Merry belated Christmas everyone! I hope everyone had a very merry Christmas these last few days and wish you guys all a happy holiday <3 I, on the other hand, spent my Christmas and eve at work, but it’s O-KAY because I’m taking off to Thailand in a whee bit few hours. And because of that, there is a cuuuute little restaurant in Pasadena I’ve been meaning to blog about and I figured, might as well get it out of the way before Thailand take off!
This is an American restaurant located in North Pasadena and I swear, I never would have discovered this little gem if it weren’t for a new friend I made! (Things happen for a reason). This place is called Bacchus’ Kitchen. Now from the outside, it looks like a regular house. What I loved about this place was the free parking lot located on the side (Believe me, this is a plus for me considering most of Pasadena means searching for parking just to eat). BUT on the inside, it is decorated oh so loveely!
The red ribbons in honor of the Christmas spirit. Check out the wine bottles propped upside-down in front of the light for the dim ambiance. And look at these old and rugged doors just propped on the walls. Who would have thought of that?? It’s brilliant and it works! I like the decor.
caprese amuse bouche. A little appetizer, compliments of the chef. This looks more like a bite-size of a caprese salad. Served chilled and was very refreshing!
cheese & charcuterie plate. I think our first good hour was chatting away over white wine and cheese and meats. This IS my favorite part of the hour! Oh can these just be the only part?? Now every charcuterie board must have a creamy and milky cheese (this one is brie) and every plate must have a sharp cheddar. We also had some blue cheese, salami, sliced cured sausages and much moree! Some strawberries and fig butter in the centre thank you very much <3
tandoori shrimp with quince chutney. I apologize for the dim lighting. I tried to do the best I can with my camera light without taking away the romantic lighting that the owner intended. 4 large jumbo size shrimps, perfectly seared on the edges and full of tandoori juicy flavors.
pan seared gnocchi with house made gnocchi, panchetta, and rosemary garlic cream sauce. This was probably my favorite!! It’s hard to tell but there is seared round and thinly sliced bacon on top (Reminds me of the bacon in Amsterdam). The gnocchi was crunchy and crispy yet soft and chewy on the inside.
pan seared scallops with cauliflower puree, roasted cauliflower, poached green raisins, olive oil, and balsamic reduction. My friend convinced me to use extra lighting to take the picture and I think now you can see how white the cauliflower is. It almost reminds me of Elmer’s white glue from elementary school.. Otherwise, the scallops were perfectly cooked into chewy softness and alternating with the more crunchy cauliflower for contrast in texture.
So this concludes this blog. My friend knows the restaurant owner and hence, I was able to try a random restaurant in Pasadena, which I thoroughly enjoy. You can never rely on Yelp alone to discover the good restaurants of this world. A lot of it is also over hyped or just not a favorite to populate on the search menu. The best way is still through friends and word by mouth in my opinion.
So… stay tuned to hear from me in Thailand. I anticipate a lot more eating, a lot more street food and way more adventure. <3 Happy Holidays everyone!
