Hot dogs and chicken burgers

This week I filled up on my "American" food!  I'm not talking about comfort food (which is oooh my goooosh, so gooood = mac 'n cheese, creamed spinach, and the like); I'm talking about hot dogs and hamburgers!  ... Er, chicken burgers, but we'll get to that soon ;)

Ooooh, new food truck! (plus creepy ghost girl in window ;P)

That's right, it's Papa Tom's!  They focus on hot dogs :)

I actually asked the nice lady at the window if they were a new food truck.  Her answer?  "Yes... and No."  Apparently they were called something else... I think it was "Gateway" something?  But they furnished themselves with a new truck and renamed to "Papa Tom's."  So interesting, right?  ^^

And I'm not going to lie; I'm not a hot dog fan.  Definitely not a hot dog fan!  @_@  When I was younger, my family was super busy with shuttling my sister and I to school activities, piano lessons, and of course, swimming practices.  So the go-to meal for those (many) days where we needed something to eat on the table in no time was hot dogs.  I'm not talking about these finger-like critters nestled in a toasted bun and drizzled (or drowned!) in ketchup and mustard.  Noooo, it was literally hot dogs from the package, boiled in water, and awkwardly placed in large white plates in the middle of the table like the worms I look at through the microscope during my time at lab.

Haha!  XD  I remember whenever we saw the boiled weiners in a pile on the plate, my sister and I would give one another a look.  We ate it so often, that we're all scared of hot dogs!  Well, I think my mom still likes them, but my dad, sister, and I may just run away from the sight of them. ;)

So I hadn't had a hot dog since those days, unless you count the one chili dog I've had in college and the handful of "super chili dogs" from Sonic :D  Now, *those* dogs are delicious :D

Anywayyyyys, while we were browsing through the four food trucks that graced Taylor and Scott, I saw people walking back indoors with these beautiful, beautiful-looking hot dogs!  They were piled with topping like bacon (!) and Parmesan cheese~  Om nom nom *drool*  Okay, when I saw that, I knew I had to break my cold silence with hot dogs.  I had to visit Papa Tom's!  ^_^

Papa Tom's hosts a variety of hot dogs, but I heard people getting the Texan Barbeque Dog the most often.  Jeff ordered that one while I got the Hot Papa Dog, and we watched the lady take orders from the never-diminishing line of people snaking from the food truck's window.  I can't believe so many people like hot dogs!  @___@  *hamburger fan!*

They also sell Ted Drew's frozen custard :)  I was really tempted to buy that, but after having Ted Drew's in situ, there's no way it could be better than freshly churned!  Our orders came out and we joined the rest of the lunch bunch inside with our warm lunch fare in our hands. 

Hot Papa Dog

Texas Barbeque Dog

Jeff and I split each hot dog in half and swapped a half with one another, so that way we could try both :)  We had little cups of ketchup and mustard (Jeff decided to fill the WHOLE thing with ketchup, omg, who would ever eat that much XD), but I didn't end up using any, because the food was so flavorful!  ^^

The Hot Papa Dog was definitely spicy.  The name "Hot" should have given me a clue, but I didn't even think this would be hot, and it was so spicy that my mouth was on fireeee~  Good one time experience for me, but definitely not getting something like that again!  Aside from the spiciness, I liked the flavor :3

But I think Jeff's Texas BBQ Dog won out.  It's probably because it's inspired by Texas... *Texas pride!*  Har har har :P  I loved the bacon and cheese inside, and the smokey BBQ sauce was yummy~  So good!  I think I could eat three of these for lunch.  But that's a $15 lunch from a food truck, so I'll resist ;)

Although I don't think I'll jump on the chance to eat a regular hot dog in the future (scarred for life, haha~), I think I'll have a difficult time resisting a hot dog from Papa Tom's.  Their menu is quite extensive, so check them out!  ... and definitely try a Texas BBQ Dog (mmm, bacon!)!  ^__^b

Papa Tom's Fancy Franks

http://www.facebook.com/GatewayDogHouse

And since we're on a roll with eating junk food, let's continue with a lab lunch!  We all went out to Tom's, a pub / sports grill in Central West End.  The interior walls are lined with televisions!  I couldn't decide which television to watch, so I went all jumble-eyed trying to watch seven programs at the same time.. XD

Yep.  It's a sports pub, all right.

