Profiterole at Bouchon in Yountville, California.

This is our second try of the desserts at Thomas Keller's restaurant - Bouchon in the heart of vineyard region of Yountville, California. These profiteroles were just to die for! This, along with the Crepe Cakes from Bouchon's other bakery in Time Warner Centre in New York certainly did not disappoint.

Fish and chips at Barbara's Fish Trap at Half Moon Bay

Award winning fish and chips place we found on our road trip to Half Moon Bay.

Frangiane Tart at Tartine, San Francisco

Tartine is one of San Francisco's most famous and most recommended bakeries by top San Francisco chefs. We braved the rain to queue at the bakery only to discover the impossibility of eating in. So we ordered our pastries to go. Ros chose the frangine tart and Connie decided to go old school with the chocolate croissant. Both were delicious but the chocolate croissant was to die for! Fresh from the oven, buttery and oh so so flaky and soft!!! There was enough crisp with the taste of sweet butter steaming across every single flaky, soft layer of yumminess! We highly recommend Tartine, and the queue is worth the wait even if you end up devouring the pastries in your car!

Rava Masala Dosa ar Saravana Bhavan in NYC

One of Ros' favorite South Asian dish... What a wonderful treat to find an authentically cooked dosa right smack in the middle of NYC!

Meltaway Pancakes from Lou Mitchell's, Chicago

Lou Mitchell's is Chicago's classic diner, and we love their 'melt away pancakes'. True to its name, this pancake is super soft and light... one order is enough for two people! The other thing we love about Lou Mitchell's is its lively, classic feel. It's a great place to bring visitors when they visit Chicago.

White Cheese with Apple and Brioche

Our first dessert: cheese with a layer of apple gelee, caramelized apple and crispy brioche. The rich cream cheese was lightened by the sweet acidity of the apple. The elegant thin baton was light and crunchy. I love this dessert even more than the soufflé that followed.

Hand-cut Fettucine, Lobster-uni Emulsion, Oscietra Caviar at L2O, Chicago

Probably the most delicious pasta dish I have tasted. This is handcut fettucini in lobster and uni emulsion with oscietra caviar. The pasta was surprisingly light and perfectly flavored. The uni and lobster emulsion; despite literally being nothing more than foam was big on flavor. It captured the essence of its ingredients; briny, salty and umami. The caviar.. oh the caviar... how can I even describe it. With or without the Michelin decorations, the meal I had in this restaurant has truly been the meal of meals for me. (Aside from my mom's cooking of course - which will always be irreplaceable)

Lobster Bisque at L2O, Chicago

Next came an innovative rendition of that famous soup - lobster bisque. The soup had the usual rich lobster flavor, but we were surprised to find a nice twist to the usual rendition. The fall leaves probably should give way to the surprise.... In addition to pieces of lobster, there were little cubes of fresh apple (one of the seasonal fruits of fall) inside the soup! It provided a delicious, sweet acidic flavor; which went surprisingly well with the deep and salty richness of the lobster bisque. I love how the soup was presented - in a little espresso Bodum cup! Because of the double layer of glass, the soup came at the perfect temperature. I guess it is these details that make the difference between 1 to 2 to 3 Michelin stars! L2O won 3 Michelin stars in 2010~!

Ahi Tuna Tartare with Avocado and Caviar at L2O, Chicago

We celebrated a very special occasion with dinner at L2O; one of Chicago's most accomplished restaurants. It is famous for its seafood and being seafood fans we are both terribly excited with the new adventure. This was the first course: a gorgeously wrapped perfect sphere made of thinly sliced fresh avocado wrapped around ahi tuna tartare. It was topped with a small dollop of caviar, which added hint of brine and taste of the sea to the milky texture of the avocado and tuna. The sphere was drizzled with the purest tasting olive oil. It was an amazing first course - quite interesting that it was entirely raw! It definitely set our expectations of the courses that follow.

Green Olive Oil Truffle from Vosges Haut Chocolat

We were super excited to find this unique sweet-with-a-twist-of-savory bite from Chicago's own chocolate boutique - Vosges Haut Chocoate; from its 'Collezione Italiana' collection. This range of truffles attempts to 'deconstruct what we know about chocolate and its mates'. The box includes handmade truffles with Taleggio Cheese, Green Olive Oil, Balsamic Vinegar, Sicilian Sea Salt and Wild Tuscan Fennel Pollen. It comes with a detailed bite-by-bite instruction on how to enjoy each piece. It does not disappoint; we were delighted with every bite. 

Butternut Squash Ravioli at Anteprima in Andersonville, Chicago

This is Anteprima's Roasted Butternut Squash Ravioli with brown butter, sage, parmigiano. A special treat; only in Fall. Ros loves this dish, and waits patiently each year for it to appear on the menu again. This year's rendition definitely did not disappoint. The pasta was light, sufficiently sweet and balanced with the slightly salty butter sauce. The smell of sage added an extra dimension of flavor to the senses. It was a delectable dish; worth the one year wait.

Tempura Donburi at Itto Sushi, Halstead, Chicago IL

We adore Itto Sushi - which has now become our favorite neighborhood restaurant. They serve delectable seafood dishes cooked in authentic Japanese fashion! The owners are warm and friendly, and we are simply amazed at the consistency in their food! The lunch specials are a great steal; given the quality. It starts from $8.25 for a donburi (like the vegetable and shrimp tempura donburi shown above which comes with a bowl of miso soup) to a few dollars more for full fish bento boxes. We highly recommend Itto Sushi, and we hope it stays for as long as possible, around the corner from our home!

Capellini Pormodoro at Pasta Palazzo, Chicago, IL

Always fresh, inexpensive and delicious! Try the pasta dishes at Pasta Palazzo, on Armitage in Chicago, IL! There's usually a lunch crowd starting noon on weekdays, but they appear to fade away by 12.30pm. Ros loves the simple pasta renditions like the capellini pormodoro on the photo above. The tomatoes are freshy roasted and very generous, as with the basil which added a lovely aroma to the dish. What a wonderful treat on a cold afternoon!