More French food than I ever had in Paris...

I can't begin to tell you what an awesome week I've had - full of good friends, food, and fun (how cheesy did that sound??). Check it:

I had Monday off for MLK Jr. Day and got to start off my week with one of my favorite treats - chocolate honey-dipped donuts from Verna's.

That night, cooking party with Han

He put together the most amazing filling for dumplings

Ground pork, shrimp, chives, and spices

Yessssssssssss

I made Zucchini Chips

Lunch was Roasted Potatoes with Onions and Pork

Gorgeous view from my office

This week, my friend Simon visited from London - just you wait and see all the things we ate...

First stop, one of my top 5 favorite restaurants - L'espalier

We got the Winter Degustation Menu

...with the wine pairings (listed in all caps in the course descriptions)

2006 WESTPORT RIVERS, “CUVÉE RJR,” BRUT, WESTPORT, MA 

Butter poached Casco Bay lobster with sugar pumpkin 

mousse, Maine mussels, and red curry

2010 DOMAINE DE LA BERGERIE “LE CLOS DE LA GIRDARDIÈRE”, 

COTEAUX DU LAYON RABLAY, LOIRE 

Foie gras “torchon” with a black truffle veil, black walnut 

powder, crispy caramelized onions, kumquat- Sauternes 

reduction

2010 COGNARD, “LE VIEUX CHATEAU”, PREMIER CRU, MONTAGNY, BURGUNDY 

Grey Sole with Nantucket Bay scallops, mandarin orange, 

warm lemon curd and pine nut

Probably my favorite course:

2007 DOMAINE DE LA VIELLE JULIENNE, "CLAVIN ,” COTES-DU-RHONE 

Cassoulet du Languedoc with roasted lamb loin, 

sweetbreads and herb sausage; fermented heirloom Maine 

beans and black garlic

The Grand Fromage

My favorite cheese - I'm *definitely* going out and splurging on some of this (you can buy it [here])

Palate cleanser

CESAR FLORIDO, MOSCATEL ESPECIAL, JEREZ, SPAIN 

Caramel pots de crème with spiced carrot cake and burnt 

orange ice cream

I must say...this is by far one of the best meals I've had - not only was the food absolutely phenomenal, but I had a blast getting to catch up with Simon and both of us fully appreciating a wonderful meal

This week....was FREEZING. I had a work conference and on the first day of the conference, I had not one, but TWO train snafus. First, the red line had delays, then the green line was completely shut down and I had to walk....for a mile...in the above seen temperature. Gotta love New England...

Work conference at the Park Plaza

Wednesday I met Simon at Lolita's (one of my new favorite happy hour spots)

Trying to stage a very serious 'staring-off-into-the-distance' shot....only to get photobombed by Chuck

Next awesome dinner - Radius. Delicious amuse-bouche. I forgot to grab a shot of my first course:

PARSNIP VELOUTE

-smoked potato, pomegranate

A delightful dinner guest ;-)

Risotto

PAINTED HILLS RIB EYE

-Robuchon potatoes, haricots verts, red wine sauce

I cannot tell you how mouth-wateringly scrumptious this dessert was:

GOAT CHEESE AND HUCKLEBERRY CHEESECAKE

-huckleberry glacé , buckwheat, tart lemon syrup

Simon opted for:

TAHITIAN VANILLA CRÈME BRÛLÉE

-pomegranate, oolong meringue, apricot, semolina

What do you do when your favorite British friend leaves? You drink tea, of course... :(

Thursday - game night with friends

A heated game of Taboo

Saturday, I got to catch up with my friend Sam while she was in town for a concert - lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe (my first experience - pretty tasty!)

You never...ever...evvvvvvvver...know what you'll see on the T

Glammin' it up - leopard print scarf, Marc Jacobs shades, new 'do

Saturday night - Han (the newly-discovered culinary genius) made dinner

Scrambled eggs with chives and green onions

A sweet rice dish with Asian sausages, shrimp, and veggies

...and garlic ginger chicken with black bean sauce

Love my roommates :)

Out dancing with CJ (we love getting our groove on)

BOO-YA

<3

They were tossing out glow sticks...

Too much fun

Breakfast at ZuZu

The Kathy Bates

Two crispy waffles topped with fried green tomatoes, avocado spread, poached eggs, and Hollandaise sauce. Served with home fries.

The thing I love about this brunch was walking in and feeling like I was in a small town diner with a twist. The bartender had bright red hair and all the servers had some form of body modification...but there were the 'usuals' - the people you could tell come in on a regular basis and knew the staff. There was a dad who came in with his 2 boys (the bartender asked where their mom and sister was) and they ordered hot cocoa and had eyes as big as saucers when she delivered mugs overflowing with whipped topping. There was a guy who sat a couple seats down from me at the bar and joked around with the servers and talked about his upcoming trip to Mexico and playing with his band...I loved the vibe, the food was great, and I'm thinking about making it part of my Sunday routine.

Last (but certainly not least), Happy Birthday Aletheia Church!!!! This marks the 2 year anniversary since the church was started

This week promises to deliver a lot more fun stuff (including a UNC bball game, squash soup, and a French trivia night)...and I'm planning on doing a 'Beauty Blog' soon (of my favorite beauty products), so be sure to check back soon!