The waitress seems to be the owner, super nice and friendly, dressed in a comfy tanktop, jean shorts, and tennis shoes.  Haha, such a different way than my last visit in Central West End at Drunken Fish!  :P  Tom's sells tons of hamburgers, wraps, sandwiches, wings, and sides.  Pretty much anything you can get off the grill~  I chose the Cajun Chicken Sandwich with fries (with the options being fries, chips, or coleslaw).  It was pretty massive, and I devoured it entirely!  ^^''  ... Is it still considered a sandwich if it uses hamburger buns?  Chicken burger?  Hmm...

Anyways, overall, the sandwich was pretty good!  I didn't want to scare away my lab with my table manners when I eat with my fingers (and shove things into my mouth!), so I opted for knife and fork.  The spices weren't as "kick'n" as I thought they should be, and the chicken was a little dry.  But I guess that's because it's a huge slab of chicken breast!  The grilled peppers and onions on top made me happy :)

Huge portions!  Fork and knife provided by Tom's without asking ^^

And the fries!  ... Ohh, the fries~  I like my fries thick and flavorful!  And Tom's fries were just that :D  I actually polished off a fourth of the fries before starting on the burger, and finished up half of what was left afterwards.  That's a pretty big feat, if I say so myself, because they give you a super generous portion of fries!  @__@  Om nom nom, very yummy! 

This was the first meal I've eaten with other people that I was almost entirely silent for the entire time!  I was sitting with the older members, and they were talking about big-adult stuff, so I concentrated on eating my sandwich as fast as I could in order to keep them from waiting.  *I'm (usually) a slow eater...*  I like eating quietly!  I get to enjoy the conversation (listening) and my food (no interruptions) XD  Haha, I'm starting to think that's probably the reason why I enjoy eating by myself on weeknights in my room.  I eat my food and look out the window the entire time.  It's peaceful.  And it sounds like what old people do =_=  Haha!

Tom's was almost entirely filled the whole time we were eating lunch.  But we came a bit late, so when it hit 2pm, the crowd started dwindling.  Hyun said he came here to watch the game (no idea what game he was talking about @_@) and that the atmosphere is really nice and inviting.  I definitely believe that watching the Olympics with friends here would be fun :P  So if you're in the mood for some stick-to-your-ribs grilled fare, head down to Tom's!  ... Their onion rings look as if they are to die for!  Om nom nom!

Tom's Bar and Grill

20 South Euclid Avenue

St. Louis, MO 63108

~*~

Meanwhile on the farm...  Haha, okay, no farm here, but it was a pretty productive weekend in the kitchen.  I made omurice and fish curry, both for the first time!  :D  

Omurice :D

Fish curry?

So the only fish curry I've ever had was at school, and it was pretty darn good (no idea if authentic), albeit hella expensive.  The server gave me like... 2 pieces of cod the size of my thumb, but the flavor was pretty good :3  My first attempt to make Indian food at home resulted in a soupy mess.  Is it supposed to be this watery?  @_@  The flavor was light, and I really like cumin and garam masala!  But it's quite unphotogenic.  So let's look back to omurice! :D:D:D  *diverts attention away from yummy but ugly fish curry* 

Omurice is rice wrapped in a layer of egg.  The rice can just be steamed rice, but it's usually a more fragrant rendition with vegetables and meats.  I didn't really know what to put inside the rice, because I didn't have ham or chicken on hand, so I sauteed mushrooms, onions, and garlic with the rice.  And of course, I squeezed some ketchup into the mix!  I think I should have added even more ketchup to make it a more red color, but I guess I'm learning ^^''

