Dram

Last night I went out for dinner and drinks with some friends at Dram Whiskey Bar. I ordered a glass of white wine and the crab cakes. They were delicious, but the portion size was so tiny! It definitely didn't fill me up. After a late-ish night (for me, anyway), a very necessary bowl of cereal (Kashi Heart to Heart Warm Cinnamon) was eaten when I got home.

Here's my side of the table.

And there's the other side of the table.

After dinner, we headed to Billy's to continue the fun. I have pretty friends.

Other Eats:

Greek yogurt, Oatmeal Squares, 1/2 sliced banana, raspberries, blueberries, almond butter.

I've eaten a lot of Honeycrisp apples this week. There's nothing like a good, crunchy apple!


Spinach salad with sautéed mushrooms, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cherry tomatoes, pumpkin seeds, and Annie's Balsamic.

PB & Strawberry KIND bar. Tastes like a PB&J with strawberry jam-that's a good thing in my book!

Warm whole wheat naan with black bean hummus. Naan > pita bread.

Roasted sweet potatoes, butternut squash, onions, and Brussels sprouts drizzled in bbq sauce. Butternut squash is always such a pain to cut, but the end result is so so worth it.

Vanilla Greek yogurt, agave nectar, chocolate chips.

Spinach salad with leftover roasted veggies, pumpkin seeds, dried cherries, and Annie's Balsamic.

AB Toast. Rudi's 7 grain with flax topped with Trader Joe's Creamy Almond Butter and 1/2 sliced banana.

Mix of romaine and spinach, cherry tomatoes, broccoli, avocado, sunflower seeds, fried egg, and salsa.

This was so good!

Peach and Passionfruit Liberté Greek Yogurt. 

Later tonight, I'm going to the Birmingham Greek Festival with my friend Laura. I went last year and had such a good time. Looking forward to a fun weekend!

Searsucker

On my last day in San Diego, I ate both lunch and dinner at a restaurant called Searsucker. The restaurant is owned by celebrity chef Brain Malarkey, who is the host of TLC's Mega Bites and was a finalist on a past season of Bravo's Top Chef. When I later saw in the FNCE handbook that Searsucker was chosen as the host restaurant for a dinner for the Food and Culinary Dietetics Practice Group (I'm actually a member of this group, but opted not to go to the dinner.), I knew it would live up to all of my expectations. Um, dietitians know their food. Anyway, I knew this place had huge potential, so I saved it for last and even decided to double up and eat there twice in the same day.

So here is lunch...

Such a cool interior!

I loved everything about it, right down to the water cups.

To eat, I ordered the Drunken Chicken Salad Sandwich, which came with brown butter aioli, almonds, rosemary, orange zest, and port cherries on ciabatta bread and mixed greens on the side.

Holy delicious! Best chicken salad ever. Cherries, almonds, orange zest-what a beautiful flavor combo!

My mom and I also split an order of these brown butter french fries. They were really good, but I only ate a few.

Now onto dinner....

I will apologize in advance for these pictures. The restaurant had really dim lighting, and I wish I could have captured better photos to do this meal justice!

The meal started off with a complimentary "taste" of the cheddar puffs. You know it's going to be a good meal when you start out with free food from the chef!

Then I ordered a glass of Malbec. Soooo smooth.

Hey, your food and wine are delicious! Bring me more!

For my main course, I ordered the "Baja" Scallops, which came with brown butter aioli and some kind of delicious blackberry sauce + actual blackberries. The fruity flavors complemented the scallops so well. Speaking of the scallops, they were cooked to perfection.

My mom and I also split sides of Jalepeno-Chorizo "Corn off the Cob" and Fried Brussels + Walnuts. Awesome.

I was pretty stuffed at this point, but I couldn't say no to dessert on my last night in San Diego, so my mom and I decided split the Key Lime Pie Bar. There was toasted coconut + pineapple involved. #winning.

So as you can see, I ate a lot of really good food on my last day in San Diego. What a perfect ending to my trip!

Jsix

While I'm on vacation, I always allow room for a few indulgences. I definitely don't skip dessert. In my opinion, trying out new restaurants and eating local cuisine is one of the best parts of traveling. Before I left for San Diego, I spent a few hours on UrbanSpoon to make sure I discovered the best foodie finds. While I was researching, I came across Jsix and knew it was a must try.

I've always had a hard time answering the infamous, "What would your last meal be?" question. As of right now, this meal would be a top contender. I really think this might have been the best meal of my life.

