Spoonful’s Mom’s Vietnamese Spring Rolls has been reblogged and added to “Flour in My Hair’s” blog! It’s a great layout and archive of recipes; it seems like she compiles all types of recipes from other blogs on tumblr.
Here’s the link: Flour in My Hair
Happy eating,
es
I’d have to say that my reaction to NYC has altered slightly. When I lived in LA, I’d always be in awe of NYC to some level because of its 180 difference to LA, a city that is spread out like butter on an entire baguette. After living in Chicago for nearly two years, my recent trip to ‘the city’ felt like an extension of Chicago just busier, louder, dirtier, and hipper. A friend put it well: NYC is basically Chicago on steroids. This had me enjoy my time in NYC all the more accompanied by long time friends and amazing food.
Here are some places that I was able to try:
Rai Rai Ken
214 e. 10th St.
New York, NY 10003
Size always gives the first impression of a place and is usually referred back to in comparison to the actual size, quality, experience(s) taken from the venue. With Rai Rai Ken, its small interior reminded me of one of my favorite ramen joints back home in Los Angeles and the display exemplified what a noodle bar should really be: quaint, rustic, fast with a faded “yes, we do know CPR” sticker in the back corner of the restaurant. None of the gaudy appearances that are made just for the ‘wow factor’ to make up for bad food and/or bad service. We were promptly greeted, seated, and served mainly because we were having a late dinner on a Thursday night and missed the crowd. Although RaiRaiKen reminded me of a piece of home, it didn’t taste as good. I think this is because I had their Shoyu Ramen which is a soy sauce based noodle soup topped with bamboo shoot, boiled egg, roast pork, spinach, fish cake, dry seaweed, and scallion. Now, I can’t say the dish lacked in flavor due to the restaurant or just my preference for miso based soups vs soy based soups. I thought I’d give the soy based soup one more run for my money, but it still comes short to miso based soups. With all that said, though, I would still definitely come back to this place where many NYU-ians gravitate towards for its student friendly price and eating alone or eating with friends is a constant trend. There is much to be had here at little Rai Rai Ken.
Service: 4/5
Food: 3/5
Price: 3/5
Ambiance: 3/5
Overall: 3/5
Al di la
248 5th Ave.
Brooklyn, NY 11215
Maggie Gyllenhaal sightings at Al di la! But celebrities are not NYC’s main obsession like they are in LA; my theory is that it is due to the lack of walking and its car culture that has us, Angelinos, star struck easily myself included. The potentiality, however, of a star sighting is not what initially drew my friend to recommend al di la without a second thought; being seated for dinner is like finding a needle in a haystack which had us aim for a later lunch. The menu here also changes with the seasons and based on local farmers like most good places do. So, it’s hard to say what is the best dish at the restaurant specifically. We had rabbit, gold potatoes, and kale salad with the perfect touch of some type of a vinaigrette. Everything I had melted in my mouth down to the very last bite. The rabbit had been cooked perfectly and in the middle was a smaller tray of spiced garlic sauce. Oh. My. Gosh. Delicious. With the salad, kale is not a common leaflet that I eat regularly, maybe I never even had it before. I can’t recall, but I’m won over by the crisp quality along with the perfect amount of anchovies and vinaigrette with the salad blending well with the rabbit, potatoes, and our conversation. The place itself had a theatrical influence with drapes in its entryway and patterned wallpapers of gold/maroon colors. The waitresses also had a very avant-garde aesthetic with features and accessories. I would very much recommend Al di la to any local and visitor with thicker wallets because of its freshness displaying local farmers’ quality along with the romance Brooklyn continues with its residents.
Service:4/5
Food: 4/5
Price: 3/5
Ambiance: 3/5
Overall: 3/5
NYC Parts 2 & 3 to come …
Here are some other places that I went to while in ‘the city:’
The Chocolate Room
86 5th Ave
Brooklyn, NY 11217
I’ll admit it right now: I am not a fan of chocolate. I grew up eating more caramel than chocolate yet preferred jawbreakers and sour heads to most things sweet. Only recently did I start eating chocolate on occasion and yes, sometimes I do enjoy it. For the most part, however, I try to find substitutes or avoid it as often as I can. With that in mind, walking into a place called The Chocolate Room seems almost irrelevant to my palate. But it was a hot and muggy day having me agree easily on any dessert place that mid afternoon.
When we walked in, there was a choice of either taking a bag of goodies for the road or enjoying the indoors with orders from their menu. You can guess which one we picked. We sat in the middle of the cute dessert café as a shy waitress who seemed to be new to the job greeted us. I ordered their brownie sundae, which they called ‘the essence of homemade.’ It’s ‘one of their brownies warmed to order, topped with choice of ice cream, hot fudge, whipped cream, and a fresh cherry;’ my choice of ice cream was vanilla bean, my favorite. Although I’m not a chocoholic, this did sound hard to resist along with the fact that my friend kept pointing it out to me while I was looking at my menu. ;) While we waited for our orders, our shy but very polite waitress offered samples of their chocolate sorbet. Not a common occurrence. The sorbet was formed into a smaller ball served on a chilled silver spoon. With such a cute presentation, how could one resist! Keeping in mind that I don’t normally eat much chocolate, I actually enjoyed the sorbet. Its texture smooth with a very soft and light taste; it was not too dense or too sweet which is just the way I like it. As soon as we were done with the sample, our dishes came.
