The SLY Foodie

Syrup Desserts, Downtown LA

2012-01-08T19:49:00.000-08:00

I found out about Syrup Desserts from a Six Taste brochure promoting a food tour of Downtown's Financial District. The sweet grilled cheese sandwiches they offer were reasons enough for me to make a short bus trip down the street.

Lounge area upstairs where there are board games available to enjoy.

What you see when you walk in the store.

Italian soda - don't remember the flavor though.

Latte - it was good, but nothing to brag about.

Blackberry Muenster - an awesome grilled cheese sandwich that contains fresh blackberries, muenster cheese, walnuts, blackberry preserves and ham on texas toast and topped with powdered sugar. The sweetness from the sugar, creaminess of the cheese, savory ham and tartness from the berries was an explosion of flavor. A must try.

Syrup Signature Waffles - Liege waffle served with fresh strawberries, vanilla ice cream. strawberry glaze and whipped cream. What's not to like? The crispy waffle was the perfect vehicle for the berries and the ice cream.

Syrup Desserts, 601 S. Spring Street, Downtown Los Angeles

Urth Caffe, Downtown LA

2012-01-08T19:35:00.000-08:00

Urth Caffe is a hip organic coffee company that specializes in its own brand of coffee and tea. They also happen to serve good, farm fresh food. They have four locations - Beverly Hills, Downtown, Santa Monica and West Hollywood. In fact, some episodes of HBO's Entourage show the Beverly Hills location.

On one of my first visits to Urth, this is what I got:

Sausage and Potato Omelette - three organic eggs with spicy chicken sausage, bell peppers, onions, heirloom potatoes and parsley. Served with a green salad with balsamic vinaigrette and bread.

Caffe Latte Dolce - it's supposed to be sweet and mild, prepared in the Italian tradition. It was good, but I thought it was a little on the bitter side.

Brioche Bread Pudding - WITHOUT raisins. It will probably feel like a big lump in your gut because it's kinda heavy, but it is really good. Especially when it's fresh.

Urth Caffe, 451 South Hewitt Street, Downtown Los Angeles

Newport Tan Cang Seafood Restaurant, San Gabriel

2012-01-08T19:17:00.000-08:00

Newport Tan Cang Seafood Restaurant is well known for their Newport Special Lobster. They currently have two locations, one in Rowland Heights, and the main location in San Gabriel. The restaurant is essentially a Chinese seafood restaurant that is heavily influence by Vietnamese, Cambodian and Thai cuisines. My tip of the day would be to go there early; it fills up quick. Oh yeah, and if ordering the lobster, bring money. A substantial amount of money.

Clams with Black Bean Sauce

Sauteed Pea Sprout

Newport Special Lobster - worth the trip and if you get there during the rush, it's also worth the wait.

Yang Chow Fried Rice

Kung Pao Chicken

Steamed Whole Fish - I think it's tilapia

Newport Tan Cang Seafood Restaurant, 518 W. Las Tunas Drive, San Gabriel

Lucques, West Hollywood

2012-01-08T19:03:00.000-08:00

For DineLA many moons ago, we visited Lucques for lunch. Lucques is owned by renowned chef Suzanne Goin, and is located on Melrose, close to La Cienega. I liked the atmosphere at Lucques; it was sophisticated, yet homey.

House bread, almonds and olives, served with butter and sea salt (I think).

Corn soup with poblano peppers and pepitas - savory and comforting with a little kick. Chief complaint? Not enough.

Fall fruit salad served with prosciutto, walnuts and saba - I didn't try it, since it was Boogs's choice, and the only indication I had that he liked it was an empty plate.

Polenta with summer squash, salsa verde, pecorino and breadcrumbs - I decided to go the vegetarian route, and it turned out well for me. Tasted good, and felt healthy.

Grape leaf wrapped trout with green rice, nasturtiums and dill yogurt - Boogs's entree choice, and he raved about it. I thought the green rice was good, and the fish was well cooked, but to me, it was simply an "ok" dish.

Bittersweet chocolate tart with crushed honeycomb and coffee ice cream - my dessert choice, and it was yummy and rich. I'm down for coffee ice cream anytime.

Vanilla semifreddo with Gaviota strawberries and almond croustine - I loved this dessert. The combined flavors and textures of vanilla, strawberry and almond worked so well together. Too bad Boogs didn't want to share too much.

Lucques Restaurant, 8474 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles

Flying Pig Cafe, Little Tokyo

2012-01-02T22:01:00.000-08:00

The Flying Pig Cafe opened its doors in Summer 2011, to much anticipation from food truck followers. The Flying Pig Truck currently has a successful run serving pan-Asian fusion food to pork lovers. We visited the restaurant in Little Tokyo within the first two weeks of its grand opening.

Kakuni - pork belly on brown rice. It has similar flavors to Filipino pork adobo. I thought the pork could be more tender, but otherwise, it was an "okay" dish. Definitely overpriced, though.

Duruchigi - marinated spicy pork with brown rice, served in a skillet. I thought this dish was definitely more flavorful than the Kakuni, and certainly packs more punch.

I really love the Flying Pig Truck - the pork belly bun is awesome, practically to die for. But I find the new restaurant a little lacking, with super loud music, small portions and high bills. I'm hoping that as time goes by, the restaurant would find more balance.

Flying Pig Cafe, 141 South Central Avenue, Los Angeles

Cabbage Patch, Downtown LA

2012-01-02T21:35:00.000-08:00

Cabbage Patch is known for "farm fresh fare." They have three locations - Beverly Hills, Playa Vista and Downtown Los Angeles. Some coworkers and I visited the downtown location for a quick bite and also to check out the culinary selections available.

Cheese Burger - Niman Ranch ground beef served with Tillamook cheddar cheese, applewood smoked bacon, and arugula on a toasted brioche bun. It comes with ketchup and aioli, and your choice of coleslaw or fries. I thought that the beef was juicy, fries crispy - overall a good meal. And I washed it down with this:

Iced mint tea - cool and refreshing

Cabbage Patch, 520 W. 6th Street, Los Angeles

New Capital Seafood Restaurant, Rowland Heights

2012-01-02T21:05:00.000-08:00

Instead of making a resolution I know I can't keep (resolution being posting frequently), I'll just post as many photos as I possibly can of places we've been, and foods we've eaten now. So in my mind, the next several posts will be out of order, but to you, it will just seem as if I've been eating. A lot.

This one is of New Capital Seafood Restaurant (NCSR), located on the second floor of the bustling Diamond Plaza Shopping Center in Rowland Heights. By "bustling," I mean it's super hard to find parking, especially during the busy hours. During the day, they serve dim sum, the Chinese version of tapas. Dim sum is typically served in small metal containers from carts wheeled around by the ladies who work at the restaurant. If you make eye contact with them, they'll usually stop at your table, offering you a plethora of dishes. Here's a sampling of the stuff we got.

Shu mai - pork dumplings. A dim sum staple, and NCSR knows how to make them well. It's perfect with a little hot sauce.

Braised pork spareribs, simmered in their own juices, making them tender and flavorful.

Cha siu bao, BBQ pork bun - not my favorite (I may have eaten one too many as a child), but it's definitely a dim sum favorite for many, including Boogs. What's not to like? There's bits of flavorful BBQ pork encased in doughy goodness.

Sesame balls - for a lack of better descriptors, it's usually lotus paste inside of a glutinous ball rolled in sesame seeds. It's sweet, so it's usually a dessert item, but the rule of dim sum is, if you see something you like, get it then, because it may not come around again later.

Fried shrimp dumplings - one of my favorites because it's fried and served with mayonnaise as a dipping sauce. How good is that?

Fried shrimp balls - using a piece of sugar cane as a skewer, this dish is sure to please. It comes with a sweet and sour dipping sauce. Did I mention that it's fried?

Turnip cake - I know it may sounds a little gross to those not familiar with dim sum, but I assure you, these are so good. It's one of my favorite dim sum dishes. It's par cooked, and then pan fried to order. The only problem with these at NCSR is, it's super hard to flag down the lady with the this cart.

Taro (wu) gok - also known as taro dumplings. Inside is a tasty mixture of minced pork, shrimp and mushroom. Outside is a crispy, flaky, almost fluffy taro batter that is deep fried to golden brown.

A few words to the wise: It's best to go early, either before or around 10:00 am. Otherwise, you will be stuck outside inhaling second hand smoke, waiting for your number to be called. In fact, by 10:00 am on weekends, the San Gabriel location is virtually packed. Also, no matter how good the lady says the dish is, if it doesn't look good, it probably isn't. If you're not into eating "unusual" meats, it's usually best to ask someone what it is before ordering it.

New Capital Seafood Restaurant, 1330 S. Fullerton Road, Rowland Heights

2012? Really?!

2012-01-02T19:34:00.000-08:00

Good grief! It's 2012?! I have been so remiss in posting, and I totally apologize for not doing so. It's not like I haven't eaten anything good the last three months or so...

To make up for it (sort of), here's a festive photo to kick off 2012. Happy New Year!

Vanilla cupcakes with vanilla cream cheese frosting

My Delight Cupcakery, Ontario

2011-09-21T22:27:00.000-07:00

I came across My Delight Cupcakery (MDC) almost a year ago serendipitously, and have been in love with it ever since. It is simply the best cupcakery establishments around, even better than...dare I say it...Sprinkle's Cupcakes. Yes, I can back up my big statement. MDC is the reigning LA Cupcake Challenge champion, having won it in 2010 and 2011 for innovative and delectable treats.

MDC has 16 daily flavors, and one to seven different Flavors of the Week (FOTW), depending on the occasion. Let me just preface the rest of this post by saying that the cakes themselves are moist and never dry or mealy.

Although I could rave on and on about MDC, let me just show you what we had today:

My dainty little package of "mini" goodies

From top row, left to right: Strawberry, Late Night Breakfast, Chocolate Salted Caramel

Bottom row, left to right: Carrot Cake, Waffle Sundae (FOTW), Peanut Butter

Strawberry: Fresh strawberry cake topped with strawberry frosting. Love the cake, the topping, not so much. It was a little too gritty for me.

Late Night Breakfast: Waffle-inspired cupcake topped with buttermilk fried chicken. The regular sized cupcake is stuffed with said fried chicken. The fried chicken garnish sits atop a buttery frosting, and then drizzled with maple syrup and a secret blend of spices. One word comes to mind: Bombdiggity! Yes, it's that good!

Chocolate Salted Caramel: Chocolate cake with a smooth caramel center and topped with chocolate frosting and caramel with a sprinkling of salt. I liked the combination, it was good.

Carrot Cupcake: Carrot cake with carrots, walnuts, pineapple, coconut, spices and topped with a vanilla cream cheese frosting. Not a fan of carrot cake, so I didn't try it.

Waffle Sundae: A light waffle-inspired cake filled w/ fresh strawberries, dipped in French chocolate ganache, frosted with a layer of chocolate mousse, then Madagascar vanilla mousse, topped with jimmies, nuts, a cherry & a piece of waffle cone. It was really good! I'm sad that it's just a FOTW.

Peanut Butter: Peanut butter cake with PB chips and topped with PB frosting and chocolate sprinkles. I loved the PB-ness of it all; thoroughly satisfying.

If you're ever in the IE, a visit to MDC is definitely in order. A word (two) to the wise: go early, as they tend to run out.

My Delight Cupcakery, 1520 N. Mountain Avenue, Suite B-108, Ontario

www.mydelightcupcakery.com

Mimi's Cafe, Chino Hills

2011-09-21T21:35:00.000-07:00

Bonjour! A breakfast treat at our local Mimi's Cafe.

Corned Beef Hash served with Mimi's potatoes two eggs (I always choose over easy), and a buttermilk spice muffin (not pictured). It's one of the best corned beef hash dishes I've had, and the potatoes were excellent. With some orange juice and coffee, it was a great way to start a lazy day off work.

Charlie Palmer at Bloomingdale's, South Coast Plaza

2011-09-20T19:45:00.000-07:00

It was Costa Mesa Restaurant Week, so for date night, Boogs and I finally got to try one of Charlie Palmer's restaurants. I've been wanting to visit Aureole at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, but since a Vegas trip without kids is essentially out of the question these days, South Coast Plaza will have to do. For $30 per person, we were treated to a delectable 3-course prix fixe meal plus a few goodies, with the chef's compliments:

The restaurant space from where we were seated.

Mini baguette, and apple bread roll - warm bread and butter, who can ask for more? I liked the uniqueness of the apple bread.

Chilled Pea Soup - this amuse bouche consisted of chilled pea puree with shrimp garnished with olive oil and micro greens. It tasted earthy, verdant and it really prepped the palate for the meal.

Slow Braised Crisp Pork Belly - we ordered this appetizer as an extra dish because come on, let's face it, you just can't pass up pork belly. This tasty dish was served with a polenta (I think), caramelized plums, pickled onions and a port sauce. The pork was tender, but tasted charred. Nevertheless, all the flavors were married perfectly when the components are eaten together in the same bite.

Summer Melon Salad - Boogs's 1st course of summer melons, prosciutto, pickled onions and a ricotta walnut butter served with a white balsamic vinaigrette, arugula and basil oil. I didn't get a bite of this dish at all, but was only able to taste the vinaigrette, and it was really good.

Potato Leek Soup - my first course that was served with a salmon rillette, fennel caper remoulade and chives, and garnished with what I think was truffle oil, but I can't remember for sure. I felt that the strong flavors coming from the salmon and the remoulade completely overpowered the mild flavors of the potato and leeks , but it was a decent course overall.

Blackened Pork Tenderloin - my main course served with atop creamy grits, braised Swiss chard, shrimp and bacon jus. Quite honestly, my favorite part of the dish was the grits, everything else seemed to be competing with each other in terms of flavor and texture.

Salmon - Boogs's main course of salmon on top of bok choy and crispy jasmine rice. I really liked this dish; so much so that I wish I had ordered it. I wish I took notes.

Pommes Frites - also known as French Fries. Free french fries. No complaints!

Meyer Lemon Tart - my dessert course of a tart complemented by a blackberry coulis, lavender meringue and a honey ricotta gelato. I'm not a fan of lemon desserts but chose this for variety's sake. I did really like the gelato and the meringue, because their sweetness cut the tartness of the lemon.

Mint Chocolate Brownie Sundae - Boogs's dessert, which is what I should've chosen. A double chocolate brownie concoction served with mint chocolate ice cream and hot fudge. The mint actually was more prominent than I expected, but I would have eaten this any day over a lemon dessert.

Overall, Charlie Palmer's served up a great meal, and I really appreciate Restaurant Weeks because it allows people on a budget to experience a great, upscale dinner.

Home Restaurant, Silver Lake

2011-09-20T19:01:00.000-07:00

Feeling particularly proud of driving safely to the Valley (San Fernando Valley, that is) and back, a friend and I decided to stop at Home Restaurant in Silver Lake for lunch before going back to work. I love breakfast foods, so Chicken Fried Steak and Eggs was a no-brainer for me.

Breaded cube steak served with eggs over easy and home fries (pun intended). Country gravy was served on the side, with your choice of toast. It was very tasty, and it totally hit the spot. Loved the fries and the gravy. I have to admit, however, that towards the end, it seemed like the steak had too much breading on it.

Definitely a great place, loved the atmosphere and the food. I'd love to visit again when I get a chance.

Home Restaurant, 2500 Riverside Drive, Los Angeles
www.homesilverlake.com

Vacation Food

2011-09-03T21:37:00.000-07:00

I know this is at least a couple holidays late, but I just saw this while looking through my "Food" photo folder. This is the traditional (at least ours) Memorial Day Steak Marsala. Actually, we make this the night before Memorial Day.

Pictured above is a pan roasted New York strip steak that's cooked first and then set aside. In the same pan, we added a pat of butter, then the mushrooms. After the mushrooms are cooked, we deglazed the pan by adding approximately ½ cup of marsala wine and ½ cup beef stock. Let it reduce by half, and then add up to ¼ cup of heavy cream. Season the sauce to taste.

Angel hair pasta and roasted asparagus were the accompaniments to the steak. The pasta was cooked according to the box directions, and the asparagus was roasted with finely minced garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper in a 450° oven.

And voila! A simple, delicious meal to be had by 6.2 hungry people.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes

2011-09-03T16:23:00.000-07:00

Just a lazy Saturday at the SLYFoodie home. The idea and recipe all came from Glorious Treats, a fabulous site I found while surfing the net.

Sandra's Restaurant, Chino Hills

2011-08-22T20:54:00.000-07:00

I love me some chilaquiles. Sandra's always satisfies my chilaquiles craving.

Chips and salsa. I like the chips because they have some flour tortilla chips, which I love. The salsa seems to have a basil-like flavor, which doesn't really appeal to my palate.

Chilaquiles with red sauce and eggs over easy, served with rice and beans. Deelish!

Victrola Coffee Roasters, Seattle

2011-08-22T20:49:00.000-07:00

The last SLY Foodie stop in Seattle, Victrola Coffee Roasters.

I enjoyed my latte, however, it did not compare to Espresso Vivace. Still much better than most of the coffee you find in LA.

Room Service

2011-08-09T21:01:00.000-07:00

Sometimes, room service food is the best thing ever...until you see the bill.

All-American Breakfast served with scrambled eggs, sauteed potatoes, bacon, toast and orange juice. We ordered an additional side of fresh berries. Good way to start the day.

The Crab Pot, Seattle

2011-08-09T20:56:00.000-07:00

A co-worker recommended The Crab Pot to us, and since we didn't really have Friday night plans, we decided to try it. It's been around for at least 30 years, and recently garnered more publicity when it was featured on The Travel Channel's "Man vs. Food" program.

I think it's best to order the Sea Feasts, as the feasts are The Crab Pot's specialties. We decided to go with The Westport, which includes Dungeness and snow crabs, shrimp, steamed mussels and clams, andouille sausage, corn on the cob and red potatoes. It is served in a gianormous bowl that they pour out on your table. They called it a feast, and feast we did. The seafood was super fresh, sprinkled with The Crab Pot's special seasonings, and you get to dip it in butter. The cool part? You get your own board and mallet!

The Crab Pot, 1301 Alaskan Way, Seattle, Washington

www.thecrabpotseattle.com

Dahlia Lounge, Seattle

2011-08-02T21:51:00.000-07:00

Lunch brought us Dahlia Lounge, owned by Seattle's celebrity chef, Tom Douglas. We were excited for two reasons: the opportunity to enjoy food at one of his restaurants, and second, crab cake.

Tom's Tomato Soup, served with brown butter croutons. A little bland, not enough salt. The croutons were deelish, though.

Stiebrs Farms cage-free eggs any style (scrambled, as you can see), served with biscuit, parmesan potatoes, and house sausage. Arguably one of the best breakfast plates I've ever had. The biscuit and the sausage were excellent.

The pièce de résistance, also known as Dungeness crab cakes, served with watercress salad, grilled asparagus, and hollandaise. Meaty, fresh, lump Dungeness crab was deservedly the star of the dish, and everything else served simply as background. The salad dressing was way too acidic.

