natandaskitchen

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Backwards Flag Brewing Company, Bean Burger from The Speakeatery and the rest of the photos are from #MimisItalianKitchen

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We Die for Thai!

Bamboo Leaf, located in Bradley Beach is the best Thai food on this planet! You don’t even need to go to Thailand! Just kidding, go to Thailand if you can... but in the meantime, go here! Each and every one of their dishes is just bursting with flavor. Their vegetables are fresh and plentiful. The curries are bold and easily distinguishable. We just can’t get enough of this place!

Once, they were renovating and we didn’t realize. We drove past the place and the lights were out. Immediately frazzled and depressed, we quickly scurried over to the door and read about their renovation. We were so relieved!

The restaurant seats about 15 parties maximum and if you show up without a reservation around dinner time, expect to wait a little bit. It’s THAT popular. They don’t serve alcohol so you must bring your own if you want to drink with your dinner.

The Thai Chicken Salad (photo 1) and the Thai Salad (photo 1) are two great appetizers. We have also had the chicken and beef skewers on numerous occasions (not pictured). Out of the two, I would choose the beef. It is moist and tender and marinated in heaven. Our absolute favorite things to order for a main course are the Pad Thai (photo 2) and either Panang Curry (photo 3) or Massaman Curry (photo 4). We have heard fantastic things about the other curries, as well. For those of you who have never ordered a “thai curry”, it looks like a soup. You can put rice in there if you want and you eat it with a spoon. Everything in the bowl becomes absorbed by the liquid and it is truly an incredible experience. We get chicken in our curry and we ask them to have it without potatoes. Personally, I don’t see a place for the potatoes. I would rather have more vegetables in it.  We order the Pad Thai with just tofu. We aren’t vegetarians (thankfully), but it doesn’t even need any meat, it’s that good.

Without appetizers, expect to spend about $15 a person before tip. That is standard for Thai restaurants.

Overall, this is one of our favorite restaurants and you should go...tonight!

http://www.bambooleafnj.com/menu/

#bambooleafbradleybeach #bambooleafthai #bambooleaf #foodies #jerseyshorerestaurants #jerseyshorefoodblogs #jerseyshorefoodies #natanda #natandaskitchen #jerseyshoreeats

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Fins Tropicali Cuisine

Fins is one of Natalie’s favorites! It’s cheap, it’s easy, and unlike some chain restaurants that are similar to this style, every entree here tastes unique! This restaurant is located in Sea Girt, Brick, and Bradley Beach. They provide you with counter service and a quick turn around time for your baskets to arrive at the table. You can take out and/or have your meals delivered, as well.

Fins offers typical food categories: Appetizers, salads, burritos, tacos, wraps, “finchiladas”, and more, however, their products are anything but typical. They pride themselves on their Southern California, Pacific, and Island influences. This is what makes them such a unique “go to” restaurant. A standard entree ranges from $9-$11 and comes with chips. If you dine in, you have the option of trying their many sauces that are available on the tables.

Above, are photos of the “Natty Dreads” burrito and the “Flyin’ Hawaiian” burrito. Both contain an ingredient that most people would not expect to be inside of a burrito. The Natty Dreads comes from Jamaican roots with jerk chicken and contains fried plantains. The Flyin’ Hawaiian has mango inside of it. Both of these were outstanding. My favorite item on their menu, I believe, is "The Green Room” burrito because I love spinach tortillas. Natalie often chooses “Mexicali Blues”.

We highly recommend Fins for any adventurous eater who consumes way too much Chipotle, Moes, and Surf Taco.

http://www.finsusa.com/menu/

#fins #finsseagirt #finsbrick #finsbradleybeach #finsnewjersey #finsnj #jerseyshorebloggers #jerseyshorefoodbloggers #jerseyshorefoodblogs #natanda #natandaskitchen #foodblogers

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BRUNCHIN’

There’s something about making breakfast in the morning that is just so relaxing. Or maybe it’s the eating part that’s relaxing... and the sitting, relaxing part that’s relaxing! Well, whatever it is, it gives us something to look forward to on the weekends that doesn’t involve a multitasking mess of attempting to eat a yogurt with any utensil you can find in your car (sometimes, it’s only a pen) and/or cracking a hard boiled egg on your steering wheel in hopes that you can find a safe place to put your shells and yolk so it doesn’t cook on your passenger seat in the sun while you’re working all day.

Also, there are plenty of things that can be done to eggs that provide a healthy and positive way to start your way. Don’t get me wrong, Natanda doesn’t always eat healthy. *See 90% of Natanda’s Kitchen posts. But, there really is no better feeling than starting the day with the nutrients you need to be energized until the night time! (Unless this is a mental game, in which, they got me.)

