St. Paddy's Day in Capitola

This weekend I had the wonderful opportunity to visit my grandparent's good friends, the Paarmanns, who live in Capitola.  My grandparents, Bob and Nancy, met Tom and Carol at the University of Washington awhile back (ok in the '50s).  Apparently we had visited them when I was much younger and I made quite the impression on them.  My grandparents continue to remind me that for lunch, I proceeded to pick apart my corn dog until there was no "corn" left.  Now if I happened to have a corn dog today ... I would enjoy the entire thing, probably with the heaping addition of ketchup, mustard, relish, and onions.  Oh how taste buds change.

Anyways, I was able to drag my friend Liz away from her studies and work commitments for a weekend of excellent food, good laughs, some explorations and plain 'ol fun.  Liz and I had studied together in Barcelona in the fall and were used to spending every single minute of the day with each other.  Now that we are back at school, it's tough to fit in even 30 minutes together between classes, internships, work, and sleep.  So, this was a great escape and way to catch up!

We arrived for lunch ... a little concoction that Carol whipped up with lettuce, mandarin oranges, pineapple, yogurt, coconut, chicken and doughy croissants on the side. 

HERBIE! Not quite, but such an adorable little bug made in '66.  What a lovely color, perfect for my future house/kitchen

After lunch, we hoped in the Paarmann mobile and got a tour around Santa Cruz, Capitola and Soquel. Tom also guided us around the UCSC campus and I was astounded to find out how large the campus was. Over 14,000 students and a number of buildings over 2,000 acres.  It definitely follows the hippy stereotype of Santa Cruz and is almost hidden away in the forests on the hill. 

Natural Bridge Rock out by one of the Santa Cruz beaches

The small surf museum located along the coast

We stopped by to wish their daughter, grand-daughter and new great grand-daughter a Happy St. Patrick's Day, then we arrived back at home around 4.  Took the rest of the afternoon to relax, peruse all of Carol's cooking magazines and chatted up a storm.  It was raining off and on, but inside their kitchen and common room was quite cozy.  

THE IRISH MEAL! I believe I am part Irish but because some members of my family are not willing to try new things, I have never had the opportunity to have corned beef and cabbage, the epitome of an Irish meal.  Come to think of it, there are only a small percentage of Irish people in the world, but on March 17th, everyone pretends to be Irish. 

Tom took charge of the corned beef, boiling it before we left on our tour earlier in the afternoon.  It was cooked to perfection!  Tender slices with a mustard sauce baked on top.  A complete authentic meal with boiled potatoes and carrots, cabbage, and Irish soda bread.  I was in 7th heaven and quite content at the end of the meal. 

What a wonderful couple! Tom and Carol Paarmann sitting down to dinner

After dinner Liz worked a little on a final paper (we couldn't completely escape the fact that finals were a few days away) and I continued to look through food magazines, ripping out certain pages and taking notes on others.  So many fun recipes to try. 

Look at this little guy.  He just sits and keeps anyone in the kitchen company. 

 

Tom whipped out a delicious surprise for dessert.  Breyer's mint ice cream with Mrs. Field's chocolate cookie bites.  They really have spoiled us all weekend!

After a wonderful night's sleep, I decided to take a run along the coast. It was raining off and on, but I got some great shots of the beach, surfers, and Capitola.  Running along the beach in Northern California is SO MUCH different than running in Southern California. There is not much sand to actually run on, so I stuck to the pavement of the highway. 

LOTS OF SURFERS! They were not only battling the rain, but cold and stormy waves.  Dedication for sure!

Isn't this tile work fabulous?

A look at downtown Capitola.  Tiny and quaint! I bet it is a blast during the summer.

This was our stop in Santa Cruz for breakfast.  A happening place but we were lucky enough to squeeze in before it got crowded. Good service and pretty tasty food.

Carol's "9 Grain" pancakes with a blueberry sauce

My choice of Belgian waffle with carmelized bananas, walnuts, vanilla yogurt and a poached egg

Liz's pesto and tomato scramble with home-style potatoes and sourdough toast 

We took one last tour around the area post breakfast and before we started the trek along highway 17 home.

