HelllllooooOOOooOO everybody! I have a short (ish) post for you today. Which many of you would be skeptical of unless you saw it with your own eyes… So, hey, guess you’ll have to come in and see for yo self 😉 I missed my calling as a sales woman. I realize.
After DJ and I arrived back from Ohio, we tried to adjust to the jet-lag, unpacked (there is always wayy more laundry than you bank on), ate Subway because we were craving us some subs, and watched Dexter.
On Friday, December 30th, Annie (you can get the low down on our friendship here) and I decided to have a girllzzzz night in SF. As much as she is our fave third wheel, (or maybe Deej is the third, not sure), DJ is incredibly supportive of girl time. It’s been a while since we’ve seen each other, and with the next few months being crazy and unpredictable, we decided to try to squeeze in hanging out one more time before the new year dawned.
Driving into SF that night was exhilarating. The sky was bright blue in some parts and dark gray in others. The contrast was magnificent! Additionally, the way the clouds roll into the city over the bay fascinates me the whole time I drive down the highway.
Love this city <3
When I arrived to Annie’s apartment, we finished up getting ready then headed out to one of my personal favorite restaurants in all of SF. I had two “free drink” coupons from Eat/Drink SF, and it would be a darn shame for those to go to waste. Hence, girlz night.
Something I just absolutely love about Farallon is the jellyfish lounge. It is truly so unique! I give a full synopsis of this spectacular restaurant in a previous post.
Isn’t she just the cutest you’ve ever seen?!
Imma’ rant for a quick tick: One personal stipulation that I have for determining a good restaurant is their bread factor. I’m a runner, and I take my carbs seriously. So when I see that grainy, yummy, doughy piece of deliciousness with a pad of buttery perfection next to it, I do what any normal person does: salt the heck out of my butter before putting it on my bread. Right? RIGHT?! Ok, well DJ apparently thinks my methods are a bit strange with the salt, but Farallon agrees that salt on butter is the way to do it. And for this reason, Farallon wins sooo many brownie points in my heart
In all seriousness though… that lava salt and butter and bread was the BEST I have ever had. Sorry, Outback & Olive Garden & Macaroni Grill …. you have some competitionnnn. Now, I’m all curious– what is your favorite restaurant for bread?
We didn’t want to spend a ton (and this place is pretty pricey), so we decided to split an appetizer and entree. For the appetizer we did the Mezcal Ceviche with Avocado Mousse and Spiced Tostada. This dish was SPICEY! The avocado mousse helped TAME THE FLAME a bit. It was eye-watering, nose-dripping YUM. Yet, I feel like that doesn’t sound appetizing when I put it that way? And those spiced tostadas were like some kind of fancy schmancy Doritos.
For our entree, we split the pan seared scallops with spaghetti squash, brussels sprouts, huckleberries, & bacon (on the side).
I can say this with extreme confidence: It was the best one and a half scallops I have ever had. Yes, 1.5. We savored the heck out of that dish. Like the smallest bites you can imagine but each small bite was bursting with LARGE flavor. The combination of the huckleberries, brussels, and squash was unique, but it worked so well. If you ever go to Farallon, get this. You will not regret it. Especially if you like scallops. (But really anything on their menu is spectacular! We had some of the best food of my life the last time we were there too!).
We walked out of there sooo full.
Lolz. NOT.
The food was TREMENDOUS. Don’t get me wrong. But we definitely had wayy more room. So we did what anyone does right after a big splurge dinner… go to the nearest grocery store for more food.
Allow me to present dinner numero dos: Snyder’s Hershey’s Dark Chocolate pretzels, Halo Top Ice cream (Strawberry is suhh guuhhdd), SUSHI!, & wine.
Because those are all the essentials for watching K. Dash all night long.
Best. Girlz. Night. Ever.
On the way out in the morning I had to take a picture of this.
Is she smart or what?! I need to do this, and get that rug that says, “Turn off your straightener”!
