foodpost – Shoes & Sashimi

An Afternoon at Arrowood

Published on January 12, 2017January 10, 2017 by Lauren Nakagawa6 Comments

This past weekend I had the opportunity to attend an amazing wine and food pairing in Sonoma. Hosted at the ever charming Arrowood Winery in Glen Ellen, myself and fellow Bay Area bloggers were whisked away for the day to wine country, and I can honestly say I am really truly grateful for the experience. I’ve heard raving reviews about the delicious food served at renowned restaurant, Girl & the Fig. So you can imagine my surprise when I saw that the event would be catered by their lead Chef.

I’d like to thank Kristina Werner, wine maker at Arrowood. She herself is quite the inspiration, who went from a BioChemistry and Agricultural Economics degree to pursue winemaking full time. Something I took away from listening to her that I’d like to share:

“Taste everything you can get your hands on.

Never stop learning and never get bored.”

I couldn’t agree more. Cheers to an amazing day that I don’t take for granted. My eyes and stomach are very full :)

First Course: Roasted Carrots, Saffron Crema, Honeyed Almonds

img_0442-2 — 2nd: House Ground Polenta, Braised Oxtail, Cocoa Nibs, Squash, Sage Pesto

Final: Black Pepper Ravioli, Triple Cream Mornay, Black Truffles

I have found a new appreciation for wine, what goes into making it, and how it really can transform a meal and your senses. If you’re in Sonoma one of these days, be sure to visit Kristina and the Arrowood staff and taste for yourself. I personally would go back in a snap.

For those who are interested in Arrowood wine but can’t get to Sonoma anytime soon, I’m offering 15% off anything on their site using “ARROWOOD15” here. I had an amazing time and can’t wait to go back.

Overwhelming thanks to:

Arrowood Winery for the hospitality

Girl & The Fig for an incredible meal

Emily E Martin Communications for this amazing trip

3 Days in Denver

Published on May 6, 2016July 18, 2016 by Lauren Nakagawa30 Comments

Hi all, hope you’ve had a great week. If you’ve been keeping up with me on Instagram, you’d know that I was in Denver for a few days. @Twelfthknight had to travel for work, so I was fortunate enough to tag along and make this a workation for myself. We’ve never been to Denver before, so this was a nice change of scenery. With @Twelfthknight at work all day, I was left to my own devices. I did a lot…and this is just a roundup. I even had a shoot with native photographer Emily Anne the first day (she shoots the local bloggers of Denver, such as @PolishedAvenue and @Myboringcloset) so naturally I wanted to work with her. I’m so happy we did, those photos will be for another post :D

Enjoy my quick photo diary, I’d love to go back just for the sunsets and food scene alone. Much more to come. Have a great weekend everyone!

First Day: A little pick me up at Corvus Coffee courtesy of Tim, the barista.

Trekking in Loeffler Randall with photographer Emily Anne. There was snow patches, deer prints, and 1,000 wild bunnies :D

The best meal and service bar none is at Fruition…Rockefeller oysters wrapped in a thin potato layer & sweet pea sauce was our favorite app. @Twelfthknight had the Duck confit and pork belly. I had scallops with panchetta and parsnip puree. This is a must visit.

We had a rental car, so I drove our little Chevy Cruze and hour south to Colorado Springs and saw the Garden of the Gods. I felt like Short Round galavanting through the rock formations.

Always look up. The sky is really that beautiful at sunset. And these rocks will make you feel very tiny. I had a nice time adventuring alone, it’s nice to be your own tour guide.

Heard so many good things about Aspen Juice from Instagram. So I went in, had a tasting, and left with a delicious light juice that revived me from the adventure the previous day.

Walked in to the Cherry Creek Restoration Hardware. This is the mecca of all things design. 4 floors worth of aesthetic overload :D

A chai latte at Black Eye Coffee in Cap Hill. Great little neighborhood.

A “picnic” full of cheese and meats at Rioja in downtown Denver. It was good, but nothing beats Fruition.

Thursday is for Thistle

Published on April 28, 2016July 12, 2016 by Lauren Nakagawa14 Comments

Rise and grind everybody :D I’m switching things up today to feature my new favorite meal delivery service, Thistle Co. But before I go further, I should let you know that for someone who grew up watching my Mom cook every meal from scratch for our family, I love that cooking was (and still is) a very big part of our daily life. But in an age where it’s harder to slow down, especially for those who are self employed…there’s hardly ever time or energy to cook a beef stew during the week or make muffins for the next morning. Which is why, on the days that become just too busy, it’s nice to have a service that will come to your door and feed you something healthy, fresh, without breaking your budget.

Thistle is the only service out there that leads with health and nutrition front and center. I’ve received 2 deliveries so far and I like that the portions are very fair, everything is fresh, there’s variety in each delivery, and best of all…they’re delicious. Plus, I’m hooked on their raw juice and snacks. Right up my alley.

@Twelfthknight has been going low carb, and I think Thistle will help propel his health goals. Delicious and nutritious, he says :D And my Mom has recently said that since going into the office every day, there’s very limited options for lunch that she will in fact eat. So I think she’ll eat cleaner and colorfully when she tries what’s currently in the fridge, thanks Thistle!

