I Wish I Were a Professional Food Taster...

...because tasting food is so fun! And then writing a "critique" about it; oh man, that would be my dream job.

We have been tasting some really wonderful food lately:

Wednesday: Pizza at Big Pete's and Live From New York, both in Arcata (Arcata, by the way, which is where Humboldt State University is, is soooo great. I love the square there and everyone is so laid back and nice and has great style. And everyone walks and rides their bicycles. Like in Eureka but even more so.) Wednesday we walked the six blocks or so from one pizza place to another and sampled a slice at both places. Big Pete's is mostly organic. I had a veggie slice that included mozzarella, feta, black olives, artichoke hearts and loads of other veggies and garlic. Mike had a salmon and dill slice that he raved about, though I thought it was quite good but strange as a pizza flavor. At Live From New York I had "The Olive Special" which was covered in black olives and artichoke hearts on this amazing thin crispy crust and seasoned with garlic. Soooooooooo good. If an artichoke fell off my slice onto my plate, Mike snatched it up so fast. He didn't dare touch the olives that fell. He knows better than to mess with my olives! He had a bruschetta slice there. It was quite good too, but not as good as mine (personal preference I suppose). When we walked down this street in Arcata, post Big Pete's and pre Live From New York, I kept thinking I was on vacation as the street was lined with palm trees and the sun made us warm enough to take off our jackets and stroll in teeshirts.

Yesterday: Rita's in Eureka - local Mexican place that has gotten so popular they opened up three locations in Eureka alone. I can see why: the ambiance is just charming (blue painted walls with yellow framed paintings and light orange painted trim, cozy booths, friendly smiling servers that bring warm chips and fresh homemade salsa to your table seconds after you sit down, water glasses that are kept full), the food is amazing (chicken flautas on flour tortillas for me and fish tacos and a chicken burrito for Mike). I ordered an Horchata which is rice milk with cinnamon; it tasted sweet like rice pudding and was a perfect contrast to my spiced chicken entree.

Today: Porter Street BBQ in Arcata - simple chicken or pork sandwiches but the meat is so well grilled and incredible, and they come on these soft, seasoned buns. I get mine with provolone and BBQ sauce but Mike puts the works on his. Today Mike and I set up his glass studio in a rented space in Arcata (on South G Street) and then we walked the six or eight blocks to Porter Street BBQ and back. Mike is still going to set up his real studio at home but there is more involved than originally anticipated and he really needs to get back to blowing glass. He sells a lot of it locally and there have been a lot of people calling and asking for it. I'm very excited about this!

These past three days or so have been pleasantly warm with sunshine. Spring is here!