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Am I a San Franciscan yet?

February 22, 2011 by 22 Comments
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I looked disaffected on the BART (public transport).

I braved a hippy-dippy grocery store where noses were turned up for me for buying the non-organic bananas.

I joined an overpriced, overcrowded gym full of yuppies and rude people.

I started a job at a tech company.

Am I a San Franciscan yet??

(Short answer: NO WAY.)

So, It’s only Tuesday and I feel like it’s Thursday night! This real world stuff will take some getting used to–nevermind that I also have to wake up at like, 5AM tomorrow (we’ll see if THAT happens) to run. I missed my first marathon training run today (GASP!) because I had enough to worry about with my first day of work and my first commute besides waking up like two hours earlier. I think (hope?) my body forgives me. I. Will. Run. Tomorrow. (If I write that on the blog, will it make it happen??)

So I really appreciated the fun comments I got on my first edition of Thailand Tuesday, but that (one-post-deep) series is temporarily suspended today because, as I risk falling asleep at the desk, I wanted to catch you guys up on my first few days of Life Part Two. Okay, so it’s probably actually like part seventeen and a half or something, but who’s really counting?

Speaking of catching up: I am behind on your blogs. Forgive me. I have to get through a few more days of adjusting to a new schedule and an eeon test or two and then I’ll get caught back up, I promise. :)

I moved down to Berkeley on Sunday night as I mentioned in my wordy and overly reflective post (per usual on this blog, right?) and then yesterday, my sister and I took a trip into the city to explore slash get me a little more acquainted.

We started off visiting an architectural site (read: a parking lot. This is what a pair of untrained eyes sees. My sister sees ART. Seriously.) so Caitlin could take pictures. She’s in a Masters’ program at Berkeley for Architecture and totally kicks ass at everything she does, even if my mother and I don’t understand one bit of it. After that, we checked out some apartments and got well acquainted with the bus system. Two dollars a ride adds up, man. Ouch. My wallet hurts.

We headed down to the Haight-Ashbury district to check out an apartment I’m hoping to beg my way into and grab some grub. We ended up going to a place called People’s Cafe where I somewhat blindly chose the vegetarian Huevos Rancheros. It hit the spot, but at that point of the day a large stack of low-quality napkins would have, too, so I can’t make any claims about the deliciousness of the food, but it was decent.

Why so hungry? Well, the cool thing about SF is that it’s really walkable in certain areas IF the weather cooperates and you have time (and comfy shoes). I wore a pedometer for the majority of the day just out of curiosity, and without making any strong effort to walk, we walked almost 23,000 steps (not counting the whole day, either.) I’m pretty sure that’s 11 or 12 miles. No matter which way you look at it, that “counts.” It was a nice day, so the walking was fun minus going DOWN stairs, when Sunday morning’s solo half-marathon came back to haunt me in my quads. Owieeee.

We took a nice long stroll through the Panhandle and then into Golden Gate Park. It was GORGEOUS. It was a Monday holiday and if I’d tried to count the runners, it would have been solidly in the three figures. (Note to self: live near Golden Gate Park.) We passed through some of the popular areas, including the Flower Conservatory, the Academy of Sciences, the de Young Museum, and the Japanese Tea garden (we could only look at some of the pagodas from over the fence, but hey, it’s all good.)

Walking PAST all of the attractions without going in and paying because most of them were closed and I’m poor? SF style, baby. Actually that’s a lie. Some people spend money here like nobody’s business.

We headed to the Richmond district for dinner, not until we’d stopped at Green Apple Bookstore and I bought a gently used copy of Cooking Light’s How to Cook Vegetarian for half-price. Then we waited outside in the cold (it’s allegedly going to SNOW in SF on Thursday… I’m skeptical… and hoping that’s a lie) to eat at one of the neighborhood’s most popular restaurants, Burma Superstar. It’s famous for its Tea Leaf Salad which has a ton of ingredients, the most famous being the fermented tea leaves allegedly from Burma.

I expected this to have a strong and bitter taste but it didn’t, I mostly just tasted the many varieties of nuts, but it was really good.

We also split potato curry, vegetable samousas, and coconut rice.Sorry for the gross pictures; it was dark and freezing in there. Not sure how the cold affects the photos, but just trust me.

I also got a Thai Iced Tea for old time’s sake. (Hey, does that count towards Thailand Tuesday??)

Today I woke up bright and early to take the train over to the city for work. It was a good day and I’m really excited about my job. Definitely going to be a challenge, but I’m looking forward to it.

