I'm not the kind of girl...

who feels right at home at expensive restaurants. I usually feel a bit awkward and unsure of myself, like I don't really belong there. This week is San Diego Restaurant Week, so tonight we went out to downtown San Diego to Nobu, inside the Hard Rock Hotel in the Gaslamp Quarter. I had heard of this restaurant before through my friend Minnie, and on travel and entertainment shows. So when I found out they were participating during Restaurant Week, I was excited to try it out. After work we left around 5:15 PM and got to the restaurant around 6:10 PM, after finding parking at the Convention Center. I was hoping for a short walk, since I'm not used to wearing heels. Upon seating, I noticed that for a pricey restaurant, they really jam-pack you in there! There's no privacy and not a notion of romantic dining whatsoever, LOL. Plus the restaurant was very loud. I guess it's a hip and trendy restaurant. Me getting cozy with the neighbors: We ordered from the prix-fix menu. First courses were Salt & Pepper Squid and Sashimi Salad: It was low lighting again, so these aren't the best photos. I don't usually drink, except for maybe 3-4 times per year. I decided to try the Lychee Martini because it sounded interesting and I like lychee fruit. I've decided that fruit or fruit juice just taste better without the vodka! I'm just not a bitter alcohol fan. I was shocked to find that they gave us cheap disposable chopsticks: I guess I just expected more because of the price point of this restaurant. I just didn't expect... disposable chopsticks. ;p After appetizers our main courses came. Todd got Black Cod with Miso: and I got Ribeye Wasabi Pepper: Again, the food was quite enjoyable, but not up to the standards that I was expecting for the price. Our desserts were Blood Orange Parfait and Suntory Cappuccino: Overall it was a good experience but I don't think we'll be returning there during restaurant week again. I did overhear something intriguing though. The waiter was telling our neighbors (which we overheard due to the close quarters and lack of privacy, ha ha) that they have this deal where you tell the waiter ahead of time an approximation of how much you would like to pay per person for a meal, and he hand-picks a multi-course meal for your party. Sounds very interesting for a special occasion. Ok, enough about dinner. I'm really excited to be given this Fabulous Blog Award by my bloggie friend and Queen of Quirk CT teammate Christine!

She says, "I've only recently been following your blog, but I LOVE reading about your California adventures, especially right now considering how cold and miserable it is here. Not to mention, you almost always have a post about food!" Well Christine, I'm so happy to oblige tonight with the food talk in honor of this Fabulous Blog Award that you gave me! Now I'm supposed to name five things I'm addicted to:

1. Digi-scrapping
2. Hot tea
3. Project 365 and taking a photo a day
4. Chatting with Peppermint online
5. My husband's fantastic culinary skills

And pass on the Fabulous Blog Award to five people:

1. Jay @ Flippin' Channels - Jay is the first person I know in real life who started blogging. He is an expert in blogging about entertainment stuffs, especially movies and tv shows. I've known him a long time (he used to be Todd's boss in Dayton!) and have been enjoying his blog a long time.
2. Anne @ Run DMZ - I met Anne through Todd, who works with Anne. She's a runner and a running blogger, plus she loves college football too. And food. We have these interests in common. Anne is a fabulous writer and her blog is quite enjoyable and informative.
3. Melissa Koehler - we had the pleasure of being photographed by her a year ago. She is an amazing and fantastic photographer and person, and I found out she is a Christian too.
4. Debra - my friend and teammate on the Queen of Quirk CT - she started a blog this year for Project 365 and she has some really great photos on her blog.
5. Laura - my teammate @ Pixel Gypsy Designs - her blogging is very honest, which I find quite refreshing.

So now you guys can pass the Fabulous Blog Award on to other worthy bloggers! :)