BOKA Kitchen + Bar, Seattle

2011-08-02T21:28:00.000-07:00

We spent Sunday breakfast at BOKA Kitchen + Bar in Downtown Seattle, just a few blocks from our hotel. It has a cool, hip ambiance even for breakfast, and I imagine it to be "the happening" place around happy hour. Incidentally, they have a very promising happy hour menu, which I would love to check out one day.

We ordered the following items:

Buttermilk pancakes, served with fresh berries and topped with powdered sugar

Monte Cristo - battered brioche with sliced kurobota ham, gruyere cheese, house strawberry and jalapeno preserves

French Toast - croissant dipped in custard, infused with maple syrup and served atop berry sauce and sweet cream

I wasn't a fan of the Monte Cristo; the berry sauce was a little too overpowering for me. The pancakes were standard breakfast food, nothing spectacular. My favorite was the Croissant French Toast, but only because of the sweet cream. Overall, a pleasant experience; I'd love to try their more substantial fare someday.

BOKA Kitchen + Bar, 1010 First Avenue, Seattle

Espresso Vivace, Seattle

2011-07-22T21:04:00.000-07:00

Any visit to the Emerald City would be amiss without visiting Espresso Vivace, located in the Capitol Hill district of Seattle. Their motto is una bella tazza di caffe, which means, "a beautiful cup of coffee," and truly, it is. It has been a respected and renowned establishment for at least 20 years, and believe me, it deserves each and every accolade.

Boogs ordered his usual cappuccino, pictured below:

I shall try to sum up my latte in three simple words: Best. Latte. Ever.

Espresso Vivace at Brix, 520 Broadway Avenue East, Seattle, Washington

Elliott's Oyster House, Seattle

2011-07-22T18:19:00.000-07:00

One of the dinners we enjoyed in Seattle was from Elliott's Oyster House, located on Pier 56 on the Seattle waterfront.

Since we were still pretty full from previous feasts, including the Oregon Strawberry and Mountain Huckleberry ice cream seen below, we only ordered a couple of things to share.

First up was the Chorizo-Pepper Clams appetizer dish, and we asked our server to make it half mussels, half clams. Cooked in clam nectar, bell peppers, chorizo sausage and cream, it was spicy, creamy goodness. The hot bread was the perfect addition, allowing us to sop up all the sauce.

We also ordered the Seafood Fettuccine, which included salmon, shrimp, scallops, and mussels in a garlic cream sauce. I thought that it was a decent dish, although I must say that I'm partial to the version that Isabella's on the Wharf in Monterey Bay serves.

Overall, Elliott's was a good experience.

Elliott's Oyster House, 1201 Alaskan Way, Seattle, Washington

http://www.elliottsoysterhouse.com/

Zoka Coffee Roasters and Tea

2011-05-28T22:19:00.000-07:00

My first decent pound of coffee beans from Seattle (notice I said decent coffee, ahem, Starbucks and company) was from Zoka. So naturally, Zoka was on the Seattle itinerary. There are several coffeehouses in the Seattle area with inviting atmospheres. We visited the Greenlake location, which is relatively close to Woodland Park Zoo.

Zoka offers freshly roasted coffee beans of either special blends or single origin. Each package notes the roast date, so you know it's fresh.

I ordered a latte, my coffee beverage of choice while in Seattle for two reasons: a) what's not to like about a latte? and b) the latte art. Zoka's latte, unfortunately, was a little on the bitter side, which was most likely due to the water being too hot. Other than that, it was good enough to rank third best latte I've ever had (The best being Espresso Vivace, second being Intelligentsia).

Zoka Coffee Roasters and Tea, various locations
http://www.zokacoffee.com/

Ivar's Acres of Clams

2011-05-28T21:28:00.000-07:00

A former Seattleite recommended Ivar’s Fish Bar as a must visit on Seattle’s waterfront. So after doing a little research, we decided not to go to the Fish Bar, but to Ivar’s Acres of Clams, conveniently located next door. Overlooking Pier 54, Ivar’s boasts of original, world famous fish and chips, and clam chowder recipes.

We ordered the Calamari, fresh squid rings, lightly dipped in its batter and flash fried, then served with a chipotle-lime aioli. Certainly not the worst calamari I've ever had, but not the best, either. It seemed a little overfried.

My favorite Ivar's dish, the Fresh Sauteed Penn Cove Mussels, served with a coconut curry sauce and fresh cilantro. Our server was kind enough to let us order half Manila clams and half mussels. Some of the tastiest bivalves I've ever had were swimming in that tasty curry sauce. The seafood tasted like the ocean, so you know it's fresh. The only thing missing? Bread, to soak up all the leftover sauce.

We also got Ivar's World Famous Clam Chowder, which, in my opinion, is one of the better chowdas on the West Coast. It was super creamy and rich, with just a hint of bacon. Bacon really does make everything better.

You can't go to Ivar's without trying the World Famous Fried Fish and Chips. To me, it was good, as the fish was definitely fresh. But I felt the batter to be too light; maybe I'm used to the heavier beer batters on my fried fish. Fries were ok, nothing spectacular about them.

Ivar's has many versions of itself located throughout the Seattle area (i.e., Fish Bar, Salmon House, Acres of Clams, etc.) - you really don't have an excuse not to visit one.

Ivar's Acres of Clams, 1001Alaskan Way, Pier 54, Seattle
http://www.ivars.com/

Savor Seattle Food Tour

2011-05-26T22:42:00.000-07:00

One of the highlights of our Seattle trip was the Savor Seattle Food Tour of Pike Place Market. The company has deemed itself the official Pike Place Market food tour, and in my opinion, rightfully so. For a nominal fee of $39 per person, anyone can experience the sights, sounds and tastes of the Market.

This two hour walking tour highlights nine or ten merchants located in the Market, and on each stop, the tourist is given a delectable sample to nosh on. Our tour guide, Santino, was friendly and very knowledgeable, especially when it came to the history, as well as the ins and outs of the Market. It also helps that he has a sense of humor. We took the morning tour, and here are the stops:

1) Daily Dozen Donut Company - Whether you're a fan of donuts or not, these are guaranteed to brighten your day. Who doesn't like deep fried dough covered in sugar (in our case, cinnamon sugar)? It was hot, crispy, doughy, sweet and simply delish.

2) MarketSpice - This store has been a part of the Market since 1911, so there is a rich history associated with it. They specialize in bulk teas and spices, as evidenced by the jars lining all the shelves. We sampled a small cup of their Cinnamon-Orange tea, which consists black tea, with hints of cinnamon, orange and clove. It's a strong flavor. I'm not particularly a fan of spicy tea, but if this is your cup of tea (pun intended), then enjoy.

3) World Famous Pike Place Fish Market - You know the place in Seattle where they throw you a fish? Well, this is it. The seafood is so fresh, it's ridiculous. A little on the pricey side, but I think you're essentially paying for quality that is well worth the extra bucks. The fishmongers are super nice, and helpful. We sampled the Alderwood Smoked Salmon, Alderwood Smoked Salmon with Garlic and Pepper, and Alderwood Smoked Salmon Belly Strips. Each was great in its own right, but I preferred the first smoked salmon sample.

4) Frank's Quality Produce - I'm sorry to say that I really wasn't paying much attention at this part, as I got distracted by the gianormous assortment of beautiful tulips and lilacs all over the market. I was able to take a couple of pictures, however, and sampled an apple wedge. The apple was crisp and sweet, with a slight tartness to it (would be good for a pie or a cobbler).

5) Beecher's Handmade Cheese - One of Seattle's best artisan cheeses, if not, the best. It is one of the few cheese shops that practice traditional open vat cheesemaking. The result is a flavorful cheese of superior quality. We had the pleasure of sampling the Beecher's Flagship cheese, made from cow's milk. It had a robust and nutty flavor, that paired well with the homemade cracker. We also got to try some of Beecher's Mac n' Cheese, made famous by Martha Stewart and Oprah. Definitely worth a visit.

6) Chukar Cherries - A family business specializing in combining chocolate with dried cherries, it is one of the Market's main attractions. Customers can sample sweet cherries covered in decadent chocolate. We got to try some of their Cherry Peach Salsa, which was fruity, although I wish it had a little more heat than the guide promised. We also got to sample a variety of their chocolates. I really liked the Bing Cherries covered in Milk Chocolate. It was tart and sweet all at the same time...yummy.

7) Pike Place Chowder - Their recipe for clam chowder has won so many awards that it was inducted into the Clam Chowder Hall of Fame. Honest! The chowder was creamy, with the distinct flavors of clams, celery, dill, and a hint of lemon. In fact, it was so good that I forgot to take a picture until the very end. We also got to sample the Seafood Bisque, tasty, but not as good as the chowder.

8) Piroshky Piroshky - Hailed as the best Russian bakery in this hemisphere, Piroshky Piroshky offers hand held pies with a variety of fillings. On our tour, we tried the Beef and Cheese Piroshky, which became one of my favorites. The savory ground beef with cheese inside of freshly baked pastry was excellent. I wasn't a great fan of the sweeter fare, however. The Apple Cinnamon Roll was ok; I guess I wasn't impressed with the filling, it had too much cinnamon.

9) Etta's - The pièce de résistance of the tour, Etta's is owned by renowned Seattle celebrity chef Tom Douglas. This particular restaurant specializes in "seasonal, market driven seafood" that attracts locals and tourists alike. The Dungeness Crab Cake is to die for - so much fresh crab that you can't even really consider it a cake. It was a perfect, crispy bite served with a zesty chipotle aioli (if I remember correctly).

The Savor Seattle Food Tour is a must for anyone visiting Seattle for the first time. It really allows you to be a part of the Pike Place Market, without the lines. Just follow the pink umbrella.

Savor Seattle Food Tours, 1916 Pike Place, Suite 12-480, Seattle, WA
http://www.savorseattletours.com/

Pike Place Market, Seattle

2011-05-25T16:00:00.000-07:00

Founded in 1907, Pike Place Market is arguably "The Soul of Seattle," a place where people go to buy direct from farmers, artisans and craftspeople. The Market is abuzz with activity - tourists snapping photos, farmers stocking loads of beautiful produce, fishmongers proudly showcasing the freshest seafood - a foodie's paradise. It is definitely a must-see destination, whether you purchase the amazing, beautiful, colorful and fresh food, or sample the tantalizing treats offered by storeowners.

Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I'll just let the following images speak for themselves.

Pike Place Market - main entrance located at First Avenue and Pike Street
http://www.pikeplacemarket.org/

Zono Sushi, Burbank

2011-01-14T23:10:00.000-08:00

Went to lunch with a couple of work friends one day, and we ended up at Zono Sushi in Burbank. They have a great lunch menu, with choices ranging from edamame to Chilean sea bass. All for under $10.

Zono offers a 2-item lunch special that is served with miso soup, salad and rice. If you know that Chilean sea bass is my absolute favorite fish, then that selection was definitely a no-brainer. I also got a California roll as my second item. The Chilean sea bass was such a delectable piece of seafood, perfectly seasoned, good to the last bite. The California roll was also really good, exactly the way a good California roll should taste. The salad was also pretty tasty, although I thought there was too much mayonnaise in the dressing. Another added treat was the vegetable fritter, julienned carrot and zucchini in egg batter and fried to golden perfection.

We also ordered a Shrimp and Vegetable Tempura, which was really good also, however, I must stay faithful to AOI's version as the best around.

We tried the Spider Roll, which is essentially a California roll, but includes a fried soft shell crab. It made me wish that I wasn't that full, or I would've definitely had more than half a piece. The soft shell crab was lightly battered and fried, and it had good seasoning - spicy salt and pepper.

This was a great lunch that ended up being a treat, and I would definitely come back.

Zono Sushi, 610 N. First Street, Burbank
http://www.zonosushi.com/

Birthday Breakfast, Corner Bakery Cafe, Chino Hills

2011-01-14T20:25:00.000-08:00

A little late (ok, one month late), but my birthday breakfast, courtesy of our local Corner Bakery.

Hubbs and I ordered the Baked French Toast and Eggs, cinnamon brioche baked in custard, served with scrambled eggs and two strips of applewood bacon. The brioche ended up being a little too soggy, which was disappointing. Eggs, were okay, but the bacon was great. Paired up with a latté, this made my morning sweet!

Corner Bakery Cafe, 4517 Chino Hills Parkway, Chino Hills
http://www.cornerbakerycafe.com/

8 oz. Burger Bar, Hollywood

2011-01-14T18:54:00.000-08:00

For my birthday meal, we went to 8 oz. Burger Bar in West Hollywood. Owned by famous celebrity chef Govind Armstrong, it sits on Melrose Avenue amidst busy boutiques and restaurants. 8 oz. Burger Bar features high quality burgers and other food fare.
Started off with Mini Kobe Corndogs served with purple mustard. The batter was crispy, hot dogs savory and delectable.

I chose the 8 oz. Burger, because, after all, it is called 8 oz. Burger Bar. It is usually served with iceberg lettuce, house made pickles, tomato, onion and special sauce. I customized it by nixing the tomato, pickle and onion, and by adding gruyere cheese, roasted mushrooms, a fried egg and some mayonnaise. Let me say, it was impossible to pick up and eat because it was so juicy, the bread sopped it up and became soggy. I did not mind one bit; the beef was seasoned well, each bite felt like being in burger heaven. Don't even get me started on the runny egg yolk...

Also ordered some sides, including Brussel Sprouts with Bacon... c'mon, y'all know I love the brussel sprout. I thought that the sprouts were cooked well, very tasty. However, (and I never thought I'd ever say this), there was too much bacon in the dish. Still great, though, as I ate the whole thing by myself.

We also got some Stout Battered Onion Rings and Kennebec Fries, standard burger accompaniments. I thought that these were just okay, seasoned well, although they were nothing to really write home about. Maybe an honorable mention?

The final side dish of choice was the Chorizo Mac and Cheese. It was pretty good; the mild cheese flavors were a good complement to the more robust flavors from the chorizo. Overall a solid dish.

As an added bonus, I ordered the Pumpkin Gingerbread Milkshake, which contained pumpkin puree and pieces of fresh gingerbread throughout. I really liked it at first, but the more I consumed, the less I liked it. I don't think I really appreciated the gingerbread chunks in the shake. Perhaps the purist in me demands a smooth milkshake.

Great place to get a good burger, however, you have to be willing to shell out a couple extra bucks. Hey, quality ain't cheap. Looking forward to trying it again.

8 oz. Burger Bar, 7661 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles
http://www.8ozburgerbarlosangeles.com/

Spaghetti Eddie's, Glendora

2011-01-11T19:34:00.000-08:00

BFF had mentioned Spaghetti Eddie's in Glendora as a great neighborhood Italian restaurant, so when the opportunity presented itself, I went and tried it with Mr. and Mrs. Clark Kent, along with some new friends.
Spaghetti Eddie is located in a strip mall at the corner of two of Glendora's busiest streets. The exterior is unassuming, while the interior is quaint and homey.

We ordered garlic puffs to start, which were essentially golden balls of dough bathed in garlicky olive oil, roasted garlic, spices and garnished with Italian parsley. Garlic bread lovers, rejoice! This takes garlic bread up another notch. The soft, chewy, freshly-baked bread, combined with the pungent garlic was just out of this world.

Hubbs ordered the Linguine with Clam Sauce, al dente linguine tossed with baby clams, olive oil, white wine, herbs and garlic. I don't remember what it tasted like, but it is pictured below:

I ordered the special of the day, the Pork Osso Bucco, a huge pork shank served with pancetta and jus over gemelli pasta, accompanied by roasted vegetables. From what I remember, I loved the intense flavor of the jus - the pancetta added another layer of porky goodness. However, I felt that the pork shank should have been braised a little longer, some parts were a little tougher to eat.

Overall, a great experience, and I would go back to try more savory dishes off the extensive menu, or maybe I'll just get more garlic puffs.

Spaghetti Eddie's, 946 S. Grand Avenue, Glendora
http://www.spaghettieddies.com/

Mix N' Munch, South Pasadena

2011-01-11T18:52:00.000-08:00

A very good friend of mine, who is basically a younger brother to me, took me to Mix N' Munch, a cereal and grilled cheese cafe located in South Pasadena. He was quite secretive about it at first, refusing to dish out any hints other than, "it makes you feel like a kid again." So when I first saw the sign, I immediately felt giddy about grilled cheese sammies.

They have a gianormous menu, with over 25 cereal brands to choose from...and you can mix them up! Does that NOT make you feel like a kid?! They also serve custom made grilled cheese sandwiches, so as you can see, if you come in not knowing what you want, it can feel quite overwhelming. They have several types of bread, as well as many kinds of cheeses and add-ons, so the math nerd in me immediately thought of permutations and combinations...until I saw that they also serve...(drum roll, please)...tater tots!

Ultimately, I ordered the Mix n Munch Cristo, which comes with Gruyere cheese, turkey and ham on egg bread french toast. Each bite was cheesy and savory, the saltiness from the turkey and the ham was a great contrast to the slight sweetness from the custard. However, I think that the bread may have been a little too soggy.

I also ordered a cup of tomato soup, which was a great disappointment to me, because I love tomato soup. It tasted really bland - it wasn't seasoned well at all. However, the tater tots more than made up for the soup's inadequacies. The potatoes were crunchy, and seasoned well. It was the perfect potato bite.

The next visit definitely calls for a good ol' bowl of cereal and milk. I love this place - they serve comfort food that take you back to happy childhood memories. Did I mention that they also play cartoons? I would definitely recommend this cafe for kids and for the kid in you!

Mix N Munch, 1005 Mission Street, Unit A, South Pasadena, California
http://www.mixnmunch.com/

A SLYFoodie Thanksgiving

2010-11-25T20:20:00.000-08:00

'Tis the season...to give thanks for family, friends and abundant blessings. Moreover, with Thanksgiving, the internal need to stuff one's self beyond imagination kicks into overdrive. This year was no different. We served a traditional, homemade Thanksgiving meal for 2.5 people, which means leftovers galore.

On the menu:

Roasted Turkey

Cornbread Stuffing

Mashed Potatoes

Macaroni and Cheese

Cranberry Fruit Conserve

Turkey Gravy

Pumpkin Pie

First up, the turkey. I purchased the bird the day before, so it just chilled in the fridge (pun intended) overnight. Took it out, rinsed it, patted it dry, and then proceeded to stuff its cavity with an onion, a head of garlic, some thyme sprigs, one orange and one lemon. Make sure to season the cavity first, before placing the aromatics in it. Did I mention the butter? A stick of butter also goes inside the cavity. I've been told that it is supposed to help make the bird moist as it cooks. Afterwards, the skin is liberally seasoned with salt and pepper, and then the legs and wings are tied close to the body before it's placed on the roaster. A little chicken broth on the bottom of the roaster, and the turkey is ready to be roasted in a 350-degree oven for about 2½ hours or so, until the juices run clear when you cut between the thigh area.

