Phew! Another hectic holiday season has passed … so now we’re back to doing what we do best – updating our blog more reguarly. First off, a huge thanks to everyone who did their holiday shopping here – we haven’t seen many returns, so cheers on a job well done. Things were a bit hectic here, but we still managed to have fun!

Now, back to the grind. Well, not quite. You see, after a hectic holiday, I was lucky enough to find a cheap flight to LA when I was able to land a reservation at Thomas Keller’s newest restaurant, Bouchon Beverly Hills. Why not hop a flight to sunny 75 degree weather and an amazing meal? Having cooked many a meal from the Bouchon cookbook (I actually own 2 copies of it – one for drooling over, one for cooking from), but never actually eaten there, it was a no-brainer. Imagine, to my shock and suprise, to find that Thomas Keller himself was actually at the restaurant twhen we arrived … total fangirl swoon time. I had far too many glasses of wine in my excitement and nervousness, so the dinner was a happy, boozy blur. Keller was amazing, and the food – holy baby jesus – the food was perfect. I felt like tearing up – maybe it was the wine, maybe it was the company, but hell – it was perfect. You truly haven’t eaten until you’ve had Keller’s roast chicken. Or short ribs. Or bouchons. Or bread. Or wine. Or anything.

Thankfully, in the above picture, I was wearing sunglasses so you couldn’t see the shit-eating, drunk, fan girl eyes I was rocking. However, due to some liquid courage – I did something I have never, EVER done – requested a signed menu. And, you know what? It’s pretty rad.

Swoon! “It’s all about sharing” – yes, indeed. Bouchon was a dream come true. I must give a shout out to my dear buddy Blair, for putting up with me through the meal and  being such a good hot date. And allowing me to get fangirl on Keller, and drunk, and eat off of his plate. That, my dear, is what I believe TK was talking about. And, if you are so inclined, check out Blair’s band, The Jealous Sound. Blair took some time off from working on a new album and work to not only be my date, but to show me around LA. That’s what friends are for!

PS – Hey, Natasha, I guess the secret’s out – I really wasn’t “sick” these past few days. Whoops!