Dolsot Bibimbap

I love trying new things and sharing the experiences. Today we tried a new to us, Korean restaurant that has over 1300 YELP reviews with an average of 4 stars. The restaurant was called Jang Su Jang. Click on the name to see the yelp review for yourself.

One of the perks of living in a multi-cultural community is being able to meet fascinating people and to enjoy delicious and authentic tasting foods from around the world. Being always curious about people and loving food as sustenance and as a form of art, I love living in Silicon Valley. My waistline, not so much. Oh well, fat and happy isn’t such a bad thing! 😉  At least for this week. There always seems to be a reason to celebrate life and who am I to say no to a “party.”  And I did get a hike in with ML before partaking in the festivities so maybe the calories expended equalled the calories consumed?? A girl can dream!

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I loved the entire lunch process. When we were first seated, we were served warm tea in glass tumblers. This was new to me. We looked over the menu and we both picked the same entree – Dolsot Bimimbap. This is a rice dish topped w/ vegetables, beef, & optional red pepper paste, served in a hot stone bowl, where the rice sticks to the bottom and becomes crispy. The food and bowl is served so hot, that it cooks the egg in the bowl once you stir everything together.

Before the entrée arrived, we were served soup and as we ate the soup, the kimchi assortment arrived.  Just seeing the 8 little silver bowls set out on the table was like a surprise, not really knowing what was being served in front of us.  We have had Korean food before and know that this is part of the meal service, we just never really know what we are eating.  One bowl had some type of tiny cooked shrimp with the head and body still attached, shells and all. Another bowl had apples and onions in a creamy sauce, sort of like a Korean version of a Waldorf salad. I loved the glass noodles and the traditional Korean kimchi and enjoyed trying all of them. The waitress came by and asked us if we wanted refills on any of the dishes and was happy to see that we liked the food.

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When the entrée arrived, I took pictures of the food, like I usually do because I love food and wanted to share a meal with you. 🙂  It was too pretty not to share.

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Another waiter came by and told me I had to stir everything together quickly before the rice stuck to the bottom. This is my favorite part, so I wasn’t too much in a hurry. He offered to help me, and I obliged his wishes. I have had bibimbap before, just not here.  He added the spicy red paste to my dish and walked away so that I could enjoy my lunch.

It was another fun and fabulous lunch date and I left full and thankful.

What foods do you like to try? Are you an adventurous eater?  Got any good restaurant recommendations in the Bay Area? I’m always up for a food party!

namaste

Summer Lovin’

I am loving summer!  I love that the days are long and that our routine has changed. I love the freedom that comes with summer and the ability to see more friends and spend time doing things we normally don’t have time to do during the busy school year.

We are still busy, of course, but a different kind of busy and I’m lovin’ every minute of it.

Today I was rushing around after dropping the kids off at their lessons. I went to the car wash and read a couple pages of my summer reading book while I waited for my car to be cleaned.  

My new BFF ( I have several BFFs that are all the best at something different and are all so unique) took me out to celebrate my birthday. We had a long, leisurely Korean lunch and then walked next door for a Chinese Foot massage. Thanks, R.  
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Gotta love Silicon Valley!

Have you ever had a Chinese Foot Massage? These are the coolest things ever. They don’t really just massage your feet.  Basically you pay $20 for an informal, rough, and deep massage, laying in a casual chair that reclines back and forth with 7 of your other friends or strangers in the same, dark room.  A little weird the first time you try it, but you get used to it really quickly.  They soak your feet in a bucket of water and while you’re soaking, they begin massaging your forehead, temples, and scalp. They move down to your neck, shoulders and then down one side of your body and up the other, flipping you over to do the same on the other side. They do spend quite some time on your feet too. They do this with your clothes on and with towels draped over your clothes. It is intense and so worth the experience. I think this was my 4th time going and definitely will be back sooner than later. You have to try this – go on a date night with your spouse, boyfriend or best friend. You’ll love it!  I left there fully relaxed and ready to take a nap, but actually went to hit tennis balls. I wonder if this defeats the purpose.  I definitely felt loser, so that must be a good thing.

After picking up the kids from school and camp, we came home and decluttered quickly before my other old BFF came over for happy hour. We sat outside with the kids and laughed and told jokes and did skits and just played.

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I laughed so hard teaching her girls how to do the “Chubba” skit and the “Bill in the button factory” skit. We were all laughing along together, enjoying the change from sunshine to sunset and feeling the cool air sweep over the patio.

When Jeff came home, we enjoyed a casual dinner and Jeff started drumming on the table. Charlie chimed in and Juliana joined too. I tried, but have no tone or rhythm so decided to take pictures instead.

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They were so good together. I wish I had musical talents, but instead I got to enjoy theirs, thank goodness!

During dinner my sister called, and lucky me, I got to excuse myself and ask that the kids clean up, while I got to sneak into the back room to catch up with her. With her busy schedule and mine, we hardly ever find the time to chat for more than 2 minutes. We laughed so hard and we were wishing we lived closer to each other so that we could laugh on the couch together and fall asleep. That’s our favorite thing to do together… so simple and boring.  Oh, we’re getting old!

 

I hope you’re getting outside, playing, laughing, enjoying friends and relaxing this summer.

Life is good, right now!