And - Oh My Goodness, my dessert looked like another gorgeous meal and yes, there really was a fresh cherry on the very top. And I can’t deny it, the sundae was heavenly. Their description of “the essence of homemade” definitely followed through with every bite. The brownie’s warmth and softness coupled with the cold French vanilla ice cream all melted in my mouth having me finish the entire sundae on my own. The whipped cream was a bit much but again, I’m partial when it comes to most sweet things. That was only a small negative side, if that even, to this sundae.
This dessert was the perfect amount of sweetness for that hot muggy day, unusual for this non-chocolate eater.
Service: 3/5
Food: 4/5
Price: 3/5
Ambiance: 3/5
Overall: 3.5/5
Stone Park Café
324 5th Ave.
Brooklyn, NY 11215
When you’re on vacation, do you sometimes feel like you need a break from that vacation? Some call it “a vacation from your vacation.” I guess that’s said more matter of factly and maybe I felt that way because I had only migrated from one metropolitan city to another. This is also a reason why I choose not to go to token tourist sites whenever I travel mainly to avoid large crowds but to also avoid the possibility of being poked in the eye by random elbows that are stretched out due to their dramatic way of taking photographs. Anyway, I think I’m getting off topic here.
Needless to say, I was able to catch my breath my third day in NYC. My friend had to go to an event and I couldn’t tag along because I had planned on attending a gallery talk in Chelsea that early afternoon. So, I strolled around her neighborhood of Park Slope and found myself at Stone Park Café with that day’s New York Times in hand. I arrived soon after doors opened. So, I was one of the few sitting in their patio. My choice since the weather had its perfect amount of sunshine. I ordered coffee with their eggs benedict, which consisted of housemade English muffins, spinach, Canadian bacon, and hollandaise sauce. At Stone Park Café, they charge extra if you want both spinach and Canadian bacon, a norm to most other brunch places. This explains why my waiter said “living on the edge today, ey?” after he wrote down my order. Cheesy, I know. All I did was give a half smile while still wearing my halfway tinted sunglasses.
The ambiance of the place was very homey matching its neighborhood. Park Slope, at least from what I saw, reminded me of a busier Pasadena or for the Chicagoans, a combination of Andersonville and Evanston. The area made it easy to relax while waiting for the food to arrive. Luckily, the wait wasn’t very long between coffee and my eggs benedict. The presentation of the benedict was a little underwhelming, though. The eggs looked very small in comparison to the muffins, but I liked the touch of chives on top of the hollandaise sauce. The eggs were cooked over medium meaning it wasn’t too runny or too much of a solid yolk. I’m not sure if I could taste the homemade/housemade quality of the muffins; they were good but nothing that stood out. The benedicts did come with their house potatoes, all very good. The server checked in twice and my water was topped to the rim about three times. (Yes, I drink like a camel.) The tables were not too close to one another since that is a common theme in NYC.
Although the food’s presentation didn’t add much to the meal, the quality of the brunch definitely had me forget it towards the end. It was the best way to take a small break from feeling like a foreigner. Afterwards, I headed over to Chelsea which took longer than anticipated because of a weekend change in its transit system. And all I could think of during the commute was “Why were the eggs so much smaller than the muffins?”
Service: 3/5
Food: 3/5
Price: 3/5
Ambiance: 3/5
Overall: 3/5
Ah, NYC ….
Part 3 next!
NYC Part 3 is finally here!
Lombardi’s
32 Spring St.
Ny, Ny 10012
If I say ‘pizza pizza,’ a swarm of school children will gather around me with empty paper plates pulling at my sleeves screaming my name over and over again. In the crowd of grease hungry children, there will be that one kid in the back corner with short messy hair munching on sour patch kids thinking “pizza is so gross.” I was that kid, the weird one who didn’t like pizza and chocolate. (You can all point your fingers at me, now.) Despite all of this, though, I still had to try Lombardi’s pizza since it is an NYC go-to.
So, my friend, Ileen, and I headed over there after we laughed and cried (at least I did) while watching ‘Away We Go,’ a movie I’ve seen twice in theatres and will probably see once more. As we overanalyzed the painfully yet gracefully honest film, we waited by the doors of Lombardi’s in East Village. It was a late Saturday night and what seemed like all suburban families were out to try this NYC go-to pizza. Inside the exposed brick and partially covered walls of 1920s, 1940s posters added a small town diner feel to this largely sought out NYC pizza place in a busier part of the city. With checkered table cloths and itty bitty tables, the noise level of the crowd came in short waves of either laughter you’d hear from an audience attending a live taping or low groans due to misunderstandings on how the food would be shared.
Once we were seated, we decided to share a small pizza with our own glasses of wine. I’ve been on a wine kick the past few weeks meaning wherever I go, I tend to look for wine bars even though my usual drink of choice has been gin and tonic. I ordered the pinot grigio and we chose citterio pancetta, sautéed garlic spinach and wild fresh mushrooms as our toppings. This thin crust ‘small’ pizza was larger than the dominos in-a-box small size, which was brought to us on an elevated pizza tray. All the toppings complimented each other by having each bite have an assortment of flavors. A common complaint of mine on pizza is its bland flavors and over greasy experience; however, Lombardi’s pizza seemed to cut that portion out by having you choose whatever toppings desired from its list along with its thinner airy crust.
If I could replace pepperoni with pancetta, I’d probably generally enjoy pizza a lot more. Spinach and mushroom always partner well and I could eat mushrooms anytime of any day. The garlic flavor did not overpower the other spices mixing well with the rest of the pizza and our white wine. Again, its thin crust also had us avoid the usual messy grease filled pizza experience that I often resent by the end of each slice, something I must re-emphasize. Although the pizza was the smallest size, it filled both of us up quickly while the wine slowly made us sleepy, the tipsy type; we ended up taking a slice home. I ate more than my friend and finished each slice wanting ‘just one more bite’ without feeling bloated or having had used more than ten napkins for one hand. Impressive for a nonpizza eater. I definitely recommend this moderately priced NYC gold star pizza house although I’m sure many have already heard of its history.
