Miss B's Coconut Club

A couple of Fridays ago I finally visited a restaurant that's been on my list for a while now: Miss B's Coconut Club in Mission Beach. I am a total sucker for all things tropical- and island-themed and Miss B's is famous for its Island vibes. Vibes which were so necessary on the dreary, blustery Friday that my friend Makena and I headed in for some tiki-inspired cocktails.

That's right, San Diego gets March weather too! It may not be three back-to-back nor'easters, but a damp, gray, windy Friday afternoon is still just as much of a bummer.

Which is why we needed tropical atmosphere, comfort food, and giant skulls full of tequila, mezcal, pomegranate and cinnamon to distract us from the weather.

Savory Thanksgiving Turkey

Ready for the oven!!!

After three years of cooking Thanksgiving turkey in a row, I think I've finally got my recipes down.

Which is a really good thing, considering this year I cooked Thanksgiving dinner for 17 people and 5 dogs and hosted them all in our 500 square foot beach bungalow. #yikes

But after sharing my methods while talking a few first-timers through their turkey prep this year, I realized that I should probably take the time to write it all down. So I decided to put together a little guide to my no-fuss Savory Thanksgiving Turkey: from the kitchen essentials to the shopping list to the day-of timeline right down to the recipes for the roasting pan, herb butter, and gravy... I compiled it all here for future reference.

If you're into a relatively uncomplicated bird and have a local Trader Joe's nearby, this guide may be all you need for a delicious, stress-free Thanksgiving turkey!

Hearty Plant-Based Quinoa Chili

Even though it's still 90° degrees out in San Diego, we are officially in the middle of my favorite season: autumn. Which means it's time for one of my favorite fall activities: cooking chili.

This year, I've been interested in working more plant-based dinners into the rotation. As a lifelong meat eater, I don't have a lot of practice cooking meals that aren't constructed around meat. I also have a hard time feeling like I'm getting enough protein or like my meal is hearty enough when I attempt plant-based dinners.

But if there's any meal that defines heartiness it's chili. I don't think it's even possible for chili not to be hearty. So, inspired by a recipe I saw in a cookbook at my friend Makena's house, I attempted my own version of the One Pot Quinoa Chili from "28-Day Plant-Powered Health Reboot" by Jessica Jones and Wendy Lopez and it was delicious. 

Fresh jalas from the garden!

Jessica and Wendy's book has a lot of other amazing plant-based recipes and their Instagram account,  @foodheavenshow, is super inspiring. These two bicoastal registered dietitians have such a refreshing and realistic take on eating healthy. I will definitely be going back to their cookbook for more of our plant-based dinners this fall.

Ultimately, this recipe is as simple as it is tasty and it will easily provide dinner for two and at least 4-6 lunches to boot. It's also a great excuse to harvest your home garden or use up any veggies before they go bad!

Hearty Plant-Based Quinoa Chili
Yield: 6-8 Servings

• 1 medium white onion, diced
• 2 medium tomatoes, diced
• 3 large carrots, diced
• 1 large red bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 2 large zucchinis, diced
• 3-5 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 jalapeños, seeded and chopped
• 2-3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 3 1/2 cups of water
• 2 15.5oz cans of organic tomato sauce
• 1 15.5oz can of organic black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 15.5oz can of organic chickpeas / garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
• 1.5 cups uncooked quinoa
• Cumin
• Chili powder
• Red chili pepper flakes
• Sea salt and black pepper
• 2 tbsp diced green onions
• Shredded cheddar cheese

1. Chop up all the veggies and mix together in one bowl with the minced garlic. Set aside. 

2. Heat up the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Once hot, pour the bowl of veggies in and cook for 5-7 minutes.

3. Add the water, tomato sauce, black beans and chickpeas and stir. 

4. Once all the veggies, beans and liquids are mixed together, add the uncooked quinoa and spices. Cook for 30-35 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Note: I don't really measure out spices, I just kind of eyeball it and keep adding it in as I cook. Go light with the red chili pepper flakes though, unless you want it really spicy!

