Yay, month #3 in my food blogging adventure. And we’ve almost doubled our income from last month. Ack, a whopping $4.30. I’m not giving up!

As you can see, Reddit is still the #1 traffic source. This month I experimented by posting links to different sub-reddits, so this may have affected the clicks.

I have to say that this month has been crazy busy with my actual work and whatnot so I didn’t post quite as much as I hoped this month, but I did get in at least one each week.

AdSense // $4.30
Amazon Associates // $0
Bluehost // $0
Elegant Themes // $0
GoDaddy // $0
Studiopress // $0

Here are the site stats:

Google Page Rank // 2/10
Domain Authority // 20/100
Page Authority // 31/100
Alexa Rank // 4,596,861
Alexa USA Rank // 1,256,051
Referring Domains // 30

Creepin’ up.

• FACEBOOK // 91
• TWITTER // 986
• GOOGLE+ // 3
• PINTEREST // 41
• INSTAGRAM // 119
• TUMBLR // 0
• VINE // 73

I did alright this month socially. Like I said before it’s been pretty crazy so I admit I didn’t really dedicate as much time to my social strategy this month, but the vine videos I posted seemed to have gotten a bunch of views, woo hoo!

The post Food Blog Income Report March 2015 appeared first on Fryhole.

It’s cute inside and has tables to sit at (as well as outside) and there’s a big case of ice cream to choose from. It feels very neighborhoody and friendly. I got old trusty mint chocolate chip, my favorite flavor of all! It was good, green, and minty. This ice cream has the fresh minty flavor that you usually find in the white mint chocolate chip flavors… usually the green mint chocolate chip has a more subdued warmer mint flavor than the sharpness of fresh mint flavor, if you know what I mean.

Double Rainbow
860 4th St
San Rafael, CA 94901
website

The post Double Rainbow – Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream appeared first on Fryhole.

So after we ate lunch, we were walking through the parking lot back to the car when they spotted the roasted sweet potato stand. OMG, could this be real?! I never heard of this before… my friends couldn’t believe that I had never heard of it before – I agree especially since I lived in NYC and don’t ever remember having this on the street…

We got an order (which included 3 potatoes, one for each of us) and holy shitake, SO GOOD!!!  I’ll let the photos talk now…

Here are our potatoes, hot from the oven!

Here is the front of the stand (facing the parking lot).

Basically, you just peel off the skin and eat the potato inside. This potato was literally the hottest item I have ever put into my mouth, straight from a volcano… I swear there must’ve been lava in that oven.  You know when you eat something too hot and you have no drink to cool your throat down?  I was pretty much gagging on the heat, as I envisioned my throat being torched by this delicious sweet potato!

So freaking hot had to take a break and put it in my hand.  The potato itself was remarkably sweet and flavorful, especially for having nothing on it at all. I wished I had cash so I could get another order for the road!

If you’re ever down in Santa Clara, look for the sweet potato stand in the strip mall, and treat yo’ self!

The post Hot Roasted Sweet Potatoes appeared first on Fryhole.

Tara’s Organic Ice Cream is a little ice cream shop on Telegraph Ave. in Oakland (next to Burma Superstar). We stopped by for a cone after lunch.

It’s very small inside…

Here’s the ice cream selection.

I ordered white pepper chocolate chip.  Originally I ordered it in a cup but then I saw the waffle cones… the SESAME waffle cone.

Here’s my cone! As you can see, my cone is pretty well-done…

White pepper and chocolate chips aren’t really two things I would ever consider putting together, but for some really weird reason these flavors work together. I’m not a pepper person. I don’t add pepper to my food and I rarely eat anything that is peppery.  The first lick of this ice cream was very strong. The flavor is white pepper but it was just as strong if not stronger than any black pepper I’ve ever had. Imagine putting a frozen spoon full of pepper into your mouth and then toss in a chocolate chip. Cold and peppery with sprinkle of chocolate.

