Friday, December 7, 2012

Vacation Road Trip - Close Out

More than a week late, and a couple grand short!  After returning from my trip, I just haven’t had to gumption to review my last few days and the peaks and valleys encountered (very high and very low), but am finally ready to address it all.

So on Saturday, November 24th, I left off with being at the home of a friend and colleague in the mountains west of Denver.  Debra had been wanting to try a restaurant down in town that specialized in “tapas” style dining – Linger (www.lingerdenver.com).  Since it was a Saturday night, the place was definitely hoppin’ and we had to wait for our table to become available.  We had a cocktail in the bar while waiting – I enjoyed a very potent Cosmopolitan! 

Finally we got our table and sat down.  The chef sent out an order of pork belly corndogs to whet our appetites.  I loved corndogs as a kid, but not a big fan as an adult – but these were very scrumptious.  More pork than hotdog, they were little delightful balls of fun.  We nibbled on them while looking over the menu.

Linger is set up to be “street food”, and the menu is separated into continents to signify the influence on the cuisine – a very smart approach I thought.  Our first round was off the Europe/Eurasia menu – “Devils on Horseback”.  It was very similar to an appetizer I make for parties:  medjool dates, stuffed with goat cheese (I tend to use a blue cheese in mine – very tangy), and wrapped in an applewood smoked bacon then roasted.  I could have eaten the entire plate myself, but I didn’t. 

Next came the Chicken B’stilla – a kind of African egg roll stuff with chicken, almonds, apricots, raisins and spiced with cinnamon, and lemon yogurt sauce.  Very delish, and crispy!

The third round were Wagyu Beef Sliders with sweet potato waffle fries.  The sliders were dressed with peppered bacon, cheddar and a curried sour cream.  For sliders, the meat patty was quite generous in size, and sated my appetite nicely.  While it wasn’t quite a whole  burger, I was surprised at how filling it really was.  And it just melted in your mouth!

And our last dish was a Masala Dosa – a crispy rice and lentil crepe stuffed with masala potatoes, Brussels sprouts, and three types of chutney.  This was probably the only dish I wasn’t particularly fond of, but it was an interesting melding of flavors and textures. 

The meal was excellent, and it was nice for me to have the opportunity to check out a slice of the Denver food scene – leaving me wanting to go back and try more!  We were quite full after our meal, so we skipped dessert, but we did check out the ice cream place next – it was very cute.  The building was shaped like an old metal milk jug!

The next morning I was going to get on my way and drive through the Rockies and power through to Vegas – but was stopped dead in my tracks as I was pulling out of Deb’s driveway.  Her husband, Bill, stopped me and pointed to the ground from where I had just pulled away – I was dripping copious amounts of transmission fluid!  Ugh!  So we called around and found a Pep Boys down the mountain in Littleton that was open and could take me.  Turns out the seal on the transmission has developed a hole, literally overnight (I had not had any leaks on the entire trip till now) – and apparently when the seal was installed a year or so ago, it wasn’t done properly and developed a weakness and hole in the seal.  The changes in altitude and pressure didn’t help.

So several hours and $260 later, I had a new seal and was on my way.  Unfortunately, I wouldn’t make it to Vegas, so I had to book a hotel in Grand Junction to stay the night.  I could have stayed with Deb and Bill again, but Grand Junction put me 4 hours closer to my destination.  Sadly, it was dark, so I didn’t get to enjoy the beauty of the Rockies as I drove down the mountains.  I guess that means I will have to go back!

I was in and out of Grand Junction overnight.  I didn’t stick around, though I know they have a lot of wineries in the area – but my vacation was already starting to run short, so I headed through Utah towards Vegas.  Now Utah was a surprise to me, or at least the southern part (I have only flown through Salt Lake once and never saw any of the state other than from the air.)  The desert there is actually almost beautiful.  I was expecting something more like north New Mexico which was flat, bland, and boring.  The Moab and surrounding areas are actually quite stunning.  Yes, it’s desolate, but it has a simply beauty, much like you find in parts of Arizona and New Mexico – with layered, colorful rock outcroppings, etc.  I stopped a few places along the way to take some pictures.