I drove back from SF to Cupertino, did a seven-miler on the treadmill while reading Cutting for Stone (phenomenal book, btw), then got snazzed up with Deej when he came back from playing basketball. We then, once again, started the drive back to SF. Deja Vu!
I wanted to spend SF in the city, but obviously hotels in the city are already outrageously priced and with living so close it’s hard to justify paying to stay overnight. But, at the same time, it’s incredibly dangerous to drive on New Years Eve. See my predicament? Our solution: GROUPON!!!!!!!!!
A couple months ago, I found a room slashed at Le Meridian to more than half the original price for New Year’s Eve. It was so cheap we kept joking that it probably had smoke damage, or the shower didn’t work, etc. etc., but it was perfect!!!!!
It was also centrally located, and we could see the Bay Bridge from our window!
I loved the way they had the maps as the wall paper. It was all kindsa modern!
Time to finish getting ready! Dress is from Express. I snatched it when they had their big 40% off sale about a month ago!
I was able to wear my wedding shoes for the first time since the actual wedding! I was pumped about this.
We had some extra time before our dinner reservation, so we put on the OSU game and then DJ graciously took selfies with me. He is such a trooper about that.
Our restaurant of choice was Perbacco. We had a giftcard for Open Table from DJ’s birthday and hadn’t used it yet since DJ was in law school during this time. **SUCH a great idea for a gift, I didn’t even know Open Table had giftcards!** This was the perfect occasion to save it for! It was within walking distance for us which was super convenient since them heels weren’t necessarily high on the comfort factor.
They sat us quickly, but it was a bit too close for comfort between tables, & the waiting staff was not very amicable. I always try to give people grace on the holidays who have to work, because I get it! Not fun! A lot of the reviews on Yelp that I read after the fact said the same thing about the service, but that it was out of the norm for them, and usually it’s a wonderful experience. We’ll choose to believe that! 😉 Regardless, we were thankful for the time together and this meal in the first place <3
We started with the piastra roasted octopus which had olive oil crushed potatoes, garum vinaigrette, radish, and salsa verde. This was one of our favorites of the night. But, I do have to say, the Spanish Octopus from Marco Prime in Marco Island still takes the cake!
Next we tried the Marinated King Crab with citrus burricota, shaved fennel and seasonal citrus. It was good, I’d give it a 7 on a scale of 1-10.
I tried the Black Sea Bass “Alla Piastra” which had king crab and artichoke ragout and esplette-urchin butter. It was fantastic! I especially loved the large lentils.
DJ had the Osso Buco “Milanese” with braised veal shank, roasted bone marrow, gnocci, and gremolata. DJ loved it! I had a nibble of the bone marrow gnocci and it was to die for.
We usually are stuffed by dessert, but #NYE. We decided to try the dark chocolate bonet with pinot noir sea salt, sesame seeds, and crimson grapes. This was maybe the best part of the meal. It was exquisite. DJ isn’t a huge dark chocolate person, but he loved loved loved this.
After dinner we headed to Union Square. It was Lit. LITERALLY.
We sought out our NYE party that I bought us tickets to a while back…have to complete the whole experience, ya’ know? We thought it was in the Westin in Union Square (but the place we were actually at was in the former Westin). We still grabbed a few pretty pictures of the Westin lobby while we were at it. Why not?!
We then went and found our actual place (Park Central Hotel) and waited in line. Us, being the old farts we are, got there on the dime. (Don’t show up to these things on time because no one does). Aka fashionably late. It was so strange getting texts from all our family and friends at around 9 because back in Ohio/Indiana, it was midnight!!! It felt like we were stuck in the past a bit!
Soooooo we may or may not have stayed for a grand total of a half an hour before deciding we were pooped and still trying to fight jet-lag and justified leaving with tons of other reasons. We Ubered back to the hotel, got in our comfy clothes, ordered desserts, and watched Netflix. Now that’s what I’m talking bout’! I may or may not have fallen asleep before midnight … I think that’s the first time that’s happened since I was like.. eight. (BUT I did make it midnight east coast time).
