The San Francisco Treat

 Hey ArielViewers,

Travel has been limited due to our upcoming move to Littleton, CO, but we did visit my family in California this November, and I'm so glad we did.

Seeing my dad so happy on the West Coast and enjoying his life with his new puppy brought a smile to my face. We hopped in his Tesla at SFO and jetted off to Anatolian Kitchen in Palo Alto before heading to my dad's in Richmond, CA.

The next day, Jason and I jumped on the ferry from Richmond to San Francisco, which brought us to Pier 2. The schedule changes during the week, so download the app for tickets and schedules. Bikes are allowed on the ferry, and there's a place to lock your bike; no dogs are allowed on the ferry. As soon as we landed at Pier 2, we stumbled into a massive farmer's market; obviously, we had to walk through and get samples while we waited for Jason's friends 😜

Once we met up with Jim and Ruth, we went to eat a fantastic brunch at Troya - a Turkish restaurant. Jason and I split the lamb hummus and avocado toast with freshly squeezed orange juice, which was delicious. Afterward, we went to The Snug, where we had one tasty cocktail, said our goodbyes, and went to visit the MVPs, my grandparents.

Of course, on the way, Jason and I stopped at our favorite South Indian restaurant, AappaKadai. We like it so much that we brought it to my grandparents twice at the nursing facility. Aappam with extra coconut milk, please! My grandmother also loved her Lakshmi and Durga plush toys, originally intended for my nieces🤣.

The next day, we stayed at my cousins', who took us out in Burlingame. She and her husband took us to Barrelhouse for super tasty cocktails, Salt and Straw for the most unique ice cream flavors I've ever tried, and Cafe Stellato for gelato, where I had delicious Thai iced tea gelato.

We departed Burlingame and hopped on the CalTrain to San Francisco, where we met my dad, the puppy, and our tour and tour guide, Nikki, with Avital Food Experiences.

On the food tour, we went to: 

• Bi-Rite ice cream - the salted caramel was awesome.
• Tartine was recommended, but we didn't try it.
• Bao Dumpling and Chinese Cuisine had delicious dumplings.

A few other food spots that were on point were:

• Hook Fish Co. in Mill Valley—Casual atmosphere but deliciously fresh fish. We ordered fish and chips and fish tacos, and both were excellent.
  
  
  
  
  
  

Skates on the Bay in Berkeley—Joel was our waiter, and he was fantastic and gave great recommendations. We had wonderful sushi, fish, soup, and so much more. We will definitely be back the next time we visit my dad!

We found so many gems on this trip, from family to friends to delicious food. We can't wait for our next trip after our move to Colorado.

The Ultimate Chinatown and Little Italy Food Tour in NYC

Hey Ariel Viewers 💝 It's not often that I write about something that we do locally in NYC, but I couldn't gatekeep this one!

Unfortunately, I don't recall all the prices, but everything we had (especially in Chinatown) was very cheaply priced.

Here are the places we went to in order starting in Chinatown and ending in Little Italy:

Chinatown

• Spongies Cafe 🧁- 121 Baxter St. - I think it was only $2 for the fluffiest birthday cake spongecake ever!
  
  
  
• Tasty Dumpling 🥟- 42 Mulberry St. - also super cheap. You can even get frozen dumplings to take home.
  
  
  
• I was then directed to a very cheap haircut spot that is supposed to be a great find. It's called Pell Hair Salon.
• If you go to 18 Pell Street (in front of Hair Le Pell Salon), look up and you'll see the Chollima, which is a mythical winged horse that originated from Chinese classics.
  
  
  
• Another recommendation (that we didn't get to try) is Hai Cang Seafood 🐟 where you can buy fresh seafood.

Little Italy

• Nolita Pizza - combo of Italian and NY style 🍕

I'd love to explore Little Italy way more. What are your favorite Little Italy/Chinatown spots?

Until next time!☮

Vancouver - We finally made it to Canada!

Hey Ariel Viewers!

It's been a while, but we haven't traveled since our wedding last year. It was great to travel again and make it to the country that's closest to us, Canada!

