I know I've been a bit MIA recently but I have a good excuse...really! My dad's in town visiting from out of state. We've been spending a lot of time eating out and cruisin' around town, so my kitchen activities have been pushed to the back burner temporarily. I can't help it- my dad's one of the coolest people to hang out with. He loves to try new food and since he used to live in Sac he'd rather go explore a farmers' market with me then hit up a museum. In fact today, we went and checked out the Thursday's farmers' market on Florin Road. I'd never been there and was actually quite impressed with the selection. Mind you, I'm not about to give up my Sunday W Street farmers' market buuuuuuuuuut Florin had a lot more selection then the weekday markets by the Capitol. It's also really handy if you want to get some fresh produce to cook up for a Friday or Saturday night dinner. I also dialed him in to my favorite banh mi joint (Duc Huong) and we popped by there to grab some sandwiches for lunch and a few of their delicious garlic rolls.
Yesterday, we checked out the WPA Rock Garden in Land Park which I immediately fell in love with. Have you been there before? Nestled in the middle of the park, right next to Fairytale Town is this tranquil little garden. It's been there for over 70 years (built as part of the New Deal's Work Projects Administration). If you're curious- it's on 15th Avenue just off of Land Park Drive. Park on the side of Fairytale Town, just follow the foot path by the sign. It'll lead you through the lovingly groomed bushes, trees and paths. The garden was so peaceful! I could definitely see myself coming here often and settling in on the circular stone bench under a crepe myrtle with a book and some coffee for some quiet time.
Afterwards my dad and I went over to Harry's Cafe for lunch. We filled up on big servings of chow fun and bun; when we left, we noticed someone was drying jujubes on a large tarp around the corner from the restaurant. Jujubes are a type of Chinese date. Raw they taste a crisp apple. But oftentimes, they're dried and used in teas, medicines or eaten as a snack. I thought it was pretty awesome that they were just drying them on the city street, but the worrywart part of me was thinking, "Gee, I hope a dog doesn't pee on them!"