Located in the heart of the Gaslamp District and adjacent to Hotel Solamar, it had a vibrant, energetic feel that made the dining experience even more enjoyable.

Immediately upon sitting down, we were brought a basket of delicious warm bread.

It was served with an olive tapenade. I don't normally like anything related to olives, but this was an exception.

When the waitress described one of the specials, a three course meal of salad, salmon, and gelato for $30, I was sold. So many of my favorite foods all in one dinner! And three courses for such a reasonable price-$30 is usually the cost of a single entrée!

The meal started out with a Mixed Greens Salad-peaches, pistachios, goat cheese, and St. Germaine vinaigrette. Now that's my kind of salad. Fruit, nuts, and goat cheese are the keys to my salad-loving heart.

The main course was grilled salmon, which was cooked medium, per the chef's recommendation. It was accompanied by wax beans, mashed potatoes, and a basil hollandaise sauce.

It was a classic combination of side items, but it was just incredible. Every last bite of it.

And just when I thought the meal couldn't possibly get any better, they brought me this. A generous portion of local, creamy gelato that brought back nostalgic memories of the summer I spent in Italy. Given my choice of chocolate, vanilla, or hazelnut gelato, I chose the latter which was served with blueberries and blackberries. 

Seriously, it was heaven. Divine.

I loved absolutely everything about this meal. Great service, beautiful presentation, delicious food. This will go down as a meal I will never forget, and if it ever was my last meal, I would die a very happy girl.

More awesome eats to come!

FNCE 2011

Sorry I've been so MIA these past couple of days! The hotel didn't have free wi-fi, and I was super busy anyway!

I loved San Diego. The weather was beautiful, and I ate some really delicious meals. I really wish I'd had more time to sight see!

Here are some highlights from my trip:

I ate a lot of Starbucks oatmeal, obviously. It's my go-to breakfast while traveling!

Starbucks oatmeal topped with my homemade granola!

I went to an early morning breakfast about soy products and ready to eat cereals for continuing education units.

The hotel where the breakfast was held sure knew how to cater to dietitians. I had All-bran, skim milk, a mini bran muffin, and fruit. Talk about a fiber-filled breakfast!

I ate fish tacos on the bayfront for my first and last meal in San Diego. They're a delicacy.

Fish tacos with grilled cod, cheddar cheese, salsa fresca, crema sauce and a side of black beans from The Fish Market.

Fish tacos with grilled tilapia, shredded cabbage, cheddar cheese, salsa fresca, guacamole, and yogurt dressing from Harbor House.

I also closed out the trip with a Cayman Spice Cupcake from Frosted Robin Cupcakes.

Cinnamon and nutmeg cake infused with coconut milk topped with coconut buttercream icing and cinnamon sugar sprinkle.

I located a Pinkberry within 5 minutes walking distance of the convention center. I have skills.

Original yogurt with strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, kiwi, and mochi. Refreshing.

I learned a lot of great information and heard some really interesting lectures. My favorites included talks about intuitive eating, cultural anthropology of food, nutrition and social media, and celiac disease and gluten-free diets.

I tried LOTS of free samples at the expo.

Dietitians like to eat.

Here were some of my favorite vendors:

SmartBalance

PB bites. I ate roughly 15 of them.

 Veggie pasta made with SmartBalance Butter.

Chobani. I tried two new flavors that will be on the market in January!

Blood Orange. This was soooo good. I will definitely start buying this flavor regularly!

Apple Cinnamon. This was actually really good-it had a very subtle flavor!

National Avocado Council. Clearly, I stopped by this booth quite frequently.

Guacamole.

Banana Avocado Shooters.

Gluten-Free Ginger Cupcakes made with avocado.

Vegan Chocolate Cake made with avocado.

Yep, I took all this home for free!

I scored this awesome t-shirt at the KIND bar table.

I think it's funny:)

I read this entire book on the return flight from San Diego to Houston.

Yes, it really is that good.

I ate good airport food in Houston.

When I first visited Houston in 3rd grade, I ate at Pappasito's and declared it my favorite Mexican restaurant of all time. They are very smart people for expanding to airports.

Mixed greens, corn and black beans, tomatoes, cheese, grilled chicken, and salsa for dressing.

You stay classy San Diego.

Well, this post has gotten long, and I haven't even gotten to talk about my dinners yet. They were all extremely blog-worthy, so I'll have to save those for a separate post!