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Sunday, July 17, 2011

Hometown Gourmet

Happy birthday, mom!  I love you!

Nothing's better than a little home cookin', even if you're not the one doing it.  On the recent road trip with my uncle, The World According to Rich, we had made stops in Manzanar, Bodie, and Sacramento.  Next up: the Bay Area.  First up is Pastino's Pasta & Pizza in Oakland, CA:

Three cheese calzone with pepperoni

Up until this point I can't recall ever having a calzone.  In fact, my entire knowledge on calzones was based on the Seinfeld episode of the same name.  Unfortunately I can't say I fully enjoyed this.  It had WAY too much cheese and not nearly enough pepperoni.  As I was cutting into it there was cheese everywhere, kind of like one of Chris Daughtry's attempts at being a real rock star.  

The company was good, though, dining with my aunt and being in Oakland for the first time since...2003? 2004?  That was a treat.  

Next up is a visit to one of my favorite restaurants growing up: Sneakers Pub and Grill in San Carlos:

Club sandwich

Okay, that picture turned out pretty bad so here's what Amber ate:

Bacon cheeseburger sliders

For the longest time I used to order the corn dog off the kids menu.  Why don't they have one on the regular menu?  I mean...it's a corn dog.  It's kind of a sporting essential food.  So for this meal I wasn't as hungry as I thought I was and the sandwich just didn't work for me...but the company was good.

The next day we went to yet another one of my favorite locations: Sky Kitchen Cafe in San Carlos:

Ham and bacon omelette with home fries

I spent the first 6 years of my life in Redwood Shores, which is right down the street, so I became very familiar with this place at an early age.  It's great to see that it's maintained that retro-feel cafe charm as well as keeping up the building.  And as always, the company was good.

And here's a little something from the hotel:

Gourmet coffee at the hotel...they must have known I was coming...even though I don't drink coffee

Here's a vlog of Fort Point, situated beneath the Golden Gate Bridge:

I'd also like to take this time to thank all the organizations who made this trip possible: The World According to Rich, Twirl Radio, Manzanar National Historic Site, Bodie State Historic Park, Fort Point National Historic Site, Ruby Inn, Virginia Creek Settlement, Hays Street Cafe, Sneakers Pub & Grill, Sky Kitchen Cafe, Pastino's Pasta & Pizza, Country Inn Suites, Elk Grove Hilton.

BONUS!

Here's a quick Seinfeld clip from the episode "The Calzone":


Thanks for reading!