eurasia

howdy lovely readers. i apologize for my absence, but the diet, etc. (fyi. i have been verrryyyy good on the diet.) anyway, on friday we went to eurasia cafe and wine bar.  ok, i'm not really a fan of suburbia or restaurants in suburbia or restaurants in shopping centers (for the most part), and gayton crossing definitely meets the above criteria. hubs was the only non-white in the entire restaurant, which was full of mostly middle age or older bourgeois. additionally, i think asian fusion is overdone and kitsch but still love it, when done well.  i was cheered when my albarino arrived (apple, a bit sweet but crisp) because it was the first adult beverage i had enjoyed all week. yes, a deviation from my normal red, but i had just had my teeth whitened and red wine was forbidden (i know, i know...i talk about bourgeois and then follow with teeth whitening.) we ordered a hot and sour soup and chinese vegetable spring rolls for appetizers. the soup was a very non-traditional take on hot and sour with a clear broth and floating bits of carrot, mushroom, scallion, tofu and cilantro. it was neither hot (by any stretch of the imagination or of non-scorched, non-texan tastebuds) or sour (i like a definite vinegar taste to my hot and sour.)  i think they should rethink the name. however, i really liked it and ordered an extra order to-go.  the spring roll was fried (note to self: never assume that spring rolls in restaurants other than vietnamese will be fresh.) so, i only ate one bite (as is my duty as a food blogger, you see). it was over-fried and soggy instead of crispy. the veg inside: who cares. the sauces: ponzu and spicy mustard which were both very good. for his entreee, hubs had the rockfish special which was served with etouffee. the fish was well, fishy but well cooked and the etouffee tasted like rotel. but my entree, the "focus your chi" soba noodle salad with grilled shrimp was delicious, dressed in a tangy sauce but had limited veg. for dessert (yes, i did) we had the bananas foster cheesecake, which came with bruleed bananas on top. the two or so bites i had were excellent with a cinnamony, crumbly crust and, did i mention the bruleed bananas? beautifully and uniformly crisp crust and warm banana gooeyness.  a good time was had, although the food was hit or miss. it took a while for the waitress to come over to our table, but she was very pleasant. she forgot the mango sorbet substitution with dessert, but remembered and apologized as she handed us the check.  i still had a good time and would go back. maybe my leniency and good will is due to the beautiful and spring-y weather?

in other news, i am still working on the blog response to style weekly's "state of the plate". warning: it may be scathing.

in other, other news, i am enjoying the weather and  will soon make my own planters thanks to the march issue of martha. i got sorta crafty and made "art" for the living room with frames from target and scrapbooking paper from michael's.  here are the results:

and some prettiness i picked up on Sunday