California Cuisine

Remember when sushi was something that only Californians (and millons of Japanese people) ate? (Think Claire in The Breakfast Club.)

California is definitely waaaaaaaaaaaay ahead of Memphis in terms of healthy eating. While in Sacramento I read a story about a Montessori school that hired a chef, yes a CHEF, to cook nutritious meals and teach the children (pre-schoolers!) about whole foods and healthy eating. (Seriously it is worth going through the long registration process to read that article.)

At the kickass San Francisco Exploratorium there was a cafe that had a salad bar, fancy sandwiches, fresh fruit and vegetable juices, smoothies, and all kinds of yummy looking stuff. (They also had some candy and other junk foods but they were far from the main focus.)

California has a chain of affordable natural foods markets called Trader Joe's that has all kinds of amazing and nutritious things to eat. Warren and I bought some organic yogurt, fresh fruit, artichoke dip, gouda, sourdough bread, a fresh salad, a burrito, edamame, carrot juice, and some chocolate coins without spending a fortune. Then we had a family feast on the beach near Santa Barbara.

In Ventura we went to the Farmer's Market and got fresh strawberries, grapes, guavas, tangerines, and apples. I have never seen Satchel eat so much fruit in his life. It was like he couldn't get enough. Ventura definitely made an impact on him. He was asking for late night snacks of carrots and apples. One day we had lunch at The Natural Cafe with Warren's sister and her kids. The menu had kid favorites such as grilled cheese sandwiches and chocolate milkshakes, but they were made with all natural ingredients. I had a yummy Buddha burrito and Warren ate fish tacos. The place was packed and it was like a normal restaurant...not something "weird" or for "those vegetarians" if you know what I mean. Like normal people could eat natural foods in broad daylight! Then Warren's sister told us that drinks containing high fructose corn syrup weren't allowed in the public schools!

I could so live in Ventura.

But I digress.

Even the Great Mall in Milpitas offered a variety of yummy eats. Warren and I laughed at the fact that the food court boasted a Chinese, Japanese, Thai, and Korean restuarant. (In addition to Mexican, Indian, American, etc.) As we were eating Satchel commented, "There sure are a lot of Japanese people in California." Then added, "Hey! We're Japanese!"

Both boys ate their weight in miso soup on our trip and snacked on tofu, seaweed, and rice balls as much as possible. We went to several sushi places, a Japanese noodle house, and of course, had Warren's mom's homecooked Japanese delights on many nights.

We were eating so well the kids almost forgot chips existed!

(We did remind them of the existence of M&Ms though on 5 hour road trips and 7 hour flights.)