Quick Update & Philz Obsession

Hello Everyone! Sorry for the haitus. I recently had a lot on my plate. Finding time to blog and try out new recipes between school, serving in ministry, and volunteering is so hectic! But no worries. I am going to get back on this blog asap!

What I wanted to quickly post about…was my current obsession. Well, it has been an obsession ever since I started college. What am I talking about…for those who know me…you know what I’m going to say. PHILZ. mmmmmmhm.

I am at this very moment, sitting in Philz enjoying my favorite combination…
an Iced Coffee with a Almond Croissant.

The Almond Croissant:
I swear. There is something about their almond croissant. It seems to match perfectly with any coffee hot or cold. It’s the prefect size, it’s not like those huge costco croissants. It’s flaky on the outside & filled with slightly sweetened almond meal. So many almond croissants these days have like…a sprinkling of almonds. How disappointing. I have been craving their almond croissants almost everyday…but I only allow myself once a week if even that. Mmm…if butter wasn’t an issue, I’d be snacking on these all day.

The Coffee:
So…I know I said I was going to go on a tasting adventure and try every Philz, but lately, I have just been craving specific favorites. This week I have been cycling through the Mint Mojito & their Iced Ecstatic. The weather has been dreary and rainy but oddly humid, which automatically makes me want iced drinks. Weird? Maybe it’s because humidity flashes me back to the sweaty days in Taiwan. 😛 If I’m craving a good cup of hot coffee, I still opt for the Philtered Soul. After trying a good amount of their regular blends, Philtered Soul still tops. There is ONE coffee, that I have tried and actually really disliked. I know it’s a favorite among some regulars at Philz…but I just…bleh. Philharmonic. 😐 To me…it seems to have a blend of licorice, chai spices, star anise, kinda flavor. It could be because I simply DESPISE licorice. But that’s the only coffee that I will never touch again. But to each their own right? It’s still fun to try it…who knows. It might be your favorite. (:

Next blog post will be dedicated to Summer Drinks. Be on the lookout. (:

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See you soon!

SoCal: Los Angeles & San Diego PT. 2

Happy Easter Everyone!! Here is part two of my foodie adventure down in SoCal! Enjoy (:

March 27th, 2012

Today was a day filled with deliciousness!! D & I began the day with brunch at BLD in Los Angeles. I can honestly tell you…this is one of my top favorite restaurants to go for breakfast/brunch. I ordered the Ricotta Blueberry Pancakes (which were featured on Food Networks ‘Best Thing I Ever Ate’) and a Bruleed Grapefruit which was absolutely delicious. D doesn’t like grapefruits…but he really enjoyed the bruleed grapefruit…which says a lot! (: D ordered the eggs benedict…*my order was better* hehehehe…

After a nice brunch, we headed down to Beverly Center to do some shopping! We also walked around Rodeo Drive to kill some time before meeting one of my best friends from highschool. (: We stopped by Milk in West Hollywood. Their ice cream sandwiches aren’t your everyday ice cream sandwiches. Their famous ice cream is cleanly stacked between two french macarons! Delicious…but beware…their salted caramel is serious business. It’s pretty darn salty…

After Milk, we headed over to meet my friend at Shinsengumi, which is the rival of the famous Daikokuya. I honestly don’t remember what Daikokuya tasted like…all I remember is that it was pretty epic. At Shinsengumi you customize your own ramen. I love that. The noodles are different that what you expect, but I loved it!

We then headed to our last stop in LA before driving to San Diego at Syrup Desserts. I swear…if i lived in LA, I would make a trip to this place at least once a week or something. This was one of D’s favorites as well. They serve Liege Waffles, which are similar to belgium, but much denser and contain sugar crystals inside. It’s divine…they also have their own house-made ice cream to top it off.