As I powered through, I didn’t see much of anything close to civilization until I finally got to the far southern portion of the state.  St. George was actually a rather large town!  I didn’t stop, but I looked around as I drove through.

I was surprised also to find that the 15 takes you through the very top north-west corner of Arizona before you get to Nevada – I had it stuck in my head that I would drive directly across Utah into Nevada.  But no, you come down out of some mountains through Arizona – very sparse and desolate, but still somewhat pretty – then you hit Mesquite, NV.  It reminded me more of Laughlin, without the river.  Casinos, lots of older folks, and not much else.

It was still another couple hours to Vegas, and a dull drive, but I was happy once I got there.  I stayed at Treasure Island – moderately priced and close to most of the new stuff on the strip.  I haven’t been there in about 5 years or so since my friend Phil and I spent a week at the Luxor.  There were lots of new hotels.  After I got settled, I started walking around the strip to see what was new, etc.  and walked through the “canals” at the Venetian.  I thought I might dine there.  I did wind up getting a “sangria margarita” at one restaurant as I walked around.  I had forgotten that you can walk around with liquor in hand!  It truly is SIN CITY.

I finally got to the Cosmopolitan to check it out.  Talk about opulent!  The interior is very lush and vibrant, and definitely looks like an expensive place.  I walked around a bit to check it out, then went upstairs to check on the dining options.  There were lots of great choices, and it was still early in the evening, and finally I settled on a place where the menu interested me:  STK.  There is a location here in L.A., but what intrigued me was that the Vegas location offered foie gras on the menu (something you can’t get in CA anymore).

I was seated at a table that gave me a broad view of the restaurant (after I complained politely about the side table they stuck me at – the restaurant was half full so I felt justified in asking for a better location).  For my appetizer, I ordered the crab and melon salad.  I was intrigued by the description, but was even more surprised by the presentation.  The melon (cantaloupe) was carved into a sheet that they then rolled around the crab meat.  I liked how they did it, and it was a very delicious combination.  I may have to try and duplicate it myself.  It was very simply dressed, relying on the crab and melon to carry it – and it worked beautifully.

For my main course, I decided to have the 6oz flatiron steak (I have really come to like the flatiron cut….very flavorful) and after talking with the waiter about the options, opted to have it topped with some foie gras.  I had never had a steak this way before, and it turned out to be a wonderful combination.  The foie gras was melting into the steak and gave it a surreal flavor.  I’m sure I was audibly moaning.  It was perhaps one of the top steaks I’ve had in years.

I had also paired everything with a lovely Malbec wine that the waiter had recommended.  It was quite smooth and paired well with the steak.  I can’t remember the vitner, but I enjoyed it.  My whole meal was enjoyable and delectable, but not cheap.  I didn’t get out of there for under $120 (ouch!), but it was a splurge and I’m worth it!   It was my last night of vacation too, so I wanted to treat myself.

The rest of the evening I just walked around and checked out the sites.  Unfortunately, my time was limited due to the car trouble I had in Denver, so I only got to spend an evening milling about.

The next morning, I tried the buffet at the hotel, which was actually a nice choice.  The selection was broad and filling and not outrageously priced.  I think I paid around $15, give or take.  Then I packed up my car and got ready to head out of town.

Remember the brake trouble I had when I first started my trip and delayed me?  As I pulled out of my parking space….scrape scrape scrape….it was back.  I knew I couldn’t drive back to L.A. like, so I found yet another Pep Boys just off the Strip and had them repair it.  Turns out that the guys I had do my brakes originally in LA really messed the job up and didn’t do a complete brake job and used all the old parts.  Every part basically had to be replaced.  Ugh!  I was NOT happy.  But at least Pep Boys gave me a discount and turned the car around in a couple of hours.  They may well have one my business now.  As for the local guys, they still will be getting an earful from me.

So my total trip was fun, but the end of it had some major downs.  I was so glad I got to see my friends in Albuquerque, and spend nearly a week with my old high school buddy Julie.  Overall, the trip was a winner, and even with the troubles encountered, I think they were overruled by the fun times with friends.  Oh, one other sour note:  two of my credit cards got hacked and I’ve had to cancel those accounts and file paperwork for the fraudulent charges.  I think both cards were copied by hotel staff in ABQ and Vegas.  I need to call them managers to advise them, as those cards showed charges a couple of days after I used them at those hotels.   Be aware when you travel – I check my accounts daily and caught them early on.