Service: 3/5
Food: 4/5
Ambiance: 3/5
Price: 3/5
Overall: 3/5
Oriental Garden
14 Elizabeth St.
Ny, Ny 10013
How do you review a dimsum restaurant? There are a million factors into a place that offers such a variety and to top that, this was my very first time trying dimsum. I know, I have no idea where I’ve been hiding either. After I tried the endless supply of food, I realized how much I’ve been missing. This is a similar realization I had once I finally got myself a cell phone, because I tried as long as I could to survive without a phone or a pager until my parents forced it upon me once I graduated high school. Now, I can’t live without it though I have been able to live without an iPod still. Of course, this is a given since finding a functional phone booth is extremely difficult these days.
Now, dimsum isn’t as life changing when it comes to daily habits, but having now tried it, my palate and cravings have definitely altered. Dining for dimsum is something you have to experience for yourself in order to understand and fully appreciate. There are various waiters with either trays or carts of delicious dishes of smaller portions. Whenever you feel like something new, you either wait for whomever to pass by or wave an unsuspected waiter to your table. Then you pick and choose. When you finish, the waiter will then stamp accordingly on your table’s tab to keep track of your orders. This is all said very quaintly, but you have to make your decisions within possibly 30 - 60 second periods. If that.
The ‘Oriental Garden’ is in the heart of NYC’s Chinatown. At 1pm on a Sunday morning, the wait was about 15 minutes and we got a table right in the middle of the crowded restaurant. Best position to navigate the trays towards your direction. The interior of this place definitely resembled upper class Chinese décor vaguely seen in ‘80s films set in San Francisco such as ‘Year of the Dragon,’ a film starring a young Mickey Rourke. Gilding, gold dragons, red silk wall fills, and dark wood furnishings. In the midst of making quick decisions between various rice, shrimp, and occasional tofu dishes, we were able to have about 7-9 dishes and a coconut flavored dessert. All these dishes make my mouth water just thinking about them. My favorite was a large flat rice noodle (pictured on our left) with medium sized shrimps throughout and soy sauce sprinkled over it. Of course, we dunked all our pieces in heavy hot sauce, a must with almost everything I eat. Although we had predominately ordered shrimp dishes, the Oriental Garden had a large selection of rice, tofu, dumplings, pork, beef, chicken trays prepared in a variety of ways making it hard to resist not trying every dish! All undeniably delicious having you unaware of your stomach’s capacity. The warm tea they served us while we dined cleansed our palates to want more and more. Order more and more.
When it comes to service at Asian restaurants, keep your expectations at a minimum. Service is not why you are going to Asian places; you go for the food and possibly the ambiance. This is a very realistic expectation and embodied in 98% of Asian restaurants that you will go to. With that said, the service at ‘Oriental Garden’ was just that. There were middle aged women who carried themselves with the attitude that they could be doing something better; there were young men who would be anxiety ridden from the hectic environment; then there was the stoic, clean cut owner in his grey pinstriped suit picking up the checks and adding the very American “thank you for coming” to the end of your stay. A full experience. A great initiation to cheap Chinese dining of quality food, the Oriental Garden now has my system craving those rice noodles and especially the coconut dessert during midnight hours. I’ll be looking for dimsum restaurants everywhere I go to make up for lost time.
Service: 2/5
Food: 4/5
Ambiance: 4/5
Price: 3/5
Overall: 4/5
Sea Thai Bistro
114 N. 6th St.
Brooklyn, NY 11211
The opening scene of Garden State was filmed at Sea Thai Restaurant and Bistro where Zac Braff played a waiter at this restaurant, another quarter life crisis movie with an ‘indie’ aesthetic. Possible coincidence since this particular location was in Williamsburg, a part of Brooklyn occupied by hipsters of all types; they have another location in East Village, a different type of hipster suave.
When we walked in, an excess of everything inundated us: color, design, music, people, service. We were seated next to an indoor fountain with an incredibly large statue of a religious figure at the tip along with a skylight overhead. A small collection of coins lived at the bottom of the fountain while two miniature wooden boats would slowly float with exotic flowers atop from one end to the other. Its densely packed crowd on a Sunday evening ranged from well dressed executives to awkward first date couples to us, casually dressed young ladies who had just visited an animal shelter right before dinner.
I ordered the Island Red Curry which was a spicy curry with bamboo shoots and tomatoes priced at $9; it was served separately from the rice which is part of the norm. The rice was formed into a triangle looking smaller than the usual one serving of rice and sat next to an enormous plate of curry. Odd partnering, I thought. When I dipped my spoon half full of rice into the curry, I could taste the sweet, tangy, smoothness of all the spices blending together. Although I love spicy dishes, sometimes spicy dishes can overpower all the other ingredients making your tongue feel like it’s on fire. However, the spice level and the coconut milk balanced one another instead of becoming the dominant flavor in the dish, also without being a bland neutral dish. The small plate of rice, contrary to my initial impression, was just enough with the curry. Overall, the flavor and taste of my meal was impressive.