Next, was the cornbread stuffing. I made my own cornbread, following the directions on a box of cornmeal. I then proceeded to brown some maple sausage in a pan, setting it aside once it was cooked. Then, sauté some onions, celery, mushrooms, an apple in the same pan with the sausage drippings. I added finely chopped fresh sage and thyme leaves, and seasoned to taste. Once that was done, I combined all the ingredients in a large bowl and just added enough chicken stock to moisten the mixture and break down the cornbread. I placed the mixture in a casserole dish and baked in an oven for about 30 minutes, at 350 degrees.

Mashed potatoes are incredibly easy to make. Cut up some potatoes and place in a pot of water. Bring to a boil and cook for about 12-15 minutes, or until a fork or knife easily cuts into the potato. Drain, then place in either a bowl or the same pot and start to smash using a potato masher. I added butter, sour cream and a drizzle of heavy cream, and seasoned to taste. One can get pretty creative here at this point and add ingredients such as caramelized shallots, crispy shallots, roasted garlic, parmesan cheese, wasabi, horseradish, etc.

Macaroni and cheese was also fairly easy to make, as well. Cook pasta according to box directions, set aside. Melt some butter, add a few tablespoons of flour to start the bechamel sauce, add milk and some ground nutmeg and ground mustard, then season to taste. Whisk until mixture is smooth, then add desired amount of cheese (I just used cheddar on this dish). Once the cheese melted into the sauce, I added the pasta into it. Ideally, this would be baked with bread crumbs on top, but since we were hungry (and ran out of bread crumbs), we ate it straight out of the pot, which was just as good.

I followed the Barefoot Contessa's recipe for Cranberry Fruit Conserve, except I didn't add raisins or walnuts. This is something I do every year, and it's awesome on turkey sandwiches for leftovers.

Turkey gravy was another simple thing to make. Once the turkey is done and resting on the platter, I took the roaster where all the yummy drippings are, and skimmed off some of the fat. Then, put it on the stovetop and added a couple tablespoons of all purpose flour. Whisk for a couple of minutes, allowing the flour to cook, then slowly add chicken stock. It thickens after several minutes, and just season to taste. You could add a little heavy cream to make it richer. Some add brandy or cognac or white wine to add a depth of flavor. I was just going for simple.

You can see all the elements on the plate pictured below:

The pumpkin pies were also homemade, following Libby's Famous Pumpkin Pie recipe. Honestly, I think next time, I would add a little less ground ginger, and maybe put a little nutmeg into it instead. But the pies also came out pretty good. Don't mind the crack in the middle; I was a little overzealous checking it for doneness. =/

All this was done in about 5 hours or less - totally doable, relatively stress free. I would do it all over again...tomorrow. No, seriously, I have to cook another meal tomorrow. Happy Thanksgiving, all!

Longboard's Ice Cream

2010-07-30T13:16:00.000-07:00

After lunch at Starry Kitchen, we headed over to the Longboards Ice Cream truck that was parked conveniently outside on Grand Avenue in Downtown Los Angeles. The guys from Longboards were also at the LA Street Food Festival, so we definitely wanted to give them another try.

If the other ice cream flavors were as good as the Cookies and Cream ice cream at the Food Festival, then we were definitely in for a treat. I got the Strawberry Ice Cream with a healthy dose of caramel, dipped in chocolate and topped with peanuts. It tasted like everything a strawberry ice cream bar with caramel, chocolate and peanuts should. The only complaint I have isn't even against Longboards; it was so hot that it melted too fast!

Longboards Ice Cream, http://www.longboardsicecream.com/

Starry Kitchen

2010-07-30T12:44:00.000-07:00

We first heard of Starry Kitchen at the LA Street Food Festival, and because we weren't able to make our way to their booth that night, Hubbs and I decided to give it a try since it was very close to work. Located at the Water Court in Downtown LA's Financial District, Starry Kitchen serves up pan-Asian fusion cuisine. Now, you may be scratching your head, thinking, "Huh?" but trust me, it all works.

The menu at SK changes frequently, save for a couple of staples like the Free Range Lemongrass Chicken. So the way it works is: 1) Pick your meat - there are usually four to choose from. 2) Pick your vessel - i.e., how you want to eat your chosen dish (in a sandwich, as a lunch plate, as a wrap) and 3) Choose a side, maybe two. The side choices also rotate on a regular basis.

On this day, I chose the crab cakes on a lunch plate, which came with a salad, the Japanese Garlic Noodles and Shallot Fried Rice. The crab cakes were excellent, perfectly fried with panko bread crumbs, and drizzled with aioli. I honestly loved every bite of it, so much so that I was a little sad when it was all gone. The Shallot Fried Rice was great, very flavorful. The Japanese Garlic Noodles delivered on the garlic - definitely not breath friendly, but so worth it.

Hubbs ordered the Bulgogi Kobe Meatballs on a lunch plate, also with the garlicky noodles, plain rice and a salad. Although the meatballs were very good and full of beefy Korean BBQ flavors, I loved the crab cakes much, much more. I must say, however, that I wasn't totally digging the salad dressing, so I really didn't partake of the salad.

If you work Downtown, SK definitely merits a visit...or two...or three! Robust flavors at decent prices, what more could you ask for?

Starry Kitchen, 350 S. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles

http://www.starrykitchen.com/

Birthday Cupcakes

2010-07-24T23:19:00.000-07:00

For my little guy's birthday party, I decided to add an extra special touch by baking cupcakes for his shindig. If you know me well, you would know that I hate food that comes from a box, and feel strongly about foods being made from scratch. I wish I could say that I pulled out all the stops, dressed to the nines, well, you get the picture. However, these are the typical Betty Crocker mixes with the typical Betty Crocker frosting.

I know that it is not that much harder to bake cupcakes from scratch, just a few extra steps. But I was working against the clock, and quite frankly, it was more cost effective to use the box. That said, simply follow the directions to bake the cupcakes. For the frosting, I used the stuff from the jar. The extra special touch came from food coloring - just add enough to get the desired color, then put it in a pastry bag with your desired tip, and frost. Add some sprinkles for a more fun look. I also made some with blue and green frosting, but forgot to take the picture.

Ten Ren's Tea Time, Arcadia

2010-07-24T23:11:00.000-07:00

BFF and I went on another eating excursion, this time to Ten Ren's Tea Time in Arcadia. I love this place because it sells the best boba drinks in my opinion, plus it also sells spicy, fried mushrooms.

Alas, this specific trip does not have any fried mushrooms, but we did have some Salt and Pepper Chicken Nuggets, which are chicken pieces that are breaded, fried and seasoned with salt, pepper, and some spices, one of which I will venture to say is cayenne pepper. I've always liked this dish as a snack/appetizer, but I wouldn't really recommend it as an entree.

BFF ordered the Wonton Noodle Soup, which are ground pork, maybe a little shrimp, inside a very thick wonton wrapper and cooked in broth with noodles and Chinese greens. I must say that although I liked the broth's flavor, I wish that the wonton wrappers weren't so darn thick. The thin noodles were not quite al dente, but still had a nice bite to it.

I ordered the Minced Pork with Rice. It comes with the soup of the day, and two small side dishes. The soup, which had some nori and egg, was a little bland, which is typical of the soups for the day. One of the side dishes, a vegetable and tofu concoction, had firm tofu cooked with celery and carrot, which was just ok. The other dish had marinated bean sprouts cooked with julienned carrot, which was also just ok, although I preferred it over the celery dish. The highlight of the meal was the minced pork, which is almost stew-like, and full of flavor. Steamed rice was the perfect complement.

Overall, Ten Ren's Tea Time is great for a quick, sit down Chinese meal. It also caters well to the "To Go" crowd, and for those who want to get boba drinks and hang out. If you are the latter, I would highly recommend the iced coffee with boba - it is excellent.

LA Street Food Festival 2010

2010-07-24T11:31:00.000-07:00

For a good friend's birthday, we decided to go to the Los Angeles Street Food Festival, a premier event in the food truck industry. This was held at the Rose Bowl in beautiful Pasadena, a place I have never been to, although I consider Pasadena my hometown. Getting into the event was pretty much a zoo, but once within the gates of the formidable stadium, a good strategy to get food is essential, because the lines get super long, super fast. So here are all the foods I've sampled... are you ready?

First up, Antojitos Carmen, which served us potato taquitos, pork tacos and vegetable enchiladas. The taquitos were awesome, crunchy, well seasoned, and perfectly complemented by a chipotle salsa. All the other samples were simply okay, typical Mexican food flavors.

Next, we waited in a long line for Dogzilla hotdogs, which were basically hotdogs with exotic toppings. The one pictured below is a Yakisoba, a hot dog topped with Japanese yakisoba noodles. Although I only had a small bite of this, it was really good, and I can certainly understand why the line was so long.

Then we got some from the Dim Sum Truck, which was serving pork shumai and (shrimp) har gow. It was served with a soy-garlic dipping sauce. Delish! I will admit, however, that it is not the same as the real deal served in Chinese restaurants throughout Los Angeles.

Next booth over was Dumplings Deluxe, serving a potato dumpling, as well as a cheeseburger dumpling. I didn’t think that it was a successful fusion of East and West, as the cheeseburger dumpling tasted pretty bland. I personally thought that the potato dumplings had more flavor.

The Manila Machine served some tasty Filipino street food. Pictured below is Pork Belly with Pineapple Adobo (I ate the pork belly party already), served with steamed jasmine rice and one piece of lumpiang shanghai. The lumpia was crunchy and flavorful – there was no need for the standard sweet chili dipping sauce. The pork belly was very tender, with the perfect soy sauce and vinegar flavors that define adobo. I thought of the pineapple more as a nuisance to the dish.

Fresh Fries offered some fries with guacamole and sour cream, but I disliked the guacamole, and maybe the fries had been sitting out too long, because it tasted soggy. I couldn’t say the same about their sweet potato fries, though. It was crunchy, and went so well with the Nutella and the peanut butter – I don’t even like sweet potatoes.

We also got a sample from the Kebab people. It was chicken marinated with herbs, skewered with some yellow squash, red pepper and onion. I’m thinking that they ran out of marinating time because the chicken was flavorless. A little salt would have gone a long way for this.

Crepe’n Around made two kinds of crepes for us, a savory and a sweet sample. We sampled the Maple Braised Pork crepe with apple chutney, and served with a green salad dressed with honey-dijon vinaigrette. I loved the tenderness of the pork, and the apple chutney did not disappoint, either. The salad served to cut the sweetness of the crepe, but quite honestly, it didn’t really need that. The fine folks at Crepe’n Around were kind enough to allow us to wait for the sweet crepe sample of fresh berries with pastry cream. The tartness from the berries contrasted against the rich and sweet cream made this sample one of the better dishes I tasted that night.

We got to sample some tequila infused mini tacos from the Camarena Tequila truck. The meat was flavorful, but I think was overpowered by the flavors of the tequila. In other words, I tasted the alcohol more than I tasted the actual taco. It also didn't help that the "promoter" was rude.

Next, we sampled some pineapple coconut goodness from the fine folks at Sedthee Eatery. Pineapple combined with coconut flavors just worked, and the toasted coconut was an added bonus. Pictured below are two more samples, but honestly, I have completely forgotten what they tasted like, so it wouldn't be fair to give a description of something I don't even remember.

We also got to try some potato rajas from Border Grill of Susan Feniger fame. It was really cheesy in a good way, and bland in a not-so-good way. But I was still left satisfied.

The star of the evening was the fried shrimp tacos from the Mariscos Jaliscos truck. They were the rightful Best-of-Show winner of the Festival. It was crunchy, spicy, savory, and zesty all in one. The shrimp were perfectly cooked, and the avocado on top provided a cooling effect from the spiciness of the salsa. A great way to end the evening.

Kudos to Mr. and Mrs. Clark Kent for the recommendation - definitely a great way to celebrate good friends and good food.

Mastro's Ocean Club, Newport Beach

2010-06-06T22:12:00.000-07:00

BFF wanted several things for his birthday: a nice dinner and seafood. So we visited Mastro's Ocean Club with some other friends in Newport Beach, appropriately located on Pacific Coast Highway, overlooking the Pacific Ocean. BFF, however, did not want me to embarrass him by taking pictures of the food in such a swanky place. Luckily for him, natural lighting was almost nonexistent in the restaurant, so it was practically impossible to take a good photo without flash using my digital camera.

To start, I ordered a Canteloupe Martini (my favorite). It came in a cocktail shaker and was served tableside by our server - there was enough martini for two! A great way to start the meal, not too strong, yet packed a punch, and very "canteloup-y." BFF ordered a gin and tonic because I would've made fun of him had he ordered a girly mixed drink. After a very small sip, I decided that it was uncannily similar to drinking a bottle of rubbing alcohol with a twist, and left BFF to his own devices.

I ordered an Iceberg Wedge salad to start, while BFF ordered the Clam Chowder. First the wedge: it was a nice presentation with bleu cheese dressing with bacon bits, diced tomatoes and crumbled bleu cheese on top. Freshly cracked black pepper was the perfect last ingredient. I did think, however, that there may have been too much bleu cheese crumbles. I sampled some of the clam chowder and decided while creamy, it had too much oregano.

For the main course, I immediately knew that I would be enjoying my favorite fish, the Chilean Sea Bass. I know, I know, it's endangered. But you know what, it's already dead, so who am I to waste it? Might as well eat it. Apparently, the chef bought too much oregano because he was trying to unload it in the fish's preparation. But I felt that the robust flavor of the herb would overpower the mild, delicate flavor of the fish, so I just asked for it to be pan seared. Three words will accurately sum up how I felt about that dish: Best. Fish. Ever.

BFF wasn't quite sure what to order, so he settled for the Blackened Swordfish. I thought that the fish was super fresh and quite meaty. But not as good as the best. fish. ever.

We also ordered sauteed spinach, sauteed mushrooms and potatoes au gratin for sides. Spinach was fresh and cooked simply and perfectly. The mushrooms, sauteed with red peppers and onions, were also a hit. The potatoes au gratin, on the other hand, was a different story. I felt that the potatoes were overshadowed by way too much cheese. Plus, I thought that a gratin had to be cooked with cream, something that I was looking forward to, but was overwhelmingly disappointed by a lack thereof. I think that calling the dish, Cheese with Potatoes would have been a more fitting description.

I chose not to have dessert, but the restaurant was nice enough to give BFF a free dessert, their famous Yellow Butter Cake, served with vanilla ice cream and a raspberry sauce. It wasn't as moist or as buttery as it was sweet, so again, I was a little disappointed.

Overall, it was a really nice dinner with people I haven't seen in a while, and I think that BFF enjoyed it all. So here's to you, BFF. Cheers.

Providence, Hollywood

2010-05-08T12:06:00.000-07:00

To mark our 7th wedding anniversary, as well the hubbs’ birthday, we dined at Providence in Los Angeles. This is the restaurant of highly-acclaimed and ever so talented Chef Michael Cimarusti, who in my opinion, should have gone much further in the first season of Top Chef Masters. He is the one who brought the Water Grill to the forefront of fine dining in Los Angeles. Providence is one of the only restaurants in the LA area to receive a coveted two Michelin stars, and that accomplishment speaks volumes of Chef Cimarusti’s talent.

The restaurant’s layout is simple, yet intriguing. The best two words I can use to describe it are refined simplicity. I loved the barnacles on the walls, and the coral-like decoration that housed the candles on each table. We were immediately seated and offered the drink and wine list by our host. After hearing the specials, it didn’t take long for us to decide to go with the chef’s menu, which is an astounding 15-course meal. I swear my heart beat faster in much anticipation (and slight apprehension) after the server left.

I chose the Splendor in the Grass, which is comprised of Zubrowka vodka, lemongrass-blueberry honey, lychee, prosecco and fresh lemon juice. It was very refreshing, all the flavors were subtle; a great way to kick off a meal.

Let me just preface the following by saying that I’m finding it very difficult to describe everything we were treated to, especially since I’ve never sampled many of these amazing courses, thus having no basis for comparison. You’ll find that every dish has a component that I’ve never had before. Also, this meal took place over the course of 3½ hours or so, and as you can imagine, it became hard to snap photos of the latter plates because it was a tad too dark for my camera.

Amuse bouche: a duo of cocktails, a greyhound martini and margarita. Presentation was awesome.

House cured trout with crispy rice crackers, crème fraiche, gold leaf and trout roe, all on top of lemon gelée. Served alongside puff pastry with a mornay sauce. It was an excellent dish – the flavors all melded together perfectly, buttery fish, tart lemon for the acidity, saltiness from the roe, perfect texture contrast from the crackers. First time flavors: trout roe

Hokkaido scallop sashimi, red shiso gelée, cherry blossom vinaigrette. At first, I was a little nervous about eating raw bivalves, but it was so fresh that it didn’t have that “fishy” taste, the acidity from the vinaigrette was the perfect complement. First time flavors: scallop sashimi (or anything sashimi, for that matter), shiso.

Santa Barbara sea urchin served in a lightly poached egg, champagne beurre blanc, finely diced tomato (concassée?), herbes fines, crouton and domestic caviar. Now, I was really nervous about trying this, having never had sea urchin before. Seeing as it was served in an egg, the best way to enjoy it was to dig all the way to the bottom with your spoon, so as to sample all the flavors working together. The best way I can describe it is that it tasted like the ocean, but not overly salty, more like briny because of the caviar. I am so glad that I tried this, because it was so good. First time flavors: uni, caviar

Santa Barbara spot prawn served atop Dutch white asparagus, prawn roe and extra virgin olive oil. So simple, yet the flavors are so refined. The prawn was cooked and seasoned well, and the understated flavors of the asparagus and olive oil worked with the zesty prawn roe, which was so full of flavor. This was easily one of my favorites. First time flavors: Prawn roe

Unagi (eel) served with abalone served on top of tiny fava beans, turnip, and dashi foam. I remember the eel being flaky like a fish with crispy skin. It was definitely the dominant flavor of the dish, particularly since abalone has a mild flavor similar to squid. The dashi foam was outstanding, the perfect supplement to the dish. First time flavors: The whole dish!

Foie gras sauté with Sonoma cherries, rhubarb sauce and a rhubarb chip. This was easily one of the hubbs’ favorite dishes. I loved that there was a crispy crust that contrasted the rich, decadent foie, and the tartness of both the cherries and rhubarb rounded out the flavor of the foie perfectly. I’ve had foie before, but it was mixed in with other ingredients in the form of a mousse. This was the first time I’ve had a piece of foie, and I have to admit that I’m a fan. (Other) first time flavors: rhubarb

Veal sweetbreads on a bed of polenta, served with quail eggs, summer truffles and grilled ramp. This was another dish that I was nervous about, having never had sweetbreads before. To me, it just tasted like fried meat. I really liked the ramp, though, and oddly enough, it was my favorite part of the dish. Don’t get me wrong, the dish had really nice flavors to it, but it wasn’t something that I would order again. First time flavors: Sweetbreads, summer truffle, ramp

Salmon belly with different preparations of carrot. Roasted carrot, carrot jus, carrot purée, morels and hazelnuts. I don’t necessarily go out of my way to enjoy carrots, but this was a really great way to do so. I think that it may even steal the show from the salmon, which was cooked and seasoned perfectly. The hazelnuts were there for added flavor and texture. First time flavors: morels.

