I am on an extended trip to Southern California for the next couple weeks. My days here have consisted of stealing away from work as often as possible to eat grandma's food, consume funnel cakes with my 2 favorite eleven and nine year old kids on this planet at Knott's, and work on lists of new places that I'd like to go while I'm here.

So far, my "things to do" on this trip include Santouka for Ramen, Mashti Malone for ice cream, and The Hungry Cat for a cucumber cocktail, Sushi Shibucho for my favorite sushi ever and hopefully Lucques for a meal. Anyone have other interesting "must try" places in the greater LA area? I'd like to get to Little Saigon in Westminster this trip, and would love some advice about where to go while there.

In my absence, I will leave you with some of my favorite links from around the Bay this week:

If you haven't been to Becks and Posh this week, I suggest you check out her fantabulous site redesign -- it makes her photographs pop, and makes reading her site even more fun than it already was.

The best memes are interesting and timely, and the one proposed by The Traveler's Lunchbox was just that. Melissa asked all bloggers to write a post about Things to Eat Before You Die. A lot of Bay Area Bloggers participated, and the resultant list is a good read.

Looking for somewhere on the Peninsula to have breakfast this weekend? Anh-minh suggests you try Alana's Cafe in Redwood City.

The pancakes were delicious! The oats made for a nice texture, but didn't overwhelm the batter or -- what I feared -- make it too dry. It's got a good flavor to it, too, so you don't need much maple syrup. Jon's scone was awesome. It was fresh out of the oven, so it was warm with a crusty top. He approved of his Farmer's Garden dish as well, as evidenced by the clean plate he left behind. The homefries were also a hit. Ideally, I'd like them a tad crispier, but they were perfectly seasoned.

The author of the Dive Food Blog took one for the team this week and checked out Sam's Pizza on Broadway in San Francisco. Was it good?

The fries, although hot, were previously frozen and not any different than what you would buy off the cheap shelf at the supermarket. The cheeseburger was fairly non-descript and a pale rendition of the burger at AllStars, at double the price. Perhaps I should've ventured over to Clown Alley instead.

Feel like cooking at home this weekend? Try Haupia Macadamia Nut Bread Pudding, Uova Affogate con Verdure Miste, or some fantastic looking golden crispy gnocchi.

Have a great Labor Day weekend everyone!