So when you're done, it looks like a football-ish shape!  :)  I cut it down the middle to show you what it looks like inside.  I made my omurice too flat; it should be dome-esque instead of this flat /linear thing.  Also, do you think the rice is red enough?  The ketchup definitely made a color change, but it's not orangey red like all the other omurices I've seen!  @_@ 

Anyhow, I'm happy with how the omurice turned out!  I was afraid I would break the egg skin and fail at wrapping the rice ^^''  Hooray for a culinary successful weekend :D  ... and don't worry.  I had a whole other bowl of veggies on the side ;)

One more thing!  I made these strawberry bar cookie thingie-ma-bobs, but I used a 9'' cake pan, so I couldn't really call it a bar if I cut them into wedges, right?  ^^"  Daniel said they couldn't pass as scones because they're more pastry-like... cakey??  @_@''  I gave a few boxes of them to Anna to distribute to Josh, Book, and Sean.  Hope they liked the pastries ^^b!~

Strawberry Lemon Bar... thingies?

Don't believe in everything

I came across an article about useless appliances to have around the house.  One that I definitely thought was useless is an electric can opener.  Why not just do that with your own hands?  But then again, since coming to college, I've taught two friends my age how to use one of those twist-and-turn manual can openers.  o_0

Are you reading what my eyes are reading?  Rice cookers are useless appliances?!  Haha, well I guess this is geared towards the average American household ;)  One of the guys I taught how to use a can opener taught me how to boil rice in a pot.  On the contrary, after being spoiled by rice cookers, I think it's tedious to cook rice in a pot, haha~  I like rice cookers better; I put in some rice and water when I come home, and by the time I'm done settling down and cooking my protein and veggies, I've got rice!  :D  Om nom nom~

~*~

Guerrilla Street Food stops by the medical school every now and then, and I've eaten my way across the menu!

They use a tablet for credit cards.  The receipt was sent to my phone.  Pretty cool, eh? ;)

Lunch buddies ordering

Richard got his (what I think was) signature haircut changed, and it was the first thing I noticed and commented to him.  He also pointed out that he got glasses.  Haha!  My mind really registers on hair first =_=''  It took me a few seconds to realize that he used to only wear contacts :P

Richard's in line with a whole lot of other people!

Although I didn't bring my camera the time I noshed on their "adobe chicken" (suuuuper flavorful!), I added a lumpia to my "wandering pig" today for lunch.  I don't know what I was expecting from the lumpia, a Phillipines spring roll, but the skin was soft and the inside was just SOOO YUMMYYY!!  @__@  I could just taste the vegetables inside.  They were soft, but I don't know if they were already cooked or not, probably?  There was a veggie mix with peanuts encased in a soft, doughy skin.  It came with a side of sweet chili sauce, but I thought there was already so much flavor that the sauce was irrelevant :P  The "wandering pig" is just like the "flying pig," but it lacks that mysterious and creamy poached egg they dub as the "1 hour egg."  I didn't ask for the sriracha sauce to be omitted this time, and it definitely added onto the flavor.  ^^  Ahh, after I finished, I was so full!  *dies*  Next time I spot Guerrilla Street Food's truck near lab, I'm going to order 2 lumpias :D

Lumpia

Might be expensive, but oooh, so delish!

The Wandering Pig.  Slow cooked and juicy pork on top of rice, drizzled with sriracha, hoisin, and a sprinkle of green onions

After falling into a deep food coma-lethargy state for the rest of the afternoon, I went back to main campus with Dimari.  We cracked random jokes that usually come out of fourth graders.  Seriously, our corner in the lab is so goofy with the two of us talking in accents and making sound effects, while the other portion of the lab probably thinks we're weirdos XD  Anyways, we split once he went back to the dorms, and I headed towards the mail room to send something before going towards the pool for a swim.