Here are all the places we went through, the good, the bad, and the gorgeous:

1. Dublin Calling Pub to watch the rugby game 🏉 - 👎🏽 so terrible. The server told us the kitchen was too backed up and we couldn't order food. None of our drink orders were correct, and the service was so bad, that we went out to the shop, got our own drinks, and came back and watched the game. No one even noticed.
2. Johnnie Foxes - 👎🏽 the food was awful. Dry, greasy, no Guinness at an Irish place. 
3. The Basic Diner - 👎🏽 exactly what the name says, Basic. The food is incredibly overpriced and a simple sandwich tasted less than mediocre.
4. Nando’s Peri Peri 👍🏽 - Nando's was so stinkin' tasty and at a good price. The place is clean and the staff was also very friendly and helpful.
5. Pawn Shop YRV 🌮 Bar 👍🏽 - this place was great; they had tasty food, but for Mexican food, it was incredibly expensive.
6. Artigiano 👍🏽 - we stopped into this nice and spacious cafe for a quick snack and got a warmed-up tomato and cheese scone. It was so beyond tasty!
7. Aquarium in Stanley Park 👍🏽
8. Steamworks Brewpub 👍🏽- awesome location, beer, and food
9. Van Buren Brewery 👍🏽 - awesome location, beer, and food
10. Bonta Italian Ristorante 👍🏽 - excellent food
11. Granville 🏝️ - public market (lavender/hammock shop)- the market grill spicy 🐔 🥪 👍🏽 This was my favorite spot on the whole island.
12. Glitch Arcade Bar 🎮 👍🏽 - this place was awesome and had trivia.
13. Grouse 🏔️ gondola 🚠 & ⛷️ lift. Grizzly 🐻. 👍🏽
14. 🚕, ⛴️ & 🚌 to Victoria - 🐳 watching - Prince of Whales👍🏽
15. 10 Acres Bistro 👍🏽 - Fantastic food.
16. Tim Hortons ☕️ 🍩 🥪 👍🏽 - Can't get enough of this place. Food, drinks, snacks, it's like Dunkin Donuts on steroids.
17. Joffre Lake hike👍🏽 - a bit of a drive but an absolutely gorgeous hike and view.
18. Starbucks is great in CA 👍🏽 I know it's lame, but the Starbucks chai lattes were on point.
19. The Cactus🌵 Club Cafe 👍🏽 their food was incredible
20. 🛵 at Yes Cycle 👍🏽 Ride through Stanley Park and zip around the sites. it was a lot of fun and the scooters have phone holders.
21. Poutine @ Fritz 👍🏽 The poutine was super tasty!

Memorable Things from Trip

• Speeding 🎟️ for Martin driving too slow
• Poutine and scootin - scootering and poutine to follow
• JetBlue 🎧 not free. No meal. No carry-on. Have wrong carousel ℹ️ Jet blue was hella expensive for such cheap service. 

Our One Night Louisville Adventure

 Hey Ariel Viewers! As a continuation of the Nashville post, this post is about our stop in Louisville, KY before we went back to New York.

We arrived in Louisville on a Sunday and barely anything was open so all of the places we planned to go to were closed. Thankfully, the Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory was open, which was one of the coolest experiences I've ever been to.

There is an entire museum filled with information about past and current baseball players. We also were able to hit baseballs/softballs. Then we went on the factory tour, which was the best part. I never realized how much work went into making a baseball bat. We got to see the process from start to finish and actually see the employees at work. Another cool part of the factory is they give you a free little bat and you can get a personalized bat to take home!

Next, we went to Angels Envy for a spirit tasting and tour, which was also very enjoyable. 

I would love to go back to Louisville when everything is open; it was a very cute city and seemed like it had a lot to offer.

Eat, Drink, and Celebrate Everything Nashville

 Hey Ariel Viewers! As you know all too well, traveling has been at an all-time low since the pandemic. However, Jason and I were finally able to travel to three states in 10 days this past May; it was one of our best vacations yet. Here is a rundown of what we did in Nashville, which I hope will inspire you to visit.