Loin of lamb served with cauliflower, chorizo, pea tendrils and a sauce I don’t remember. I personally don’t like lamb, even though I’ve tried it several different preparations before. So I would have to say that this was my least favorite dish. Not the chef’s fault; I will cop to the “it’s not you, it’s me” excuse.

Time for frommage! I saw the server rolling a cheese cart to other diners, and was excited about all the different cheeses on display. However, being a cheese enthusiast, but not a connoisseur, I didn’t know what to get. We trusted our server to pick out the cheesy goodness that would soon be on our plates and in our bellies, and he did not disappoint. He was even nice enough to write down the cheese selections:

Valency , goat’s milk from Loire Valley, France – very mild, almost sweet flavor. Excellent with each of the accoutrements.
Berkswell, English cheddar from sheep’s milk – slightly nutty in flavor, also excellent with the accoutrements.
Olivet au Foin, cow’s milk from France – a soft, white cheese with a dry rind reminiscent of Brie of Camembert cheese. It was similar in flavor to the Brie, but what was most distinct about it was the straw and hay that is on the rind, whose flavors are noted in the cheese.
Rogue River Reserve, cow’s milk blue cheese from Oregon – very robust in flavor with fruit undertones. This cheese packs a punch, and was a great way to end the course.
Accoutrements included an outstanding apple jam, figs, candied walnuts and peppered apricot preserves. Each complemented all the cheeses in its own outstanding way. The cheese course was easily one of the highlights of the meal.

Since that wasn’t enough, we got started on the dessert courses. That’s right, courses. There were four. The first one, and my favorite of all, was a lychee-shiso sorbet on top of a disc of calamansi gelée in a yummy pool of white chocolate, coconut milk tapioca soup. The sweet versus tart flavors were phenomenal. I’m still thinking about it because that’s how good it was. It’s so good that there is a version of it served at LaMill Coffee Boutique in Silver Lake (Chef Cimarusti designed the menu there).

Next was a raspberry gelée with a rose sorbet in what I would describe as a raspberry purée, with some macaroons. In my opinion, the raspberry was too tart, but the flavors were clean and pleasant.

The third dessert course was a caramal pudding on top of a burnt caramel sauce, served with chopped apricots, a chocolate covered peanut and caramel corn. I loved the pudding, and thought that it would have been able to stand on its own. It’s one of those things that you can enjoy massive quantities of while watching TV on the couch. I thought that the burnt caramel overpowered the rest of the dessert, and the tart apricots were a good addition that cut the sweetness of the dish.

Finally, the last course, which was a dark chocolate mousse with sesame crackers, sesame ice cream and more apricots. It was decadent, it was silky smooth, it was awesome. Enough said.

Because we were still starving at this point, our server brought us petit fours that I didn’t get to photograph. In fact, the server really didn’t describe it so much, so I can’t even talk about it much. It was good, though. Overall, the entire meal was outstanding, the flavors were clean, balanced, simple, yet complex at the same time.

Chef Cimarusti is a great talent, definitely a culinary treasure that Los Angeles is lucky enough to have. Providence is definitely a must for foodies. I will say, however, save up money for the chef’s menu, as we are still experiencing some sticker shock. Also, allot some time to taste and enjoy, you will not be disappointed.

Providence, 5955 Melrose Avenue, Los Angeles
http://www.providencela.com/

Tenno Sushi, Little Tokyo

2010-05-08T11:47:00.000-07:00

Tenno Sushi is one of several Japanese restaurants in Little Tokyo that we frequent for lunch. It serves sushi rolls at half price during lunch, plus it also has several lunch combinations available for your palate’s enjoyment. On this particular day, we stopped by for lunch because we wanted to go to Beard Papa’s for dessert.

I ordered the Beef Bulgogi and Shrimp Tempura combination. It comes with miso soup, green salad, three pieces of California roll, white rice and some potato salad. That is a lot of food for under $10, which to me, is a great deal. The miso soup tasted so-so, it had several pieces of tofu, which also was ok, I prefer the soup at AOI. The salad was also ok, nothing memorable about it. I liked the California roll, which is a big statement, because I don’t necessarily like seaweed, but it was one of the higher points of the meal. The potato salad, in my opinion, was a disappointment only because it lacked the classic potato salad flavors I was looking for. I did, however, love the bulgogi; it was easily the star of the show. The tender, marinated beef, cooked with red and green peppers, sweet onions and mushrooms had a sweet, yet savory and meaty flavor. The tempura was also good, crunchy on the outside with the tender cooked vegetable on the inside.

We also got an order of Philadelphia Roll, which is salmon, cream cheese and cucumber wrapped up in nori and rice. My husband liked it, whereas I just chomped it down, so I didn’t really get to appreciate the classic salmon-cream cheese flavor profile that always goes well together.

The hubbs ordered Pork Katsu, which is breaded pork cutlet served with rice and tonkatsu sauce. It’s not the best katsu in town - I felt that although it was crunchy, the meat was a little too tough for my liking.

Overall, Tenno Sushi is a nice place in Little Tokyo to grab a quick bite. The prices are reasonable, service is friendly and food is decent.

Tenno Sushi, 209 S. Central Avenue, Los Angeles
http://www.tennosushi.com/

Craft, Century City

2010-05-07T13:33:00.000-07:00

As a birthday gift, some very good friends of mine took us out to Tom Colicchio's Craft during DineLA week. The beauty of DineLA is the prix-fixe menu that most restaurants offer at a discounted price, which in turn allows wannabe foodies like me an opportunity to sample more things than I would normally do.

I really like the ambiance at Craft; the words that come to mind are sophisticated, sleek, modern and rustic, if that makes sense. We had great service, our server was kind enough to go over the menus in detail, which was very informative. Craft serves their dishes family style, so everyone can sample everything, which is wonderful. Alas, I did not have my camera, the photos were taken using a Blackberry camera, so I apologize for that. Also, please pardon the descriptions, it has been a while.

First courses included a country paté served with cornichons and other pickled veggies with a drizzle of a mustard sauce. I don't remember too much about the paté, other than the fact that I liked it, cornichons and all. Also up to bat is a Caesar salad, with a lot of finely shredded Parmesan that made me very happy. The dressing on the salad was tangy and had a little bit of a bite to it, which performed its task of whetting our appetites.

Second course included a foie gras mousse terrine that we didn't get to take a photo of, but that was my first encounter with foie. It was served on top of a tapenade, and served with crostini, It was really decadent and yummy. Also included in the second course was cured trout atop a shaved fennel salad with what I want to say is a lemon vinaigrette, if memory serves me correctly. The trout was great, there's a hint of sweetness to the buttery fish, the fennel provided the crunch and an added flavor dimension.

The star of the show was the third course, the ribeye. It was cooked to medium perfection, sitting on top of beans (cannot remember what type). I savored every piece I got. I really didn't like the beans too much, because I honestly thought that it detracted from the meat. We also got a roasted lamb shank, served with a Romesco sauce, which was probably one of the better pieces of lamb that I've tried, and I'm not a lamb fan.

For dessert, we got pillowy, sugary, chocolatey goodness in the form of sugar doughnuts served with a Valrhona chocolate sauce. Easily a high point of the entire meal. Also we had a chai flavored panna cotta, served with shaved pear and figs. I'm not into chai so much, but it was still really good. The panna cotta was cold, creamy goodness that was enhanced by the sweet, crunchy pear.

I loved my Craft experience, everything was great, from service, to ambiance, to the food. I can't wait to go back and sample more. In my opinion, it is further proof that Chef Colicchio deserves the 2010 Outstanding Chef of the Year title bestowed upon him by the James Beard Foundation.

Craft Restaurant, 10100 Constellation Boulevard, Los Angeles
http://www.craftrestaurant.com/

Rocket Pizza Lounge, Downtown LA

2010-05-07T12:57:00.000-07:00

We were in a hot dog state of mind, and wanted to go to Tony n Pete's for lunch today, but alas, they were closed (they don't open until noon). Instead, we settled for Rocket Pizza Lounge, located about two doors down on 4th Street.

I got the Eggplant Parmesan, which is served with garlic bread. I liked the eggplant, it wasn't overly soft and had a little bite to it. I also liked the mozzarella on top, nice and gooey as a mozzarella should be, plus the tomato sauce was pleasant as well. The garlic bread was quite tasty; there was a thin layer of cheese on top, and that made it, in my book.

A good place to go to for lunch if you work in Downtown LA, although I doubt many of the patrons were working, as they were ordering beer by the pitcher.

Rocket Pizza Lounge, 122 West 4th Street, Los Angeles
http://www.rocketpizzalounge.com/

Delilah Bakery via Lot 44

2010-05-03T11:46:00.000-07:00

First, let me explain the title. I try to frequent Lot 44 Coffee in Downtown LA as often as I can, because I really like their lattes. They used to offer cupcakes from Blue Cupcakes, which had really great cupcakes, the red velvet was my favorite. However, they recently changed vendors, and are now ordering their cupcakes from Delilah Bakery in Echo Park.

So on one of my visits to Lot 44, we saw that a new batch of freshly delivered cupcakes, and asked what flavors were available. The barista said something about Jack Daniels Chocolate Orange Cupcake, which immediately piqued my curiosity. In keeping with my pseudo resolution, I ordered one to sample.

Let me break the cupcake down: chocolate cupcake, which was a little on the dry side, topped with cream cheese frosting with a hint of that good 'ol Jack, and I would venture either maybe orange zest or orange liquer. First of all, the frosting was sweet enough to send anyone into a diabetic coma, and although I am usually a fan of the chocolate-orange flavor profile, this combination was sadly lacking. I also didn't really appreciate the whiskey flavor in the background, to me, it seemed like it detracted more than it complemented.

The other thing was, and I can't really be too sure of this because it has been a while, but I could have sworn that there were little chocolate chips in the cake itself. That, to me, is a cardinal sin, because cakes should never have anything in the batter, except for the batter. Plus, I'm not a fan of chocolate chips being in anything other than chocolate chip cookies. But, that is another debate/heated discussion altogether.

My final verdict? That cupcake was blah. However, it will not stop me from giving Delilah's Bakery another try.

Ajisen Ramen, Rowland Heights

2010-04-27T10:45:00.000-07:00

Since I've been craving ramen for a while, the whole fam trekked over to Ajisen Ramen, located in a small strip mall in the heart of Rowland Heights. The restaurant is small and unassuming, and also pretty clean. We were seated immediately and proceeded to look over the menu.

After a few minutes of deep contemplation, I chose the Premium Pork Ramen with no scallions and an extra egg. I was served with a piping hot bowl of good, chewy noodles, and thin slices of yummy marinated pork swimming in a rich broth. Although it was no Daikokuya, I was pretty impressed with this bowl of ramen. In fact, I prefer it over other ramen bowls I've had.

The hubbs ordered the Ajisen Ramen, which included two slices of pork, a handful of fresh cabbage, seaweed and the same noodles in the broth. He really liked it too, and also prefers it over most ramen bowls.

We also ordered the gyoza dumplings, which contained a little too much vegetable and not enough pork for me, but it was still made well. Taste is comparable to all the other gyozas; there wasn't anything truly outstanding about it.

We ordered the Japanese Style Fried Rice for the boys, who devoured pretty much the entire thing. We took no leftovers home. Again, too much veggies in it for me. I was also surprised by the addition of the cucumber in the fried rice, it was something I have never had before, and probably something I wouldn't really try again.

Overall, Ajisen is a good place to go to for ramen. I'd definitely go back there, I'd also even risk driving through all that crazy traffic to get there.

Ajisen Ramen, 18253 E. Colima Road, Rowland Heights
(626) 839-2188

SLYFoodie Longsilog

2010-04-06T10:30:00.000-07:00

A joint effort between the hubbs and myself, although I must admit that he did most of the work, we made Longilog for dinner the other night. Longsilog is a Filipino dish comprised of longanisa (Filipino sausage), eggs and sinangag, also known as garlic fried rice. It's typically served for breakfast, so essentially, we had breakfast for dinner. This is easily one of my favorite Filipino dishes.

The longanisa was purchased at our local 99 Ranch Market, although it is also readily available at your local Filipino grocery. Hubbs cooked the white rice, then fried it with butter and lots of finely minced garlic. He also cooked the longanisa. My only contribution to this task was to fry the eggs, sunny side up, and simply seasoned with kosher salt and pepper. The result is shown below.

Taste on Melrose, West Hollywood

2010-04-06T10:05:00.000-07:00

While browsing through OpenTable's list of restaurants, I came across Taste on Melrose, a quaint restaurant that serves updated Californian cuisine. They were offering a 3-course prix fixe menu for only $26, so I knew that it was worth a try. We asked our foodie friends to join us on this adventure, and the following photos are glimpses of what we consumed that night.

Please allow me to preface this by mentioning that the restaurant, although quaint, was dimly lit. So the pictures you will see are the best pictures I could take because I had to use my flash. I think that the photos look terrible and don't do much justice to the food, but at least you'll have an idea of what it looked like. Sort of.

Since we got there first, I took the liberty of ordering a cocktail to sip while we waited. Introducing the Tell Me You Love Me drink comprise of Smirnoff Pear Vodka, St. Germain liquer, orange juice, cranberry juice, pomegranate purée and a splash of soda. It was refreshing, fruity goodness, but unfortunately, I pretty much had to nurse this drink all night on account of me turning into a lightweight post-offspring. We also ordered the Calamari Fritti, which was served with a chipotle aioli. Crunchy batter, good dipping sauce, we practically devoured it before our friennds showed up.

We also got the Crispy Rock Shrimp to share. These are lightly battered fried rock shrimp that's served with three different dipping sauces: wasabi aioli, spicy aioli and a sweet & sour Thai sauce. I really liked this dish, and thought that the wasabi aioli was the best complement - the pungent, spicy wasabi with the delicate flavor of the shrimp was the perfect match.

For the first course, we all pretty much agreed to try the White Truffle Oil & Mushroom Mac n' Cheese. Ingredients included, you guessed it, white truffle oil, shiitake mushrooms (if I remember correctly), macaroni and globs of cheese. I really liked it, I thought that the truffle flavor was really strong, it was a good dish. Side note: the girls were served lukewarm, almost cold ramekins of the first course, so to compensate for the mistake, we ended up with a full serving and a half of mac n' cheese to enjoy at the table and to take home.

The girls chose the Kobe Meatballs for the main course. Two gianormous meatballs with pine nuts, golden raisins and caramelized onions on top of linguine swimming in a white truffle cheese fondue. I personally like all the different flavors and textures, the meatballs were super moist, but had crunch because of the pine nuts and sweetness because of the raisins and the onions. The linguine was cooked al dente, and was so good with the cheesy sauce that had white truffle flavor in the background. My friend thought that the meatballs were too soggy for her tastes, though. Maybe adding some (more) bread crumbs would have helped.

The boys chose the Crispy Chicken Paillard, thin piece of breaded chicken cutlet that is fried and served with a potato purée, white gravy, a baby arugula salad and red onion jam. The chicken was golden brown perfection - crunchy on the outside, but tender white chicken meat just one layer below. The potatoes and gravy were really great, the arugula helped cut the richness of the dish. I actually preferred this over my entreé.

For dessert, it was boys vs. girls again, with the boys choosing the Crème Bruleé. It was a good dish, but there wasn't anything memorable about it. The girls, on the other hand, picked the Chocolate Bread Pudding. Chocolatey goodness mixed with bread and custard, then topped with cream? Sign me up! One of the best bread puddings I have had, and was easily my favorite dish at Taste.

The service was great, the food was decent at reasonable prices (if you go the prix fixe route, anyway). Overall, this is definitely worth a taste.

Taste on Melrose, 8454 Melrose Avenue, West Hollywood

http://www.ilovetaste.com/

Phoenix Food Boutique, Redux

2010-04-02T16:09:00.000-07:00

BFF accompanied me on a another one of my trips to Phoenix Food Boutique, this time, in Arcadia. This branch is located in a strip mall, next to the famous Din Tai Fung Dumpling House. Parking is very hard to come by during the rush dining hours, so it's always best to come earlier.

For starters, I got the Taro Coconut Milk Tapioca because it just seemed like it would be a nice refreshing drink. It was, but it didn't really have enough of the coconut milk flavor I was looking for. I think I preferred the Rowland Heights version.

Since I loved the Crispy Shrimp Roll from the last trip, I had to get some more. These certainly made my taste buds and belly happy. The crispy wrapper fried to golden brown perfection and tender shrimp was perfect.

We also ordered Fried Squid with Spicy Salt. I liked the light batter on the squid, it was flavorful. However, I wish that the squid pieces weren't so big. They weren't bite-sized at all, and it made enjoying them just a little more difficult. The photo below shows how big each individual piece is, as well as a cameo of BFF's chopsticks (for artistic purposes - there were several napkins under the plate to show more "angle.").

Rounding out the meal was an order of Village Style Stir Fried Vermicelli, which includes shrimp, shredded BBQ pork, bean sprouts and egg. I personally thought it was tasty, especially when accompanied with a little chili oil. BFF's chopsticks make another cameo appearance, while BFF waits patiently in the background for me to snap the photo.

My biggest disappointment with the Arcadia branch that day was the fact that they did not have Milk and Egg Pudding. Curses! I had to settle for Taro Pudding for dessert, and while it has its own merits, it was no Milk and Egg Pudding. I just hope that they haven't stopped making it. Many thanks to BFF for agreeing to be a patient and accommodating guest star... that, and lunch.

Phoenix Food Boutique, 1108 S. Baldwin Avenue, Arcadia

http://www.phoenixfoodboutique.com/

(Not-So) Vegetarian Pasta

2010-04-02T14:40:00.000-07:00

Rummaging through my pantry and fridge, I came across several items that had impending expiration dates, so I had to use them as soon as possible. So I figured I would make a vegetarian pasta dish, only because I forgot there was some cooked chicken strips from Costco in the freezer.

Here are the ingredients:
* Small elbow macaroni, a little over half a pound
* 1 cup of plain Greek yogurt
* 1½ cups of heavy cream
* 1 package of baby spinach
* 1 package of white button mushrooms
* 1 small block of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
* ½ stick of unsalted butter

I cooked the pasta according to directions, then set it aside. In a skillet, melt butter and add about 1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil, then sauté mushrooms. Once the mushrooms are cooked, add the spinach to wilt, then add the heavy cream and Greek yogurt. Let the sauce simmer, and add as much salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese to taste. I also added some garlic powder for an extra flavor boost. Add cooked pasta to sauce and reheat through, then serve. I topped with more Parmesan and some freshly cracked black pepper.

