Taylor's Refresher- A New Staple

Of all the many things that St. Helena, Ca has to offer I believe that Taylor's Refresher might be one of the best! I am embarrassed to say that John and I ended up here on both days we were in St. Helena. On Friday night we drove up to the Napa Valley for (another) wedding. The rehearsal dinner at Tra Vigne was great, but the real treat was the next day when John and I drove over to Taylor's. Not only did we see Tommy Hilfiger and Pat Riley (apparently he's the coach for the Miami Heat, I think? I had no clue who he was, but John was excited. He also wanted to go over to Tommy Hilfiger and tell him that his pants don't fit him right and see if they can come to some solution, but I stopped him from that one). But we ate such good food. Above are the fish tacos. Not the best I have ever had but i think I am beginning to realize that I don't much like corn tortillas. Something about the texture, I don't know. But they always double wrap the tacos and I took a tortilla off each, which improved the prospect a bit.

The real hit of the lunch was the chili cheese fries. Now this would not be something that I would typically consume, but Taylor's is different, and I guess with the great ingredients they use they might be a teensy bit better for you than elsewhere. All that matters is that they were amazing. And this is the best chili I have ever had, and I don't really like chili. It was full of tomatoes and kidney beans, the flavor was incredible.

The boys had burgers, which I took rather unappetizing photos of.
There was a bacon cheeseburger that John ate:

I had a bite and it was okay. Still only flirting with the red meat, which is fine by me. And Dylan had the Blue Ring Burger. Or something along those lines. It's a burger topped with blue cheese and onion rings. I was told it was epic.
All said, Taylor's was good, once again. And I think that it's a good thing I only eat at the one in St. Helena,even though there is one within a 10 minute walk from my office. Even their amazing Ahi Sandwich overfills me to discomfort. Oh well. I can't wait to go again! I guess it might start up next year, as wedding season has, finally, come to an end!

PuPu Platter

Sometimes you are just hungry and want a simple snack. This happened on Sunday. After my whirlwind weekend of running up and down Northern California, up to Hopland, then off to Calistoga, a little traipsing around St. Helena and Rutherford, and then to my mom's house in Ross, John and I collapsed on her new couch in front of the Olympics. It was an absolutely beautiful day on Sunday. We watched the Olympics but I spent half of the time laying in the sun in my bikini. I know the sun is bad for me, but I have to say nothing feels better than sweating outside. I love it.

Anyway, we had brunch that day at Taylor's Refresher in St. Helena. I know it is odd to eat a cheeseburger at 10:45am, but we both didn't want to pass up the opportunity to sit at Taylor's when we could. Also we were coming from a wedding and some greasy food is what we both needed to hit the spot. The funniest part is that I work about 6 blocks from the Ferry Building in San Francisco where the other Taylor's is, but I rarely go. I think that diner food is best kept as treat and shouldn't become part of my daily lunchtime routine.

I ordered the Ahi Burger, a large piece of rare ahi with an asian slaw on top. Amazing as always. John got a bacon cheeseburger, of which I had a bite, and we shared both garlic and regular fries.

But late in the afternoon we got munchy, which is amazing considering how full I was for hours after my ahi burger, so I raided my mother's fridge for some snacks. I put together a little pupu platter that wouldn't ruin our appetites for dinner and was mildly healthy. Yeah, maybe a little high in fat, but there was not very much on the plate. Cold asparagus is one of my favorites, so I ate most of that!

I also have attempted to improve my photography skills this weekend. I am simply not a good photographer. Why, I have no idea. But I am not. I think it must be like cooking. I am a good cook. Somehow it always works out for me when I am in the kitchen. But photography, not so much. So here are some test shots that I took in an attempt to improve my ability to take close up shots, mostly of food, of course!