So much pepper… in a way I was just eating it so I could get to the chocolate chips… it hard for me to finish but I did all the way down to the last bite of cone. It was interesting to say the least. Who can toss an ice cream cone? Not me.

There’s a lot of art hanging on the wall.

Tara’s Organic Ice Cream
4731 Telegraph Avenue
Oakland, CA 94609
www.tarasorganic.com

The post Tara’s Ice Cream: White Pepper Chocolate Chip appeared first on Fryhole.

So, it was a TUESDAY and I thought I would sneak in a quick lunch at Geta around 1:30pm (assuming the lunch rush was over), but I get there to find a completely full restaurant, people standing outside, and no room at the bar. Whaaaat?!! I had to wait about 10 minutes… since I was alone I grabbed a seat at the sushi bar.

The miso soup at Geta is totally legit. I’ve had a lot of bad miso soup in my day and this soup is freaking awesome. Can’t go wrong with the miso soup here.

I looked up above the sushi bar and saw this… Darn, didn’t try anything on any of those signs.

This is the fish in front of me.

…it’s almost sushi time!

Wahahahaha my favorite roll, the classic shrimp tempura. The only thing I wouldn’t mind leaving out is the lettuce. Since when do they put lettuce in sushi? Weird to me.

Spicy tuna roll, mmmm….

Here’s the outside.

Geta Japanese Restaurant
165 41st St
Oakland, CA 94611

The post Geta Sushi: Spicy Tuna Roll, Shrimp Tempura Maki appeared first on Fryhole.

If you haven’t been, La Note is a cute French bistro restaurant right on Shattuck in Berkeley. It’s very cute inside, french, homey and rustic and the food is always good.

We waited for 20 minutes and they sat us at the first 2-top table right inside the door… there was a few open ones farther back, I thought we would get one of those… ugh. They usually play French music… it was turned off or so low you couldn’t hear it.

Homemade jam on the table.

Here’s the menu.

The wall inside as you walk in.

Closeup of the menu. I ordered the Omelette fromage et jambon (ham and cheese omelette).

Wall of awards.

Unfortunately this is where things turn for the worse… just before we got our food, we were approached by the hostess who asked if we wouldn’t mind switching tables before our food came out so that they could use our table to help seat a party of 5 faster. I scanned the restaurant and saw a few open tables near the back, so we said ok and got up and moved. They freakin sat us at the worst table in the dining room – it basically was right in the walkway of where the servers get the food, right across from the entrance to the patio area (which we were told was closed, but then they started seating people out there early). Our table was in a really dark area, in the line of traffic… next to a column, kind of protruding out into the walkway. We felt like we were in the way, and they should seriously reconsider the location of that table, because it’s in a very awkward place.

So, our food came out. It was really good… here’s the ham and cheese omelette, it’s always my go-to item at La Note. They slice the ham up really small and thin which I appreciate a lot, and the cheese is emmenthal, which is creamy and mild. The eggs are buttery and rich and you definitely leave feeling very full. The potatoes are roasted with garlic and includes whole cloves, yum!

The photos below look bright because I brightened them.

Closeup of the ham and cheese omelette and roasted potatoes. Oh, and the butter is soft which is nice and easy to spread.

We were a little disappointed with the grapefruit because it was literally just a grapefruit sliced in half… really hard to eat with a spoon. You know how it goes when you try to spoon a grapefruit, squirting out all over the place… In the past, whoever was back there prepping used to loosen the fruit from the skin so it was easy to scoop out with a spoon, which was nice… oh well.

The table location was really a bummer this trip. You can kind of see how close it is to the door… There is a bench right behind me, about a foot of space behind my chair.

So, if you don’t mind waiting, go whenever… but for the best experience, go as early as possible. I do recommend going to La Note if you haven’t been before, the food is good, just try to manage your expectations when it comes to waiting because it can get crazy. They say the patio doesn’t open until 10am but the day we were there it opened around 9:25am. Sitting out on the patio on a nice day is the best… highly recommend.

