Tag: mammoth lakes

A 40th birthday to remember! 

A 40th birthday to remember! 

Happy Birthday, Brandon. Well, it was a few weeks ago, but you know time, life and everything else that goes into things. But I still wanted to document Brandon’s birthday on the blog! On Brandon’s birthday, which was 9/7, we had a really delicious meal 

Copper Top BBQ Big Pine, CA‏

Copper Top BBQ Big Pine, CA‏

On our way home from our winter trip to Mammoth Lakes, CA we decided to stop at Copper Top BBQ in Big Pine for lunch. My dad had been there before when he goes to Mammoth to fish with the guys for Opening Day. I 

The Stove; Mammoth Lakes, CA

The Stove; Mammoth Lakes, CA

Mammoth has some quintessential eateries that frequent visitors are sure to know about, one being The Stove. The Stove is known for its country-style old ways and is almost always packed, no matter when or what time it is. They have homemade pies, large waffles, scrambled eggs and every other breakfast thing that you’d normally see, but this time we didn’t eat breakfast there, we opted for dinner.  Sometimes I have qualms about eating at breakfast places for dinner, well most times, but my brother insisted this is where we needed to go, probably because the $14.95 prime rib dinner was definitely calling his name.

Because we knew this place would be crowded, we arrived a little before the restaurant opened for dinner at 5 p.m.  We made the correct assumption because three other cars soon followed us into the lot and as we stood in line, we took a couple of pictures of the beautiful surroundings to pass the time. As five o’clock quickly approached, the line began to grow steadily and we were sat by a nice hostess. Our waiter came over, got drinks and brought us a crumby mess of dry cornbread and muffins to the table; not my preference, but somewhat rustic.  We glanced over our menus and decided on prime rib being the ideal dish for me, my brother, mom and dad. My sister-in-law had chicken fried steak and my grandma had liver and onions. I don’t know who orders liver and onions when they go out, but that was a mess of a dinner if I ever saw one. Lesson learned: don’t order liver and onions again, Granny. Our prime rib came out tender and juicy. I had red potatoes and mixed vegetables with mine and we also got a dinner salad.

As the restaurant continued to fill up, we were glad we came in early. For the most part, our food was pretty good and a hefty portion for anyone to put down. My sister-in-law loves desserts so she ordered an apple bread pudding with whiskey sauce and ice cream, on the recommendation of our waiter. It was really delicious and a very large piping hot portion.  Dinner at The Stove with the family was home-style and comforting, one of those stick-to-your-ribs meals you enjoy every now and again.

cheers

-Unrivaledkitch

Mammoth Lakes 2012

Mammoth Lakes 2012

Mammoth Lakes is a place I never tire from visiting. Throughout my life the anticipation of returning to this majestic platform of nature’s daily miracle always carries me through to another year. For as long as I can remember, my dad has visited Mammoth at 

Eastern Sierra Eats: Bar B-Q Bill’s

Eastern Sierra Eats: Bar B-Q Bill’s

When it’s time to head home, we have our rituals as well: we pack up the condo, have a breakfast of whatever is left in the fridge that can’t travel back with us, and make our way into Bishop for a couple of shopping bits 

Mammoth Eats: Roberto’s

Mammoth Eats: Roberto’s

Hidden amongst eateries of all sorts, though not known for its culinary successes, Mammoth plays host to a few gems along the way; one of these fine places is Roberto’s Cafe. I’ve written about this Mexican food before, but I figured a couple more pictures for good measure wouldn’t hurt. Roberto’s is a staple that we tend to indulge in every trip to Mammoth. There’s nothing like a nice burrito or taco after a long day on the lake, but the margaritas make it even better.
On this trip we decided to get out of the snow and make our away from a very disappointing experience to something we knew was going to be good. My brother, Kyle, and sister-in-law, Viet-Linh, were most inclined to find a good meal and something to quench our thirst. We decided on a pitcher of margaritas, which was called La Bamba, while watching the football game in the cantina. The margaritas were wonderfully potent with just the right mixing to make you feel warm and toasty inside, despite the blizzard outside. A delightful scent and flavor of Grand Marnier finished the pleasantness of the overall drink.
After we indulged in chips and salsa and our margaritas, we found ourselves looking over the menu. Kyle and Viet-Linh shared the El Jefe burrito, consisting of shredded chicken, potatoes, cheese and beans, all rolled in a flour tortilla and topped with more of the burrito stuffing. The burrito was huge, delicious and very juicy from all the tender chicken. I ordered a combination plate consisting of a pork tamale and beef taco. The tamale was perfectly moist and topped with a delicious red colorado sauce and some cheese. The beans and rice were tasty and the taco was fried well. Overall, a very delicious and hearty meal for the long winter afternoon.
There’s nothing like tequila and tortillas to brighten up any blizzard.
-cheers
Unrivaledkitch
Mammoth Eats: Giovanni’s