Swimming with a banged up knee hurt a bit, but I wanted to get the most out of my time at the pool, so I just did very little breaststroke.  For some reason, doing butterfly hurt my knee more than breastroke, which doesn't make sense at all!  @_@

When I walked out, I saw Jeff near the weight room and we decided to go to scavenge for dinner.  And we ended up at Nico on the Loop!

Pretty interior *heart*

Nico is the name of the owner's nephew, whose picture is placed on the wall near the entrance.  The waitresses (no waiters to be seen) were *super dee duper* nice!  We were led to the window area of the restaurant where there were only two other tables, and the rest of the restaurant sat in a peaceful quiet.

Stalking picture of the other table?  Noooo~  just flowers ;)

Haha, manly Jeff!

The menu had all sorts of yummy dishes and descriptions, and choosing one was difficult.  But Jeff and I had looked up the menu online beforehand, and I was having a dilemma between Moroccan chicken bastilla and pappardelle, both recommended by Sauce magazine!  :P  Luckily, pappardelle wasn't available on the menu that evening, so I ordered the bastilla.

Jeff ordered the lamb, and our charming waitress, Dawn, told us that two patrons that she had just served before we came ordered the same thing, "She, the bastilla.  And the lamb for him."  :P  I guess food can also be segregated by gender ;)

Housemade focaccia

Right after we made our orders, complimentary focaccia bread came!  Both of us really liked the chewiness and the slightly crusty outside.  It was dabbed in olive oil and seasoned with rosemary and basil.  Nom nom! As you can see from the picture, there are 5 pieces.  We both ate two, and then we played rock-paper-scissors for the last one, haha!  I told him I didn't want it because I was saving room for my dinner, but he insisted, so I declared a r-p-s game, 2 out of 3 wins.  Loser eats the bread.  Guess who won?  ;)  ... I did!  Mwahahaha!  Don't ever agree to bet with me because you will most likely lose.  Also, I'm 60% sure of my r-p-s skills. It's better than 50/50 XD

Case 1

Notice the change in photo quality?  :P  I gave Jeff my camera and wasn't planning to keep any of the pictures of me, until I realized I could ramble about this one!  :D  When I go out to eat, I usually think about where I'm going to sit.  If it's getting dark / night time / not near a window and very dark, then I usually sit in the less desirable seat (let others sit with people they feel comfortable talking to more, etc etc).  Whatever, I'm fine with talking to new people and I'm fine with not talking at all :)  But if the sun's up, and we're near a window, I'm going to race for the prime seat.  And guess which one that is?  :P

...  It's the one that will give me better pictures!  Hahaha!  As most people know, having a light source right behind the subject is not good.  It gives these eerie dark pictures, like the one of me reading the menu.  So I usually try sitting with my back to the window and my friends (and food!) on the opposite.  Notice how the lighting on Jeff looks much, much better?

I'm by no means a pro-photographer!  In fact, I use a point-and-shoot and will be taking my first photography class this fall (excited!).  But that's just my two-cents of wisdom, and now I'll have to fight with my friends for the window seat now that they know about the lighting thing, hahahaha  ^^b

Moroccan Chicken Bastilla (bas-ti-ah)

The bastilla is a layered casserole-like dish.  This one had layers of egg, tender/moist chicken, veggie mix, and phyllo.  Yum!  I didn't even know what to expect, other than the fact that I was excited to try something Moroccan, and the spices were new to me.  Very yummy.  Highly recommended!  The side of spinach salad had a few shavings of beets, a handful of croutons, and was tossed with a tasty oil-balsamic vinegar mix.  Niiiiice salad ^^

Seared Lamb

If you're wondering what the yellow stuff is, that's couscous!  It was mixed with small chunks of eggplant.  The flavor was subtle and it was a little on the oily side, but the lamb was delightful.  I never knew lamb could be cooked medium-rare / still pink and raw-ish, but Nico did it.  I had a piece and it took me forever to chew, haha!  But the flavor was good :)