The staples in our breakfasts/brunches include egg whites (some older photos contain yolks although we’ve been avoiding yolks for about a year now), an assortment of fresh vegetables (spinach, mushrooms, onions, and broccoli are our favorites), some variation of cheese (most of the time), and something to put on top or on the side (avocado, tomato, toast, fruit). We don’t buy too many breakfast meats, but they’re always welcomed in any of our dishes! Sometimes we make sandwiches, while other days we go “breadless”. The pictures above depict the diverse (and interesting, some might add) forms of our egg concoctions.

As you are probably already aware, we believe the key to any successful meal is flavor. Spices contain an abundance of flavor which is why they are IMPERATIVE in cooking. With breakfast, we stick with the basics: salt (not too much of this!), pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and sriracha (which Natalie drinks). Sometimes we mix the sriracha in the eggs, while other times we use it as a condiment along with ketchup and mustard (you’ll slowly realize how weird I am if you don’t already know). When we make sweet potato hash, we use coconut oil instead of olive oil because it provides such a rich flavor that parallels with the Indian and Thai flavors that we adore. As we continue to blog our European, Asian, Latin/Central American recipes, you’ll notice that some parts of the world incorporate many more spices into their dishes than the typical American meal would.

There are three photos above that are breakfast meals that we’ve made that are different than our standard egg plates. On Mother’s Day this year, we made a to-die-for parfait. We used 2% Greek Yogurt (maybe this was the reason they were so good), honey on the bottom, coconut and dark chocolate granola, and a berry assortment on top. Once in the Fall, we had some family over and we made those pumpkin pancakes (Trader Joes). They are plated with apples and pecans that are sauteed with cinnamon and honey. We drizzled syrup atop of the pancakes, naturally. I’m sure your mouth is watering for this combination right now, as mine is. Don’t forget to go to Trader Joes in the fall to stock up on the pumpkin pancake boxes (and the coconut pancakes are also out of this world)! And lastly, there is a photo of paleo pancakes (we had to try it...) that we made with almond meal. The texture was different, of course. They were delicate, gritty, and crumbled before reaching our mouths. I think I would just eat eggs before almond meal pancakes if I ever decided to eat paleo again (probs not).

Hopefully you now have an idea of how to make a sufficient breakfast on your own this weekend. But if you’re lazy, come eat at our house! :)

#breakfast #brunch #jerseyshorebloggers #jerseyshoreeats #bloggers #natanda #natandaskitchen #jerseyshorefoodbloggers

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Czech Us Out!

We ate our way through the Czech Republic in April and we guest posted on a friends’ South Florida blog (The South Florida Sage)! The link is below!

http://thesoflasage.com/2015/05/06/natandas-kitchen-travel-diary-czech-republic-by-fooddrink/

#thesoflasage #thesouthfloridasage #natandaskitchen #jerseyshorefoodies #jerseyshorefoodblogs #foodsoftheczechrepublic #natanda #foodies

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If there was a campsite attached to the Joe Leone’s kitchen, I would bring my bed (and my cats) and move there. There are truly no words to describe the quality and the taste of these Italian specialty dishes.

I just discovered this place about two years ago. Natalie, again, has been eating there her whole life. From sandwiches, to salads, to prepared hot and cold foods, everything is just exquisite. I started a hashtag on Instagram #webikeforleones because I literally would bike those 6 miles round trip every single day if I could to eat that food.

Our favorite sandwich is a variation of eggplant with fresh mozzarella (THAT MELTS IN YOUR MOUTH AND IGNITES YOUR TASTE BUDS IN SUCH A WAY THAT YOU COULD ALMOST DROP TO THE FLOOR AND NOT DO ANYTHING FOR THE REST OF THE DAY BECAUSE YOU’RE THAT FULFILLED), roasted red peppers, mayo and balsamic glaze. Sometimes, we get it with sliced chicken breast, sometimes with extra veggies, and once one of our friends got it with pesto. The 8 oz sandwich is plenty for two people and it is only about $8 (no matter what you put on it) AND it comes with a bag of chips! The salads are also reasonably priced. They range from $5-$8, come with a plethora of fresh ingredients, and can also feed a small army. You just keep eating from it and it doesn’t end! The prepared salads and other weighed items can get a little pricey, but if you sample small amounts of each, you can eat for about $10-$20 with a buddy.

Some more of our favorites include: chicken salad, buffalo chicken salad, tomato petals, meatballs, macaroni salad, macaroni and cheese (duh), chicken meatballs, THEIR PREPARED SALAD OF THE DAY...etc...