I had Thai food for lunch. Okay, maybe it really is Thailand Tuesday. Unfortunately I didn’t take a picture of my tofu. Sorry I’m not sorry.

I didn’t get home til well after 8 (not cool!) because after commuting back I needed to grab some ingredients from the store which took way longer than expected. Thanks to Berkeley’s crazy traffic laws and signs and streets, I also probably committed a gross number of egregious violations just trying to buy some sugar. Praying no tickets arrive in the mail. Yikes.

I hope that the flourless peanut butter cookies I made taste decent.

My title of this post is a joke, but at the same time, it’s cool being super new to a place, and wondering how long it takes to “know” it. It’s a HUGE process, and it’s kind of daunting being new, but also exciting. Nailing down an apartment in a cool part of town will help let me put down roots. Some day, I’ll be a San Franciscan. A San Franciscoite. A Sanfranciscatonian. Or -torian. That might be my favorite.

Okay, after that sentence…it’s bed time.

I joined 24-Hour Fitness today, bought a coupon for two months of unlimited Bikram yoga for $40 (I already miss it after taking six classes last week!) and am supposedly training for a marathon–one full day of sitting on my butt is enough. Must run. But waking up in five hours… shoot me. We’ll just, um, see what happens.

Stay tuned for a giveaway tomorrow or Thursday at the latest!

What makes your city unique? What’s your favorite thing about where you live?

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    Five Faves Friday: Saturday Night Edition, SF Special

    January 30, 2011 by 24 Comments
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    Hellooooooo!

    So last week I wrote a post called Five Faves Friday which mentioned five things I’m liking, no real rhyme or reason behind it. Yesterday I wanted to write another Five Faves, but focus on San Francisco foodie spots, but, well, I was at a career fair all day yesterday and I was tired so I’m doing this on Saturday night instead. It’s already Sunday for some of the country. (Yes, my blog has new features with “friday” in the name that I publish on Sunday. That’s just how I roll.)

    Anyways.

    I got certified to be a Zumba instructor today! So I’m sweaty and tired but feeling great–the class was really awesome and I can’t wait to tell you guys more about it a little later. This is my third weekend in the SF area in the… five weeks and change I’ve been home, and despite the “I’m-unemployed-and-bleeding-money” aspect, I’m digging spending time over here. There were a few spots I’ve checked out recently that anyone passing through SF should definitely go to. Immediately.

    1. Tartine Bakery.

    The famous Tartine. Silly me, I showed up on a Saturday evening expecting to just grab a bite and lounge over a cup of coffee. That serene mental picture was quickly shattered when I arrived and found myself a place at the end of the line halfway down the block. Half an hour later, I walked out with a hug loaf of multi-grain bread and a couple of cookies. Serene, no. Worth it, heck to the yes.

    Pictures (especially bad pictures from my iPhone… this whole post… sorry!) do NOT do this bread justice. I was carrying it around the Mission District for a while in the bag that they gave it to me in (see under the bread, a heavy brown paper bag, pretty standard) BROKE. The bread broke its own bag. This thing could do some damage. But it is indeed delicious and Tartine is a must stop.

    2. Grub. I like any restaurant that A) is called grub and B) has a mac and cheese bar with gourmet ingredients. This isn’t even the whole list!

    Totally great menu options and very decent prices in a nice area in the mission. I love comfort food with gourmet add-ons, like the mac and cheese bar. They also had a veggie burger (still no meat for this one!) but it came with gruyere and truffle aioli. Not your average boring burger. Win.

    Note to self/audience: if attempting to dine out alone in SF on a Saturday night, come armed and dangerous (and by that I mean, “bring a book and have confidence to put up with the judgemental stares.”) Otherwise, deal with it as I did: walk into three restaurants determining which would be the “least awkward.” Try not to grimace when a hostess accidentally says “just one?”. Receive stares from girls next to you at the bar as if a leper just sat down in their laps–God forbid a normal woman could grab a quick bite by herself because her new iPhone is about as useful as a rock with the ridiculousness that is AT&T reception so she can’t get in touch with anyone. Then, when the waiter comes up to you to get your order, in your flustered state you succeed in mispronouncing the word “gruyere,” adding an “ee” sound on the end. Watch corner of snobby waiter’s mouth turn up as he says slowly, “sorry, I didn’t catch the name of the cheese you wanted.” FAIL.

    3. The Ferry Building Marketplace.

    I think a lot of food bloggers discovered the wonders of this place when they came to the Foodbuzz Festival. I haven’t been lucky enough to go to that festival yet, but I AM lucky enough to live close by. No pretty outdoor scenery pictures because the weather was poop when I arrived, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t enjoy the wonders inside.