5. Top bowls with some cheddar cheese and garnish with green onions. Enjoy!

6. Oh yeah! And compost what's left! :D

A Very Venice Valentine's

In my life, three neighborhoods have immediately felt like home each time I've set foot in them: my current (and likely forever) neighborhood of Ocean Beach, here in San Diego, Hermosa Beach in Los Angeles, and Venice Beach, also in LA.

I love, love, love Venice Beach. So when I had the chance to spend a day up there last week for a work conference, I took advantage of it and spent the night. And since it was a few days after Valentine's Day, I decided to turn it into a romantic Valentine's Day date with myself, complete with a walk on the beach at sunset, a fancy meal and... turtle racing.

As it turns out? Venice loves me right back.

Gjelina

Hi, my name is Bri and I'm a sucker for over-hyped restaurants in trendy neighborhoods. Especially restaurants that have so much hype it condones publishing a popular cookbook of their recipes.

Which is why I ended up dining at Gjelina when I was in Venice Beach last week... for the hype, for the sceney scene... 

Oh, and did I mention the delicious food?

I Love LA: 100 Things To Do In Los Angeles

This is how you know I wasn't born in San Diego: I love LA.

Every time I admit this to a true San Diegan, their response is usually a variation of "Ugh, why???" Which I totally understand because after growing up outside of Manhattan and having lived there for two years, I have the same response when people tell me they heart New York City.

But I really can't help it: I love Los Angeles. I fell in love with that city the moment I got off the plane at LAX. And while I know now that I would never want to live there, it does make for a pretty nice weekend getaway. Which is why for the past two years I've planned at least one weekend per year up there when I tackle a new bunch of items on my LA Bucket List.

This year I thought I'd sit down and actually write that list so that it no longer exists solely in my head. Partly to have a fun way to keep track of my adventures as I complete them and partly to get suggestions from Angelenos on what I'm missing.

Though I don't think I missed much. After all, I did manage to come up with 100 things to check off my list...

Spiced Fruit Bake

I don't have many family recipes.

In fact, I really only have one. When I finally started to fall in love with cooking in my mid-20s, this realization really bummed me out. I found myself deeply saddened by the fact that there was nothing that had been passed down through the generations in my family. No special sauces, no baked goods, no holiday staples...

Except, of course, for Spiced Fruit, which is sort of all three of those things.

Burgers and Trivia at Nicky Rottens Coronado

Television and celebrity gossip. If you were recruiting me for a trivia dream team, that's what I bring to the table. I mean, the first website I check every morning is People.com. Sad? Almost definitely. But my weakness for celebrity gossip becomes my greatest strength at Trivia Nights. It's where I finally feel appreciated for who I really am.

All kidding aside, Ryan and I have often discussed trying to find a fun trivia night to go to and last week we may have ended the search after a great night at Nicky Rottens Restaurant in Coronado.

¡Viva la (Avenida) Revolución!

Growing up in Connecticut, all I knew about Tijuana was that it was the place where Marissa Cooper overdosed in an alley and almost died. God, The OC was such a great show. 

And as a San Diegan for the past 6 years, all I knew about TJ was that none of my friends liked the idea of going there. The ones who grew up here, including Ryan, and had gone all the time as kids, had spent the past 15 years hearing how bad it had become. And whether they grew up here or not, no one was really sure what there was to do on the other other side or why it was something that couldn't be done, if not better then at least safer, here in San Diego.

But slowly, over the past year, more and more of our friends and friends of friends started taking day trips to TJ and telling us just how much our neighboring city has evolved. 

With it's blossoming reputation as a foodie destination, it's vibrant art community, and it's deeply discounted tequila (watch out, you can only bring back 1 liter per person!), I was determined to make it to TJ before my 30th birthday as part of my 30 Before 30 list. And since our first trip in January, we've been back several times already! 

So to encourage more San Diegans to head south of the border, I've put together an easy little Tijuana daytrip guide. I say easy because all of these places are located on or very near to Av. Revolución, Tijauna's main street... essentially TJ on training wheels. Vaminos!

