Eat. Travel. Eat!

Mario Batali, Joe Bastianich, Lidia Bastianich , and Nancy Silverton's Pizzeria Mozza and Osteria Mozza have been extremely popular restaurants in Los Angeles, commanding queues that were hours long. So when we were recently in the area and found out on OpenTable that we could reserve seats for lunch at a time just less than a half an hour prior to arrival, we took the opportunity. Pizzeria Mozza is a relatively small restaurant, located adjacent to the larger Osteria Mozza (open for dinner only) and Mozza2Go. Inside, light toned woods and yellows set the tone--a skylight, which was filtered with a yellow skin, provided most of the lighting. A friendly vibe was immediately set with the upbeat employees, who immediately seated us and went through the menu in detail once we told them it was our first time dining here. We found out popular items, and also some notable differentiations--pizzetta meant a smaller pizza, and that any pizza that didn't list "tomato" on i...

Four years ago, I used a camera phone and a point and shoot. One of the most memorable pictures was this picture of an engraved watermelon with an UCI anteater, taken when my friend was just entering the university. The food then at Pippin Commons was decent, but there were definitely some setbacks, even at move-in day, where Pippin was trying to demonstrate its quality offerings to parents. For example, the chicken tortilla soup was barely passable; some other items I shrugged about. (Pictures taken during Celebrate UCI, 2012) In between the four years, I got samples from Pippin, such as some chocolate chip cookies (delicious, crisp on the outside and chewy in the middle) or fruit, but I never really got to thoroughly visit Pippin, or UCI itself again. With that said, my companions and I really were in for a surprise when we visited Pippin for the first time again in four years. In comparison to some restaurant reviews that I've written here on the blog...

Around April, my companions and I decided to go to the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books event at UCLA in Westwood. Why now? Just a early hint for you to go in April 30 - May 1 this year. Like my usual pushing back of posts, these photos are also more than six months old. However, unlike last year, this year's Festival of Books will be at University of Southern California (USC). The irony! But the apparent reason is that USC will allow more room for the Festival to grow and it will be a nice change in pace. For me, well I do not mind as much, although I know plenty of people who are biased on either side. I'll just be able to see another university if I go to this year's edition! Parking did take quite a while during the afternoon and it was not free (I think 10 USD or so), but signs to various parking structures were labeled clearly and thus they were easy to find. Not all were in very close proximity- you still had to walk some. I suggest if you want to take the mo...

(All exterior photos blurry so this is what you get! The exterior is actually quite modern and pretty though) Following the workshops in the conference, our group went to California Pizza Kitchen, like the group did last year for dinner. According to the group, they have gone to CPK almost every year they have been to this annual conference. I find that quite interesting. Interesting tidbit? While one of the group members was going to park their car, a Ferrari came by. We let the Ferrari have the spot and looked at the car after we parked. After all, even in Irvine, it is not everyday you see expensive cars parked. Plus, this convertible had the top cover off, so we could see the interior. Happy car fans are we. Interior: 1 fine, 1 ultra out of focus! The Sony W90's focusing is lacking as time goes on... :( We went into CPK and then they had to prepare for our table. Hmm...I guess that my group forgot the suitable action of making a reservation for a large group. :( Funny thing is,...