Sunday, November 25, 2012

Thanksgiving Road Trip - Days 6-10

Wednesday, November 21 – Saturday, November 24, 2012

I’ve been focusing on spending time with my friends, so I haven’t had a chance to update, but now I have some free time and can get caught up a little bit.
 On Wednesday (the 21st), my friend Julie had to work in the late morning/early afternoon, so I drove around town a little, checking Colorado Springs out and drove up into Manitou Springs (the area her husband Gene has suggested) to do some shopping and sightseeing.  It is a very quaint little area just west of Colorado Springs, heading up into the mountains towards Pike’s Peak.  It was fun to walk around and check out the shops.  It’s very bohemian and artsy.  I felt very peaceful walking about the downtown area.
 

I decided to stop in at PJ’s Bistro (www.pjsbistro.com) for lunch.  I had checked out the other restaurants (at least, those that were open) and its menu appealed the most to me.  I had a Baked Chef Sandwich on Ciabatta – turkey, ham, bacon, tomato, swiss and cheddar, baked on the roll.  It was amazingly delicious and filling.  It came with shoestring fries that had been deep fried to perfection.  It would be worth checking out again on another trip.
 

Later in the day, I drove back to meet Julie at her house and we drove out to the Garden of the Gods (www.gardenofgods.com) – a public park just on the edge of the city, bordering on Manitou Springs.  It’s a stunning landscape of weathered red sandstone spires and boulders that they have built paths and trails through that you can meander around admiring their simple beauty.  We walked around for a little while, then headed back into Old Colorado City so Julie could get some lunch. 

 We wound up picking Tapateria (www.tapateria.com) since the restaurant (Gertrude’s) Julie wanted to take me too was closed by the time we got there.  But it was a happy accident that we missed Gertrude’s and could enjoy a bunch of different tapas.  Unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures, and have since forgotten everything we had, but I can tell you that the food was authentic and locally sourced.  Plus, everything we had was delectable.  We also imbibed on some lovely blood orange sangria while munching on our tapas.  It was a nice late afternoon snack for me, and lunch for Julie.  It really compared well to many of the other tapas restaurants I have been too. 
We didn’t do anything for dinner since we were both full, and spend the evening having a B movie fest on the sofa, enjoy each other’s company.  I really am grateful to have reconnected with such a wonderful, dear old friend.

 On Thanksgiving Day (the 22nd), we were cooking for a bunch of people.  We didn’t really need breakfast or lunch, since we were munching on snacks all day while we were cooking.  Julie baked a lovely, and very moist turkey – she bakes it in a paper bag and it browned up beautifully and kept it real moist.  It also wound up giving us a lot of drippings to make some homemade gravy with (that was one of my jobs).  I showed Julie how to turn drippings into excellent gravy.  We didn’t really even need to add much, if any, chicken stock.  The only thing I added was about a cup of prosecco (you can use any white wine or bubbly) to give it some zing, and salt, pepper and a pinch of sage to boost the flavors.  To thicken, I just added some drippings to a measuring cup with maybe half a cup of flour and made a paste/slurry to pour in.  I did it again to give it the right texture and thickness.  It turned out wonderful.

 I also was responsible for making the stuffing.  Normally, I would take some day old bread and let it stale up a bit and break it into cubes – but we didn’t have enough time for that, so we just used bread crumbs (Mrs. Cubison’s) since we needed a shortcut.  I added chopped onions, celery, and some apples and dried cranberries.  I wetted it with some chicken stock, and added salt and pepper, and a little bit of sage again, and fried it up in butter in a pan to get the flavors to meld and give it some caramelizing.  We through it in the oven for a half hour after we took the turkey out to finish it up before dinner.
Everything was delicious!  It was one of the best Thanksgiving meals I’ve had in a while – all made better by sharing it with good friends.