La Note
2377 Shattuck Ave
Berkeley, CA 94704
www.lanoterestaurant.com

The post La Note: Omelette de Fromage et Jambon appeared first on Fryhole.

Note, Mama’s is CASH ONLY. They do have an ATM machine there in case you forget cash…

Since we arrived early (about 7:30am), the place was pretty empty so we got a booth, woo hoo! Here’s a tight shot of the room with the booths. There are aprons hanging all over the walls.

When’s the last time you saw a restaurant jukebox? Here you go… they don’t work but they’re nice to look at. People have carved their names and messages in the booths.

I ordered the Combo breakfast which includes 2 buttermilk pancakes, bacon, and an egg (I ordered over-medium). It does not come with toast so I had to order that separate.  The pancakes are freaking awesome. I’m not really the type to order pancakes or waffles or any sweet things for breakfast (unless I’m at Perkin’s bc I love their apricot syrup, lol)…. but I was in the mood for pancakes – and the bacon adds a nice salty touch. You know, a bite of pancakes, a bite of bacon…. until it’s gone.

I love these pancakes and bacon!! The pancakes are light and fluffy and absolutely perfect.

This is the view from our booth…

Here’s the main room that you enter when you walk into the restaurant.

On your way out, look up and you’ll see a bunch of strange masks and a giant coffee cup, lol.

Here’s the outside of Mama’s.

All in all, Mama’s is great for breakfast. I highly recommend their pancakes and bacon, soooo good! Very satisfying.  Just don’t forget to bring cash, and get their early if you don’t want to wait 2309485743w587 minutes in line.

Mama’s Royal Cafe
4012 Broadway
Oakland, CA 94611
www.mamasroyaloakland.com

The post Mama’s Royal Cafe: Buttermilk Pancakes and Bacon appeared first on Fryhole.

I really love this place, so much that I was even on the fence about even sharing it. The best thing though is the Tuesday special, $7 cheeseburger and fries! It’s printed on the table tent that sits on each table, otherwise you wouldn’t know about it unless you read…

Here’s the beautiful cheeseburger and fries! The burger is pretty darn big and the fries are crispy crinkle cut.

The french fries are crinkle cut – glorious, crispy, hot and salty. My very favorite kind!

The cheese is cheddar. It comes with a side of mayo.

Here’s a shot of the inside. It’s a real classic place, lots of locals, really laid back and really good food. All of the people who work there are very nice and friendly. I’ve never had anything I don’t like here, will definitely have to Fryhole some more stuff soon (the cheesesteak, the club, the danish meatball sandwich… omg).

The Lighthouse Cafe
12 Tamalpais Drive
Corte Madera, CA 94925

The post Lighthouse Cafe: Cheeseburger and Fries appeared first on Fryhole.

Two days later I found myself at Rustic Bakery. There are two locations – one is in the Marin Country Mart at Larkspur Landing, a nice little cluster of shops and restaurants in Marin, right on the other side of the Richmond Bridge. I freaking love this place. You really can’t go wrong with anything you order here, the pastries are fantastic and seriously rival the very best ones in Paris (I’m not kidding).

Here’s the outside. Larkspur Landing is great and very family-friendly. You can always find plenty of dogs and strollers… lol. Rustic Bakery is tucked inside the mart, on the 24-hour fitness side, straight through past the Starbucks.

Here’s the sign outside. They serve Stumptown Coffee at Rustic Bakery.  Stumptown is a craft coffee from Portland, OR.

Here is the inside of Rustic Bakery. I was surprised it wasn’t more crowded… Actually, right after I took this photo a bunch of people came in right behind me… agh, the pressure!

Some of the yummy offerings… so hard to choose!  I’ve eaten every single pastry at Rustic Bakery at one time or another. Today, however, we will be focusing on their brightest shining star, the ham and cheese croissant.

I also ordered a latte… here’s they are making it.

