My Foodie Saturday

While Dave went car shopping, the littlest Pinks and I headed through the tunnel to eat with friends. Our first stop was a restaurant I'd long wanted to try: Homeroom.

Homeroom is on 40th St. in Oakland, not near any other restaurants or retailers. It specializes in Mac & Cheese and its owner is a well-known food blogger. I wish the menu featured a sampler. Fortunately we're good at sharing. I had The Exchange Student with artichokes, spinach and feta. My friend had Mac The Goat, with chevre, scallions, breadcrumbs, mushrooms and olive oil. One of her kids had The Classic and the other had Vermont White Cheddar. My rebels had scones and orange juice.

The food was great and very rich. None of us came close to finishing our lunch. Or maybe it was that we were saving room for our next stop, Ici, the artisanal ice cream shop, on College Ave. in Berkeley. I just love the Elmwood district and because it was a cool day, the line wasn't long. The storefront is beautiful and girly, and the owner is a former Chez Panisse pastry chef, impeccably credentialed in my opinion. Apparently I have a thing for Chez Panisse alumnae; I frequent a Temescal bakery and read David Lebovitz religiously. My friend bought ice cream cones to take home; they are hand made with a bit of chocolate inside the bottom. I love that! We shopped a bit; I'm always on the lookout for quirky things to put in the kids' care packages for sleep away camp.

The Pinks wanted to take a dip in the pool after we returned to the sunny side of the tunnel but the sun did not bring the heat on this particular Memorial Day Weekend Saturday. It actually rained in the late afternoon. And so we snuggled on the sofa, under blankets, and watched Tim Burton's remake of Alice in Wonderland.