kanon vodka dinner

Since I'm back to posting regularly and most of you don't seem to mind the Instagram photos, here are couple snapshots from the Kanon Vodka dinner at the Westerfield Mansion that I was lucky enough to attend last week. Ho-ly crap it was amazing. I was pretty stoked when I got the invite since it was going to take place less than four blocks away from my place but I had no idea that a location like that existed so close to me. Before dinner we got to drink this punch which we customized with our own choice of bitters (my favorite included a spray of absinthe and cherry bitters) while we explored the mansion. This place was AWESOME. My favorite room (aside from the library) was probably the watch tower at the top floor where we had a 360 view of the entire city. So surreal. Thanks Kanon!

The dinner (catered by Stag Dining) itself was something that I'm still dreaming about even a week later. It had been a while since I'd had such a fantastic dinner. Each course was paired with its own cocktail and my favorite was probably the smoked oyster chowder with dungeness crab... seriously, I still can't stop thinking about it. The deconstructed martini which came with it was equally amazing and came with, wait for it, a spoonful of BACON POWDER. It may have been all the alcohol but I found myself saying "OMG" multiple times throughout the night. We also happened to sit in front of Peter, the founder, who was really awesome and we ended up chatting with him the entire night about politics, soccer, traveling, etc. If you're reading this, Peter, come back to SF soon!

instagram'd

Equipment silk shirt, A.P.C. sweatshirt, Theory shorts, One Language bag, glasses c/o Bonlook, Bass loafers

I haven't been able to take outfit photos like I've wanted to for a number of reasons so I figured I'd share a couple of my favorite recent Instagram photos. I've been using Instagram for a while (I'm ornithes on there if you want to add me) but lately it's been replacing my SLR since it's so much faster at capturing images in the moment. Obviously the quality isn't superb but I guess that's what I like about it the most: I love playing around with filters to get that grainy vintage feel instantly in your hand as opposed to waiting for a roll of film to develop. I haven't shot film in a while (became too costly after a while, same goes for polaroids) and of course nothing comes close to emulating that experience of being surprised with developed film or instant polaroids but these photos are still fun, no? This, however, is a different type of new experience which Instagram has really hit on the mark and I'm enjoying every bit of it on a daily basis. I remember taking on those "one photo a day for a year" challenges and failing but I've probably already done that without realizing it through Instagram...

I went to the Acre/SF x Refinery 29 party last week to support Jenny and Marcus and made the naive mistake of walking up to North Beach from downtown SF. Killer view but jeez, I could barely catch my breath by the time I made it into the store. I even had to take my glasses off for 5 minutes when they kept fogging up because of my body heat! The party was great though, I wish I went to these events more often. It was fun seeing a bunch of familiar faces too.

Of course this post wouldn't be complete without a comment about the weather. Yesterday I refused to step outside because it was so hot. It's the end of October, come on! I've been through five SF Indian summers so far and this one has been the worst. Of course it's nice to have warmer weather but it's hard to get into the Halloween/autumn spirit when you're sweating in shorts. A couple weeks ago it finally felt like fall (even with an abundance of wet sunflowers) but my new Loeffler Randall rain boots didn't arrive until the day after the rain had subsided! I have been, however, wearing my Bonlook glasses almost every day except it was probably a bad idea to wear them in the rain since I couldn't see a thing. I've been wearing contacts almost exclusively for the past five years so it's been a refreshing change to wear glasses most of the time and not worry if a contact is dry or torn.

I've also been on a huge burger kick lately. I'm posting these from latest to earliest. Yesterday I finally tried the brunch at Beast and the Hare (which is actually right below Brent's apartment except we've only been to dinner there once, huh), skipped the breakfast fare and went straight for the burger which had, get this: bacon, caramelized onions, AND a fried egg. Last week I went with a group of friends to the new Umami Burger joint that just opened in SF. None of them had ever been to Umami in LA and were all pretty impressed while for me it was a nice familiar taste of home. It was also the third burger that I'd eaten in a week (Super Duper was the second and a burger from Chez Maman was the first) so I was burger-ed out for a while. Next burger pictured came from Super Duper where I made the mistake of ordering the double burger thinking it would be like In-N-Out but quickly regretted it when I started feeling full and sick halfway through. Finally, Brent and I also really enjoyed the sliders at Jasper's Corner Tap & Kitchen, I think we went there before we saw Drive? Anyway, from what I remember the cute lil burgers came on a sesame pretzel bun and had blue cheese, totally worth it if you're in the area. I probably shouldn't admit this but I actually omitted two other burger photos (Red Robin lol and Chez Maman) because that would be a bit... much...

Okay, back to the weather. The warm weather hasn't been that bad. Sometimes I forget how nice it is to venture out to the Ferry Building with friends when the weather is nice. Most of the time I'm there I usually go alone but with friends it's easier to lose track of time drinking happy hour margaritas by the water and picking up Blue Bottle iced coffees. We have to enjoy it while it lasts, I guess, because we won't be able to stay out like this at 5pm again in less than a month... summer's really over, isn't it?

See the rest of my Instagram photos here. Also, please keep voting!

smorgasburg

Here are the snapshots that I promised from Smorgasburg. Like I'd mentioned earlier, we didn't have as much time as anticipated to sample more but we were satisfied with what we got. The view was amazing as well with the clouds clearing over Manhattan so we ate our food right by the waterfront. Someone left a comment on my last post wondering how I could wear shorts in seemingly cold weather but the photos are deceiving: it was actually hot and humid. TOO hot and humid. One of my friends actually asked me how I could go out in a long sleeved shirt and hat... I don't know what I was thinking either.

From top to bottom: Choncho's chicken tacos, beef bulgogi bun from We Rub You, hot dog from Asia Dog, shrimp teriyaki balls from Mimi and Coco.

Looking back I wish we hadn't missed most of the vendors since I have no idea when I'll be back. I was bummed that I didn't get to buy anything from Whimsy & Spice since Jenna has been one of my favorite bloggers for quite some time now (thank for trying to get Mark to look out for me while he was packing up, I wish it had worked out!) For years I've been meaning to order something from their store but keep slipping up... I finally got my chance at Dean & Deluca right before I left and picked up a pack of brown sugar gingerspice cookies for Brent since he's also a fan. Unfortunately I didn't even get to try one since he took them with him to work and finished them all on Bart without saving me one. Rude!