That was Easy - New iPhone 4S

Apple actually got it right and made enough iPhones to satisfy demand for their newest iPhone release, the 4S. I expected diehard fans to camp overnight with endless lines and soldout phones, so I didn't even plan on going to the store, even though my 3 year old iPhone 3G was on its last legs. I will easily wait in lines for fashion, but not technology :). Encouraged by reports of minimal waits at various Apple Stores, I drove down to the 3rd Street Promenade Store at 3:45pm. I was out of there by 3:55pm at the latest with a brand new white iPhone 4S (16gb); they really make it easy to buy their product. Kudos to Apple and the staff. I haven't really started to play with all the new features of the phone yet, just working on getting it all set up. Now I need a cute case...

Early review (10/16/11): I haven't had a chance to really play with it much, but it's awesome so far. It's sooo fast, although my perception may be particularly skewed since my iPhone3G was painfully slow and constantly froze. Siri's proven to be fairly helpful with simple tasks like setting an alarm, checking the weather, setting reminders and texting and calling people. For more complex tasks which require a web search, she hasn't been that helpful and I hate that it defaults to yahoo as the search engine (update, I was able to change the settings to google). After a bunch of CNET and Amazon research, I think I want the Otterbox Commuter as a case. Unfortunately the iPhone 4 version on Amazon is not compatible with the 4s (I wonder why), so I will wait a bit for it to go online.

Salty's on Alki: Reasonable Brunch Buffet with a View

It's pretty much impossible not to overindulge at a buffet, particularly with a spread like Salty's. We had Sunday brunch at Salty's on Alki Beach across the water from Downtown Seattle. For $44 and the sheer quantity of options, it was one of the more impressive buffets I've ever had. We had the best table in the house; a corner table with amazing views over the water.

View from my seat

Freshly fried donuts to start

K's first plate

My first plate

My second plate: a crepe filled with crab, peppers, tomatoes, cheese and topped with sausage gravy

K's second plate: Prime Rib and oysters. I think he's just happy he didn't have to shuck them himself

My third plate. I mixed the dungeness crab meat with the macaroni and cheese. Brilliant.

Dessert

The bloody mary bar. Unfortunately, many of us overindulged the night before so we didn't get to take advantage of this

Chocolate and caramel fountains

Cafe Boulangerie: Fresh Baked Sandwich Bread

For the last few weeks, I've been indulging in buying freshly baked bread on a weekly basis from Cafe Boulangerie. We go through a lot of bread, from tomato or avocado on toast for breakfast to sandwiches for lunch. There's nothing like the chewy hearty grainy deliciousness from fresh bread. It's $4.50 for a loaf that lasts us the week, plus I can easily ride my bike there to pick it up.

Quite a variety; I usually prefer the multigrain sliced thin. It doesn't taste too "healthy" like whole grain bread can sometimes taste

Cafe Boulangerie
804 Montana Ave
Santa Monica, CA 90403

October Farmer's Market Report: Looks like Fall

It may not feel like fall with temperatures in Santa Monica in the 80's but at least it looked like fall at the Wednesday Santa Monica farmer's market. I'm a little sad that all the beautiful colorful summer produce like tomatoes and peppers are waning, but there's definitely something festive about all the pumpkins and squash; time to get out the Halloween decorations! We kept it simple and just bought salad greens (next to Mark Peel of Campanile who was putting in a large order), beets, radishes, Japanese celery stems, avocados, and the last of the good organic grapes. I'm in a bit of a cooking rut with the change of seasons, I need some inspiration!

Apples are starting to proliferate

Saw persimmons at several stands

What IS that ginormous squash and how in the world do you cook it?

Learned our lessons a few years ago, can't buy pumpkins too early

Go To Paseo

Roast Pork Sandwich with caramelized onions, cilantro, jalapenos, lettuce

Photo doesn't do the sandwich justice, but for the best cuban style sandwiches (at least best that I've ever had), go to Paseo in the Fremont district of Seattle.

Portage Bay Cafe Review: Creative Brunch in Seattle

The lines outside as we left

We were in Seattle for the weekend and our first stop as soon as we got off the plane was at Portage Bay, near the University of Washington. I was quite impressed by the brunch menu; lots of great stuff to choose from with a focus on local organic ingredients. It was packed as usual so we sat outside, which was a little chilly, but they provided us with cozy Mexican blankets to keep warm. The food was really good; hearty and tasty with huge portions, and we left beyond stuffed. Service was a bit absent as it was quite busy.

Pulled Pork Eggs Benedict over beets and potato pancakes with a side of beurre blanc. Yes, it tastes as good as it sounds

Cheddar Scallion Biscuits with Wild Mushroom Gravy and eggs. Apparently, it's wild mushroom season in Seattle, which is great since I love mushrooms

Tirimisu French Toast

Apple Whole Wheat Pancakes after a visit to the famous berry toppings bar

Nha Trang: Excellent Vietnamese Noodle Soup in the SGV

After a haircut in the San Gabriel Valley last week, we went to check out Nha Trang on the north side of Valley, between Del Mar and San Gabriel Blvd. Parking was a pain, we had to wait about 15 minutes for a table at lunchtime, and by the time we were seated, they had run out of everything except for two menu items. Fortunately, I was there for the Bun Hue, which was one of the items still available. The place is miniscule but has its charm, seats 17 people very very tightly. It's a bit cleaner and nicer than most Vietnamese / pho places that I've been to. The Bun Hue was excellent; the soup was deep, savory with good heat yet clean and refreshing tasting, probably from the lemongrass and lime, and all the generous amounts of fresh vegetables (cabbage, mint, basil, jalepenos) and varieties of meats (including thinly sliced beef, pigs blood, pigs feet) tasted really fresh and high quality. Noodles were a little mushy and bland, but everything else was so good. Also, I didn't detect any MSG and left feeling full but comfortable. I'll definitely be back next time I'm in the neighborhood.

Nha Trang

311 E. Valley Blvd

San Gabriel, CA