Tony’s Italian Kitchen: Our Favorite Pizza

Watch out, it’s another stop on our New Jersey Easter Vacation! And of course, yes, it’s another food stop… And this time, it’s PIZZA! Who doesn’t love pizza? (Awkward for lactose intolerants…) So if you read our About section, you know I hail from California. Before I went to New York, I thought we Californians had pretty good pizza. Boy, was I wrong! Not that Californian pizza is horrible, but it just doesn’t compare to New York or New Jersey pizza. Especially, Tony’s Italian Kitchen.

Us driving around Chris’ hometown

It’s easy to pass up Tony’s, it’s in a tiny strip mall along with some other offices like Chris’ chiropractor and other little places. But once you discover it, it’s a gem! Luckily, Chris and his family had been getting Tony’s pizza for years, so all I had to do was tag along. The first bite I had, I was able to declare this the best pizza I’ve ever had, and trust me, I’ve had a lot of pizza. More specifically, it has the best cheese pizza. His family very often gets it to bring it home. And then I always eat too much.

So during this New Jersey Easter trip, it was our second food stop after having bagels for breakfast. We had two of our friends with us and split a large cheese pie between us. The wait was tantalizing. And then it came out to us, sizzling and hot. We always let it cool a little so the cheese can settle. And you should always have a Peach Snapple with it too. That first bite into that pizza was awesome. We hadn’t had it for six months or so, so it was that much better!

Drool-worthy

What really makes Tony’s the best is the amazing sauce. I don’t know what they do to it, but it is so fresh. It was really difficult not to scarf it down way completely fast. The crust is scrumptious and dusted to perfection. If you think you’ve had good pizza, come to Tony’s Italian Kitchen and see if you’ve really had the BEST. Cheers!

BONUS KITTY PIC

Cute Sajah

Apr102013

Van Dyk’s: Best Ice Cream in the East

This is another stop during our New Jersey Easter vacation. Make sure you check out the last one, which will make your mouth water for baked goods. Unfortunately for you, you’re due for another drool-session. This time, make it ice cream. And yes “Team Gluttony” (see picture below) went to Van Dyk’s right after Abma’s.

“Team Gluttony”

What is Van Dyk’s? Probably the homemade ice cream store with the best black & white (aka chocolate and vanilla) milkshake I’ve ever had. We always go here on our stops in New Jersey, and during this trip we went too many times. Their ice cream is made right there in the little store and you can tell. Every bite is delicious and never tastes like artificial crap not worth paying for. For the first time, I got something other than the black and white shake (well…ONE of the times we went during a 2-day period). And I can personally say that their ice cream is just as tasty and satisfying as their shakes.

Me gulping down a milk shake

And let me tell you, I was never really even into milkshakes before this place. I am now. This ice cream trip was even better because we got to enjoy it with some newcomers and old timers, both of whom we hadn’t seen in a while. Friends and ice cream–hard combo to beat. [Note to family: my Powell ice cream genes are flourishing right now] Writing about this place makes me miss it…can’t wait until our next trip to Van Dyk’s for some delicious homemade ice cream.

Van Dyk’s little homey shop

Cheers! And as always…stay hungry and fit!

Apr082013

Abma’s Farm: Baked Goods Wonderland

This is one of the many posts you will be receiving about our trip to and from New Jersey–Chris’ home. Since it’s mid-morning, I decided to start with Abma’s Farm. A magical place filled with baked goods and hungry farm animals. It’s a farm, nursery, petting zoo, and marketplace all in one! It is always a necessary stop for us when we visit. And it was, too, when I would visit him from New York while I was still in college.

It was our…third food stop of the day, and I think we got there around noon or 1 o’ clock. This day (Friday) was a special treat because two of my friends from college either drove all the way from the city (Jordan) or took the train all the way up from South Jersey (Kathleen). Hadn’t seen them in six months or so, and it was amazing to see them again. Another friend, Hilary, was about to drive from Connecticut as she was planning, but then got very sick, so she’s visiting this summer here in Boulder instead! We also got to have Chris’ good friend, Po, around with us pretty much the whole day. Awesomeness. See pic below of Kathleen (left) and Jordan (right) and one of Hilary and I.