My only complaint with this restaurant would be its bathrooms, one of the more important factors into a bistro/restaurant. In order to follow the ‘exotic’ and excess of its décor, the restrooms also followed this progressive and exotic design. However, there were only two stalls for each male and female with a sharing wash bin central to these four stand-alone toilet stalls. I waited in line for about 15 – 20 minutes especially problematic since one stall no longer worked. This was the most frustrating part of my experience here and a common assumption I have with restaurants that have an overabundance of different types of décor. Basically trying too hard to look nice and attempting to integrate a handful of things rather than having a main focal point. The food itself can talk for the restaurants quality, but some things should be kept at a minimal especially if thai food & liquor reside in the same place.
Much like the movie Garden State that tried too hard to look “too indie”, the restaurant tried too hard to look “too exotic.” Both overlooking certain basic needs of its demographic. Next time, cut back on the fluff and just centralize yourself around one idea: the good food.
Service: 4/5
Food: 4/5
Ambiance: 2/5
Price: 3/5
Overall: 3/5
Ah, NYC. Thanks for the fun.
Next review will be on Chicago’s brunch spot: Tweet!
Til next time!
happy eating,
Esther
5020 N. Sheridan Rd.
Chicago, IL 60640
Open M-Sun : 9am - 3pm
Closed Tuesdays
I’ve been told that East of the train tracks off of the Argyle red line stop tends to be slightly uneasy grounds with off key personalities, but that’s the direction I was walking towards once I got off the tracks towards the North side brunch spot: Tweet. My feet progressively picked up its pace as I passed each store due to paranoia partly made up in my mind through rumors. Amidst the quiet deadness of this street, I saw a neon sign of red, blue, and yellow lightly glowing ‘tweet’ with a small birdie beneath it. Its porch extended about five feet from the front steps where I had to walk through in order to go inside.
As soon as we walked in, the host/waiter/busboy/server who looked like an oversized boy from Middle America wearing a faded Hawaiian shirt said to us “sit wherever you’d like ladies.” The place was busier than one would assume; both lower level and a slightly upper level were mostly occupied during this ‘most likely to have thunder storms’ morning. Various pictures and posters filled its walls giving a very kitschy cluttered taste to the small capacity of this brunch spot. I ordered tweet’s version of the country benedict: eggs benedict with gravy added to its flavor. Near our utensils was every possible type of hot sauce I could imagine = my heaven. It was definitely an incredible sight to see and completely bizarre, but hey, no complaints here.
Once my plate full of food from side to side arrived, the smell of the gravy, alone, made my mouth water. Once bitten into, the hash browns had a crispy surface with a soft center of well done potatoes that weren’t over seasoned. I, of course, added some hot sauce over the eggs and the hash browns without drowning the flavor of my dish. Midway through our meal the thunderstorm ran into the city having our lights flicker on and off. “There’s hail!” one man said with big round eyes. From our view through the windows, I felt like we were inside of a vehicle driving through an extreme carwash. I looked at my friend and said, “Well, I guess we’ll be here for a while” and continued with my meal. I cannot emphasize how wonderful the eggs benedict were. I’ve had variations of this dish from different brunch, diner spots and nothing has been quite like this one. The eggs were not too runny or too hard and sank in well with the gravy sauce along with the ham and English muffins. The gravy had bits of mushroom and even smaller pieces of meat in it creating a very creamy texture yet bits of flavor that I tasted at different times. I never grew bored of this dish even through an extreme thunderstorm where lightening ripped through our eardrums. I ate every last bit even used the last of the hash brown to clean off the gravy.
After paying for our evenly priced meal, we parted ways and braved the storm while holding onto our tiny umbrellas. By the time I reached the train, I looked like I had just walked through a four-foot deep kiddy pool completely unaware of the initial paranoia I had of the area. No pity for me though because I had just eaten the most amazing brunch. For such an unlikely and misrepresented area, a wonderfully quaint and lovely brunch place nests here, East of the Argyle red line stop.
Service: 3/5
Food: 4/5
Ambiance: 4/5
Price: 4/5
Overall: 4/5
1477 W. Balmoral Ave
Chicago, IL 60640
Open Wed-Th : 5pm-9pm
Open Fri-Sat 5pm-10pm
Before my youngest sister, 13 yrs old, came for her week stay in Chicago, she had initially said that she wanted to try Chicago pizza, a given for most visitors to this busy Midwestern city. I originally thought my sister, Sarah, wanted to try Chicago’s famous deep-dish pizza from the classic Gino’s or the popular Giordono’s. But once she arrived, she quickly corrected me. Sarah wanted to try ‘Great Lake’ pizza. In Google search, it says this is a husband and wife pizza place that has become known as the best pizza in the country, at least according to GQ.
Since my sister was in town and is the food guru of the family, my boyfriend and I definitely agreed to try the place out with her. We arrived around 5pm that day even though the pizza house opens at 5:30 and were 4th in a line that already trailed behind us. An eyebrow raising first impression. When we walked in, the interior automatically felt like the inside of an upper-class Midwestern grandmother’s patio or the entryway into her conservatory: quaint, stylish, Midwestern comfort. I felt like I was being welcomed into someone’s home. We ordered pizza #3 of fresh pancetta, crème fraiche (a type of cream), and spring onions along with their mixed green salad with mustard vinaigrette and the frizzy orange aranciata as our drinks. For our orders, we were given the “ace of diamonds” as our table “number,” a different and better method of categorizing their customers.
One of the most important things to know about Great Lake is that this is owned by a husband and wife duo with odd hours: T-Sat from 5-9pm. There is limited space in their oven making it best to get there as early as possible in order to avoid waiting for a long time. If you arrive too late, the wait would have gone from 15-20 minutes to 2hrs. They prioritize those who dine in versus those who ask for carry out. Most think the pizza is worth the wait and go grocery shopping while they wait for the pizza. Others walk away wishing they had come earlier instead of window-shopping two blocks down.
