Posted on by Zarine Mohideen · 7 Comments

Give me the caffeine. NOW.

Caffeine has found its way in to a big part of my life. I need my cup of hot java every morning. Without aforementioned cup of java I go crazy. At first I brushed away the caffeine withdrawal symptoms as an every day head ache. No coffee in the morning makes me cranky throughout the day and talking translates to a rock band playing in my head. I feel like I’m carrying the entire world on my already large forehead and you better turn the volume down on the radio lest I punch you.

I grew up in a largely ginger tea drinking family. Coffee was present but did not have a big following. A cup every morning or so was not a big deal. But ginger tea was popular. A cup every evening, a cup with some vadai, a cup if there are guests, a cup if you’re sick and a cup if the guests decide to stay a little longer.

Six months of living here and tea has taken a backseat. I’ve started craving coffee like I’m on crack (I’m not). Coffee with banana chocolate cherry bread from Peets and I’m the happiest girl in the world, a little extra caffeinated, but still happy in my delicious  cloud.

I like the baristas at our local Peets too. There is this one girl who fascinates me. She has streaks of green in her hair. I’d love to get my hair colored in a myriad of colors. but unfortunately for me I will talk the talk but will chicken out when it comes to actually doing it.

I’ve been nursing this post for way too long. I’m just going to hit ‘ publish’ now.

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Posted on by Zarine Mohideen · 11 Comments

Need. Pani. Puri.

I love Spring. Gentle breeze, pleasant weather and chirping birds, enough to make me feel like I’m in a Disney movie. It makes me much happier than the gloomy winter. My life and moods seem to revolve around the changing weather. If it’s a dark day Zarine is gloomy. If it’s a bright day then depending on PMS Zarine is either gloomy or high on caffeine.

I bought a box of Parle Cheeslings last time we were at the Indian store. I love Cheeselings. They remind me of my childhood which seems like it happened a lifetime ago. Cheeselings and Frooti were everything that basically summed up my childhood. Ooh, and Corn Puffs too. Not any fancy kind of corn puffs but the real cheap one that was extremely spicy and was just labelled Corn Puffs. God, I’d kill for one of those right now.

I think I have one food to represent every phase of my life. Right now I would like some good pani puri to represent this phase but I am yet to find a place in the Bay Area that really sells me on their pani puri. So please, readers, if you live in the Bay Area tell me where I can go to get my fix. Living on an absence of Shri Mithai in my life is not doing me any good!

Posted on by Zarine Mohideen

Eating Out 101

I have never eaten alone in a restaurant. I always had someone to accompany in my quest to fill my belly – friends, my mother and brother were my go to options. I’d wake up one morning thinking I just HAVE to eat pani puri today else I will die of a deficiency of chaat. The next step would be to pick one of the above three options and off I’d go with savory dreams in my head.

After living here for close to five months now. Now my only option is The H and yes he is very accompanying of my cravings so that’s good, but on most days when I decide to step out for lunch it’s always a table for one.  At first I didn’t like sitting by myself in a crowded restaurant eating my meal. No conversation means Zarine will eat her food at an intense speed. So that’s ten minutes of polishing the plate and then what? I mostly people watch or eavesdrop (which I find highly entertaining) or read my book. But the secret to eating out alone is, I’ve realized  pretending to enjoy your own company. At first it may seem like a huge task pretending to be interested in yourself. But then for self loving veterans like myself, it is routine.

So you are sitting in a cafe, eating your scrumptious sandwich and you are having this deep conversation with yourself in your own head. No, you are not thinking. You are having a conversation with yourself (I swear I don’t hear voices in my head though). Oh, that’s wonderful Zarine! You are such an interesting interesting person. Do you like your sandwich? Oh yes thank you it’s delicious. Would like some? Yes I’d love to try! You can have some of my drink too. Really? Thanks!

See! It’s not that hard to be a generous person if you practice enough inside your head. Soon you will implement it in your life and people will finally like you. You will thank me for your training.

Coming back to the topic, yes, it is very easy to eat out alone at a restaurant. You just got to love yourself enough and if you really are that boring where you can’t seem to keep even yourself entertained then just bring a book or check your Facebook. That ought to keep you happy.

Posted on by Zarine Mohideen

Savory Creep

“So long as you have food in your mouth, you have solved all the questions for the time being.”

– Franz Kafka

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Zorba the Greek with rosemary potatoes and a salmon sandwich in the background, Squat & Gobble, Haight St, San Francisco

Posted on by Zarine Mohideen · 3 Comments

Pho-ntastic

“People who love to eat are always the best people.”

– Julia Child

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Vegetarian pho and sweet potato truffle fries, Pho 69, San Jose

(Bad picture because we were eating with a couple I just met and I didn’t want to be ‘that girl who photographs her food’, who I actually am and should be proud of.)