The past 2 weekends in the Bay Area have been rainy and cloudy-it puts you in the "climb into bed and read a book" mood. When living with my Aunt it's, "let's go out and eat soup" kind of day. One of my recommendations for soup is trying out Maru Ichi, a ramen noodle house in Milpitas and Mountain View. I've been here twice and have ordered the same thing: Combo B with Shoyu (vegetable or beef based broth mixed with soy sauce). The fixings include bamboo shoots, hard-boiled egg, beef, nori (seaweed), and green onions. All the combo meals come with 1 or 2 sides (california roll, unagi served with rice, or potstickers) depending which one you order. Their Shoyu soup is fabulous-it's light, not too salty, and the half hard-boiled egg adds a little creaminess to the Shoyu. I prefer this over Vietnamese pho soup simply because they don't use MSG. Oh yeah, their fried chicken is unlike any other chicken i've had. It's super crispy, thinly cut, and if I would've known earlier about their chicken I might've brought a little container of vinegar and garlic as the dipping sauce! There are a handful of ramen places in the Bay Area that it will eventually catch up to the number of yogurt places i've seen thus far. I like the Milpitas location because it's nestled in a strip mall filled with other restaurants, stores, and sweet shops filled with moon pies and fresh pastries that make your mouth salivate.
After dinner my 9 year old cousin always asks, "What's for dessert?!" What can I say-i'm proud of my little cousin:) Anyway, we decided to try a chain cafe next door to Maru Ichi called Quickly. Yea, their name is a little odd but their waffle with nutella is to die for! I thought of buying Eggo waffles and nutella but it definitely won't taste the same. My little cousin loves egg puffs. I can't explain what egg puffs are so I found their website (
http://www.quicklyusa.com/quicprod.html). All I can say is try it because you will like it! And if you don't like it then you can at least say you've tried it!
Santana Row was a popular spot for me to hang out during Labor Day weekend. With its plethora of fine restaurants and upscale shops, Santana Row is where you'll find the socialites of Silicon Valley. It's family-friendly during the day, and bustling at night with men and women on the prowl. After a late dinner/drinks/cousin bonding with Shastyn we both wanted coffee from Cocola - a French bakery filled with pastries galore! Their cakes and tarts look like pieces of art that you'll contemplate what you want because everything looks WAY too good to eat. Cocola always has a line and there's rarely available seating. With its outdoor seating this would be the perfect place to sit outside, people watch, or read a book and pretend you're in France or Italy with your glamorous shades sipping on a latte and enjoying a tart or mousse. Now ain't that the sweet life?! Santana Row will take your senses to Europe with its scenic landscaping, water fountains, and outdoor dining. Oh yea, I can't forget to mention they have Kara's Cupcakes and Pinkberry:) 
