Day 9 - Old Port Lobster Shack (Redwood City)

As I would have been extremely upset if we missed on a lobster roll experience in this part of the world, I consider us to be extremely lucky that we managed to squeeze in a superb meal at Old Port Lobster Shack before our flight back. 

Say "YOLO" to the thickish flavourful New England Clam "Chowdah" and Lobster Bisque. 

Fresh and sweet lobster spilling out of buttered refined carbs. Seriously hardpressed to find anything to nitpick about. 

The tri-tip while tender was pretty dry. Though I have not tried their brisket, I dare say it would be a whole lot tastier. 

A table filled with so much food makes me so happy!

The pulled pork mac and cheese was disappointing though. Pasta was overcooked and the pulled pork was rather bland, despite a heavy drizzle of barbecue sauce.

I'm sad to head home after this final meal - a tiny island where lobster rolls are half the size and double the price. 

Hmm, ran out of words, caught a cold. Later folks!

Day 8 - Ike's Sandwiches (Cupertino)

Priceless

The just awakened sleepy head

I miss Ike's Sanwiches. Big time. 

The long and wordy menu plus a hungry lunch crowd made it an overwhelming affair. Next time, I'll order in advance. Yes, there will be a next time.  

If you only have space for one sandwich (and you do need consirable space even for one sandwich), don't miss the Nacho Boy, which comes stuffed with avocado, mushrooms, roast beef and swiss cheese. Sensational. 

The Menage A Trois - roasted chicken, honey mustard and three types of cheeses cheddar  Pepper Jack, and Swiss cheese was featured on 20 Epic SF Sandwiches To Eat Before You Die. It was good but I thought the Nacho Boy was more last-meal-worthy. 

Paul Reubens (note the quizzical sandwich names that make no sense) consisting of French dressing, poppy seed coleslaw, pastrami and Swiss cheese. Don't tell Monsieur and Madame Croque but there could be more to life than a grilled ham and cheese sandwich.

The sandwiches were all smooshed together like one big happy family. The sauce that kept it all together was their signature Dirty Sauce and copious amounts of it made the meal a delectably saucey affair. I'm so glad being a mum means I consider wet wipes a part of my arsenal of weapons. 

Day 7 - Farina Pizza & Cucina Italiana / Craftsman & Wolves (San Francisco)

One other uber important thing I had to do in San Francisco was to meet up with Charlene, who I had not seen since Russell was three days old. 

As I had the whole she-gang with me, Charlene picked Farina Pizza which was friendly for babies, in-laws and catching up with dear old friends. 

Insalata di polpo con patate

Marinated baby octopus with lemon, parsley and potatoes

I would never have thought to pair potatoes with octopus but it worked. I was particularly impressed with the potatoes; they didn't taste like the mealy scuds we get back at home. 

Insalata all’Amalfitana con serzetto di arance

Arugula salad served with orange segments, fennel, black olives and walnuts

The couple of salads that we had were light and refreshing - characteristic of the fresh food this region is blessed with. 

Insalata pentacolore con aceto di lavanda e fragole

Baby spring lettuce mix served with lavender vinaigrette and strawberries

The pizzas, chewy and slightly charred, were scrumptious in a way that reinforced the Neapolitan's reign as the king of pizzas in my books. 

Italia
Fior di latte mozzarella, prosciutto, arugula, olive oil and shaved parmesan

The Italia was my favourite pizza. There is just something about cured meats on pizza that is unmistakably classic. 

Tonno e Cipolla

Fior di latte mozzarella, onion, Albacore tuna, olive oil and basil

Never been a canned tuna kind of person but this was pretty tasty. Just goes to show you can't go wrong with melted cheese and bread. 

D.O.C.

Fresh cherry tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella, romano cheese, olive oil and fresh basil

Relatively unadorned, I was easily bought over by the simple fresh ingredients. 

For desserts, we walked several doors down to Craftmens. Undeniably hipster, it was fortunately quite empty and our large horde could plonk down comfortably on a communal table. 

