WPA Rock Garden

WPA Rock Garden

 

In William Land Park. 15th Ave off of Land Park Drive

I know I've been a bit MIA recently but I have a good excuse...really! My dad's in town visiting from out of state. We've been spending a lot of time eating out and cruisin' around town, so my kitchen activities have been pushed to the back burner temporarily. I can't help it- my dad's one of the coolest people to hang out with. He loves to try new food and since he used to live in Sac he'd rather go explore a farmers' market with me then hit up a museum. In fact today, we went and checked out the Thursday's farmers' market on Florin Road. I'd never been there and was actually quite impressed with the selection. Mind you, I'm not about to give up my Sunday W Street farmers' market buuuuuuuuuut Florin had a lot more selection then the weekday markets by the Capitol. It's also really handy if you want to get some fresh produce to cook up for a Friday or Saturday night dinner. I also dialed him in to my favorite banh mi joint (Duc Huong) and we popped by there to grab some sandwiches for lunch and a few of their delicious garlic rolls.

Yesterday, we checked out the WPA Rock Garden in Land Park which I immediately fell in love with. Have you been there before? Nestled in the middle of the park, right next to Fairytale Town is this tranquil little garden. It's been there for over 70 years (built as part of the New Deal's Work Projects Administration). If you're curious- it's on 15th Avenue just off of Land Park Drive. Park on the side of Fairytale Town, just follow the foot path by the sign. It'll lead you through the lovingly groomed bushes, trees and paths. The garden was so peaceful! I could definitely see myself coming here often and settling in on the circular stone bench under a crepe myrtle with a book and some coffee for some quiet time.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Afterwards my dad and I went over to Harry's Cafe for lunch. We filled up on big servings of chow fun and bun; when we left, we noticed someone was drying jujubes on a large tarp around the corner from the restaurant. Jujubes are a type of Chinese date. Raw they taste a crisp apple. But oftentimes, they're dried and used in teas, medicines or eaten as a snack. I thought it was pretty awesome that they were just drying them on the city street, but the worrywart part of me was thinking, "Gee, I hope a dog doesn't pee on them!"

   

 

 

We also stopped by McKinley Park on the way home for a stroll. In the garden, we happened upon some rose hips. These didn't look like they were ripe yet but it was still pretty cool to stumble across them. What doesn't grow in our fab city?




 

 

Life's Just Beachy

Life's Just Beachy

I'm a bit late getting this post up...but we went to the beach this weekend!

Mr.S. didn't have the kidlets so we thought we'd take a daytrip out to Half Moon Bay and relax on the beach. We ended up having lunch at this great little casual eatery called Barbara's Fish Trap in Princeton-By-The-Sea. The Fish Trap is located in a teeny red building on stilts right on the pier. There's a covered patio area in the front and regular seating in the back.

 

We were starving by the time we stopped for lunch and everything sounded wonderful on the menu, so we decided to get a little of everything. We split the calamari, which Mr.S. loved. He thought it was the absolute bees knees until he got his fish and chips which he said was the best he'd ever tasted. I took a nibble and I had to agree. The batter was light and crispy and the fish was nice and moist. There wasn't any of that heavy greasiness that I typically detest in fish and chips. He also got a cup of their clam chowder which he wasn't jazzed about but I thought was okay- it was nice and hearty, chock-full of clams and dairy-free (which was great for me. I think they use potato as their base instead of milk or cream). I ended up ordering the Dungeness crab sandwich...and it was divine. A good-sized serving of crab on a soft bun. The crab was nice and fresh and the bun was delicious; however, I did think the sandwich was kind of pricey. The place itself was kitschy and cute though - lots of windows to see the harbor and a big fisherman's net adorning the ceiling. The service was friendly but so sloooow. They were pretty busy though so we tried to cut our waitress some slack but they really needed an additional server on duty.

After lunch we headed over to San Gregorio State Beach, just off the Cabrillo Highway. I think this is my favorite beach we've gone to so far. The first park of the beach opens up to tons of driftwood, a small lagoon and lots of people but if you go down just a bit further to the right, you'll come upon a secluded, sandy beach with nary a soul. We felt like we had the beach to ourselves...and the best part was---there's two sea caves that are accessible when the tide's low. The first cave doesn't go back very far but the second one does...it's fun in there but a bit spooky. Also according to the park ranger if we had gone further down, we would have stumbled upon a nudist beach. We didn't get down that far, instead we decided to take a trail that goes up one of the ridges. If you go, check it out! The view up there of the ocean is absolutely breathtaking (and the climb is super easy).

San Gregorio State Beach:
Beach access fee $8 (but the pass they give you is good at all state beaches for the entire day)
No dogs on beach
No fires on the beach
There are BBQ pits, restrooms and picnic tables in the first part of the beach
Beach closes at sundown

Barbara's Fish Trap- is cash only
281 Capistrano Road     (650) 728-7049

Mei Mei Noodle Factory

Mei Mei Noodle Factory

 

1715 10th Street, Sacramento, CA 95814. (916) 448-2938

* Cash only.

