For my dad’s birthday, we went to Paesanos.  I thought it was very comfortable with nice decorations. My brother thought it smelled good inside. It has an open kitchen where you can see them cook.  They brought bread to the table and it was soft and crunchy on top.  I ordered root beer and it was creamy and perfect.  I ordered the kids pasta with butter and parmesan cheese. I thought it was delicious.  It had plenty of parmesan and it was nice and buttery.  I put a little salt on it too.  My brother ordered the kids cheese pizza and let me try some of it.  It was cheesy but not too cheesy and my brother loved it.  My parents shared the fried ravioli.  It had spinach and cheese in it.   It was not bad but it wasn’t my favorite.  My mom ordered the Caesar salad.  It had garlic croutons that were nice and crunchy and it had lots of tasty dressing.  My dad ordered the tortellini with pesto cream sauce.  Oh my gosh it was soooo delicious.  It had lots of creamy pesto sauce and it was full of cheese.  We all shared the garlic bread which had melted garlic in the middle, was very soft in the middle and crunchy on top.  My brother and I had a blue bunny for dessert which came free with the kids meal.  It is chocolate covered ice cream on a stick and it was really yummy.  This is a great  place to go with your family and friends.

I went to Heavenly Yogurt and tried ALL the flavors.  They change the flavors they offer all the time which makes it fun to try new flavors.  First I tried the non-fat, non-dairy Lemon and I thought it tasted like lemonade, yummy.  The Mango sherbet, non-fat, non-dairy tasted very tropical to me.  The Yellow Cake Batter, low-fat,  was my favorite.  It was very sweet and I think kids would like it. The Kona Coffee, non-fat, was very good and had a strong coffee flavor.  The Red Raspberry, non-fat, no-sugar, tasted like tasty raspberry sauce.  The European Tart, non-fat, I didn’t really like because it tasted like cream cheese, which I like on a bagel but not for yogurt.  The Green Tea, non-fat, I didn’t like at all.  I heard people in the shop say it tasted like grass and I agree.  The Cookies and Cream, non-fat, tasted like chocolate.  The White Vanilla, low-fat, was yummy.  The Cable Car Chocolate, non-fat, tasted like rich, dark chocolate.  I made Yellow Cake Batter with butterscotch, marshmallow creme, marshmallows, whipped cream, a cherry, chocolate rocks and cotton candy nerds.  Mmmmmm.  I thought it was very sweet and the cherry was very juicy.  My brother had Chocolate with Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups with whipped cream and brownie bits.  He thought that it was great and really chocolaty.  I agreed.  My mom made Kona Coffee with Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and whipped cream, caramel and fudge.  My mom said Yumm and liked the flavor of the coffee yogurt.  I think Heavenly yogurt is a great place for kids or anyone because they can choose and make their own dessert with flavors and toppings.  On Fridays from 4-8pm, kids ages 12 and under get 4 oz of yogurt for free.  They play really good music in the store and you can even make your own root beer floats.  You can have birthday parties or other celebrations there.  Also, they accept all competitor’s coupons.  They have 36 candy toppings, 6 hot toppings and 18 soft toppings.  If you like frozen yogurt and if you like to choose your own toppings, then this is a great place to try!

I was asked if I could go and say thank you to blood donors at a blood drive.  I was very happy for the chance to do that.  One donor who I was talking with and telling about the time I received 9 units of blood a couple of summers ago (after the surgery and not being able to eat much was when I decided to become a food critic), was very  nice and gave me two coupons for free burgers at Habit Burger.  Even though I don’t eat meat, I hear they have very good veggie burgers and onion rings.

I am excited to try it!