I liked that the yogurt cut through the sweetness of the cream, and added a tangy dimension to the sauce. The nutty flavor of the Parmesan was also delightful in this dish. Not bad for something I just made up, but I think I needed chicken. I did add some chicken, and it was great. Here's the close-up:

All Things Top Chef

2010-04-01T22:22:00.000-07:00

We recently hosted a Top Chef potluck challenge where the rules were simple: recreate a recipe seen on any season of Top Chef or Top Chef Masters. There were six of us, which meant that we all got to enjoy a six-course meal. Obviously, we all had to make some type of modification to each recipe due to lack of fresh ingredients and white plates, but each dish was stellar, considering that we're not restaurant chefs. Here are the results:

First Course: Cliff's Holiday Baileytini and Steak Tapas

This was a recipe from Top Chef: The Quickfire Cookbook. We all agreed that the Baileytini was on the strong side, but the meat was cooked well and the créme fraiche fondue was a pleasantly surprising complement.

Second Course: Kevin's Steak and Eggs with Créme Fraiche, Aged Cheddar and Green Onion

This is something I'm going to have to make on my own. I loved the steak, eggs and the sauce. Instead of using scallions, we used chives, which achieved the onion requirement on a milder scale.

Third Course: Radhika's Belgian Meatballs with Chive Mashed Potatoes

I believe the original recipe called for equal parts of ground beef and ground lamb. But this, my friends, was an all beef recipe, and I'm not complaining. I really liked the nutmeg and the tumeric combination, it was a nice, spicy surprise. The recipe also asks for the potatoes to be put through a ricer for a fluffier texture, but I thought that using a regular masher still achieves the desired effect.

Fourth Course: Chef Rick Bayless's Quick Fried Shrimp with Sweet Toasty Garlic

As Joey Tribbiani would say, bread, good. Shrimp, good. Garlic oil, GOOD! There is a reason why Chef Bayless was crowned the winner of Top Chef Masters, folks, and this recipe contributes to that reason. The only modification to this recipe was the omission of figs, because fresh figs are out of season.

Fifth Course: Elia's Roasted Chicken with Vegetables

So this was the dish I chose to prepare, frankly because it was the easiest. I also decided to serve it straight from the roasting pan, family style, instead of carving the chicken myself.

Sixth Course: Richard's Banana Scallops with Banana Guacamole and Chocolate Ice Cream

This recipe calls for fresh ginger juice, which we did not have, save for a few drops. The basil, tarragon and cilantro, along with the tart lime juice were surprisingly nice complements to the decadent, homemade chocolate ice cream and the caramelized bananas. This dessert left one lasting impression upon me: we now have an official ice cream chef.

A great meal with great friends, now who can ask for anything more?

Pitfire Pizza, Downtown LA

2010-03-31T23:59:00.000-07:00

We frequent Pitfire Pizza for two reasons: good food and location. It is essentially a stone's throw away from our building, and even better, the restaurant offers a "buy-ten-meals-and-the-11th-is-free" program. What's even better that is they gave cards with 9 stamps to all the new building tenants. Its motto, "the crust you can trust" implies that they have great pizza. It also serves up pasta, panini sandwiches, soups and salads. Ironically, however, my favorite dish there is only available in the fall and winter seasons.

That dish is the Short Ribs with Pappardelle. Given my affinity to short ribs, it was an easy pick for me. It's short ribs braised in a red wine sauce, served over fresh pappardelle pasta and topped with grana padano cheese. Simple, yet complex, a perfect marriage of flavor from the beef, wine and cheese. Although the pasta primarily serves as a filler, it is actually quite tasty and cooked to al dente perfection.

Another fall/winter special that I highly recommend is the Chicken and Mushroom Linguine. It's grilled chicken, various types of mushroom tossed in a porcini cream sauce. It is also an excellent choice that won't disappoint. Another must have from Pitfire is their Jumbo Chocolate Chunk Cookie - a gianormous, gooey, rich, decadent, chocolate treat.

Is Pitfire really the crust you can trust? I don't know, but I can tell you that the special pastas are great. Come early because the line forms fast during the lunch rush hour.

Pitfire Pizza, 108 W. 2nd Street, Los Angeles

http://www.pitfirepizza.com/

Orochon Ramen, Little Tokyo, Los Angeles

2010-03-31T23:44:00.000-07:00

Since we've been to Daikokuya and love the ramen there, we decided to test the product at its surrounding competitors. So we visited Orochon Ramen, located between 1st and 2nd streets behind the Kyoto Grand Hotel. OR was featured on an episode of "Man vs. Food," where Adam needed to finish a bowl of Special 2 Ramen within 30 minutes to be memorialized on OR's Wall of Bravery.

To order, first select the type of broth from the three options OR offers: soy sauce (shoyu), miso or salt (shio). Then choose a spiciness level, which ranges from Level 1 (mild or not spicy) to Level 7 (extremely spicy). Beyond Level 7 are two special levels, 1 and 2, which will apparently burn off the taste buds on your tongue. After selecting the spiciness level, choose any extras to include in your custom made ramen order. Options include cha shu pork slices, hard boiled egg, corn, extra scallions, extra noodles, bamboo shoots, garlic and butter.

On this trip, I ordered shio ramen in Level 4, with two pieces of char sui pork and an egg. Level 4 is considered middle of the road, not too spicy, and not too bland. It was a mixture of noodles, vegetables, wood ear mushrooms, bamboo shoots, scallions and small pieces of pork swimming in a big bowl of steaming broth. At first taste, or slurp, I found the broth to be flavorful and just a little spicy, and wondered if I had enough nerve to try a Special 2. I was disappointed with the noodles, or lack thereof. Everything else in the bowl was so-so, except for the char sui pork pieces that I ordered in addition to the ramen. The pork was melt-in-your-mouth tender and flavorful - it better be, at $1.50 each. I definitely prefer the Daikokuya version.

We also ordered the gyoza dumplings, but quite frankly, it was pretty mediocre. In fact, the entire Orochon experience was pretty mediocre, despite the crowd. I would have much rather waited in line for a counter seat at Daikokuya.

California Pizza Kitchen, Chino Hills

2010-03-31T22:43:00.000-07:00

On a recent date with my little boy, we went to our usual spot, also known as California Pizza Kitchen, conveniently located at the Shoppes in Chino Hills. We get to spend some one-on-one time together, plus eat some pretty good food, so I always look forward to these dates.

That night, I found out that CPK now features a "Small Cravings" menu, which are smaller portions of appetizers that won't break the bank. Since I was feeling a little bold, I decided to try the Crispy Artichoke Hearts, something I've never had before. Don't get me wrong, I've had Spinach and Artichoke Dip before, I've just never had a dish where artichokes were the star. These were artichoke hearts breaded using Panko crumbs, fried, and served with a remoulade. Having never had this before, I thought they were pretty good, the breading was crunchy, and the artichokes were tender. I thought that the remoulade somewhat resembled a mustard, which was okay, but nothing spectacular. But what blew me away was the fact that the boy who doesn't eat veggies actually ate a few artichokes with me.

Next up was my usual entreé, the Tequila Lime Fettucine, a signature CPK dish. It's spinach fettucine tossed with red, yellow and green peppers, red onions, grilled chicken breast in a jalapeno cream sauce. It is easily one of my CPK favorites because the flavors jump in your mouth. There is a contrast between the tart lime and the sweetness of the cream, plus the spiciness from the jalapeno. The soft noodles is contrasted by the crunchy peppers. It is a good flavor profile overall.

I love coming to CPK because it has many great dishes to choose from. Although I tend to choose pastas over pizza, I would highly recommend trying a few of their creations. You won't be disappointed.

California Pizza Kitchen, 3505 Grand Avenue, Chino Hills

http://www.cpk.com/

Croissant Bread Pudding

2010-03-27T22:13:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while, I'll have a craving for bread pudding, and my all-time favorite recipe is the Barefoot Contessa's Croissant Bread Pudding. It's easy to make, and always comes out perfect. I always omit the raisins because I don't like them.

The only modifications I made to this batch were adding a couple more croissants and used dried cranberries instead of raisins. This batch was also particularly special because my little boy helped me whisk the custard together, and he also sprinkled the craisins into the dish. Below is the result.

Beard Papa's, Little Tokyo, Los Angeles

2010-03-27T22:02:00.000-07:00

A week ago, we braved the California sunshine and went on a short walk to Beard Papa's, located in Little Tokyo. I've heard good things about BP's, a franchise that specializes in cream puffs. That's right, a store whose main product is a cream puff. I had to see and taste for myself.

One would think that it would be extremely simple to order, since it's just cream puffs, right? Nope. It actually took me a couple of minutes to decide, not on what to order, but how many to order. I finally settled on 3 chocolate cream puffs and 3 original cream puffs. The attendant proceeded to take each puff and fill it with fresh cream, and after that, she dusted with with powdered sugar. It's actually pretty cool to watch.

When we got back to the office, I couldn't wait to sample one. I wish I had taken a photo of the vanilla puff, but I was overcome with anticipation, and ate it before even thinking about anything else. The pastry was fresh, crunchy on the outside and flaky moist on the inside. It went perfectly with the smooth, sweet cream. Simply said, it was an awesome combination. Pictured below is the chocolate puff, which was tasty good as well, but I preferred the original puff.

There are many Beard Papa's located throughout the San Gabriel Valley, and I would highly recommend visiting one.

Chung Ki Wa, Koreatown, Los Angeles

2010-03-23T16:42:00.000-07:00

For my good friend's birthday dinner, she chose Korean BBQ, something I haven't had in a long time. Based on her aunt's recommendation, we went to Chung Ki Wa, located in Koreatown. Let me tell you now that I am remiss in taking photos of the feast, and I am sorry to say that I can only say very little about the food we ate because it has been a couple of months. I can tell you, however, that it was good. I guess it only merits another visit for "research" purposes.

As it is a restaurant that proudly features Angus beef (seen on their logo), we ordered the beef kalbi, which are marinated short ribs. Prior to the server cooking the meat, we were treated to ban chan, which are a lot of small dishes comprised of different ingredients (I know, very specific, huh?). What was most memorable to me was the marinated bean sprouts, only because I like the sesame oil that was included in the marinade. But I digress, back to the kalbi. The beef kalbi was cooked in front of us, along with some onions and mushrooms. It tasted so good, the meat was tender and was perfect with rice. It was also perfect with the rice noodle sheets they provide as a wrapper with some of the ban chan items and the sauces.

We also ordered bulgogi and a chicken bibimbap, but I don't have pictures of them. All I can say that it was awesome, and here is what we made with the leftover marinade and items. It was good too.

I promise not to be so vague next time, but if you're ever in the mood for good, authentic Korean BBQ, Chung Ki Wa will not disappoint.

Chung Ki Wa, 3545 W. Olympic Boulevard, Los Angeles

Bottega Louie, Downtown LA

2010-03-23T15:00:00.000-07:00

I first heard of Bottega Louie in Downtown LA when I was planning my 30th birthday bash, based on good reviews on Yelp!. I ultimately opted to go Vegas instead, but have wanted to try BL since last fall. So on a balmy Monday morning, my husband and I went to BL for lunch, and much to my delight, this was the first image that greeted us:

Upon being seated, we were offered complimentary sparkling water, which in my mind, was awesome. But tasting it was a different story; it tasted like carbonated tap water, which was ok, but not what I was expecting. I also got some berry lemonade, which was nice, sweet and tart, but nothing special, except for the blueberry garnish.

We decided to split one entrée and order several small plates. That was the beauty of this place; you get to sample as many different dishes as you want without having to order full-sized meals. My eyes were immediately drawn to the Portobello Fries; that was a no-brainer for me. I was not disappointed. The light batter was crispy, the mushroom was juicy and flavorful; it was a great texture contrast. The basil aioli that served as dipping sauce further complemented the dish. In other words, it was yummy all around. It’s definitely a must-have when you go.

We also ordered the Fried Calamari, which was accompanied with marinara sauce for dipping. It was quite lovely, the crispy rings of tender squid also made me very happy. Although not quite as good as fried calamari I’ve sampled elsewhere, it was still a solid dish.

The Roasted Asparagus with Fried Egg was also another great dish. It is prepared quite simply; fresh asparagus roasted until crisp tender, laying on a pool of what I want to say is béarnaise and topped with a fried egg and some parmesan shavings. Simple ingredients (except for maybe the béarnaise), but when eaten together, had pleasant complexity in flavor.

If you have been reading the last few entries, then you know of my love affair with Brussels sprouts. You would also know that if it’s on the menu, it will be ordered. It seems that the sprouts that comprise this small dish were braised and not roasted, as they didn’t have the caramelized “skin” typical of roasted veggies. They were served with slivered, toasted almonds, which are supposed to provide a nice texture contrast to the vegetables. Unfortunately, however, that was not the case. It seems like the sprouts were not cooked long enough. The flavors were there, but the texture was not.

Finally, we ordered the Chicken Milanese to share; it was served with an arugula salad and checca, which are fresh tomatoes, basil, mozzarella and garlic tossed with extra virgin olive oil. I thought that the chicken was okay; it didn’t necessarily pack the flavor punch I was expecting. I did, however, like the peppery arugula mixed with the checca.

I simply could not leave Bottega Louie’s without purchasing one of the delectable-looking pastries on display. It came down to monkey bread or a macaroon, and quite frankly, the monkey bread was more pastry for your buck, and I’ve never had monkey bread before. I always thought that it would be gooey and soft, but the top was surprisingly crunchy, like, over baked crunchy. That slightly disappointed me, but didn’t stop me from finishing the whole thing when I got back to work.

I liked Bottega Louie. I’d definitely go back there, especially for those Portobello Fries. It tends to get very busy during the rush hours, so plan on going early. It is also very noisy, so it isn't a good idea to go there for intimate conversation.

Bottega Louie, 700 S. Grand Avenue, Los Angeles
http://www.bottegalouie.com/

Pondahan Restaurant, West Covina

2010-03-18T07:08:00.000-07:00

One Saturday, we visited Pondahan Restaurant, a Filipino restaurant located across the mall in West Covina. My parents seem to like this place, as they talk about it quite often, and like to take people there to eat from time to time. I was excited to try this place and compare it to its rival, Salo Salo Grill, which I love.

We actually ordered quite a lot of food when we were there, as we usually do. For starters, we ordered Shrimp Okoy, which is somewhat like an fried egg pancake with shrimp, bean sprouts and other quick-cooking veggies. It is served with a side of vinegar for dipping. I thought it was decent, but it could have been pulled from the fryer a few seconds before.

We also ordered Lumpiang Shanghai, something most people think of when Filipino food is mentioned. Lumpiang Shanghai contain pork, carrots, garlic, some onion, wrapped up into mini egg rolls using egg wrapper, then fried to golden brown perfection and served with a sweet chili sauce. This is by far the boys' favorite dish, I think they ate most of it.

Pictured below is the Kare Kare, an oxtail stew that includes bok choy, eggplant, chinese string beans in a peanut butter sauce. It is served with bagoong (shrimp paste) on the side. It is usually enjoyed with some steamed rice. Today, we ordered some garlic fried rice, which is great by itself. Although I usually enjoy this dish, it tasted a little bland. Not even the shrimp paste could save it.

I was looking forward to the Pancit Malabon, which is rice noodles cooked with a shrimp sauce and usually includes shrimp, hard boiled egg slices, pieces of pork and sprinkled with chicarron and fried garlic. It is one of my all-time favorite dishes, but again, I was disappointed due to lack of flavor.

But my disappointment was assuaged by this next dish, easily the highlight of the meal, the Crispy Pata. It is a pork leg that is deep fried to golden perfection so you can enjoy the cripsy skin and the tender meat. This was accompanied by some Mang Tomas sauce and some vinegar with garlic for dipping.

Although I thought that it had nice ambiance, overall, I was slightly disappointed by Pondahan; I really had high expectations, especially since my folks really liked it. I think that Salo Salo Grill still stands as my favorite in the area.

El Tepeyac Hacienda, Chino Hills

2010-03-14T14:20:00.000-07:00

An East LA landmark has found its way into Chino Hills. El Tepeyac, also known as Manuel's to its loyal patrons, opened a new location in Chino Hills very recently. Okay, maybe it isn't exactly a new branch, but it is very similar to the original Manuel's. It turns out that the Chino Hills location is owned by Manuel's godson, but that is the only relationship between the two restaurants.

Upon arrival to El Tepeyac, we were immediately seated and given chips and salsa. The chips seemed to be stale, and the salsa is definitely not for the weak of heart. It was flavorful, but it seemed that its spiciness completely overpowered the flavors.

I ordered the Hollenbeck special, which is a gianormous chile verde burrito with rice, beans, and guacamole. It is topped with more chile verde, and then sprinkled with lots of cheddar cheese, and put under the heat for the cheese to melt. Again, not something for the weak of heart. I love spicy food, so much so that the husband thinks I've burned off all my tastebuds, but I am finding that I'm becoming less tolerant of heat in my old age. Although the chunks of meat were tender and flavorful, the spiciness overpowered all the great flavors of the burrito. One other thing, make sure you're very hungry when you order this, and any of their burrito specials.

I've been here a couple times since, I've found the food to be mediocre at best, and service to be rather slow.

El Tepeyac Hacienda, 4200 Chino Hills Parkway, Chino Hills

Steakhouse 55, Disneyland Hotel, Anaheim

2010-03-12T06:29:00.000-08:00

To celebrate my 30th birthday many moons ago, we went to Disneyland because a) it was free; b) I couldn’t think of a better way to spend the day with my boys. We planned on hitting Goofy’s Kitchen buffet at the Disneyland Hotel, but alas, it was closed to repair some kind of kitchen malfunction. Rats! Sorry, Mickey.

We settled for Steakhouse 55, which is located next to Goofy’s Kitchen. At the time, there weren’t very many people there, which should have been indication enough. But I was hungry and slightly cranky due to the fact that our reservation to GK had been futile.

So the boys got “special” Mickey pancakes with fruit and a side of yogurt. I personally thought that the pancakes I make them at home taste better and less dry.

I got French toast served with sausage, eggs and breakfast potatoes. Honestly, there was nothing memorable about it; it could have easily been confused with the French slam at Denny’s.

The husband got Steak and Eggs, 8 oz. of strip steak served with eggs, breakfast potatoes and two pieces of toast. The meat was cooked well, but again, nothing memorable about it.

At least the boys got to go on King Arthur’s Carousel and Dumbo.

Phoenix Food Boutique, Rowland Heights

2010-03-08T22:29:00.000-08:00

On the rare occasion that we’re both home on a day off, the husband and I like to go out and eat. So with our second plus one in tow, we ventured into Rowland Heights, to one of Phoenix Food Boutique’s many locations. My BFF had been raving about Phoenix forever; it seems to be office’s Chinese takeout go-to. I had actually gone to the PFB in Arcadia on my last Din Tai Fung run, but only purchased some to go items such as milk and egg pudding.