We were part of a communal table made of wood that sat in the middle of the restaurant and were first greeted with the mixed green salad enough for 2.5 adults. Once I bit into the greens, I wished I had the time and ability to grow my own vegetables in order to have the crispness of this salad daily. Great Lake’s menu is also seasonal from local farmers, which explains why their dishes taste so spectacular. The mustard vinaigrette gently tied all the greens together along with the dash of pepper that we could taste throughout the salad more than enough for all three of us.
After about 20 minutes, our pizza arrived with a beautiful pastel palate of peach and variations of light green. At first glance, it would be very easy to assume that the crust was a bit thicker. However, the ingredients were spread out liberally and the crust was actually an airy thin crust adding volume to the dish. Our pancetta had a perfect crunchiness to it. And the spring onions’ fresh quality gave a boost to the potential saltiness and dullness that pancetta sometimes has adding to the overall flavor of this summer pizza. All of these balanced well on the crème fraiche, a type of cream, and especially the airy pizza crust, which contained a lightness that had you wanting more yet sufficient enough for the regular pizza eater. The thin crust still needed to be cut into thoroughly, but once each of us bit into our slices, our eyes grew in amazement. I, a non pizza eater, couldn’t stop saying “wow, this is delicious.” Next to us, the two other couples tried the #1, tomato and fresh mozzarella, and a #2, all mushroom pizza. We shared a piece of the mushroom pizza, which was also delicious but did lean towards the saltier side once we were towards the end of the slice.
Each pizza’s price does vary; ours cost $22 which is a deal for ‘the best pizza in the country.’ We purchased one salad ($9) and one pizza ($22) for three people which filled us up completely definitely making it our money’s worth. Whether GQ or Time or the NY Times says Great Lake is the best in the country, I cannot emphasis enough the grandeur of this little restaurant. Having to wait in line 30 minutes before a pizza restaurant opens testifies to the outrageous taste and quality of this little husband and wife owned pizza treasure hidden in the cove of Andersonville in beautiful wonderful Northern Chicago. Just get here early.
Service: 3/5
Food: 4/5
Ambiance: 3/5
Price: 3/5
Overall: 3.5/5
818 W Fullerton Ave
Chicago, IL 60614
Open : Mon-Sat 11am-10pm
I spent the majority of my youth in Los Angeles where standards for “good” Korean food surpass any status seen as amazing in any other city outside the borders of ‘la la land.’ This proves to be true to whomever you talk to who grew up eating mom’s Korean home cooking and knows the difference between kimchi’s early to late stages of fermentation. All of this placing my expectations of Korean food on a higher brattier stage, but I still give all Korean restaurants a benefit of a doubt. Chicago Korean restaurants have a standard taste enough to satisfy my monthly cravings.
In Chicago’s ‘Red Eye,’ I saw a review of a new Korean joint called “Little Brother’s” which was moderately close by. The article roughly stated that the owner of Little Brother’s started off in NYC as a successful financer who had closet dreams of always owning his own small restaurant. For about two to three years, he left NYC to work in various kitchens of hole in the wall places in Korea until he decided to open his very own in none other than Chicago!
Little Brother’s is discretely hidden right by the red line off of Fullterton and easy to miss, but once inside, the modern décor using yellows and oranges intrigues pedestrians into the quaint and cutely decorated space. The ordering process is a more fast-food method where you order at the desk first and then wait for your number to be called. The simple menu gives you options of one, two, or three main dishes with choices of two sides and of either white or brown rice. The main dishes are chicken, steak, or lightly toasted tofu along with the choice of various sauces. I chose the steak and tofu dishes with their spicy sauce along with sides of potstickers and their cucumber salad. At the very last minute, I decided on their iced green tea starting my current craving (constant craving) of the drink.
As I sipped on my refreshing iced green tea (unsweetened, the way to go), our orders were ready within ten to fifteen minutes. The assortment of food, especially since I chose two main dishes, gave the impression of lunch boxes my mom would make for me when I was in elementary school. Also, growing up eating Korean food where the norm was to have a main dish accompanied by millions of side dishes set my taste buds with a short attention span. This may explain why some of my reviews state how easily bored I can get with my meal since I had to focus on just one dish.
However, this was not an issue at Little Brother’s. The sauce used for both steak and tofu had a sweet and tangy flavor that didn’t leave my tongue on fire. It blended in well especially with the added texture of, I’m assuming, garlic. Each bite of the steak and tofu were also complimented by the spicy sauce and my goodness, the steak, the steak! Cooked thoroughly yet a soft chew to the end, also known as medium rare. The tofu had a firm exterior that was lightly starched yet very smooth once bitten into. Both were excellent and neither ran too salty during the course of the entire meal. The two sides were also sweet and tangy much like usual Korean comfort foods. The potstickers had a sweet honey sauce that came with it and the crispiness of them were perfect, something I’ve only seen my friend, Matt, achieve. The cucumber salad also had a sweet yet vinegar dressing with red onions lightly added in. All mixed in with my iced green tea. Though the portions looked like a small lunch box size, all of it was more than enough for me.
Overall, the dish were magnificent and such a relief that a restaurant with good Korean comfort food with a reasonable price arrived nearby my Northside Chicago residence. This is definitely somewhere I would recommend whenever a friend is craving something sweet and tangy that would never be found boring – they offer kimchi perfectly fermented, too.
