If you live in So Cal or maybe just happen to frequently check how great the weather is here versus the rest of the country, you will know that it was the greatest type of weekend weather in which to celebrate the Summer Solstice.

It was absolutely perfect. Mid 70′s, ocean breeze, without a cloud in the sky.

To start it off, on Friday, I had the greatest honor to celebrate the marriage of one of my oldest and closest friends, Hannah, to her new husband, Matt. I was honored and humbled to be in the presence of such great love, family and friends.

…And of course, good food. Besides the yummy chicken and steak options, this veggie plate was especially fanstastic!

It was like a world’s largest rice and veggie-filled, baked samosa. The roasted red pepper sauce and aged balsamic were unique contributions to this plate.

The rest of the weekend was devoted entirely to sister weekend! Now that my two sisters and I are old enough to enjoy each other’s company, rather than want to strangle each other, these gatherings are highly sought after.

Gigantic Fish Taco @ Makenzie’s in Ventura, CA

The awesome thing about having a big family is that there are always plenty of gatherings, where everybody shows up at, at least most of the time; but sometimes, it’s just as nice to spend non-chaotic quality time with a few siblings .

Tempura zucchini with parmesan garnish

Here is a handy summary of what Jen, Sarah and I, accomplished this weekend:

Please excuse the chicken scratch…we got too excited that we found a beach house guest log to decorate.

Here is a detailed version of “what we did”, written in the log entry, above: by shop, I mean that I bought far too many shoes. By sip hot cocoa, I mean that Jen got Zebra (dark chocolate + White chocolate) , Sarah got Mint, and I got the Triple Crown (Dark chocolate + White Chocolate + Hazelnut).

Note: Don’t ask Starbucks for a “Triple Crown” hot cocoa, because they won’t have a clue what you mean, unless you happen to order it at the same Starbucks in Ventura, that I created it at.

And by eat, I mean that we dominated a 3 course chef’s tasting at Seagrass, in Santa Barbara.

They had the coolest centerpieces there…I was slightly obsessed. But besides the beachy, yet classy decor, the service and food were both impeccable.

The servers knew the ingredients of each plate and were able to describe what each dish offered and the textures and flavors that we might find. I didn’t need to look back at the menu to remember what was in each dish to describe it again in this post, THAT is how knowledgeable the servers were and how memorable the food was.

First Course:

Roasted Beet Salad with crumbled blue cheese, micro greens, pecans, beat juice glaze, and olive oil emulsion.

3 different Entrees:

Loup de Mer: a local sea-bass, poached in butter and skin crisped, with a creamy leak sauce and a veal jus truffle sauce, topped with matchstick fried potatoes.

Salmon with sauteed swiss chard and a creamy parsnip puree, tender scallops and fresh peas, served with a sweet chilli citrus sauce.

Just look at how rare it is in the middle! It had a crispy skin and lightly seared with a warm Sashimi middle.

Tender Braised Short Ribs with seasonal veggies, creamy potatoes and the flavorful braising liquid for a dipping sauce.

Dessert: Profiteroles (cream puffs) and vanilla bean ice cream with a chocolate sauce and fresh berries.

Our bellies were full and our souls were happy.

Between great meals like this one, frolicking around sunny beaches and sharing way to many laughs, it was was quite a memorable weekend.

We hope you spent your Summer Solstice weekend outside, enjoying the beautimous weather, too!

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Chrissy

**this post was not compensated in any way by the restaurant. I just wanted to share with all of you, how much we loved it!