DJ kindly woke me up when the fireworks started outside our window over the Bay Bridge. It was an all-time fireworks display. I was thrilled that we had such a cozy seat for the show!
Happy New Year from Us to YOU!!!
Shoot, this post was not as short as I thought. Oh well! Thanks for reading.
xo <3
Mack
You crack me up! I really enjoyed your recap. Also, I have notes all around my house, and on my phone, reminding me to do things. If I didn’t, I would probably be stuck in a book or playing with my dog for way too many hours than I should in a day! 🙂
Hehe, thanks Katy!!!!! I appreciate you taking the time to read 🙂 I REALLY need to start leaving notes. I’m so tediously organized in some ways, but then in others I can be such an airhead! It’s almost a guarantee that I will turn around to get something I forgot on the way out of the house! I’ve even left the house for a week without being sure if I left the coffee pot on (whoops!), it wasn’t, but I was nervous the whole time! I was so relieved when we pulled in the driveway to see our Townhouse still standing, lol. I hope you are having the best start to the New Year!
Haha, I totally understand. I’m that way with the stove. Glad I found a kindred scatterbrain!
Awww looks like you had the best girls date & new years eve! Also, you made me hungry like 8 times & 5 of those times in the butter paragraph lol. & nice job on the coupons! Happy 2017, kenzie 😄💕
Hahhaha right!?!? Bread and butter makes the world go round, I am convinced! Thank you so much for stopping by, Jess! Always such a treat to hear from you! I hope this year is one for the books for you, dear! 😘❤️
2017 Will be great for both of us! Thank you :))
OMG LOLOL I was literally laughing out loud (in the middle of my office) following that stain on DJ’s shirt. Your commentary was hysterical. Aw poor guy ha You know you have a good husband (in my case boyfriend) when they suffer through 100 different selfie shots. I swear Andrew cringes so hard inside every time he hears “lets take a selfie…” or “lets try one more time” maybe because “1 more time” is after like the 10th time- but he still puts that smile on his face and snaps the pictures 🙂 Your Express dress is SO pretty, such a good buy I swear I can only buy stuff from there when its 40% off, sometimes if I’m lucky I’ll even catch the 50% off one. SF looks like a blast, ugh still on my list of places to visit, I must get that selfie with the Golden Gate- I’m determined!!! Favorite restaurant bread… hm, I’d say the Cheesecake Factory, otherwise some random little places throughout Boston! Happy New Year to you and DJ!!! <3
xo, JJ
Hahaha- I’m so glad you got a kick out of that! AND YES- gosh, Andrew and DJ would get along so well- what troopers. That is seriously us- “one more time” every time…
DJ: *sigh*… *smile* … *snap picture*…. Me: “One more time!”
DJ: *Sigh*… *smile*… *snap picture*…
Me: “One more time!”
x20
So glad you relate!!!!!
And thanks girl! I LOVE Express, but I only really shop when they have their big sales too. I’ll let you know when I see another big one!
I think you should make a 2017 resolution to make it to SF 😉 The Golden Gate selfie is calling your name!
HOW DID I FORGET CHEESECAKE FACTORY!?!? DUH! That seriously is one of the best… I’m gonna edit it into the post. Hehe.
Sending big hugs to you, dear! Dying to catch up on your posts! xoxo
Your new year sounds incredible!! Your wedding shoes are to die for! So gorgeous!!! And girl that food!!!! Wow!! It all looked so delious! Happy New Year to you!!! I enjoyed reading and looking at all the great pictures 💕
Thanks girlie! It’s so good to hear from you!!!!! <3 The shoes are just from DSW! I think they still have them! I hope your New Year has been off to a beautiful start <3 Sending big hugs your way!