Kathleen and Jordan

Hilary and I

“Po” with a delicious donut

“Team Gluttony”

Anyways, onto the important stuff–the FOOD (just kidding, guys, love ya). This place has all sorts of delicious items like mozzarella cheese, pies, peppers, and so forth. But what you come to Abma’s for is the BAKED GOODS. And especially from the baked goods, is their cinnamon donuts. Literally right from the oven which is a building away (about 50 feet from the marketplace). You see them bring a big batch in and it’s hard not to gobble less than four down at once. It was Easter weekend, so it was packed–which means lots and lots of baked goods. Everything tastes very fresh and, baked goods-wise, everything is pretty well-priced. It’s hard to beat and it’s definitely hard NOT to pig out. Which we of course did.

So tasty

Then there’s the farm animals which are usually adorable and hungry. In the case of today, where there were 10x more people than usual, they weren’t so hungry–but they were still pretty cute. Abma’s has room for pigs, ponies, mules, goats, chicks, chickens, and more! It’s always fun to see them and give them treats.

To summarize, Abma’s has it all. It’s always a place we’re excited to go to and leave feeling happy and full. The animals are always cute and make funny noises, the baked goods are always fresh, and the marketplace is always full of anything needed to be eaten. If you haven’t already, check it out when you’re in North Jersey!

Cheers!

BONUS KITTY PIC

“Katt” — Get it?

Mar282013

Street Food Fail: Zoe Ma Ma (Boulder)

Here’s a quick review of a “restaurant” in Boulder that advertises that they serve yummy street food. It was a beautiful Friday night so we walked downtown and I was even wearing shorts and a t-shirt. We always want to try new food despite having some favorite locations. I had a craving for Chinese a few nights earlier after working out, and this arrived on Yelp, but we couldn’t make it because we didn’t have enough time. I’ll say that it was not the Chinese food that I was in the mood for, or will ever be.

They are right about one thing, it is street food. I, however, did not think that it was yummy. It also cost us $30.00 and did not fill us up at all. I ordered every piece of their three/four piece dim sum menu. They all tasted the same, very starchy and lacking keen flavors (even though one was chicken, one pork and one veggie). Alana ordered a veggie noodle bowl and I ordered the daily special, a duck noodle soup. It was the best part of the meal but still just lacked flavor and was insanely overpriced.

In the end we have no reason to return. It was average street food at restaurant prices. If you’re in Boulder County and want a good bowl of noodles, go to Kho’s Asian Bistro in Longmont. Health tip alert! (because that’s why we’re here right?) When traveling, have street food (find good stuff!) in small quantities to keep that metabolism working and to try different flavors in a new and exciting place.

Kho’s Shrimp Ramen

BONUS KITTY PIC

Sleepy Sajah

Mar272013

Fast Food Alert! Yo Quiero Taco Bell

After hearing via commercial or a billboard on the road that Taco Bell had a new Doritos Locos taco, with my favorite flavor (Cooler Ranch), I had to try it out. Even though we eat relatively healthy and stay away from most fast food, we don’t mind cheating, if you want to call it that. So, late night one night last week, we drove to the Taco Bell in town for some treats. It’s challenging for Alana because she has a sensitive stomach for low quality and greasy food… and she’s a vegetarian. But she’s a good trooper and more or less went to make me happy.

So I splurged a little and got a Doritos Locos Taco Cooler Ranch, one normal and one supreme, a half a pound chicken and potato burrito, a bean and cheese burrito, and a churro. Unfortunately, they didn’t have any churros so they gave us a marshmallow cookie sandwich and two apple empanadas. By the way, we asked for some hot sauces and they gave us about 10 of each. Let me say that I have no idea what the macros were on this meal, but the amount of fat must have been through the roof.

Our feast

Here is the review. The tacos were a guilty pleasure that I would get again, over and over. I probably prefer the non-supreme version. The chicken burrito was one of the least healthy pieces of food, if you call it that, that I have ever eaten. It was a struggle to finish. Alana ate most of her bean and cheese burrito but I finished it. She enjoyed the cookie sandwich, but I thought that the apple empanadas were absolutely disgusting.

All in all, us being hungry and fit, don’t be afraid to cheat from time to time. If you count cheat meals go for that, but feel free to indulge in a guilty pleasure from time to time. Otherwise you’ll go insane and once you have it, you’ll realize it’s not that great anyways. I don’t want Taco Bell for a while, but I was happy that we went. You can see the receipt below, it was cheap.

You can eat fast food and still stay hungry and fit!

Mar082013

Using Other Cultures: Being Smart with Food

I’m going to draw upon two cultures to make up a smart food philosophy. They can either be put together or separately, whichever you choose. I simply think it is good to keep an open mind to other cultures to see how they deal with food and use the opportunity to look at our own food habits. The two cultures I will focus on are Spanish (as in from Spain) and Japanese (as in from…Japan). Let’s look.

