Coffee

One of the simple pleasures in life is having a good conversation with someone you care about.

I did this last Friday at Urth Caffe on Melrose while sipping on this lovely vanilla latte. Simple things, little details, warm evenings dining al fresco.

Enchanted.

Hot Chocolate

I need one of these right about now. This is what happens after an open bar event and getting 5 hours of sleep. The hot chocolate from Spot Coffee was the perfect end to a drunken night.

Ground Beef

Does an epicurean cutie ever cook? Well, of course!

Last night, I made this very simple yet tasty ground beef dish.

All I did was sautee the beef in my pink pan till it browned, added lots of chopped garlic, salt, pepper, and some soy sauce to finish it off! The flavors all mixed together harmoniously. It was simply delicious.

No recipe, just me cooking off instinct.

Hawaii!

I just booked my flights to Hawaii! Soooo excited! This is gonna be an interesting trip since it's my first solo trip. What does this mean? Empowerment, self discovery, and of course, lots and lots of food pix for your viewing pleasure! I'm stoked to try all the awesome food I've heard about, from garlic shrimp trucks to authentic Hawaiian cuisine.

Oahu- see you in 12 days!

Din Tai Fung Dumpling House

After a weekend of straight debauchery, I woke up on Sunday with a hankering for some juicy ass XLB.

So, I text my friend who has never been there and we made the trek 30 miles east. It was a fast drive, groovin to Gabriel and Dresden always helps. We arrive 35 min later and scored a sweet parking spot right in front of DTF. OMG... Madness.

There were like 25 people outside waiting! I walk in, get a number and a menu and proceed to select some food. After 20 min or so, our number is called and we sit down anxiously awaiting for juicy goodness. Sauteed spinach with garlic arrives within 5 min flat.. MMMMMM... best freakin spinach I've ever had. Pork Chop fried rice was next. This was a small portion, but for 2 people I guess it will suffice. Pretty tasty and I like that the rice wasn't covered in soy sauce. Hence, it was still white. Pork chop was good too.

Juicy pork dumplings came next. OMG... THIS WAS THE SHIETTTT! Tiny, petite one bite wonders. My craving had been satisfied. Shrimp and pork dumplings were okay. Just very standard. This was my 3rd time at this location and I've already made my friend a believer. =)Total bill before tax and tip, $33.

Bar Hayama

1803 Sawtelle Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90025
(310) 235-2000

My bf, kid and I came here on 7/24/08 for dinner and I was quite impressed. It's really 4.5 stars, but since the service was so good, I'll give them a glowing review.We sat outside right in front of the fire pit. The weather was perfect and the fire really gave that special ambience. We ordered 8 different kozara plates and he had an order of salmon sushi. His review on the sushi "amazing, tastes like butter, just melts in your mouth". Damn! I should have tried a bite!

On to the food:

MASHED POTATOES CIGAR fried mashed potatoes and seaweed spring roll skin with wasabi soy sauce- This was just okay. I didnt really care for the mashed potato, but ordered it cuz the server HIGHLY recommended it.

AGE DASHI TOFU fried tofu with tempura sauce- OMG. I loved this dish! The sauce that came with it was soooooo good, and perfect over steamed white rice. My kid liked it alot too. Perfect texture and flavor. BF did not like it.

FRIED MILLET & VEGETABLES DUMPLING (MACROBIOTIC) with ponzu sauce - YUM!! This was really good, no idea what Millet is but the flavor was perfect, not too sure about the fried part, but still yum!

SCALLOP DYNAMITE shiitake oyster and french mushrooms with mayonnaise sauce o'gratin- I didn't care for this dish at all. The sauce was gross and too creamy for me. BF ate it the whole thing cuz he loved it.

SHRIMP CIGAR fried shrimp spring roll skin with spicy apricot sauce- YUM!! Loved this one. The crispy roll and shrimp inside was perfectly done. Loved the sauce too.

CRISPY RICE AND SPICY TUNA WITH BALSAMIC VINEGAR SAUCE spicy tuna on fried sushi rice- Another winner! How can you say no to crispy rice with spicy tuna?

BLUE FIN TUNA TARTAR spicy tuna with crispy wonton skins- OMFG.. This dish was the best IMO. We all loved it. Presentation was beautiful as well. My kid loved it too. What kid loves tuna tartar?

JUMBO SHRIMP TEMPURA - Mmmm... eh. I ordered this for my kid and she didnt really like it. She said it was too chewy.. I agree. Not as good as regular shrimp tempura. Maybe cuz the shrimp were more like prawns. Hefty portion, 8 pieces. Overall, I had a great experience. Good company, food, service and the Hana Lychee Sake was freakin AMAZING. I think this alcoholic has found a new fave drink! It was sweet, but it packed a good punch! =)Dinner was$102 before tip. And so worth it.

Finally my own food blog

Well, I finally did it! I made my own food blog..

This has been a long time coming and I'm very excited to start this new chapter in my journey.

Please be patient as I get adjusted to this blog. And enjoy! =)