Palo Alto Eateries

The past few weeks we've been out and about, mostly in the Palo Alto - Menlo Park areas, to keep me moving on my feet and devouring food from local eateries.

Our #1 favorite yet is Howie's Artisan Pizza in Palo Alto. Located in the Town & Country Village between Sur La Table and Paper Source, it's a relatively new addition to the mall but the place is booming. At lunchtime the place is packed - or actually the bar area is packed - with high schoolers opting for the $5 pepperoni pizza & soft drink combo, but usually there are a few seats available inside. They have unique flavors and even better, they create half & half pizzas out of any combination you choose. We love the Pizza Bianco & Broccoli Raab Pizza (shown above) and their baked potato pizza (which is not on the menu but pops up as a today's special pizza every once in awhile). We also like the Pancetta, red onion, and chili pizza and of course The Works, with everything on it (see below).

They shave the veges to be super thin and pile them on, so the texture is delicate and the flavor is full. Best of all, because there aren't huge chunks of veges visible, this seems to go into my toddler's mouth without a huge fight! All of the pizzas are $15-18 for 14" thin crust pizzas so the price is reasonable.

Another special item is their wild arugula salads. Again, not on their regular menu but a regular on their special of the day board. We've had it Greek style with olives, cucumbers and feta cheese, and also with Asian pears, almond slivers, and parmesan. Both were exceptionally good.

Of course, on the other side of Sur La Table is Kara's Cupcakes so we had to go there for dessert. I love that they have mini-sized cupcakes that aren't overpowering but the perfect pick-me-up or end to a great meal. My personal favorite is the Java (shown - the mocha buttercream is to die for!), but we also love the carrot cake, chocolate velvet, and fleur de sel flavors as well.

Counter Burgers in Palo Alto is another great place - for burgers and for their sweet fries! You can see, we shared the half & half of regular fries and sweet (potato) fries. The choose-your-own-topping burgers are great - I went all out with a fried egg (yum!), spring greens, olives, jalapenos, and grilled onions. They even gave me a few slices of boiled eggs (oops... I think they got their orders mixed up, but oh well). In any case, these burgers are filling and delicious!! Another great thing is that you can order them as 1/3 lb, 2/3 lb, or a full pound burger, but also have them split in two without an extra charge.

Jeffrey's in Menlo Park takes a slightly different approach. It's a much more "basic" burger joint (i.e., Counter Burger offers ahi tuna burgers with wasabi sauce) - I ordered an avocado cheeseburger. Then you walk over to one side of the restaurant where they have the freshest condiments laid out - just simple lettuce, tomatoes, onions, jalapenos, and pickles - but so crisp and fresh, it makes a huge difference. I always get a milkshake here, too, because they give you what's left in the mixer cup as well, and it's always more than what I get in the glass! Their chili cheese fries and onion rings are great, as are their sandwiches and their fish & chips.

Finally, the Prolific Oven. I love the Prolific Oven sandwiches I've had in Palo Alto, but they also have a place in Santa Clara (Rivermark Plaza) that serves my absolute favorite - brunch food! It's a bit cleaner than the one in Palo Alto, but by no means a fancy place, which makes it a great place to hang out with the kids. Their eggs benedict was delicious, as was the strawberry banana waffle and California omelette. Of course, they sell the usual great pastries (like chocolate eclairs) and cakes here as well.

Multiblade herb scissors

This was made for me.
Blame it on my $10 knives from Target or the plastic cutting board - or maybe it's that I should just sharpen those $10 knives every once in awhile, but whatever the reason, nothing seems to cut better than kitchen shears. So I use scissors to cut everything from nori, kimchi, cooked meats, bread, and of course green onions.
It's okay when you're cutting up 2 inch pieces of green onions, but when you're trying to dice them up (like for steamed eggs) it can become a painstaking task. But check out those multiblades! You could probably cut through a stalk of green onion in seconds. thekitchenstore.com

PBK acrylic containers

So despite the high price, I bought a set of acrylic containers for our preschooler's lunchbox from Pottery Barn Kids. The description said "the tight fitting lids make them perfect to toss in backpacks or beach bags". Um... were you talking about the drinking bottles?