Spanish

The Spanish have many different eating habits, including a tiny breakfast, but I’m going to focus on their lunch. The Spaniards have a time called a “siesta” around noon or a little later. This means lunch time. And lunch time is a big deal in Spain. Shops will close down for a few hours and many Spaniards will go out to restaurants for a few hours for up to three courses. I’m not saying–ditch your work for three hours and go get a five-course meal for lunch, no! You can pack a big lunch, I know that I sure do.

And this more so points to the focus around the middle of the day when our metabolism is in full gear, ripping and roaring through the food we give it. In America, most of us have our biggest meal at the end of the day, when our metabolism is starting to slow down and our body is beginning to tire. This is what I want to adopt from the Spaniards. Move the biggest meal of the day to LUNCH where your metabolism has plenty of time to break everything down rather than waiting until dinner to stuff your face and leave yourself overnight to try to digest it all. The Spanish may be wild party-ers, but they sure do know how to eat.

Japanese

Another polar opposite of the typical United States eating culture, however instead of time of eating it is PORTION CONTROL AND SIZE. If you don’t know, Chris and I have a big love for the Japanese culture and plan to live in Japan for a period of time pretty soon. And that means a big love for Japanese food. Now, of course, the United States has turned small Japanese portions into all-you-can-eat sushi (opposite of portion control), and we are lovers of that too. But for everyday life, everyday eating, the Japanese set a beautiful example of eating the right nutrients in the right portion size. Why do you think the Japanese obesity percentage is so much lower than the United States’?

Protein. Vegetable. Carb. Have you heard of the bento box? Click here for an excellent blog with tons of creative bento boxes. A bento box is basically a Japanese lunch box, usually packing in rice, some kind of vegetable, and some kind of protein (usually fish or tofu). It isn’t very big, and has no high fructose corn syrup packed into it. So instead of jumping to the supersize (a beloved American meal size), let’s try the “Bento” size. It has all the nutrients we need without stuffing ourselves to the brim. And maybe we’ll just drop the obesity rate to a more reasonable number for the US.

So let’s open our minds and our mouths and try different habits from different cultures. Who knows–it could be your next favorite thing. I sure know that I’m transfixed by the bento box. I love eating, but I love eating without feeling extremely full afterwards as well. So try it out! Cheers! Salud! 万歳 !

BONUS KITTY PIC

Sajah’s first fire

Mar052013

Restaurant Rave: Mediterranean Market

This place is one of our most favorite places to go. It’s cheap, it’s filling, it’s delicious. Chris frequents it constantly during the work week and we usually hit it up every weekend or every other weekend. It’s just too good for just too cheap! And the guy who runs it is great. He knows us by now because we’re in there all the time. We’re still trying to figure out his nationality, we think Syrian. It is as its title suggests: a Mediterranean Market. It has everything you would need from out East, from Turkish Delights to Baklava to Pita to Middle Eastern Flour, they’ve got it all. Seriously, it ALL. And with the market comes a delicious eatery.

It has a great relaxed atmosphere. You enter in with the market in front of you, four aisles or so of different Mediterranean goodies (I’ve wanted to buy this huge cheap thing of dates for a long time). Some regulars come in and get their groceries here. Others come for a special ingredient or treat. We usually always end up watching college basketball, because that’s what’s almost always on his television. There’s a pinball machine that captures the quarters of kids and enough treats, frozen dinners, and fresh ingredients to make anyone’s mouth water. All the money I spend there is absolutely worth it.

I typically get the #4 for $7 which includes…a platter of baba ghanoush, hummus, pita, and a wonderful salad with olives, tomatoes, feta, cucumbers, and a delicious dressing. Oh and those are just the sides, the main dish is a huge falafel sandwich, stuffed to the brim with hot, fresh falafel, lettuce, tomato, hummus, and onions. Oops, I’m drooling (and we literally went there for dinner tonight, couldn’t resist). At least it’s healthy and full of great protein!

Chris gets the same #4 for $7 but instead of baba ghanoush, he gets dolmas (and otherwise the same sides). And instead of a falafel sandwich, he gets a gyro sandwich. This sandwich, too, is stuffed to the brim with meat. And you can always sop anything up in the huge serving of hummus he gives us. We usually get a Xing tea to accompany our meals. And don’t forget dessert! We don’t always get it, but when we do, we either get baklava or kadaifi (or both). So delicious.