The Lebowski Bar

A couple of weeks ago, I was enjoying a drink at my former neighborhood bar, Aero Club, with my best friend Bonnie when I pointed out a postcard taped up on the fridge. It was a postcard that Ryan and I had sent to Aero during our trip to Iceland. Because who doesn't send their favorite bar postcards every time they travel?

On the front was a picture of His Dudeness and the logo for The Lebowski Bar, a Big Lebowski-themed bar in Reykjavik that Ryan and I frequented during our stay. Apparently I had never told Bonnie about this bar and it was then that I realized I never blogged about it either.

I decided I needed to do something about this glaring omission because... well... you know, that's just, like, my opinion, man.

More importantly? Because The Lebowski Bar is a pretty wonderful addition to any Icelandic itinerary.

Taco Bout a Dream Come True

Secretly? This little blog is really an exercise in manifesting. Call it Secret-ing, call it bhavanizing, whatever you call it, I'm doing it with every post I write. All with the hippie belief that by putting good energy out there, I will welcome more of the same back into my life.

I mean, at the end of the day that's why I write... to connect, to attract people and places and moments into my life that add meaning and beauty and adventure.

But of all the amazing things this blog has manifested so far (and there have been a lot), last Wednesday night took the cake.

A decade ago, I was 19, driving around backroads in Connecticut, listening to this new CD I'd just bought by a singer songwriter named Tristan Prettyman and daydreaming about what my life would be like if I lived in San Diego.

And last Wednesday? Oh, I just casually had dinner with Tristan at Puesto downtown at The Headquarters. No big deal.

Restaurant Review: Union Kitchen & Tap, Gaslamp

Fun fact: I have at least a dozen favorite restaurants in San Diego. So for me? The only difficult thing about having visitors in town is deciding where to take them out for food. 

It's even more difficult when it's one of your best friends from back home and this is her first time in San Diego and you're planning on using food as your secret weapon in convincing her to move here. 

That's a lot of pressure. 

For Marianna's visit last week, I had 4 dinners to plan and in the end, whatever neighborhood we were touring that day more or less narrowed it down. Until her final day when I had the biggest challenge of all: deciding on a dinner spot in the Gaslamp. 

We needed a place that had outdoor seating with a decent view, fun cocktails, a solid wine list, a tasty charcuterie board, nice ambiance (preferably with live music), and of course, great food. 

Solution: Union Tap & Kitchen. 

Restaurant Review: barleymash, Gaslamp

Real talk: picking out a great restaurant for dinner in the Gaslamp is probably as overwhelming for San Diegans as it is for visitors. Most of the time I can barely pick out a place when I need to for myself, let alone make recommendations. And it definitely doesn't help that restaurants downtown sometimes seem to disappear overnight.

This was exactly the predicament one of my best friends, Bonnie, and I found ourselves in a couple of weeks ago, when we were looking for a dinner spot before having a Scandal night back at Bonnie's place. Then we were invited to try out barleymash's menu... problem solved!

I was familiar with barleymash because, how could you miss it? I've walked and driven past its prime corner location on 5th and Market a billion times. Still, I'd never eaten there because while it had always seemed like a fun spot to drink, honestly I just expected the food to be your typical semi-decent barfare, similar to the other large, corner bars on 4th and 5th Ave.

Which is a shame, because I was completely wrong.

Restaurant Review: Lumberyard Tavern, Encinitas

I hate to be the one to break the facade, but every so often... once in a blue moon, really.... San Diego has a bit of precipitation fall from the sky. Other, less fortunate parts of the country will know this phenomenon as "rain."

Also, on occasion... extremely infrequent occasions, the temperature dips below 50°. If I remember correctly from my east coast childhood, this is something known as "cold."

When, in the rarest of rarities, these two catastrophes combine during the months of December or January, it can often resemble something called "winter." And everyone knows that on winter nights, there is no better place to be than inside a cozy tavern with warm food and good wine.

