food for thought*

Since I'm not doing much for Easter (I haven't managed to get out of my pajamas today), my Sunday involved no chocolate bunnies or egg hunts, so I got to thinking about this holiday. For me, I associate Easter with my mom's garlic and parsley lamb and a new Easter dress, which I would get so hyped for back in the day. But as I got older and the egg hunts went out the window, I'm just now realizing how odd the idea of Easter egg hunting is. 

Here's my thinking: Bunnies don't lay eggs, let alone bright magenta spotted or striped blue ones. What do eggs have to do with bunnies? or Jesus? or the day in general? We dye hardboiled eggs, paint them, and then hide them in our backyards. I guess I've heard of weirder things and it's just all in good fun for the little nuggets running around your backyard, but just thought I'd share with you  – does anyone know where this tradition comes from? 

Hope you all had a terrific weekend, egg hunting/dyeing included, or not! 

xx  

(*disclaimer: I really dislike that phrase, but since we're talking animals/eggs, it'll slide)

Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba!

Jac has a love and fascination for all things Spanish, so she's been eager to check out Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba! for quite a long time, so since her brother is in town we figured we should try it for brunch this morning. We've seen their Bloody Mary bar on Instagram and needed to check it out for ourselves. 

We started with deviled eggs with a crispy bacon bit on top, then our glasses of peppered vodka came so we bellied up to the Bloody Mary bar.

To say we were impressed with their Bloody Mary spread would be an extreme understatement. They had the basics, but also crispy bacon, pickles, celery trees, olives, cucumbers, shrimp skewers, horseradish, and just everything you could possibly want.

Since brunch was tapas style, we ordered a ton of food and just shared everything. We had one of specials, arugula, goat cheese, and fig flatbread. Then the iberico ham has with bell peppers, onions, confit potatoes, and poached egg. 

We ordered the beef tenderloin with an English muffin, poached egg, and hollandaise sauce, which was seriously sooo delicious.

My personal fav, Spanish tomato toast with served with baked eggs with charred romescu sauce and pumpkin seed pistou.

And for dessert, naturally, chicken and ham croquetas.

If you adore Spanish food, or are the type of person who likes to try one of everything, or just a taste, this is a great spot for ya! If not for brunch, then at least go for dinner. 

Enjoy!

xx

HARDBOILED

Crosby's Kitchen

I think every Saturday and Sunday morning should start with a Bloody Mary, accompanied by a 7 oz. beer back. Here are some very delayed snaps from a long, hilarious brunch with the girls when our friend Regan came to town last month. I just found these photos and am remembering how good Crosby's Kitchen is! Def a go back.

We all have the tendency for our eyes to be larger than our stomachs, so we opted to split this delicious warm, homemade cornbread served in an iron skillet. It came with hot maple butter...let's just repeat that one more time: hot. maple. butter. 

That is all. 

Jac and Kels both went for the benedict served over a homemade cheddar bacon buttermilk biscuit. Quite the mouthful, eh? T'was a delicious mouthful, you can bet your bottom dolla that I tried it, multiple times.

Regan was in the mood for a burger that tasted better than it looked (sorry for no snaps of it). I on the other hand decided the fried egg sandwich with bacon on Rye sounded particularly yummy.

Let's just take one last look at that marvelous poached egg...ahhh

If you're in the Southport area and are hungry for brunch, hit up Crosby's. If you're lucky and the weather stays nice for a few more days (fingers crossed!) then be sure to grab a seat outside. Enjoy! 

xx 

Mission Beach Cafe

I'm a huge fan of brunch for a combination of two reasons. The first, and main, I'm never voluntarily up early enough to eat breakfast when everyone else does and it seems there's always a line in San Francisco, no matter what time you arrive. Secondly, I think you can get away with trying things at brunch that you might not care for at 9am. So when Kelsey asked to get brunch a few days ago at Mission Beach Cafe, I gladly accepted since neither of us had been before. We went for brunch, got in with no trouble (surprising right?!) and let's just say we had trouble deciding which of the mouthwatering options we wanted to try. I'm a supporter of all things truffle, but I was a bit hesitant having it with my eggs Benedict, but our server swore by it, so I went for it! 

I opted for the wild mushroom benedict with spinach, carmelized onions, truffle mornay sauce, and delicious crispy potatoes.

Kels went with the classic benedict with hollandaise, Canadian bacon, hot sauce, and crispy potatoes.

We split this glorious pancake with pistachio, vanilla creme, bourbon syrup, and fresh fruit.

Probably my 4th cup of coffee... bottomless is always a good idea.

Overall, great music, friendly servers, and delicious coffee. MBC is a spot I'd def venture back to, specifically for the lavender infused french toast with fresh fruit or the dungeness crab benedict with avocado...how is one supposed to choose?! 

xx

Plow

avocado toast with a poached egg on Acme sourdough 

lemon ricotta pancake + pure maple syrup

smoked salmon toast with capers 

dungeness crab scramble with the best crispy potatoes 

Plow is one of my favorite spots in the city, and I might even go as far as saying, the best brunch in San Francisco. I've never been disappointed with anything on their menu and am obsessed with the interior of their space, so it was a no brainer that my mom and I dined here for our first meal back in the states! The only downside is going on a weekend because you'll be waiting for a table for years and on a Saturday or Sunday morning, that's the last thing I want to be doing. Go during the week (closed Mondays) and mosey through your cups of coffee and lemon ricotta pancakes instead of being rushed.

xx

p.s. thought this list was very accurate upon my arrival home 

Six Snaps

Relaxing 2013 away in Palm Springs

And ringing in 2014 with the best.

Is this an issue that this was my first meal of 2014?

hangin' with this nugget

farewell breakfast

49er Faithful. 

xx