Category: Food

Early Father’s Day

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"Oyster Appetizer" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/125 sec, ISO1000
 “Oyster Appetizer” Cedar Park, 2018

So Father’s Day is actually next Sunday, but Mariko will be in Europe, Bay will be in Los Angeles, and I am taking Koa up to Baylor for Band Camp. Which means I’ll be alone that evening so… we decided to celebrate Father’s Day today. And of course, that means I get to choose the dinner (or brunch). 😀

So after much thinking (I am so indecisive), I decided on a local casual restaurant, CR Surf & Turf. This place is neither fancy, nor expensive, but it’s popular and they have some delicious seafood. It’s a lot of Southern-style food, which means plenty of fried goodies, but what Koa and I like to get is the surf & turf: a meat choice and a seafood choice. I opted for the flat-iron steak and grilled scallops, while Koa got the steak kabobs and bacon-wrapped shrimp. Meanwhile, Bay decided on the shrimp brochette. Mariko didn’t order anything but shared what we had. In addition to the entrees, we ordered a basket of fried oysters, six oysters on the half-shell, and jalapeño shrimp. It was all delicious, but so much fried food leaves you feeling a little uncomfortable later.

"Scallops and Steak" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/125 sec, ISO1250
 “Scallops and Steak” Cedar Park, 2018
"Beef and Shrimp" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/125 sec, ISO2000
 “Beef and Shrimp” Cedar Park, 2018
"Shrimp Brochette" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/125 sec, ISO1250
 “Shrimp Brochette” Cedar Park, 2018

I really like CR Surf & Turf and so do lots of other people. We arrived shortly after they opened at 4:30 pm and the place was already half filled up! The prices are reasonable, the food is good, and the service is solid. Plus it’s close to our house so it’s very convenient. If you’re in the mood for some Southern-style seafood like crawfish, po-boys, oysters, and even frog legs, give CR Surf & Turf a try.

"Appetizers" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/125 sec, ISO640
 “Appetizers” Cedar Park, 2018

I hope you had a nice Sunday!

またね～

Walburg Biergarten

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"Beautiful Day" Walburg, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/500 sec, ISO200
 “Beautiful Day” Walburg, 2018

こんばんは。How’s it going?

This evening we went to the Walburg Biergarten for dinner and drinks. Walburg is about a half hour drive from our house but the journey is worth it. Although there’s also a restaurant, we went straight to the biergarten right when it opened and ordered our food and pitchers of beer.

The food was ok, but the atmosphere was wonderful. Plenty of picnic tables and a band providing musical entertainment made for a nice evening. I heard that it can get pretty crowded, but tonight was not too busy. And the weather was perfect!

Someday I’d like to come back to try the restaurant, but I’m happy we got to spend the evening with good friends, laughing, eating, and drinking. Good times for sure!

Here are some more photos from the evening.

"Pitcher and Dinner" Walburg, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/300 sec, ISO200
 “Pitcher and Dinner” Walburg, 2018
"Texas and German Treats" Walburg, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/140 sec, ISO200
 “Texas and German Treats” Walburg, 2018
"First to Arrive" Walburg, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/320 sec, ISO200
 “First to Arrive” Walburg, 2018
"Biergarten Entrance" Walburg, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/450 sec, ISO200
 “Biergarten Entrance” Walburg, 2018
"Arcade" Walburg, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/800 sec, ISO200
 “Arcade” Walburg, 2018
"Evening at the Biergarten" Walburg, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/90 sec, ISO6400
 “Evening at the Biergarten” Walburg, 2018

I hope you also had a nice Saturday!

またね～

Spaghetti, VPN, and Spotify

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"Spaghetti Nite" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.5, 1/125 sec, ISO1000
 “Spaghetti Nite” Cedar Park, 2018

こんばんは。How’s it going, humans?

I’ve been listening to a lot of Spotify lately, and since I don’t have a subscription, I hear the occasional ad or two. But I’ve learned that the ads can be much more entertaining if you change your VPN settings (you ARE using a VPN, right?) to put you in a different country. I sometimes set it to Sweden and then the ads that come on are in Swedish. Of course, I can’t understand them, but it sounds so nostalgic from when I visited there for work. Most of the time, I set it to Japan so I can hear the Japanese Spotify ads. They are way cooler than the US ads. Plus, the graphical popup ads are nicer too!

Tonight’s photo is of the spaghetti and meatballs that Bay requested I make. It’s an easy recipe, but the family loves it, so I am more than happy to prepare it for them. 😀

I hope you had a nice Tuesday!

またね～

Ramen and a Movie

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"Jinya Ramen" Austin, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/125 sec, ISO2500
 “Jinya Ramen” Austin, 2018

こんばんは。How’s it going? Today was a day of leisure, with a little bit of DIY at home. Everyone slept in late today except for me, since I tend to wake up pretty early even on the weekends. But I enjoy having my morning coffee and watching YouTube or drawing before the rest of the family wakes up.

For some reason, Koa asked to have “real” ramen this weekend so we decided to check out a ramen restaurant that we haven’t been to before. It was just myself and my two sons together today since Mariko was out at a lunch party, and then off to a girls’ movie night. So it was boys’ day and that began at Jinya Ramen Bar. I’ve heard mixed reviews of this restaurant, but Mariko said the one ramen that she had was good so I was excited to try. She did mention that the other ramen that her friends ordered were not good, and I’ve heard similar reviews from native Japanese.

We each got different types of ramen, plus a side of gyoza and fried chicken. I’d have to say the ramen was just ok. Not bad, but definitely not one to recommend when there are better ramen places in Austin. But, I’m glad we checked it out so that we know where it stands compared to other places!

After lunch, we returned home and Koa and I took apart Mariko’s Kitchenaid Epicurean stand mixer to clean out the old grease and relubricate it. That was a messy job, but it went without a hitch. DIY mission accomplished!

To finish off the day, we went to see Solo: A Star Wars Story. I thought it was great! So many cool tie-ins to the original trilogy and I loved the action. The story was pretty good too, and we finally get to see the spice mines of Kessel and the famed Kessel Run, which is definitely not what I was expecting. After a disappointing (to me at least) Last Jedi, I was hoping to like Solo, and I was not disappointed! I can’t wait for the next Solo movie.

"At the Theater" Cedar Park, 2018
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.5, 1/17 sec, ISO6400
 “At the Theater” Cedar Park, 2018

I hope you had a nice Saturday!

またね～