san diego adventures and my mama's birthday part 3

Last part! And the best: brunch. I love, love, love breakfast food, so it's really a shame that I have to watch my cholesterol. The eggs! The fried potatoes! Hollandaise sauce! English muffins! Sugary, cinnamon french toast with maple syrup! Of course, now I content myself with nonfat plain yogurt and granola from Berkeley Bowl--not that it's a bad thing! I love yogurt.

Anyhow, enough of that, when on vacation, you must splurge. Right? N and I had looked up a promising brunch spot in La Jolla, a district a little north of San Diego, called The Cottage. We knew we made a good choice when we arrived--the line was insane. But not to worry, we didn't wait for too long. (Doesn't it look cute?)



I could wax on and on about the toastiness of the muffins, the silky texture of the Hollandaise, the creamy avocado contrasted with the soft omelette...but pictures speak louder than words.

The only downer in our experience was that I ordered a muffin that never came. It worked out for the best though; we definitely had too much food.

The Cottage
7702 Fay Ave.
La Jolla, CA 92037

san diego adventures and my mama's birthday part 2

Part 2 is all about desserts. We went to Extraordinary Desserts, which boasts cakes, tarts, and other baked goods, with ice cream, tea, coffee, and drinks as well as savory food. Situated in an urban warehouse with modern decor, Extraordinary Desserts is a bustling hub for San Diegans who want to grab a bite, chill with friends, or sample sweets. (We went to the location near the Gaslamp District.)




We ordered a beignet, which is somewhat of a French donut, served with strawberry ice cream. I confess, I didn't think it was that special (maybe I expected more because it was on the specials list or maybe I'm just spoiled because we have great bakeries in the Bay Area); it was a bit sweet for my taste.

We also had a coffeecake, but my mother, who ordered this, was sadly disappointed because Asian bakeries, when they say coffeecake, mean coffee-flavored cake, whereas American/European bakeries mean cake to eat with coffee. Nevertheless, it was good, but also a tad sweet. Still who could say no to that presentation?

Daddy ordered some tea (cute no?), but I didn't think it was worth the money really, but the teabag (I know, blasphemous!) was unique and they filled the pot with hot water each time you asked.

Some more pictures:

Extraordinary Desserts
1439 Union St
San Diego, CA 92101

san diego adventures and my mama's birthday part 1

For our mom's 50th birthday, N and I flew down to LA from the Bay Area to surprise her. My dad drove us to San Diego for a weekend filled with beach! Fun! And most importantly, food. This topic will take several installments, so I will start with the birthday dinner. N and I yelped and found a French cafe called Cafe Bleu. We went because it got good reviews, but more importantly, they had a coupon for a 3 course prix fixe meal with choices for only $15.99. What a good deal!

Alright onto the important stuff, what we had:


Ahhh yes, the quintessential mussel dish. And they did not disappoint. Delicious, delicious broth to sop up with crusty bread, juicy, succelent mussels...mmmm.

Now this was...a bit strange. It was a trio of...something. As you can tell, not memorable. But not bad either. Some kind of ceviche maybe? And bruschetta?





My mommy got the coq au vin, which is a French chicken dish cooked in wine and other good stuff until the meat just falls off the bones. Accompanied with a delicious potato gratin. Mmm.

I got a pork loin chop with a delicious mango chutney and demi glaze. My mom actually liked this better than hers, I think because of the subtle sweetness of the sauce. And the fact that it was pork. No Taiwanese person can resist pork. Trust me.

Mine also came with a gazpacho, which is a chilled tomato based soup. It was...not good. Enough said. Too strong of an herb taste, but not salty enough...and chilled soup? Ugh. I thought I would try, but never again.

My dad got the salmon. It was also just okay, nothing really stood out about it. At least it was good.

Oh, but then his came with a french onion soup that was just divine. The cheese was melty and gooey, and the soup was deeply beefy and flavorful...So, so good.

N got the scallops, also a letdown, simply because it didn't stand out. I mean, how can you mess up bacon and scallops? You can't! but that means it's hard to make it good. Should've gotten the Bouillabaise.

Overall, it was a wonderful meal, nice ambience, good service (everyone had a French accent! Super quaint). I would stop by if you get the chance to go to SD.

Cafe Bleu
807 Washington St.
San Diego, CA 92103

Next up, dessert in San Diego!