    Bakeries.

    Cowgirl Creamery.

    Acme Bread Company pumpkin loaf.

    Gott’s diner.

    Delicia “Japanese with California ingredients.”–vegetarian bento box. I didn’t know what I was eating. I just knew it was good.

    Farm fresh produce right there in the market every day. And a crazy awesome farmers market every weekend! Probably even better than the Sacramento Farmers Market I just hit (which was pretty awesome). And let’s not forget…

    Far West Fungi. It gets no better than this, folks.

    I love this place (the ferry building, not just the fungi shop) and am coming back for a foodie fest in two weeks! Stay tuned.

    4. Pacific Catch.

    Anyone who really likes food porn–especially the written kind (??)–check out the menu on this website. OMG. This menu was bomb.com. Please forgive me for just using the phrase bomb.com. Twice.

    They have deals frequently where if you check in on yelp or foursquare you get free sweet potato fries. I would go anywhere for free sweet potato fries.

    The seared-rare ahi sandwich wasn’t free, it was pretty awesome. It was a little weird eating raw fish the next morning for breakfast, forever, but I don’t let leftovers go to waste.

    5. Cafe Intermezzo.

    Okay, it’s in Berkeley, but it’s close enough. I’m here tonight staying wth my lil sis, and we headed out to an awesome soup/sandwich/salad place known for its huge salads. I went up to the counter intending to order a half-soup (vegan chili) half-sandwich (honey peanut butter banana, which my sister did get)…

    …But then I saw someone with the veggie delight salad. Kidney beans, chickpeas, avo, hardboiled egg, sprouts, croutons, poppyseed dressing? Yes please.

    I ate until I was stuffed and still had this to bring home. A full salad. And I ate like someone who had just danced all day would eat. This thing could feed a family of horses.

    Ridiculous. Did I mention it was $6.50? I’m the cheapest person ever and even I think that’s awesome.

    So yeah.

    This has been a crazy weekend. Career fair in SF, Zumba instructor training… wow! I was going to do attempt #2 on running the golden gate bridge tomorrow (thanks for all your comments on the Marathon training joke post by the way!) but I don’t think the weather is cooperating with me. But it’s all good! I’m going to relax and try to get some stuff done.

    OH! Big news! Kind of. I just got 10 Bikram yoga classes for $15! I’ve never done Bikram and am kind of really scared of it, BUT I think I will feel good afterwards and hope it helps my running.

    Next week, stay tuned for some interesting posts (pescatarian project review, my new kitchen project, cooking in Thailand, and some other gems.)

    Have a great Sunday!

    Have you ever taken bikram? Ever gone to a restaurant by yourself for dinner? OR, have you been to any spot lately that’s worth a check-out?

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    Cookbook review and giveaway!

    January 14, 2011 by 65 Comments
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    Hey y’all!

    HAPPY FRIDAY! Hope everyone is having a wonderful day–I know I am! I dragged my little sister to a sweaty session of BodyAttack and Zumba this morning–we’re both on the couch recovering. Marathon training looms with a 5-miler on the schedule, but we’ll see about that–I’m hoping for a long afternoon of MarioKart on my horizon. Wii counts as exercise, I heard.) Oh, the joys of being (hopefully temporarily) unemployed!

    Right before I returned home to America, I was sent a copy of The Real Food Diet Cookbook by Dr. Josh Axe (great name, right?) to review on the blog (the book was sent to me, but all the comments here are my own). I finally had time to sit down and review it and I want to share it with all of you (and give one away too!).

    Plus, it gave me a good opportunity to get into the kitchen–these first few weeks I’ve been back, I’ve barely been cooking at all and I really want to settle into routine. And plus I got a cute new apron from Sur La Table, so I kind of had to use it. (Best store ever. Anyone agree?) Whatever works…

    One thing I liked about this book is that it’s definitely not JUST a cookbook: it has a ton of information about healthy eating in general and is very easy to understand. I consider myself pretty “up” on nutrition information but I definitely learned something too! The basic concept–if you can’t tell by the title–is eat real food. It encourages readers to base their diets on fruits and vegetables, details the author’s favorite “real” foods, and outlines the dangers of processed foods and additives. There’s also a lot of concentration on glycemic index and glycemic load, which is still something I am trying to learn more about. He mentions tons of simple substitutions to lower the glycemic load of your meals (and thus their effect on your blood sugar) which I really appreciated. The information is really useful–a lot of us know the basics (processed foods BAD, real foods GOOD) but I do appreciate learning a little more of the WHY, if that makes sense.