Which is precisely how we ended up at Lumberyard Tavern in Encinitas this past Tuesday, on a dark and stormy night.

Restaurant Review: Wang's North Park

"There is no good Chinese food in San Diego." - Me, anytime before last Wednesday

Do you know how many times I've made that (mostly unfounded) declaration? A lot. Good Chinese food, along with even remotely decent bagels, chicken parm subs, and pizza, was something I thought I'd left behind on the east coast. And in the past 4 years, I've managed to find secret spots for each of those foods. Except Chinese.

Good Japanese food or Thai? San Diego knocks those out of the park. I have so many favorites, I wouldn't even know where to start recommending places. But good Chinese food has eluded me here.

And then I went to Wang's North Park.

Not only did I find good Chinese food... but I think I found the best Chinese food in San Diego.

Oh, and may I add, some of the best craft cocktails...

Road Trip Diaries Part III: Ring My Maroon Bells

The view from inside our pashmina-curtained car camping set up

During the last week in August, Ryan and I dropped the dogs off at boarding, packed up the Versa and embarked on a 5-day road trip through the southwest. Thousands of miles and 35 hours of driving took us through 5 states: California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado and Arizona. In Part III, we are waking up in Aspen after a long day of driving through Utah.

When Ryan and I told people we were car camping for the wedding we were attending in Aspen, we got a lot of looks. Looks that said it maybe wasn't the best plan. And that might have scared me off the idea.

That is, if we hadn't done it before.

Similarly, the last time we road tripped to a wedding, we decided to camp. During that trip, to Big Sur in 2012, we also arrived at our campsite in the middle of the night, in pitch black darkness. So this time, just like before, we had absolutely no idea what we were going to be waking up to.

Road Trip Diaries Part II: Dinosaur Discovery

During the last week in August, Ryan and I dropped the dogs off at boarding, packed up the Versa and embarked on a 5-day road trip through the southwest. Thousands of miles and 35 hours of driving took us through 5 states: California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado and Arizona. Part II picks up as we were leaving Las Vegas.

High off of the stoke from learning that my iPad was returned safe and sound, I offered to drive for the first leg of the day as we headed from Nevada through a tiny corner of Arizona and into Utah.

The rest of Nevada was fairly desolate... Flat stretches of nothingness until we hit Mesquite, a border town between Nevada and Arizona which is full of golf courses, spas, and retirement homes. I felt like we could see all of Mesquite from the freeway and it wasn't too impressive. Which is good to know since I always see Groupon deals for weekend getaways there. Guess I can cross it off my list!

As we moved through Arizona into Utah though, the landscape started to get interesting. Gorgeous rock formations with bright colors lined the highway. In some sections, we drove on roads that felt like they were carved out of the rock, like little pavement rivers.

Entering Utah at the two hour mark, with even more stretches of rock before us, Ryan turned to me and said, "Do you think there were ever T Rexes walking through this exact place?" And thanks to road trip magic, a few miles later, we got our answer.

Restaurant Review: Fig Tree Cafe, Liberty Station

In the midst of all the insanity that's been going on this week between Coachella, starting a new job at my old job (more on that later!) and our friends' wedding in LA, apparently I had my 28th birthday.

Maybe it's a sign of my age now that I've officially entered my late 20s, but I was thoroughly exhausted at the thought of doing anything for my birthday except a nice, lowkey dinner with Ryan. And when he asked me where I wanted to go to eat and celebrate, the first place that popped into my head was the new Fig Tree Cafe in Liberty Station.

I had one of the best meals of my life (a filet mignon on the specials menu) at their Hillcrest location a long time ago and since then, every time I've eaten there, it's been amazing. The food is always just what I'm craving, the atmosphere is just the right mix of casual and special, and the service is quite possibly the best in town. And lucky for me, upon arriving at the new Liberty Station location, we found out that our favorite server, Letizia, was working and we were in her section for the night.

Two things immediately stood out to me about their new space: the parking, which is plentiful in Liberty Station and not so much in Hillcrest, and the festively lit garden patio which is going to be PERFECT for girls nights this summer.