Yesterday (the 23rd), we wound up spending the day, having Turkey Day – Part 2, at her sister’s house on the other side of town.  We just heated up leftovers and played games all day.  It was a real fun day.  It’s the kind of holiday I really enjoy – low stress, high fun – and spending it with wonderful people.
Yesterday (the 24th), I took Julie and Gene to lunch to thank them for housing me for several days.  We drove over to the Old Colorado City area since the restaurant we were going to dine at near downtown was closed for the holidays through next week (bummer!), so we opted for something else.  We wound up choosing an Italian bistro – Paravicini’s (www.paravicinis.com) on the main drag.  It turned out to be a wonderful choice!  They had some great lunch specials available, and we could enjoy some appetizers and soup as well.

We ordered the Bruschetta Pomodoro.  It was a wonderful bread, heated up and topped with a little melted mozzarella cheese, and topped with tomatoes, garlic, red onion and olive oil.  It just melted in your mouth. 

 We each also ordered the Pasta Fagioli soup.  It was just a cup size, but it really hit the stop, plus I enjoyed the addition of chunks of pancetta in the soup. 

For my entrée, I had the Tortellini Carbonara.  It was a little salty (in a good way), savory and cheesy.  The tortellini was cheese filled and the sauce was an alfredo, with peas and prosciutto mixed in.  It was one of the best takes on Carbonara I’ve had in a long time.  The texture was smooth and velvety.  I’d definitely order it again. 

 Gene had the Canelloni with sausage, which I got a taste of and was a dish I would order myself, and Julie had the Eggplant Parmigiana (which I didn’t taste) and really enjoyed it.  Overall it was a restaurant I would visit again and Julie and Gene will now take others there when they want some good Italian.

Last evening I was at a colleague and friend’s home in Bailey, Colorado (up in the mountains west of Denver) and we headed out for tapas last night – it was an interesting menu and I will share with you in the next day or so.  I’ve had some major issues today, that I will talk about on my next posting.  Tomorrow I head out for a long slog of a drive through Utah to Nevada to spend a night in Vegas before I head home. 

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Thanksgiving Road Trip - Day 5

Another long, boring, driving day.  Ugh!  I made a couple of stops along the way though to stretch my legs, etc.  I just got into Colorado Springs a bit ago and am killing time until my friend Julie is home from work. 

I left Albuquerque around 10am this morning and headed up the 25 Fwy through Santa Fe.  It’s a pretty drive northwards of Santa Fe, driving through the evergreens, but then you hit the plateau again, and it’s just brown, brown, brown, and flat, flat, flat, with occasional buttes, etc.  It almost made driving through the Mojave seem appealing!  I stopped to grab some lunch in Las Vegas (no, not sin city – Las Vegas, New Mexico).  It’s not a tiny town, but not particularly big either.  And to be honest, had I not stopped, I doubt I would have missed it.  But I was hungry, and managed to have a semi-decent meal at Arby’s on one of the main drags of town.

I got back on my way, driving through more flat, brown land – snore.  It really wasn’t a very memorable drive – I think I zoned out through much of it.  Once you get closer to the Colorado border, you go up in elevation again and get some more evergreen.  It was a nice breakup to the brown boredom.

Just over the border, in the mountains, you come to the town of Trinity.  Its claim to fame (at least in the more modern age) is that until 2010, it was the sex change capital of the U.S.  A surgeon based there started doing surgeries back in the late 60s, early 70s.  When he retired, he turned the practice over to a transgendered surgeon whom he trained, and she kept it up until 2010, when she moved the practice to the Bay Area.  Trinity’s other claim to fame is that it was a coal mining town. 

I walked around the old downtown, which has managed to preserve its turn of the century architecture and there are some Victoria homes in the hills.  It reminds me a little of the area my cousin Jenny lives in (Nevada City, CA):  it sits on a hillside, has preserved many of its old buildings, and has managed to revitalize itself. 

I moved on to Pueblo – my dad’s home town.  I wanted to stop there while it was still light out and see if I could snap some pictures of the area he lived in.  I visited his old high school (the original building – built in 1918 – still stands! It was the town fallout shelter during the Cold War era).  I walked around the halls for a little bit and introduced myself to the current principal (didn’t want them wandering who the hell I was and why I was snapping photos of the school).  She was happy to meet the son of a former student and hear how his life had turned out (my dad’s, not mine).  She, of course, was way too young to have been there when he attended, but she was still interested.