Mammoth Eats: Giovanni’s

As we entered town after the long drive from Los Angeles, we decided we needed to kill a little bit of time before we were able to get into the condo and unload all of our things. So we made our way up to Twin 

Snowy Trip to the Eastern Sierras; Mammoth Mountain and Hawaiian Bread French Toast

Snowy Trip to the Eastern Sierras; Mammoth Mountain and Hawaiian Bread French Toast

I recently took a four day trip to the beautiful Eastern Sierras, wherein lies Mammoth Mountain.  Normally my family and I have a traditional summer vacation to this area around my birthday; we enjoy eachother’s company in the breathtaking surroundings of fresh clean air, high 

My Birthday

My Birthday

This year I turned 26 years old. Still, some things never change and I like it that way. I was in Mammoth Lakes, CA for my birthday, which is where I spend most of my birthdays since I was very little.

My birthday this year was not just one day, but seemed like a whole month of celebration. I’ve honestly had one of the best months of my entire life. With so many beautiful people involved, my family and of course my amazing friends, it’s so easy to appreciate the beauty of life. On my actual birthday I spent the whole afternoon fishing at Lake Mary along with the sandwiches and snacks that we brought. I drove up to the lake a little later than the rest of my family because I didn’t feel like waking up at 5:30 a.m. to go fishing, but I was at the lake around 10:00 a.m. We caught a good amount of fish, like almost 30, and I was able to finish the 4th Harry Potter book The Goblet of Fire.

Unfortunately, it was a Saturday and many tourists like to boat and kayak on the lake, which is fine, but most of them don’t understand that there are people fishing from the shoreline so they go right where our lines are cast. Well one boat in particular was close to shore that they almost beached themselves, but instead managed to rudely catch the line of my mom’s fishing pole and take her whole pole into the water about 15-20 feet out from the shore line—this was a new pole mind you. My mom was very upset and those people didn’t even stop to help. They just sped away. Lucky for us, a kayaker that was nearby saw what happened and she paddled over to help but was unable to get the pole from the bottom of the lake. Now I don’t normally like diving to the bottom of ice cold lakes to get fishing poles, especially because of idiots, but my mom would have been so upset for the rest of the day if I didn’t get it. So being a good daughter, I walked out until only my head was just barely over the water, finding a rock to keep me up, and then at the count of three I dove to the bottom of the lake and got the pole from under the rock. I have to say I’ve never been head-in deep, let alone diving to the bottom of a lake that was freezing cold before. So, moral of the story, if you’re on a boat, stay in the middle of the lake so I don’t have to dive in to get another fishing pole.

Anyway, that’s a crazy story and in all the years we’ve been fishing, this is the first time that someone took the fishing pole out that far. My aunt, uncle and cousin were there and they pretty much jaw dropped. I’m pretty sure no one else would have gone in after it, except maybe my mom, but no way. It was a good thing I had extra clothes, so I changed and we showed our extended family around the lakes. After, we went back to our respective condos and got showered and all that good stuff and went out to dinner at Shogun.

 

Shogun is a Japanese eatery in Mammoth. They specialize in combination plates of hot food, boats of different varieties and sushi. We’ve been coming here forever. It’s not the greatest place, but we’ve never had a problem. We ordered a couple of rolls of sushi to share amongst everyone and a boat for 3 people to share between my mom, dad, me and my grandma. All the food was delicious and of course I had to have a Sapporo to cheers to my new year. The boat consists of tuna sashimi, mixed tempura, tonkatsu, chicken teriyaki, and beef teriyaki. It comes with hot white rice, cabbage salad, spicy Tsukemono, and miso soup. Then for dessert you get your choice of ice cream. It’s a lot of food but everything is always as I remember it. Shogun is one of those places that you’re so used to eating, you never have to complain, except sometimes the service is a little off, but we got a free beer out of it.


After my food coma settled, my aunt, uncle and cousin brought over a birthday cake in the shape of a lady bug that came from Schat’s Bakery in Mammoth. The cake was tasty but I had so much food at dinner that it was difficult to fully enjoy it. But it was definitely cute and tasted good—vanilla and red velvet.

My day was absolutely beautiful thanks to my amazing family and the text messages, facebook posts and phone calls from all the people I love so much. I guess 26 isn’t so bad after all.
Cheers
-Unrivaledkitch
The simple pleasures of the eastern sierras; Mammoth Lakes, CA.

The simple pleasures of the eastern sierras; Mammoth Lakes, CA.

As a young girl, and even now in my twenties, I looked forward to our family vacations in the summer all year long. Three pretty rough, very close in age, small kids: my sister, brother, and I, crammed in the back of a car together