Top 5 best dinners of my life!

Last night I had an AMAZING dinner at Mastro's Steakhouse in Beverly Hills. It is one of LA's renown steak restaurants with a few other locations here in California and also in Arizona and Nevada. Mastro's boasts excellent service and incredible steaks of course. Well, they certainly delivered in every way. Seriously, it's on my list of the top 5 best dinners of.my.life!!

Our waiter quickly arrived to take drink orders and was very friendly and laid-back. He joked around with us throughout the night which caught me a little off guard. Usually at places like this, the staff acts kind of 'hoighty-toighty' which can be intimidating. It was refreshing to see how casual the waiters were with their customers given the type of establishment we were at. It definitely lightened the mood of the dark room. Actually it was so dark in the dining area that we were give a small flashlight to see the menu. Romantic, eh?

Apparently, the appetizers were amazing-raw oysters. I don't care for raw oysters so I missed out on those. Together the 6 of us chose 4 sides that we shared and then we all picked our own meat entrees. Our sides were seriously out of this world: creamed spinach, Gorgonzola mac and cheese, brussel sprouts and the incredibly delicious and our table's favorite dish of the night, black truffle gnocchi. This gnocchi dish had crab meat, Parmesan, breadcrumbs and white truffle oil in it. I really couldn't taste the crab meat. This side was mouthwatering. I urge you all to try this STAT! The picture below doesn't do it justice at all. Oh geez, I really want some right now!


For my entree, I ordered the 8oz. petite filet. It was sooo good. It's rich juicy flavors literally melted in my mouth. I just discovered that all their steaks are marinated in a 15-ingredient rub and cooked w/ butter. I think that I can go as far as saying that it is perhaps the best steak I have eaten in my life. It was a simple and elegant steak…the way it should be. I really cannot rave about this meal enough!
This wasn't my modest 8oz. petite filet but my friend's entree which I'm not sure exactly which one it was. I'll have to ask. He loved it and seriously looked like he was in heaven as he ate it. : )

By the time the dessert menu was passed around, we were all completely stuffed but our waiter urged us to share just one thing. He recommend Mastro's Signature Warm Butter Cake. We happily obliged. In a word it was, delightful. It was served with a side of freshly made whipped cream. Yum. This butter cake was a warm, smooth, rich dessert. It was strangely light and fluffy yet dense at the same time. Turns out, they use cream cheese as a secret ingredient to give the butter cake its texture. It was the perfect size for the 6 of us to share.


Despite how superb this dinner was, it was also superbly pricey so I definitely won't be making it a habit to eat dinner hear often. I read the following on a food blogger's website, "Mastro’s is a great steakhouse with fabulous service and even better food. A dinner here, though, will put a nice fat dent in your wallet. But it’s well worth it, I think." I couldn't agree more.

Saturday 6

The Rules:

1.) You MUST take our amazing Saturday Six button and place it in your Saturday Six post!
2.) You MUST link back to ALL the hosts blogs in your Saturday Six post! Not just to my blog, or just to Ashlee's & not even just to Ange's Blog -- You have to link to ALL of the hosts blogs in the post, it's just good manners!
3.) You MUST link up an ACTUAL Saturday Six post where you are actually participating in The Saturday Six. So please do NOT link up your giveaways or just link up your blog when you're not going to actually participate! Again, it's just good manners!
4.) You MUST play the game correctly.

So here we go, I'm linking back up to the funny and real blog, Oh, Fuck It. I would like to link to the other hosts blogs but I don't see those right now.. Will add them later if I figure that out.

This weeks questions are:

1. Worst movie ever made..in your opinion?
Hmm, I have seen a few bad ones... I really hated "Maid in Manhattan", "From Justin to Kelly", and I am sure there are more but I can't think of them now.

2. A stranger you encounter has toilet paper hanging from their pants..or spinach in their teeth...insert any embarrassing item here..Do you tell them?
Yes, definitely, yes! In fact, I've told many girls in bar bathrooms that they had toilet paper stuck to their shoes. Just think, would you want someone to tell you? Karma does exist.

3. Tell us ONE thing that annoys you. Yes, just one.
When people talk on the phone when I'm driving them around. Ugh! It's just rude. I totally understand picking up the phone and chatting for a minute or two but more than that is inconsiderate.

4. What's your biggest beef about the opposite sex in general?
I think that most of the time, men just don't get women. They don't really understand what we are going through when it comes to anything at all in life. Men may pretend to get it but they really don't. That's the worst, just admit you have no idea how bad these cramps are, etc.....

5. Would you donate your eggs/sperm to an infertile couple?
Wow, this is tough. I think so. If I could help a infertile couple start a family and I was one of their only options, then I really think I would. How amazing would it feel to know that you helped make their dreams comes true?

6. What's the last book you read?
"The Abortionist's Daughter" by Elisabeth Hyde. It was very good so I highly recommend it!

3 Years Ago Today

Three years ago today my parents died. For that I will always dread this month and this week in particular. Today is going to be rough.

I've talked about them a lot in my blog but I can't recall if I ever explained what exactly happened to them. I got the call around 1 a.m. They were found in their bedroom in their house in Tunis, Tunisia. After a couple of days of thorough investigation in and around their home, the cause of death was determined to be carbon monoxide poisoning. It was the water heater. I cannot begin to describe what it was like coming face-to-face with that machine. I wanted to tear it from the wall and smash it to pieces.