A lot of the old downtown still stands too, which I thought was neat.  Unfortunately, I couldn’t get ahold of my dad to find out what his address was until after I was long gone, but I had drove around the neighborhood approximal to where he lived.  Much of it was still intact. 

It started getting dark (very early here!) so I left and headed towards Colorado Springs where I sit now, drinking a coffee and killing time.  Not sure if we’ll go out to dinner tonight or not since Julie won’t be home until after 8.  Looking forward to spending some time with a dear, old friend.

Monday, November 19, 2012

Thanksgiving Road Trip - Days 3 & 4

Yesterday was pretty much an all day drive from Sedona to Albuquerque.  I made it into town around 4pm and got settled into my hotel.  I did make one stop along the way (other than pit stops and gas) just east of Gallup to stop at the Fire Rock Casino (http://500nations.com/casinos/nmFireRockCasino.asp) on the Navajo Nation lands.  It was a nice break a little over half way through.  I got a little lunch at the food court (they had Navajo Lamb Stew – it was actually very tasty!) and, as my dad puts it, paid my entertainment tax by gambling a little bit.  I had stopped at this casino a few years back on what happened to be opening day when we were driving through.  It hasn’t changed much.
 

After I got into town, I called my friend Donna since we were planning to have dinner.  She and her husband Ron came and picked me up at the hotel and drove me across town to Sadie’s (http://www.sadiesofnewmexico.com/sadies-4th) for some New Mexican cuisine.  Of course, I HAD to have a Margarita – I ordered the Santa Fe (a classic margarita with the addition of some cranberry juice…very tangy!).  For my main course, I had the shredded beef brisket enchiladas with red sauce.  While the plate looked a mess, the food was absolutely delicious!  I could have eaten another plate of those enchiladas (but I was quite full with that I had).  The beef was tender and seasoned well, and the red sauce just complimented it so well.

 They dropped me back at the hotel and I wound up turning in early as I was exhausted from driving all day.  This morning, Donna picked me up and we drove out to Sandi Peak and rode the tram to the top of the Sandia Mountains.  You get such an incredibly stunning view of the entire valley area, and from the top of the peak, you can see the other side down into Santa Fe.  There was a little snow at the top, but most of it had melted.  The snow season should be starting soon though.

 
I have never done one of the trams before.  They have one like it in Palm Springs, and I just haven’t done it, so this was a perfect excuse to do it this time.  We walked around the peak for a while and took in the amazing views.  I bet at either sunrise or sunset it is even more gorgeous.  Perhaps on another trip.

After the peak, we drove out to the Sandia Casino (http://www.sandiacasino.com/) for lunch (and a little gambling).  Donna had not eaten at the Council Room Restaurant and Bar, so we decided to try that out.  It’s a very well appointed dining room and the service was impeccable.  We shared some nachos that were good (not great, but definitely good) and I had burger to order for my entrée.  The burger was cooked just right, seasoned well, and I added blue cheese and bacon.  It satisfied my desire for some beef.  Afterwards, we gambled a little and I basically broke even – playing about $50 worth and winning it back.

Donna dropped me back at my hotel to rest a bit and kick back.  I met her and her family a little later across the street at the Bravo Cucina Italiana (http://www.bravoitalian.com/index.html) a nice Italian chain where I had the chianti braised beef raviolis that were quite delectable. 

Tomorrow, I am off to Colorado to visit friends in Colorado Springs and will make a couple of stops along the way.

Sunday, November 18, 2012

Thanksgiving Road Trip - Day 2

(Note:  This is a day late in posting - I wrote most of it last night, but was just too exhausted and went to bed early, so I finished this morning and am posting now.  Also, today is a driving day, so not sure how much I will have to post tonight.)


My morning started with breakfast at the hotel.  This Best Western has a good buffet breakfast with more choices that you’d think you’d find at a budget hotel.  Sometimes they even have eggs to order!  I just had some waffles and ham to get my day going.  Afterwards, I walked around uptown Sedona, but most places weren’t really open yet.
 
I decided to drive to the other side of town and see what’s in West Sedona.  At the far edge of town are a few loop roads that take you out into the Red Rock areas.  I drove around those for about an hour to just admire the views and stop and take a few pictures.  You can find some amazing views just about anywhere in Sedona.


