The title probably gives away why I haven't been writing all that much in recent weeks. Unfortunately, this has been a work trip so I've almost no time to actually check out the sights in my first visit to the US, but there will always be another trip. Prepare yourselves for a picture heavy, word count low post, because I took pictures of things other than food, and I have to get back to doing some work.
The benefits of flying with work is that you tend to get perks, like business class airfares to LA. Apart from the luxury of lie-down beds, there's also better quality food available. I'm not sure if I'm tarnishing my food blogger reputation by commenting on airplane food, but I was suitably impressed by the offering from Qantas.
 |
Yamba Prawns with Radish and Zucchini Salad and Lemon Dressing |
Prawns, radishes and zucchini! How could I not be happy with this. Fresh and vibrant, I was pleasantly surprised at how good it actually tasted. I still expected the soggy salad that I'd assumed plane food was, but I guess airlines have picked up their game.
The main didn't look as good, but it was certainly pretty tasty.
 |
Pan Fried Snapper Fillet with Braised Fennel and Green Shallots, Olive Potatoes... |
 |
...
and Romesco |
The snapper was tender and slightly salty, the braised fennel was sweet and the potatoes were soft but not a mush. I can't say the romesco salad was any good, but at least the salad wasn't soggy. In a vain attempt to reset my body clock earlier, I'd gotten little sleep the morning of the flight and fell asleep before dessert arrived. That is distinctly uncharacteristic of me. At least there's the flight back to enjoy some dessert (I hope).
I didn't mention that my flight from Melbourne was delayed 3.5 hours, so of course I missed my connecting flight. Waiting at LAX wasn't too bad though - I was lucky enough to escape the plastic chairs this time around.
 |
LAX |
From LAX, I made my way to Chicago, or rather the suburbs of Chicago, but there wasn't much interesting there so we'll just move on. Boston was much nicer.
 |
Langham Boston |
 |
Actual Fire Escapes! |
 |
Flat Black |
I was hoping that this place would have decent coffee due to the presence of the kangaroo. I didn't get a chance to check it out in the one night/morning I was there though.
 |
Boston Harbour |
 |
Boston Harbour |
 |
Food Trucks Unite |
 |
Cookie Monstah |
One thing Boston does better than Melbourne are food trucks. 1. There's more of them. 2. They have dessert trucks. 3. They're located in the city instead of just far enough out of the city to be a pain to get to (I'm looking at you Beatbox Kitchen). Mind you, I ended up with
Japanese for dinner rather than a food truck meal, and I certainly didn't feel like heading into one of the numerous Irish Pubs in downtown Boston by myself. Next time, next time.
 |
Sakurabana Boston |
From Boston, it was back to LA .
 |
LA |
Getting in at 8pm, there wasn't too much to see. I headed straight to the hotel and crashed. Having a tiny sliver to time explore my immediate surrounds the next day I stumbled across a Japanese market.
 |
Mitsuwa Marketplace |
 |
Mitsuwa Marketplace |
 |
Mitsuwa Marketplace |
 |
Mitsuwa Marketplace |
 |
Kinokuniya |
Kinokuniya, you need to come to Melbourne, please. Of course, I ended up with dinner from here too (did you expect otherwise?)
 |
Beef Sukiyaki |
Next stop: Vegas!