We've had this set for about a month now, and of course they weren't used daily - maybe once a week? Twice at most. But the lids are no longer tight and I have to put a rubber band around it to make sure it won't go loose in the bag (so much for tossing into any bag, unless you want your food rolling around in it).

It cost $16.50 for all three (the sandwich sized container & two smaller containers) plus the incredible California tax of nearly 10%, and is doing far less than the iKea containers that sell for$4.99 for 17 containers (and that I got for free while attending a church picnic). Less pretty but at least it holds its lid.

Clothing labels

Looking for a neat way to label preschoolers' clothing, lunchboxes, etc etc has been another chore for me until I came upon these labels called Stitkins.

I have tried using Sharpie markers and other permanent markers on plastic lunch containers and clothing labels which presented several problems:

(1) Plastic containers: They wash off in about 3 washes. Meaning they disappear. They start to fade with one wash. So it turns out, the markers are not really permanent after all (they're only permanent on surfaces where you don't want them to be!).

(2) Clothing labels: It bleeds as you write, so you have to write really big but the labels are really small. And what about all these brands that don't have labels to start off with? Do you mean for me to just write on the cloth??!!

(3) Shoes: Similar to the plastic containers. Doesn't last very long, especially on the crocs.

But Stitkins come in a variety of sizes, do not need ironing, and last in the dishwasher and laundry (apparently for 10+ washes. I will test exactly how long they last!). I am looking forward to NOT rewriting every three days.

Jammy Sammys

May has been a slow month. I was beginning to wonder myself if I had run out of new things to buy! But alas - after putting the kid in school, I finally had a chance to stroll through the aisles of Whole Foods without distractions (e.g., carrying a kicking and screaming two-year old) and rediscover the joys of shopping.

My current obsession is with packing preschool lunches. This is a chore and it also feels like the mom is being evaluated when the teacher notes everything you pack for your kid every day. So I was perusing the aisles for easy but healthy foods that I could pack, that the kid would actually eat. This is when I ran into Revolution Foods Jammy Sammys.

I am passionate about peanut butter. I love Reese's peanut butter cups and I love peanut butter and banana sandwiches (with a sprinkle of cinnamon. Trust me, it makes a difference). I have been this way for as long as I can remember. I can't say the same for jelly - that is, until I discovered Goober Grapes. (Research shows... this product was first made in 1968. But then, why was it so popular in the 80's?) Then my love of PB&J evolved into a desperate love affair with the Smuckers Uncrustables, which I am devouring at the speed of at least one a day, minimum.

So although preschool is a nut free zone, I couldn't help but notice this promise of snack-sized PB&J treats that are organic and supposedly healthy. The kid often naps in the car, so I convinced myself it would make for a good snack on the way back home. I couldn't wait for the day to go by, so I had to open a packet and try one for myself.

HOW WRONG COULD I HAVE BEEN?!

I think it's really difficult to go wrong with peanut butter. But this was gross. I am clueless as to why Revolution Foods is so popular with foodie moms these days. There was no creamy peanut butter texture or the sweet nutty flavor. All you get is a very bland, gooky bar that is somewhat like a mini Nutrigrain bar but I mean, I think Nutrigrain would get upset at me for comparing it to this thing. It was soft to the touch, so your fingers sink into it, but there's no cream and just a strange colored jelly. Yuck, yuck yuck! I had to swallow a full bottle of water to get the texture/feeling out of my mouth.

Is this concept truly too good to be true? Can anyone please create a lighter, PB&J version of Nutter Butter please?

Yummie Tummies

Of course despite the promise of no spams in your inbox, I get tons, and although most go directly to the trash bin, for some reason, I happened to open an ad with this picture:

OMG

Does this really work?

