Azu Anniversary Dinner - Ojai, CA

Our Anniversary dinners are always special to me. We usually spend them at The ranch House but due to a last minute plan change we ended up at Azu. I had been there with Dana for lunch not to long ago and enjoyed it so I was very excited. We ordered a celebratory cocktail and cheers to many more years!

Our starters came up and I was excited to dig in to my Beet and Burrata Salad. The cheese was lovely but the beets shared a plate with pickled carrots hat shocked the soft texture of the cheese and beets. I could have done without the carrots and just sunk my teeth into the creamy cheese and vibrant beets. The waitress talked Scott into a Kale Caesar that he absolutely loved. 

We both ordered the Fish of the Day and were both equally disappointed in the dish. When we ordered the halibut we both assumed it would be served in a small, thick cut as that is the way it usually served. Instead it was a razor thin, flat piece that took up 3/4 of the plate. Halibut is usually flaky and easily eaten with just a fork. I had to pick up a knife and saw up a piece to put in my mouth each bite. We should have sent it back and got something we enjoyed but we were so bummed out we just sent it away after several delicious bites of mashed potato. FAIL.

I thought a dessert might turn this night around and the Flourless Chocolate Torte at the very least put a better taste in our mouthes. It was nice.

I know better than to suffer through a meal without speaking up to the waitress but it is hard to complain n a special date night with the husband. You want to appear kind, sweet and demure not a bossy lady who complains about her meal. So, we took this one in the shorts. 

Maybe I should have stuck to my favorite bacon wrapped dates and honey baked brie for dinner...

Azu - Ojai, CA

Last week Dana and I went into Azu just for a little late lunch and sampling of the Ojai Alisal Wines. When I heard about the Upper Ojai based winery I became a little sentimental because that is where I come home. We both sampled the Viognier and it was served cool and frosty in a large beautiful glass. It was a total winner and is the type of wine that could be eaten with all sorts of food.

We decided to order a bunch of tapas so we could share and have a little bit of each. Dana went for a nice salad and the honey baked brie with candied walnuts. I order the gambas (shrimp) and bacon wrapped dates. They all were delicious but that brie was just unreal. We finished our lunch and left totally satisfied with everything we had that day.

What great day for Ladies Who Lunch!

La Cosecha - Paso Robles, CA

Sorry bloggers! I have not been trying to ignore you but I have been busy doing the cowgirl thing at the PCCHA Futurity. It seems like my days go by fast, fast and then I go to sleep just to do it all again! I was lucky enough to have my three year old, Metallic Tears make the Open Intermediate Finals and Open Gelding Stakes with Russ Elrod so my mom and I had to go to lunch to celebrate!

 My mom is cute! She seriously is the #1 fan of cutting horses! Especially my horses! 

La Cosecha is located in the downtown square area of Paso Robles and hosts an outdoor and indoor dining area. Their food features mostly Latin cuisine and in tapas sized options.

 We  both were excited enough to want to cheers with an adult beverage so I ordered Tolosa Chardonnay and she went for one of La Cosecha's featured Bloody Mary's.

I went for the White Fish Special and asked to be served mashed potatoes served with it. The fish was cooked perfectly and the mashed potatoes were stunningly delicious. They should be able to be ordered by the bowl. The white wine, heirloom tomato and caper sauce that the fish was topped with was terrific as well.

The braised and grilled pork ribs caught my eye and I was glad to get in a bite off my mom's plate. They were totally fall off the bone tender, in fact it was a dish to be eaten delicately with a fork. It was featured saying it was to come with black beans but it was served with rice only much to my mom's delight!

My horse ended up doing great in the finals winning about $8000! I was so proud everytime he walked down to the herd for his performance! We have been having such a good show!

It is now my turn to deliver, I have made the finals on my horse, Hip Hip Roo Rey (Scotty) in the Non-Pro Classic Challenge and in the Non-Pro Futurity and Gelding Stakes on Metallic Tears (Elvis). I am so blessed and couldn't be more thankful to my family for being so supportive! my husband for coaching me through everything... and all my helpers! It takes a village!!

Julian Serrano - Las Vegas, NV

While in Las Vegas last weekend you needed to dress warmly, in fact layer upon layer. It was freezing. However, we soldiered on and braved the temperatures to explore The Strip. 