I drove back towards uptown since it was getting to be time for lunch.  I settled on a brew pub at the Tlaquepaque plaza down in Oak Creek in the canyon.  And interestingly enough, it’s called Oak Creek Brewing Company (www.oakcreekbrew.com).  It’s on the second level and since it was such a lovely day, I decided to eat on the patio looking over the courtyards.  I ordered their house Hefenweisen (a nice light wheat beer) to partake of while enjoying the sunshine.  I also ordered a club sandwich with fries.  The beer was quenching and refreshing, and the sandwich was actually very delicious.  They were very generous with the cheese (I think there were three types!).  The fries were okay, but nothing special – but were crisp nonetheless.  It made for an enjoyable afternoon.


After lunch, I headed back to the hotel to drop off some stuff I bought, and then go back into uptown to do some more shopping.  I picked up a couple of dirt shirts (they actually color them with the red rock dirt – it’s a neat color) for myself, and my niece and nephew.  I also dropped by a shop that had wine tastings from some Arizona wineries.  I wound up walking out with 4 bottles!
I wound my way back to the hotel again, dropped off more stuff, then got ready to head out for my jeep tour.  I had booked a tour with Pink Jeep Tours to do the Diamondback Gulch off-road tour.  For two hours, they take you out into the red rocks and canyons and you definitely get jostled.  I loved it!  And it turns out, the guide I got this time was the same one my friend Fuzzy and I had the last time we were in Sedona – Mike Roda.  It took us a few minutes to figure it out.  That was about three years ago when we were here last and did a tour.  I wound up getting to ride shotgun, so I got full view of everything. 


When he takes you out, you don’t just get a jeep ride off road, you get some education as well.  The guides at Pink Jeep learn about the geology, geography, etc. and relay that kind of info to the guests.  It makes the tour that much more interesting.  And you get some spectacular views of the area. 
Sadly, it was over way too quickly and Mike took up back to the depot.  He did give me a recommendation for a place to eat though – and not a tourist destination:  Dan’s Bistro over on the west side of town.


I headed over there for my final meal in Sedona.  It’s a little hole in the wall in the middle of a bunch of strip malls.  From the outside, it’s non-descript, but when you walked in, while I wouldn’t say there’s WOW factor, it is very quaint and you are greeted by warm and friendly staff.  It was still on the early side of the evening, so I had my pick of tables.  I picked one over by the window.


My server, Richard, was quick to greet me and take a drink order.  An associate brought me an amuse bouche of risotto that’s been made into a ball, rolled in bread crumbs, and deep fried.  It was accompanied by a sun dried tomato and a drizzle of a balsamic vinegar reduction.  It really did amuse my mouth and was a great introduction to me ensuing meal.


Oh, I forgot to mention – they don’t have a liquor license, so it’s BYOB.  I couldn’t justify a whole bottle since I was eating by myself (and had to drive back to the hotel), so I had water and an Arnold Palmer – which I must say was one of the best Arnold Palmer’s I’ve had.  They had the mixture of lemonade to tea perfect!


For my first course, I ordered the Carpaccio – a lovely plate of rare, thinly sliced sirloin topped with arugula, oven roasted tomatoes and shaved reggiano and dressed with a citrus aioli.  It was basically a deconstructed steak salad and was wonderful.  All the flavors melded together beautifully.
For my main course, I chose the Fettuccini Alfredo with salmon.  When it arrived, there was this large, grilled salmon steak sitting atop a bed of fettuccini.  The salmon was season well and cooked to perfection, and worked well with the fettuccini.  It was a very generous portion and I got full quickly and couldn’t finish it.  But I loved the dish.
 
Lastly, Richard tempted me with dessert.  All sounded great, and even though I was full, I couldn’t pass up one of them.  He told me about the White Chocolate Pomegranate Cheesecake, and I was sold.  I figured I would bring back what I couldn’t eat and have with coffee in the morning (which is exactly what I wound up doing).  It was rich, sweet, tangy, and a little salty too – it was absolutely, stunningly delicious!

I can’t wait to come back to Sedona to spend more time and explore even more of the food scene!