eating: Trueburger

I am going to try to start something new here on this little forum-for-my-random-ramblings and talk about something that isn't new: eating. But eating at new places, or rather places that might be new to you. New to you but awesome and therefore you will thank me later for this random rambling or at least your tummy will because wow there is some delicious and fantastic grub out there that is little know and therefore not appreciated for it's genius. But it should be and I set out now with the gallant mission of righting that glaring wrong.
I will start with the often passed-over or downright not-known-about (it might not help that it's super hidden squeezed in between two places to the point where I almost miss it and I know it's super secret location)best-burger-in-town (at least according to me) that is Trueburger.
I actually discovered this place thanks to my mother constantly keeping an eye out for interesting things that are happening in the bay area and then passing that info on to me. She read the annual Bargain Bites (check that out here) in the Chronicle and highlighted everything she thought sounded good. This gem had a stunning writeup and I love me some deep fried potatoes despite the fact that they are so often a botched undertaking (too soggy, to thick cut, to creepily all the exact same size etc) so off I went and low and behold once we found it, the fries turned out to be 100% perfect!

That is one extensive menu while also getting right the point and doing the basics well and with style and pizazz. Using lovely fresh ingredients (I saw my patty being put on the grill, I saw a whole head of lettuce!!!) and doing awesome things like mix ins for milkshakes (toasted marshmallow anyone?) Trueburger gets it right. All with a surprisingly low price tag. I like to get a milkshake AND fries with my burger and I don't think this should break the bank, but I am willing to shell out serious bills for a really good version. However now thanks to this miraculous mecca of food perfection I no longer have that need, and I can take the money I save, and get extra fries! Which are, in case you haven't come to understand this yet from my waxing poetic all over the place, total perfection. The tiny bit of Irish in me is super into anything potato, and that Irish in me thinks these fries are sort of divine. The were slender and golden and yet also looked as if they had recently been a whole potato. And they held up to some serious dipping in a patented ketchup/mustard mixture, without falling apart, loosing form or getting mealy. Glorious. At some point angels might have descended from the heavens in a shower of golden light playing harps but I didn't particularly notice as I was too busy eating fries.

So check out the menu here (I like that burgers and fries are separate, this has always been a better format in my eyes as I think the fries deserve more than to just be seen as a 'comes with a side of' to their burger counterpart) and then after you wipe up the inevitable drool, stop messing about with the rabble out there styling themselves as the best and go and get yourself a truly good burger. Pun not intended but I will totally pretend it was!
Note: If you are not near the area and are not able to get a burger for yourself I apologize for the tummy tease. But seriously, come visit, if only just for the food!

making: a costume (part one)

Starting to get more things checked of the list for my Halloween costume which in case you are not entirely up to date with my various shenanigans and such I should mention is a retro nurse. This weekend I made cross patches for the pocket and hat and while I was at it I decided to do a name tag as well. I used what was originally a cotton pillowcase with a layer of iron on interfacing in between for stability, with stencils made of electrical tape. My guesswork (and surprise! it worked) method for getting the glitter onto the fabric was layers of spray adhesive, micro glitter and shellac. After several layers had dried I removed the tape to reveal shiny shiny red crosses.
As you can see I did two versions of the cross patch, a negative space white cross, and a red glitter cross on a white background.

In the end I decided that I preferred the classic red cross to the more prevalent (at least it appeared that way when I googled nurse costumes) white cross in a red circle. Also this classic style seemed to look better on my hat (more on that later).

When it came to the dilemma of how to attach the patches to the dress I decided that I wanted to pockets to be functional enough that I would make things a bit harder for myself and sew them on by hand. Sigh. I did go around each patch once on the machine with no thread to make a set of even holes which proved very helpful in maintaining an even row of stitches around, and kept me from stabbing myself in the finger with the needle as much (the patches were very thick when all was said and done) so that was a good idea. And I do like to make things a bit more difficult for myself as always so it's not like I could just glue them on now could I?!

All in all the costume is coming together nicely one little bit at a time. The little details are really what builds the authenticity and I do find that when I am drawn to a really good costume it is layered with texture and of course plenty of accessories. So I still have a fair amount of work ahead of me. Next I will reveal the saga of a spray paint shoe redo, and finally, the most important part of any costume if you want it to be particularly awesome (and who doesn't want that really) hats!

cook, wear, create

The sun is out this morning, so after all that rain this news excites me! Looking forward to a lovely weekend and perhaps I will get up to some glorious shenanigans....
As far as food goes, I just discovered an awesome website that tries out items from secret menus around the area. This one if from the American Grilled Cheese Kitchen which is one more reason why I have to go to this place!!

With Halloween closing in fast I am thinking about costumes a lot. Jessica at What I Wore is coming out with tons of great tutorials for costumes that use mostly stuff you could find in your closet, which is great cause I read somewhere about old costumes filling up landfills somewhere and it made me very sad. This Rosie the Riveter is a super easy idea but check out the amazing Marie Antoinette she made as well.

And lastly this amazing installation work that caught my eye. I cannot believe that this is cut paper. Extraordinary.

And here's to a cozy weekend and perhaps some puddle splashing?!

baking: rainy weather food

It has happened. Fall is here. There is rain and cold and there seems to be an end to this lovely indian summer. Therefore I am feeling a bit nest-y and need to hunker down and be cozy. Thus this evenings supper of roast pepper and tomato soup with grilled cheese. Classic.

Everyone stay dry and drive safe as it seems that the world has forgotten how to drive when the roads are wet and it is raining. Not to sound like a mother or anything. And eat all of your soup!

Field Trip: Alameda Antique Faire

What are all these people doing? Where are they going?

Why to the flea market! Or to use it's more sophisticated name, the Antique Faire. If nothing else I like to go to the once monthly Alameda Antique Faire just be able to get a look at other peoples collections. It's like reading someones mail. So fun. And I love that there will be such large groups of things. Whether it's costume jewelery (sorted by color! love) antlers, old posters or seashells. Also note some totally rad furniture that makes me wish I had a super decadent apartment to furnish. Enjoy my snap happiness:










And did I find anything in this expansive and endless maze of cool and weird things? Did I discover buried treasure amid the junk heaps? Why yes of course I did. I found the perfect dress for my Halloween costume (more on that later)

and also a really beautiful 50's flower brooch. It is yellow and cheerful and the size of the palm of my hand and it was shining out at me through a heap of junk. In conclusion, this is definitely worth making the trek. Check it out.