Smoked pork loin. 7-item Tasca tasting plates $34
LaSalette Restaurant, Sonoma CA
I love cured pork, and this was really tasty! I was sad that they only give 4 slices. I could have eaten an entire plate of this!
Buena Vista Winery. This is the oldest premium winery in California. It’s kinda randomly located and the grounds are tiny. My friends love this place, but I wasn’t too impressed by their wines. I think they underwent a recent remodel so their building is really cute inside!
Portuguese blood sausage traditionally made using pigs blood with parsley and green onions. Nicely seared with a deep, earthy flavor. Noms! 7-item Tasca tasting plates $34
LaSalette Restaurant, Sonoma CA
Wooden spheres in the lobby, The Lodge at Sonoma Renaissance Resort & Spa. The hotel is cleanly decorated with only a few sculptures here and there to make it interesting.
Pork spare ribs smoked in-house, dry rub served with a light barbecue sauce, and two sides. Half slab $14.95
The Dancing Pig, San Francisco CA
You definitely get A LOT of food! So if you’re looking for a great value, perhaps The Dancing Pig is for you. I’m a lover of bbq pork ribs and I’ll enjoy most preparations, but I wasn’t a fan of these. They had a weird grainy texture that did scream bbq to me! I was disappointed!
Sides of collard greens and mac ‘n’ cheese. Noms, I loved the mac and cheese! They’re of that creamy, loose variety that always reminds me of those I had growing up. And as you can see the sides are huge!
Decorative urn and succulent, 17th Street. I don’t like the fake greenery around the urn, but I love the wall mounted succulent – super cool!
Whole free range egg encased in fresh Cumberland pork sausage meat and coated with breadcrumbs. £1.15
Waitrose, London ENGLAND
Another heavy artery clogging bomb! Gotta love it, I do! I was afraid to microwave it because it might burst, but thankfully it didn’t.
Covent Garden Market. There are plenty of shops to keep you occupied in this shopping area jam packed with tourists! I purchased a cute decorative tile in the Apple Market.
These meat pies, made by Dickinson & Morris, contain coarsely chopped natural British pork seasoned with a special blend of salt and pepper wrapped in a delicious rich pastry. Natural bone jelly is added after baking. £0.50
Waitrose, London ENGLAND
These aren’t the healthiest snacks, but I figured that getting one mini pork pie wouldn’t be too bad for me. They’re actually really tasty, and the pastry shell is definitely buttery and rich.
Westminster Abbey north entrance, The Collegiate Church of St. Peter at Westminster. This beautiful Gothic church is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for British monarchy. This is also where Prince William and Catherine Middleton had their Royal wedding!
Fried pork spareribs in a tangy sweet sauce. £5.80
Jun Ming Xuan Chinese Restaurant, London ENGLAND
Mmm, these were really good! I loved the flavor of the Mandarin sauce and its sticky consistency. I’m a sucker for ribs, noms!
Buckingham Palace during Changing of the Guard. Wow, this place is an absolute madhouse during this ceremony and unless your next to the inner fence you really can’t see much! I would say it’s kinda cool, but I wouldn’t waste my time waiting on future visits.
Homemade potato pancakes baked with chicken, pork vegetables, mushrooms, and melted mozzarella. Domaci bramboracky s masovou smesi, zapecene s mozzarellou. €12.50
Pifko Bar and Grill, Dublin IRELAND
Another odd dish with some interesting flavors. The potato pancakes were plenty cooked and the melted mozzarella was a surprising addition. Perhaps I just need to immerse myself in Czech food so I can understand the flavors better.
Bedford Tower, Dublin Castle, Upper Yard. This is a cute cobblestone Georgian courtyard surrounded by beautifully old buildings. In 1907, the Irish crown jewels were stolen from this building.
Czech national dish! Slow roasted pork served with cabbage and dumplings. €10.50
Pifko Bar and Grill, Dublin IRELAND
“Pifko” means “pint” in Czech. This is a random restaurant along the River Liffey but we were looking for a change. This was the first time I’ve had traditional Czech food and I don’t think I was made into a fan. The pork was really good, but I didn’t really like the cabbage or dumplings. They were on the sour side for me and the dumplings were soggy and unappetizing. I guess I’m just not used to these flavors and textures.
The Spire of Dublin, Monument of Light, O’Connell Street. This 121.2 meter (398 feet) tall stainless steel monument is the tallest sculpture in the world! It was designed by Ian Ritchie Architects and finished on January 21, 2003. Some nicknames include The Spike, The Stiletto in the Ghetto, The Nail in the Pale, The Stiffy at the Liffey, The Erection at the Intersection, and The Pin in the Bin.
A traditional Irish dish of pork sausage, bacon, potato, onion, and parsley served with batch bread. €8.95
The Bachelor Inn, Dublin IRELAND
Mmm, this was a simple stew-like dish and VERY flavorful. I actually really liked the batch bread! It’s super light and airy and they lather it with plenty of butter. The Bachelor Inn is a cute place along the River Liffey walkway and the service was excellent (and good looking too)! We all recognized that out waiter was a diamond among the not-so attractive local population, lol! Would definitely recommend dropping in for a pint or some vittles!
“The Prick with a Stick” James Joyce statue, North Earl Street. This statue is along the shopping corridor in north Dublin, not too far from where we were staying. There’s plenty of shops and excellent people watching, lol!
Glutinous rice cakes, bitter melon, tofu skin, scallion, onion, black bean, chili oil. $11
Mission Chinese Food, San Francisco
I really enjoy the flavor of this, but I will say that the rice cakes can end up with a slimy texture. The tofu skins are a great addition for texture and flavor as are the bitter melons. Noms!
Exiting 16th Street Bart Station. Not the cleanest station, but I do like the artwork around the entrance.
Pulled pork trotter, rock shrimp, pickled mustard greens, napa cabbage, green onion, chow mein noodles. $12
Mission Chinese Food, San Francisco
Another yummy dish from MCF! I love the texture of the chow mein noodles and the combination of pork trotter and rock shrimp. It’s like surf and turf noodles. Very flavorful!
“Bending Over Backward”, Susan R. Greene 2010. Hoff Street @ 16th Street. Public mural artwork dedicated to political prisoners everywhere.
Half-rack slow-cooked for hours then covered with tangy barbecue sauce. With fresh grilled green beans and roasted spaghetti squash. $13.99
Ruby Tuesday, North Charleston SC
Bbq ribs are my weakness! These were good, but definitely on the salty side. I tried ordering “healthier” side options, but they arrived totally drenched in butter anyway so that was pointless.
Made-from-scratch garlic cheese biscuits. Mmm, these were actually very tasty! They were small but I’m sure they were loaded with calories.
Vittle Monster 