Hamburger Diary: In-N-Out/ Petaluma, CA

As the result of my travel exploits,  I enjoyed my fair share of food firsts in a smattering of foreign locales this summer-- Prikle in Dubrovnik,  Kurtoskalac in Budapest, Rogač in Hvar --just to name a few. However, the most pleasurable food first for me was gobbled up in good ole, Petaluma, California, during a pit stop down the Pacific Coast Highway.

What was this culinary delicacy that made such a lasting first impression on me?? An In-N-Out Burger! Yes, I've never had a freaking In-N-Out Burger.  I must say that I've read about them for YEARS,  in venerable publications, such as US Weekly, People and In Touch, as there is always some starving starlet or drug-addled celebrity who gets mobbed by the papparazi, as she/he hits the In-N-Out drive-thru after a loss at the Oscars or Emmys.  Needless to say, I was eager to try out the In-N-Our burger to see if all the slavering West Coast hype about the chain was correct.   

I was with Jason, a former West Coaster, who lived in SF for an extensive period of time, so he took the lead on what we ordered, which was:

2 burgers, both Animal Style

2 orders of fries, one regular and one Animal Style 

1 Diet Coke

1 Coke

For a fast-food joint, In-N-Out definitely delivers in taste and expediency. The burger was juicy, well cooked, and flavorful.  The fixings were very fresh. The buns were toasted more than they usually are at any burger place that I've visited. I can imagine that the toasted buns would give the burger some structure, when one bites down through the burger.  But, when over-toasted, like ours were, the buns get crumbly, difficult to handle, and, thereby, messy to eat.  IMHO, the french fries were nothing special and too salty.  Perhaps a fluke?  Overall, this is the best fast-food burger I've had and I would be happy to have a second the next time I make it out West.

In-N-Out 

010 Lakeville St.
Petaluma, California 94952

Sunday through Thursday 10:30 a.m.-1:00 a.m.
Friday and Saturday 10:30 a.m.-1:30 a.m.

Madonna Eats Her 1st NYC Pizza Slice

My incredulity is staggering, but I'm ever so pleased that she abandoned her English accent!



Via: Grub Street

Good Morning

Have a hankering for an omelet? It's not as straight-forward as you would think....

Via: Eat Me Daily

Fried Chicken is the New Burger??!!

Momofuku's Combination Fried Chicken Platter: Southern and Korean

So New York Magazine has decreed fried chicken as THE it dish of 2009? I grew up in Alabama, so I have no objections to that.  Be sure to check out The Bucket List, which ranks the top 10 fried chicken joints in NYC, with Momofuku Noodle Bar's plate of poultry ranking #1.  The photo spread will make your mouth water. 

Via: NyMag.com

Prikle - Dubrovnik doughnut

Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

Stormica: 1st meal in Zadar (Croatia)

The rissoto was cooked perfectly! Squid was tender, very flavorful dish overall. Sasha had a fish stew and polenta, which was mediocre at best!
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

Summertime Slump

Although, I've had a number of memorable meals and chowed down at some notable spots this summer, I have not been updating Oinking very frequently, due to several limiting factors:

1) Beach: Sunscreen and sand can truly fuck-up a computer, including a blackberry.

2) Booze: Too many sickly-sweet cocktails and fruity assortments of sangrias yielding bouts of writing inertia and trips to K-mart to get my migraine meds.

3) Wanderlust: Prague, Vienna, Budapest, Napa and WHEELING! Planning a trip to Croatia in September (Any restaurant suggestions will be appreciated!)

4) Apartment Move: If you live in New York and you are a pack-rat like me, then you know what an arduous process moving can be. Purging useless junk (but very pretty junk) that has been sitting in an overstuffed studio for 3 years is a chore. The hassle was compounded with the fact that I had a broken air-conditioner in the new apartment and what seemed like an exorbitant amount of cigarette butts, cat dander and an endless trail of dried kitty nibble nuggets to expel, leftover from the previous, discourteous tenant.

But mostly, I blame my dryspell on laziness. On that note, one of my favorite things about summer:



Watermelon and salt! Fun with NaCl!


Ciao!

More food: Kurtoskalacs

Kurtoskalacs=Tube-like Pastry
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

Street Food on Chain Bridge

Choices, choices!
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

First Meal in Budapest!

Stuffed cabbage and a side of cabbage!
Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T