I have a food baby inside me as we speak.

So, last night, my good friend Lori was in town from Dallas.  She had $200 worth of gift cards to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse burning a hole in her pocket.  We have been trying to use the gift cards for months and FINALLY, we were able to make this happen!  This particular Ruth's is downtown and is a block away from my office so every day for the past several months I would walk past it.  It was killing me softly!

Now let me preface this blog by saying that I've really, REALLY cut back on my meat intake in the last year.  As I've gotten into running, I try to eat a lot of fruits, vegetables, fish.  Once in awhile, chicken breast.  My big vice is sushi.  Basically, I hardly ever eat meat.  Most of the time, I am ok with this.  However, once in awhile, I go apeshit and want a big, red, bloody, juicy, mooing, enormous STEAK. And if I don't get it, I'm not the nicest person.  It's been quite some time and I was at the end of my tether.  I wanted a huge ass peace of meat sizzling in a pool of butter and I wanted it yesterday.

So, we made the reservation, put on our eating pants, and went to town.  We went hog wild.  Lori insisted we do this up right and get everything our hearts desired.  Best believe, I did.

On a side note, who wants to buy me a nice camera so I can take better pictures?  This iphone camera bs is NOT cutting the mustard, ya dig?

On to the pics...

                                       Asparagus with hollandaise sauce.  Potatoes au gratin aka omfg.

                                           My ribeye, rare, extra butter. Go big or big home, ok?

Lori's filet, rare, accompanied by a succulent lobster tail with drawn butter

                                                                 She's pleased at punch!

                                                                    Get in my belly!

Look at that f'ing steak!  Don't you want to have babies with it?  I'm just saying.

                                                               Mmmmmm.  Just mmmmmm.

              It's best to wash it all down with a couple of Strawberry Margs.  Fruit is good for you  ;)                                   

dessert! cheesecake

So, all in all, this meal was the bees's knees and as of this morning, I have a food baby inside me. 

That is all.  xoxo, Jaime

Europe

I've gone to Europe twice.  The first time was in 2007 for 2 and half weeks.  On that trip, I went to Italy, Greece, and Turkey.  The other Europe trip was this past summer.  May of 2010 I went to England, Paris, and Spain with an unexpected overnight in Amsterdam (thanks, volcanic ash!)

Unfortunately, during trip numero 2, I was sick pretty much the entire trip.  Not just a cold.  I had a full blown fever, aches, and a terrible sore throat nearly the entire time from start until finish.  It was HORRIBLE.  But I was in Europe and germs be damned!  I was going to experience as much as I could before collapsing in bed each night in a fit of coughs and sneezes.  It was absolutely awful!  Here I was surrounded by beautiful art and gorgeous people and exquisite food and culture and I wanted to DIE, basically.  My poor friend Michael also probably wanted to kill me by the end of the trip. 

But I digress.

I think it's really important for people to travel, particularly overseas.  It truly is a life-changing experience to surround yourself with true history and culture and amazing food.  It changes you, for the better.  Where is true culture in America these days?  Yes, it exists but you really have to seek it out.  There's not much of it here in Austin.  In America, one must often have to seek out a beautiful meal or an exquisite experience.  In Europe, it's ALL beautiful and exquisite all the time!  It falls into your lap without you seeking it out.  Even the simple little things are just...amazing.  Fresh mozzerella atop the most perfect slice of pizza ever in Rome, a warm caramel crepe garnished with fresh strawberries in Paris, a simple cup of hot chocolate in Barcelona.  These simple things are f'ing fantastic when consumed in Europe.

I live in Texas.  Culture here is bbq.  We are lacking culture.  I mean, fine dining in Texas for most is...

Ugh.
I mean, I am lucky enough to at least live in Austin...but still.  Hopefully I can at least move to California one of these days.

Anyway...It's going to take me awhile to culinarily (ha, is that a word?) summarize these two trips properly.  Instead, here's a few food pics I took of Europe.  Mike took way more pics because I was sick, sick, sick.  I'll have to try to get some of them from him so you can see the tapas and the pizzas and the crepes and the...ok fine, I'll stfu now.

                                                                    Gelato! mmmmm

                                                                Butcher shop en Barcelona

                                                          La Rambla - market en Barcelona
                                                              

winery en Barcelona

Uchi

I went to Uchi recently.  Uchi is the cat's pajamas and I don't throw that saying around lightly, ok?

Innovation - a change in the thought process for doing something, or the useful application of new inventions or discoveries.

What sets Uchi (and Uchiko) apart from the rest is INNOVATION.