When I use the word “quality”, I am not only referring to the food! Everything from the presentation, to the cleanliness, to the attentiveness of the staff, and even the plastic containers that the food comes in (that we wash and reuse) are all top notch! Walking into both the Gastronomia in Sea Girt and the main location in Point Pleasant Beach give off the vibe that it’s Christmas time in Vermont all year round! The atmosphere is so warm and fun.

Sometimes, they even have samples!

I look forward to company coming over so we can show them this fantastic place that they (like me) have been missing out on their whole lives.

http://www.joeleones.com/locations

#joeleones #joeleonesgastronomia #joeleonesmarket #joeleonesjerseyshore #jerseyshorebloggers #jerseyshorefoodies #foodies #jerseyshoreeats #natandaskitchen #jerseyshorefoodblogs #webikeforleones

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Here is a confession: We went to Jersey Shore BBQ (JSBBQ) twice in one week! :O We are preparing our taste buds for our trip out west! The first time, we took out a two meat/two sides combo of shredded chicken and burnt ends beef brisket with sweet potato fries and mac and cheese. This was $20 but enough for two people to eat! The second time, we ditched the chicken and got the beef on a sandwich. The sandwiches were buy one get one half off for their Wednesday special! This sandwich costs $9 and an additional $2 for two sides. Therefore, we spent $17-$18 before the tip. I personally love the burnt ends beef brisket so much that it doesn’t even need bread. I love to taste the smokey flavor and the spices on my tongue just the way it is. The sweet potato fries are so unique! They are about the length of a whole sweet potato and are almost like battered and fried like tempura. They are crunchy and salty. (However, they are not so good microwaved the next day when you’re trying not to eat so much for dinner.) The macaroni and cheese is definitely delicious, as well!

http://jsbbq1.wix.com/jsbbq#!menu/c1zwv

#jerseyshorebbq #jsbbq #jerseyshorebloggers #jerseyshoreblog #jerseyshoreeats #jerseyshorefoodblog #natandaskitchen #bbq

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Michael Angelo’s in Wall Township, New Jersey is spectacular! Natalie of “Natanda" has been dining there and taking food to go for years and years! They literally have the most pizza options that I have ever heard of! Maybe I need to get out more. On the left is a cavatelli (GAV-A-DEAL) and broccoli slice. In the middle is a Greek salad slice, and the right is plain. These pies are MASSIVE, like three feet in diameter. One pizza can practically feed a family of seventeen. We ordered three slices and one drink and it came to $11. Talk about reasonable! Wow!

http://www.brook35plaza.com/pdfs/mA-menu-nov2011.pdf

#michaelangelos #michaelangeloswall #michaelangelosseagirt #michaelangelospizza #foodies #jerseyshoreeats #jerseyshorefoodies #jerseyshorefoodblogs #natandaskitchen

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Featured above is a pork taco from the Mogo Korean Fusion Taco stand on the Asbury Park boardwalk! If you didn’t already know, Natanda is really into our flavor profiles. We love Mogo because their products are FULL of flavor. We find that when we bring out-of-towners to try ethnic foods that they’ve never had before, they’re often skeptical. My mom doesn’t enjoy spicy foods, but devoured their soy ginger glaze chicken wings. One of our friends who isn’t an adventurous eater went for a pork taco and fell in love with it!

Their menu contains rice bowls, salad bowls, burritos, and tacos that can all be customized based on one’s meat preference. The tacos are $4 each and if you’re less than starving, one or two is enough! The bowls and burritos are between $8-$9. The first time we ventured over to their main location in Asbury Park, we were told by two drunk boys that we ordered the wrong things (shrimp taco and chicken rice bowl). Therefore, we ordered a second meal and tried the “best item on the menu” : the pork taco. The pork is marinated so perfectly, placed into the taco shell, and topped with an Asian slaw. They offer a variety of toppings at their condiment bar to put on your food, as well. I squirted some amazing sweet and spicy hot sauce on top of mine! I cannot even explain the flavor of that... just trust me!

When we brought my parents there, we tried their kimchi fried rice and it was out of this world! The wings come in two flavors: soy ginger glaze and spicy glaze. Both are spectacular! There are other special options, as well. We highly recommend both the store and the boardwalk stand!

http://www.eatmogo.com/menu.html

#mogo #mogokoreanfusion #koreanfusion #jerseyshorefoodies #jerseyshorefood #jerseyshoreeats #mogojerseyshore #asburypark #asburyparkeats #foodonthejerseyshore #jerseyshorefoodblogs #natanda #natandaskitchen

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These cupcakes almost look too good to eat!! They come from Simonas Bakery in Sea Girt, New Jersey. The Raspberry Chocolate Mouse one in the back and the Blueberry White Chocolate one to the right were featured on the Food Network. The one on the left is their Reese's Peanut Butter cupcake.