Which one's prettier? :D

Jeff and I both really enjoyed our dishes ^^b  Although Nico is on the pricier side when compared to other restaurants on the Loop, the way the food is plated, the dining atmosphere, and the courteous and friendly waitresses are worth experiencing :D  I asked our waitress which dish was her favorite, and she replied that it was the Arctic Char, a fish dish I was eyeing when deciding what to order.  It's served on a bed of gnocchi!  Nom nom nom~  Next time!  :)

Nico

6525 Delmar Blvd

St. Louis, MO 63130

And remember my previous post about how awesome the taro froyo at Tutti Frutti was?  ... Well, it was so good that I went a day later XD  Daniel didn't go with us last time, and I was excited to reunite with the soy-based taro when he wanted to go try Tutti Frutti!!  *heart*

As with last time, there were a lot of people!  Patrons occupied all the tables out in the front, formed a line in the small interior, and even sat on the side of the road with their little bowls of frozen yogurt.  Instead of looking like hobos near the busy intersection, we decided to eat our dessert in the parking lot.

Nom!

Guess which flavor Daniel tried?  ... TAROOOOO, mwahahaha~  I think it was just because I kept talking about it for 2938293 hours, and I also got a bowl full of taro froyo ^^v  I like my froyo naked and without the toppings, and I finished my bowl in around 2 minutes XD  So yummy!  

After I finished slurping up my froyo, we talked about random stuff for a bit while we sat on one of the parking curb thingies.  Haha, so hobo-like!  I realized that froyo / ice cream / dessert is probably the only thing I can eat faster than Daniel :P

Soy-based froyo stands out :D

And so it begins

First off, I'd like to show you an ad that I thought was really nice:

"What makes Dad so cool?  He's the swim coach, best friend, [can't read]-maker, bike fixer and hug giver-- all rolled into one.  Or two."

This family looks so happy, don't you think?  They're not hurting anyone, yet this ad received a backlash because it featured a gay couple.  In fact, it was on national news.  *sigh*

~*~

On other news, I downloaded a program last Wednesday.  You've probably heard of it before; it's called "League of Legends."  Haha!  I played last Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, but I abruptly stopped on Sunday.  Got to exercise self-control, yeah?  ;)  So far, I've only really played Ashe and like her the best.  I love her icy blue elemental abilities!  ^__^b 

~*~

Alex's order of spring rolls!

That can only mean one of two things:  1)  I went to a Vietnamese restaurant (... to buy a loaf of bread, bread, bread XD) or 2)  I made spring rolls for a potluck.  But in this case, we went to Little Saigon Cafe in Central West End for lunch on Friday!  We sat outside in the sun, and although I could feel myself tanning (Nyuuuuuu~), the meal was quite enjoyable :P

Both Alex and Jeff said that their orders were good.  In fact, Jeff even ate his mushrooms *gasp*, so I'm guessing it was *really* good, haha~  The lighting's kind of harsh, since we were directly under the sun.  Hope these pictures are okay though!

Jeff's tofu and veggies

My pork with vermicelli

The red-colored meat is apparently pork belly, but I had no idea.  I could tell the fat content was pretty high, since it was extremely juicy.  The other meat was um.. pork XD  and both were delicious!  I liked the vermicelli noodles with the sweet chili sauce, but I'm not exactly sure what I was supposed to dip into / pour the sauce onto ^^b  This was the first time I've had vermicelli noodles in a long, long time, because I got food poisoning in Houston when I ate a huge bowl of it.  ._.''  But no incident this time, so hooray!  :P

Little Saigon Cafe

10 North Euclid Avenue

St. Louis, MO 63108

An accidental creeper photo of Alex, haha!

~*~

Alex (another Alex!) has a German shepherd puppy named Annie!  She's soooo cute, but since she's in the teething phase (losing baby teeth), she bites anything and everything.  I've seen her twice, and both times I left with red bite marks on my hands and arms.  That's okay, but I just noticed one bite from the first visit is starting to scar T_T  Nooooo, don't want scars!~ 

Annie and her daddy, Alex!

