Happy Monday! Holy crap I don’t even remember June ending and July beginning. This month’s Monthly Recap: June edition was difficult to put together… I was extremely busy and for the first time this year…my restaurant list is really unimpressive. I was discussing what led to my lack of restaurant visits and realized that I kicked ass on cooking at home in June. I decided to try my hand at the Tone It Up challenge (which I actually loved) and it really forced me to cook at home. I love to cook so this was not difficult and my bank account thanked me at the end of the month! I also had the opportunity to travel to Nashville for a wonderful bachelorette party. I cannot wait to go back and experience that beautiful city for everything else it has to offer. I am dying to try Slim & Husky’s, Henrietta Red, Henley, Butcher & Bee and City House.
| BOOKS |
We are switching it up this month – I actually got a couple of new cookbooks this month and wanted to share! I am a SUCKER for cookbooks – post coming on my favorites! In the meantime – I started keeping track of the books that I have read and some of my favorites I have owned for awhile and are now staples on my bookshelf. You can find my Reading List here!
- Spritz – this book goes over the in and outs, ups and downs and everything in-between when it comes to this Italian themed cocktail. Perfect for Summer as well as a display piece on your bar cart!
- Seasons by Donna Hay – Donna Hay’s books are pieces of art. The photographs and recipes make you want to get to work in the kitchen immediately. Her recipes are easy to follow and allow you to embrace the foods of whichever season you are currently in!
| WEEKEND ADVENTURES |
Hike to Mt. Tam – San Francisco has had beautiful weather which gets me so excited for the summer ahead. Zach and I decided to take a hike to the West Point Inn on Mt. Tam but we took a wrong turn and ended up on the east peak instead. It was a beautiful and tough hike – I can’t wait to (actually) hike to the Inn!
Oakland A’s Game – For Father’s Day we headed to the Oakland A’s vs. NY Yankees game! It was my first time at an Oakland A’s game in the Coliseum. It was a great time at the park but absolutely sweltering. Can’t wait to go back when it’s around 65/70 degrees instead of 98 in the shade!!
| RESTAURANTS |
- Chez Panisse – Berkeley | Pacific Northwest – For my one year anniversary of working at my job, my friends Scott and Michelle were kind enough to get us a gift card to Chez Panisse. I tried in vain to get a reservation for months and got to the point where I was like “seriously, just give me anytime that is available.” We drove to Berkeley on a Tuesday and had the pleasure of getting to experience Alice Water’s cult favorite restaurant. There is one menu which changes every night, four courses plus a starter beverage and waitstaff who move around the dining room like a well-oiled machine. For the prix fixe menu of the night we got to enjoy: Warm spring vegetables with bagna cauda and marinated Monterey Bay anchovy crostini, Rosemary noodles with squid braised in the fireplace with red wine and leeks and a Ranch Llano Seco loin grilled with lemon and sage; with spring onions agrodolce, Morel mushroom gratin and tatsoi. The dessert course was a warm buckwheat crepe with vanilla ice cream and roasted Bing Cherries. Chez Panisse was incredible and well worth the wait – I can’t wait to return and try a new menu!
- Native Juice Co. – Financial District | Juice Shop – This lovely little juice shop is only of my top 5 picks for lunch downtown. You might have seen my Instagram’s about their avocado toast or their Lavender smoothie because I literally cannot get enough of this place. Tip: get there early – after about 12:05 the line is out the door and on to Sutter! They offer much more than just juice and one of my favorites (besides the smoothie and the avocado toast) is the ability to make your own salad and believe me, they make a MEAN salad. Order: Smooth Lavendator (no, I did not spell that wrong), Smashed Avocado Toast, You’ve got Kale Smoothie, Soba Salad or make-your-own salad! (You can’t go wrong here!)
- The Plant – Multiple Locations | Californian – This is a pretty basic choice to include here but they have their new Summer menu and I LOVE IT! I recently went to get my normal Acai Berry Protein shake but upon reading the new menu, immediately changed to their Souvlaki Salmon Bowl. The bowl includes grilled wild salmon, red pepper, zucchini, tomato, cucumber, olives, feta cheese, lemon, herbs, tzatziki sauce, fresh herbs and jasmine rice. It does run you $17.25 but totally worth it for a healthy splurge! (You can also get it and dissect it to remake at home!!)
- Souvla – Hayes Valley | Greek – I love this place. More often than not, if we are in a bind for dinner and decide to order something, Souvla usually ends up at the top of the list. If you are in San Francisco, Souvla is a must try! Order: Chicken Salad – this is not just any chicken salad – the flavor of the “spitfire” chicken is out of this world and has more depth in its flavor than any chicken I have had in a long time. Their side of pita, Granch (Greek yogurt ranch) dressing and honey drizzled frozen yogurt are perfect additions to the meal!
- Nashville Restaurants – See the list of restaurants from the Nashville Bachelorette Weekend Post!
| PODCASTS // SHOWS |
- The Eater Upsell – If I am listening to a podcast it usually has to do with crime or food so when I stumbled upon this one I got really excited. It has been around for a couple of years but I absolutely love its content. Who wouldn’t love a podcast who’s description is: “Smart talk and shameless gossip with the food world’s most interesting people“? Favorite Episodes: 5 – David Lebovitz, 10 – Gabrielle Hamilton, 28 – Anthony Bourdain, 50 – Ayesha Curry
- The Time Ferris Show – Tim Ferris is one of those people who I could listen to for hours on end…and lucky for me he has HOURS of podcast episodes. He covers basically every aspect of living and interviews some of the most interesting people you may or may not have heard of from athletes to venture capitalists to actors and everyone in between. Favorite Episodes: 242 – Phil Keoghan, 231 – Cheryl Strayed, 132 – Chris Sacca
- Masters of Scale – I got interested in Masters of Scale from Zach when we were on a road trip up the coast. Every episode is how someone took their basic ideas (like Facebook or Airbnb) and turned it into a massive success. I love the behind the scenes of these huge companies and hearing a more vulnerable side of the people behind the brand. Favorite Episodes: There are only 10 and I recommend them all but my favorites are – The Money Episode with Mariam Naficy & Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg.
*photos from iTunes
| JUNE QUOTE |
*Quote photo from Nordstrom website
*Post contains some affiliate links but as always all opinions are my own