    In addition to the helpful healthy-real-food-diet at the beginning of the cookbook, the recipes (130) are divided into a number of sections: breakfast, beverages, salads, soups and stews, sauces and dressings, main dishes, side dishes, snacks, and desserts. The best part about this cookbook? The recipes are all made up of “real foods,” and they are all EASY to make. I know I’m still super intimidated by recipes with miles-long ingredient lists and verbs in the instructions that I have never heard before–definitely not this one. My limited kitchen abilities would be more than enough to make any/all of these recipes, which is an A+ in my book.

    There’s also a helpful key for the kitchen hopeless (read: me) to make it easier to pick recipes, using little symbols to designate recipes that are “kid-friendly,” good for “post-workout,” for times when you have “low energy,” “raw foods,” and so on.

    There are a lot of classics (but healthified, as we bloggers might say) as well as a lot of interesting recipes I really want to try, like mashed faux-tatoes (made with cauliflower), mac and “not cheese,” raw ice creams and cheesecakes and other desserts, and so on. Definitely inventive. He’s anti-soy (due to the risks associated with the phytoestrogens) and there aren’t a lot of traditional dairy products (milk, yogurt, cheese) used. So dairy and tofu lovers, don’t expect a lot, but the majority of recipes ARE vegetarian and there are interesting dairy alternatives used.

    One aspect of this book that deserves mentioning is that it encourages people to count nutrients, not calories. The motto is to focus on healthy food choices, not numbers. Going along with this, no nutrition information is provided for the recipes. I personally agree with this concept and find calorie counting restrictive (for me) and leads to me thinking about food way too much. BUT with that being said, calorie counting is simply what WORKS for a lot of people, and others might just want to know a recipe’s caloric, fat, protein, carbohydrate, what have you, content before they cook it. Granted, the recipes are not super complex so it wouldn’t be hard to plug it into CalorieKing or SparkPeople to figure it out, but I think that needs to be noted as well.  I’m totally on board with the concept, but I know not everyone measures their food choices in the same way.

    Paying homage to the title of my blog (okay, they just sounded really good) I decided to test out the pumpkin-blueberry pancakes for a variety of reasons. Mainly because I love pumpkin, blueberries, coconut, cinnamon, and vanilla (all ingredients in the pancakes) and because I haven’t had pumpkin yet since I got home! Woohoo!

    The ingredients were easily assembled and mixed. This was my first time cooking with gluten-free anything, and I was really curious how I was going to like the taste. (I didn’t notice any difference!)

    Only a few came out super ugly. Is it an unwritten rule that at least one pancake out of every batch has to be a huge fail? I always get overzealous with one that’s not quite ready to be flipped, ultimately leaving a nice puddle of batter across the pan. Lovely.

    Pumpkin side note: I know pumpkin is all the rage in the blogosphere, but due to my living in Africa until very, very recently, this is my first can and now I’m supposed to use it within a week, according to the guidelines. What should I do with it?? I am very open to suggestions. Eating it raw has crossed my mind but I am not quite ready to stoop to that yet.

    Hardly any sugar in these and I have a roaring sweet tooth with breakfast foods, so I dipped mine in some maple syrup. But overall, great! If you are looking for a cookbook with simple recipes and some good cooking and eating guidelines, this is a good choice.

    I really need to start collecting cookbooks! I am not the most inventive person in the kitchen so I really want to draw more inspiration from people who cook a whole lot better than me. Any suggestions?? I can’t do super complicated things and I love veggie and vegan recipes. Any suggestions appreciated.

    —–

    Now the fun part! I HAVE A COOKBOOK TO GIVE AWAY!! Bear with me in my cheesy excitement, because this is the first time I have given something away on my blog. There are several simple ways to enter:

    1. Leave a comment on my blog! Tell me a cookbook you recommend or something I should do with my leftover pumpkin (or just say something else. Anything counts.)

    2. Follow me on Twitter! @CourtPancakes. Now that I’ve been back in America for a couple of weeks it’s time to figure out how to use Twitter and I’d love to get in touch with my friends and blends that way :)

    3. RT my giveaway, share it with others!

    4. Ad me to your blogroll if you have one! I feel like I’m just starting out as a blogger in some ways ow that I’m in America (blogging from Africa was a very sporadic thing at best, due to circumstances!) And I would love to A. find new blogs and B. have more people find mine–I’m redoing (okay, doing) my broll next week and I’d love to add you guys too, let me know :)

    Just leave a comment here to enter plus one for anything else (twitter, RTing, etc.) so I can count the entries and I’ll randomize a winner on Tuesday, January 18! My blog is tiny, so good chance of winning :)

    Okay, MarioKart calls. Have an awesome weekend, everybody!