****UPDATED****

My family and I finally visited Habit Burger.  We went to the counter and my brother ordered the kids’ grilled cheese sandwich which comes with fries and a drink.  Dad ordered the grilled albacore tuna sandwich, well done.  My mom ordered a veggie burger.  I ordered onion rings and we decided to share some fries and my brother and I had milk shakes.  We also got a side Caesar to share.  I liked that you can choose the bread you want.  They had sourdough, wheat, white or a French roll. The grilled cheese was amazing!  It was very cheesy and crunchy and one of the best grilled cheeses I have ever had.  The grilled albacore tuna was my dad’s favorite but I didn’t decide to try it because I was too busy with the grilled cheese!  The onion rings tasted very good with ranch dressing. My mom loved the veggie burger.  It had sprouts, tomatoes, lettuce, avocado and onions.  The Caesar had lots of tasty parmesan and dressing and the croutons were nice and crunchy.  The fries were really good and the shakes were really good too.  I think the service there is great and the person who took our order was very nice.  This is a place that I would like to visit very often because they  have one of the best grilled cheese and other yummy foods and its a fun place.

A while back, we watched over a friends dog, Bailey, while they were in Maui.  They thanked us with a gift certificate to PF Changs.  When we walked it I thought it looked amazing.  There was upstairs seating, wallpaper on the ceiling and really cool Asian statues.  I looked at the kids menu but didn’t really find anything I wanted there.  I did notice that it was cute and it had lots of games and coloring–perfect for children.  Of course I ordered root beer. I thought it was very creamy and they put the root beer in a tall, chilled glass.  We ordered crab wontons & plum sauce for our appetizer.  They weren’t bad–they were very well presented on a long pretty plate, and they looked to me like edible flowers.  I ordered the chow mein noodles but just plain, no vegetables.  I thought they was out of this universe!  They were very warm though–I had to let them cool.  The noodles were very flavorful!  I ate the huge, entire bowl of them.  We also ordered the vegetable fried rice. We all thought it was really good.  My mom got the mahi mahi with garlic sauce and cilantro rice. I tasted them and though they were both really good.  My dad ordered the seared ahi tuna. My parents loved it.  I loved the greens and the peanut dressing that was on the greens.  The desserts we ordered were very fun.  They offer little mini desserts in small glasses.  They have 7 different kinds and they are $2 each.  Everyone at our table got to pick their favorite thing.  Spencer got chocolate cake–full of chocolatey goodness with raspberry sauce at the very bottom, Dad got lemon bar–very tart for me but dad loved it, Mom got Tiramisu–mmmmmm and coffee-ish, and I got s’more–perfect layers of goodness with chocolate sauce, marshmallow sauce and graham cracker crumbs, yummmm!  Finally, we each had a fortune cookie.  A perfect last treat.  The service was wonderful.  Our waiter mixed sauces for our entrees right in front of us.  If we wanted it more spicy, we could mix in more spice ourselves.  I think this is a great place for friends and families to go to if they want some tasty Asian food.  And if you want a special treat, but you don’t want a huge dessert, they you should order one of the mini desserts.  I thought they were very clever.

When I arrived inside the building, there were lots pf pretty, colorful paintings inside and there were big screen TVs with sports on. A few minutes after we sat down, Dinger, The River Cats mascot, came by.  A man followed him with a huge bag of candy and gave us some.  We said thank-you and took a photo with Dinger.  Then, we ordered the roasted garlic appetizer. The bread had balsamic vinegar on it with a roasted garlic bulb in the middle.  You can squeeze the garlic onto the bread.  My parent really loved it.  My mom and dad ordered a dinner salad–it was very leafy and delectable and had crunchy croutons.  They also ordered the beer cheese soup. It was cheesy and I thought it was pretty good.  My mom and dad loved it.  My brother ordered the kids’ grilled cheese with french fries. The grilled cheese was so good and cheesy. It was warm and crunchy and the fries were so delicious.  I ordered the mozzarella sticks with ranch dressing. They were very good and had tons of gooey cheese.  My mom ordered the Mahi Mahi with mashed potatoes and steamed veggies. I tried the fish and although I am not a fan of fish, I found that it wasn’t fishy.  My mom loved the entire dish.  My dad ordered the veggie burger with jack cheese and avocado and he loved it.  The dessert menu made it really hard for us to choose just one but we finally decided on the Chocolate Wall with some vanilla ice cream on the side.  It was a big cake with chocolatey goodness and a rich, sweet icing!  It was the best chocolate cake I have ever had!  We all dove for it right away.  My overall assessment is that this is a very good place to go for a good meal!