I love how one of her ears are always flopped forwards and the way she romps clumsily around *heart* ^__^  She's like Balto!!  Tee hee hee~  I remember training Balto-- oh er, okay, "training," because Balto is still the most mischievous boy I know! ;)  Anyways, it's very nostalgic watching Alex and Jeff attempt to train Annie.  :)  Alex and Betty are her parents, so I guess Jeff's her uncle!  :P

Also, Betty left some blueberry muffins that looked really good:  :D  I met her at the swimming pool, and I just thought that was really coincidental and funny :)  She's so nice-- Annie's lucky to have both of them as parents!~  ^_^b

Betty's beautiful blueberry muffin

~*~

Okay, back to food! :D  Book took me grocery shopping and I got to see him driving for the first time~  :P  Hahaha, I guess it's not bad, but he has a lot to get used to.  Driving rules are different in Thailand, apparently ^^''  We dropped groceries off at my place and his place, picked up Josh, and went to Winslow's Home for dinner!  YAYYYY!!

Welcome to Winslow's Home

I've never been to Winslow's, but we pass by it every time we head to Olive.  David recommended their greens to us, and it's been a restaurant on our checklist to go to for a while.  And it was finally time to be adventurous and try it out!  :D  When we stepped in, we all paused to take in the environment.  Well, actually, Book and I stood their in awe while Josh bent down to tie a shoelace :P

It's a very quaint and country-like atmosphere.  The walls are lined with cookery and novelty items for purchase, some very random, like headphone jack splitters.  There is also a section of candy sold by the piece, which added to the "Mom and Pop" feel ^^b  The opposite wall from the entrance is split between the place where you order / open kitchen and a refrigerated section of ice cream, gelato, pies, quiches, parfaits, and all sorts of goodies made by either Winslow's or one of their farmer partners.  Ahh, the gelato came in little packages that looked so tempting to buy!!~ @___@  *drool*  Only had gelato once in my life, and it was chocolate hazelnut.  I wonder what other flavors taste like?

At first we hovered around the front, unsure if we were to be seated, but then eventually wandered towards the wall with the menu and cashier.  The menu is handwritten and their supper selection (served 5-9pm) seems to change daily.  Breakfast items like the Breakfast Sandwich that Josh ordered are available throughout the day.  I was tempted to order a Torta Bastilla off the breakfast menu (they had a plate of it up front to show you what it looked like!), but I fell for the chicken pot pie instead.  Mmmm.. pot pie...  They gave us a number and we got to choose our own seats.  Right by the window, yes!

The candle that was on our table

While we waited, we wandered around to take a look at the shop area.  All sorts of stuff!  Book showed me a set of ninja gingerbread cookies :3  Hehe~  They don't put the price tags for many of the items though, so I'm not sure how many people just pick these things off the shelf and buy them.

The server came with our food and asked if we would like a water carafe.  I was so happy-- because they had a self-serve tank of water with itty bitty cups.  :D:D:D  Yayyy water pitcher just for us, mwahaha~  The food all looked beautiful, probably because they were placed beside a bed of greens ;)

Breakfast Sandwich

Individual Chicken Pot Pie

Josh and I both ordered a chicken pot pie, and he also ordered a breakfast sandwich to accompany his meal.  When the pies came out, they were super tiny and cute, probably the size of my curled fist.  It's pretty unique, because usually chicken pot pies consist of a bowl of chicken stew topped off with a domed layer of puff pastry.  Winslow's rendition is a totally enclosed oddity.  I was wondering how they kept the liquid-y part inside until Josh and I began digging into our chicken pot pies with our forks.  

