Niko’s Pizzeria in San Pedro, CA

A few months ago a new restaurant opened in down town San Pedro. J was rather excited about the opening because he was petty sure that the owner was the same guy as a previous pizzeria that he liked. I am told the pizza was fantastic until it was sold and the new owners didn’t do as good of a job.

We went to Niko’s Pizzeria the same weekend it opened and the food was delicious. We have been back a few times and even ordered their pizza to go. We are a huge fan of their Greek pizza. Speaking of all things Greek, one of the owners who is a chef and the mastermind behind the menu is Nick who is of Greek heritage. If you are lucky you will perhaps meet his mom Connie who is a character and super funny. The first night we went there she actually sat and chatted with us for a while.

Every time that we went I always forgot to bring my camera with me, but not last Tuesday, I went prepared!! J and I went for a long walk with Indi prior to walking to the restaurant…we were both very hungry…and went a little crazy. We started with some PBR beer. Now I know it is a light beer and well not very foofoo, but I like it…and I wanted something light. Oh, and it comes in a nice frozen schooner!! So we started with the Potato Skin Nachos…

The deliciousness above was followed by our main dishes which came with either soup or salad and garlic bread. I got the salad and J got the soup which was Minestrone:

I ordered the Seafood Linguini (crab meat lobster, shrimp and clams, sautéed with garlic cream sauce, served over linguini pasta) which was good. J got the Tortellini Salad (cheese filled tortellini served cold, tossed with pesto, red onions, roasted peppers, feta cheese, artichoke hearts, bacon bits on a bed of sautéed spinach) which was very different and YUMMY!

Just in case you are wondering, yes, we did take home leftovers!

Other dishes that I have tried which were awesome are Shrimp Scampi, Chicken BBQ pizza, and Fried Calamari. While their pizza is not the real Italian style pizza, the dough is delicious and the quality of the food is really good. You’ve got to love a place where they make their own ranch dressing from scratch! 🙂

If you are in the area, you must check it out!!

399 West 6th Street San Pedro CA 90731
Phone 310-241-1400
Fax 310-241-1479
Monday – Sunday – 10am till Midnight

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Nosh Cafe in San Pedro, CA

I love this little place in down town San Pedro called Nosh Cafe. The staff is very friendly, the food is always good, and solid. The owner Susan in always there and on hand.

It is no secret to those who know me that my love for San Pedro didn’t develop at first sight, second sight, or 10th sight for that matter. It wasn’t until I moved here that I realized what this little city is all about. I love the fact that it is multi-ethnic, there are a bunch of cool artists that live and have galleries here, it is not soaked with corporate restaurants and shops (well not yet, but that’s a whole other post and frankly that I have plenty to say about), you will find lot of independently owned and operated shops, and there is a huge sense of community.

Nosh cafe is one of those small businesses where you will walk in and find the owner working behind the counter. She will be either the person who will take your order or even bring your food to your table. J and I have been very much into spending our money in town and contributing to the local economy, especially those independently owned.

Last week we went to Nosh Cafe once again for breakfast. The night before I had read in the paper that the front windows of the shop had been broken by vandals. Well this is no surprise in down town Pedro, yes, we have some serious issues in this area about stuff like this. But seriously, there is no need to break the window of this woman’s restaurant which she has only opened for less than a year. Things like this add to the expenses– it is hard enough for a new business to survive and this is the last thing that she needs.

But anyway, the point was I was on a mission to go and support Susan and of course have a wonderful breakfast. I took these pictures the last time we went there. I had a fantastic croissant with brown sugar bacon and egg, and J had a YUMMY Nutella and banana breakfast wrap. You can then sit and eat your food while reading the paper or listening to your ipod. Life can’t get better than this! Oh I almost forgot, they make their own croissant; I almost died when I heard that…and it is sooooooo good! Seriously, I don’t remember the last time I went to a restaurant where they made their own croissants!

If you are in the area please be sure to stop by for either breakfast or lunch!