Unless you're an incredibly strong-willed or genetically blessed person, it seems nearly impossible to get rid of the bumps around your waist after giving birth! After months of investing in endermology (with some success but still lacking perfection), I couldn't help but get excited about this product.

The thing is, I have invested in multiple corsets etc in the past but they're all too bulky or uncomfortable to wear regularly. However, this product seemed so wearble - as long as the pictures were real, this seemed like the next best thing to a liposuction!

I finally got mine in the mail, and I can tell you I've put in additional orders in other colors (I bought white - I am adding nude and black).

Amazing!

It absolutely works - especially from the side, the muffin tops are gone. There are two lengths -regular and long - and although they say regular is long enough for most people, I bought the long so that I can wear it layered, or if I don't want the layered look, I can stick it into even low rises without worrying about it popping out. It's more effective on the side than the front, but it's absolutely lightweight, comfortable, wearable, and effective!

It can be a little warm, so I don't know about wearing this in 100 degree weather, but being in the Bay area, that's not a major concern for me, so I'm incredibly happy with my purchase.

Toilet Seats for Potty Training

What an odd topic to move to - from BB creams to potty training! Welcome to the world of being a mom...

My son has been in toilet training for more than six months now. We haven't been pushing him - last summer, out of the blue, he mentioned that he had to go #2, I sat him on a toilet seat, and voila! Life became atleast 30% better for me :)

But there has been no progress since then (actually, some backwards progress which has gotten me into trouble because now I've become lazier about checking, and he sometimes goes without letting me know) and we've had more than enough time to evaluate our toilet seats.

We started with the Baby Bjorn, which I thought was a total rip off - $30 for a toilet seat cover? Come on! But this was six months ago, and I have total appreciation for their product (it's worth every penny).

Not only are the colors fun and vibrant (we are now using the red, but we've had the blue one as well and I think there's also one with a black trim), they also work well in terms of matching any kids' bathroom. It also has a dial in the back so you can adjust the seat to fit any toilet. (I've used this on multiple toilets, but for some reason, never needed to use it.) But the highlight of the design is in the little bump (if you look closely at the picture, you can see it) in the front center of the seat. Let me tell you why this bump is soooo verrry important!

The first time we traveled after he began potty training, of course I forgot to bring the toilet seat along. With the 3,000 other things I needed to pack, the toilet seat was the last thing on my mind! We were on vacation for 10 days, so we ran into the situation where, I didn't have a toilet seat and my son would not go without one (although it had been a couple of days since)! I of course rushed to the nearest Target to find a solution, and the only thing that I could find was The First Years soft toilet seat cover.

The First Years toilet seat was half the price of the Baby Bjorn, and although I wasn't too happy with the color (not so vibrant, medium toned blue - what if my kid is a girl and doesn't like blue?!) but at the same time, not only was this "temporary", it was also half the price. When I was originally shopping for toilet seats, I didn't even think about another brand, so I was pleasantly surprised to find almost the same thing for so much cheaper. (Okay, I know I'm supposed to be a conspicuous consumer, but $15 for a more vibrant colored toilet seat? I mean, even I would think twice.)

So I bring this back with me, sit my son on the seat, and it starts doing its magic. Ah, I breathe a sigh of relief. All of the sudden, a stream of pee is flowing out the front, the relief is nowhere to found, and you have a hysterical mom trying to minimize the damage and block the flow somehow. I never had this problem at home, and then it hits me. This new toilet seat does not have the bump!!

I don't know if this is an issue for little girls, but this is definitely a huge deal for me as a mother of a boy. Had I known this, I would have been more than willing to pay the atrocious amount they charge you for overnight shipping to get the Baby Bjorn instead (the Baby Bjorn toilet seat can only be found online or at certain specialty shops - which wasn't an option for us at the time, we were on vacation).

It is such a simple thing but makes a world of difference for parents. Seriously, I know some people think the whole Baby Bjorn thing is over-rated, but after that fiasco, I am sooo sticking to brands I trust, especially when it comes to children's products!