The inside has "seasonal vegetables" with chicken and the savory taste really hits the spot!  But I agree with Josh in that one of the signature components was missing-- where is the creamy goodness of chicken pot pie?  Nonetheless, it was totally delicious.  The encasing wasn't made of puff pastry, but the pie crust had this pasty denseness that I really enjoyed ^^  Om nom nom, getting hungry while typing this!~

Tadaaa!  Inside of the chicken pot pie

Book ordered a pulled pork sandwich.  I liked how the bun was so poofy, super cute :)  The chicken pot pies and pork sandwich came with a side salad that was already tossed with a vinegar and oil dressing that worked well with the slight natural bitterness of the spring mix.  ^^  Book's sandwich came with a little bowl of ranch that was supposed to go on the pulled pork.  He liked his sandwich a lot and commented that the pickles were special.  I wonder if Winslow's make their own pickles?

Pulled Pork Sandwich

While Josh and I are slow eaters (annnnd Josh had both the pie and the extra sandwich), Book gobbled up his meal in no time.  He went back to the counter for dessert.  They had an assortment of pies, cookies, and bars.  Everything looked so good!

He came back with a slice of apple pie.  The top was totally covered in another layer of crust instead of a lattice pattern, but the inside filling looked really yummy @_@  But I was too busy working on my own pie to drool about the apple pie ;)  Book said it was really good, and when I asked him if it was one of the best apple pies he's had before, he just said he can't remember.  Er.. so I guess that means it's really good, haha!

Apple pie

Winslow's Home is definitely a place you want to visit at least once.  If not for their delicious food, at least for the atmosphere!  I bet it's a great place to relax with a book and one of their coffees or to catch up on some stories with some friends.  I definitely want to come back to try that Torta Bastilla or their supper specials!

Winslow's Home

7213 Delmar Boulevard

St. Louis, MO

Josh couldn't finish half of his chicken pot pie, so we got a little box to go.  Somehow he had room for dessert though!  We went to Tutti Frutti, a new frozen yogurt shop that opened on the same street as Winslow's Home this month!  We were excited, because Anna raved about their taro flavor :3

Book entering Tutti Frutti

The outside seating was totally filled, and the inside tables were half-filled.  We went in and wandered towards the self-serve machines, and a huge line soon formed, stretching from the counter to the restrooms in the back.  The whole time we were there, the line never shortened, because more and more people kept flowing in.  Gosh, Tutti Frutti is so popular o_0

But after I sampled 4 flavors (Taro, Almond, Pistachio, and Tart), I knew why!  Their froyo is so dang delicious!~  I also enjoyed the taro flavored one the most.  But this one was "soy taro," meaning they used soy milk instead of milk.  It was extremely creamy *heart*, and also soy-based also means lactose-intolerant people can enjoy this without taking those Lactaid pills :D  

Josh is one of many waiting to gobble their desserts

If I remember correctly, Tutti Frutti sells their froyo 42 cents per ounce.  Don't quote me on that though ^^''  Gah so yummy, can't wait to go back!  They have a lot of toppings, including the usual fruit and candy bars, but nothing really out of the ordinary (like fruit tapioca or mochi).  They had 3 types of Ghirardelli sauce (white chocolate, chocolate, and caramel), which I thought looked pretty cool together.  Anyways, Tutti Frutti definitely has some unique flavors to check out, so stop by during the summer to cool down!

Tutti Frutti

7708 Delmar Boulevard

University City, MO 63130

Happy 21st, Daniel!

After going to the AC to swim, Jeff and I went to Snarfs for dinner.  It was my first time, and I was looking forward to it after watching the other Jeff (Daniel's summer apartment mate) chow down on a Snarfs sandwich with au jus!  We each had a smoothie before hand, so our 5'' sandwich was more than enough.  Mine was roast beef and provolone, pretty yum yum!  I like the crispiness of their bread :)

I accidentally deleted my Snarfs photos D: (*Edit*: Ooh, I found one!) Nyuuu~  but the sandwiches consist of a pale bread that's thinner than Subway's, and they are toasty and crisp as well as chewy.  You can add toppings like onions, tomatoes, lettuce, mustard, etc. for free.  They forgot to add mustard to mine, but it was still good ^^  Snarf's offers 5'', 7'', and 12'' subs, and I heard that their specialties (which are only available in 7'' and 12'') are terrific :D  Soups, salads, PBJ's, grilled cheeses, chips, and ice cream are available too!  