Unlike most hipsters that cafes that rely on homely and sometimes, outsourced bakes, the sweet treats on display were delicate and modern. Think petit French pastries as opposed to all American bakes. 

We shared a chocolate salted caramel brownie, lemon meringue tart, chocolate praline slice and a strawberry pistachio cake.

After spending quite a bit of time deciding where to go for dessert (we had to think about baby, the cold, the drive back to Cupertino etc), I'm glad we spent more time catching up at Craftsman & Wolves. 

Day 7 - il Cane Rosso / Ghirardelli Square (San Francisco)

After the wedding hoola, the newlyweds went back to reality work and the rest of made a day trip up to San Francisco. We had something big - and ridiculously delicious - in mind, I tell ya. 

We spent quite a bit of time around touristy Fisherman's Wharf and Ferry Building, stopping by at il Cane Rosso for lunch. 

The Marin Sun Farms Beef Brisket sandwich with cherry tomato conserva and mustard aioli made it to this list of '20 Epic SF Sandwiches To Eat Before You Die'.

Sandwiched between crusty yet soft Acme bread, there were definitely no complaints. 

Funny enough, I preferred the slow-roasted pork shoulder sandwich with cabbage-cilantro slaw. Funny because KW liked it better too when I checked in with him hours later. 

A roasted red pepper soup filled the cracks left over from the sandwiches. 

TA DAH!!! This visit to Ghirardelli Square was super memorable as we had been saving it for the munchkin's first ice cream experience. Cue tear running down cheek. 

Cookie Bottom Sundae - I swear ice cream sundae dreams are made of this. Just as good as the first time round.

And because we didn't fly 18 hours and sit through a 2 hour car ride for one sundae, we also got The Gold Rush, which consisted of vanilla ice cream, hot fudge, melted peanut butter, chopped almonds and Ghirardelli squares. 

I think the munchkin was surprised by the coldness (cold foods are not his favorite thing) but he warmed to it eventually and I have a 10 second video to prove it.

And if you thought it was a sneaky move of mine to introduce R to the best sundae in dah world and ruin him for life... well, guilty as charged. 

A couple of post sugar-high faces. Mission accomplished!

Day 6 - Smith Family Farm / Alexander's Steakhouse (Cupertino)

Tis the season to be jolly eating your weight in peaches and tomatoes. 

And off to peach-picking we go! 

On our way back to Cupertino, we stopped by at Smith Family Farm for a peach-picking session. 

Apart from all the PY0B (pick your own bounty) action, you can shop to your heart's content for the season's prettiest and brightest fruits and vegetables. 

Our dear peaches and cream... 

It was difficult not to get carried away! 

Re-energizing as peach-picking sure is hard work!

God, I wish I could bake a pie... I might have a same-ish bob but Ina Garten I am not. 

You can be sure we were pooping peaches for the next few days. #TMI

KW's uncle gave us a treat for dinner one evening and he specifically asked for steak. KJ readily made reservations as Alexander's Steakhouse, which incidentally is a one Michelin star restaurant. 

Raw red meat greats you at the door. Felt very True Blood indeed... 

Above we have the heirloom tomatoes salad, with peaches, sea beans (eh?) and herbs. Pictures turned out horribly due to the lightening but I am sure you can tell the dishes were plated up beautifully. 

After many days of meats, burgers and tacquerias, I was mad craving for fish. The king salmon was a thing of omega-3 goodness (perfect for stressful moments during the trip) and the accompanying lumps of crab leg was seriously good. 

KW's ribeye. It was good but I didn't regret ordering my salmon.

Among all the sides, which was all delicious, the uni fried rice was probably something that made us go, "Wooo" when our waiter introduced it as a daily special. To be honest, it was quite ordinary (tasted like er, fried rice) but I am sure the presence of uni must have made this the most expensive fried rice we've had in a while.

Though we didn't order any desserts, we rounded up our meal with such childhood-conjuring petit fours. 

It was an awesome dinner but I am not going to lie - it was admittedly a little hard to enjoy the meal with the munchkin around.

Oh well, got to make the best out of things =)