Eat. Travel. Eat!

DeLuscious Cookies + Milk is a "luxury bakery in Hollywood" that aims to provide "pure indulgence" to their customers through "incredible desserts, impeccable service, and personalized care." With that said, when Katie of DeLuscious Cookies & Milk asked whether I would like to sample their new line of VeLuscious cookies (vegan cookies!), I was definitely curious! Just a few days after I said yes, a sampler box of their products arrived in my mail. Opening the box was like opening a gift-- ribbon on the outside, a personalized letter, pink wrapping paper to present the cookies, individual packaging of the cookies with round, simple labels-- very fancy, and definitely an impression!

Another visit around Trader Joe's led to another cookie discovery: Lemon Heart Cookies. The packing is interesting--clean and fancy--but the ingredients were also interesting. Almond meal? The enriched wheat flour could be swapped for a better ingredient, but considering the nature and pricing of the product, it's decent. Trader Joe's Lemon Heart Cookies were pleasant, and the description ("Delicately textured cookies with a hint of almond flavor and lemon icing") fit completely. The cookies could have been slightly moister (these were pretty dry), but were pleasantly sweet and lemony. By that, I mean that the cookies were not artificially lemony, but rather had a natural lemon flavor. The almond meal added additional texture, which I liked. I'd buy these again!

During another conference at the same location as some previous ones , I knew where to walk to for a meal: Boudin SF. Having experienced breakfast at Boudin SF one time and recognizing the positives of Boudin's Food, I knew that Boudin SF would be a dependable option this time, and it certainly was! When we arrived at the conference area, we had to make our own dinner plans and since none of us had access to a car, my friend and I walked that one block to Boudin SF. He had already eaten dinner and so ordered a grilled cheese with turkey (7.99 USD), but in my case, I ordered a Soup and Salad Combo (8.59 USD). My friend felt that he had received a mediocre deal after seeing the size of this combo in contrast to his relatively tiny sandwich and bag of chips; it took me much longer to eat all of this food, and I was stuffed for less than a dollar more than what he paid!

After having lunch at Bistro Boudin- Fisherman's Wharf and visiting the Golden Gate Bridge, our next stop was Chinatown. There, we were immersed in scenes full of color and culture. Even banks followed a theme of having Chinese style architecture. A window display of baked goods prompted me to stop at Eastern Bakery. It is located right next to the Wok Shop , but we were not able to visit the Wok Shop as it was already closed for the day. Eastern Bakery, however, was still open and inside, it seemed as if some organization was having a meeting there while enjoying various baked goods.

One of my first introductions to the Irvine outside of UC Irvine was a conference that I attended two years ago. You can see some of the posts I wrote about it by clicking HERE . Well this year, I attended the same conference again, and we had to find a place for breakfast. After looking at the dismal options at the Cafe inside the Hyatt Regency (a good thing: a small cup of coffee is 1.50 USD there), we headed out mindlessly to find some restaurant. It did not take long for us to find Boudin SF, which was just right across the street from the hotel's main entrance. There, it was like a smaller version of Boudin at San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf ; there was yet again another window display of a baker at work, a line to purchase food, a large display of various breads, and a large sitting area to enjoy the food. Since it wasn't sunny indoors, I could capture the baker working without getting much glare from the window. The Boudin SF concept is similar to that of...

After reading David Ng's article on Boudin , I reminded myself to visit the Fisherman's Wharf location on a future trip to San Francisco. So, after visiting UC Berkeley, we promptly went back to San Francisco for a late lunch at Boudin. The Fisherman Wharf's location is a prime tourist spot; its glass windows and prominent logos make it distinctive among the other buildings in the area, and it houses five different sections: Peet's Coffee and tea, Baker's Hall, Bistro Boudin, Boudin Museum & Bakery Tour, and Bakery & Bakeshop. There is plenty to see and do in just this confined area! We skipped viewing most of the building and went upstairs to Bistro Boudin, a full-service restaurant. One will pay a premium at Bistro Boudin for its full-service capabilities, dining environment, cutlery, and additional items on the menu. Several selections, however, are the same as those of Bistro Boudin, but  presented in a more casual manner. Paper or ...