After coming off the Fast Metabolism Diet and then eating like crap at Coachella, I had really been trying hard all week to be good about no cheese or sweets and having small portion sizes, but I completely threw that out the window the second I looked at their mouthwatering menu.

We started off with two appetizers, their baked meatballs and their insane cheeseboard. I mean, insane. It came with two Yorkshire cheeses, one mixed with apricot and another mixed with cranberry, a goat cheese rimmed with cranberry jam that was to die for, some Manchego cheese which I gobbled up before Ryan even knew what happened, and Brie. It also had two types of bread, some mustard, some jam, figs, raisins, and strawberries as toppings. This board is a thing of beauty.

That's not to shortchange the baked meatballs on praise. They were served with fresh Parmesan cheese on a bed of spicy tomato chutney, which was ever-so-slightly too spicy for me. Ryan, however was unfazed by the heat. Regardless, both he and I had to close our eyes with each bite in appreciation of their savory goodness.

For entrees, I decided to go with the Jidori Chicken in Sauvignon Blanc sauce with fingerling potatoes and garlic green beans. Meanwhile, Ryan went with their special for the night which was porkchops with a baked apple Cabernet Sauvignon glaze over it. I mean, their menu is fantastic, but their specials are consistently on point. Like I said, one of the best meals I've ever had in my life was from one of their special menus. That's what makes coming back here so frequently worth it!

We washed all of this down with a bottle of the Canyon Road Pinot Noir. Letizia suggested this would be the perfect pairing with both of our respective wine sauces and she could not have been more right.

Stuffed and happy, I didn't think I'd have room for dessert but I figured, it was my birthday after all. So we split their specialty, a fig bread pudding with vanilla ice cream. Happy birthday to me!

Fig Tree Cafe - Liberty Station
2400 Historic Decatur Road
Suite 103 (Next to Tender Greens and Luna Grill)
San Diego, California 92106
Phone: (619) 821-2044

#TacoTuesday: The Blind Burro, Downtown San Diego

One would think that after spending a week in Mexico the last thing we would want to eat was tacos. And one would be right. That is, of course, until I tell you where we were headed for Taco Tuesday. 

Last week Ryan and I went to The Blind Burro in Downtown San Diego for their exceptionally fun Taco Tuesday. When I heard what The Blind Burro was doing with their Taco Fights, all I could think about was how genius it was and how I couldn't believe more restaurants in SD weren't doing it. 

Taco Fights consist of two chefs going all MasterChef for the night, each concocting their best taco. If you order the $6 Taco Fights special you receive the two gourmet tacos, identified only as Taco A and Taco B. You can up the price a few bucks to get custom craft beer pairings with each taco. You're also given a token and before 8:30pm or so you can drop the token in the appropriate bucket to vote for your taco of choice. Essentially it combines two amazing things: cooking competitions and tacos. I was sold. 

We got there at about 7pm and the place was packed. I was really into the vibe during their Taco Tuesday: lots of energy but not so crowded that you feel claustrophobic. It's great for a more casual evening too, since there's two huge bars to sit at and their outdoor seating is perfect for Gaslamp people watching. I can only imagine how this place is going to blow up during their first summer here. (Note: During Padres season, you'll need a reservation.)

For drinks, I ordered their delicious Border Mule cocktail and Ryan stuck to beer. We had their Bacon Wrapped Jalapenos to start, complete with house made chorizo and applewood smoked bacon. I always worry about things being too spicy, but these were just yummy and too easy to gobble up... a perfect appetizer. Then our Taco Fights tacos came out. 

Taco A had slices of yellow tail (only Ryan tried this one - nothing from the sea for Bri!) with achiote sauce, fried pork, avocado and dried chile-pistachio salsa. Taco B was grilled lengua con escabeche, macha sauce, pickled vegetables and candied jamaica-peanuts. What is grilled lengua you ask? Why, it's cow's tongue.

