June 2011: A year of Yelp

Taking it all in.

When I lived in Charlottesville, Virginia, I had the great pleasure of writing restaurant reviews for The Hook newsweekly in my spare time while working for the University of Virginia, and when I left, I hoped I might find a way to write about food for an audience again while working in education. But the recession hit universities and publications very hard, and my aspirations soured.

I discovered Yelp in researching restaurants I wanted to go to in New York City, and soon I was contributing reviews. I was so enamored of the community and writing outlet that I neglected this blog completely. Then, this May, I was hand-picked for Yelp’s Elite membership. I love it. The events and the people I’m meeting are the best.

These are excerpts from my favorite reviews, as well as random photos from notable meals that may or may not correspond to the entries below them. (I just hate for good food to go to waste.)

May 2011: New York City, revisited

A string trio in Central Park.

Almost a year to the day after my last carload of belongings disappeared into the Lincoln Tunnel and left Manhattan forever, I found myself approaching the island on the Z train from Jamaica with just a small suitcase at my feet, gazing out the window at the Empire State Building as I had on so many arrivals before. I’d always thought the best ways to experience the Empire State Building were from the observation deck on the 86th floor and from a great distance. Even from my apartment building’s rooftop on 29th and Lexington, just a few blocks away, it never seemed as tall and majestic as it did from Queens.

I needed to see New York again. Living there was never going to be permanent — I had eyes for California — but my fifteen months there inevitably felt like a negligible scratch compared to the deep etchings so many others leave on New York’s weathered surface.

March 2011: This ain’t my first rodeo

Frank Bogert Memorial Rodeo.

So said my boyfriend, surprisingly often, who had never actually been to a rodeo until last Christmas, when I gave him the gift of, well, truth — two tickets to the Frank Bogert Memorial Rodeo in Palm Springs, CA.

February 2011: Recreating my favorite Asian noodles

This is the story of two recipes for Asian noodle dishes I loved in the past and wanted to recreate. One took months to develop the recipe for, and the other took 15 minutes. They’re both ridiculously good.

Thai peanut noodles

As a young Naval Academy graduate, my dad found himself stationed in Honolulu, and as a young dietician with a degree in home economics, my mom found herself experimenting with Asian cuisine when he was home from deployments. I don’t know if her recipe for Thai peanut noodles came from this time (the soft corners of the recipe card suggests it might be), but living in Hawaii definitely made my mom keen to Asian cuisine for the rest of her life. And thank God for that. Growing up, if I saw chicken defrosting in the kitchen sink in the morning, I would delight in learning it was for stir fry or yellow curry or — best of all — Thai peanut noodles. I used to beg my mom to abandon plans to cook anything else.

October 2010: Life in Los Angeles

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Happy goats in downtown Los Angeles.

It’s been almost five months since my boyfriend and I drove cross-country from Virginia to California, and I love this place. Here’s what I’ve been up to.

October 2010: What’s cookin’?

Of all of the reasons why I was excited to move to Los Angeles this summer, my boyfriend was at the top of the list.

Getting to cook, finally, was just below him, followed by having someone to cook for.

Below that, being able to drive my convertible around again, ie to discount specialty, and specialty, grocery stores like Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods.

June 2010: Serendipitous New York

Union Square

I just wrote about a lot of the things I liked about New York. Something I loved about New York was its eccentricity. If time and weather allowed, I walked as often and as far as I could just so I could see what I could see. And thanks to modern technology, I always had a camera on me. Here are some of my favorite moments, many of which I’ve already posted to Facebook and Twitter, but together here for posterity.

And, of course, you can see a lot more of these kinds of photos from a number of other contributors over at my art photography site, Pretty Trashy Art.

May 2010: My last week in New York

When I told people I was planning to move from New York City to Los Angeles, the reactions were often surprising, always funny.

May 2010: I should’ve done it for charity!

I walked 10 miles yesterday! It had been a life goal for about a week before I decided to do it.

The High Line

May 2010: Looking forward to Louisville

I can’t wait to pass through Louisville next month on my cross-country drive to LA. From the archives, here are some of the reasons why I like the place so much…

(Hint: it has a lot to do with the hotel.)