Thistle is a Bay Area based company and will deliver to SF, Marin, and the East Bay. If you would like to try yourself, you can use my code to save 20% off “SHOESSASHIMI”

As always, thank you for reading. I will be in Denver on Monday-Thursday, but I hope to post while I’m there. And of course, you can find me daily on Instagram for up to date photo adventures.

Lauren

#Morningslikethese // Chia x lemon x apple juice for a jolt of energy, the paper, and raw energy bites (superfood in a ball.)

Raw Apple juice and a tofu scramble salad. The tastiest tofu and squash I’ve had in a while

This is a big salad, this photo doesn’t do it’s justice with size. Packed with chicken, herbs, and spices.

My favorite dessert that’s good for you! You might as well have told me it’s dark chocolate mousse because taste wise, I couldn’t tell.

Thank you again Thistle for helping me and my busy fam eat cleaner throughout the week.

For 20% off yours, use “SHOESSASHIMI” at checkout

Napa Getaway

Published on December 14, 2015July 11, 2016 by Lauren Nakagawa4 Comments

Christmas came early for @Twelfthknight and I earlier this week when we took our little “Moobie” with us to Napa for an early Christmas/NY/2 year Anniversary trip :) It’s fun to go during offseason, you can beat all the traffic and the lines and eat and walk around as you please without the crowds. It was splendid, and we ate and ate like fiends.

Have a great week everyone, stay warm and be well.

~ Lauren

Keeping warm in a knit by The Knot Sisters

FullSizeRender 43 — The famous doughnuts at The Boon Fly Cafe @Carneros Inn

FullSizeRender 47

FullSizeRender 46 — Crunching in a faux fur vest by 6 Shore Road

FullSizeRender 44

Moobie meets his goat friend at Old Faithful Farms

Brownie the lama at Old Faithful Farms. Go visit her, she has the best eyelashes :D

Typical Bouchon Bakery fare, this is their gingerbread muffin

Bone Marrow appetizers at my Mom’s favorite French bistro: Bistro Jeanty, Yountville. Not pictured, their to die for tomato bisque baked under a puff pastry shell

Instagram: @shoes_and_sashimi

Aloha! Hawaii Part II

Published on September 7, 2015July 18, 2016 by Lauren Nakagawa11 Comments

Happy Labor Day everyone, what are you doing for this long weekend? I’m missing being on vacation mode, but hopefully you can travel with me through these next batch of photos from our recent trip. Between the waterfall hike to sipping drinks on the beach, splashing through the breathtaking views, and eating our fair share of musubi and shaved ice, I think it’s safe to say that we milked our short stay on the island to it’s max relaxing capacity. We hope to explore elsewhere too in the near future, so for those of you who have been to the other Hawaiian islands, what are your favorite places to eat, see, and stay?

As always, thanks for reading and enjoy your 3 day weekend!

Lauren

Leonards, known for their famous malasadas and pao doce.

What's a malasada? It's basically a Portuguese custard filled donut. — What’s a malasada? It’s basically a Portuguese custard filled donut.

Waimea Falls, it's a nice 1 mile stroll through the botanical gardens to the waterfall. And when you reach the waterfall you get to jump in and swim. — Waimea Falls, it’s a nice 1 mile stroll through the botanical gardens to the waterfall. And when you reach the waterfall you get to jump in and swim.

It was so humid...Luckily this Tiare Hawaii dress kept me comfy. — It was so humid…Luckily this Tiare Hawaii dress kept me comfy.

Poke bowls and musubi from Musubi Cafe. I think we we went there 3 times...I could eat there every day. — Poke bowls and musubi from Musubi Cafe. I think we went there 3 times…I could eat there every day.

What I wore:

Dress: Tiare Hawaii

Aviators: Le Specs

Where We Ate:

Leonards

Musubi Cafe

Barefoot Bar

Aloha! Hawaii Part I

Published on September 2, 2015September 1, 2015 by Lauren Nakagawa9 Comments

Aloha everyone :D I’m back from Hawaii now and am already missing the views and crystal blue waters. @Twelfthknight and I were on the island of Oahu to attend the wedding of his friends Jerry and Gloria Wu. It was a lovely ceremony at the Hale Koa Resort on Waikiki, which is also where we stayed. It’s been years since I’ve been back to Hawaii, and this trip would be @Twelfthknight‘s and I’s first time traveling together. We had such a quiet relaxing time from start to finish even with the abnormally punishing humidity. We’re not much for the crazy-fast paced-pack everything in-types, we like to eat and take our time, relax, and just be present, not just on vacation but also in general. Now that we’re back, I can honestly say that we needed more time away, so hopefully we can island hop on our next trip out there.

For those of you following along on Instagram, you may have seen a few of these photos already. But I must thank you all because when I was in Hawaii I hit over 1,000 followers, yay! Enjoy the first part of our Hawaii trip, Part II will be posted next week :D

Aloha and Mahalo,

Lauren