Although each cupcake is almost $4, they are definitely shareable! I sampled about an eighth of each of these and that was all I needed to be satisfied! All three of them were delicious and contained so much flavor. The inside of each cupcake was stuffed, as well.

We haven’t tasted a bad pastry from Simonas. Their cookies and Biscottis always hit the spot!

http://www.simonasbakery.com/

#simonasbakery #simonas #simonasseagirt #jerseyshoreeats #foodies #foodie #jerseyshorefoodies #jerseyshorebloggers #dd/lg blog #bloggersofjerseyshore #cupcakes #cupcakesfromfoodnetwork #jerseyshorefoodblogs #natandaskitchen

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The Tap House in Spring Lake Heights never lets us down. We have visited this establishment on numerous occasions, whether being to conveniently grab a drink, or sample some of their delicious food options. For happy hour, they offer sliders that are outstanding.

On this particular night, we came here with a friend and ordered three things that none of us had tried before. The presentation on all three dishes made the meals look very appealing. The service was above average, as well.

The server recommended the buffalo macaroni and cheese ($10) over the standard option. Macaroni and cheese is one of those foods that is just so delicious by itself that sometimes when people try to add strong flavors to it, it’s not the same. Also, I am biased because I am a macaroni and cheese connoisseur and was once in a group called “Cheese Anonymous” (where we certainly did not want to quit!) Although I was wary about this choice, it exceeded all of my expectations! There was just enough buffalo flavor so that it wasn’t overbearing. The texture of the cheese was perfect; not gritty or watery. It was topped with toasted bread crumbs and garnished with parsley. It looked as good as it tasted and I would eat this every single day.

Ordering a cheeseburger ($10) at a bar is a pretty standard choice, however, we would agree that this one was delicious. It was ordered medium, and it came out perfectly. It was juicy, flavorful, and filling. The sweet potato fries were crispy and great, as well.

I believe that amongst the three meals, the steak sandwich (~$20) had the best presentation. It photographed really well. And not only did it look incredible, our friend described it as, “Heaven”, and that it was the, “Best steak sandwich ever.” We could hear it sizzling on the hot plate from a few feet away and it arrived to the table steaming hot. The aroma, alone, was too good to be true. It came open faced, on toasted garlic bread (which kept cooking the entire time), and was accompanied with onion rings and a Parmesan, parsley garnish.

We cannot wait to visit the Spring Lake Tap House again!

http://www.springlaketaphouse.com/

#springlaketaphouse #springlake #taphouse #buffalomacaroniandcheese #cheeseburger #steaksandwich #eats #jerseyshoreeats #foodies #foodieblog #bloggers #foodbloggers #barsonthejerseyshore #jerseyshorefoodblogs #natandaskitchen

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#NatandasKitchen includes beautiful photographs from the kitchen of the wannabe chef couple Natalie and Miranda. The joint name was given to us by some friends and the hashtag/idea was inspired by Miranda (who is also the [amateur] photographer). We try to eat as healthy as we can, but we appreciate and thoroughly enjoy a variety of food from all cultures. Please enjoy the photos and feel free to message me for more detailed recipes.

[natandaskitchen]

Egg white scramble with onion, broccoli, and pepper jack cheese on top of an english muffin

[natandaskitchen]

Housewarming party #2! Pan fried chicken nuggets, homemade hummus (chick peas, lemon juice, Evoo, garlic), and a sweet quinoa salad (quinoa, maple syrup, apple, dried fruit, balsamic vinegar, walnuts), and a cheese assortment.

[natandaskitchen]

#NatandasKitchen includes beautiful photographs from the kitchen of the wannabe chef couple Natalie and Miranda. The joint name was given to us by some friends and the hashtag/idea was inspired by Miranda (who is also the photographer). We try to eat as healthy as we can, but we appreciate and thoroughly enjoy a variety of food from all ethnicities. Please enjoy the photos and feel free to message me for more detailed recipes.

[natandaskitchen]

The hardest period in life is one’s twenties. It’s a shame because you’re your most gorgeous, and you’re physically in peak condition. But it’s actually when you’re most insecure and full of self-doubt. When you don’t know what’s going to happen, it’s frightening.

Helen Mirren, quoted in Esquire’s “What I’ve Learned” (via psych-facts)