Cheeseboard Asiago Roll: While I find the pizzeria next door to be overrated, I've generally had great experiences at the Cheeseboard cheese shop and bakery. The asiago roll, covered in sesame seeds, demands to be eaten fresh out of the oven, when tearing the crust reveals a warm and soft wondrously scented interior, smelling strongly of yeast, cheese, and onion. The onion is caramelized, and combined with the crunchy bits of toasted cheese on the outside, the bread is the ideal savory snack. 4.5/5.0
exceptional bread berkeley cheese cheeseboard asiago roll 4.5
I-Tea Pomelo Green Tea with Aloe: I was super surprised to find an i-Tea at the San Francisco Premium Outlets and purchased a round of drinks for my family. This location, though, proved that not all i-Teas are created equal. The pomelo green tea I had was fairly average as far as fruit teas go, with an artificial citrus flavor that made the beverage more of a juice than a tea. Chewy and crunchy cubes of aloe were a bit better, though still not much different than what you might find at a normal Asian tea shop. The 3G, w... (read more) 2.5/5.0
drinks itea fruit citrus pomelo green tea aloe 2.5
Revival Ice Cream Pear sorbet: Ultra-creative yet accessible homemade ice cream from a James-Beard nominated pastry chef. Based in Monterey, Revival has about a dozen seasonal flavors, the most popular of which is one called the Beesknees, an ice cream studded with bits of honeycomb, broken into small enough pieces to add texture (both crunchy and soft). It's sweet but also has a slightly burnt flavor that's just a touch bitter to balance it out. I had their pear sorbet, which combines pear with celery juice. This is not ... (read more) 4.5/5.0
exceptional monterey icecream revivalicecream pear sorbet 4.5
La Super-Rica Horchata: A quick stop for lunch turned into a 2.5 hour detour, with extremely long lines at the Santa Barbara favorite La Super-Rica. Food-wise, while some tacos were excellent, it wasn't worth the wait, but the most worthwhile offerings were their fantastic drinks. The horchata was eye-opening, with a creamy mixture of spices and nuts and smooth consistency. Its styrofoam cup belied its complex and noteworthy flavor. If I came here again, I would request to skip the line and just get a cup of their ... (read more) 4.5/5.0
exceptional drinks santabarbara lasuperrica horchata 4.5
Trader Joe's Coconut Water: Single-serving container of coconut water. Hydrating. At some point, coconut waters all begin to taste the same. This one is a bit better than average. 3.5/5.0
coconutwater drinks traderjoes coconut water 3.5
Trader Joe's Joe Joe's 'n Cream Ice Cream: Available year round, Trader Joe's version of cookies and cream tastes very much like any other cookies and cream ice cream you might buy, with a classic combination of vanilla ice cream and chocolate cookies. It likely uses full-fat milk (as the amount of saturated fat is high) and has generous chunks of softened chocolate crumbs throughout. I generally stay away from rich ice cream, especially quart-sized containers, unless it's to be shared among a group, which was the case in this inst... (read more) 3.0/5.0
icecream cookies traderjoes cream ice 3.0