Roast beef and provolone (with tomatoes, grilled onions, and lettuce)

Snarf's Sub Shop

6301 Delmar Boulevard

St. Louis, MO 63130

Daniel's 21st birthday was on Thursday!  After eating at Snarf's, we went to Starclipper in search of a present.  I've never been inside before, and who knew that comic book stores still existed?  Really cool!  I have a set of Miyazaki films that Daniel's watching, so I when I saw a cute Totoro cell phone / key chain thingie, I thought Daniel could have his own Totoro!  :D  Hehe, and a donut eraser for Totoro to eat when he's hungry :P  Forgot to take a picture of Totoro, but I'll still be able to see him around ^^b

The day of Daniel's birthday, Anna and I prepped the fruit, and Josh came with the whipping cream and helped glaze the kiwis.  It was my first time to make fruit glaze, and I'm glad it turned out so well :)

Shinyyyy

Cake in the making

The night before, I attempted to make a fluffy Asian cake base, but I didn't have a scale, so I was guess-ti-mating how much things were in grams.  *What does 80g of flour feel like to me?~*  Haha, soooo fail!  It turned out to be a pancake, although a quite tasty one at that!  ;)  So I found a recipe which I had all the ingredients and made that.  It turned out sweet, but I left it overnight to cool and a crust formed on the outside and the insides were a little tough.  It's probably because I overmixed the batter @_@''

Daniel's fruit cake :)

Once the cake was frosted, we headed off to Drunken Fish in Central West End for Daniel's dinner.  A lot of people were there, and Anna and I snuck the cake into the restaurant and asked the waiters if they could put it in the fridge while we were eating, and they agreed.  Then we walked in and joined the rest of our friends ^^

Maryland Plaza in Central West End

Maryland Plaza has a butt-load of restaurants, and the fountain place is so pretty ^_^  The big building in the back is an expensive, luxurious condo place for people who want to live in a district full of outdoor and sophisticated dining :)

One of the courtyards we passed by

The Drunken Fish menu had so many rolls that deciding what to order was difficult @_@  I wasn't that hungry, so I ordered a salmon roll, which was simple and plain... but filling ;)  Anna realized we didn't have candles, so we walked to a nearby grocery store to buy some and a lighter.  I love walking in the evening when it's not too hot and looking at the restaurants :D  So funnnnn!

Meanwhile, our buddies were having a good time catching up with one another.  When we came back, David, Jae, Shuran, Lucy, Margaret, Daniel, Josh, and Book were all talking about League of Legends.  XD  Poor Sean, must have been waiting for Anna to come back and save him from the madness~ :P

Josh taking pictures with his phone XD

Birthday boy being goofy

It's Book!

Hehe, notice the elegant way Anna holds her wine glass :)

I tried taking a picture of the other side of the table, but the sun was going down and so the lighting was terrible... they all looked like dementors from Harry Potter @_@''  Our food came all at the same time, and by then the sun had set.  It was silly, because our waiter, Dillon, said "I hope you are enjoying your food... if you can see it."  Exactly!  We asked to light up the candles, because seeing the sushi rolls was quite difficult~ 

Salmon roll, nom nom :D

Although my parents raised me to fear raw fish, I'm starting to grow on it!  Don't think I can ever just eat sashimi by itself, but it's not as scary when it's inside my roll.  :)  After we ate, the servers took out the cake with our candles on top (they are all so nice!).  Although I failed when trying to make a fluffy Asian cake base, I thought it was really funny that the random substitute recipe turned out with a corn-bread texture.  Gritty.  Hahaha!  I should have just forgone the cake, but it's the thought that counts, right?  ;)  Good team effort cake team, Anna and Josh!  :D  I hope Daniel enjoyed his birthday evening with his friends!

Happy 21st Birthday, Daniel ^^

Drunken Fish

1 Maryland Plaza

St. Louis, MO 63108