It’s truly authentic, and we enjoy it thoroughly. For us, it really feels comfort food. I’m not sure why, we’re weird like that. We always have huge smiles on our faces and full bellies when we’re done. it’s truly a place to relax and enjoy the food. And it’s healthy! It’s always on the list of choices of where we want to eat a certain night of the week.

If you’re in Boulder, you have to hit up the Mediterranean Market, you will not regret it! It’s a wonderful meal that will fill you up without emptying your wallet. Truly excellent food.

Mar032013

Get Your Smoothie On: Inta Juice

This weekend, on the way home from a fun triathlon, we stopped at Inta Juice, craving something light, but nutritious and filling. And we got our fill! Inta Juice is a healthier version of Jamba Juice with lots of flavors, fruits, supplements, and boosts to choose from. Overall, we give it a pretty high rating for giving us some hydration back after the race.

We were very pleased with the service, we came at a pretty non-busy time early-ish on a Saturday morning. Feeling tired, drained, and indecisive, we milled about, taking about ten minutes to actually decide. The two girls helping us were very patient, friendly and helpful. We basically told them what we wanted and they suggested various options and even made a custom one for Chris.

We both got 32 oz (and Chris’ came with even more, so I got a good amount of his) cups because Chris was convinced he was starving and could really drink all of them (we semi-regretted that later, but finished it all, of course). I got the Groovin Guava which had guava, pineapple, orange, and some other tropical flavors. It was extremely refreshing but I got throat freeze every ten seconds, which is of course my fault.

Groovin Guava

Chris got something akin to the Power Protein shake, but they added strawberries for him in addition to whey powder, chocolate, peanut butter, and banana. It was very good and filling. Lots of calories and protein! Just we needed after a great race. After he finished his, I still had mine and we shared it on the car ride home.

Remnants of Power Protein

I also tried a 1 oz wheat grass shot. I figured I might as well, I’ve always wanted to try one. It was absolutely disgusting, please never make me do that again. It’s not their fault, it’s my taste buds. And the wheat grass. Yuck.

It was a very pleasant atmosphere. We sat at the place for a good fifteen minutes, talking, cooling down, and relaxing with our smoothies. It was happy decor with lots of bright colors and information. It was very clean as well. It even had a drive-thru! Now this place is in Longmont, so I drive past it every day to and from work, so they may be seeing me more often. We are very pleased we stopped here, it was the perfect thing for our tired, dehydrated bodies. Thanks, Inta Juice!

BONUS KITTY PIC

Feb062013

Restaurant Review: Chez Thuy

We had heard good things about this place. We are all about Vietnamese food and it was a nice Saturday to have a good lunch. So here we show up at Chez Thuy, one of Boulder’s Vietnamese cuisines. It was a sunny day, a little windy, but we were all game for our one-restaurant-out-a-week (attempted).

The atmosphere was wonderful. Ethnic music in the background, loud enough to hear, but not overpowering our conversation. The place is beautifully decorated, we were loving it. Beautiful paintings and traditional decorations all around. The only thing hurting the atmosphere were two obnoxious loud Boulder moms a few tables away.

I had a difficult time deciding between the Blended Boba drinks and Thai Iced Tea, but eventually decided on the latter since I like my Boba on ice, not blended. We order our dishes and they bring out two complimentary hot and sour soups. I’m delighted–Chris can’t exactly eat spice. So I get two! And am then full a lot quicker. The soup was delicious and warming and I ate both bowls.

hot + sour soup

For appetizer, we order steamed vegetable dumplings served with a side of peanut sauce. I was delighted with this. The dumplings were light and fresh, and the peanut sauce was the perfect heaviness to compliment it. I wish there were more of them to gobble up!

Then we wait for our meals. It’s a pretty busy time for them, but we don’t mind waiting, taking, and making fun of the two moms near us. Chris orders a Pad Thai and I order a Yellow Curry with Calamari. Eventually, they come out. Now I’m almost full at this point (way to go, Alana), but we dig in anyhow.

yellow curry

pad thai

Now…the dishes didn’t quite cut it for us. I actually enjoyed Chris’ Pad Thai a lot more than mine. Mine was too fishy, and not enough of that peanut-taste that you get in most yellow curries. I really didn’t eat much of mine. It wasn’t something I was very excited about, and I usually love Vietnamese food. Chris was not a big fan of his Pad Thai. It didn’t seem like it was prepared with a lot of care and love, the noodles really stuck together in one large mass, thus not allowing the dish to mix well.