Isn't it amazing that you can live in a city for years and years and not know about all the cool hidden gems that it has to offer? Some of them practically in your backyard? This past Friday, I grabbed a coffee at Temple and took a mini-fieldtrip by myself down the street to the Mei Mei Noodle Factory. Calling it a "factory" might be a stretch as it appears to be quite the small operation but the place is seriously cool and I had no idea it existed in the Grid. Located on a quiet block of 10th Street, it sits right next to New World Co. (a fortune cookie factory)...you can't miss it, the warm smell of fresh cookies will greet you about half a block down and make you instantly salivate like Pavlov's dog.

 

When I walked into Mei Mei (I believe the name translates to little or younger sister in Mandarin?), I was the only customer. There was a small flour-sprinkled counter separating the front of the room from the rear work area. I took a few steps in and was greeted by a jolly gentleman. We chatted for a bit and I learned that the noodle factory was open 6 days a week (every day but Sunday) and had been there for about 30 years, the current owners had acquired it from it's previous proprietors about three years ago (from what I could understand, the majority of their business is commercial accounts and only a minute portion is walk-in customers like myself). He explained that they make several types of noodles and dumpling wrappers fresh daily. I took some time to look over the list by the counter and decided to order some stir-fry noodles and potsticker wrappers. I also wanted to pick up some wrappers that I could use to make some fresh raviolis, for this the gentleman consulted a woman who was busily working at one of the back tables cutting dough. She came over to the counter and after some gesticulating and describing on my part (there was a bit of a language barrier), she suggested the #7 dumpling wrappers which she thought would be small and thin enough to work for my raviolis. Both people were extremely helpful and friendly. I have to admit when it came time to pay, I was a bit astonished at how inexpensive the fresh pasta was! A pound of noodles was 99 cents and a pound of wrappers ranged from roughly $1 to $1.50 a pound (depending on what kind), you can't beat that. As I closed the front door and walked out into the mid-morning sunlight, I half expected the Mei Mei Factory to disappear in a magical puff of floury smoke behind me. It seemed too good to be true- a figment of my culinary imagination, perhaps? If it's still there next week, I'll be back for more dumpling wrappers. I have so many more recipes I'm anxious to try out!

Tips For Cooking Your  Fresh Noodles (posted on the wall at the factory):

1. Add the noodles into boiling water. Keep boiling for 5 minutes.

2. Drain the noodles, then put them into cold water. Drain again.

3. Serve with your favorite soup base or stir-fry.

Daytrip: Preston Castle in Ione, CA

Daytrip: Preston Castle in Ione, CA

This Saturday, Mr.S. and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary. Since the kidlets were spending the day playing with their cousins, we thought it would be fun to go on a guided tour of the historical Preston School of Industry (locally known as Preston Castle) in Ione. Lloyd, our tour guide, was very informative and explained how the land where the Preston Castle stands was purchased from the Ione Coal & Iron Company and how the building of the Preston School of Industry began.  The facility focused on rehabilitating, rather than simply imprisoning, juvenile offenders and only closed when the new facility was constructed next door. During our visit we were able to tour the first two floors and the basement of the old facility, which included the kitchen where the housekeeper, Anna Corbin, was supposedly bludgeoned to death there in the 1950's. The building, especially the interior is in extreme disrepair and decay, but the Romanesque Revival architecture is fascinating. Hopefully the Preston Castle Foundation will be able to preserve the historic site.

Afterwards, we had a quiet lunch in the town of Ione and chatted about the tour we went on. Then Mr S. had some beautiful flowers delivered to me for our anniversary and we closed out our evening with a romantic dinner at Ambience. It was probably one of the most fun anniversary dates I've gone on.  A little bit of history, suspense and romance...a perfect mix.

Daytrip: Locke, CA

Daytrip: Locke, CA

Mr. S. and I woke up Saturday morning and it was such a beautiful sunshiny day that we decided to take a leisurely drive down to the Delta and explore the small town of Locke. I've heard about Locke often from several of my history buff friends but have never actually been there. [Located near Walnut Grove, it was founded in 1915 and considered unique because it's the only town in the US built exclusively by the Chinese for the Chinese.] We had a nice time poking our noses in the small gambling halls, school houses and various shops. The kitchen in one of the museums caught my eye with the big wood burning pit stoves to accommodate the multiple woks and also the farmhouse style sinks for cleaning up after large groups. I wonder what kind of meals were served back then?

Anyhow, we had such a lovely time on our drive that we decided that we should do some more day trips. If you have any suggestions of places to check out, I'd love to hear them. :)