Recent pics with my favorite people:

@ Gordon Biersch for Alex's visit.

Group pic outside.

The girls outside ghetto ass irish pub in Mountain View.

Alby and Denise at Stanfy

Oops- out of order.  Ok back to the ghetto ass Irish pub with my boys. 

Me and D D D D D!!!!!

Timmy and Claire. So cute. Almost makes me want to be married like them.  Not.

Me and Pat at Ocean Beach.  Damn, that Safeway panini he is holding was effing delicious.

La Taqueria

2889 Mission St., San Francisco

Orgasmic

$$ (~$10/person)

Last Sunday afternoon, my friend, Jason, and I walked into La Taqueria, full of anticipation.  About a month ago, my girl Celeste, who had just returned from there, was raving to me about how “the steak quesadilla was the best thing I’ve had ever had in my life” (its carne asada, not steak, you silly gringo. hehe).   At the time, I kind of shook it off, since she has a well-known tendency to exaggerate.  However, by the 5th consecutive time she had mentioned it, I knew I’d have to make my way there sometime soon.  Being Memorial Day weekend, the place was pretty packed, but not enough to dissuade us from waiting.  While Jason stood in line and ordered, I camped out for a table and believe me, I had to be pretty aggressive to secure a small corner of a table.  After waiting about 15 minutes, the carne asada taco, carne asada burrito and chicken flour quesadilla were finally ready.  We tackled the taco and quesadilla first, both of which were overflowing with gooey, melted cheese, bright lime-green guacamole and colorful salsa.  The quesadilla looked slightly fried and browned on both sides, chock-full of chicken breast confit (cooked in it own fat for all you non-foodies).  After patting it down with a few napkins (what I can say- the sorority girl in me), I took a bite of the concoction and was blown away.  The crispy, flaky flour tortilla, the subtle chicken breast and the perfectly-melted, evenly-distributed cheese fused to create the perfect combination of textures and flavors.  On top of that, the buttery guacamole and the tangy, fresh salsa nicely accented by the sour cream, catapulted the experience to another level.  I looked over at Jason, who had already been raving for the past few minutes, to see him equally impressed with the carne asada taco.  Reaching over, I proceeded to take a bite of what I knew would be a pocket of heaven.  Oh my !@#$%^&*  The carne asada was, by far, the best I’ve ever had.  The meat was succulent, perfectly-spiced and had a distinctive, yet not overwhelmingly charred, smoky flavor.  In addition to the aforementioned fixins’, the taco contained large whole pinto beans and was surrounded by two thick, flavorful, stone-ground corn tortillas.  Last, but not least, we unwrapped the carne asada burrito, pretty much expecting an orgasm in a foil wrapper.  I was stuffed, so I only had a bit of the end (while he proceeded to eat the whole thing, in addition to ¾ of the taco he already had, and half of my quesadilla afterwards).  It was pretty much the best burrito I have ever had.  Without fail, the different components once again united seamlessly in the burrito and in my mouth, creating the ultimate Mexican eating experience.   As a disclaimer, diners should be prepared to pay much more than your average taqueria, since everything (cheese, guac and sour cream) costs extra.  However, I think it is more than worth it.

You never think bad stuff happens in real life until it happens to you.  Ok, its not like the end of the world or anything, but this week has been really crappy.  Tuesday night, I was at Ozumo (very nice Japanese bar/restaurant in the city), just stopping by for a friends bday after getting off work late, and someone stole my purse right under my nose.  I was sitting on a bench and my purse was just 2-3 feet away.  I was talking to friends and slightly turned away and someone came, sat there while talking on the phone, and most defintiely took it.  When I realized it was gone, no way did I immediately think it was stolen, because that shit never happens right?  People are generally good and don't do bad things right?  Stuff like murder, rape and theft only happen in movies.  Wrong.  I need to learn this lesson or I am afraid something much worse than this will happen to me, but I can't seem to shed my naive belief that stuff like that just doesn't happen in the real world.  

Anyway, after I searched the restaurant for like 30 mins, I decided to call all my credit card companies to cancel and the fuckers had already made charges on my corporate Amex and my personal BoA card at a nearby Chevron.  The police came and took notes but didn't file a real report because its not like I will ever see my coach purse, ferragamo wallet, blackberry, lip gloss, all my cards, my keys, my drivers license, cash, or anything else ever again.  Sigh.  With all the replacements and lost items, this whole thing is going to cost me about $800 at least.  Why does this stuff always happen to me?  Last summer, I lost/had stolen from me a piece of jewelry worth over $4k and I lost my retainers.  I wish I weren't so irresponsible.    I suppose the paranoia of my parents that always drove me insane and caused me to shut my ears and roll my eyes, might do me some good. 

Totally not related, but here are some fun pics from the past month or so:

Beer and Oyster Festival- one of the most fun afternoons I've had in a long long time.

Tracy, Celeste and Geoff's bday at Element lounge. 

I love my lil ones : )

JET at the Mirage with Kelly.  He was so ridiculously drunk, I am surprised he made it out alive.  I have plenty of other pics of people pooning him, but they aren't appropriate, so please let me know if you'd like to look at them.

Best childhood friend since 3rd grade, Lindsay : )

Currently Reading Starting a Small Restaurant, Revised Edition By Daniel Miller see related

Recently picked up this book at Borders.  I actually spent like 3 hours there, on a weeknight that I managed to leave work before 8 pm and browsed through books in the entrepreneurial section.  I have probably been dreaming of having my own restaurant for as long as I can remember.  Anyone who knows me, knows that food and making people happy with food is my passion and I really want to make this a reality.  I just can't decide when I want to do this.  I will have to put in a lot of my own money, which I clearly don't have right now, and I mean I can always get investors,  but I really want to keep ownership of my baby.  There are probably a gazillion other things I want to do too.  It just sucks how you can really only pick one path in life... or I guess not really that, since you can always change your path,  but there are only so many things you can do in your life, especially at any given moment in time.  It is just weird how I have recently become so consumed by this obsession, and I have been reading up on it, taking mental notes when I go to restaurants, talking about it with other people who have done it or know people who have done it.   Actually, this is what I long to be:

http://www.sprinklescupcakes.com/

I was talking to someone I know today, who is friends with the owner and apparently this place racks in at LEAST half a million in revenue and I think its been around for a little over a year.  I have no idea how much that translates into profits, but I am pretty sure its pretty phenomenal when each cupcake sells for about $3.25.  Just gotta think of my own great idea....

i feel like im becoming some kind of nutcase.  at work, i have this huge amount of pressure to not show any weakness, no matter what is happening in my personal life.  i mean when the MD asks "how are you doing?  you look tired/sad/insert another negative word", you're not supposed to be honest and say "shitty because _____".  you're supposed to suck it up, smile even more than you would if you were actually happy, and say you're doing great, while inside youre feeling more bitter because you aren't doing great.    and then when you finally leave work all the weakness and vulnerability comes out and the littlest, most insignificant thing can make you cry because you've been holding it in for 14 hours straight.