Pappadeaux - Phoenix, AZ

Being on the road from San Diego to Phoenix was like nothing I've ever seen before. California is big a state and as you drive through it you see all of the different scenery. That's one of the best things about living in California, the beach, mountains, snow, forests, and deserts are within hours of each other. The one thing I had never seen before, though, was the desert. I'm talking cactus, sand, and HEAT!! Mike and I planned our trip in late spring so, luckily for us, the desert was a warm 80 degrees.

We passed right by the Mexican border, through El Centro and then Yuma. We arrived at our hotel a little ahead of schedule and saw that it was in HORRIBLE condition (I swear I'm not exaggerating). We went to a nearby Starbucks to use the WiFi and look for another hotel. THANK GOODNESS WE DID!! Not only because we had a place to stay, but because we found the BEST restaurant close by. It was dinner time at this point and we were really glad we had found somewhere safe to sleep (thank you Days Inn) and were ready to eat anything. On the way to the first hotel I saw a big restaurant called Pappadeaux and took notice but our hotel wasn't in the same neighborhood so I didn't bring it up. But since now we were just around the corner I told him I had seen this place that looked like it could be good, we looked it up on Yelp and saw the good reviews - done!

I'm always down for a place with "Seafood" in the title and it helped we were both starving and in a celebratory mood. We saw that alligator and frog legs were on the appetizers list, and since we were on vacation, we decided to give the alligator a shot.

We're really lucky it was so good because I've tried alligator since then and it doesn't always have to be so "crunchy" - but more on that food experience later. The appetizer came with delicious shoestring fries and a Creole dipping sauce.

I also ordered the fried shrimp with mashed potatoes because they didn't have any more baked potatoes ready at the time (they ended up giving me a complimentary baked potato later). Everything was perfectly seasoned the potatoes were creamy. Mike got a 16 oz. beef rib-eye, served with broccoli and mashed potatoes.

 

 We left so full we could barely move. We'll definitely be going back there the next time we're in Phoenix!

Gouda and Fruit Plate

 

Okay, okay. I know I'm suppose to be going in order of my culinary endeavors but this was just too pretty and too delicious to wait to post (this probably won't be the last time this happens - fyi). I had an unexpected day off today (that's how you know you work too much - when people want your hours) and Mike was out fixing his car, or some boy stuff like that, so I slept in. When I rolled out of bed I couldn't decide if I wanted to watch Top Chef and drink coffee or watch Top Chef and make breakfast. Since I get a wonderful shipment of organic fruits and veggies, courtesy of Farm Fresh to You, and because I bought a brand of Gouda I hadn't tried yet, I decided on a small cheese and fruit platter (and Top Chef).

I decided on one plum, a handful of red seedless grapes, and blueberries (I only used about half of them). 

I rinsed off the blueberries and grapes together with the spray option on my sink faucet instead of the stream. I always feel like stream is too much water at one time for fruit.

 (Even in the wax, the Gouda looked delicious). I only cut off 1/3 of the cheese - come on, it was barely even lunch time!

You can't deny this (even as a first meal of the day). With the little chunk of cheese I used, I cut it into smaller bite-size pieces. I never worry about making the pieces even because I like the uneven amounts of creamy contrast they give when eaten with the fruit.

Then I put the berries and grapes on a paper towel to really dry off. After I cut the plum into bite-size pieces.

Yes, that fabulous fabric you see under my plate is my totally retro couch :)

 I then plated everything. All of the natural sweetness was a good change from my morning coffee. After everything was plated (I'll clean up later) I sat down and watched Top Chef! :)

First Stop - San Diego!

Michael and I took a road trip, which happened to be our first week-long vacation together. Originally we planned to go see The Giants play for Spring Training in Phoenix, AZ and needed a place to stop on the way back. Of course, what better place to stop than Vegas?? Ok, so we had Phoenix and Vegas but driving from Sacramento to Phoenix didn't sound like fun, and didn't look too good on Google maps either, and since we had already been to Los Angeles multiple times we decided to stay in San Diego to help cut down the drive. The best part of multiple stops (no, it's not the extra expense of hotel rooms) is the different places you can stop to eat. So here it goes!

After 8 hours of driving to San Diego we couldn't wait to get out and walk around and eat food that didn't come in packages that could fit in a lunchbox. We walked around Old Town for a while, deciding on which Mexican restaurant to go to. We ended up stumbling upon a little store that sold "unique" jerky and homemade root beer. Naturally, me being a "unique food" enthusiast (which ended up being a theme for our vacation), and Mike being a boy, we had to stop by and get a snack.

We ended up buying two bottles, one to drink and one to bring home as a souvenir, and some wild boar jerky. It tasted exactly like normal beef jerky and was actually pretty good. If you've ever had any kind of root beer that wasn't A & W or Barq's (or any other kind of brand name) you know that though the familiar root beer tastes are there, it's usually sweeter. I wouldn't say it's something I would drink normally (I like my brand names) but I'm totally glad I tried it.

100% dried boar :)

We ate dinner at a restaurant where the owner was out talking to people walking by and being very social. To top it off the store was filled. To me these seem like two good things to consider when in a new place.

Mike got the tacos and I got the chicken mole. The chicken was cooked perfectly and the taste was spot on. The Mariachis played beautiful music and the same owner checked on us and our meals multiple times. The ONLY reason we left early was because we went to see the sunset at a nearby beach. I really don't think you can find a bad restaurant in Old Town if you want good Mexican food - you definitely have your pick.

The sunset we ended up getting to see.

The next day we were scheduled to head off to Phoenix but we decided since we had nothing to do but drive for like six more hours, it wouldn't be a big deal if we stayed (another theme of our trip) and hit up Old Town for a tour of the Whaley House AND some homemade tortillas!!! Some of the restaurants have women with a stand attached where they sell homemade tortillas - and trust me, THEY'RE AMAZING and only cost a dollar for two! You can't beat that! Ever since that day Mike has been asking about them and I've told him I'll make them.

We're Back!

We've had a whole summer off and we took some much needed time for ourselves after THE WORST SEMESTER EVER! So far our summer has been spent working, sleeping, traveling, and cooking! We also moved into our own place together and spent the first few weeks of our vacation moving/settling in. Well I'm ready to get back into the swing of things and concentrate on something more than crappy reality television and work. We're on a countdown until school starts and still have lots planned before then...
...BUT over the past couple of months I've documented (with my super nifty camera) all the stuff I've made (I just haven't blogged it yet). One of the best documented trips of mine, was our week road-tripping from San Diego, California to Phoenix, Arizona, to LAS VEGAS, Nevada!! We had so much good food along the way I can't even believe it (nor can I wait to do it again). Seeing how it's been a while I think it's only fair I start at the beginning and work my through my culinary-empowered summer! I hope all who read, enjoy! :)