Apr 29, 2009

Eating in/out of House and Home


We've been cooking creatively since the demolition. The grill has become our go-to cooking appliance, and our powder room has been converted to a kitchenette, and our toaster oven and rice cooker have been working harder than ever. Staples in our new diet include: cereal, ramen, steak, hot dogs, rice and salads. Lots of salads.

It's been a fun challenge. Sometimes not. I've tried to be 'green' and avoid disposable serving ware, but clean up sucks so badly that I've resorted to it. And not just paper plates, but the plastic ones too. And cups. And when I'm doing clean up, I'll admit I don't regret it.

We've discovered that pretty much anything can be cooked on a grill. We've cooked BBQ, Italian, Chinese, Mexican and even Indian. For breakfasts, I've cooked frozen sausage links, frozen hash browns, frozen waffles - all on the grill. We've cooked pasta on the grill and even risotto. We cooked baked beans in the original can on the grill. We've even cooked a frozen pizza on the grill. I've documented some of our culinary journey here.

We're not big on eating out much since we're such home bodies. But we have a couple of times so far during this remodel:
  1. The Falafel Grill - we ordered take out after we discovered we were out of propane in the grill. They close at 8:30 and we picked up our food at 8:35, we love them. Their falafels are HUGE. But their steak and cheese subs are not so great. And apparently this is the teenage hang out spot on weeknights if you're bored.
  2. Sagebrush Cantina - for our friend April's birthday. I ordered fish tacos which also was my lunch the next day. Good food and margaritas were had by all.
  3. Togo's - I entered a KNX raffle at Home Depot where one of the hosts was promoting the radio station. He happened to be very rude to me for no reason and jokingly said he would make sure I won the raffle (I think to make up for his jerkiness). A week later I got a $50 giftcard to Togo's in the mail. And a week later I got another one. I don't know if he really made me win, but hooray for free sammies!
  4. Sharky's - we had lunch here after flyball practice with the team. Jesse got the fish tacos and I got some taco saladey thing. Good fuel for kitchen building after running with dogs.
  5. Garden Wok - this was courtesy of April and Ryan for helping them settle into their new house. It's vegan Chinese food and it's AWESOME. I didn't miss the meat. I took home some leftover hot and sour soup which I had for lunch this past Monday. And flipped through my free Buddha book as well.
  6. Willy's - after day 1 of a flyball tournament with some fellow team members who are also Agourians. I had the pulled pork sandwich which also rocked as my lunch on Monday. I can't remember what Jesse got which means I must have been really hungry. I also noticed they have nice dark crown molding here.
  7. Gaja - Japanese pancakes with Cindy and Wayne in Torrance. I had shrimp, Jesse had beef. Pics here.
  8. Sharky's again after flyball practice - I had a steak quesadilla. I think I'll order that from now on.
  9. Sharky's again after practice - Steak quesadilla. Hit the spot!
  10. The Falafel Grill again - You guessed it, falafels. And chicken kabobs. Tasty!
  11. Sharky's after practice once again - Steak quesadilla + strawberry cake to celebrate Kea's 3er. YUM!
  12. IN-N-OUT - after Doves concert with Ryan, Dave, Jesse. I only had fries. But it took about 30 minutes to get it. But watching the prom kids was good entertainment to pass the time away.
  13. Latigo Kid - with Stan, Denise, Cherie, Ryan. Only because Señor Carlos was closed. Leftovers became my breakfast AND lunch the next day.
  14. Señor Carlos - with Eskridges on the second to last day they would be open. Tragic...
Where have y'all eaten lately? Any good places a kitchenless gal should be aware of? (Senor Carlos is on the top of my list)

4 comments:

  1. That Mexican looks really good. Oh wait, I was there!

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  2. You've got a Chipotle near you now. Also, I love Terry's Cafe. We discovered the coffee shop down the street from us has great food (but a hair pricy).

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  3. Terry's Cafe was the only place I could find a glass Heinz ketchup bottle for my condiment project. So that means they must have good food!

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  4. More on the list of future eats:
    The Hummus Bar & Grill, Vinh Loi Tofu, Fab Hotdogs.

    And somewhere for Dim Sum. Haven't had good dim sum since Boston.

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