Overall, we wouldn’t come back here for a main meal again. It just wasn’t impressive or very tasty. However, we would come back for appetizers.

Cheers! (Sorry for the lack of posts, we have been sick and busy)

Jan202013

Restaurant Review: Pastavino

Even though we are trying to limit ourselves to one food outing a week, we still treated ourselves to a nice Italian restaurant on Pearl Street. We actually tried to get to three other restaurants before landing here–all closed until dinner for some reason. So it was pretty much by accident that we found this lovely Italian place. And we were very happy that we did.

It was beautiful and sunny out–a nice change to the 10 degree weather we’ve been having. We briefly looked at the outside menu before marking their prices reasonable and dishes appetizing. The place was pretty empty, with a big bar in the front and a brick-oven in the back. It was adorned modernly, and the lighting was pleasant as it was coming mostly from the sun outdoors. We were seated at a semi-small table and waited by Isabelle, a nice 20s something girl who deserved a good tip by the end.

(ONTO THE FOOD!) I know, I know, just setting up the scene. So I immediately spot Penne Arrabiata, which is my go-to dish if places have it. It’s a penne pasta with nice hot spicy tomato sauce poured on top. But I also have a craving for cheese…so my eyes hover over the Mozzarella Caprese. Chris decides on another appetizer: antipasto misto (which included a various assortment of cheese, meats, olives, and veggies). So we start by ordering those two appetizers. We throw a loaf of bread in there too to get us started (we are very hungry at this point). Meanwhile, as we are chugging down the water we realize how delicious it is. I know that’s weird to see, but it was so refreshing.

The bread comes, nice and hot. It’s delicious, crispy on the outside, and warm on the inside–with a hint of rosemary. We douse our small plates with oil and vinegar and mop it all up eagerly with the bread. The other appetizers come sometime later, we’re enjoying our time slowly so we don’t really notice, and she brings out the wrong one for Chris (though we share). Chris breaks the news to her and she starts taking it away but Chris asks, “Are you going to throw that out?” She says yes and he asks if there’s any way to avoid that. She let us keep it without charging us for it and brought us our other appetizer. The wrong appetizer was fritto misto by the way, lots of calamari, scallops and such.

So we do try to take pictures of all food. But…we ate the caprese too fast–oops

Fritto Misto

It was all as it looks. We ate the caprese so fast that we didn’t snap a shot of it–each part of it (basil, tomato, and mozzarella) was just so fresh. The fritto misto was also delicious, and I got to eat the calamari because they’re wild caught! The antipasta misto was good as well, though I would rate the others higher. We didn’t really like the olives and eggplant of the antipasta misto.

Rejected

Taking our time, feeling thoroughly relaxed and not so starving anymore, we order our main dishes. Chris gets the Pizza Salametto which is a big pizza with salami, mozzarella cheese, and basil. I, of course, order the Penne Arrabiata, even though, by this point, I’m starting to feel full. Sigh. We snack on what’s left on our appetizers until the main dishes come out. I was happy with my pasta, but it wasn’t anything special. Chris’ pizza, however, was delicious. Although, I was “full,” I kept snagging pieces from his. It was a little oily, and had poor structural integrity, but the taste was there and the ingredients fresh. Chris also got a good deal with the lunch special and got a big thing of Minestrone Soup on the side.

By this point, I am full. Like, feeling a food baby coming on full. I am seated back in my chair, enjoying the tastes while Chris finishes up his soup. Once we slow down, and she notices, she pops over and asks about dessert. I shrug, saying I’m full, and Chris says, might as well look at it. So we do. Aaaaand, we end up getting dessert (of course). Chris spots a fruit tart–Sfogliatina alle Fragole. He had way too much fun trying to say it to the waitress. It comes out and it is a tower of glory. Just look at it.

Despite our being “full,” we finish every last bite. We reasoned afterwards that we were probably not just full, but sometimes you get bored of the same taste. That’s why, we decided, people tend to get dessert even though they’re “stuffed.” So we get the check, taking our time, and give our waitress a nice tip for being so good with not charging us with the wrong appetizer and being great.

Overall, we really liked this place. The only downfall was that the tables were small and they put so much stuff on the table. However, that’s not a big factor at all. The atmosphere was great, beautiful sunlight with calming music served us with a happy mood to go along with our flavorful filling dishes. We would definitely go again to get an enormous amount of food for a good price.