adventuring beyond this wickedness

(i can't believe i forgot my camera!)

so what's a girl to do on her last full saturday night in providence? ...eat good food and spend time with a good friend of course! i knew i wanted to spend this last night with my really good friend yung kee who is always almost down for a good food adventuring beyond thayer street. so we decided to head down to wickenden street to give a random restaurant a try (cause we wanted to be adventurous.. right?!). passing by fellini's pizzeria, a taste of indian, a few pubs, strange vintage stores, and a cambodian restaurant, we walked a good length of the street and even reached the beginnings fox point before heading back down to make our decision of where to eat. the night seemed all to familiar to us; even evoking the faint feel of vancouver air to my fellow canadian friend. at last, yung kee suggested japanese since we had not ventured into that territory given the fact we were both west coast kids and we took our sushi pretty seriously...

so we arrived at sakura, a nice little japanese joint with a comfortable setting, snuggled among the various cafes that lined the beginning of wickenden. we both felt like going all out and so we ordered the full meal that came complete with an entree, salad, miso soup, an appetizer of our choice, and dessert... yung kee went for the pork potstickers as an appetizer and followed it with a terriyaki chicken dish which he described as oh so tasty. as for me, being vegetarian, i was more than surprised to see the variety they had within their menu that was suitable for me... i ordered fried eggplants to start off and then a vegetable yakisoba for my main dish. i also wanted to try the vegetable tempera sushi which ended up being spectacular. the conversation between yung kee and i flew back and forth.. i know i'm going to miss his presence once i'm back in los angeles; he's always someone i could go to for advice or just talk about anything. we both finished our meals with a scoop of green tea ice cream (which is good almost ANYTIME!)

overall, i was extremely pleased with sakura, knowing that good vegetarian options are few and far in between when it comes to japanese joints. i guess they cater to university students who tend to go veggie. i absolutely enjoyed all the different aspects of the meal, as did yung kee, and rest assured, they will probably see me more often once my sophomore year comes around.

diving into this culinary adventure

though it may be the end of freshman year at risd, and finals seem to be ever so consuming everybody's lives, i somehow managed to take a little excursion with my future textiles buddy tamar, who also currently in my section this semester, to a nice (but a bit pricey) italian restaurant on south main street called al forno.

despite the lack of sleep i will receive tonight by procrastinating on my 3d final project for tomorrow, i would say this adventure out towards the water's edge by wickenden street was well worth it (the restaurant is situated across the lovely canal that runs through providence, across from the notable factory with three large smoke stacks, which i find both oddly comforting yet beautiful especially at night when a few of its lights seem to illuminate the factory's silhouette like an arbitrarily lit christmas tree..).

before i headed out with tamar, i checked the website to prepare myself for what i would see on the menu. however, it was not until i finally had the menu in my hands and asked the very very cute waiter what he recommended for a pasta-loving vegetarian like me that i could really figure out what entree would best suit my mood. he suggested the
baked pasta with tomato, cream, and five cheeses. my friend tamar decided that she would give a brave attempt at the rabbit pasta. ravenous, i enjoyed the warm bread that was brought out and noted its nice arrangement within a small wooden asian basically that is typically used for steaming sticky buns. both tamar and i seemed lost in our long story-filled conversation, as well as the waiter's lovely eyes (he would courteously bring us water whenever needed)

once the food arrived, i ravenously ate the first few bits of my baked pasta with eagerness... but eventually the cream really took its toll on my the depth of my hunger.. i would say i have not had such a heavy pasta in a while, so this definitely took me surprise... but the real treat was at the end of the meal when tamar and i both shared a very deliciously smooth lavender panna cotta. it honestly was the right sweetness...the lavender only accentuated the milky goodness!

the sauce for the dessert was just perfect; the lavender seemed so suited for the milk aspect. i was in heaven. overall, i would say i had quite an enjoyable experience, but it was definitely the conversations with my friend that served more of an interest than the actual food itself.... well, the panna cotta may have been an exception :)


www.alforno.com

new beginnings

...finishing up my first year at rhode island school of design, i have come to realize the things i am most passionate about. with those little epiphanies i have gathered throughout the year, i also realized how important it is to keep a record of these loves both monumental or even minute thoughts as a mediator for my life. i want to share my own little world, the people i have grown to love, the places i have discovered, and more importantly, all the delicious food i am fortunate enough to indulge my taste buds with. i hope to share with everyone these things, and to maybe inspire onlookers..

with the end of one thing, comes the beginning of another...