It eventually got way too cold so we made our way into the Aria and sat down for a nice lunch at Julian Serrano. A Spanish tapas restaurant that exploded with lots of bold, cheery colors.

Hello, Melissa Good Taste here - Live from Las Vegas!

We started off with Goat Cheese Stuffed Piquillo Peppers and those were tasty. It got our appetite going... We wanted more!

Next were Fried Artichoke hearts and I did not care for these. Sometimes it takes like I am chewing through fiber and sticks when I eat an artichoke heart. It wasn't my thing, but Jennifer liked it.

We were brave and ordered the Octopus with a Smoked Paprika sauce. It was ok, I mean I din't hate it but after a few bites I kind of was turned off. The slices were thick and it almost tasted fatty.  We both sent back bites.

Lobster, whipped potatoes and asparagus. We both only got one bite but it was really fantastic. It was the tastiest thing we had all day. Well, until we had dessert...

I have never had a tastier churro! With spicy, hot chocolate dipping sauce we had bite by bite of heaven! Very good. I was impressed royally.

It wasn't the best food, best service but it was really special because I got to spend quality time with my sister. That is priceless. 

Thank you for including me!

Jonathan's - Ventura, CA

Jonathan's at Pierano's Grocery features food found all over the Mediterranean. They have an extensive tapas menu that even found me, a little foodie totally intrigued!

How about Filet Mignon Hummus? Yes, you heard right. The meat was totally juicy, salsa spicy and the hummus cooling. Perfect combination.

When I saw Portuguese Crab Bisque on the menu I could not pass it up. it was delicious. Real crab meat and very generous portions too. This is a must order.

Already pretty full from my previous eats, I went with the Spanakopita. Two deep fried deliciously spinach filled pillows! The feta was served on the side for a perfect forkful in every bite.

Now for the star of the evening: The Vegetable Paella. Filled to the brim with peppers, chokes, mushrooms, zucchini and olives. The rice was cooked just right and the portion was enough for two! A dent was barely made into this one. Thank goodness for left overs.

I believe another trip to Jonathan's will be in the works. We have to make our way through the Tapas menu!

Lizarran Tapas - Gilroy, CA

Do you remember the beautiful, old building that used to be the Gilroy City Hall at 7400 Monterey Street? It was also home to Chips and Salsa, a Mexican restaurant. Well, it didn't last and it is now Lizarran, a Spanish tapas restaurant. It sounded like fun so my mom and friend, Susan went on over to give it a go!

What is interesting about the restaurant is that they have a "Tapas Bar" with pre-made items. You pick and choose out of a glass display. So, we did this to kick off the meal. You keep the toothpicks and put them into a ceramic dish - that is how you are charged at the end of meal - number of toothpicks. Kind of fun! Basically these are bites of shrimp, maybe a tuna mixture, peppers and tomato on slices of bread. They all were different but sort of had the same taste. I think the idea of the "Tapas Bar" is fun but we decided to continue on with ordering of the menu.

I know that this was the Tabla de Embutidos - which is an assortment of traditional Spanish cured meats. Tasty. Meat is good but we didn't order anything to go with it like cheese and they only served it with 4 slices of bread. So we just munched on the meat, which became old. I think we took the rest to go just because we were bored with it.

This is the Salmon a la Plancha which was basically grilled salmon served with sauteed bell peppers and onions. It was tasty, cooked well. Probably the best dish we were served that day.

Cute little crab cakes! They were very tasty, I ditched the bread they were resting on though, no need for the extra carbs!

This is the Paella de la Huerta which is saffron rice with vegetables. It was pretty good. It took a little while for them too cook but we just took our time visiting. I probably wouldn't order this variety again though, there was a seafood version that might be worth trying.

I did some research on this place after I had visited it, it is part of a chain and has locations located in Southern California. I would have never known! It is in such a beautiful building with the most precious courtyard, it is hard not to be happy while your there. I suggest you try it when your not too hungry and want to have a leisurely visit with a good friend over a couple glasses of wine. Stay a while, munch on some tapas - I was trying to imagine myself being on vacation while in Spain! Ha! Give it and a go and let me know!