Best of EKmW 2009!

As 2009 comes to an end, I want to wish everyone a very Happy New Year and share with you some of my favorite posts, recipes and reviews of 2009 here on Epicuriosity Killed my Waistline.

So without further Ado... the top 10 picks of '09!

10. Heart Salad



I loved the heart salad I made for Valentine's Day because it was just so cute, creative and delicious. Plus it gave me a new found appreciation for beets, which aren't as bad as I originally had thought, plus it's just such a great addition to any meal for a loved one, be it Valentine's Day, or an anniversary.



9. Chicken Shwarma


This recipe might have gotten the most play in '09 by my family. In fact my mom loves it so much she bookmarked it on her browser. It was such a staple for me in the summer for BBQ's, Tailgates, and an easy delicious sandwich as leftovers later in the week. Such a flavorful way to prepare chicken, you'd doubt it was so good for you!



8. Bossa Nova



Even though I didn't discover Bossa Nova in 2009, this restaurant was such a classic staple in my "LA dining out" repertoire. Everything here is so tasty and healthy, I think I recommended this place to almost everyone I talked to in LA this year. A must try!



7. Six Feet Under



One of my favorite places in Atlanta, and one of my favorite blog posts of the year. The trip was just such a foodie journey, and I'm glad SFU made the cut. Plus I finally got the nerve to step out of my comfort zone and try the alligator!




6. Rush Street



One of the best new restaurants I tried in 2009!! Rush Street is such a great place to go for food, drinks and atmosphere! I love their fresh menu, friendly staff, and great deals!





5. Johnnie's Pastrami


My favorite LA institution. The Best Pastrami on the West Coast!








4. Red Velvet Cupcakes


Since this blog post, these lovely delicious gently chocolate cupcakes have come to mean so much more to me and my family. They are now Audrey's favorite flavor of cake, and made a wonderful appearance at her 4th birthday party. This recipe is probably the best Red Velvet Cake out there that I've found, and trust me, I've looked.



3. Father's Office



The long lines and strict "No Substitution" warnings kept me away for so long, and now I wonder why I ever let that stop me. The best burger of 2009, HANDS DOWN!





2. Absinthe



Technically this restaurant was visited in 2008, days before New Years, but I've been back since and will never stop raving about it. The best and most creative cocktails I've ever had in my life!!




and the number one pick for 2009....

1. French Macarons



My creative brainchild project of 2009, the French Macaron. Not only did I do it all from scratch, but I pretty much perfected the art of meringue making these bad boys. My all time favorite project on EKmW. Hardwork never tasted so sweet.

CUPCAKES!

Here are some pictures of Cupcakes I've made, decorated and served in 2009!

Red Velvet Cupcakes, with cream cheese frosting from scratch.

Vanilla Cupcakes with Vanilla Butter Cream frosting and fondant flowers.

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting and fondant Lego pieces.

Elmo and Cookie Monster "Fixed Up" Red Velvet Cupcakes with
"Fixed Up" Cream Cheese Frosting and fondant embellishment.

Gingerbread teacakes with cinnamon frosting, decorated by Audrey

"Fixed Up" Pilsbury Funfetti Cupcakes and frosting, decorated by Audrey

Kono's

My favorite burger in all of San Diego is at this tiny lil' hole in the wall at the end of Garnet Ave, just before you walk down Crystal Pier and into the ocean.



Kono's has been a staple of my families diet since I was a kid. There was a time, in fact, that for about a year in High School I was a vegetarian. It was the hip thing to do I guess. The day I walked by Kono's, was the day I crossed back over to the meat side and never looked back. I suppose it says something about the quality of the burgers here.

Breakfast is served all day and a favorite of the patrons, but I've never had it. I prefer the Cheeseburger and fries. Luckily today it was on special.

Once you snake yourself through the line outside, you'll enter to find a very easy menu. Breakfast, burgers, sandwiches, fries. It's easy to figure out what you want. Everything here is delicious.

The "Quote of the Week" blackboard is one of my favorites. I just love landlocked tourists.

They have seating inside, but one would be foolish to pass up the "secret" outdoor patio. Just outside to the left, past what used to be the shell shop, you'll find a great little seating area with an amazing view.

