I doubt whether the world holds for any one a more soul-stirring surprise than the first adventure with ice cream.-Heywood Broun

Pork Loin Stuffed with Blue Cheese and Nectarines

Like the beef wheel, I got this stuffed pork loin at Whole Foods. Cook at 350 degrees for about 25-30 minutes on a baking sheet. I served the pork with leftover mac & cheese and zucchini.

Not like the beef wheel, not an overwhelming amount of blue cheese this time. A nice change to sometimes bland meat. Not enough nectarines pieces though. They were cut up so small and so few and far between I barely tasted them.

The zucchini was a little burned and crispy, but I like it that way.

You don’t have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces – just good food from fresh ingredients.-Julia Child

Sunda

Last week was my roommate's 22nd birthday and a typical celebration for us is a really swanky and delicious dinner, as we are all foodies. Sunda was the chosen dining facility and that was one of the best decisions my roommate has ever made. Holy crap.

This was far and above the best Asian meal I had. There were so many delicious menu items I wanted to try but I settled on NY Strip Lo Mein with Bok Choy, Scallions, and Carrots. Best lo mein I've ever had. The noodles were far from too oily which is usually a lo mein problem. I'd never had bok choy or scallions before and I was supremely impressed. A few mushrooms too many, even if I liked mushrooms I'd say that. Yummy steak that wasn't chewy or overly fatty.

Sunda has an extensive sushi menu, so I needed to take advantage of that too. I had bites of the Number 9 roll, which is shrimp, unagi, tobiko, asparagus, avocado, spicy mayo, tempura crumbs, and unagi sauce. Top three best sushi ever. I looove tempura crumbs in sushi and these gave the roll the perfect crunch.

I will absolutely go back to Sunda again before I leave Chicago. I must go back to Sunda before I leave Chicago. I'm sure there's menu items for those not super into Asian food. All palettes will enjoy!

Sunda

If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.-J. R. R. Tolkien

Beef Wheel with Blue Cheese, Garlic Butter, and Asparagus & Sauteed Zucchini and Tomatoes

What a mouthful. Courtesy of Whole Foods, I purchased a ready to cook beef wheel with blue cheese, garlic butter, and asparagus. Very easy to cook; 350 degrees for about 20-30 minutes. It took a while to get the inside just right but it was a perfect rare. Needed minimal salt.

Complaints? TOO MUCH BLUE CHEESE. I love blue cheese but this was too much for me. I ended up discarding a lot of it. There didn't appear to be too much blue cheese upon purchase but when that wheel cooked, it's like my oven dumped a bucket of blue cheese on the wheel. And not enough asparagus bits.

Zucchini and Tomatoes were made with a little olive oil and basil (not fresh, sad face). Zucchini was perfect but I left the tomatoes on for a bit to long so they were soggier than I would've liked. 3-5 for tomatoes, 5-8 minutes for zucchini is ideal.

One cannot think well, love well, sleep well, if one has not dined well. —Virginia Woolf

Westend Bistro by Eric Ripert

When one is leaving a city for months at a time, a send off dinner is a necessity. A nice restaurant with good food is exceptional. A classy establishment with taste bud revolutionizing food is an unexpected bonus. And that's what Westend Bistro is. I walked in with high expectations; after all, silver fox Eric Ripert's name is attached to it. But the food was beyond anything I could've imagined.

For an appetizer my Dad and I split tuna carpaccio. Ripert is known for seafood, so I had to work that into my meal somehow. Very very good. Not drowning in olive oil and not overwhelmed by lemon.

I rarely eat steak when I'm at school, so I had to go against my instincts and order the ribeye. Such a good decision. Perfectly medium rare piece of beef with a red wine bearnaise and truffle fries. Oh those truffle fries. The Zoe-ism, "It's bananas" sums up those truffle fries. I wish I'd had more room and/or french fries tasted just as good as leftovers.

Dessert was just heavenly. A basic sundae; vanilla and pistachio ice cream. BUT! Candied pistachios, lemon meringues, caramel on the bottom of the bowl, slightly frozen raspberries and raspberry sauce. Holy expletive. Greatest sundae in the history of sundaes.

Not only was the food orgasmic but the decor was lovely. Dark oranges and browns, comfy booths, and attached to the Ritz Carlton. This really was one of the classiest places I've ever eaten in, not to mention one of the best meals I've ever had. I definitely need to hit this place up again before we leave the DC area.

Westend Bistro

Good food ends with good talk.-Geoffrey Neighor

Lavandou

Tonight was my last night at NAHB Productions so my mom wanted to take me out to celebrate. I did a restaurant search based on neighborhood (which I usually do) and we ended up at Lavandou, a Provencal restaurant in Cleveland Park.

I adore French food, except when it's too heavy and rich. That wrecks havoc on my tummy. But Lavandou's food was light. I had a rockfish with penne, artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes (I die) and sauteed spinach. All yummy individual foods that worked well together. White fish always tastes light to me so paring it with the heaviness of penne pasta works.

All these food gems should be brought together by some kind of sauce correct? All I tasted was the olive oil of the pasta mixed in with the sun-dried tomatoes. Not quite watery, but the perfect consistency to dip my left over bread in.

My beverage was something called a French 75. Champagne, gin, lemon juice and sugar. What a concoction. The gin and the lemon juice were almost like a gin bucket but the champagne gave it a nose-tingling punch that classed it up. Refreshing.