Nosh Cafe/Deli
617 S. Centre Street
San Pedro, CA 90731
310-514-1121

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Indi Friday

These are a sequence of pictures taken last Saturday night while we were in June Lake. The last time Indi and Tucker (and their respecting parents) spent the weekend together all hell broke loose. Indi was a little too eager about giving Tucker kisses and he just was not into it. Now you would think a girl would give up and take the growling and turning of the head to the opposite side, as a clear sign of “I don’t like you, stay away from me.” But no, not my little girl. Next thing we know there is some loud screaming/crying and growling and poor little Indi walked away with a few scratches and one deep cut. We had to clean and superglue her cut. It was rather traumatic for all of us, but we all survived it. 🙂

I was a little nervous about how things would go on our June Lake weekend. Fortunately, everything went a little smoother. There was still some growling, but not as much. We had to make sure that Miss Indi did not give poor Tucker too many kisses. Poor girl, she is just so loving!!!

While we were all hanging out doing our own thing Tucker decided to lay down on Indi’s bed. So Indi was a little lost at first, and wondering where she should go lounge now that her bed had been taken. J was sitting on a chair next to the bed and he called her over. She slowing and cautiously approached and while he was petting her she decided to sit. Next thing we know her butt is resting conveniently on Tucker’s back. It was quite a funny scene

A few minutes later, Indi decided it was time to lay down. She slowing lowered herself keeping a safe distance. Tucker in the mean time could care less.

 

A little while went by and next thing we know Indi moves in a little closer. Of course we had to take a picture because they looked super cute.

A little while later Indi moves even closer for a little spooning, and Tucker could still care less.

Time to sleep with our legs stretched. Indi has to make sure that she stays connected by strategically placing her paws on Tucker’s back….oh the cuteness of these two…they will probably never be a couple…but I have a feeling that Indi won’t give up!!!

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June Lake

We are back in June Lake! I love this place, it is just so incredibly serene and beautiful. It has been snowing ever since we got here and everything is white white white and gorgeous.  I took the picture above from our bedroom’s window as the wind is blowing and it is snowing lightly outside.

This time around we came up with two friends and have been sharing our living quarters. Even though there are four of us with our respective dogs, in a small place things have been nice and comfortable. There is a lot of “doing your own thing” as well as fun conversations. The boys have been going snowboarding during the day and us girls and doggies have been doing our own thing. Thankfully, this time around the dogs are getting along much better, there is less growling…even though Indi doesn’t give and still tries to give Tucker kisses. He just is not interested one bit!!!

Our morning routing has been pretty fun. Wake up to the smell of coffee made by J, eat breakfast, then the dogs and I have been going for a long walk and play time. It has been a bit of challenge walking the two doggies together; Indi usually is on the left and Tucker on the right. Then there is the occasional pull to the right, left, forward or one dragging behind too busy smelling whatever is worth smelling. We all took a couple of tumbles yesterday at the beginning of our walk when we were still trying to figure out how to walk together in the snow. The ground was slippery and bam! down I went and the poor dogs came down with me. Thankfully, there was no one in the street to witness the ridiculousness of my fall and later attempt to get up while still holding on to the brats!

Once back, as the dogs took naps from their exhausting walk and running around in the snow, I have been pretty much preparing for my mid-term on Monday. I must have written about 60 flash cards yesterday. Music has been flowing in the background. Elena is working on her art stuff. I wished I had more time to go out, write, and just do my own things, but Dr. P. has pooped on my parade…. 🙂

The food this past weekend has been amazing. J, Elena, and I have been cooking. It has been a yummy vegetarian weekend: fire roasted tomatoes and black bean soup, homemade guacamole and chips, cheese quesadilla, leek soup, asheh reshteh, a hearty Persian spinach and noodle soup, and cheese and more cheese with crackers and apple slices.

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Indi Friday

It is no secret that Indi looooooves her daddy. Occasionally, she will sit on her daddy’s lap and get some serious dose of affection. Indi of course will reciprocate and give her daddy sloppy sweet kisses. It is funny looking back when we first adopted her, J would really get annoyed with her when she kissed his face. Nowadays, things have change, Indi’s sweet kisses have grown on him. The picture above is an example of Indi hugging and showering her daddy with lots of kisses and making sure that his face is squeaky clean!!! awwww!!