Service: 3/5
Food: 5/5
Ambiance: 3/5
Price: 4/5
Overall: 4/5
Umma’s (mom in Korean) cooking changed about five years ago by adding every type of bean with our daily intake of rice. The first week she did this nobody ate the “new” rice except her and occasionally my guilt ridden youngest sister. Later on, we really had no choice but to comply with her choice and give into her authority as head chef of the house. Stews that were once sizzling and zangy with spice became mild. Chips, soda, candy stopped sitting in our pantry replaced with bland oatmeal and the occasional fruit filled granola. I blame my father’s side of the family with high blood pressure and an innate desire to constantly crave spicy and salty meals.
Despite the most recent subdued nature of umma’s cooking, mom knows best when any of us girls have stomach aches or even heart breaks. So, this validates any decision she makes because of her title: MOM. Even with the addition of all these beans and the health crazed band wagon my mother has hopped on, I still crave her Vietnamese spring rolls which mixes in California rolls’ eating rituals. She combines the addictive quality of Vietnamese food and the spicy zangy Korean flavor through her own crafted sauce. All under her new umbrella of health awareness.
I’ll write down the ingredients she uses but I’ll leave the amount to your discretion since it varies with the size of your group. Ingredients are arranged separately like the image above when setting the table. The lower middle portion of the image shows part of the larger rice noodle in which you’ll wrap your ingredients in. This is easy to put together for large groups and eaten like a California roll which means taking the main wrap and placing desired ingredients on top then making it into a personalized wrap/handroll. Dunk it in the sauce and viola, time to eat!
The Rolls
1. one package of rice noodle sheets cut into halves
(If you eat this as soon as you purchase it, it is good as is. If you had refrigerated it then you’ll need to heat it for about 30-40 seconds. No need to soak it in water because it is already soft enough to use.)
2. Shrimp
(You can cook frozen shrimp that’s already been deveined.)
3. Shitake mushrooms
(Cut into smaller pieces)
4. Shredded carrots mixed with mayonnaise
5. Shredded cucumbers
6. Shredded imitation crab meat
(You can purchase these from almost any store in the Asian section.)
7. Brussel sprouts
8. Eggs
(any way you want them – in our case, they are cooked omlet style and then cut into wrap appropriate pieces)
+ sometimes she adds bulgogi. Not always. It’s good with or without
Sauce
+my mother actually wont share the secrets of this amazing sauce; the following are the ingredients that I do know of. Utilize them to concoct your own sauce:
1. apple sauce or put an apple in the blender
2. mustard
3. garlic
4. Vinegar
OR you can use the more typical sauce
(a recipe that does vary with region):
2 tablespoons of lemon or lime juice
1 tablespoon of fish sauce
1 tablespoon of sugar
1/2 tablespoon of white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon of chili pepper
1 teaspoon of garlic
And all you need to do is whisk it all together.
OR you can use a peanut sauce seen from this recipe:
1/4 cup peanut butter (natural, no sugar added kind)
2 teaspoon soy sauce
1 Tablespoon brown sugar
1 Tablespoon fresh lemon or lime juice
1/4 cup coconut milk (optional.)
1/4 cup water
red chili flake to taste
chili garlic sauce to taste or 1 clove crushed garlic
Combine all ingredients with a whisk in a small bowl, adding the water last. Pour into a small saucepan and heat over medium heat until sauce begins to bubble and thicken. Experiment with this sauce adding a teaspoon at a time of one the optional additions and tasting as you go. Serve hot or cold.
Perfect summer treat. Easy for large groups or for an intimate dinner for two. Enjoy! (these are the desired ingredients on the wrap (the yellow is the sauce) right before it is rolled up and eaten.)
Coming soon will be a food-photo project from a fellow foodie and reviews of Los Angeles restaurants!
happy eating,
es
When I say “Pasadena,” most people know vaguely of what vicinity. When I say “Glendale,” some may say ‘sure, I heard Nicole Richie lives there.’ Either way, the hardest part to understand is how spread out LA really is making it difficult to gage which real reputation to swallow. Some consider Torrance and ‘the valley’ part of LA while others think of only Hollywood and Bel Air – thanks to tv and movies. (go watch Thom Andersen’s film essay on LA) Regardless of all these tabloid express lines of ‘lalaland,’ I know I will always have these desert lands to come back to. Family, friends, memories – sure. But it’s really the mental map I have of go-to places that makes me call the sunny state ‘home.’
Café Linda’s
34 E Holly Street
Pasadena, CA 91103
Whenever I’m in Old Town Pasadena, I usually go to Hurry Curry, Thai City, or the café in the alleyway next to Cheesecake Factory for their amazing chai latte. This time, however, I wanted to try a smaller place and based on rumors, my friend and I decided on Café Linda’s. Finding reasonable parking was difficult to no surprise since Café Linda’s sat a few streets above Colorado Blvd., the main street in Old Town. After circling the block a few times, I gave in and paid for parking.
Café Linda’s storefront was easy to miss having its humble exterior mislead most customers. The interior of the restaurant was also small yet carried a very sophisticated style of modern simplicity; similar to its website, the color scheme followed pastels of mainly green and brown, making the restaurant as a whole intriguing enough for those passing by. Much like many smaller restaurants, the service made us feel as if we were the only ones there with no rush and irritation even though my friend and I had spent the first twenty minutes catching up. Figuring out what to order was actually really difficult.
