Are you hungry yet?

Ciudad Turns 10 - Los Angeles, CA

I have a special fondness for Ciudad. Not only does it have incredible pan-Latin food and was literally a stones throw away from where I worked in Downtown LA, but I had the pleasure of staging there (fancy French word for intern) for a month while in culinary school. What an amazing experience.

(Pay close attention to the flatbread dusted in various seeds and spices on the table before you order. I earned one gnarly burn balancing three scalding hot sheetpans making those bad boys. A Ciudad scar I wear proudly.)

I got this once in a lifetime opportunity from Chef Beni Velasquez when he was Executive Chef there. Not only that, I was fortunate enough to meet co-owner Susan Feniger while staging there, one half of the infamous "Too Hot Tamales". Only in LA...

Kilwin's Chocolates - Annapolis, MD

Yes, I'm going to take advantage of just about every opportunity to try new foods in every place Keith and I journey to. Some will be good, some will be bad. I will do my best to give you the real.

Chocolate is a subject I happen to be a fan of. In culinary school I can remember getting into the tempered chocolate every chance Chef wasn't watching.

When touring downtown Annapolis over the weekend, I insisted we try one of the two chocolate shops I noticed. This one was hard to pass up thanks to the 9 foot tall Moose scaring little children outside. Nothing says good chocolate like a huge moose. But I digress...

Balducci's, I'm in love!

You would think that a self-professed foodie such as myself would have already been to Balducci's. I mean it is the food lover's market. No seriously. The sign out front said so.

On the way to the Navy game over the weekend my fiance and I took a wrong turn and ran smack into a Balducci's in Bethesda, MD. I had only heard dreamy stories about this food lovers paradise. Imported cheese, Iberico ham, exotic vinegars, fine cuts of meat and a salad bar that would make you cry. Oh, now that I've actually been there... it is so much more.

Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium - Annapolis, MD

Over the coming months I'll be starting several pilot programs that should be fun. The first in this series is the "Stadium Eats" review section. Over the past 10 years food has become quite an event at stadiums, ballparks and arenas. As I travel to new places, I thought it would be fun to cover the food scene at stadiums, large and small. As always, if you've got suggestions please leave a comment.

Up first is the football home of the US Naval Academy, Annapolis' own Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium. I was lucky enough to be invited to watch the exciting Navy vs. Pittsburgh game over the weekend. And much like the game itself, this stadium had eats that were quite unexpected.

Pho-tastic!

My best friend of almost 30 years (PJ) is mixed like me, but her heritage consists of American and Vietnamese. The daughter of of a military vet and a fiery Vietnamese woman, PJ epitomizes the best of both worlds. Loyal and trustworthy, hard-working and a fantastic cook, PJ is one of the people I credit my love of food.

Aside from being the best friend a person could have, one of the best gifts PJ ever gave me was pho. The cure for whatever ails ya, pho will always be my comfort food. Anyone who is a fan of that distinctive creamy meatiness of beef marrow will simply fall head over heels for pho.

We've managed to find a pretty good pho place in Ashburn, Virgina called Pho Bistro. We go so much the owner and staff know us and our order: Pho Gau for me and Pho Bo Vien with a side of Tai for my fiance Keith. Here are a couple of photos from our latest pho fix.

Are You Eating Out?

Don't let the upswing fool you. If you haven't felt the economic recession in the produce aisle or at the pump, you will very, very soon. Whatever happens to the US economy deeply affects world markets. Just take a look at the horrible price hikes on imported rice. That is only the beginning.

At lunch today, a group of us got on the subject about eating out. Of the six people there only two purchased lunch, one of which usually brings his lunch every day. The rest of us were brown bagging it.

Culinary School for Free

Yes, it was expensive. I didn't go to the Harvard of culinary schools either (CIA). Nope, I took the "fast track" 18-month corporate route. Don't get me wrong; CSCA and Le Cordon Blue are fantastic. They did their best with what they had. But truth be told, if you were lazy you wouldn't get anything out of it.

I wanted to be there. When I told people back in my UCLA days that this is what I eventually wanted to do (after running my own record company, of course) they would say "Oh, that's nice". But I was serious. And when I got there in my starchy whites, creased checked pants and clean clogs, there was no stopping me. For 18 months I got burned incessantly (one of which got a nasty infection thanks to working the dish station), cut every finger I have, froze working long hours in the walk-in and busted my ass every day. And even though women still have to work harder in the kitchen to prove themselves, I held my own with the most sexist of pigs.