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Indi Friday

Indi is hard at work…learning new tricks! I bought a new book called 101 Dog Tricks. Indi and I have been practicing, I have to admit, it is NOT easy. For the past week we have been practicing “roll over,” “sit pretty,” and “balance and catch.” The last one has been the only one that Indi has been able to master perfectly thus far. She has to sit and keep her head still in order to balance the treat on her nose. Then on my command she can throw it up and catch it, hopefully, in the air. Hence the picture above. She waited long enough for me to take pictures. Quite the model, isn’t she?!?!

woof woof, kiss kiss!

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Indi Friday

I tried reading my mama’s homework…it was something about teaching writing (yawn). I work on my intellect often, but somehow, I always manage to fall asleep…especially, when there is no treat involved…

woof woof, kiss kiss!

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Fishy Sunday

I love, love, love a good toasted bagel with cream cheese and lox. As of late, every time I see this combination on a menu I make sure that I order it. It is rather ironic because the first time I heard about this combo I was horrified. Fish for breakfast???? YAK! I was introduced to bagels and cream cheese in the US while hanging out with Jewish friends in high school.

J and I have been on a no carb diet since mid December. While we have been eating well, cooking at times is challenging because I have to keep things different and creative. This morning we made our own version of bagels with cream cheese and lox! We substituted the bagel with slices of cucumber and tomato. OHHH so simple but sooo good.

This is all you need to do: Slice some cucumbers and tomatoes. Sprinkle some salt, add cream cheese, some capers, and top with lox.

Our lunch was rather yummy too. We had pan fried sole with broccolini and shirazy salad with a little twist. we have been eating sole regularly lately. It is so light and good.

I generally flour the fish, to which I add salt, cayenne pepper, and oregano. J pan fried the broccolini with some olive oil, white wine, and garlic. Salad Shirazy is usually made with cucumbers, tomatoes, and red onion tossed with a fresh lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper dressing. I added some avocado since we had some.

Such yummy food and so simple!

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Little things that make you happy

Ever since I have lived in So Cal I have only bought myself one scarf. I actually bought it right before I went back home a few years ago. It wasn’t a pretty scarf or anything. It was black and too short, but it served its purpose when it was used. A few years later it was borrowed from a friend who needed one for a trip and it was given back to me I think a year or so later. I have never needed or used the scarf in LA because it never gets that cold around here.

Something funny happened last year. During a work Christmas present exchange I received a purple scarf. The timing could have not been more perfect because we actually had a cold winter and I ended up using it a lot. Not only is the scarf a color that I like but it is nice and long, just how I like it!

Then something else happened, my friend Keiko brought me a beautiful pink, white, maroon, and gray scarf from Japan. Oh how much I love this scarf, it is just gorgeous and I have received many complements every time I wore it. It is even longer than the other, and somehow warmer. We are having yet another cold winter around here this year and I have been using both of my wonderful warm and pretty scarves.

Then somehow I received three, yes THREE new scarves this week. The first was given to me by my friend Nicole as a belated Christmas present on Wednesday. I love it and I wore it the same night that I received it and it kept me warm while walking from one class to the other and to my car. So long and soooooo pretty. The second and third were given to me by J’s mom on Thursday. One is green and white and the other is blue and white. She actually made me two because when she asked me what my favorite color was, I, the true to the bone Aries, answered, “I don’t have one favorite color, I have two: green and blue.” These two are different than the other three, J’s mom actually crocheted them for me. And I love them and in the two days that I have worn them, I have received several complements. And they are long long long, warm, pretty, and just awesome.

Amazing how little things in life can just make you sooo happy. I so love my scarves…so pretty, oh sooo pretty! 🙂

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Indi Friday

I supposed Indi is well on her way in becoming a very good doggy model. She has become so good about posing for the camera and now she even winks at you!!! hahahaha!!! Talking about lucky shot! This is more like, “mama, please leave me alone and let me sleep in peace on my comfy bed.”

Wink Wink, Kiss Kiss!

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