A Confession of Love For Trevese Restaurant, Los Gatos CA

Trevese is an upscale restaurant that focuses their menu on what is fresh and seasonal, and draws their inspiration from California, Asia, and Europe. The results are beautifully plated dishes that are clean, complex, flavorful, and unexpected. Everything there is nothing short of bliss for your palette.

The first time I went inside Trevese, it was when I was strolling around downtown Los Gatos with Justin, and I desperately needed to go to the bathroom. I frantically looked around and saw a restaurant located in a gorgeous mansion. I thought to myself, “Hmm… that looks like a great place to pee”. So we went inside and entered a beautifully sleek, elegant, and modern space. Immediately, I knew I came upon a great find. Since they were closing, I only had the opportunity to use their restroom. Even though they knew I was only there to relieve myself, the staff went out of their way to make sure Justin and I still had a pleasant experience. They made a point to chat with us, gave us a rundown of what their restaurant was all about, and was nice enough to escort me to the restroom. I had to say, it was the nicest bathroom experience I have ever had. I thought to myself, “Wow. Imagine what the actual dining experience is like if that was the service I got just for using their bathroom”. So I knew I had to return.

A few months later, I took Lorelai back to the restaurant so that I could actually say that I did more than just pee there. Unfortunately, Lorelai and I don’t exactly have the big bucks to eat an actual meal at Trevese. So we decided to just have a few glasses of wine in their lounge since they are also known for their extensive and well thought out wine list. That night, we ended up chatting and making friends with the restaurant manager/ sommelier. He was incredibly nice, attentive, and just an overall great guy. He poured us several different wines that all tasted amazing. Then when he overheard me telling Lorelai about my inappropriate obsession with chocolate, he brought us out two of their chocolate desserts. One was the standard Molten Lava Chocolate Cake, which was anything but standard and ordinary. The cake was dark, unfailingly moist, and oozed just the right amount of thick chocolate. On top of the cake were “espresso bits” that accentuated the darkness and depth of the cake. And of course, it came with vanilla bean gelato. Oh… but it only gets better… The second chocolate dessert is what they call, “Textures in Chocolate”. I am not exaggerating when i say that this is my FAVORITE dessert EVER. The plate comes out looking like an artistic & textural study in chocolate. It’s composed of a milk chocolate mousse, dark chocolate thin cookies, and a white chocolate “cloud”. OH MY GOD. Who knew heaven could exist on a plate? The mousse was thick, the cookies crunchy, and the white chocolate “cloud” was cold, whipped white chocolate with white chocolate shavings dispersed inside. When I eat this dessert, I close my eyes and actually believe that all is right in my life.

As you can imagine, Lorelai and I absolutely adore the manager.

Lorelai and I have returned to Trevese a few times, but always to drink and never to eat. We keep telling ourselves, “Someday… when we have money…” But thanks to our friend, we have had the opportunity to try their seared scallops with soba noodles, bacon bread, their in house bread, fries, sirloin steak sliders, and steamed mussels and clams. The last two items we actually ordered during their happy hour (ends at 6:30 pm). EVERYTHING we have eaten has never failed us. You can tell the chef put a lot of thought into the dishes and the result stems from a labor of love. Everything we have eaten has been incredibly delicious and sooo…. unique. The combinations, the preparation of the food, the flavors- it all is its own thing. And I cannot say enough about how great and unpretentious their staff is. They place a high value on customer service and make it a point to know you as you, not just as a customer. All of this combined equates to a great place to kick back with your buddies, chat, and enjoy life as it’s meant to be enjoyed.

And to our friend- thank you for indulging our obsessive, irrational, insatiable love for food, wine, and good company.

Trevese will always have a place in my stomach and heart.

My Favorite Hunting Grounds- Santana Row… and tips on picking up a bartender?

I hate to admit it, but one of my favorite places to go out in San Jose is Santana Row. It’s completely yuppy and full of people with way too much money (Bikes with Dior designed seats??). But then again, it’s not like I have much better options. The only other real place to go out for drinks in San Jose is downtown, and I’m sorry- but I’m not a poor college student and I don’t own a bullet proof vest. Besides, downtown has the wanna be thugs and gangstas, whereas Santana Row has the arrogant guys willing to throw down the Benjamins. Let’s get real here. Which place would you prefer as a young, single, professional woman? Exactly.

Since I can’t even afford to buy a sock from many of the stores at Santana Row, I mainly go there for the restaurants and bars. I love the drinks and food at most of the restaurants, and I love watching (laughing at) the people that stroll in throughout the night.

Santana Row just has a special place in my heart, as it is the place where Justin and I had the best date of our lives (together, of course). I’ve also had a few other dates there as well, and the guys always enjoyed themselves. But then again, they were with me, so it’s already a given that they’re going to have the best time of their lives. And just a couple weeks ago when I was at the bar at Sino, I got to meet Frank Gore, Maurice Hicks, and Zak Keasey from the 49ers! I almost peed myself. (P.S. I’m a die hard 49er Faithful. If you’re a Raiders fan, just stop reading and go away).

Single People Alert- It’s also a decent place to meet people and grab some numbers. That is if you’re into: metrosexual men, overly cocky men who aren’t even attractive, gorgeous men who know it, gay men who don’t know they’re gay, women whose outfits cost more than my entire savings account, cougars, pro football players, or hot, awesome, funny women like me. 🙂

So here are some brief reviews:

Thea Restaurant- Upscale Mediterranean dining, and one of the most beautiful restaurants I’ve dined in. What you’ll find- mediocre food, tiny portions, huge prices.

Pizza Antica- Old World, casual Italian style restaurant that specializes in pizza (obviously). Their pizza is out of this world, and don’t miss out on the ricotta gnocci! Soft pillows of pleasure (haha, why does that sound like a big girl porn flick?).