I think Ettore’s is a very good place to go to breakfast.  I went with my family on a Saturday morning and tasted lots of things from the menu.  I ordered the French toast which is a house specialty.  It is made out of a cinnamon roll. It was large and sweet and it came with a cup of warm syrup.  It was the best French toast in the world!  All can say is “Oh yum!” and I could eat this every morning!  It came with strawberries and whipped cream which I had them put on the side.  The strawberries were a little tart but the whipped cream was sweet.  I thought they were pretty good.  My parents ordered a breakfast burrito and a breakfast sandwich, and shared.  They loved the burrito.  My dad said it was a little spicy but he liked it. It had a spinach tortilla and you can choose what to put in the burrito.  The breakfast sandwich was a 3 herb omelet on a croissant.  I didn’t try it but my parents really liked it.  My brother got toast with butter and he loved it.  For dessert he and I got a chocolate croissant and a regular croissant. The chocolate croissant was very large and chocolatey. The regular one was buttery, crispy, large and flaky.  They were both so big that one of them can make you full.  I really enjoyed our visit to Ettore’s. By the way, I saw a woman and her dog come into patio of the restaurant and one of the people that worked there gave the dog some water so that tells me that they are pretty much dog-friendly too!  This is a great place for you to go to breakfast with your family, friends and man’s best friend.

There are lots of things to see at the California State Fair!  They have lots of rides and lots of little stores and exhibits. They also have delicious stands for food.  One of the foods that they offer is deep-fried s’mores.  I decided to try it!  It had nice chocolatey graham cracker goodness on the outside and sweet, gooey marshmallow on the inside.  Its just like a real s’more except its deep-fried.  They also have french fries and my brother decided to try them.  He let me try them too and I thought they were soft and tasty.  He liked them too.  We also bought a refillable drink cup that you can fill up again and again for $2 at any of the food stands.  After that, I went to the corn on the cob stand and ordered a giant corn on the cob.  They grill it in the husk and they have a table of toppings and condiments. The corn was sweet, juicy and buttery.  My mom and I loved it!  It was the biggest, juiciest corn I have ever had in my whole life.  Next time we go, I am getting another one of those!  After that, we went to the farmers market area where there is lots of fruit, nuts, and honey sticks as well as fun animals to look at.  We decided to get the grapes.  They were sweet, juicy and nice and fresh too.  I also tried a honey stick. It was very sweet, delicious honey.  Bees are a great insect because they pollinate and make that delicious honey.

I went back the next week for another taste and I tried the deep fried Twinkies. They were crunchy and creamy and they had a choice of chocolate or strawberry toppings.  I had the chocolate and I thought it was really good!  Then we went inside a building and had a cinnamon roll. It was very warm and gooey and everybody loved it!  Later in the day, when it was nice and hot, we went and got some shaved ice. We got watermelon flavor and it was nice and sweet, plenty of juice and it was perfect for a nice, hot day! For my overall assessment, I think the State Fair is a great place to go and sample some of the delicious foods there.  You can get some delicious fruit or sweet treats to keep up your energy to go on the really fun kids’ rides and fun-houses.  Its a great place to go with your family and friends!

You can see video of me reviewing this restaurant in the Fox 40 studio under the Videos tab.

Babycakes Bakery is on J Street in Sacramento. The inside of the small cupcake shop has pink walls and it looks like icing was piped onto the walls. There is a little bar that faces out the window where you can sit if you want to. They have cookies and cupcakes and other special items you can order like wedding cakes and giant cupcakes for special birthdays! I decided to try the Banana Split cupcake. It is a banana cake filled with chocolate ganache, topped with vanilla buttercream and a cherry. I thought it was a really tasty combination of banana and chocolate. I also really love cherries on top. I thought it tasted terrific! My brother took one to his teacher and she liked it too. My brother tried the Triple chocolate. It was dark chocolate with glossy fudge frosting and real French chocolate sprinkles. He said that it took him a long time to eat all that delicious frosting! I tasted it and I thought it was really extra chocolately. I really love chocolate! I took a Red Velvet cupcake to my teacher. She said it was really scrumptious and delectable! My mom tried a Red Velvet also and she said the cream cheese frosting was amazing! I tried it too and I thought it was really creamy and just right! My dad and brother had a chocolate chip cookie. Dad says it was the 2nd best chocolate chip cookie he has had. (My mom’s is the 1st.) We took some cupcakes into the Fox 40 studio for everyone to try. I will let you know what they thought soon. For my overall assessment I think children and everyone will absolutely love it. It is a great place to get birthday cupcakes or just anytime you want a sweet treat!