Okay, let me just say, the combination of milk, sugar, eggs and probably some gelatin, never tasted so good. It was rich, creamy, and ultimately, very satisfying. It was creamy goodness in a cup; so much so that it piqued my curiosity on PFB’s savory offerings. Phoenix or bust!

On this adventure, we ordered enough to feed an army, but that is beside the point. First up is the beef fried rice for the little one. If his appetite is any indication of how the dish tasted, I must tell you that he devoured a whole bowl. The world’s most finicky eater literally ate a whole bowl, and wanted more. So take that for what it’s worth. I felt that it was the typical fried rice dish you can find in any respectable Chinese restaurant.

We also got the Hong Kong Style Beef Flat Rice Noodle, which translated into layman's terms means Dry Beef Chow Fun. While it was good, again, it was the typical chow fun dish with pieces of beef, onion, and scallion sauteed with flat rice noodles and soy sauce. It was served with the chiu chow hot sauce, which is my favorite, so needless to say, that disappeared not-so-mysteriously.

Next up, the House Special Stir Fried Noodle was one of the more impressionable dishes that we ordered. It was egg noodles, with pieces of chicken, shredded duck, bean sprouts, onion and scallion, sauteed and served piping hot. Although I think it may have used a little more salt, it was an overall solid dish, because the flavor of the duck really came through. This was also served with a small container of the chiu chow hot sauce goodness.

Because one rice dish and two noodle dishes weren't enough, we also ordered the Mayonnaise Shrimp with Glazed Walnuts. It is, simply put, lightly battered shrimp that is deep fried and then tossed into a sweeter version of mayonnaise, served with honey glazed walnuts. This delectable shellfish and nut combination was served with a cup of white rice. The crunch from the batter and from the walnuts provided a good texture contrast to the creaminess of the mayo and the juiciness of the shrimp. I must say, however, at the risk of stating an oxymoron, I wish they served bigger shrimp.

After stuffing ourselves with carbs, what else could we possibly want? Why, fried food, of course! We ordered the Deep Fried Dim Sum Platter, which consists of three pieces of shrimp roll, siu mai, curry chicken pastry puff and sweet bun. The shrimp roll was simply awesome - great texture contrast between the crunch wrapper and perfectly cooked shrimp. The siu mai made me realize why deep fried siu mai isn't very common. I think that the diner is given a very small window to consume the siu mai, otherwise the crunchiness is gone, and we missed that window. The curry chicken puff was so-so, it reminded me of an hors d'ouevres course at a wedding reception. The sweet bun was a nice surprise, because it was served with some condensed milk, which I initially mistook for a runny mayonnaise. Sheesh.

To further wallow in our gluttony, we also got the Garlic Chicken Wings. When I say "garlic," I'm not kidding; they load up the garlic. But it had a nice flavor, garlicky, with a hint of ginger. The pefect, crispy skin made me a very happy diner.

To wash down the carbs and the deep fried food, we taste tested several specialty drinks. One was the Fresh Fruits Tropical Iced Tea. When PFB prints something on the menu, they don't mess around. What I got was iced tea infused with chopped up pieces of fruit swimming in the tea. I think I bit into pieces of apple and pineapple. It was very fruity, tangy and refreshing.

I also wanted to try the Milk Tea Tapioca, which, in my opinion, was disappointing. It tasted bitter, and there was just a funky, indescribable aftertaste to it. Not even the goodness of the chewy tapioca could save the tea. The husband chalked it up to the tea being steeped too long.

He ordered the Taro Coconut Milk Tapioca. It was very tasty, with mini pieces of tapioca and taro at the bottom that enhanced the milk tea. It was so good, that I even contemplated trading with him, but I knew from the look on his face that it was never going to happen.

Finally, the milk and egg pudding. Two of them. Which I took home. And savored.

Phoenix Food Boutique is a great place to go for reasonably priced good Chinese food. You won't be disappointed. I might even give the milk tea another shot. But definitely try the dim sum platter, and the milk and egg pudding.

Phoenix Food Boutique, 18166 E. Colima Road, Rowland Heights
http://www.phoenixfoodboutique.com/

El Caserio, Silver Lake

2010-03-04T22:14:00.000-08:00

To further pursue my desire of being more adventurous this year, I accepted the invitation to El Caserio from a friend for lunch to celebrate another friend's birthday. It serves authentic Ecuadorian food, which was something I have never had the pleasure of sampling.

El Caserio has two locations in Los Angeles; the original restaurant is located at the intersection of Temple and Virgil, and presumably, after finding success, the owners opened a more upscale version on Silver Lake Boulveard. When I walked in the original El Caserio, I found the place to be somewhat charming, and the menu items to be tantalizing.

Our server brought us fresh warm bread, along with some butter and some salsa. The bread was almost immediately consumed by the entire group because it was really good, that, and we were pretty hungry. It was crispy on the outside and pillowy tender on the inside. Add a pat (or two) of butter, and we're in business. You also had the option of dipping the bread in some homemade salsa, but let me warn you, the salsa is not for the weak. Two words describe the salsa: zesty and fiery.

After several rounds of wavering from one item to the next, I finally chose the Churrasco, also known as Bistec a lo Pobré. It is charcoal broiled flank steak served with french fries, rice, a fried egg, plantains and a small side salad. The meat was very tasty, well marinated and seasoned. I really liked the crunchiness of the fries and one can never go wrong with a fried egg, in my opinion. I could have sworn that they added some butter to the rice, because there was an added flavor to it, which I loved, and the plantains were also very yummy. The salad, however, was lacking - it was lacking dressing. But the little bit of dressing I tasted was good.

My buddy ordered the Carne Apanada, which was breaded steak served with rice, tomatoes, fried plantains and a potato patty. One bite of the Ecuadorian version of chicken fried steak almost made me wish I had ordered it instead. It was very well seasoned.

Another friend ordered the Camarones Tricolores, or in other words, shrimp sauteed with olive, red and green peppers, garlic, onions and parsley, and served with rice and fried plantains. I personally thought that the shrimp was slightly overcooked, but it had really great flavor.

Yet another friend got the Petto de Pollo alla Milanese, which was breaded chicken breast with potato patty, rice and encebollado, which I gathered to be some type of pickled onion. Unfortunately, I did not get to try this.

I did, sample a piece of the Lomo Saltado, which was steak sauteed with fresh tomatoes, onions, cilantro and served with French fries and rice. The steak was very tender and very tasty, even tastier than the other pieces of meat I've had.

It was overall a great lunch, and I would definitely go back again.

El Caserio, 309 N. Virgil Avenue, Los Angeles

http://www.elcaseriola.com/

Claim Jumper, Brea

2010-03-03T15:13:00.000-08:00

Sunday night dinner ranges from the usual Chinese take out to sitting down for a meal at a chain restaurant. The other night, the entire family convened at the Claim Jumper in Brea because Buca di Beppo was packed. There are a few reasons why I like CJ:

1) Lots of (good) food.
2) Extremely kid-friendly. They have special placemats for little tykes, as well as a complimentary plate comprised of turkey roll, cheese, applesauce, crackers and oranges. That, in my opinion, is excellent service.
3) Wide selection of appetizers, drinks and entrees.
4) Lots of (good) food, and leftovers for days.

I ordered the Prime Rib Dinner, served with roasted vegetables, a choice of one side (I chose potato pancakes), and bread (I chose the apple cinnamon muffin). The prime rib was cooked the way I liked it, roasted vegetables were seasoned well, and the potato pancakes were nice and crisp. The one thing I didn’t like about the sauce on the potatoes was the bits of raw onion. It would have been so much better without the onion Also, the creamy horseradish that was served with the meat tasted more like sour cream than horseradish, and the au jus was a little on the salty side. It was still good, though. The star of the show, though, was the apple cinnamon muffin, moist and crumbly, and simply divine with butter.

With bellies stuffed, we proceeded to take home an enormous amount of food, with a piece of the Motherlode cake to boot. Service was great; our server took care of us well, and was attentive to the table’s needs. I haven’t had a bad experience with Claim Jumper’s food, either at the restaurant or with the leftovers at home (I had some of my husband’s beef ribs, pictured below. They were yummy, and I felt guilty for eating them).

Claim Jumper, 190 S. State College Boulevard, Brea

http://www.claimjumper.com/

Tony-n-Pete’s and Lost Souls Café, Downtown Los Angeles

2010-03-03T13:43:00.001-08:00

Yesterday, my friend (who loves, loves, loves hot dogs) and I went on a noble quest for Downtown LA’s finest gourmet hot dogs. We had a flyer for Big Ed’s Gourmet Hot Dogs, which was basically a cart located in some alley. Focused on our mission, we prepared to hit the pavement with our heels in search of the proverbial needle in the haystack. Luckily for us, our knight in shining armor, or hybrid car from the motor pool, swept us off our feet and joined us in our merry cause. Long story short, we found the alley and the cart, with many thanks to our “knight.”

It turns out that Big Ed became Tony-n-Pete, an alley cart in the Old Bank District. They serve customized hot dogs and sausages, plus sandwiches, among other things. I ordered the Cahuenga, which is a jumbo beef hot dog with sautéed onions, chili pepper, sauerkraut and brown mustard. Having never had sauerkraut before, that was an adventure in and out of itself for me. The hot dog was pretty tasty and juicy, the sauerkraut the perfect complement. I wish that the onions were cooked longer, because I think that caramelized onions with that hot dog would have been sublime.

Our adventure led me to stumble upon Lost Souls Café, hidden in Harlem Alley. It serves breakfast and lunch, and is definitely a place worth checking out. I ordered a Velvet Latte, subconsciously thinking that it would taste like a red velvet cupcake with caffeine. To my dismay, it was essentially a glorified tea latte that tasted mediocre, at best. I think that further scrutiny is required for Lost Souls. Below are a couple pictures of the cafe itself, plus what my Velvet Latte looked like when we got back to the office.

Tony-n-Pete, 116½ W. 4th Street, Harlem Alley Food Cart, Downtown LA

Lost Souls Café, 124 W. 4th Street, Downtown LA

www.lostsouls.com

The Dining Room at the Langham Huntington - Part Deux

2010-02-28T16:07:00.000-08:00

There is a reason why Chef Michael Voltaggio is Top Chef. It's because he makes amazing food, and I (and my belly) are extremely lucky enough to sample it. On top of that, he is an über nice guy, very pleasant and personable, but more on that later.

This marks our second trip to The Dining Room, the first since Chef Voltaggio took the reins and redesigned the entire menu. The menu itself is divided into a beginning, a middle, and an end. To better describe it:

"Chef Voltaggio's menu features a selection of innovative small plates showcasing artfully inspired new American cuisine prepared using classic discipline and modern trends, utilizing the bounty of seasonal produce that California offers while showcasing the best quality ingredients from arond the globe. The menu is comprised of small savory and sweet plates, ranging from the lightest to the heaviest dish..."

It's no wonder why The Dining Room received a Michelin star, along with other accolades and smashing reviews. In fact, the food was so good that I'm finding it a little challenging to find words to describe it. So I'll just tell you what we ate, show you pictures with the occasional commentary. We chose four courses, so that meant two dishes from the beginning, one from the middle, and one from the end (dessert...yay!).

First, the amuse bouche, strawberry foam with... I think the server said something about nasturtium flowers. It looked like a sorbet or an ice cream of some sort, the flavor combination was unexpected at first, and by the time we finished the course, we were definitely wanting more. The sweet tartness of the strawberry just worked. I wish I had asked the server to repeat himself.

Next came the first course. I ordered the Langoustine, served with a poached egg, white asparagus, mushroom cracker with a sauce poured tableside upon service. The langoustine itself was cooked to perfection, combined with the sauce, and the asparagus, just an overall great way to kick off the meal.

Here's the Kurobuta Pork Belly, served with bok choy "kimchi," kabocha squash preserves and peanut butter noodles. The pork was well cooked and very tasty. Note to self: write down the server's description of the ingredients.

In between courses, we were served a truffled brioche, which is essentially brioche bread baked with black truffles throughout. It was served with a goat's milk butter. The tanginess of the goat's milk in the butter perfectly complemented the lightness of the bread. Translation: we want more! Which, upon request, was granted to our delight.

Next, came the Pastrami Pigeon, served with sauerkraut geleé, with rye jus and gruyere cheese puff. I am still trying to figure out how Chef Voltaggio made the geleé and the puff, but it ultimately doesn't matter because it was perfection. It tasted like a great pastrami sandwich, only many notches higher.

The Jidori Chicken was chicken thigh served with sunflower root puree, poached egg, sunflower seeds and winter truffles. The picture does not do it justice. It was my favorite dish up to this point, and my only disappointment was the fact that I didn't order it for myself. The chicken was cooked perfectly, and the flavor profile was spot on. I could have seriously eaten at least three of those.

My main course was the Wagyu Short Rib, Chef Voltaggio's version of Pot Roast. Braised beef short rib, with smoked potato "tots," Nantes Carrots, candied tomato hearts and white ketchup. The beef was so tender it practically melted in your mouth, very satisfying dish.

The other main course we ordered was the skate wing, which was cooked sous vide in brown butter, served with two textures of cauliflower and caper powder. The skate was perfectly seasoned, and was pure flaky goodness. The cauliflower was great, too. We were also given seaweed mashed potatoes. The combination sounded a little strange at first, but one bite of those potatoes took away all the doubt because it just worked. I thought if anything, it was a little salty, but it was really yummy.

If you didn't think Chef Voltaggio could outdo himself with dessert, then you're wrong. Before the actual dessert course, we were served pre-dessert, which the server called "cookies and milk." It tasted like vanilla and chocolate Dipping Dots. They were great. Now, on to dessert. First up, the Fool's Gold, which is chocolate ganache with a salty hazelnut praline top, and topped with golden flakes. It was also served with a milk sorbet. Unfortunately, I don't remember what comprised the rest of the dish. I do remember the creamy consistency and texture of the ganache.

Based on the server's recommendations, I chose the Sticky Toffee Pudding, which garnered him a few extra tip dollars, solely because it was so good, to the point where I still debate if the Jidori chicken was better than this delectable dish. So this show stopper was served with a rice ice cream, caramelized banana, banana custard and lime foam. Let me tell you, the tart citrus foam stole the show. Its acidity really cut through all the sweetness of the pudding, the caramel and the banana custard. The rice cream tasted like rice, yet was sweet, and pleasant. Fantastic. I'm with the server; I could eat five of these things in one sitting.

To finish what I've already declared was the best meal of my life, we were served these little goodies: passion fruit candy with an edible Japanese rice paper wrapper, macaroons and a dark chocolate lollipop with a hidden surprise - pop rocks. Genius.

The food was amazing, the service impeccable, and I even got to meet Chef Voltaggio in his kitchen to congratulate him on his Top Chef win, and to thank him for the excellent dinner. I was so starstruck that I didn't even take a good look at the kitchen or process the questions that he was asking, and he was so gracious about the whole thing. I'm sure he gets that a lot, people asking to meet him because of his celebrity status.

If you're reading this, Chef, thanks again for an amazing meal.

Blossom Restaurant, Downtown Los Angeles

2010-02-28T15:20:00.000-08:00

Since moving into the new building at work, I've been visiting eateries I never knew existed. Blossom Restaurant is a prime example. Located in the heart of Downtown LA, Blossom serves up tasty Vietnamese cuisine at reasonable prices. Personally, I've never really tried Vietnamese food, let alone pho (rice noodle soup), which is probably the first thing most people think of when Vietnamese food is mentioned.

I've been here twice - once when a friend took me out for my birthday (in which I was sans camera), and last week, when some work friends and I had a pho craving. The first time I was at Blossom, I tried the Fried Roasted Cornish Hen with Pan Fried Egg. It was the cornish hen marinated in a garlic-shallot mixture served with rice, the pan fried egg, sauce and a side house salad. It was really good, the hen was marinated well, although slighty dry. We also ordered egg rolls, which contained ground chicken, shrimp and vegetables, wrapped up, then deep fried to perfection, and served with lettuce, fresh herbs and fish sauce. They were quite tasty, and the fish sauce was the perfect complement to the dish.

This second time, we ordered pho. I got the chicken pho, without onions and cilantro on top. Most pho bowls are topped with onion, cilantro and fried shallots, and come with a side of fresh bean sprouts, mint, lime, basil and jalapeno peppers. When my bowl came out, it looked empty and forlorn, and made me wish I hadn't excluded the onions and cilantro. The pictures below show my sad bowl versus my friend's vegetarian pho bowl, as well as the side dish of mix ins.

So here's how my friend taught me how to prep and enjoy the pho:

1) Squeeze the lime

2) Add whatever you want from the side dish

3) Squirt some hoisin sauce onto your soup spoon and mix it in the hot broth

4) If desired, squirt some Sriracha chili sauce onto soup spoon and mix it with the broth

5) Enjoy!

The noodles were really good, but the broth was great (I happened to taste it prior to adding all the mix-ins). It really satisfied the pho craving, especially since it was a little chilly outside. I think I was the only one who finished the entire bowl.

Oh, and how cool is the Coke bottle? That was the icing on the cake.

Blossom Restaurant, 426 South Main Street, Downtown Los Angeles

http://www.blossomrestaurant.com/

Din Tai Fung Dumpling House, Arcadia

2010-02-21T21:24:00.000-08:00

Din Tai Fung Dumpling House (DTF) is a very popular restaurant, branching off the original DTF in Taiwan. As a matter of fact, there is only one branch in North America, and to my good fortune, it is located in Arcadia, which is definitely within decent driving distance. They are renowned for their dumplings (duh), which are handmade and served freshly steamed.

Now, I love, love, love this place. I try to go every chance I get. Other food blogs I have perused seem to have mixed reviews, so much so that one dissuaded an out of town blogger from trying it. Tsk, tsk. Those guys definitely missed out. I can understand why some people would be put off by DTF; their delicious bundles of goodness don't come cheap. In this case, as is the case for most things, the cliché rings true - you get what you pay for.

This time, the whole fam made the drive to Arcadia to satisfy my dumpling craving. We came, and we ate, and we ate, and then we ate some more. We ordered fried rice with pork chop for the kiddies, as carbs and fried food are the only two food groups they will eat. The fried rice was good, but as they say, it's nothing to write home about. The pork chop seemed to be a little on the overcooked side, as it was just a little bit dry. I don't know about you, but I love juicy pork chops, and frying a piece of meat is something of a lost art these days.

On a sidenote, I especially appreciated the fact that they immediately got highchairs for the boys and even set them up with their own disposable bowl and utensils. They even brought out water in a cup with a lid and a straw. It's like they've anticipated every parent's request when dining out with small children. That already scores major points in my book.

We also ordered the chicken noodle soup, and that's exactly what we got. There were a couple of pieces of chicken, a lot of noodles in a simple broth flavored with scallion and ginger. It hit the spot for such a cold day, the broth had a "cleansing" quality about it (at least, that's what my folks would describe it), and the noodles were good. The chicken was a little on the dry side, but it was okay, I ordered the dish for the noodle and the soup, the chicken was merely an afterthought for me.