Their specialty list ranged from ‘Madam Butterly’ (Jumbo shrimp in garlic sauce) to ‘U.F.O.’ (Marinated Thai BBQ chicken served with sticky rice) to ‘The Fire Craker’ (Shrimp, scallop, squid, onion, carrot sautéed in spicy basil sauce). All mouth watering. I ended up ordering their ‘Thai Boxer:’ green curry beef served with somen noodles. Somen noodles are very thin, white Japanese noodles made of wheat flour, which had a very smooth and almost translucent texture. The curry and the noodles were served separately yet in large portions allowing me to add the curry to my own liking. Though there were two red chilly peppers next to my dish on the menu, the curry’s spiciness and amount of coconut milk left a tingle on my tongue never having it feel like it was on fire. Vegetables, beef, and being garnished with basil leaves helped mix the tastes together whether separate or combined with the noodles. This specialty definitely made me wish I lived close by to try the rest of their moderately priced menu. Next time I am back home, I will check out this small eatery in order to try more of their specialties and even thai staples: Pad Thai and Pad See Yew.
Service: 4/5
Food: 4/5
Ambiance: 3/5
Price: 3/5
Overall: 3.5/5
Julienne’s
2649 Mission Street
San Marino, CA 91108
(Hours are only for breakfast and lunch)
I first dined at this French bistro, Julienne’s, with a foodie friend my freshman/sophomore year in high school. Then after I introduced many friends to this lovely place including my now-boyfriend-then-just-dating date for his birthday, but his sneaky self paid for our meal while I went to the bathroom defeating the purpose of “birthday dinner.” Something, as you can tell, I will never understand and do not let down to this day. But for my birthday lunch, a few of my favorite girlfriends took me out to Julienne’s, hidden in the nook of San Marino often overshadowed by Pasadena and Altadena combined. When we arrived, the demographic of what could be the aged cast members of ‘desperate housewives’ along with late lunching business partners made us chuckle as we arrived looking like sixteen year old Asian girls. (though the youthful appearance is by default. we’ll thank these genes later.)
To our luck, we were seated in the smaller private room aside from the patio and the main dining halls with an almost perfect view of the parties that came to dine at Julienne’s that lovely afternoon. As our server surveyed our expressions, we were given a few minutes to decide on our courses and we chose the following: 1) lobster salad, 2) a sandwich of albacore tuna with celery, currants, red onion, avocado on multi-grain bread, 3) Spinach Ricotta Ravioli with Roasted Tomato Sauce, Capers, Shaved Parmesan. Quite a lavish and extensive menu of high quality foods which could also be seen through their market (right next to the restaurant) with various selections of French inspired foods, cookware, and culture. If you happen to be in that area and want a quick bite, their market also sells half day old sandwiches that taste fresh for $6-$8.
We were served one dish at a time starting with the special of the day, lobster salad. With a few large asparaguses placed on top, a light yet peppery vinaigrette drizzled over pieces of lobster, corn, chunks of tomato, and various greens such as celery. I could have done without the celery but the pieces of corn and asparagus complimented the lobster while the vinaigrette blended all the flavors in each bite. Next was the albacore tuna sandwich cut into two halves which we then cut into quarters to make it easier to share. I had this once before and this time the bread was a little dry, but overall, still very complimentary to Julienne’s chef.
Though the parts of the sandwich fell with each bite, the variety of flavors from the currants, red onions to the albacore tuna had us barely taste the celery. I would say though this was the least favorite out of the three entries. The third dish served was the Ravioli with shaved Parmesan: my favorite out of the three! Like all other ravioli dishes, quantity of the ravioli makes the dish appear slim; however, the amount stuffed into the ravioli continues to be more than enough seen evident through this spinach ricotta ravioli. so so so delicious!
This meal made me feel spoiled in many ways. Because as I was getting my stuff together to leave, the waiter brought a beautiful creme brulee with a lighted candle wishing me a happy birthday. Aw … I blushed as I threatened my friends not sing me happy birthday. Overall, beautiful meal, beautiful people, beautiful crème brulee. It was definitely a great start to my birthday week and I cannot remember feeling more content than I did then and than I do now. :)
Service: 4/5
Food: 4/5
Ambiance: 4/5
Price: 3/5
Overall: 4/5
Next will be Los Angeles pt. 2!
Redondo Beach Crab House
100F Fisherman’s Wharf
Redondo Beach, CA 90277
Old habits die hard. My dad called me on my day off at 6:30am Chicago time to ask where I’d like to go for my birthday dinner a week and a half before I left for LA. I emphasize this because my dad used to swing open my bedroom door during summer vacation at 5am to tell me that he was leaving for work. To this day, he still believes that I am naturally a horrible morning person. As soon as I told him I wanted to go to a crab house, he chuckled while saying ‘an appropriate tribute to your morning moodiness.’ (or something to that effect in Korean) 
Despite all that, we both knew Redondo Beach Pier always has the best Korean crab houses in town serving deliciously hearty spicy stews. The drive there took about 30-40 minutes give or take with luckily no traffic. Redondo Pier added more restaurants and bridged two portions cutting the walking distance in half; there were more people than expected, but of course, it was a national holiday weekend.
We chose the Redondo Beach Crab House as opposed to our usual go-to spot where the view of the ocean ended at the wooden handrails. Hannah, my sister, claimed she vaguely enjoyed eating crabs the last time she had them insisting on the fish and chips combo. So, we ordered fish and chips + spicy octopus with noodles + three crabs + spicy vegetable tofu stew = ~$200. A steep price, but somewhat reasonable for a five-member family of slender Koreans with large eating capacities. And it was my birthday. We rarely splurge to that extent.
The fish and chips of standard quality just tasted really good since we were eating them by the sea. I remember having fish and chips often when I stayed in Australia for a while and they just tasted better by the water compared to eating them somewhere downtown. The spicy octopus with noodles appetizer chosen by my mother is one of those dishes that always wins with my family; we are the ones who irritate waiters with constant requests of either more hot sauce or more salt. Do we overexpose our Korean heritage? I think we’d like to believe we’re only embracing the good portions of it. Our waitress was very patient with us though.