Here's an analogy.  So let's say a typical restaurant (Benihana for example) is Morgan Freeman.  Uchi is Samuel L. Jackson.  Morgan Freeman is respectable, good.  Samuel L. Jackson, of course, is a badass mother you-know-what!  BAM!

Innovation, taken to a whole other level.  Combining ingredients and textures, colors, and fragrances to take the dish to a whole other level of pure amazing-ness (is that a word?)

I went to a 5 course chef's tasting here last night and I was amazed time and time again.  I ate A LOT and it would take a long time to fully describe it all so I will just go with my favorites:

My favorites: hiramasa (amberjack, golden grapes, crabapple, candied almonds, shiro dashi) aka O FACE TIMES 10!

Sakana - whole steamed loup de mer, ginger, lemongrass, cilantro, kaffir lime, and a light broth.  Melt in your mouth fish.

The okashi dessert - espelette ganache, toasted marshmello, sweet potato, candied pecan, blood orange sorbet.  OMG this dessert was so amazing it actually gave me chills.  I mean, the flavor combinations and textures again is what sets Uchi apart from the rest.

okashi dessert - espelette ganache, toasted marshmello, sweet potato, candied pecan, blood orange sorbet. aka THE CAT'S PAJAMAS!! amazing. o face times 10.

kamo - duck confit, fried chicken mushroom, chanterelle, spring onion, lemon butter reduction

sakana - whole steamed loup de mer, ginger, lemongrass, cilantro, kaffir lime

chef selected sushi. I forget what kind but it was tasty and had a citrus taste to it.

uni - sea urchin, koshi hikari, fresh yuzu, risotto atop a bed of sea salt

my favorite besides the dessert. hiramasa - amberjack, golden grapes, crabapple, candied almonds, shiro dashi, this was a party in my mouth times 10.

the menu!

See pics above and don't hate me cause ya ain't me, ok?

And look how happy we are!  I mean, it's Uchi, come on!!

Uchiko

I went to Uchiko last week. OMFG.  This was the best meal I have ever had, bar none.  And I have been around the world and have eaten some mad delicious cuisine.

Oh Em Gee.  Beyond party in my mouth, Uchiko takes you to another dimension and I ain't playing around here.  This was, by far, the best meal I've ever had, seriously.  Ever.  Even the Edamame was superb with it's seasoning/grilling deliciousness.  We had the koviche to start which had elements of citrus and crunch and tangyness all in one delectable bite.  The big eyed tuna was so amazing, so fresh.  I had the cobia which was recommended to me and it was so delicious...again, elements of different flavors including mint and cucumber.  Also, we had the George roll, crunchy tuna, tiger cry, and shag.  I HIGHLY recommend the tiger cry and the shag.  Tiger Cry had wagyu beef, the shag roll had tempura salmon...but these are more than mere sushi rolls.  Uchiko takes it to a whole other level with the ingredients and multiple flavor combinations and sauces.  It's like BAM, mother f-ers!  Party in yo mouth!

OK my favorite part of the meal, the desserts!  We had the fried milk and the sweet corn sorbet.  These are the best desserts I've had in my life and I'm 33 years old.  Genius, pure food genius.  So innovative and DELICIOUS.  You just have to go and experience it.  The presentation alone is amazing, but the TASTE. OMG that corn polenta dish with the caramel and the corn sorbet, so f'ing good.  And the fried milk was ah-mazing.

Here are some pics of the pure awesome-ness that is Uchiko...

sweet corn sorbet polenta custard, caramel salt, lemon

shag tempura fried salmon roll, sun dried tomato, sumiso, spicy sauce

sake atlantic salmon, preserved lemon, skyr yogurt, mint

koviche fresh diver scallop, tomatillo, kala­mata, black lime

                                                     big eye tuna fish sauce, kimchee oil

tiger cry grilled wagyu steak, yuzu kosho, toasted rice, cilantro

fried milk choco­late milk, toasted milk, iced milk sherbet

Introduction to my new food blog

I've decided to create a food blog, mainly for myself.  I really, REALLY enjoy food.  Most people I know are not nearly as passionate about food as I am.  To me, having an amazing meal is not just about eating some good food.  It's about the entire experience and how it makes me FEEL.  Some of my best memories over the years have in one way or another been tied to food.  I hope to recapture some of those memories and also document future ones on this blog.  I will look to my past and also document the present. 

I hope you enjoy this as much as I plan to!  And if you ever want to join me in my food endeavors, put your eating pants on and let's do this!

xox,
Jaime