On to the stars of the entire meal: the dumplings. We ordered the juicy pork dumplings, which are a must when you visit DTF. It was savory, succulent meat wrapped in pillowy goodness. There is a decorum to eating these dumplings. First, take a small bite of just the wrapper while the dumpling sits atop the soup spoon. At this point, you have a choice to dip the dumpling in the custom made sauce that may consists of ginger and the optional soy sauce and vinegar. Once broken, the juices from within the dumpling flow out onto the soup spoon, and it is meant to be consumed with the dumpling at the same time. When you're craving dumplings, nothing else is better. So good.

We also got the juicy pork with crab dumplings. The crab flavor was definitely prominent, but for some reason, it didn't taste very fresh to me. That is an indicator the imitation crab meat is not welcome here; which is good, especially since these dumplings cost almost a dollar each. Another thing we got was the pork and shrimp shumai, which were also excellent and juicy, but did not stand up to the juicy pork dumplings.

For dessert, we decided to try something new and ordered the red bean and taro dumplings. We were pleasantly surprised, as these are actually really good. We chose to split the order to 5 red bean dumplings and 5 taro dumplings. The red bean paste in the dumplings was not too sweet, and made a good combination with the dough. I prefered, the taro, however, because its mild sweetness complemented the dumpling dough better.

All in all, Din Tai Fung Dumpling House is a great place to eat. A few words of advice, though. Arrive early, as parking can be a pain. We were there when it opened for dinner at 5 pm, and by the time we left, which was around 6 pm, the place was packed with people waiting in line. Also, make sure you eat the dumplings hot; it is so much better that way.

Din Tai Fung Dumpling House, 1108 and 1088 South Baldwin Avenue, Arcadia

http://www.dintaifungusa.com/

Nickel Diner, Downtown Los Angeles

2010-02-19T20:54:00.000-08:00

Fortuitous circumstances led my husband and I to the Nickel Diner, located a few blocks from Pershing Square in Downtown LA. I had been wanting to try out this restaurant because a coworker mentioned wanting to try it someday. Having never heard of this place, I checked out the website to find that it was featured on an episode of "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives," hosted by the Food Network's Guy Fieri. Browsing through the menu, I found that they are actually well-known for their Maple Bacon Donuts. So when the opportunity arose, I seized the chance to check out the place.

We ordered the Maple Bacon, Red Velvet and Nutella donuts to sample, because quite frankly, they seemed the most interesting off the menu. In keeping with my "resolution" to have a more adventurous palate, I tried the Maple Bacon first, to find that it was immediately my favorite of the three. The sweet-savory combination of flavors just worked for me. The saltiness of the bacon offset the sweetness of the glaze perfectly. I just wished that the donut itself was not so dense. I like fluffier donuts (i.e. glazed) versus the dense donuts (like crumb), but that's just me.

The Red Velvet Donut didn't seem to really be a donut at all, since it was nearly impossible to pick up and eat. In fact, the donut wasn't red velvet; it was merely glazed, then sliced in half and coated with red velvet crumbs, with the cream cheese frosting in the middle. Again, the donut seemed too dense, and I might even venture to say a tad stale.

The Nutella donut was also somewhat of a disappointment because of the donut. It was glazed with Nutella goodness and coated with hazelnuts, which was really good. Had it been a fluffier (or fresher) donut, then the only accompaniment it needed was a tall glass of milk. Each donut cost about $2.25, so it was a little disappointing that I only liked the Maple Bacon.

We also ordered the Dutch Baby, which is a baked pancake with caramelized apples and served with butter and powdered sugar. It was a really good dish because the pancake wasn't too sweet and had crispy edges to counter the rest of the thin, yet fluffy, pancake.

My husband ordered the Egg McNickel, a sandwich consisting of scrambled eggs, ham and cheddar cheese served on an onion roll. I liked the way the scrambled eggs were cooked nicely, but unfortunately, I was not a fan of the onion roll. It wasn't because it was bad or anything, I just don't like onion rolls. But my husband seemed to really enjoy his sammy.

Another thing worth mentioning is the iced tea. I don't know what brand they use, or what's in it, but I was pleasantly surprised because I can honestly say that it was one of the best iced teas I've ever had. The Nickel Diner is a place that I would definitely revisit, but next time, I think I'll sample something off the lunch or dinner menus.

Nickel Diner, 524 S. Main Street, Downtown Los Angeles

http://www.5cdiner.com/

Pot Roast

2010-02-13T23:27:00.000-08:00

We had my husband's family over for dinner tonight, and so I made pot roast, served with smashed potatoes and green beans sauteed with shallots. For dessert, I tried my hand at a flourless chocolate cake. Did I also mention the macaroni and cheese side dish? Overall, it was a successful endeavor.

For the main attraction, the pot roast, I bought several pounds of chuck roast from the local butcher (I love that I have a local butcher to go to). After seasoning each side then searing it in my dutch oven, I added onion, celery and carrots to cook for several minutes. Then deglaze the pot with either some red wine or beef stock. Add the meat back to the pot, place in a 350F oven, and cook for 3½ hours. The result? Meat that is so tender it falls apart using a spoon. I took the meat out to let it rest, then used an immersion blender to make a quick gravy out of the cooking liquid and veggies.

For the green beans, they were blanched, then sauteed with butter and shallots. Season to taste, and I used it around the roast, sort of like a bed for the meat.

For dessert, I used Tyler Florence's Chocolate Cracked Earth recipe. I used two dark chocolate bars and two semisweet bars, plus I think my springform pan is 7" in diameter. So needless to say, the cooking time had to be adjusted. It came out quite tasty, definitely a recipe I would use again. Just make sure you have lots of eggs handy, because this recipe calls for a lot of eggs. It is wonderful served with ice cream, preferably Haagen Daaz Vanilla Bean.

Origami Bistro Bar, Downtown Los Angeles

2010-02-13T23:13:00.000-08:00

I took a friend out to lunch for his birthday today, and we decided to try Origami Bistro Bar, located in Downtown LA, and in between both our buildings. Another friend of mine actually recommended this place for lunch because the bento boxes were good and reasonably priced.

So bento box it was, a chicken teriyaki and tempura box. It came with a bowl of miso soup, green salad, rice, and three pieces of California Roll. It's probably best to break down the entire meal and describe each component separately, so here goes:

The miso soup was nothing spectacular; it was warm, not hot. It contained one or two pieces of tofu and some seaweed. The green salad was served in the box, and had some cucumber slices in it, which I was not accustomed to. Upon tasting it, though, it became clear that it would not be my favorite part of the dish. The dressing was too sweet and watery, there was not enough ginger flavor that would make one think of Japanese salad dressing. Also, the cucumber proved to add to the salad's weakness by overpowering the already watery dressing. The chicken looked a little unappetizing at first because it was flat pieces of bland chicken with some sauce on top. The teriyaki sauce itself was a little grainy, but tasted decent. It probably could have used a little more soy sauce. I don't usually eat California rolls, or sushi, for that matter. I don't like the taste of seaweed, it has never appealed to me, so I don't ever bother. For unknown reasons, I decided to live on the edge and try a piece of sushi. So I set up the dipping sauce, added wasabi and soy sauce, then mixed them together, then dipped my sushi into it. I was pleasantly surprised by the seaweed flavor, it was not overpowering the imitation crab meat or the avocado. I'm not saying that I'm a sushi convert, but I won't be so against it next time. The tempura, in my opinion, was probably the best part of the dish, although there was slightly too much batter. It was still good, though.

Origami Bistro Bar, 257 S. Spring Street, Downtown Los Angeles

http://www.origamibistro.com/

Seafood Pasta Off the Cuff

2010-02-11T22:51:00.000-08:00

A trip to Foodie's Paradise, also known as Whole Foods Market, inspired me to make this dish for dinner. They had fresh sea scallops that just came in today, so I jumped at that opportunity and purchased a pound of scallops, as well as eight ounces of lump crab meat.

Here is the list of ingredients, but I don't know the exact amounts used, because when I make a recipe from scratch, I never write anything down:

Capellini pasta (any type of pasta will do)
Fresh scallops (about a pound, sea scallops are better than bay scallops)
Fresh shrimp (also about a pound)
Lump crab meat (jumbo crab meat might be better, but definitely more expensive)
Asparagus, roasted with olive oil, salt and pepper, then cut
Shiitake mushrooms (I used about four and sliced them thin)
White button mushrooms (about one package, cleaned and ready to use are the best kind)
Leek, sliced (make sure to rinse well)
Garlic (about 5-6 cloves)
Heavy cream
Chicken stock
Salt and pepper

I decided to roast the asparagus because it seems to impart more flavor than just a simple saute in the pan with the other ingredients. I seared the scallops and cooked the shrimp separately, then set them aside. The leeks and garlic went into the pan next, followed by mushrooms. After several minutes, the pan is deglazed with the chicken stock and allowed to reduce by half. Then about a pint of heavy cream is added and then the dish is seasoned to taste. After bringing it to a gentle simmer, the crab meat is added, so that it can be heated through. Then the asparagus, scallops and shrimp are added back into the pan to reheat.

Meanwhile, the pasta is cooked according to package directions. After it is cooked and drained, it is immediately added into the sauce pan and tossed to coat. Serve with grated Parmesan cheese on top. It was really good... so good that I am about to go into a food coma. Below is a photo of the final product.

Happy Birthday, Booger!

2010-02-06T19:27:00.000-08:00

For my husband's last birthday, I decided to go all out and bake a cake from scratch, something I've never done before. I used the go-to Hershey's recipe. Here are the results:

The cake came out quite nice. It was moist and chocolatey, a very solid recipe. However, I think next time, I would use chocolate ganache as the icing instead of the regular chocolate buttercream. Definitely have a cold glass of milk handy.

Isabella's Italian Seafood, Monterey

2010-02-06T18:56:00.000-08:00

On our last family vacation in Monterey, we stopped by Isabella's Italian Seafood, located at the historic Fisherman's Wharf. Every time we are in this beautiful city, we always stop by this restaurant simply because it has great food.

The first time we visited this place, we were given a free sample of the clam chowder, and it was quite tasty. It was creamy, the clams were cooked nicely, it was just a well rounded cup of soup. Needless to say, we were hooked. That night, I ordered the pasta special, now called the Pasta Isabella. The menu describes it as, "lobster meat, crab meat, and jumbo shrimp sauteed in Gilroy garlic cream sauce tossed with fresh spinach fettuccine." If that doesn't make your mouth water, then we seriously need to talk. It was quite easily the BEST pasta dish I've ever had. The seafood was cooked to perfection, and the garlic cream sauce was akin to "icing on the cake." Fabulous dish.

For appetizers, we always order fried calamari. In my opinion, this restaurant has some of the best calamari in Monterey. Big chunks of calamari, battered then fried, served with marinara and tartar sauces and topped with some raw onions. The batter, although light, was crispy, and the calamari is tender, with just a little bite to it. It was not rubbery at all.

The last time, I ordered the Fresh Halibut and Kauai Prawn, which is broiled and topped with a basil butter sauce. It comes with choice of potato and fresh vegetables. I chose a loaded baked potato this time. The fish tasted great, nicely seasoned and cooked right, with no fishy aftertaste, so you know it really is fresh. The prawn was so good; its only downfall was the fact that there was only one, and not two (or more). It was ultimately very satisfying, but the most notable thing about that dish was the bacon on the baked potato. For whatever reason, it tasted like the best bacon I've ever had. It was so crispy and perfect, I didn't want to finish it, yet at the same time, I wanted to devour it.

My husband ordered the Stuffed Salmon. I can't remember exactly what the stuffing was, but I think there was crab meat involved. It came with fresh asparagus, rice pilaf and broccoli. I really like the fish itself, but everything else paled in comparison to my dish. Since I only had a bite, I can't fairly describe the rest of the dish.

We have always had great meals at Isabella's, and the next time we're in Monterey, we are definitely stopping by again.

Isabella's Italian Seafood, 60 Fisherman's Wharf, Monterey
www.isabellasonthewharf.com

Pacific Dining Car, Los Angeles

2010-02-06T17:55:00.000-08:00

Every year, my boss takes us to the Pacific Dining Car to celebrate Administrative Professionals' Day. Pacific Dining Car opened its doors to the public in 1921, and has been serving great steaks since. The restaurant was originally a replica of a dining car, but has expanded to accommodate the growing number of diners. It is one of many Los Angeles restaurants open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Pacific Dining Car serves breakfast all day, which is great for a breakfast lover like me. I've tried the French toast there, which are thick slices of brioche served with diner's choice of sausage or bacon. There isn't anything particularly anything that sets the French Toast from others I've tried, but it is still very good. If you choose the sausage, be prepared to eat one of the biggest sausage patties ever. It tastes good as well, the combination of spices with the meat was great.

This time though, I ordered the Creole Benedict, which are poached eggs atop crab cakes and sauteed mushrooms on top of English muffins and served with a Creole hollandaise sauce. It also comes with potatoes lyonnaise and choice of muffins or toast. Pacific Dining Car does a terrific job of combining some of my favorite things in the world: eggs, crab and mushrooms. The eggs were cooked perfectly, crab cakes were moist (and these are jumbo lump crab meat, too), the mushrooms were sauteed to perfection, and the sauce was flavorful and not too spicy. The potatoes that accompanied my order were also very good, seasoned well, but maybe just a wee bit undercooked. It has become the breakfast item of choice for me.

When you go for breakfast, make sure to order a glass of their fresh squeezed orange juice. One of the best around, trust me.

Pacific Dining Car, 1310 W. 6th Street, Los Angeles

Daniel Boulud Brasserie, Las Vegas

2010-02-05T13:51:00.000-08:00

Because of Top Chef, I have always wanted to go to one of Daniel Boulud’s restaurants, the closest one being at the Wynn resort in Las Vegas. Daniel Boulud Brasserie (DBB) received a Michelin star in 2009, so you already know that the food is great, if not, exceptional. So given the opportunity, I immediately made reservations at least 6 weeks in advance.

Before even arriving in Las Vegas, we had already made up our minds to try their “Taste of Wynn” menu. The Wynn resort offers “A Taste of Wynn,” which are prix fixe 3-course menus offered by many of their fine dining establishments for a relatively low price. DBB’s Fall Menu includes the following:

First Course: Choice of Parsnip Soup, Greens Salad, or Duck Terrine
Second Course: Choice of Sea Scallop, Steak Frites, or Sonoma Chicken
Dessert Course: Choice of Warm Seasonal Fruit Clafouti, Chocolate Hazelnut Fondant or a Trio of Seasonal Sorbets

We tried our best to order different dishes so as to maximize our dining experience at DBB, because after all, it’s not every day one gets to eat great food. For the first course, I chose the Parsnip Soup, which was served with some homemade black walnut spice bread and a dollop of cream on top. Words simply cannot describe how good the creamy consistency of the soup combined with the crunchy, flavorful walnut bread was. My husband chose the duck terrine served with onion marmalade. The presentation of the dish was really cute, but I don’t think he appreciated all the mustard and pickle flavors from the dish. Honestly, I was too busy savoring the soup to really try the duck. He did mention that it reminded him of Spam, though.

For the second course, he chose the Sea Scallops, served with beurre noisette, capers, raisins and cauliflower. I tried a small piece and thought that the flavor profile was very good and the scallops were seared perfectly. The only drawback in my opinion was it looked too small to make a decent meal. That was the main reason why I chose the Steak Frites, an 8 oz. sirloin served with onion compote, greens and fries (hence the frites). The steak was cooked perfectly, pink throughout the middle, and the onion compote added a sweet, tangy flavor to the meat. Of course, I finished off the greens first, so I can fully devote my attention to the steak and fries. Great fries, too.

In addition to the main course, we ordered a couple of extra side dishes to share, brussels sprouts and roasted mushrooms. If I dare say, I think those sides definitely stand on their own because they were outstanding. The sprouts are a testament to my current love affair with them; these yummy goodies were pan sautéed with bacon and chestnuts. They were so good – to the point that I’m still thinking about them. They weren’t mushy, or undercooked, they were perfectly cooked and seasoned. The mushrooms (I believe there were oyster, shiitake, and crimini varieties) were cooked perfectly as well, not lacking in flavor or texture. Absolutely perfect.

For dessert, I chose the Warm Fig Clafouti, which is essentially a pancake-like batter poured over fresh figs, baked off and topped with either powdered sugar or ice cream. I have never had fresh figs before, so I was definitely excited to try this dish. It proved to be very tasty, the vanilla ice cream melting into the clafouti, combined with the sweet figs. The servers were nice enough to make my plate extra special by adding a candle and the words, “Happy Birthday” written on the plate. It was beautiful. My husband chose the Chocolate Hazelnut Fondant, with espresso ice cream and a nougatine crunch. From what I remember, it was overall a good dessert, but I don’t remember the hazelnut flavor coming through.

We also ordered a cheese course comprised of three different types of cheese: cow, goat and sheep's milk cheeses. It was served with fruit and crackers, and I wish that I had takent the time to write down exactly what type of cheeses we were enjoying. The server was kind enough to choose on our behalf, and he did an excellent job recommeding good cheeses to us. At the end of the meal, he came out with a small plate of petit fours, compliments of the chef. It was the best way to end one of the best meals I've ever had.

I have nothing but good things to say about Daniel Boulud Brasserie, it was impeccable all around – ambiance, food, service. It is quite easily one of the best restaurants I’ve ever been to, if not, the best.

Serendipity 3, Las Vegas

2010-02-04T18:13:00.000-08:00

Roaming through the Las Vegas Strip, we came across Serendipity 3, located right outside of Caesar's Palace. It is famous for its Frozen Hot Chocolate, which was shown during the movie Serendipity, starring John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale. The frozen hot chocolate was also featured on the Food Network once or twice.

Naturally, we stopped in, only to find out that the wait was at least 45 minutes! Not wanting to wait, we hopped on the barstools at the bar (duh), and the server was such a nice guy, very accommodating. We didn't even need the menu; we just ordered the frozen hot chocolate, watched him make it in front of us.

In the blender, he adds a powdered chocolate concoction, ice and milk. If I'm not mistaken, there was also some ice cream added. After it blends, he fills a gianormous footed ice cream bowl to overflowing and adds whip cream and shaved chocolate. Voila! Frozen hot chocolate.

The first few sips are chocolatey heaven; not too sweet, just right. But the more you delve into this thing, one truth holds true: frozen hot chocolates are meant to be shared. There is way too much for one person to enjoy, and too much of a good thing usually isn't a good thing. The "powdery" flavor will also start to be more prominent the more you sip.

Overall, it is a good dessert slash mid-afternoon treat (especially on a scorching day). Just watch out for the inevitable brain freeze.

