Pacific Surfliner: LA ---> SD

Edible Skinny was lucky enough to a ride on the Pacific Surfliner last week and we grabbed some fantastic photos of both Union Station (Los Angeles) and Santa Fe Station (San Diego).   Check it out!!!

The Beach House: An Instant (and Yummy) Vacation

By Kelly Grace Thomas

Paradise doesn’t have to come with a hefty price tag, but it should always taste delicious. On our recent trip to Monterey, Edible Skinny was lucky to visit The Beach House, a casual eatery in Pacific Grove, with good food, friendly smiles and an unforgettable view. In fact, the Beach House was voted the Best New Restaurant on the Monterey Peninsula in 2013 and 2014 - and we can see why.

Dining at the Beach House is an instant vacation. While the Beach House has a varied menu for every land, sea and and veggie lover, the most memorable thing about the restaurant is the jaw-dropping panoramic view of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. While the restaurant offers both inside and outside dining, we highly recommend sitting and enjoying a relaxing meal on their outdoor patio, which is only made more fabulous by the Beach House’s exceptional wines list, which highlights the the best of the region. Edible Skinny sipped on Caymus Conundrum White Blend, a buttery bliss, while enjoying views of marine life and lapping waves. The Beach House is located at Lovers Point, in Pacific Grove. Lover’s Point is a scenic spot that oozes romance and beauty, visited by locals and tourists alike. Pacific Grove is also the starting spot of the beautiful Pebble Beach 17-mile drive, making Beach House the perfect first, or last stop, for those looking for a bite after a long day of sightseeing.

The Beach House also has a wide variety of entrees and appetizers that showcases the area’s culinary culture. Offering everything from Cider-Cured Charbroiled Pork Chop to Scallop pot pies, to Flash-Fried Monterey Calamari; their menu is both diverse and creative. Edible Skinny decided to begin their dining experience with the Beach House’s Charred Brussels Sprouts. We wanted something that had a lot of taste, but that wouldn’t fill us up. This dish with its locally made chorizo, roasted butternut squash, garlic confit, rocket arugula, shaved parmesan was the perfect juxtaposition of savory and spice. For entrees we wanted to experience both land and sea. Our first entree, the Bacon-Wrapped Meatloaf, tasted like a savory slice of home. Served with yukon gold potatoes, glazed carrots, sauteed mushrooms, green beans, mushroom gravy and crispy fried onions- this was comfort food at its finest. It would have been silly of us to be in Monterey and not indulge in a little scrumptious seafood. For our second entree, enjoyed the Steak, Scampi & Fries. This USDA Prime center-cut sirloin with grilled prawns scampi, garlic butter and fries was a perfectly portioned, taste trifecta.

Whether you want an awe-inspiring atmosphere, some comfort food, or the locally caught special, The Beach House has something for everything. Even if all you want is to sit in the sun, sip some wine and relax, the Beach House, with its stunning views and friendly service, is must see for those in the Monterey area. For more information visit www.beachhousepg.com

The Bright Shiny Lights of Las Vegas' The Neon Museum

Hello Bright Shiny Lights!!!  A couple of weeks ago Edible Skinny was Lady Luck-y enough to visit The Neon Museum in Las Vegas.

Founded in 1996, the Neon Museum is a non-profit 501 (c) 3 organization dedicated to collecting, preserving (pigeons poop is a real problem for these signs…), studying, and exhibiting iconic Las Vegas signs for education, historic, arts, and cultural enrichment.  

The Neon Museum’s 2 acre campus includes the outdoor exhibition space known as the Neon Boneyard which houses more than 200 historic signs, a visitors’ center housed inside the former La Concha Motel lobby, and the Neon Boneyard North Gallery which houses 60 additional rescued pieces including signs from the Palms Casino Resort, New-New York, Lady Luck, and O’Shea’s, and which is also available for weddings, special events, photo shoots, and educational programs.  

 

Most of The Neon Museum’s signs are exhibited in the Boneyard where they serve as inspiration to fascinated artists, students, historians, designers, and roaming food and travel bloggers.  Each sign at the Neon Museum’s collection offers a unique story about the personalities who created it, what inspired it, where and when it was made, and the role it played in Vegas’ distinctive colored past.  On the tour changes and trends in design and technology are illustrated in the pieces that range from the 1930s to the present day.

The Boneyard is home to some of the most treasured world-famous signs of Las Vegas: Caesars Palace, Binion’s Horseshoe, the Moulin Rouge Hotel, the Golden Nugget, and the Stardust.  My absolute favorite is a happy-go-lucky dry cleaning shirt sign from the 1960s that just looks so happy it could make even the roughest of Vegas nights seem a little brighter!!!  Not just neon signage, the museum also houses fiberglass sculptures including a giant skull from Treasure Island. 

 

Due to the nature of their collection, the Neon Museum Boneyard is only available to the public through an hour long guided tour (older neon signs are made out some rather nasty materials that can be harmful to the unsupervised…).  Ticket prices for day tours are $18 for general admission; seniors 65+, students, active military, veterans and Nevada residents are $12.  Most of The Neon Museum tours are before sunset, but the non-profit does also offer dusk tours of their seven beautifully restored neon signs that light up the Vegas sky in their full glory; pricing for evening tours is $25.  

The Neon Museum also maintains twelve restored signs throughout Las Vegas.  Some reside on street medians such as the Silver Slipper to honor Vegas’s glittery past.

So if you’re in the city of Sin and looking for a gander into the world of the bright shiny neon lights of Las Vegas perhaps a trip to The Neon Museum is in order. 

Here’s to life being delicious and to every day having a happy-go-lucky dry cleaning shirt sign!