Breakfast at the Country Club

We stayed two nights at Tim's parents' house. On the Friday after Thanksgiving, we had a thoroughly enjoyable breakfast at the nearby Country Club. We had driven by the country club many a time, but we never actually drove past the gates until today. It was nice!


Grandma Jean, Tim and Tim's Mom. (11/24/06)

Tim and I each ordered a Bloody Mary, which was unlike any other Bloody Mary I've ever ordered previously. Why? Because it actually was served with a jumbo shrimp! Between the shrimp, the celery and the olives, it was practically a meal in itself.


Practically a meal in itself. (11/24/06)

The actual meals were really good too. My steak and eggs was done perfectly. And the prices were really affordable. In California, the whole tab for the four of us would have cost $20 more, I'm willing to bet.


The country club grounds were beautiful. (11/24/06)

We also learned that they have a spa at the facility. So maybe next time we're in town, we'll schedule a massage.


Not so lucky in Bingo. (11/24/06)

Afterwards we took Tim's grandma to go play bingo at one of the casinos a short drive away. Although I had a lucky leprechaun dauber, I wasn't so lucky at bingo that day. :(

Low-Key Thanksgiving

We had a small but nice Thanksgiving. We drove out to the desert to be with Tim's family (we'd tell you where, but the Federal Witness Protection Program forbids it). To beat the traffic we left Thursday morning at 4:30 a.m. (Tim drove, I slept).


Forget the turkey, Tim's dad wants to carve the photographer. (11/23/06)

It was just Tim's mom and dad, his grandma Jean, and the two of us. The food was good and plentiful. Later in the day we watched "The Phantom of the Opera" movie that Tim's grandma had been wanting to watch. I kept falling asleep in between loud parts.


Yummy Thanksgiving food. (11/23/06)

I know, not very exciting, huh.

Lunch at Disneyland's Blue Bayou

As Disneyland annual passholders, we pretty much know Disneyland inside and out. There are very few attractions at the two theme parks that we haven't tried at one time or another. But one glaring exception (for me, anyway) was the Blue Bayou Restaurant.


The Blue Bayou restaurant at Disneyland. (11/19/06)

This is the New Orleans-style restaurant situated inside of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. Although technically it's an indoor restaurant, visual and audio effects make it appear that you're enjoying a nighttime meal at an ourdoor restaurant set against a Louisiana bayou. Although I've been on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride countless times, it was my first time ever having a meal there (Tim was there once before, but it was well over 10 years ago).


Tim and James at the Blue Bayou. (11/19/06)

We actually tried going one week earlier, but we didn't have reservations (who knew it had that much demand). So this time we made reservations a week in advance. And because our reservations were for their opening time of 11:30, we got a great seat right against the water.


The Blue Bayou's Tortuga Trio of Crème Brûlée, in a supposedly edible trunk. (11/19/06)

As expected, we enjoyed every minute of the experience. And the food was excellent. The only drawback were the prices, which were much higher than typical theme park food prices (then again, the food was much better than your typical theme park fare). In fact, the reason we went for lunch, and not dinner, was that we heard prices were cheaper at lunch. But with lunch entrees costing approximately $25 a piece, it was hard to imagine how much more they would be at dinner.

Gabbi's Mexican Kitchen - Deliciosa!

We did something today that we don't do nearly often enough. We had lunch at a new restaurant. Normally, we rotate between the same dozen or so places. In fact, in most of them, we tend to order our favorites every time!


The mystery restaurant from across the street. (08/17/06)

As we were driving to Rutabegorz, one of the usual suspects, we impulsively decided to change plans and try out this new mystery restaurant that opened up a few months ago in downtown Orange. The reason it's a mystery restaurant is that it does not have a sign. Seriously. There is no sign anywhere in sight.

Upon entering, we discovered that the restaurant is Gabbi's Mexican Kitchen, an independently-owned Mexican restaurant that had so much character. The place isn't big — there were probably no more than 20 tables. But it was amazingly decorated, with colorful artwork, wood beams and lots of ornamental ironwork that looked great against what were clearly decades-old original brick walls (before this restaurant, the space was occupied by an antiques store).

You could tell that this was no corporately-managed chain restaurant. Yet it had an attention to detail and design that you don't commonly see in family-owned establishments. I wish I could have taken more pictures, but since we were expecting to go to one of our normal restaurants when we left the house, I didn't bring the camera.


A photo from last August when we tried eating there but didn't want to wait. (08/17/06)

And then there's the food, which was simply delicious. And the menu offered Mexican fare not commonly seen in most Mexican restaurants. I can't think of many other places I've been to where you can get Enchiladas Flor de Calabasa (pumpkin blossom enchiladas), Camarones en Mole Verde (shrimp in green mole) or Puerco Poc-Chuc (a Mayan pork dish).

Prices were slightly higher than what you'd pay at most garden variety Mexican restaurants, but the food, decor and presentation was worth it. If you're in the area, it's worth checking out.

Amy's Nacho Libre Birthday

We celebrated Amy's 36th birthday Nacho Libre style this year! Although her actual birthday was two weeks ago, it coincided with the camping trip. So we didn't really get a chance to formally celebrate until last night.


Nacho lovers Jon & Amy and James & Tim. (11/04/06)

The theme of the night: Nacho Libre, which is one of Jon and Amy's favorite comedies from last summer. We started with real nachos at Moreno's Mexican Restaurant in Orange, a festive Mexican place that was established in 1969. Afterwards, we gave Amy her gift, which was -- you guessed it -- the recently released Nacho Libre, which we watched.

Although I kind of dozed off here and there, the parts that I saw were really funny. I especially loved the songs that Jack Black would sing. They were hi-larious!!! It was the perfect way to celebrate Amy's birthday.

Happy Day of the Dead!

Tonight we had our Day of the Dead celebration meal. For those who may not be so familiar with it, Day of the Dead is the ancient Mexican celebration in memory of deceased ancestors. It's a national holiday in Mexico and dates back to the Aztec period when death wasn't considered the end of life, per se, but rather a continuation. It's celebrated every November 1 or November 2, depending on who you ask.


After dinner we made skulls out of Play-Doh. (11/02/06)

On the way home from work, I stopped by the Mexican supermarket to buy all the stuff we needed. We made chicken mole, rice, beans and tortillas. To drink, we bought Jarritos, those Mexican fruit-flavored sodas, and opened a bottle of cabernet. For dessert, we got an assortment of pan dulce . Oh, and we also bought a Pan de Muerto, which is a soft, round bread decorated to look like it has bones on it.

We lit lots of candles for all of our friends and family members that have passed away, and we kept their memories in our hearts as we enjoyed the terrific meal (although we were too full for the pan dulce, which we'll save for breakfast tomorrow).


We had chicken mole, rice, beans, tortillas, jarritos, pan dulce and wine. (11/02/06)

I originally wanted to make sugar skulls, but I didn't really plan for it well and never got around to buying the stuff we need. But we did have some left-over Halloween Play-Doh, so we made out skulls out of that.