    Courtney

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    Sick Day Fine Dining

    May 24, 2010 by 12 Comments
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    After working all through last weekend and not exactly having any time to relax (besides the banana bread making), I ended up getting pretty sick on Monday and having to go home. Pretty miserable. Tuesday, I still was not 100%, but I had the right to a day off after working all weekend, so I decided to make the absolute best of it that I could. PHYSICAL/MENTAL HEALTH DAY!

    One thing that has been a challenge for me lately is listening to my body.  I am getting better at eating what I feel like I need, but with health and rest it has been hard. I have just been feeling “off” for a bit and I’m not sure if it is due to health problems or stress/anxiety or something else entirely. I struggle with guilt when it comes to taking a day off or staying home (even when I have the right to it), which perhaps prevents me from fully getting the rest I need. This is something I am committing to improving upon, though. If I am tired, I’m going to rest. If I am sick, I am going home. There it is. : )

    My day started with “sleeping in” until around 6:15. This is really late for me to be rolling out of bed. I hadn´t exercised the day before with how crappy I was feeling, so I was rearing to go. Started my day with a Z-bar. How weird for a blogger in Africa! I have some Z-bars and Clif bars in my stash that I treat myself to very sparingly (because I will be so sad when they run out and I can´t replace them. My only complaint is that I can eat these in two bites.)

    Good: Z bar.

    Bad: two bites.

    Wow, it feels really weird to post a picture of a bar. I never blog like that. Seeing as I am lucky to get online once in a blue moon, I am NEVER going to be documenting daily eats. Not my thing, anyways.

    Check out my workout space. That is my bed with a laptop on it. Obviously. This is how I roll.

    Good: breaking a sweat through levels 3 and 2 of the 30-Day Shred.

    Bad: Having to stop in level 1 because I had intense stomach pains, non exercise related :( Boo. Oww! Mom!

    Good: recovering from said workout/pains with a pancake the size of my face.

    Literally. I took a picture to show that it was, quite literally, the size of my face. Can I call this a panface?

    This is my new look for those of you who were wondering. I call it, “take a shower and don´t bother doing anything else. Poof, you´re done!”

    Going along with the “today is special” (aka it is my first day off in a long time, I am stressed and I deserve it!) mentality, I cracked open another hoarded US commodity: Whole Foods Whole-Wheat Pancake Mix. I forgot the oil (just used the 1/3c batter and an egg and a drizzle of milk) but it turned out kind of delicious. Although I could put PB, banana and cinnamon on cardboard and probably still eat it.

    Although I love my pancakes. Though it was nice to just make one huge one and call it a morning. One dish to wash = awesome.

    Also awesome: WORLD CUP TICKETS!!!

    Please ignore how unfortunate I look. Living in Africa means completely sacrificing your vanity. Which I have come to terms with… but not enough that you will see a ton of pictures of African me on my blog : ) But I am embracing the “natural beauty” mentality by necessity… embracing it : )

    So, there´s the fine dining for the day. My pancake. Just kidding. So, I live in a town with some tourist infrastructure because if you haven´t seen any of my previous posts, I live at a pretty beautiful beach. Our area has some hotels and resorts that cater to primarily South African and Zimbabwean tourists. The nicest of the  bunch: Casa Rex guesthouse.

    Casa Rex is about a 40 minute walk from my house and in my opinion, the best restaurant in town. A meal there tends to be about half of a week´s salary so it is far from a common occurance, but if anyone is ever going there, it doesn´t take much convincing for me to join as well.

    My friend Gracey, her little sister, and her sister´s two friends have been visiting us here for the last few days, and wanted to eat lunch here. I had to drag myself across town with my morning pains still in force, but I knew it would be well worth it. Making the most of that day off…

    Beautiful views from the hotel and of course there´s a woody path down to the beach… perfect Mozambique beach paradise.

    Plus a hotel and chaise lounges, of course. Am I in the Peace Corps?!?!

    Casa Rex is a place I go once in a while to escape. It is not far from my house at all, but when I am there, I am in a completely different world. It is very renewing, in a weird way. And the fact that there is bomb food doesn´t hurt a thing.

    The menu features a variety of seafood and curries and a few other items like salads and sobremesas de chorar por mais (Literally, “desserts to cry for more…” but in English the menu says “Desserts to die for.” I think I like the Portuguese better.)