We arrived at the Courtyard Marriott (West End/Vanderbilt), which was a nice hotel with friendly staff. We then went to Bakersfield, which Jason enjoyed, but I wasn't the biggest fan. It was a large venue and very loud. The drinks were great, but I have definitely had better Mexican food. It had a similar vibe to something we would find in Times Square. We ordered chicken taquitos, guacamole, esquite (similar to elote), tacos, blueberry lemonade beer & a pineapple margarita.

The next day, we went on the Downtown Food & History Walking Tour with Scott Hinds, and the day was fantastic! We ate delicious food while learning about Nashville's history and meeting the coolest people. Jason and I do a food tour in every city we visit and I highly recommend you do the same. It's an easy and fun way to see all of the local spots and meet new people. We journeyed to:

• Donut Distillery - whiskey glazed donuts
• Chicken bacon cheese biscuit at Rise
• Jacks BBQ
• Broadway Brewhouse - Home of the famous Bushwacker
• Johnny Cash Kitchen & Saloon - fried chicken, collard greens, mac & cheese

After the food tour, Jason and I went to:

• Brunch at Husk was very good. They even printed a Happy Birthday menu to celebrate my birthday. Great service and delicious food and drinks.
• The Treehouse - an awesome speakeasy bar (they also serve food). We had:

• Mr. Robot beer
• Carrot juice & gin with a salt rim (featured in the photo)
• Mr. No Name-whiskey honey mint lemon
• Urban Cowboy is a bit off the beaten path so we rode Lime electric scooters there. We both had the orange popsicle drink, which was unbelievably good and the atmosphere is great. Their outdoor space makes it feel like you're in someone's backyard.
• Pearl Diver was also in the direction of Urban Cowboy so we jetted there afterward and had:
• Pina colada with sherry and coffee grounds
• The Banana Banana drink was lit. No, it was actually on fire. It was so tasty and barely tasted like alcohol. 
• Last, but certainly not least, we went to Layla's Honky Tonk (featured below) on the main strip and saw Scott (from the food tour) and his band, The Royal Hounds play. That was the most entertaining set I have ever heard. Not only was the music amazing and uplifting, but people from the food tour showed up so we have people to chat with.

On Sunday, we ate, drank, and golfed our way through:

• Loveless Cafe
• Topgolf - 100% check this out even if you're not a golfer. It was a very cool experience. 
• Urban Grub

On Monday, we experienced:

• Pinewood Social - To be frank, we were a wee bit hungover so I don't know if we got the full experience of this restaurant. We ordered the:
• Chicken and biscuits
• Steak bowl, which I barely touched because I was "under the weather."
• Green Brier Distillery - One of the coolest experiences that we did and I'm not even a spirits drinker. The tour was very informative (and not in a boring way) and we even learned how to properly drink spirits.
• Louisa - my favorite
• Belle Meade Bourbon - Jason's favorite
• The Paratheon was very cool. We took photos from the outside, but we could not go in for a tour due to COVID-19. The park that the Paratheon is in is very nice as well.
• ML Rose - Jason and I ordered flights of beer/cider to try. The staff was so friendly and explained about each beer/cider and places to go around Nashville. Below are our three favorite drinks on tap:
• Zango
• Guava
• Nashville cider

 Tuesday, we visited:

• Robert's Western World - a Nashville must-see
• Tootsies - another must-see
• Honkey Tonk Bar Central
• Kid Rock's Big Ass Honky Tonk Rock N' Roll Steakhouse
• Kayne Prime Steakhouse 

Wednesday, we went to:

• Kung Fu Saloon - similar to Barcade in NYC with loads of video games, great music, and friendly staff.
• Hopsmith - a bar with a nice outdoor space. We had chicken and waffle bites, which were decent.
• The Baked Bear - we had 'make your own' ice cream sandwiches.
• The Red Door Saloon - we got a midday drink here, which included Hi-wire lemonade sour & tailgate PB stout.
• Losers - we saw live music here and Winners is right next store. Basic drinks and food, but a good vibe.
• Old Moonshine Distillery & Yeehaw Brewery

Thursday, we enjoyed:

• Zoo zipline
• Nashville Craft Distillery
• Diskin Cider
• Jason Aldean's - we walked in and walked right out. It looks like an awesome venue and I would love to go back, but during COVID and coming from NYC, we didn't feel comfortable in such a crowded place.
• Nashville Craft Distillery
• Diskin Cider

To wrap up the Nashville portion of our trip on Friday, we went to Gaylord hotel and Legendairy Milkshake Bar (featured on the right). We have seen the Gaylord in Fort Worth, Texas, and this was just as extravagant. Legendairy was a cool experience with decent ice cream, but for the wait, I don't think I would go back again. 