Oh happy day! Here’s the glorious ham and cheese croissant. Notice the cheese baked into the dough… the golden flakey crust… I can’t even begin to describe how delicious this is. I’ve eaten a lot of ham and cheese croissants in my life and I have to say that this one is by far, the very BEST.  This is the flakiest and butteriest croissant you’ll ever have – the ham is folded neatly inside, it’s real cheesy and crumbs will be everywhere.

I just visited Paris last September and of course I ate croissants everyday, but in the back of my mind I was always thinking of the croissants from Rustic Bakery.  You may be thinking, “WHAT?! Paris is the the world’s croissant kingdom! How dare you!” Well, I’m serious, and if you doubt me, you need to go and try one yourself.

When you order the ham and cheese croissant, you need to decide if you want to eat it room temperature or warmed up.  If you get there early enough you may even get a fresh hot one… this has only happened to me once and it was amazing… If you have a toaster oven nearby, I highly recommend heating it up for a few minutes before you eat it, you won’t be disappointed. Microwaving it is good too, it warms it nicely, but it also kind of loses the flakiness, which is this croissant’s greatest asset.

So beautiful…

And this is funny because my name is Kira… lol.

So are you ready? …Do it!

Rustic Bakery
Larkspur Landing
2017 Larkspur Landing Cir
Larkspur, CA 94939
www.rusticbakery.com

Feed Shark

The post Rustic Bakery: Ham and Cheese Croissant appeared first on Fryhole.

I’ve been testing out some new strategies this month for social sharing, so you’ll see there has been quite a rise in traffic, which is awesome!

Here are my top 10 referring sources:

Yay for Reddit! I admit I am totally a Reddit novice and I’m just now starting to figure it out. I posted a few links from the site and they seem to have attracted some visits, so I’m very grateful for that. I need to figure out how to remove the semalt.com referral since that is not actually a real referral but rather just messing up my stats… Otherwise, everything else checks out except for the buttons-for-website dot com (do not visit this url, it may harm your computer, I tried to visit and got a warning from my anti-virus).

Here’s a breakdown of devices used to view the site:

It’s interesting to me that most of Fryhole’s visitors are still coming from computers. I have some other websites that are much more popular on mobile devices. I’m glad to see that all my  hard work on the new website design was put to good use!

Something that I will be focusing on in March is completely optimizing the site for tablet and mobile. It’s about 80% there but I still have a bit of work to do, and more to learn about optimizing sites for mobile. On a side note, if you are interested in how to customize your WordPress site, feel free to check out another one of my websites, Kirateria, which is dedicated to website customization and solutions.

Are you ready to see how much I earned in Feb. 2015?!

AdSense // $2.51
Amazon Associates // $0
Bluehost // $0
Elegant Themes // $0
GoDaddy // $0
Studiopress // $0

I can’t decide if I should be proud or completely embarrassed… ehhh, I’ll look on the bright side, hey I have $2.51 more than I had last month! You gotta start somewhere, right?

Since I have multiple websites, it wouldn’t make sense to include all of my expenses here. This site and Kirateria are the only websites I’m attempting to monetize.

Here are some overall site stats:

Google Page Rank // 2/10
Domain Authority // 18/100
Page Authority // 30/100
Alexa Rank // 11,462,100
Alexa USA Rank // 1,319,025
Referring Domains // 33

Here are my social stats. I think it’s important to share this information with you too because a solid social media presence is key to success. Again, remember that I’m essentially starting from ground zero, so these numbers are very low.

My strength has and will always be Twitter, aka the most misunderstood social media channel out there, but I think it is the most important, especially when you’re launching a new venture/idea.

• FACEBOOK // 95
• TWITTER // 882
• GOOGLE+ // 3
• PINTEREST // 32
• INSTAGRAM // 68
• TUMBLR // 0
• VINE // 12

The post Food Blog Income Report February 2015 appeared first on Fryhole.