    And the fact that there is bomb food doesn´t hurt either. Starts with a bread basket… with REAL BUTTER!

    I am in this weird habit of putting salt on my buttered bread. Does anyone else do this? Perhaps it comes from my adoption of the cultural behavior here that everything tastes better drenched in salt.

    And it comes with a salad. Okay, this is totally leading me on because the last several times I have eaten here (about once a month) we DIDN´T get a salad. But today we did! Score. You all don´t understand… no where here has “salads.” OR, a salad is some shredded cabbage drenched in mayo. Also, I love that cashews get thrown onto everything in Mozambique. As some of our biggest products are cashew nuts, pineapple, and coconut, the country has figured out ways to involve these three things in almost every plate you can think of.

    I love ordering tea here. The tea itself is nothing special… kind of the generic store-brand of teas… but the fact that it comes in a mini teapot with milk and sugar makes me weirdly happy for some reason. Totally takes over the table, too.

    Most of the time I come here, I order the vegetable curry because it is the cheapest thing on the menu (approximately $9… which is a LOT for Africa/Peace Corps) and also because 1. it has veggies 2. it is yummy and 3. it always comes with a platter of random things to eat with it. Today I got mango piri-piri (mango pieces marinated in chili pepper and oil), some generic salsa, jam and coconut. Oh and raisins. I just popped those all into my mouth like candy as the meal went on. Feels like free food, even though I am paying $9 (GASP!) for it…

    Veggie curry is always a surprise. Today it had carrots, green beans, eggplant, and potato. Which is impressive for Mozambique, but one of the lesser veggie curries I have eaten here. Really hits home about seasonal eating though. What you get, you get. And plus, it comes with coconut rice, a tortilla (the only place I have gotten a tortilla in town… reason enough for spending the $9!) and banana garnish. Really feels like a different world.

    So while I slummed it with my “cheap” veggie plate, Gracey and co. went for the gold: the seafood platter. at 1,000 meticais, it is not cheap, but it comes with crabs, squid, clams, prawns, and fish, all probably freshly caught that morning right on the beach outside the hotel. Okay, and for $33, I guess that is pretty cheap. This thing was HUGE!!! And that is exactly what she said.

    And what is a seafood platter without fries? It came with fries and a bowl of coconut rice, for carby goodness. And these are actually REAL fries. I love them in the States, but never order them here cuz they are usually just limp slices of potato literally dripping grease. You need a little crunch, people.

    To round out their meal (split between all the girls), they ordered a veggie stirfry. Which was essentially my meal without the curry seasonings, banana and awesome plate of fun.

    Look at this table! We were full up and ready to dig in. After I took this, one of the managers came to take a picture of all of us.

    I am the redhead with the crazy hair second from the left, to the right of me is Gracey, and we are surrounded by her sister and friends. What a lunch! And in Mozambique! In my town! Okay, after I post about this meal I can officially no longer pretend to be a bad ass. Darn it.

    Okay, so probably the whole reason that I wanted to write this post was so I could write about the dessert that apparently makes you cry for more. Known as the “hot chocolate sin”, it looks pretty unassuming on the plate. Especially sad that there was no ice cream in town, so it was a lonely little cake all by itself.

    But take a closer look…

    LAVA CAKE!!! Omg die happy.

    After this meal, the stomach pains combined with the ridiculous fullness to make a rather slow and awkward walk home, where I enjoyed the rest of my sick day off with Breaking Dawn (am really in a state right now where I NEED my mindless literature). The girls went out to dinner but I stayed in and just enjoyed some peace and quiet. Which was just what I needed. It is hard to feel like you are “missing out” on social events, but I have gotten to a place where I can finally listen to my body better and say “no, I need to stay in tonight.”

    Despite the actual sick part, this was a pretty darn good sick day. I needed a break, and I got one… a little respite in the ocean of craziness!

    Do you ever take mental health days? Or how do you get your relaxation and recovery in? What are your favorite things to do on days off?

