Lavender Fest 2015 - Cherry Valley, CA

I'm not a huge fan of the taste or smell of lavender, but it looks beautiful, and this festival had delicious food with and without lavender. I love festivals like this, and I was about to leave Southern California so really wanted to go to this with Catherine and Josh!

Check out the official Lavender Fest website

Bought this for a friend. She enjoyed it!

Cute little things to buy, including lots of lavender products.

Vanilla bean lemonade

Vanilla bean specks at the bottom of my lemonade

Not bad...but I think the cheese was a little weird if I remember correctly.

 

I don't know this couple; I just happened to take this while they were taking a picture. lol

Local peach crisp - DELICIOUS!

Lee's Sandwiches - Riverside, CA

Lee's Sandwiches

1889 University Avenue

Riverside, CA 92507

Website

They have several other locations too!

** Please open a branch in Central Cal!! **

Ahh I love banh mi (Vietnamese sandwich made with a French baguette, meat, jalapenos, pickled vegetables, & cilantro) and coffee. They have different types of meat, so if you don't like that bright pink color, just get beef, chicken, or something else. I usually like grilled pork, but this time I got BBQ pork. Usually I drink black coffee, but once in awhile I do like the sweet ones. This Lee's coffee is pretty sweet, but I think I still like it because it also has a strong coffee flavor. I also just love their ice! It might sound weird to mention ice, but it really does make a difference. There are big chunks of ice that keep the drink cold but also small shreds of frosty ice that make it seem almost like it is turning into shave or shaved ice, which I love.

Lee's coffee

That ice is so good!

 And now the BBQ pork banh mi:

 

Thai Omlette, Pad Thai, Bagel Sandwich, & Bagels @ Fresno Bagel Co. - Fresno, CA

Fresno Bagel Co.

7739 N First Street

Fresno, CA 93720

You wouldn't normally find thai food at a bagel place, but what a good idea! You can come here for just regular bagels or bagel sandwiches OR thai food.

I discovered it is difficult to describe what a thai omelette is to someone who's never had one before. When you say it has green onions, cheese, and peas, it just doesn't sound good. When Grace visited, I took her to try the thai food and bagels here, and she was pleasantly surprised. Delicious breakfast!

The whole spread

YUMM. I'm not a huge fan of cold cuts or bagel sandwiches unless they have a lot of flavor and intersting ingredients (not a big ham and cheese fan at all), so the bagel sandwich was forgetable, but everything else was delicious. My family and friends have gotten food here for years. It's definitely a favorite of many Fresnans.

Pad thai!

Strawberry bagel w/ strawberry cream cheese...LOVE

Backstreet Restaurant - Riverside, CA

Backstreet Restaurant
3735 Nelson Street
Riverside, CA 92506

I miss this place so much and am sad that I only recently heard about it through my former colleagues last year. This is a popular lunch spot on weekdays! They are only open from 11am-3pm Monday through Friday. Their sandwiches and condiment bar (pickles, relish, cucumbers, pasta salad, etc.) are delicious!! Another thing I love is that its decorations are very quirky and eclectic. Wish I had more pictures of their decor. I really can't tell you how much I enjoy their pickles, cucumbers, and pasta salad. I love how you can pick which items you want and how much of them you want!

Pastrami

Roast beef in a library... lol

Not pictured is their banana cream pie. I tried it because I saw positive ratings on Yelp and I had heard it was good as well. It was ok. It was definitely more like a creamy jello pudding with stiff whipped cream (not real whipping cream unless it was mixed with something that makes it hold its shape) than the homemade banana cream pies I prefer. I'll stick with eating their sandwiches and everything else!