the rest of this past weekend

Before I head off to BC early in the morning, let's put last weekend to bed.  And then get to bed myself!  Here we go....

On Friday afternoon, Van and Olive and I headed up to Santa Barbara.  I've blogged already about the concert we went to that night, but let me comment on the hotel itself, the Palihouse Santa Barbara. 

Nice hotel! 

Not far off the State Street shopping district, part of the Presidio complex.  It was a cool hotel, decent rooms, hip but not too hip for us.  We had a decent sort-of suite

adjacent to (but private enough from) the pool. 

We settled in then went to the hotel bar for what was a fairly good happy hour. 

Kudos to the hotel on their bar - not large but a well-curated range of spirits, and a nice selection of free drinks for happy hour.  Bonus points for the bartender, Quinton, being super cute.

As is typical, I was up early on the Saturday morning, out for a walk which took me through a very tempting farmers market. 

If only I lived there (I would need a lottery) and had a kitchen!  Ah well.  I got back to the hotel and spent some quality time with Olive.

After Van got himself up and going, we headed out on foot,

leaving the little girl in her crate in the hotel.  An immediate stop at Panino

nearby for a truly huge sandwich,

and then on to shopping.  That jaunt allowed us to see some of the art

and architecture of Santa Barbara. 

We wandered in and out of stores, buying things for Christmas and for ourselves (nice bracelet, right?),

and among them was Lokum.  Oh Van, not knowing what Turkish delight is? 

Let's introduce you, and let's buy some baklava

and halvah as well.  It was a fine time, supporting the local Santa Barbara economy, I tell you.

After getting bags back to the hotel, we took Olive out on a drive, stopping at a park on a hillside above town, snapping some photos in the late afternoon sun. 

We then stopped in for happy hour with Quinton before heading down into the Funk Zone (I did not make up that name) to go to The Lark for dinner.

Van and I had been to The Lark on our previous trip to Santa Barbara, and we had enjoyed it a lot.  It wasn't our first choice, though - Van had booked us into a different place to try, but that restaurant then contacted him to cancel because of a private event.  So, The Lark it was.  Good!

I had a local gin for a martini to start with,

and we munched on their Thanksgiving dinner flavoured popcorn.  We followed that with pimento cheese,

then what was a very simple and oh so good squash dish that had a red currant sauce. 

Our main was fried chicken and grits - mmmmmm. 

And then there a date cake for dessert. 

The cocktails and other drinks flowed,

and Van had a glass of dessert wine. 

We headed back to the hotel to an early bedtime.  And then I had a terrible night of sleep, overstuffed and over-indulged.  Ah well.  An early birthday dinner for Van - worth it!

I didn't take photos the next morning and afternoon.  Van and Olive and I poked in stores in the Funk Zone and then in Montecito, making it back to Pasadena late afternoon.  That gave us enough time to unwind and unpack and get ready to go to Agnes for Van's birthday dinner.

Agnes is very well regarded, and we have enjoyed it in the past, and they have a nice attached shop for buying cheeses and such, but we so seldom think to go there.  It's an easy walk, for gosh sake, and yet we go to other places.  A shame.  They have a nice bar - I liked the Garden Fiesta cocktail. 

That oak leaf lettuce salad was gorgeous with its smoked almonds and dates.  And the grilled bread was so good. 

I liked the fried chicken,

though I'd give the edge to The Lark.  The khao soi carrots were genius,

and I think that the sauce from the carrots was a better match for the chicken than the hot honey we asked for on the side.  No dessert for us, though - that was quite enough food.

We browsed the shop, buying nothing this time, and made our way home.  It was a very very terrific weekend, and it had come to an end. 

local meals

Well, this is weird.  Multiple days in a row in Pasadena, and multiple days of dining out in Pasadena.  Given all the travel behind me in 2023 already, not to mention the travel to come (hello Friday!), it's a treat to get to local restaurants.

And, of course, we made it to our favourites.

Let's start with Thursday.  I got home from work to have an evening of The Crown with Conrad (Comard?).  That meant some sushi for us.  Mama M, of course!  And is there anything better than the raw sweet shrimp with the deep fried shrimp heads? 

Maybe, but yum!!  Mama M remains a beloved local restaurant.  It's always a treat to pick up food or dine in, and even better if we get to chat with Chef Jack. 

Friday we had Van's friends Mitch and Ted over for a drink, then went to Agnes.  I won't at all call us regulars at Agnes, though I wish we might be.  We don't have enough days of the week, and I like cooking at home.  But no, Agnes is a welcome addition over on Green Street.  I enjoyed my salmon dish,

and all three desserts were lovely (others preferred the chocolate taco and the banana pudding, but give me the pineapple upside down cake any time). 

Happy to go back when we can!

I cooked at home on Saturday evening for the three of us, and no, I did not take photos.  But we did get to Amara for a late Saturday breakfast.  It's funny:  the first time we went there was my 50th birthday, and even on that first day, we were made to feel like regulars.  Between that and great food, we happily go back.  Make mine an arepa and decaf latte!

Today was reminiscent of our Yoshi's days when there were times that we would go to Yoshi's for Sunday brunch and dinner.  We had told Paul and Sergio, the owners of Maestro, when we saw them on our walk with Olive yesterday, that we would come in for dinner.  But we changed that up and came in for brunch. Van had never had brunch there, so that was fun.  I had a take-off on a Naked and Famous, the Guayabita,

and the huevos divorciados. 

A good brunch.  And yes, I absolutely dozed off after that during the massage that I had booked.  But Paul and Sergio had told their new bartender, Jo, that we were coming in and that we liked tiki drinks.  Marco, the brunch bartender, told us that, and so we decided to pop in for happy hour.  Guava mai tais were Jo's choice, and we enjoyed them. 

A round of oysters as well, and then it was home to make some dinner.

It's good to be at home.  It's good to go see our friends at local restaurants.  Long may they be our neighbours.