Annie is adorable. I am wild about your dress and the shoes!! I’d beat kittens to death with puppies to be able to wear shoes like that! The food all looked amazing. Scallops and octopus are proof that God loves us! I’m going to have to go get a bowl of cereal now. lol DJ is handsome enough to distract from any stain but the commentary on it was hilarious!
Haha you crack me up, Elizabeth!!!! YESSSS I agree 1000%- scallops and octopus are seriously just straight up gifts from God! And awww, I totally agree- DJ is handsome enough to get away with any number of stains 😉 Hope your day is going so well!
I HATE when this happens. Every time I decide I’m giving up on humanity someone does something amazing and I have to love people again. Yeesh. And yesterday was way beyond the usual thing that perks me up like some baby giggling or someone saying something sweet.
Hahah! It’s so hard to top a baby giggling though!!!!! <3
Happy New Year Mack and hubby! Always such good fun to read your posts. The food all looks amazing. So does your dress and I absolutely love your shoes.
Thank you SOOOO much, Myra!!!!! I send massive hugs to you! Hope all is going amazing for you! <3
You are so funny! Hubby is such a sport to allow so many pics in his stained shirt. You looked great in your NYE dress! And hey, I’m 38 and still don’t know how to curl my hair! Happy New Year!
He’s a trooper! That’s for sure!!!!! And thank you so much 🙂 It makes me feel so much better that I’m not the only one 😂 Happy New Year! Thank you for stopping by, Susie!!
Those scallops! I kind of love it when you have a little bit of food and you savour it! Your NYE outfit is gorgeousssss- you look amazing! And your evening sounds lovely, ending in Netflix and food. What else could a girl want????
I agreee– it really makes each nibble taste so amazing! And thank you so much, Kat!!!!!! It was SUCH a nice evening! Hope your week is going perfectly 🙂
Hey Mack,It seems you enjoyed a lot and you are looking amazing .Have a great year dear
Thank you so much, Payal <3 <3 I hope you have an absolutely wonderful year yourself ! xo
Yeah that’s correct and you are welcome dear
You look beautiful in that dress! Looks like so much good food and quality time spent with your friend and then with your hubby! Happy 2017 to you–hope it’s a great one!
Aww thank you so much, Heather!!! <3 It was truly just some awesome quality time for sure! Happy 2017 to you and yours! I can't wait to see what big things you do this year, recipes you come up with, and people you inspire !
Happy hour at Farallon- yes! Luscious descriptions- thanks! Happy New Year to you and DJ- should be an exciting year for both of you. Lots of love!
It was even delicious round two! We missed you guys though! Happy New Year!!!! Sending lots of love and hugs!
Love Sam Fran. Len’s daughter used to live in San Jose.
We live pretty close to SJ actually!!!! San Fran is a flat hour from us. How cool!
So fun to read all about your NYE. Loved you dress and always loved those wedding shoes which are perfect with that dress. It was fun to be in two different years for 3 hours with you guys. Poor DJ and his shirt but your comments were hysterical. You both look amazing and happy and seemed like a wonderful NYE, even if you did get sleepy! Love you both.
Yay! So glad you read this 🙂 It was definitely an interesting experience being in the different time zones! Hope you guys had the BEST New Years Eve! Love you and miss you always! <3 <3 <3
First of all, your hair looks gorgeous! Second, all your food has me drooling over here! omg so yummy! Your dress for NYE is SOO pretty! Looks like such a fun way to wrap up the year!! PS I always get a little giddy when I wear my wedding shoes again. 🙂
Ahhhhh coming from you, the lady with perfect hair, that means SO MUCH! New Years resolution is to learn to actually curl this top-nest. And thanks so much girlfriend 🙂 I saw it so cheap and jumped on it! I was beyond excited that the shoes matched too! Do you have a link to your wedding pictures on your blog anywhere?! I’d love to check them out!!! <3 xoxo Hope your week has been spectacular, Taylor !