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    Maputo Restaurant Tour 2010

    May 19, 2010 by 13 Comments
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    First of all, thanks for all the comments on my last post. It was so great reading what you all had to say and really made my day :)

    Last week, I published A Maputo Travelogue, a random post documenting a rather interesting trip to Maputo, the Mozambican capital, during which I spent a week wandering the city alone while dealing with some medical issues. How I filled the majority of my free time: eating! For any foodie in Mozambique, Maputo is perhaps the ONE place (okay, definitely the only place) where you have a ton of interesting options. I documented my eating my way through Maputo here, for anyone who you know, MIGHT randomly find themselves in the Mozambican capital and need a restaurant recommendation. : )

    Vintage India (Avenida Julius Nyerere right north of Avenida 24 de Julho): a real Indian restaurant with a several page menu that leaves a lot to the imagination. (Descriptions like “spicy goodness”) only tell you so much. But it has naan and appetizers and soup and is pretty legit Indian food. Only problem is it seems to randomly close for weeks at a time. No problem. This Is Africa. That and the slightly creepy dark interior that scares me a little bit… but still, this is always a must-visit. The coconut lamb dish is pretty amazing. I wish I could tell you the name but it is probably three different Indian words that I cannot remember.

     Xhova Inter-Thai Restaurant: nestled into the neighborhood between Polana Shopping Center and Hotel Cardoso, this is my favorite restaurant. REAL THAI FOOD! I come here every time I am in Maputo, always telling myself that I will take half of the huge portion to go and instead always leaving a clean plate on the table. The setting is strangely intimate, you can watch the chef cook if you want, and there are fish. Who can argue with that? Am I the only one who gets kind of strangely excited when there is a koi pond or a fish or lobster tank in a restaurant? I swear, I am five years old inside.

    The menu is filled with pictures of dishes that don’t exactly spike my appetite. It makes me realize that if I don’t start taking pictures of my food no one will read this blog anymore! Work in progress, right… I always get the pad thai. Number 604. Let´s see how close it looks to the picture…

    Maybe that is the benefit of ugly food pictures. No letdown when it actually arrives! Unlike any American fast food establishment. Those pictures are false advertising. Hmmph.

    Reading material on this lovely day: Cosmo in Portuguese. I don’t like Cosmo anymore because I kind of feel my brain cells dying one by one as I read it, but I figured that in Portuguese it would be sufficiently mind numbing. (The other magazine I considered at the newsstand was a health magazine—think the Portuguese version of Self—but the huge cover had a woman in her underwear with a tape measure wrapped around her waist on it and THAT was just too embarrassing for me.)

    guilty pleasure trash in any language.

    Everything is better with piri piri.

    Café Acacia (Next to Hotel Cardoso on Avenida Patrice Lumumba): this is my place of Zen in Maputo. I love cafes, and just being able to sit in a peaceful place and just BE, with a book or a cup of coffee or only my own thoughts for company. I spent a ton of time here just reading and journaling and pondering the meaning of life. (Being alone for a week in a big city is a strangely lonely yet intimate experience.) Multiple coffees and teas were consumed. The menu even has a kid´s menu with chicken nuggets and fish fingers on it. I have to order that sometime. I mean, who knew that chicken nuggets transcended geographical, cultural, and lingustic borders?!?! And I am pretty sure the fish fingers scared me a little bit, too…

    beautiful.

    And nothing beats the view. It almost makes Maputo seem beautiful. The park that it is in even has a diccionário for the turistas to learn some Portuguese and Changana/Ronga words.

    Here you go... practice!

    Um, this hardly counts as a restaurant but Maputo has a MOVIE THEATER. I mentioned this briefly in my other post. It’s incredibly… unsophisticated, and every time I walk in I am the only one there, and I was so desperate to fill time on this trip that I went to see the same movie (Couples Therapy) a second time just so I could buy popcorn and sit there for about an hour while I ate it. This is how exciting my life is. Buying a ticket to a movie I saw two nights ago, just so I could go inside to eat some stale popcorn. Again. And then walk out after I got TOO bored. Man, my social life… may or may not leave something to be desired.

    I think this was dinner two separate nights. Sweet popcorn! Amazing.

    Café Sol: Okay, this might be tied for my zen spot. Well, maybe the setting is not quite as zern as Acacia, but food wise, this is my favorite place. A Café started by ex-Peace Corps Volunteers, it caters to expatriates with REAL BAGELS and CREAM CHEESE! (This is the only place in Mozambique—yes, the whole country—with bagels. Hence why I struggled to make them myself not so long ago.) It also has burritos, paninis, and some salads on the menu. This is the biggest culture shock ever, walking in here. Oh, and ICED COFFEE.

    You all seriously have no idea how exciting this is. I would make the ten hour trip just to come to this café and get an iced coffee, a veggie Panini and a chocolate chip cookie.

