Babycakes

After we had had our fill of tapas, and since we were in the neighborhood, we decided to take a stroll to Babycakes, where we had dessert (and my long awaited reunion with their spiced apple cider!).

Spiced Apple Cider

This is a great place to go for dessert, coffee, and even cocktails! Not only do they offer an array of coffees and teas to go with their scrumptious sweets but they also have a full BAR! The inside reminds me of The Living Room, in that there are comfy chairs and tables set up all around the cozy, homey atmosphere. The difference is that they were blasting some great pop music (think Britney in her heyday and throw in some Lady Marmalade with xtina and her gals).

This was our second visit to Babycakes so we knew getting our order down to a few select choices would be hard. After much back and forth and conferring with each other we ended up each getting a spiced apple cider aka Andie’s “Christmas in a Cup” to go along with our Crème Brulee Cheesecake, Chocoholic Cupcake, Kahlua Tres Leches Cupcake, and the tried and true Red Velvet Cupcake.

Chocoholic Cupcake

Kahlua Tres Leches cupcake

Red Velvet Cupcake

Creme Brulee Cheesecake

Being spoiled and working so close in proximity to Sprinkles, I’d have to say that the cupcakes here weren’t as good. But overall, the ambiance and that damn spiced cider has Babycakes as one of my top dessert places of choice in the area.

And the results of this foodventure….

Babycakes San Diego

3766 5th Avenue

San Diego, CA 92103-4224

(619) 296-4173

http://www.babycakessandiego.com/

-Ris

Tapas Picasso Spanish Restaurante

Tapas Picasso is a place we’ve all visited several times but had never documented in photographs so when Andie chose it for our May dinner (and her bday celebration) we were all eager to go back to the yummy tapas but most all the SANGRIA =P

Tapas Picasso is a small but very homey restaurant that has amazing happy hour deals every night of the week for both food and drink. Since we went on a Tuesday, they were offering an addition to their HH menu.

Happy Hour Menu

We started off our night with a medium pitcher of their house sangria. It is DELICIOUS to say the least. We kept our order to a medium since 3 of the 4 of us were going to be driving and one is breast -feeding.

Medium Porron of Sangria

Once we all arrived and got settled in with our greetings each with a glass of sangria in hand, we perused the happy hour menu. We ended up ordering 4 of the 6 items on the $5 menu and 1 from the $10 T/W/Th HH menu.

Since we had been here before, we knew what we liked. We ordered:

New Fried Potatoes with Chipotle Aioli

Albacore Mousse Pate with Chipotle

Deep Fried Spanish Sausage (Chistorra)

Zucchini, Tomatoes & Mushroom Sauté

(all from the $5 Everyday Happy Hour Menu)

Paella Tapa (from the $10 T/W/Th Happy Hour Menu)

New Fried Potatoes with Chipotle Aioli

The New Fried Potatoes w/ Chipotle Aioli were potatoes cut into small cubes that were drizzled in chipotle aioli that could be eaten with toothpicks or your fork. They were very tasty and great to offset the flavors of the other tapas.

Albacore Mousse Pate with Chipotle

The Albacore Mousse Pate is our absolute favorite that we’ve ordered every time we’ve come to Tapas Picasso. It’s a smooth spread that goes great with the crostinis that came with the order or the freshly sliced bread on the side.

The deep Fried Spanish Sausage is another favorite. Sliced up and stabbed with a toothpick these are flavorful and smoky.

Deep Fried Spanish Sausage (Chistorra)

The Zucchini, Tomatoes & Mushroom Sauté is a colorful and appetizing way to get some veggies in your meal.

Zucchini, Tomatoes & Mushroom Sauté

And finally, the Paella Tapa…it was actually our first time ordering this dish but we were pleasantly surprised at how much we liked it. On a bed of saffron rice, was an assortment of seafood and chicken. I personally liked it when it mixed with the Zucchini, Tomatoes & Mushroom Sauté. The flavors really complemented each other well.

Paella Tapa

We love this place for its great artwork that decorates the walls, the awesomely yummy sangria that makes you forget how much you’ve already drunk, and of course for its delicious food. Being someone that can never decide on only one entrée, this is the perfect place because you get to try a little bit of everything and still not be overly stuffed.

Tapas Picasso Spanish Restaurante

3923 4th Ave

San Diego, CA 92103-3109

(619) 294-3061

http://tapaspicasso.com/

-Ris

Spirits of St Germain's Liquor

This particular liquor store has been a favorite of ours since our college days, and not for the reason that most people would think. =P “St Germain’s” or “St G’s,” as we like to call it, is perfectly located near the UCSD campus and other businesses but it isn’t something easy to find if you aren’t from or familiar with the general area. Our long love affair with this particular liquor store isn’t because of their “Spirits” or Liquor, but because of their delicious, juicy, and very affordable deli sandwiches. I have never really tried a sandwich there that I didn’t like, granted I only ever ordered 3 types here (pastrami, tuna salad, and most recently California club); but that’s beside the point! The point is, it’s DAMN good!

Ris and I are fortunate enough that we not only got to go to this place often during our college years, but it is also within walking distance from where we happen to work! So this place is always within reach if we are craving a really yummy, fresh and tasty deli sandwich. Such a case happened yesterday when we were deciding where to go. The food Gods pointed us in St G’s direction as well as bestowed upon me some adventurous courage to actually try something new *gasp* (I know!).

Like I stated above, my usual go-to sandwiches here are the pastrami (highly recommended) and the tuna salad, which can be customized to your liking (bread, spread, veggies, and add on meats), but on this particular day I decided to try one of their signature sandwiches which is pretty much set unless you make special requests (ie, no cheese, mayo etc). Each sandwich comes with a side of your choice from their clear glass refrigerated display (these vary), as well as a spear of pickle! Both Ris and I opted for the California Club with no cheese (*tip* lactose intolerance and work do not mix well together).

I opted for my usual potato salad side (I’m not a big potato salad person, but this is one of the few, if not the only, place that I will opt for potato salad)

California club (turkey, bacon, lettuce, avocado, tomato, mayo on toasted sourdough)

Ris had the same sandwich but opted for a different side-broccoli salad

California club - $6.49 plus tax

Our sandwiches and sides were delicious and St. G’s never fails to satisfy our “fresh deli sandwich” cravings. If you are ever in the area, this place is highly recommended!

Spirits of St. Germain Liquors
3251 Holiday Court, #101
La Jolla, CA 92037
(858) 455-1414