This birthday was one of the nicest birthday! During the day Mark & I went to the beach. We’re calling this month “Tan-uary” cause we’re working on getting our tan back 
And when we got there usually there’s at least another person but there wasn’t today.
For dinner Mark didn’t tell me where we were going. I did guess it before we left the house but he still wouldn’t say. We went to Cafe Boulud in The Brazilian Court Hotel & Beach Club. It was soo nice! We got there for happy hour & had dinner outside in the courtyard. Mark ordered braised shortrib & I had pampano.
Beach during the day & a nice dinner was the perfect way to celebrate my 32nd. Hope everyone had a great New Year’s… Happy 2013!
Anguilla has lots of little boutique hotels along all the pretty beaches. And the beaches are like no other! The sand is white & the water is crystal clear blue. I’ve never seen beaches like ‘em. We did rent a car while there & we went to a few lunches & dinners at Ku Hotel. There are mixed reviews about Ku online written by people who have stayed there. In my opinion, you should definitely hang out at Ku. It is right on Shoal Bay Beach (one of the most popular beaches in Anguilla). And I loved having lunch & dinner right there practically on the beach. The food is good! For lunch I always got the spicy fish sandwich. And for dinner, grouper.
When you visit St. Kitts you have to go to dinner one night at Spice Mill Restaurant. It’s on the more quiet side of the island on Cockleshell Beach that faces the island of Nevis. Same side as The Beach House, different beach though. And if you’re at Spice Mill & there’s no cloud on top of Nevis take a picture cause that barely ever happens. Mark got a streak & I got mahi mahi… again
We got there before they opened at 6pm & they were super nice about letting us come in & have a drink at their bar down by the beach. Look inside Discover St. Kitts magazine & there’s an ad in there for a complimentary free drink, The Stingray (their signature drink). David, the chef came out & we talked to him. He was from Boston. The owner Roger came to our table after dinner & gave us a free drink. Everyone on this island is so nice! Some of the nicest people in the Caribbean.
One night in St. Kitts we went to dinner at The Beach House. Our friend Doug suggested it for dinner since he’s been to the island before. Check out all his travels at Professor Beach.
One suggestion I have if you go here for dinner is go before the sun sets! Not necessarily cause you will be able to see the sunset from the restaurant but for the beautiful views you’ll see on the drive there. We left our place when it was just getting dark & that wasn’t such a good idea. We missed out on all the views from on top the mountain you driving through to get to the restaurant. You can see the green mountains that make up the island & both the Atlantic Ocean & the Caribbean Sea on each side.
Getting there is cray-cray! I’ll warn you the road is winding and has a ton of holes. The drivers swerve all over the place, driving slowly though to prevent a flat tire. Once you arrive to The Beach House the drive will be sooo worth it! The restaurant is so nice! I felt like I was somewhere in the Hamptons. If celebrdees came to this island this is where they’d make reservations. I thought I saw Anderson Cooper but it was just a look-a-like in the dimmed lighting
Beach House is right on Turtle Beach and it’s all open… no walls to block the views of Christophe Harbour, the pretty sand & all the pretty views of St. Kitts. There are just white drapes hanging on the post (like you see on their website.) The service was fast. The server 1st brings you pumpkin bread & 2 butters (a bleu cheese & a walnut honey). Mark ordered a steak & said it was one of the best steaks he’s had! I got the Mahi Mahi.
The restaurant opens at 5:30pm & arriving early is not a problem, they let you sit at the bar & have a drink & then seat you.
Last night we went to dinner at Saddle Peak Lodge. It’s in the canyon between Malibu & Calabasas. It’s very rustic & there’s different lodges & other little rustic shops & restaurants in the area. I wanted to show Mark this place cause he loves this type of atmosphere & to show him a different side of California in hopes to move here after our 5-year travel trip!!! I ordered the salmon & Mark got the grilled Jidori chicken. The food was so good! They use all different sauces. With my salmon came a carrot puree & dill and yogurt. Sounds gross but it was really good. And they have pretzel bread!
We went here last night (I refuse to say it or write it). Mark got a burrito & I got chicken soft tacos. The place is decorated with low rider bikes, mexican art, lots of crosses & religious statues, graffiti filled walls & music blaring. Ghetto fabulous decor & the food was okay. Mexican food on the west coast uses corn tortillas. They’re healthier for you vs. the flour ones.
Corn: 50 calories Flour: 150 calories
10% calories from fat 30% calories from fat
1 milligram of sodium 140 milligrams of sodium
We didn’t get any drinks but I wanna got back for their happy hour & try their margaritas.
Today Mark & I went to Malibu Kitchen. It’s a rustic place. I felt like I was somewhere in Maine. Homemade soups with homemade labels, lots of different bags of chips & pretzels that aren’t sold in most stores. My favorite are those pretzel chips & they had Tuscan three cheese flavor. Lots of people have been here…
They had the cutest Valentine’s Day treats. Huge cupcakes the size of my head, homemade <3 shaped sugar cookies with sprinkles & Vday messages written on them, chocolate chip cookies the size of a plate.
After we went to go see “Just Go With It” It was cute. Throughout the movie they make fun of plastic surgery. I was shocked to see someone have a little part in the movie. Hint: Beverly Hills housewife (no… not Taylor).
Happy Valentine’s Day… what are your plans?
Last night I met Meredith at this sushi place in Santa Monica called Sushi Roku. We got there while their happy hour specials were going on. So everything we ordered was $5! Except my ginger lychee mojito which was not on the list of specials but it was sooo worth it!
We ordered a whole bunch of appetizers & split them: A spicy rock shrimp jalapeno roll, a shrimp tempura with asparagus roll, chicken yakitori skewers with teriyaki & yuzu ginger relish & another spicy tuna dish.
I parked right by the Santa Monica pier & it was so cute with all the rides lit up.
Yesterday I got another burger from The Habit Burger Grill. They’re only in California & Arizona. They char-grill their burgers “on the flat grill” (as Mark had to describe it to me). Five Guys Burgers & Fries grills their burgers on an actual grill. Their burgers smelled like McDonald’s but tasted better. They serve other sandwiches & salads & milkshakes. The fries reminded me of Wendy’s fries…. so good!
Mark & I went to dinner last night at NOBU here in the BU. So many celebs go there… Victoria & David Beckham, Cindy Crawford, Jennifer Aniston & Courteney Cox, Suzanne Somers, Matthew McConaughey, Sienna Miller… and guess who we saw???? No one. Oh well, I’m sure well go back cause everything was really good.
I ordered their drink special, a blackberry vanilla bean martini. It wasn’t like a normal martini that just taste like straight vodka. It had a berry taste & see the dark specs from the vanilla bean… just like vanilla bean ice cream.
At NOBU you order dishes & they’re really small & they come out one at a time. It was our first time here so we asked the server to help us out. He said we should order 1 cold dish, 1 hot dish & a sushi roll.
First, we ordered the edamame for an appetizer. The first dish was the yellowtail sashimi with jalapenos that was good. I usually don’t eat raw fish like this but the jalapeno gave it crunch & made it spicy. Then the rock shrimp tempura which was just like the bang bang shrimp you can get at other restaurants. The lettuce was very lemony. Then we got the softshell crab roll…. omgee! It was the BEST sushi I’ve ever had!! Seriously, it was so soft & all the fish they serve is fresh from that day. I will definitely go back & order that again.
There are 23 locations so if you’re in New York, Vegas, L.A. or somewhere like Dubai, Budapest or Moscow you should go here for dinner.