For those of you that don't know, carbon monoxide is an odorless and colorless gas. Surprisingly, it is the second leading cause of poisoning deaths in the country. Carbon monoxide poisoning claims nearly 500 lives and another 15,000 require emergency room treatment per year.

After they died, I sent emails out to everyone I knew encouraging them to check the detectors in their homes and their families’ homes. I know that many went out immediately and purchased them for themselves and their loved ones. Now, I continue to talk openly about this in hopes of encouraging others to install carbon monoxide detectors in their homes. When I moved to LA, I immediately got one for my house.

More and more lately, I'm starting to really miss being a 'daughter'. I miss saying, "Mom, can you help me with this?" Or "Dad, what do you think I should do?" I simply miss calling out "Mom" and "Dad". I miss hearing my mom talk to me about my dad and referring to him as "Daddy". It was really cute and sweet. I miss that advice that only a parent can give a daughter. I can't help but wonder, am I still a 'daughter'? Does that role still exist for me? I certainly don't feel like it anymore. Perhaps being a sister, an aunt, a niece and a friend should be enough but it just isn't. I just want to be my parents daughter. I want to overhear them talking to people about their 'daughter', Leah. No one says my name or will say my name quite like them.

I know it's only natural but right after they died, I instantly felt younger than I've felt in a very long time. The independent nature that I'd acquired somewhat in college quickly fell away and I found myself longing to be held, to be cared for, to be tucked in at night and to be told that everything was going to be alright. These are all the things that my parents would do for me. Suddenly, I knew that I was never going to feel as protected as they made me feel and that tore me apart.

3 years may seem like a lot of time but honestly, the hole in my heart is still as empty and painful as the day I found out 3 years ago. I doubt that will ever go away. This may sound odd but there is a small part of me that hopes that hole never heals. I don't want to ever get past their deaths. What would that mean if that were to happen one day? I know that when I fall in love and have children, it certainly will be filled but I hope that I'm never 'ok' that they are gone.

I am incredibly grateful to my sister for always being there for me. She is right there with me through the tears, the sad dreams, the phone calls and for sad days like today. We will be spending the day together as we've promised to do from now on. I certainly can't imagine going through it alone.

I don't want this to be a sad post but more of a reminder to you to cherish your loved ones. Cherish your parents. Cherish your siblings. Cherish your friends. Tell each and every one of them how much they mean to you. If I had one more day to spend with my parents, that's all I would do.

"Only in LA"

Yep, I got another one already! Well, technically, this happens in New York all the time too but whatever.. I'm still using it for my "Only in LA" series.

This morning I awoke to find brand new "No Parking" signs on my street. They are simple ones just telling us not to park on that side of the street. I am told they are filming signs and that soon, once they narrow down the exact location for filming, new signs like the one on the left will be posted. Pretty cool, huh?

Well, it is neat until it starts annoying me that I can't find parking anywhere. Let's hope they don't shoot a lame commercial and it's a cool new movie featuring let's say.. Bradley Cooper or perhaps a new music video by Beyonce. Now let me go move my car! : )

Stay tuned!

Premiere of "Only in LA" Series

Welcome to the premiere of my "Only in LA" series. From time to time, I will blog about things that I see and hear here in my city. Feel free to steal this blog idea and change it to fit your own city.
So, here we go...

"Only in LA" will you overhear conversations like this one:

Aspiring Actor's Gym Buddy- "So, how's work going? Anything new come into the agency?"

Aspiring Actor- "Yeah, actually today this guy walked into the agency and said he just finished a horror script and he wrote it with me in mind as the lead!

Aspiring Actor's Gym Buddy- "Very cool. Who is the writer? Anyone I know?"

Sadly, I wasn't able to catch the rest of this conversation as they were walking into the gym and I was leaving it and I really couldn't walk any slower than I already was without appearing a tad creepy. I already felt like a huge eavesdropper but in my defense, they were talking really loud!

Stay tuned for more "Only in LA"!!

Wordless Wednesdays

I took this picture in New Mexico a few weeks ago and I just love it.

Please Help Pin-Ups for Vets!

Here is a letter that my roommate Gina sent out to all her Pin-Ups for Vets supporters:

Dear Pin-Ups For Vets Supporters,

I need your help. I'm in the running for a $50,000 Pepsi Refresh grant that will allow me to make a Veterans and Military Hospital Tour across the USA to visit our hospitalized Vets bedside, to bring them cheer & appreciation gifts. You can vote once a day! Visit www.pinupsforvets.com and click on the link near the waving flags at the top of my homepage. OR text 103020 to Pepsi (73774) everyday.

I need your help! Would you be so kind as to send this email to your contact lists, blog about it, talk about it at the water cooler and force your co-workers to vote, tell your local grocery store checker as you're paying for your 2% milk and cage-free eggs, write it on your deposit slips at the bank so the tellers see it, pass out flyers at your VFW and American Legion Post meetings, mount a bullhorn to the top of your car and sing about it as you drive through your local town center, put a bumper sticker on your car, Facebook it, Tweet it, MySpace it, write the link in face paint on your forehead at the next homecoming game, set your phone alarms to go off so you remember to vote everyday!

And...what do you get for all of this work? If Pin-Ups For Vets wins this grant, you will have made Veterans across the USA very happy, and let them know they are appreciated! Currently I'm in 166th place out of 495. Let's move this project up where it belongs--#1 spot.

Thank you so much for helping me!
Gina

There you have it guys, now go out and please, please vote for Pin-Ups for Vets!!