I’m a Cow, Hear Me Moo

August 19, 2009

A friend I know likes to call herself “cao”, as in “cow”. Well, today I feel like a cow. Apparently happy cows produce really good meat…so if you butcher me right now, my meat will be nice and succulent, because hell yeah I’m a big fat happy cow right now!

Both my parents and I woke up pretty late after our long day yesterday, and by the time we were ready to set out on the happy search for breakfast, it was already late morning. We wanted someplace cheap and fast, so um…where else is cheaper and faster than McDonald’s?

Don’t judge— McDonald’s breakfast is pretty good! I was craving some good hotcakes, but to my utter disappointment, breakfast had just ended when we reached McDonald’s. So we had to settle for the boring old lunch menu…boo!

I got my first McDonald’s sandwich in about 4 years:
A grilled Classic Chicken Sandwich. No need to explain what it is, as I’m sure everybody knows what it is.

Then we were off to one of my most favorite place in the world:
Ikea! Oh, happy shopping! This is so weird…but I get so bored shopping in clothing department stores, but I’m like an Energizer Bunny when it comes to kitchen appliances and utensils and silverware. If I ever get my own apartment, you can bet my kitchen will be the biggest, most glamorous and well-stocked room!

But shopping is hard work, especially when you’re trying soooo hard to resist the temptation of buying the whole store! Yes, I seriously think it takes a lot of brain energy to fight against the Ikea Devil. So I refreshed myself with a vanilla frozen yogurt from the Ikea Bistro:
Of course, this time I was mentally prepared: $1 froyo is NOT real froyo. So I wasn’t surprised that it tasted more like McDonald’s soft-serve than the tangy froyo I love. It still hit the spot, though! I sure was renewed with energy!

Which was a good thing because right after our shopping, we set off for a long drive to the Santa Monica Beach!
This place is perfect for people-watching! It was really windy and rather chilly, so we didn’t do any swimming and stuff, but just walked around the pier and observed all fun that was going on around us. Let me just give you a virtual tour:

There’s a small amusement park complete with bumper cars, mini roller-coaster, arcades, and etc:
And freaking amazing artists molding a 3-D bust of your face:
Another mad-talented artist sweeping paint colors with his thumb to create a gorgeous landscape picture:
Sort of bungee jumping (Wheee~):
Some guy twirling around inside a hoop:

A girl “surfing” on a skateboard:
Even trapeze lessons!
Of course the great scenery of the lovely beach itself!
Mid-day we got kind of hungry, but it was way too early for dinner, so we grabbed a quick snack…The most expensive Taco Bell meal (damn tax!):
Soft tacos with tons of hot sauce!! Goodness, we’re on a fast food roll!

But thankfully, the fast food adventure came to an end when it came to dinner. Actually, we were gonna stop by a fast food place again, but my dad took the wrong turn and we ended up in this fantastic place:
e="IMG_0230" style="display:block;float:none;border-width:0;margin:20px auto;" height="320" alt="IMG_0230" src="http://burpandslurp.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/img_0230_thumb.jpg" width="245" border="0" /> Anybody been to The Grove? It is a shopping and entertainment complex in LA that is centered on a landscaped park and a dancing fountain.
It is crowded, lit with pretty lights and fashioned like an old-fashioned downtown. Oh, yes, it was a small heaven to which God sent us.
So of course we had to listen to God and eat some expensive dinner at a fancy place:
At Morels, a French Steakhouse and Bistro! (This is SO funny: I wasn’t gonna take a picture of my parents, but my dear daddy and mommy posed anyway, tee hee!)
And the fact that it actually had bright lights? Total God-send! Praise the Lord, Hallelujah!

The waiter immediately served us crunchy crostinis and crusty baguette:
I of course took charge of ordering. For my dad, I ordered the Seafood Fettuccine:
Daily fresh fish, clams, mussels, and shrimp in tomato concasse, basil and marinara sauce, made as spicy as possible
Holy freakuccine!! It was one fiery dish, and soo freaking delicious! The tomato was so fresh, the pasta cooked perfectly al dente, and the seafood juicy and flavorful! My dad took about 5 seconds to wolf this down, but I got to snatch a few big mouthfuls as much as I could.

For my mom, I ordered the Soup of the Day and a mesclun salad:
Cream of Spinach Soup with croutons. This was huge! And they served the soup in a hot saucepan which they poured into a gigantic dish (I forgot to take a picture of the salad but just imagine something green and leafy).

And also, a side of sweet potato fries:
Oh yes, oh yes! I shocked the hell out of my parents by shoving these into my mouth. Up till now, they have yet to see me eat deep-fried stuff, but I polished more than half of these off. Freaking yum!
It also came out with a tub of mayonnaise, but I actually preferred my fries dry:
And now the grand finale…The best of the dishes, the prime of tonight, the highlight of the entire day was my dish:
Alsatian Flatbread Pizza with Figs, Prosciutto, and Arugula: Mission figs, Pesto, Arugula, Emmenthal, Blue Cheese Crumbles
Okay, the description says it all. This was just…I thought I would die happy. There was angels singing in my ears, my tongue was in food-orgasm, and my butt was popping off the seat with gastronomic-joy. Holy. Freaking. Delicious!!!!!!
And if you can’t already tell from the picture, it was GIGANTIC! But the flavor was even bigger. The salty prosciutto, the bitter arugula, the sweet figs, the broiled cheese, the piquant pesto…
After our meal we were in total food coma. We had to drag ourselves out of the restaurant, and trudged around the Grove, enjoying the night scenery:
Beau
tiful, eh? But my eyes were too glazed and my body too heavy with food belly to enjoy it much.
We did stop by Forever 21 though, and while my mom and I racked through the clothes, my dad entertained himself by trying on some nice sunglasses:
But this was ~~his~~ my favorite:
HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! That sure made my day!

Okay, once again, I have to apologize for blabbing and sprouting incoherent sentences, but I’m drowsy with fatigue (the good kind!) and an immensely stuffed tummy. Ooh~ I don’t know how I’m gonna be able to eat anything again, thats for tomorrow’s worry.

Oh, by the way, tomorrow I’ll finally be moving in to my college apartment…Wish me luck! Next time I “see” you, I’ll be typing at my new desk in my new room! AHH! So excited!

'cuz burping and slurping is mandatory and polite when it comes to good eats

I’m a Cow, Hear Me Moo

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