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Latest Adventures

BLT Steak

Comments (0) | Saturday, April 14, 2012


For our anniversary last year, we both wanted to indulge in our appreciation for cows. Ok, not so much cows, but steak. Having been to Ruth's Chris, Lawry's and the like, we decided to try BLT Steak out in West Hollywood. It's located in the Le Dome space on the ever-so-busy Sunset Boulevard, so allow yourself plenty of time to get there before your reservation time. We got there super early, so we took advantage of their happy hour specials.

 SoCal Sangria: I don't know what's in this, but I will say two things about it: one, it has club soda or sparkling water in it, because it was fizzy. Two, it's the best sangria I've ever had.

 Cast Iron Black Mussels: Black mussels with chorizo, roasted tomato and served with bruschetta. I was not a fan of mussels...until I tried these. Now, I consider myself a mussel snob of sorts.

 Short Rib Grilled Cheese: another item on the happy hour menu, this delectable treat was cheesy, crunchy and beefy all in one bite.

So now we 're shown to our seats, and before we even have time to digest the mussels and the grilled cheese sammy, we have to unbuckle our belts to make room for the rest of the feast:

 Chicken pate served with bread. I am not into liver, so I only tasted it enough to report that it tastes like, well, liver.

 BLT Popovers: Served hot and fresh. The popovers alone are worth the trip. Crunchy on the outside, flaky and buttery on the inside. They also give out the recipe, though I doubt that I can replicate that piece of perfection.

 Rib Eye (Bone in): Cooked to medium perfection, served with roasted bone marrow and roasted garlic. Even in the midst of a food coma, I can tell that the meat was cooked perfectly, although just slightly underseasoned. The bone marrow was so good, words can't describe it.

 Hangar steak: cooked medium, and it was almost just as good as my ribeye.

 Parmesan Gnocchi: served with tomato sauce and topped with a generous portion of Parmesan cheese. Pillowy potato dough swimming in a savory tomato pool.

 Creamed Spinach: served with caramelized minced garlic. No steakhouse experience is complete without these leafy greens. Cooking it in cream just kicks it up a notch...or two.

 Our sweet finish to an epic meal.


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Avocado House, Chino

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The Avocado House is can be considered a hidden gem in the city of Chino. Although it is located on one of the city's busiest streets, it is easy to pass right by it unnoticed. They are also not open for dinner; just breakfast and lunch.

However, the first time I went there was for dinner...Thanksgiving dinner, that is. It was outstanding; the only disappointment was the fact that I forgot my camera. Bad food blogger.

Boogs and I came here for lunch on a whim, and this time, I remembered to snap some photos of the food.

 The Craving: beef tri-tip with cream cheese, grilled onions and peppers, and monterey jack cheese on sourdough bread, and served with a side of fresh fruit. This was Boogs's selection; it was delish. Who knew that cream cheese and beef could go together so well?

 Thanksgiving: sliced turkey, cream cheese, lettuce and mayonnaise on cranberry walnut bread. Served with a side of fresh fruit, a ginger snap cookie and lemon bar. This sandwich is ah-mazing! It really does taste like Thanksgiving on a sandwich.

Bread Pudding: Served warm and topped with whipped cream. We both liked it, because there weren't any raisins, but it kind of felt anticlimactic.

Avocado House - 11618 Central Avenue, Chino
909.627.9733


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Syrup Desserts, Downtown LA

Comments (0) | Sunday, January 8, 2012

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


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Urth Caffe, Downtown LA

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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


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Newport Tan Cang Seafood Restaurant, San Gabriel

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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


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Lucques, West Hollywood

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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


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Flying Pig Cafe, Little Tokyo

Comments (0) | Monday, January 2, 2012

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


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