Neither Ryan or I are really super adventurous eaters so needless to say neither of us would have ordered this if it was on the menu. But the Fights made it fun, so we went for it and were pleasantly surprised. It was a delicious, amazing taco with literal waves of flavor and by far our favorite (not that I can judge Taco A). It was no surprise then that Taco A won the Fight and was crafted by Blind Burro's very own chef.

We ordered four more tacos to share after that (pictured at the top) and they were all delicious as well (from, by the way, our amazing server - great service was had the whole night).  Their Championship Fight for February is tonight but hopefully they continue the Taco Fights next month - if so, I highly recommend participating even if it's something you wouldn't normally order! If not, head to The Blind Burro anyway for what may be Gaslamp's best Taco Tuesday and grab some of their "Baja Tuesday" drinks specials: $4 dos xx drafts, $5 margaritas, and $5 mezcal shooters.

The Blind Burro
639 J Street
San Diego, CA 92101
Phone: (619) 795-7880

Restaurant Review: West Coast Tavern, North Park

Let's get one thing straight: at West Coast Tavern, no one is going to have to force you to eat your brussel sprouts.

I should know. Here is a secret about my boyfriend: he hates that people joke about the fact that he hates vegetables. In reality, he probably eats them more often than people know, but still, there is some truth to it. For instance, it would never in a million years occur to him to order brussel sprouts as an appetizer. And honestly? I don't know that it would be my first choice either. Enter the magic of West Coast Tavern, an impossibly chill restaurant and bar in North Park.

We headed there for dinner last Thursday and it proved the perfect spot for a date night. Incredible food, a laidback atmosphere, great jams on vinyl from their live DJ, and of course, some fantastic wine. It was a nice reprieve from what ended up being a crazy week for both of us. When things get hectic though, my first instinct is to take a little break, slow it down and enjoy a nice meal with my favorite person. And we kicked it all off with... the brussel sprouts.

I was told the brussel sprouts were a must and I will forever trust the person who recommended them to me on all future food-related instructions. Ryan and I surprised ourselves when we pretty much destroyed them in all their herbed, bacony, cheesy goodness. I barely touched my wine (a Francis Ford Coppola Pinot Noir) while I was caught up in my brussel sprouts frenzy and if you know me, you know that means they were something special.

Ryan's appetizer of choice came out next, the tangy, gooey wonder that is their Five Spice Chicken Wings. The sauce on these wings was unlike anything either of us had ever tried before. It was almost like a salty candy and even that explanation doesn't do them justice. They would have been a great snack to go with some craft beer and their Chicken and Spinach Mac and Cheese.

Our entrees were next and like I said, it had been a tough week. So it's rare that I order something as fancy as steak at dinner but thank god I did because their Grilled Flat Iron with Braised Kale and Butternut Squash Puree tastes like you're biting into autumn. Seriously. If you could bottle up every cozy, warm feeling and every autumnal spice and create a flavor and then pour that flavor over a meal, this would be what that would taste like. Eating my dinner, I was honestly so happy I could have cried. Ryan got the Angus Chuck Beef Sliders, but I don't think I even talked to him about his food since I was too busy being mesmerized by mine.

Somehow, someway, after all that, we both had room for dessert, but just barely. I ordered the Pumpkin Cheesecake with a graham cookie, salted caramel and spiced whipped cream on top, but the real winner was Ryan's Bread Pudding. My dessert was decent, but the Bread Pudding was truly heavenly. By the time we finally put our forks down, we were so stuffed I thought someone was going to have to roll us to our car.

I know they say don't eat your feelings and blah blah blah, but never in my life has a meal so completely changed my mood like my dinner at West Coast Tavern. It really was like magic. When we walked in we were both run down, stressed out, and slightly angry at our respective work situations, and by the end of the meal we were totally laidback, happy and relaxed. So if you're in need of some culinary magic, or just want to relax in one of the coolest bars and restaurants in San Diego, head to West Coast Tavern in North Park and don't forget: start with the brussel sprouts.

West Coast Tavern
2895 University Ave.
San Diego, CA 92104
Phone: (619) 295-1688