In this dish, noodles and vegetables were served individually on the same plate making it easier to add the desired amount of spiciness to the plain white noodles. Despite the spiciness of this dish, the cold noodles mixed with the chilled octopus and vegetables were very refreshing. Warm weather and cold noodles frequently go hand in hand. Finally, the three crabs slightly cracked open arrived becoming more than enough for the five of us including Hannah. Like many crab houses, we were given wooden hammers and plastic bibs to wear in front. Sarah, the youngest, hammered in first with the rest of us following for about twenty to thirty minutes. Best tip: hold the largest leg with the angled portion facing upward and hammer that area slightly. Enough to remove the shell by hand leaving the large piece of meat in one portion. This makes it easiest and most enjoyable to eat the crab meat versus beating everything into small parts. Next to each person were two small dishes of melted butter and a sweet hot sauce to dip our crabmeat in. I usually dip it in both. YUMmm. So good.
Lastly, we had the much-awaited Korean hearty spicy stew with individual bowls of rice where the stew is usually added to the rice. The stew contains fish, tofu, vegetables, and spices of a tangy flavor with a seafood base because of the fish and most like the anchovy broth (depends on the chef and restaurant). With the other three before (cold noodles, crabs, fish and chips), the stew though hearty settled well with the others instead of leaving me feel bloated. Warmth, spiciness, and the bits of fish are what really bring me back to this stew whenever crab is on my menu. Obviously, this would mean going to Korean crab house, which always works fine with me and my folks since old habits die hard.
Service: 3/5
Food: 4/5
Ambiance: 3/5
Price: 3/5
Overall: 3.5/5
Kogi Truck
Various locations divided into either green or red hot sauce posted on www.kogibbq.com
When living in LA, taco trucks – environment, crowd, food, cheap thrill – were a constant craving of mine and millions of others in the city. So, the idea of Korean BBQ meshing with taco trucks became an instant hit with those inside the guerilla eating dos/donts and the passerbys. When I went to their website, navigating through the site was not the easiest task. Apparently, twitter is the better way to find out, but I find twittering to be the epitome of how confusing and stressful the internet can become bringing “everyone” to “one place” demanding attention. Oy vey.
I took a leap, however, and told friends to meet me in front of the Museum Of Contemporary Art (MOCA) on Grand, one of their listed locations. With all the warnings of long lines, I chose to arrive an hour early only to learn via text that the time had been pushed back to 8pm instead of 7pm. I figured I was still in a win-win situation since I don’t even remember the last time I was at any MOCA location. As I walked out of the parking lot, I saw small groups of people fitting the MOCA demographic walking out with me. Then I saw crowds and crowds of people outside of the museum. My first reaction was “these tacos better be good.” Once I hit the MOCA grounds, a thin male with thick rimmed glasses in a plaid shirt put wrist bands on me and those following. Confusing, yes. I again figured that I needed a wrist band for this “amazing” taco truck yet no taco truck or signage in sight. Everyone was facing the street unable to move forward since metal gates were bordering the sidewalk. This still hadn’t convinced me that I was not in line/in crowd for the taco truck. When I saw my very first junior college professor – when I was sixteen, I started taking writing classes at a community college – and someone who looked very close to one of my SAIC instructors – I also knew he moved to LA; so, it could have easily been him – I finally figured this crowd had no affiliations with the taco truck besides venue. Even though there were no flyers or handouts to clue me in, I later found out it was part of MOCA’s Engagement Party event.
Around this time, my friends arrived and time was ticking closer to 8pm. We heard faint conversations of this “kogi truck.” Hungry, confused, and a bit aggravated, I was ready to have possibly ten tacos that night. The truck peered through the corner only to come around about thirty minutes later. We were finally in the right line with the right crowd for this “amazing” kogi taco.
Their menu as follows:
Tacos ($2) in either Spicy BBQ Chicken, Spicy Pork, Tofu or Short Ribs
Burritos (~$5) in either Spicy BBQ Chicken, Spicy Pork, Tofu or Short Ribs
Kimchi quesadilla (~$8)
Sliders and other specials including a hot dog (~$5-9)
Also, soft drinks.
I got spicy bbq chicken, spicy pork, short rib tacos and shared a kimchi quesadilla. So, the prices were okay for a taco truck; I actually expected more because of all its hype and the owners being Korean. (heh) Once we sat down and finally ate our food, I was mildly impressed with the tacos. All the meat was cooked well but there wasn’t enough sauce to mix all the ingredients together. Most of what I tasted was cooked dough rather than in combination of the meat, sauce, seasame seeds, and green onions. The kimchi quesadilla definitely was the winner in this round; simplicity usually makes the cut in entrees featured in a guerilla style. Spice, texture, cheese and seasame seeds really blended well together making it a whole dish unlike the tacos. I made an attempt to make it because of its simplicity; I’d recommend sautéing the kimchi before adding it to your quesadilla. So, does all of the food merit such a long and confusing wait at the MOCA? Sure.
Enjoying food highly depends on experience as well as the food itself; if not then why would people complain about bad customer service all the time? Kogi truck did not set up the MOCA experience for me personally, but it remains a good party story for myself. I’d give the truck another shot but not something I would do every weekend.
Maybe just once in a while.
Service: 3/5
Food: 3/5
Ambiance: 3/5
Price: 3/5
Overall: 3/5
Thanks for tuning in for the Los Angeles reviews. Next will be The Stained Glass in Evanston, IL. (Still Chicago)