You are too funny! I’ve been practicing with my new curling iron this week… yesterday my hair went straight into a pony tail because it looked terrible! lol
Under my wedding tab, there is a link to “wedding details.” Mine were pretty plain… I cannot walk in heels to save my life!! Nothing like your gorgeous heels!!! Have a great weekend!!
Obviously… I just hard core went through like every wedding link. LOVED everything! Your joy was contagious through those photos!
OMG you are SOO cute! Thank you so much girlfriend!!!
Ahaha, poor DJ. Perhaps next time, he can “hold your coat” to cover it up. :p
Those shoes are gorgeous!! How special that you wore them for NYE celebrations!
Ahhh why didn’t I think of that?!??!!? That would have been the PERFECT solution. Oh well. Hahah. Thanks so much for popping in! The shoes were so fun to wear again… but even more fun to take off by the end of the evening haha. I think my feet are still recovering! I hope you are having the BEST week and a perfect start to the new year!
The dress is gorgeous and PERFECT for New Year’s! And those shoes… GASP!
The little spot on your hubby’s shirt had me cracking up, thanks to your whimsical comments about it. I’m usually the one who ends up with a spot on her shirt, so I can relate. Ha, ha.
This post was SO fun!! I felt as though I was traveling myself. 🙂 All the food seemed delicious!
Aww, thank you soooo much, Nicole!!!!!! Hehe DJ was so sweet to still take those pics…. I’m in the same boat, it’s usually always me that has the stain, so I had some sympathy 😉 Have you ever been to SF?! If not, you MUST! Hope your week has been just fabulous! xoxo
That bread stipulation…truer words have never been spoken! Love the pic of you and dj by the tree…that dress and your wedding shoes are perfection! 😍
YESSS- so glad you speak my language!!!!! Thanks so much, Britt <3 So sweet of you to stop by! I hope you are having a wonderful week, dear!
Heyyyy!!! Sorry for the long time no talk!
It looks like your holidays were a huge success!! That Jellyfish Lounge looks awesome. I bet the ambiance in there is really nice!
The OSU game was painful to watch. I have a lot of friends that go to OSU and they were a mixture of heartbroken and livid…Clemson just EMBARRASSED them.
I sincerely hope the positive momentum carries into 2017 for you and DJ! 🙂
Ah no problem! So glad you are back! Yesss- I think that’s why I love the Jellyfish lounge so much- it’s ambiance is amazing and super unique! And about OSU—- yep… you nailed that. My friends aren’t very happy either (I’m a michigan fan soooooooooo …. hahah). Who is your team? Hope this weekend is treating you well, Michael!
Heyyy!! Honestly in college football I don’t have a team haha! Indiana University is TERRIBLE at football so I usually just skip it altogether for basketball season!
Hope you had a great weekend too!
It looks like you guys had such a lovely New Years weekend!
I SO would have fallen asleep before midnight if we didn’t have family over and I felt weird going to bed, haha. The year before we were in New Zealand and feeling pretty ick after a day of travelling and then the power went out so we were asleep at 10 😛
Haha, that makes me feel SO much better that I’m not alone in that, girlfriend! AHHHHHH- you went to New Zealand?! Do you have a recap of your trip on your blog?! I want to go so badly. DJ’s been and always says such incredible things about it. Hope this weekend is off to a marvelous start for you!
I cant get over your shoes, so pretty and sparklyyyyy! Also Btw just letting you know that I just nominated you for the blogger recognition award! Here is my post: https://chiarascornersite.wordpress.com/2017/01/07/the-blogger-recognition-award/
Have a lovely day xx
Oh my goodness, Chiara!!!!! Thank you SOOOOOO much! I appreciate this beyond words! You are such a gem! xoxo
Aw thank you! You defiantly deserve it, your blog is amazing so! xxx
Awww <3 <3 So is yours! I'm so glad that you are here!!!