I've always loved Kono's because they just do good burgers, well. There isn't anything fancy schmancy about these burgers, just nice big hand packed meat patties, grilled and piled high with condiments. I got my burger pretty plain; ketchup, mustard, pickles and grilled onions.

My friend got the works, with bacon and avocado added.

We shared a HUGE order of hot crispy steak fries.

Pair the view with a Kono's burger and some of the best steak fries ever had, a beautiful 75* San Diego day, and you've got a perfect afternoon.

Father's Office.

So for years I have been hearing about the "Best Burger" East Coast/West Coast battles. Those rivalries extend past rappers, and into food you know. And since then I have also been on my own quest for the best burger ever. It's hard to decide what exactly makes a burger the best, and even then my tastes will differ from the next. All I know is I want some medium cooked juicy hamburger, some amazing toppings, and the satisfaction that I must have this again soon. I got that last night with Melissa at Father's Office. Let me share it with you.

Santa Monica Location
1018 Montana Avenue
Santa Monica, CA 90403
(310) 736-2224

We started off with some beers. Father's Office has a at any given time at least 35 awesome craftsman beers on tap, Melissa go the Maredsous 10.

I had an Old Speckled Hen. It was nice and light, and heavenly creamy.

One of the main problems of Father's Office that I've heard and the main reason (besides laziness) that I've stayed away is the crowd partnered with the Soup Nazi style of ordering. This isn't the kind of place you would want to go on a first or second date to, in fact let's keep this place for something more along the lines of a 6th or more date.

You wait outside in an astonishingly long line, only to be slowly trickled in by the doorman into a tiny hole in the wall sized room, lined with tables, with a bar at the far end. Mozy up to the bar and wait to place your order, and don't even worry about finding a place to sit yet. Grab a beer, and just wait.

FO's is famous for its burger envisioned by Sang Yoon, a self proclaimed "chef and a beer sommelier", and what we both ordered. It comes stacked high with arugula, soft tender onions caramelized in bacon, and a blend of melted blue and gruyere cheeses piled on big burger cooked to order (anything cooked longer than medium is blaspheme.) on a soft roll. For a bit more add an order of shoestring fries with parsley garlic aioli. Don't even think about substituting anything because, well, you can't. It comes as is.

After we ordered, it only took about 5 minutes to find a place to sit, and another 10 to get our burgers despite the large crowd on a Thursday night. My burger was cooked medium, juicy and AMAZING. I'm usually a burger purist and just dig meat on some bread with light condiments, but wowee was this burger worth it. The onions were quite possibly the best thing I've ever tasted on a burger, ever. The fries were thin, crispy and tasty with the aforementioned parsley garlic aioli, which tasted like fancy ranch. I think what made Melissa the most happy is, you will not find a drop of ketchup in this place, so don't even bother to ask.

The Father's Office burger definitely ranks up there in my top 10 burgers of all time, and I will be enjoying another one very soon.

Nick's at the Beach

So I got a text earlier commenting that I have been slacking on the blogging. I didn't realize there were people who counted on my posts, so here comes a flood of them starting with Nick's at the Beach.

809 Thomas Avenue, Pacific Beach
San Diego, CA 92109
(858) 270-1730

Nick's is in Pacific Beach and is a *mostly* seafood restaurant. I know I said I would never post about seafood, but I got steak.

It came with some basic sauteed vegetables and some pretty garlicky mashed potatoes. If you are not a fan of garlic, it's best to pass on this side.

Nick's has been voted "The Best of..." a few times and came highly recommended by San Diego's Unknown Eater. For steak it was so-so, but for seafood I assume it's probably pretty boss.

I ordered mine "medium" and it came with a nice pink center.


My friend ordered the Chilaquile Seabass.

It came with the same sides, which were just a little boring for me for a "nicer" place. Not bad at all, just kinda boring.

For dessert we opted to skip Nick's and head down to Mission Beach to an old standard favorite of mine as a kid.

It's just a plain old ice cream stand. But inside...

The closest thing to Hawaiian Shave Ice I've had since being IN Hawaii.

Complete with Ice Cream in the bottom. Om nom nom.