Taste of San Diego

Our Christmas trip took us to San Diego. Even though not as warm as I had hoped, it was none the less a nice escape from the frozen New England.

As parents of two youngsters, our first fun day was dedicated to the zoo.

I loved the zoo except the overpriced zoo food, why can't there be gourmet food in touristy places! I soon realized that it was not just the zoo, it was not easy to find good place to eat when you travel with a large family with a one year old baby. Luckily there were still a few places worth noting.

Serrano's

It was said that San Diego has the best Mexican food outside of Mexico. So, of course, I had to try it. I narrowed my choices down to one place that is taking more of a modern take on the street food.

It has trendy deco and is super friendly to kids, even though Marlon was trying to destroy the table that we were sitting at.

We ordered absurd amount of food despite the fact that it was just a lunch. It became a taco tasting, a little bit of beef, a little bit of pork, a little bit of shrimp, a little bit of fish, and of course, a little bit of octopus!

The tacos were burst with flavors (especially the sauce) yet not heavy at all, unlike what big meals would usually make us feel. The little imperfection was from the desserts. I had a high expectation on the corn flan but it was a bit too dense. Still, a great meal to remember nonetheless.

Le Parfait Paris

I never skip a good bakery and I believe you can tell if one is good by looking at the pictures.

I grabbed not an insignificant amount worth of sweets from the shop and they became our breakfast during our stay in SD. In most of the cases, they tasted as good as they looked. I particularly enjoyed the cheesecake while Annabelle loved the rich chocolate cake. My only reservation would be on the price tag -- I did not tell Mr C how much I spent.

Costa Brava

The best meal we had in SD was at Costa Brava, a spanish restaurant that serves authentic tapas.

The place was cozy and very friendly to kids. Annabelle and Marlon even got their first free icecream! It was also my first time tasting baby eel cooked with garlic and olive oil. It was so good, I think I even licked the plate.

Despite my little unsatisfaction on the food side, we enjoyed SD with its artistic vibe and beautiful scenery. One day, I will come back and re-taste!