Izakaya and Ice Cream in East Nashville

I and Grace wanted to visit Two Ten Jack since we first spotted it few months ago (we were then with the Larchmere String Quartet and having lunch with them at nearby vegan restaurant Wild Cow just after performing at WPLN Classical 90.1). It was quite good, and we plan to come back!

Two Ten Jack Entrance

A nice mix of contemporary and mid 1900s decoration

A great appetizer!

Chicken Ramen

Pork Ramen

Fancy Bar

Cute Menu

Jenis Ice Cream, Nashville

Eclectic Food Adventure in Atlanta

Here is the first of my food adventure blogpost:

I and Grace spent a night in Atlanta for our second wedding anniversary(!) on our way back home from my orchestra weekend in GA. Atlanta is not an unfamiliar city for either of us, and we decided to focus on food adventures during our stay. I already made a dinner reservation at Nan Thai Fine Dining in Midtown few days earlier, so all we had to do was to find a place to eat lunch and hang out. Thanks to our friend Jessica's suggestion, we decided to check out the Atlanta Food Truck Park. We came with high hopes, but we were a bit disappointed with the limited food selections. They also had small number of merchants carrying various products by local craftsmen. It was a fun afternoon (especially when Grace spilled my lemonade on my loaded cheese fries--and yes, we settled on some hot dogs and fries in the end), but the food was rather subpar. However, a photographer from Jezebel happen to come by and take our photo so perhaps our presence at the Food Truck Park will be permanently documented...

Our evening at Nan Thai Fine Dining was much for satisfying. The place looked fantastic and had complimentary valet parking. The menu was sleek and easy to navigate. Most importantly, the food tasted really good and very reasonably priced. 

It is remarkable how time flies so fast. For us, it was a perfect place for us to reminisce our past two years of high-paced but extremely fulfilling life together. Our choices: Pla Muk Thod (crispy calamari) for appetizer; Grace ordered a special pork dish (the best choice of all), I got a chicken Panang curry, and we both got Singha. We would certainly come back here and recommend the place to anyone who happen to pass by Atlanta for some delicious Thai food. 

Pla Muk Thod

What's in Your Luggage?

I bought this carry-on case during my first year at graduate school. It has served me faithfully, and now I can pack up to two weeks worth of stuff in it. For this four-day trip, I had plenty of rooms for few extra things (see below),

When I first started this blog, I wanted to write some non-music related posts every now and then. So here is my first such post... 

I often end up reading every single issue of Delta Sky Magazine during some 60,000-plus miles I annually fly with the airline (I will have to write about my rapid ascent in Delta's Medallion Program and my obsession with the MQM someday). My favorite column is "Bag" where they reveal what various celebrities or successful entrepreneurs carry in their bag/suitcase. I happen to be on the road at the moment and decided to share what's in my bag:

My iPad has completely replaced my laptop since many years ago. The Belkin bluetooth keyboard/case makes it possible for me to do some heavy duty work on this iPad. I recently started carrying my Kindle again and am amazed how easy it is to read on it. I also started reading the addictive Murakami and brought a physical copy just in case. Finally, the leather tray helps me not to leave any valuables behind when I check in and out of different places. 

A scarf and UGG's wool sleepers keep me warm as the weather begins to cool down.

A concert attire and pair of black shoes are the must when traveling for concerts. 

I don't usually carry this much food with me. Granola mix and mixed nuts are easy easy to travel with. Apples supplement some much needed vitamins (I picked up several more from Atlanta's Delta Skyclub lounge). This time I also brought couple of Shin Noodle Bowl and a water boiler!

Things I forgot to bring: Starbucks VIA packs, a tumbler, a water bottle, and a pair of sneakers...

Next time, I will post a blog entitled "What's in Your Clarinet Case?"