RM Seafood, Las Vegas

2010-02-04T17:43:00.000-08:00

Just so you know, this wannabe foodie doesn't limit herself to California. Oh no, as part of my birthday extravaganza, we also celebrated in Las Vegas, which could easily be a mecca for foodies. Since we were only spending the night there, we wanted to ensure that we tried as many places in the little time we have been given. The first stop on the list was RM Seafood, owned by renowned chef Rick Moonen. He appeared on Top Chef Masters and served as the guest judge in the Restaurant Wars episode in Season 6. He is an extremely talented chef who not only specializes in seafood, but stresses the sustainability of the things that we eat.

We decided to share an appetizer and the main entrée (to make room for other foods to be enjoyed later throughout the day). We ended up ordering the Jumbo Lump Crab Cake, Rhode Island Style Calamari, Tasmanian Ocean Trout and an order of Yellowtail Nigiri.

The crab cake in and out of itself was excellent; it was the jicama slaw that I wasn’t too impressed with. There was just a weird aftertaste to me, and I’m assuming that it was the dressing that made it taste like so. But the crab was moist, delectable, and the chipotle aioli was the perfect complement to the crab cake. It certainly wasn’t the best crab cake I’ve ever had, but it was delicious nonetheless.

The calamari, on the other hand, blew me away. I think I must have eaten ¾ of the dish. It was served with pickled cherry peppers and garlic atop some homemade marinara sauce, which did double duty as both garnish and dipping sauce. The light batter was very crispy, the calamari was very tender and fresh, no “fishy” taste at all. Combined with the sauce and the peppers, it was a great flavor combination. I would go back just for the squid.

The yellowtail nigiri came out next. It was a beautiful presentation, and I regret not taking pictures of it prior to my husband devouring the dish. I have never liked sushi; but this time, I decided to try a very small piece. I took a piece of fish and a piece of ginger, dipped it the soy sauce and wasabi combination, and tried it. Surprisingly, I did not gag like I thought I would, because I didn’t taste the fishiness of the fish at all. Instead, it was buttery, both in texture and in flavor, with just a hint of the natural flavor of the fish coming through. It was actually good. Now, I wouldn’t say that I’ve changed my mind about sushi; but I’ve made a baby step in a different direction.

Finally, the main entrée came out. It was a Tasmanian Ocean Trout served with brussel sprouts, bacon and horseradish cream. I was sold on the brussel sprouts, as they are currently my favorite vegetable. The server was kind enough to split the entrée onto two plates for us, so the picture only reflects half the dish. Put together, it is actually a very sizable and filling meal. The fish itself was so moist, flaky, and tender and cooked to perfection – it almost looked like salmon. The horseradish cream was amazing; the horseradish wasn’t strong at all, so it didn’t overpower the fish. The sprouts and the sauce with the bacon was such an awesome combination. I could literally eat that all day.

RM Seafood definitely does not disappoint; be sure to stop by when you’re in town.

La Grande Orange Cafe, Pasadena

2010-02-04T17:30:00.000-08:00

For my birthday, my friends and I went out to La Grande Orange Café, located near the Del Mar Metro Rail Station in Pasadena. It was a restaurant I found from OpenTable.com, and decided to give it a try because of the interesting menu choices available, plus, it was good for kids.

The restaurant was buzzing with activity when we arrived, and we were immediately seated, which was nice. We ordered chips and homemade guacamole and a pitcher of the house sangria, and I’ve got to say that the guacamole was very tasty, not too garlicky. I wish I could give their salsa better reviews, however. It just didn’t remind me of salsa, more like a dark, chili-flavored tomato sauce. The sangria was okay, I didn’t really like the fruit that was in it, probably because most fruits are no longer in season and therefore not very sweet.

Onto the main courses…I ordered the Beef Prime Rib Roast, served with mashed potatoes and fresh green beans. My husband, being Fried Chicken’s biggest fan, ordered the Southern Fried Chicken, served with an apple fritter, mashed potatoes and green beans. Other orders include the Ahi Burger, served with fries. My boys both got macaroni and cheese, served with fries and fresh fruit in an awesome dinner tray.

The prime rib seemed a little dry, in my opinion, but that wasn’t really the low point of the dish. I thought that the green beans were not blanched long enough, but I prefer my veggies to be crisp tender, not crisp. I did, however, like the jus and the horseradish that were served along with the meat. It made for good leftovers the following day or so.

I didn’t really get to taste the fried chicken to determine whether it was moist or dry. However, I did get to try the apple fritter. I thought that even though it seemed like it would be out of place within the dish, it was actually pretty good. The combination of cinnamon and sugar and apple flavors was just right, and tasted “southern” to me.

I also happened to steal a bite of the macaroni and cheese, and that was easily one of the best mac and cheeses that I’ve had. It was cheesy, creamy, and the pasta was al dente. Very yummy.

For dessert, the servers were nice enough to let me try the salty caramel ice cream, made especially for the restaurant. Never having tried it before, I was eagerly anticipating the flavor profiles that the dessert had to offer. I was not disappointed at all. Salty sweet is the best way to describe it.

I would definitely return to LGO, it had good energy and good food. I probably wouldn’t try the prime rib again, but I’ve heard good things about their pot roast.

La Grande Orange Cafe
260 S. Raymond Avenue
Pasadena, California
626.356.4444

Delays, Delays

2010-02-04T11:18:00.000-08:00

For the faithful reader(s) of the blog, I must apologize for not posting as frequently as I should. I'm trying to catch up with the blogs, and there are many restaurants to write about, because obviously, I have been eating since April 2009. So thanks for your patience, more reviews are on the way!

House of Pies, Los Angeles

2010-02-04T11:15:00.000-08:00

House of Pies is located on Vermont Avenue in the Los Feliz area of Los Angeles. It is similar to Coco’s, in that it is a restaurant that is known for its pies as opposed to everything else it serves. My coworkers have always bought pies there for special occasions, and boy, are they good (the pies, I mean). I’ve always had the Strawberry with Cream Cheese pie… while it is an awesome piece of pie, I must admit that it will contribute, if not, cause adult diabetes. I would recommend getting this pie during strawberry season, though, as the strawberries do taste better.

This time, we visited House of Pies in November to buy some pies for a potluck. Since it was Thanksgiving season, we purchased a pumpkin pie, a Dutch apple pie, and the usual Strawberry Cream Cheese pie. The total cost was about $38, which translates to $11-12 per pie, plus tax. Seems kind of pricey, but well worth it.

I must preface my review and say that I have never had pumpkin pie before – I have never even wanted to try pumpkin anything before 2008. But after trying a pumpkin mousse tart recipe, I decided that pumpkin didn’t taste terrible, and again, it was Thanksgiving, after all. So after a bite of the pumpkin pie, I was hooked forever. Out of the three we purchased, it was the best one because it wasn’t too sweet, and it was the perfect complement to a great meal. The crust was perfect, cooked to golden brown. The filling was creamy and flavorful, with a good consistency.

Unfortunately, I can’t say much about the other two pies, primarily because I forgot. I was way too focused on the pumpkin pie. The only thing I do remember about the other pies was the fact that they were yummy as well, just not as good as the pumpkin!

House of Pies
1869 North Vermont Avenue
Los Angeles, California
323.666.9961‎

Valentine's Day Dinner

2009-04-01T23:37:00.000-07:00

On Valentine's Day this year, I decided to bring the steakhouse home. For dinner, I made a bone-in ribeye steak with marsala cream sauce, served with roasted asparagus and fingerling potatoes. For dessert, I kept it simple with an oatmeal cookie. In my opinion, nothing says love more than a homemade oatmeal cookie fresh out of the oven. In fact, it is one of the things I would want my boys to remember about their childhood - that their mama made the best oatmeal cookies.

But I digress, back to dinner. The steaks were bought from our local grocery store. I seasoned one side with salt and pepper, then laid both steaks to rest in a scorching hot pan, seasoned side down. Then I seasoned the other side. The steaks cooked for about 5-6 minutes on each side, using medium heat, and it came out medium. Perfectly cooked, just the way we like it. Then I loosely covered the meat with some foil to let it rest and keep warm. Done.

The asparagus happened to look good and be on sale, so that was a no-brainer for my vegetable choice. I made a quick marinade of salt, pepper, minced garlic and olive oil, then poured it over the asparagus on a sheet pan. They were roasted at 400° for about 15 minutes. Done.

As for the starchy side dish, I saw a bag of fingerling potatoes at Trader Joe's that required the most work of all: poke a hole in the bag and nuke it for 5 minutes. I say that sarcastically, just in case. What I did after was add some butter and garlic in the pan I cooked the steaks with, sauté for about a minute, then tossed the cooked potatoes in. Done.

Last, I made the sauce by first cooking some crimini and shitake mushrooms in the same pan the steak and potatoes were cooked in, then deglazed with some marsala, let it reduce by half, then added heavy cream and let that reduce in half. Seasoned to taste, done.

The Terrace Restaurant at the Langham, Pasadena

2009-02-15T23:14:00.000-08:00

To celebrate Valentines Day, my husband and I went to The Terrace for dinner. We figured that we liked our Dining Room experience last year, so there should also be good food there for less buck. Plus, Open Table offered us a bonus of 1,000 points to dine there, so it was a pretty good incentive.

Before our appetizers came, we were served with a bread basket, which featured the regular sourdough bread, along with a parmesan/asiago cheese cracker bread. It also came with butter and a sundried tomato tapenade. The tapenade was excellent - I would have finished it, but our dishes came.

For starters, my husband ordered the Seared Sea Scallops, which were two delectable scallops served atop sauteed wild mushrooms, which were on top a truffle celery root puree and veal jus. I only had a small bite, which in my opinion was excellent, but I am a sucker for perfectly cooked scallops. It was also combined with one of my favorite things: mushrooms. I wish I had taken the time to savor the celery root puree and the veal jus, but frankly, I was enjoying my appetizer much more. Judging by the way my husband practically licked his plate clean, I would say that it was a great way to start the meal.

I ordered the Slow Braised Short Rib, which was served with a Castroville artichoke and a micro green salad. Let me preface the negative comments by saying I've never had a microgreen salad or a fresh artichoke. In my opinion, the salad would have been great if it hadn't been over salted (which will be a recurring thing); the leaves were tender and had a very "verdant" taste, for lack of better descriptors. But the salt overpowered that verdant taste, and killed it for me. The artichoke was served with roasted winter vegetables, some carrot and parsnips. It was uneventful for me, because I don't know how a fresh artichoke is supposed to taste, nor do I know if it's cooked perfectly or not. Besides, I was eagerly looking forward to polishing off the star of the dish - the short rib. Words cannot describe how good that short rib was. So I won't.

For my entree, I chose the bone-in rib eye, which was served with spring vegetables and bearnaise sauce. The steak was cooked perfectly, slightly pink and was very juicy and flavorful. My only complaint is that it was slightly on the salty side. The vegetables comprised of zuchinni and red peppers, tossed with dried rosemary and maybe some thyme, very boring. It also came with some red potatoes with caramelized onions, also very boring in terms of flavor profile. The bearnaise sauce was good, not too much champagne vinegar, although I thought that it was a little on the thick side.

My husband ordered the John Dory, pan roasted and served on top of ratatouille and beurre blanc. Quite frankly, I was so enamored with the short rib, I didn't pay much attention to the fish. But I thought the ratatouille tasted like tomatoes, and the fish tasted fresh.

For sides, we chose the creamed spinach (because I love creamed spinach) and ham and black truffle macaroni and cheese (because we have never had black truffles before). First the spinach: it was nasty. It was oversalted to the extreme, as if someone forgot that it has already been seasoned, and proceeded to season it again. If the salt wasn't bad enough, the overpowering scent and taste of the nutmeg will get to you. It was an overwhelmingly disappointing side dish. Now the mac and cheese: it wasn't that much better. It tasted like processed cheese, although I'm pretty sure it was most likely a low-grade sharp cheddar. The sauce wasn't really velvety smooth like it should be on a mac and cheese; it was clumpy and it seemed like the dish was left sitting under a heat lamp for a while (which would make sense, considering we got these dishes very late into our entrees). As for the truffles, it was only so-so. Seeing as I don't have a basis for comparison, I really can't say whether it was good or bad.

For dessert, I had planned on ordering something off the menu that one of the waiters highly recommended when, lo and behold, our server brought us a complimentary dessert of Dominican organic chocolate souffle accompanied with a sauce. It was a very yummy souffle, although it didn't make me forget what I originally wanted: coconut risotto, caramelized pineapple, coconut sorbet with a guava coulis.

It was an overall pleasant dining experience, more so for my husband than me, however. He got a second glass of whiskey on the house. For me, it seemed like I reached the pinnacle with that braised short rib, and everything went downhill from there. Dessert seemed to bring it back up, although I still think that the coconut pineapple dessert would have brought it up higher.

Dolcissimo Bakeshop, Chino Hills

2009-01-08T00:00:00.001-08:00

Dolcissimo, which means "the sweetest" in Italian, recently opened in The Shoppes at Chino Hills as part of the recent cupcake craze. I hadn't planned on stopping by, but the storefront was very inviting; it had a cute and fun vibe to it. Okay, maybe the cupcakes beckoned me to enter as well. So, with anticipation I walked into the store and proceeded to get the Dolcissimo experience.

Modeled after cupcake giant Sprinkles, it offers many different daily cupcake variations such as Strawberry Shortcake, Red Velvet, Apple Pie, etc. However, unlike Sprinkles, Dolcissimo also offers other sweet treats such as baby cheesecakes, cannolis, and individual-portioned pies. Being an unofficial Red Velvet afficionado, I had to have a red velvet cupcake. I also ordered the Cloud 9 (a Madagascar Bourbon vanilla cupcake with blue buttercream frosting), a Snowball (chocolate cupcake with white frosting and shredded coconut) and the Cookies n' Cream cupcake.

I couldn't wait until dessert to try these cupcakes, after all, they were $3.25 each! So first the Cloud 9. I was slightly disappointed because the frosting was too sweet for my taste and the cupcake itself had a flour-like aftertaste, as if the flour was not cooked out. Plus, it was a little on the dry side. But I pressed on, trying the Red Velvet next. I was much happier because the cream cheese frosting, although generous, was not overpowering, and the cake was moist. In other words, it was yummy. Exactly what a red velvet cupcake should be. Although honestly, it still doesn't compare to Auntie Em's Red Velvet.

Unfortunately, I was way too full from dinner (I blame Jack in the Box) to try the other two flavors. If I had to form my conclusions now, I would say that Dolcissimo is definitely worth a second (or third) visit. I would suggest going on different days though, just to give the other cupcake flavors a chance. Just don't get the Cloud 9.

Dolcissimo Bakeshop
13855 City Center Drive, #3010
Chino Hills, California 91709
(909) 591-3646
http://www.dolcissimobakeshop.com/

Restaurant AOI

2008-10-28T09:57:00.000-07:00

AOI Restaurant is a small Japanese restaurant located in Little Tokyo near Downtown Los Angeles. It serves the traditional Japanese fare, like teriyaki, sukiyaki, tempura, sushi, ramen, etc. It's primarily well-known among people who work in the area who take advantage of their lunch specials.

Speaking of which, the most popular lunch specials is the "B Lunch." The B Lunch features teriyaki chicken, shrimp and vegetable tempura, sunomuno, rice, salad and miso soup. In my opinion, AOI has the best tempura downtown. The batter is light and crisp, and the vegetables are not overcooked. The teriyaki is also very tasty as well. The teriyaki chicken is good, some of the time. Sometimes, it tends to be overcooked and dry; other times you taste the charcoal that comes from burning the edges. There have been a few times when I've actually noticed that the chicken was cooked nicely. The teriyaki sauce is good, not too sweet nor salty. The miso soup is great; they don't add seaweed in it (I don't like seaweed), but they do add some nice pieces of tofu - yummy. The salad is comprised of iceberg lettuce, cabbage and shredded carrots served with their house dressing, which is never enough.

Also available is something called the No. 2 Plate, which includes teriyaki steak, shrimp and veggie tempura, rice, salad and miso soup. It is a generous portion of steak which is cooked well. There are also more tempura pieces to enjoy.

On one of our visits, we ordered the gyoza as an appetizer. We were served with six pieces of pan-fried dumplings. They also included a bottle of sesame oil, which we mixed with soy sauce. The gyoza were delectable, nice combination of ground pork with vegetables.

Overall, Restaurant AOI is a great place for a tempura/teriyaki lunch combo at a relatively reasonable price. Lunch specials start at $8.95.

Fried Food, LA County Fair 2008

2008-09-16T12:31:00.000-07:00

Each year we try to make it to the annual fried food smorgasbord that is the LA County Fair. Now, everyone knows that the food makes the fair, at least it does, in my opinion. Sadly, however, I am noticing that the older I get, the less room I have for all these delectable treats that is sure to send you to the nearest hospital for a triple bypass or something. It is probably best to proceed with caution, for both you and your wallet.

So, on to my favorite foods... at the top of the list, is of course, the roasted corn by the Chuck Wagon next to Fairview Farms. There is nothing like this BBQ corn. Nothing. You have the option of having melted butter slathered over the ear of corn, but frankly, how could you not have corn without butter? Then comes the fun and creative part. They have all sorts of condiments you can put on the corn, such as garlic salt, cajun seasoning, lemon juice, pepper, hot sauce, mayonnaise, etc. To quote Rachael Ray, "Yum-O!"

The next things we usually get are the selections at Chicken Charlie's, located across from the bandstand. Like a fair worker said, "they'll fry anything." (That's true, by the way). This year, they had delicacies such as deep fried frog legs, avocadoes, artichokes, zucchini, White Castle cheeseburger, Twinkies and Pop Tarts (yes, Pop Tarts). The deep fried cheeseburger intrigued me, so after a few minutes of indecision, I caved and got it. The first bite was awesome, but the closer I got to the end, the more batter I tasted, and not the actual burger. It was served with some fries, and it was overall so-so.

By this time, we really weren't feeling the fried food love (a sign that we are not as young as we used to be), so we just settled on sharing some deep fried apple fries. Yep, apple fries. It was actually not a bad dish. It's Granny Smith apples cut up like fries, flash fried to seal in the apple juices, then rolled in cinnamon sugar and served with whipped cream. It tasted just like apple pie. Be careful, though - it's really hot! I wish I had taken a picture.

The final dish we were able to tolerate (barely) was the deep fried mushrooms from a booth with a crocodile on the picture. They are sizable white mushrooms (like the ones used to make stuffed mushrooms), deep fried in a batter with a little bit of cayenne pepper for an extra spicy kick. It's served with ranch dressing for an additional charge. This used to be my favorite dish at the fair because I love mushrooms. I'm not sure what it was, maybe it was a combination of high prices and the fact that we were through eating, but it wasn't as good as it used to be.

I was told that there were some people that were there at the fair from the time it opened to the time it closed. Professional fair goers, I guess they're called. To which I say, bleh. The food is really the only reason to visit the fair. But a word to the wise: if you plan on sampling all the fair has to offer, it is best to pace yourself, for the sake of your belly and your wallet.