This was the "iron battleship" created for WWI but was finished right after the war ended.  They decided to sink it in the Capitola bay and for awhile people were able to walk off the dock and onto the top of the boat.  Years of waves and storms have broken it down and now just sits there as a reminder. 

Such a wonderful weekend away.  Tom and Carol were absolutely adorable, wonderful chefs and hosts. We cannot wait to return for another adventure later in the spring!

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."
– Eleanor Roosevelt

Fabulous Friday Falafel

Back with the alliteration of course, but what could make this Friday complete?  A night out with a great friend, a falafel sandwich, and an Oscar nominated movie :)

First things first, have you heard of the show "Diner's, Drive-In's and Dives" with Guy Fieri? Well, Guy goes around the country searching out just that - the best diner's drive-ins, and dives and lets us know the hottest places to eat.  Many are what you consider "holes in the wall" eateries and others are more well-known.  I always drool while watching the show (too much information I know, I'm sorry) and hope one day I can find the best of the best.  A couple of years ago when I first arrived in the Santa Clara area, one of my triathlon buddies treated us to lunch at the Falafel Drive-In.  Not to use a cliche, but it was love at first bite.  The falafel was so fresh, the pita just right, and just enough sauce and vegetables to make the sandwich juicy and delightful.

The dining area and walk-up order window

It's located off Stevens Creek Blvd and can be spotted by the old-fashioned light-up arrow flashing and pointing down towards the joint.  It's just like the old-timer In-N-Outs with a walk up window to order and all-outdoor seating.  They have a sort of canvas cover to keep the rain and wind out, but it provides for a refreshing dining experience.

I have been back a few times, but its honestly been about 6+ months since my last trip.  When trying to think about places to eat out, it always seems to slip my mind.  But tonight, I made it happen!

They are known for their falafel but also have a variety of sandwiches, gyros, chicken pitas, salads, and even search America's favorites - hot dogs, hamburgers, fries, and onion rings for the more picky or shall I say "traditional" eaters.  I have to say, their shakes are my favorite.  They use a lower-fat milk, so while they aren't as creamy, it serves as the perfect combination for the falafel sandwich.  And that's just it - one of their best deals is for about $5.50 or so (will have to check on the price again) you can get a snack wrap pita sandwich and a banana shake smoothie.  I'm sure you can substitute it, but they are probably as popular for their falafel as their signature banana shakes.

I suggested the idea for a falafel dinner to my friend Lisi and she was all for it.  When we arrived, I noticed the cashier and cooks were speaking Spanish.  Being the gutsy individual I am, I decided to order in Spanish and boy, I think we made a few more friends.  They were thrilled we were speaking Spanish, made our order up in record time, and all waved as we left for the parking lot.

We both ordered the original falafel snack sandwich and I had a lemonade.  I know I am a lemonade snob so an honest opinion? It was Tropicana and not too bad.  It paired well with the sandwich.  I would have ordered the delicious shake had it not been Lent and I was bold and gave up sweets.  So far it is going well but this whole Pinterest thing is making me salivate for a brownie-cookie-pazooki or some fashion of ice cream sundae.

We also decided to experiment with the menu and split a side order of pita chips. EXCELLENT choice!  It wasn't like the greasy sort you find in the grocery store (although those are quite tasty).  Some were still a little chewy (a favorite of mine) and all of them had the perfect amount of seasoning.  Not too sure what was on the chips, but it's worth it.  I spotted an order of fries at the table next to us and those too looked mighty fine.

I noticed a sign for a shirt they are selling - one with the Falafel Drive-In logo on it and while it's not the only reason drawing me back (I can't wait for another falafel sandwich and hopefully shake soon!), but I sure would like to sport one of those around school :)  Who knows, maybe I could convince my new falafel buddies to cut me a discount for good 'ol PR and promoting around campus? :)

Afterwards, we went to CineArts movie theatre at Santana Row to watch the Oscar nominated movie The Descendants, which I have to say was also refreshing and a truly wonderful movie.  It had the potential to be depressing but who could resist that gorgeous Hawaiian coast?  

So what are your favorite food spots?