You drooled didnt you? (:

March 28th, 2012

We headed off to SD for the rest of the week. We did not eat out as much in SD because we spent most of our time at the zoo. But one place i MUST mention is The Mission. This is the PERFECT place for breakfast. It is one of my all time favorite places. They have wonderful coffee & great food. Their coffee has all different kinds of twists, from Thai coffee to Mexican Mochas. They also make a pretty mean Mexican Hot Chocolate for those who don’t like coffee. Their Rosemary Potatoes and Rosemary Bread is to die for. The ambiance is super chill and a tad artsy. A MUST down in San Diego!!

Thank you for joining me today! I hope these two posts on SoCal can help aid you on your next trip down. (: I know there are definitely places I’m going to visit again next time I go down. The next post on Crackers&Brie will be a Recipe blog. Keep an eye out for it!!

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See you next time! (:

SoCal: Los Angeles & San Diego (PT. 1)

Hey guys! Man. It’s so challenging getting back into the groove of school…specially after an amazing trip to SoCal where all I did was eat food, shop, and look at cute animals at the zoo. It was a much needed break. This post can be a quick guide to give you ideas of where to eat and what to check out during YOUR trip to SoCal. (: Here are the highlights of my foodie adventure. (: Too much food, so little time. Hopefully i’ll continue my adventure sometime soon.

*ALL RESTAURANTS/NAME OF DISH WILL BE LISTED AS CAPTIONS TO THE PHOTO, just hover your mouse over the picture!*

Day 1: March 25th, 2012

8am: It’s time to start off our 6 hour drive down to LA…but not without a breakfast stop at Rose Donuts! I was feeling  boring…so I just got eggs and toast. But here is D’s breakfast burrito. SUPER affordable & delicious.

2pm: We arrived in socal…it was pouring. like waterfall crushing car kind of pouring. So…i treated D out to banana pudding at Magnolia’s. Seriously. Best banana pudding ever…and this is coming from a girl that doesn’t really appreciate bananas. I only like bananas in very specific foods…it’s weird. I’m picky. -_-

7pm: Our dinner plans were weird…so we decided to walk somewhere for dinner. We were staying around Melrose. So we went to Taste on Melrose. It was simplistic with a nice ambiance. The food was good but it wasn’t anything too special. If i had a choice to go back, I wouldn’t care for it. Although, I must say I really enjoyed the Kobe Beef Meatballs.

Ignore D’s wannabe gangster sign…-_-

Day 2: March 26,2012

12pm: Stopped by Mendocino Farms for lunch before heading to Santa Monica. Mendos is definitely one of my favorite places for lunch in LA. A MUST! It has fresh baked bread every morning and the sandwiches are phenomenal. D and I ordered the Lemongrass beef and the Kurobuta pork belly bahn mi. My 2 favorite sandwiches!

 We then headed over to do some shopping at Santa Monica. I think we shopped for…5 hours or something…my feet were killing me. A trenta passion tea lemonade from starbucks was the only thing that was sustaining us till dinner. Our dinner plans were at 8:30 so we headed over to the Rodeo Drive area to get ourselves some crepes at Harajuku Crepes.

We then ended up eating dinner at 9pm. Thank goodness we had crepes, I would have been super grumpy by now if I didn’t have food in my stomach. We had dinner at Animal, which is known for having…weird stuff. Another reason why I was happy to get crepes before was because…the portions served at Animal were…pretty dinky. D wasn’t too happy with that. Poor boy. x) Animal is on the pricey side…so beware. The menu looked promising, but once you see how much food you get for the price…you can decide if its worth it.

10:30pm: We decided to end the night with Diddy Riese. Personally, Diddy Riese is too sweet for me…I had to have D finish mine. The cookies were really good, but the ice cream in the middle was just your everyday Dreyer’s so…I didn’t care much for the ice cream at all.

This post is a LOT longer than  I expected so I will stop here and break my trip into 2 separate posts. Thank you for joining me on my foodie adventure (pt. 1)! I hope this helps YOUR next trip down to socal. 😉 Part 2 will be up soon! Enjoy!