Maggiano’s- A more formal Italian restaurant with HUGE portions and decent prices. Great for group dinners and those times you want to go into a food coma for the next 3 days. Their stuffed mushrooms, mushroom ravioli, profiteroles, and apple crostada are all absolutely amazing.

Blowfish Sushi – A sushi restaurant with an identity crisis. It can’t decide whether it’s a restaurant or rave lounge. Sushi is good, but way overpriced. You come here hungry and leave here hungry- unless you’re willing to shell out $40-$50 per person. One of my favorite dishes ever is here- the Pyramid of Tartare appetizer. My second favorite bartender is also here- Adam. So insanely adorable and makes me drool more than the sushi. He knows my name but also as the “Girl in the Red” and always hooks me up. I bought 3 shots and 2 drinks from him last night and only paid $15. HOLLA!

Straits – Asian fusion restaurant that converts into a mini dance club late at night, despite the fact that the space is small. The resulting effect is feeling like you’re a sardine in a can, so it’s not really fun for me and I tend to avoid it. Always tons of young, single people and sugar daddies. Hostesses look like they could be street walkers. Food is awesome though, as long as you’re willing to pay $20 or more per plate. You cannot miss out on the roti prata and origami seabass!

Sino- My favorite restaurant/lounge at Santana Row. It’s gorgeous, has amazing Chinese food, and a good atmosphere. It tends to get really packed on Thursday and Saturday nights with all the types of people I previously mentioned, so it makes for fun people watching. If you want your tongue to have an orgasm, order these dishes: Kobe Beef Sliders, Crab Risotto, and Char Siu Chilean Sea Bass. Those are all so GOOOD. I have fantasies about the crab risotto. It’s one of those dishes you want to simultaneously savor and devour. My absolute favorite bartender, Alvin, works here too. He is even more gorgeous than Adam and always hooks me up. He has a heavy hand, which I love. And to be honest, I’d like to find out what else those hands are capable of… (For you men- Fallon is the attractive, female bartender there. But my cousin, Robby, has already claimed her as his wife.)

Sino is also fortunate enough to be the place where my cousin, Minkus, threw up into the middle of the bar crowd. I pretended not to know him, and subsequently begin pointing and laughing with the rest of the crowd.

Hope my tips helped all you party people out there! You’ll most likely catch me there on a Saturday night, blissfully buzzed and drooling over Alvin.

**Bartenders- How can I pull off picking up a bartender when they probably get numbers thrown at them every night? Help a girl out!

Kicking 2008 In the Butt

As part of an effort to completely overhaul my life in the next year, I’ve decided to start a blog to track my progress. And let’s face it- it’s hard enough being a 25 year old single woman trying to make it on her own in Silicon Valley. So why not put it all out there so strangers can show me love, threaten me, send me money, food, body hair, etc.

I hated this past year. I’m still torturing myself over the same man I was a year ago, I hate my job, and I still can’t afford to eat at Ruth’s Steakhouse in San Francisco. What kind of life is that? So here’s a breakdown of what I’m trying to accomplish in the new year:

1. The Guy: Justin. I fell hard for him the moment he first made me laugh. Immediately, I saw a guy who was good and sincere and so many other things- he was everything I was looking for. And it seemed like I was everything he was looking for. We dated for a few months, until he decided he was not yet ready to take that step into a serious relationship- consequently breaking me. I’ve known him for over a year now and not once have I succeeded in not being in love with him no matter how many times I’ve tried. So I took a break from him for a few months, and then decided I was strong enough to be his friend as I still wanted him in my life. We’re currently doing the friendship thing, but it’s gotten harder and harder. Old feelings have re-surfaced for both of us, but he is still indecisive and thus still torturing me. So now I have to decide- is he worth keeping in my life? Can I be his friend knowing that he may never be mine? And if I need to cut him out, can I? What really kills me is that I always thought we were so good together. We ARE good together. It’s still evident even in our “friendship”. Here is a man who embodies everything I love in a man- and I can’t even have him.

I need to close this situation once and for all. Whether it means cutting him out of my life, going on a million dates to get him out of my system, accepting him as a friend and nothing more, or… the sweetest possibility- us. Finally. But whatever it is, I’ve got to do something because I can’t keep torturing myself over this guy for another year. I’m so tired. I can feel it in my bones.

2. The Job: I work at prominent corporation in Silicon Valley that will be known in this blog as “Silicon Valley Giant” aka “SVG”. I love the company, but I hate my job. I sit here and analyze lines of data all day and I work in IT. My degree and passion is in Communication. Obviously there is a gap here. So this year, I am going to try to move into the Communications field within my company, and hopefully change my dismal salary to a decent one. I want to love what I do, and I want to afford the lifestyle that enables me to travel, get a bookcase rather than using cardboard boxes, and satisfies my appetite for incredible (aka expensive) food. Speaking of food…

3. I love food. I love wine. I love trying new restaurants. So this blog will also be about any incredible food and wine I have the opportunity to experience. I don’t think anyone should be denied a really fabulous dish just because they have no clue where to find it. Also, well… I just really love talking about food (and eating it!).

And because I love eating, I have to counteract that with some sort of physical activity. Sex, if I’m lucky. But also through yoga. I am a devout and obsessed yoga student. I love what it does for me physically and spiritually. My last goal is to incorporate the teachings and principles of yoga into my daily life, because I think the world would be a more beautiful place if we all did just that. Oh yeah, and to get some.

So here’s to hoping 2008 will be a MUCH better year than 2007! And because I am an attention whore, please feel free to leave any comments- even if they are to just tell me how badly I smell.