Category: Food and Drink

Captain Stout- Green Flash Helps Bring Alpine Brewery Down the Hill

Captain Stout by Alpine Beer Company
Captain Stout by Alpine Beer Company

Green Flash Brewing Company‘s collaboration with Alpine Beer Company put a big smile on The Husband’s mug. Now he doesn’t have to drive up to Alpine to enjoy what he identifies as his overall favorite San Diego brewery. High praise from a guy who loves his San Diego style IPAs.

I’m still on my quest to find beers that I like, still amazed by the fact that I do like beer… it’s just the hops that I never cared for. So on my inaugural visit to Green Flash in Sorrento Valley, we found Captain Stout and I’m here to say that I loved it!

IMG_7865I also love that I can get small pours instead of half pints. I’m small, a lightweight, and am quite obnoxious sober… no need to add much alcohol. Really.

After a mighty busy couple of weeks of people moving and school craziness, I’m back on my blog, yea! I really did do something new every day, even when moving The Girl into her dorm room out of state- If you don’t think that counts as new enough, just know that I’m still not quite ready to talk about it very much. It is a powerful phase to transition into, I gotta say. Blogging about committing to try new experiences daily was one of the smartest things I have done recently.

As for Green Flash, I’m looking forward to touring the brewery soon.

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Farewell Dinner = Sushi Win for Me!

“It is always sad when someone leaves home, unless they are simply going around the corner and will return in a few minutes with ice-cream sandwiches.”
Lemony Snicket, Horseradish

Tonight The Husband and I took The Girl out to get dinner at one of her favorite restaurants. She is leaving this week for college and is she filling up on In-N-Out? The best Mexican food this side of the border? Nope. She wanted to sit at Nakamura-san’s counter at Akai Hana, one of the best restaurants for sushi in the San Diego area.

Her farewell dinner = my win!

Tonight’s new-to-me masterpiece was salmon roe. Previously familiar to me only as bait that I once used to fish in our local lakes with my father, our Sushi Chef caught this fish on an Alaskan trip and prepared the roe with mirin (a sweet cooking wine) and other ingredients that he said way too fast for me to understand…

Salmon Roe Sushi
Salmon Roe Sushi

The flavors were so fresh and light, I could hardly believe how delicious the tender roe could be.

Adios, muchachita!
Adios, muchachita!

It was a great meal spent with wonderful people… just the three of us. “My sense of humor is packing up and leaving,” I joke about her inevitable departure. On to bigger and better things for her!

Product Taste Test: “Popcorn in a Pickle” from Trader Joe’s

“EESH, it smells like vinegar,” she complained.
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If you like “Salt ‘n’ Vinegar” style potato chips, you might like Trader Joe’s new pickle flavored popcorn.

The Girl talked me into picking up this product as it caught her eye in a Trader Joe’s the other day. “Go on, buy it and we will put it on your something-new-every-day blog,” she persuaded.

We tasted.
We agreed.
Blech.

Oddly enough, The Husband thought it wasn’t all that bad. “But I like Tabasco Sauce on my popcorn, too, remember,” he so helpfully supplied.

Our opinion? Nope. A big, fat nope.

15 Calories, No Sugar, AND it STILL Tastes Great… Spindrift Fruit Seltzers

Spindrift Seltzer, Grapefruit Flavor
Spindrift Seltzer, Grapefruit Flavor
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Seltzer water and Grapefuit… that’s about it, 15 calories!

Soda just too sweet for you today? Your turn to be the designated driver? Stomach can’t deal with the acidity of a lemonade and are you tired of iced tea? I just found another option: Spindrift’s Seltzer with Fruit Juice.

I have never seen this brand before, and was scanning the beverage aisle at Trader Joe’s to see if there was anything new to me… voilà, found this stuff. I have no idea if Spindrift is a regular product on the shelves here, but I hope it stays. It is so light in taste without the heavy sweetness of regular soda.

I loved it- it’s new to me and gets a coveted spot on my garage’s soda shelf, right next to the Coke in the glass bottle.

Spindrift Grapefruit Flavored Seltzer
Spindrift Grapefruit Flavored Seltzer

San Diego Ramen Scene- Ikura Sushi & Ramen, Scripps Ranch

Ikura Sushi & Ramen just opened up last month in the Poway/Scripps Ranch area of inland San Diego. Do a Yelp search on the restaurant and the top two comments are:

  1. Yea! Now we don’t need to drive all the way to Kearny Mesa and Convoy Street for our ramen fix!
  2. Try the Tonkotsu Ramen, it is fabulous!

With four teens to taste test with me, I knew I’d get a good overview.

  • When the Chinese kid gives it a thumbs up, you know that the restaurant doesn’t stink (this gets tricky, because he says he isn’t picky and will eat anything…).
  • The Girl wasn’t wowed by her Miso Ramen, but…
  • I ordered the same and LOVED mine.
  • The Boy liked his Teriyaki Chicken, and was jazzed that they let him swap out the salad for edamame.
  • The Boyfriend gave his sushi roll high praise, and liked his Miso Ramen just fine.

Props to Ikura Sushi & Ramen for their online coupon offering a free California Roll with over a $12 purchase for an eat in special. They also offer a 10% discount coupon, also available online, for takeout orders. Our California Roll was one of the best I’ve had in a long time- I highly recommend it. Bottom line: I liked Ikura Sushi & Ramen better than the last Ramen joint, Rakiraki Ramen & Tsukemen.

Chicken Teriyaki
Chicken Teriyaki
Miso Ramen
Miso Ramen
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12205 Scripps Poway Parkway Suite 106 Poway, CA, 92064