Watch me on Fox 40 on Friday 4/24, approx. 7:20am.

You can see video of me reviewing Baby Cakes in the Fox 40 studio under the Videos tab.

We went to Lucca with a reporter and a photographer from The Sacramento Bee.  We sat outside and everything was beautiful. They had pretty blue, round, glass cups.  For a drink I has Hanks Root Beer and it was really creamy.  My brother’’s orange soda he says, was good.  We ordered some zucchini chips for an appetizer.  They were lightly salted.  They were like really tiny potato chips, but better, and made with thinly sliced zucchini. I would definitely order them again. We also had some table bread and it was really soft.  It was good with butter on it and the crust was really flour-y and tasty.  My mother ordered a Caesar salad. It has super crunchy croutons.  It had a nice dressing and it was lightly sprinkled with parmesan cheese.  My dad ordered carrot and fennel soup.  It had a good carrot flavor and was a little bit creamy. It had no chicken stock which is perfect for a vegetarian like me.  For an entree I had a crab cake Caesar salad.  The crab cakes were full of crab which is good for me because I love crab.  It had some cut vegetables in it and it was very delicious.  The Caesar salad was good too.  The only thing my brother ordered were french fries. He said they were some of the best french fries he’s ever had.  They came in a cup with a napkin wrapped around them and little dish of ketchup. I thought they were pretty tasty as well.  My mom had the gnocchi.  The tomato sauce was a little bit too spicy for me but it was perfect for her.  Did you know that sugar cuts the spicy sting in your mouth?  So if you have soda or root beer after spicy food, it helps.  The gnocchi part had a really nice texture.  My dad had the ahi tuna special.  It was pan seared, sesame crusted ahi with potatoes and asparagus.  He loved it.  For dessert we had Death By Chocolate and tiramisu. The Death by Chocolate was a warm chocolate cake with a round ball of ice cream on top and it had dishes of chocolate sauce and raspberry sauce on the side.  I loved the combination of raspberry sauce and chocolate together. The tiramisu was a little bit creamy and cold and I could taste the coffee flavor. It was very delicious.  Everyone should come here with their family and enjoy a nice dinner night together.  I also enjoyed spending time with the photographer and reporter.

Ju Hachi had really beautiful Japanese decorations.  There is a big bar you can sit at and watch them make the sushi.  I ordered sushi with shrimp and rice.  The rice was sweet and I had soy wrap instead of seaweed. Soy wrap is a pinkish wrap you can use instead of seaweed that makes it a lot easier to chew.  A nice chef named Ed made me sushi with apple and rice. It was sweet and sour at the same time.  Chef Taka made me sushi with crab inside.  The crab was very delicious. I really love crab.  My mom and dad ordered a Susan Roll which has tempura asparagus, snow crab, unagi and tuna sashimi on top.  My parents loved it.  It was a little hard for me to chew because of the seaweed wrap.  I should have tried it with soy wrap.  The chef gave me a dish of unagi sauce to dip my sushi into.  The sauce was sweet and very tasty.  I dipped every piece of sushi on my plate in the unagi sauce-that’s how tasty it is!  I tried the barbequed tuna. It was pretty good, had a wonderful texture.  I also tried a special roll with soy wrap, rice, crab, asparagus, yam and apple. I could definitely taste the crab.  It was very big and the presentation was beautiful.  For dessert, we had tempura cheesecake. It was beautiful and smelled so good.  It was a warm and crispy on the outside and had a small bit of raspberry sauce and chocolate.  For my overall assessment I think this restaurant is super kid-friendly because it has very easy chopsticks to use, and the chefs are really nice and they will make any kind of sushi you want.  I think everyone should go there.

You can see video of me reviewing Ju Hachi in the Fox 40 studio under the Videos tab.