Happy New Year to you and your husband Mack! All the best this year to you and your loved ones! One the superficial side your shoes and dress are absolutely fabulous! Thanks for sharing your wonderful stories!
Thank you so much, Samantha! I hope yours has been off to a beautiful start!!!! And thanks so much :)! Thank you for reading our stories!!!!! <3
I love your dress and you look great in it! 🙂 What a fun weekend for you both.
Thanks so so much 🙂 It was a fun weekend for sure!
This post was all kinds of awesomeness! Also you are making me so envious with your San Francisco posts! (BTW it is official! Going in March!!! eeeeeekkkk!) I will have to check out Farallon! Those scallops look amazing! Scallops are probably my favorite protein! I loved your commentary about DJ’s shirt. I was seriously dying the whole time! And that dress! And those heels! Girl you were twerking it! You looked gorgeous! I am glad you had such a great New years! I hope you have an amazing year! <3
SAYYYY WHHAAAAA?!?! You are going to be here in like T minus 2 months! AHHHH! How exciting! You know I have a list a mile long of suggestions for you to try out 😉 I’m sure your Aunt does too! Scallops are my babies too <3 I love them SO much. Hahah poor Deej, unfortunately it was him this time (usually it's me). I'm sure I'll have my turn shortly! Lol. And Ah thank youuuuu!!!!! I had a feeling you would like the outfit! I hope you have an ABSOLUTELY incredible year ahead! I know your March is going to be fabulousss! 😉 xoxoxoxxo
Haha I am coming to San Fran! Eeeeeekkkkk!!!! Yes! I will take any and all suggestions!
The restaurant I use to work at in my hometown, has some of the best scallops I have ever had. (If you ever want to go to a picturesque but cold snowy mountain town in New Hampshire…Did I mention cold? 😉
Lol. It happens to the best of us! He seemed to handle it like a champ and your commentary was hilarious!
Oh my gosh I did! Thank you so much beauty! You too! It is! So excited! <3
Ahhhh, hey, it’s on the bucket list to go to all 50 states, so when we are in New Hampshire I willlll hunt down those scallops 😉 I AM SO EXCITED we will be in the same vicinity! We are going to have so much to talk about… I’m gonna start brainstorming restaurants for you! On pier 39, fog harbor has the best clam chowder in a bread bowl, la mar is necessary for peruvian food, EPIC is an amazing steakhouse…. I could go on for dayzzzzz. AHHHHH. Start the countdown!
That is awesome! I hope you get to visit and definitely find those scallops!😊 so am I! I have heard about Fog Harbor. I remember walking past it and my aunt pointing it out to me the last time. Ooo I love Peruvian food and I am always up for a steakhouse. I am adding these to my list! Thank you so much for the suggestions! Eekkk So excited! 💗💗😘
The bread factor is definitely super important when considering a restaurant! I’m like you and take my carbs very seriously! 🙂 I like Outback’s bread and honey butter. And I love Colton’s rolls. And breadsticks from local Italian joints are awesome too. Oh yum. Now I’m hungry, haha! I don’t salt my butter before putting it on bread, but my husband does! He loves that!
Girl, that dress looks awesome on you! Way to get a great deal on it! And I love that you got to pull out your wedding shoes again. They are so pretty! 🙂
Happy 2017 to you guys!
Ahhhh thank you, Rach!!!!!! RIGHT!?! Bread is MOST important. I mean the rest of the meal can be superb, but the bread sets the whole tone. I have never had Colton’s ?!? Oh man- what am I missing out on! I will have to see if they have a location here. Thank you so much for your sweet comments- that dress was fun to wear- trying to think of an excuse to pull it out again soon! hehe. <3 <3 Happy 2017 to you and yours, dear!
Mmm, bread game is important at restaurants! I like The Cheesecake Factory’s bread because they have a whole selection. Like the brown bread with oats on top? Love that stuff!
YESSSS. Cheesecake factory is AMAZING. Seriously soooo good. Girl, you’ve got good tasteee!