an hour to eat and she was great about quickly getting out the salad with dad's meal and passing our message along to the kitchen.

Mom's mussel appetizer was spicy and had chorizo bits in it.  The chorizo was a little tough but absolutely delicious. Lots of garlic in her broth which she used the final roll to soak up.  Husband ordered the small meatloaf plate ($14). Perfectly cooked meatloaf (I didn't try any but he said it was great), mashed potatoes, and large asparagus (which I did try and really enjoyed).  I had the large baby kale salad ($10) and was so happy I asked for croutons. They were my favorite part of it, but the lemon dressing and goat cheese crumbles were nice too.

Plates were cleared immediately and check was brought while we were still dining which we really appreciated since we were on the tight schedule (she asked first if we'd like our check with our food - very thoughtful).

Great family lunch date, aside from the hostess blunder.

Dos Gatos Gallery, Benicia

5/10/14

This tiny gallery has a one room show room featuring less than a handful of different artists. The paintings on display today were mostly of large, exotic animals like lions and zebras. Some wonderful pictures of underwater turtles also caught our eyes. Great little art gallery. Only wish it were bigger.

Open on some Saturdays and also by appointment. Wine offered to guests visiting today :) but we politely declined the offer. Only one person working and we were a little bit disappointed that she wasn't able to answer a simple question about one of the pieces, since there were so few on display. We couldn't tell if it was a print with a painting on top, and she didn't know either?! ...Time for her to call the artist.

See's Candy, Pleasant Hill

5/11/14

I received a one pound gift certificate as a gift recently. I convinced my husband we should stop on mother's Day to get his mother a half pound :)  (leaving a half pound for me, of course).

Lucky for us they were open and the line wasn't too long. Knowing what I wanted I hopped in line. Karissa helped us and was as sweet as the samples she was serving. Thank goodness I asked for a sample of my favorite, because I had the name wrong!!! I would've ordered a quarter pound of the wrong candy.

We ordered a half pound box of molasses chips for mom, then Casey and I split a half. Butterscotch Squares for me (not to be confused with butterscotch chews, which have caramel instead of brown sugar), and more molasses chips for Casey's half (quarter pound).

Our total with the voucher came to $1.80. Karissa even complied with our request, and signed mom's box "Love, K", so we would know which one was hers. So cute!

The Rellik Tavern, Benicia

5/11/14

Another cute little bar, nestled on what we consider the outskirt of the main street (first street) in downtown Benicia.

You can walk up and down First St. several times and always find somewhere new to stop for a drink or to browse collectibles and vintage goods. This town is full of cute shops and pubs.

Our first time in Rellik was with a group of yelpers exploring downtown Benicia. We settled into a reserved room at the end of the bar late in the afternoon. Comfortable seating on small couches and chairs circled the room, which also held two TVs and a couple of tables. By request, we had baseball playing on both TVs, though they were muted and music played instead (which was nice).

The tables quickly filled up with cheese plates, delicious rosemary crackers, and two types of pizza. The Margherita I tried was awesome. Blue cheese from the cheese plate was my favorite also. And yummy, thin apple slices.

Both drinks we had were alright. The bloody Mary mix was a little boring, even with the bottle of Tobasco I was handed on the side. This is the first time I've ordered a spicy drink for $7 and been asked to finish making it myself. The$5 vodka cran was a better deal and I didn't have to add anything for myself on the bartender's behalf. Note: they use Skyy vodka for their well vodka, which is actually common in Benicia.

We'd definitely stop back in here for another yummy pizza and would recommend the place to any friends walking around this lovely town.

Subway, Bay Point

5/14/14

I walked in to this new Subway on Port Chicago and was happy that it was so cool inside.  Ceiling fans were running and circulating cool air, a refreshing break from the outside heat.  The sun was just about to set and it was hot out! This location is pretty small but perhaps they don't get a lot of foot traffic.  It is close to Willow Pass Rd and not far off the freeway, at the Hwy 4 San Marcos exit.

The place was really clean and the guy working the counter greeted me right away.  Several tales for dining in and they were all clean - no crumbs or trash on the floor either.  The employee told me they only opened three months ago.  The girl working (zayra) was super sweet also.  Friendly smiles from both of them - a great start to my Subway experience.

I love their fresh veggies and they had plenty stocked here.  Smaller store size didn't equal smaller selection.  Lots of sandwich choices to choose from.  If you're a Subway sandwich fan, this little store will make you happy.  Come check them out!

CreateMyWalls, Miami, FL

5/15/14

I bought the Amazon deal for a 16x20 acrylic print for $28 with free shipping.  It's now the prettiest piece of art on any of the walls in my home, and we have lots of canvas and metal picture memories!  We have snowboarding trips, hiking trip, and on the acrylic print, we are in a beautiful rose garden.

It took a while (as I expected since over 5,000 were sold!!!) and my only complaint was that they didn't respond to my email when I received a tracking number that was invalid.  But my package finally arrived in a very safe shipping box.

A couple co-workers asked if they could take a picture...of my picture!! It is so pretty, and I can't wait for them to post another online deal. I'd buy again in a heart beat.  I love my canvas and metal prints, but I'll only buy acrylic from now on.

Shoyu Ramen (packaged noodle soup ~ a guilty pleasure)

I admit it.  I have some horribly bad habits.

 

For example:

1) I don't like folding clothes after I wash laundry and I'm in the habit of just leaving clean piles on our guest bed. (Socks especially)
 

2) Potty mouth! From time to time I notice a significant increase in the bad words I let sneak into everyday conversations.  (But as soon as I notice, I do make a real effort to watch what comes out of my mouth.)

 

3) I, however, don't make as much of an effort to watch what goes in.  I love, love, LOVE me canned or packaged soups. I thought that the saltwater, oddly colored meat chunks, and noodle combination that is Campbell's Chicken Noodle Soup was the highest of any sodium content I'd ever seen (2,225 mg/can), until I discovered Shoyu Ramen (2,360 mg/package).



Shoyu Ramen, Soy Sauce Flavor

I first found Shoyu Ramen at Diablo Oriental Foods in Walnut Creek.  I usually go into the store for spices, quail eggs, mushrooms, fresh shishito peppers, seaweed salad, or canned fish.  They also have sashimi grade fresh fish, and I'll buy it to eat raw or roll into homemade sushi. Sometimes I get dried seaweed or other crunchy snacks. A week ago I checked out their soups.  I saw the "non-fried" highlight on the packaging of Shoyu, the price was right, and they had lots of varieties, including miso, soy sauce, spicy, and others, so I bought one of each flavor! 



Most of the bag eaten raw

Cooked soup with spinach, peas & tomato

If you like noodle soups, but are stuck at your desk working, these packages are great! (Great tasting, not great for you). Hot water is all you need, though I enjoy adding frozen peas and/or spinach, and a fresh veggie, like tomatoes or carrots.  I add hot sauce to everything so if I don't have a fresh pepper to cut up, a couple shakes of hot sauce go in also! A squeeze of lime is also nice (inspired by the Pho noodle place next door).  The non-fried noodles of this brand aren't quite as hard as the Cup O'Noodle or Top Ramen brands so I like eating the raw noodles by themselves too (don't tell my dentist!)

I try to balance out all the bad habits with lots of good ones too.  I remember to smile often, look people in the eye, and give sincere compliments.  I feel like being kind to others is as good for the heart as consuming 98% of your daily sodium intake in one meal is bad.  So it all kind of balances out.  (Or so I tell myself).

 

I guess I can  add another bad habit to my list:

4) Lying to myself to justify eating gross food when I know my body deserves better

I can't help it. I LOVE salty soup.

Come to mama!