Gluten Free Foodie Week Recap!

So, this week, the man and I have been pretty busy w/ major projects.  And, it's also been a week of celebrations and visitors- so cooking just hasn't been on the table.  Which translates into: a week of foodie EXPLORATION!  Click for the re-cap after the Jump!:

             

          Image courtesy The Lazy Ox Canteen        

                          

*Friday Night: On my way to meet up with Euge (the Man), I made a quickie stopover at BabyCakesNYC downtown!  I picked up some Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies and Brownie Bites.  (Truth be told, I finished them before I could take a pic, so the above photo is from a previous BabyCakes visit... =) After my pre-dinner snack, I headed over to The Lazy Ox Canteen to meet up with Euge, excited after all the buzz I've heard about this new tapas joint.  Though there were just a few dishes I could eat- the ones I tried were DELICIOUS.  My favorite- thanks to the rec from our bartender- was the Lamb Cheek... it was served with a Semolina (which they gladly substituted with mashed potatoes for us) and pickled onions.  The meat was delectable- melt in your mouth goodness, with a rich, deep flavor, offset by the pickled onion.  YUMYUMYUM... then it was off to the pirate bar- Redwood to see "I See Hawks in LA" play. 

*Saturday Night: Euge's friends met up with us for another fun-filled night out.  We decided we hadn't had enough tapas on Friday- so we headed to Bar Pintxo in Santa Monica.  This place serves some more traditional tapas fare... including patatas bravas, tortilla espanola and gambas de ajillo, just to name a few.  This was a regular haunt for me and Euge a little while back...  We just got a few apps and then it was time for pub hopping.  The best part of the night was ending up at Britannia- the Karaoke PUB!  There's always such a mixture of emotions after a long night at a karaoke bar... emotions ranging from humiliation to pure AWE (and everything in between)...

*Sunday Night: FIRST BBQ of the season!!!  Family Easter/ Birthday BBQ for @typeaplanning!  Steak, salmon and veggie kabobs were great... But look at that fruit tart.  (The glazed fruit was certainly delicious) The little cuzzies were pretty into it too  =)

*Tuesday Night: Dinner w/ @berwhyan @ GOLDEN STATE CAFE for burgers (they gladly accommodate the GF crowd by serving btwn 2 pieces of bib lettuce)!  Burger was followed by Scoops ice cream in CARAMEL RED WINE.  My goodness, where to begin?... with the sharp cheddar, or the hefty fullness of that thick slice of sweetly glazed bacon... or the rich finish of the caramel red wine ice cream?  Ah, accompanied by good conversation with an old archi buddy, the night was complete!

photo courtesy Charlie Grosso Studios

*Wednesday Night: Zocalo @ the Getty with Evan Kleiman of Good Food.  The images depicted, especially those by Charlie Grosso, a speaker on the panel were particularly provocative.  For her most recent project, she has traveled around the world to depict open markets in her clever project "Wok the Dog", in viewing the images, I think inevitably the observation is made that, despite our differences, the universality of food brings us together.  Grosso made the point that eating and posting about our food experiences is a way of communication and reaching out in this hectic world we live in.  I agree.  I thoroughly enjoyed hearing the different viewpoints of each of the women, who come from very different backgrounds in the foodie world.  Read the full coverage at the Zocalo Public Square Website: http://www.zocalopublicsquare.org/thepublicsquare/2010/04/09/picturing-food/

*Friday Night:  Hide Sushi tonight!  Perfectly refreshing after a long week at work (and fun).  No frills, all thrills.  The cuts of fish are always generous and fresh... the salmon is like butter on the tongue.  Wishing I were there all over again...

Ok, so that was QUITE a week!  Can't wait to get back into that kitchen now... too much eating out this week!