What places have you been to in Nashville?

Until next time!

Pongal (Spiced) Rice Recipe

Get ready to celebrate Pongal (South Indian Thanksgiving) the right way with Spicy Pongal Rice:

INGREDIENTS

 

• 2-3 tablespoons Ghee/Clarified Butter (Vegans can replace ghee with oil)
• 1 teaspoon Cumin (jeera) seeds
• 1 teaspoon Black Peppercorn (whole or crushed)
• 2 Green Chillies
• 1 teaspoon Ginger, finely chopped
• 1 stalk curry leaves
• 8-10 pinch Cashew Nuts, optional
• 1 pinch Hing (Asafoetida)
• ¾ cup Split Yellow Moong Dal
• ¾ cup White Rice, short rice grain preferable (or quinoa, millets)
• 4 cups water + 1 cup extra to adjust consistency
• Salt to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

 

INSTANT POT METHOD:

• Press SAUTE mode(Normal) on Instant Pot. Add ghee or oil to the pot.

  Note: Tastes better with Ghee
  
• Once POT is hot, Add in the cumin, crushed black pepper, and cashew nuts. Saute for 30 secs or till cashew nuts turn light brown in color.
  
• Add the chopped green chilies, ginger, curry leaves, and asafoetida. Saute for another 30 secs.
  
• Next, add the rinsed dal and rice. Saute well 1-2 minutes till dal turns light brown or till aromatic.
  
• Add water, salt. Mix well.
  
• Close the lid on the pot. Set the pot to MANUAL/PRESSURE COOK (High Pressure) and set the timer to 8 minutes.
  
• Once the pot beeps, Wait for the pot to naturally depressurize.
• Open the lid and mix Pongal well.

  Note: If rice is not mushy then select saute mode and add 1 cup of water and cook for 1-2 minutes or till mixture boils.
  
• Pongal is ready, serve with yogurt, raita, or tamarind chutney.

INDIAN PRESSURE COOKER METHOD:

• Heat 1 teaspoon ghee in a pressure cooker and add the washed dal, Saute well 1-2 minutes till dal turns light brown or till aromatic. Then add rice.
• Add 4 cups of water, mix well.
• Close the lid and put the whistle weight on. Cook for 3-4 whistles on medium flame and turn off the gas.
• Once the pressure has released, open the lid and Mix the mixture well.
• Meanwhile in a pan add the remaining ghee, once it's hot add cumin, black pepper, cashew nuts. Saute for 30 secs or till cashew nuts turn light brown in color.
• Add the chopped green chilies, ginger, curry leaves, and asafetida. Saute for another 30 secs.
• Add this tempering into the cooked moong dal rice mixture and boil.

  Note: If rice is not mushy then add 1 cup of water and adjust consistency.
• Pongal is ready, serve with chutney, sambar, raita, or tamarind chutney.

NOTES

I have prepared this dish in my electric pressure cooker, Instant Pot DUO60 6 QT 

Tips

• Pongal tastes best when made fresh and eaten hot.
• Using small grain rice such as sona masuri or Seeraga Samba rice is preferred to make traditional Pongal.
• Pongal thickens a little on cooling. You can save leftovers in the refrigerator and reheat in a microwave or on a stovetop (add hot water if required to adjust consistency) just before serving.

Variations

• Ratio of dal to rice is a personal preference.I have used equal amounts of dal and rice to include more protein into the diet. But you can reduce the dal as well.
• You can also add some vegetables like carrots, peas, spinach to make this Pongal healthy.
• Adding ghee enriches the taste of pongal but Vegans can skip ghee/clarified butter and replace with any cooking oil.
• You can also use husked split moong dal, makes this moong dal khichdi more healthy.
• Use the same recipe to make healthy pongal recipe with millets, quinoa, rava, oats.