    I actually cannot go to Maputo without buying a chocolate chip cookie at Café Sol. If it was at an American bakery, I don’t think you would see many food bloggers posting “OMG HOLY YUM LIKE BEST COOKIE EVERRRRRRRRRRRR”, but it’s the best I have found in Mozambique and that has to mean something. I saved some of the milk that came with the iced coffee so I could end my lunch with milk and cookies. So common, yet so special and rare for me!

    milk and cookies. normalcy, God bless you.

    Mundo´s Mozambique (Corner of Julius Nyerere and Eduardo Mondlane): the king of expat restaurants, this thatch-roof street side establishment has tons of TVs playing sporting events, beer on tap, and HUGE portions of everything from pizza to bacon cheeseburgers. (Also probably the only place in the country with bacon cheeseburgers.) They also have a brownie sundae (!) and white hot chocolate (!!!) which are to die for. I went here for dinner alone the night before a medical appointment that meant I was going to not be able to eat from the time I woke up until dinner. Which is normal life for many people but absolute sheer torture for me. I SHOULD have gotten the bacon cheeseburger (protein and fat and carbs and French fries = not hungry for a while…) but I went with the thai vegetarian wrap instead (craving some nutrients), sub a salad for the fries please. Well, check out my plate.

    I am not sure how much nutrients my veggie wrap had but I am sure there was some in there alongside the bottle of Thai marinade. This was actually pretty good but I am SO getting the burger next time.

    BACON CHEESEBURGER!!! What was I thinking...

    Um, they have a shooter called "Pancake." If only I was allowed to drink...

    To break my fast post traumatizing medical procedure (think, being given the highest dosage of anesthetic and having it not put you out, so the doctor deciding to just do the procedure anyway, involving sticking a two foot tube down your throat—not something I am eager to repeat again anytime soon. Except I have to go back in two weeks…) I had a once-in-a-lifetime eating experience: KFC. In Mozambique. I documented this interesting experience already and suffice it to say I won’t be going back. Except maybe for the soft-serve ice cream. Because again, soft serve ice cream is always worth it.

    Aska (JAT building on Avenida 25 de Setembro): I JUST discovered a Maputo SUSHI restaurant this trip, and all I have to say is, THANK GOD. Well, it would have been really nice to be eating sushi all this time BUT my wallet could not afford it. I already documented my sushi saudades and this restaurant (check out how ugly my homemade sushi was…) so I won’t go on about it here. This was my most expensive meal of ALL of these featured here and definitely the LEAST filling… but probably the most exciting. SUSHI IN AFRICA!

    Nautilus Pastelaria e Padaria: Nautilus is a Maputo institution, a remembrance of the Portuguese colonial café culture, which serves a variety of decent dishes, but the best thing here is the pão de leite (bread made with milk). This looks like a croissant but the texture is nothing like that—not flaky, more like super soft, slightly sweet, melt-in-your-mouth delicious bread. I think I ate three of these on one day. And they cost what, 30 cents? If you are EVER in Maputo, YOU MUST BUY PÃO DE LEITE. It is an institution in itself. And see this sign? This HUGE SIGN that says PÂO (bread) with an arrow pointing to the door, that lights up at night? Can’t exactly miss THAT…

    Oh pão de leite, you complete me.

    Gianni Sorveteria: ICE CREAM! This is one of those things that you just have to get when you are in Maputo, because it is so rare anywhere else. There are a few different ice cream shops throughout Maputo, but even still they are pretty rare. This one is my favorite not necessarily for quality (though at this point, ANYTHING resembling ice cream is good ice cream) but for the ambiance. Can´t help being happy in a pink, blue and green ice cream shop with children´s paintings of ice cream cones everywhere. Not only does this place have adorable decorations, but they have pancakes and waffles on the menu. My kind of place! I love an ice cream shop where I can get a scoop of canela (cinnamon) on top of a beautiful, powdered-sugared waffle.

    Oh, ice cream and waffles... you complete me, too.

    PHEW. What a week. And I didn´t even succeed in hitting all the places I wanted to (there is a steakhouse at the casino… yes, there is a casino; a new Italian place that is supposed to be lovely and they serve GNOCCHI…) but I think I did pretty well. I am going to be stopping through Maputo on my way back from Swaziland (!) next weekend, so I will try to make the steakhouse happen.

    Maputo will never be a leading culinary destination (that is a diplomatic statement at best) but at least I can go and have foodie adventures! When I return to America, will I spend entire days wandering down streets asking to see the menu at every restaurant I pass? Here´s hoping.

    How do you pick restaurants? Do you tend just to wander in randomly or go from other people´s recommendations?  Would YOU have gotten the bacon cheeseburger? :) Ah, next time…

     

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