Tricia got the first chance to share her SF memories, and now its my turn! As soon as Tricia surprised me with plane tickets for San Francisco, my mind was racing. The west coast is uncharted territory for me, especially as far as food goes. And given San Francisco’s reputation as an eating Mecca, I knew that I had research to do. Continue reading
Tricia here! We haven’t gone on a vacation in awhile so this trip was long overdue. As a gift, I decided to take Siddharth to San Francisco, one of the top foodie paradises on the planet. Siddharth had done a lot of research previously and I figured it was time to see the real deal. Continue reading
Sweet Lobby
404 8th St SE
Washington DC 20003
202 544 2404
Sometimes planning ahead for food on your vacations is invaluable. And sometimes you just stumble onto an absolute gem. That’s what happened to us when we came across a microscopic store front called the Sweet Lobby on Capitol Hill. Packed with customers and emblazoned with stickers and flags indicating all kinds of awards, we knew right away that we’d better try what they had to offer. Turns out they make some of the most delicious French macaroons we’ve ever had. Oh, and their cupcakes rock. So good that they took home first place in Food Network competitions (Cupcake Wars and Cupcake Champions). Timothy, one of the competitors on those shows, was a fun guy to talk to, and we definitely think that you should try his cupcakes/macroons!
For Thanksgiving at Siddharth’s house, I decided to skip the typical dinner rolls and make authentic Chinese steamed rolls called mantou. These are steamed wheat buns that are shaped like little pebbles, a staple in northern China. I had these at my grandma’s house a lot in lieu of a bowl of rice. They could be purchased at any Asian food markets in the frozen aisle. The texture of the mantou is similar to the buns you would order at Chinese restaurants for dim sum also called bao, but these buns don’t have anything inside. Our family would eat it as a side with our meals. Some people eat them as snacks by dipping them in condensed milk or even deep frying them! I’ve never tried, but I’m sure these would be delightful too.
The recipe is quite simple but it takes some time because the dough has to rise. If you do decide to deep fry them, we suggest you steam first, let cool, and then deep fry.
In October of 2009, Tricia and I took our first vacation together to Las Vegas. We went over Halloween weekend, when Sin City was perhaps at its most saturated point in terms of debauchery and excess (excess might be a misnomer, because you wouldn’t believe what some girls wear out there!). However, Tricia and I refrained from the club scene for the most part in favor of hitting up some of the fine restaurants along the strip. We were treated to some of the most fabulous culinary delights that either of us has ever encountered. The highlights from 3 of the most memorable below: