Home Dining

SO...besides trying new restaurants I also love trying new things at home. My whole family is composed of foodies like myself so we all like to try new things. Recently my mom has been going to the Pasadena Farmers' Market at Victory Park, and it is AWESOME!! I haven't been myself yet, but I am definitely going to do that soon.  Last week we had a salmon which was buttery, fresh and flavorful. I think the best discovery this month though, is the  famers' market strawberries. Literally the best strawberries I have ever tasted. They are organic so they're a little smaller and pricier but they are definitely worth it. Not only are they sweet, the have such a strong strawberry flavor unlike the watered down fruits that are shot up with steroids. It's super natural and it almost feels like you're eating strawberry candy. So delish!


To kick off the summer, my family had a mini BBQ. We had some burgers and we threw in some brie cheese in the patty which made it tasty and juicy. And we added some applewood smoked bacon which was a perfect combination. Also, my dad made some delicious truffle aioli with mayo, truffle oil and applewood bacon bits.

Last week my mom also made an INCREDIBLE home cooked meal. I have a picture of the appetizer but I lost the rest of the meal! :( Anyway, (left to right) we had a tuna avocado with sesame sauce, a celery gazpacho (really nice and refreshing for the summertime) and a uni brie cheese baguette. The last one was unique but the flavors were such a great combination and the slightly toasted baguette was perfect. Definitely my favorite one! We also had a seafood pasta in white wine sauce topped off with some paprika which was perfect for a seafood lover like myself. We finished the meal off with my mom's famous bread pudding à la mode. 

YUM.

RICE thai tapas

Last week I went to a new restaurant in Pasadena called RICE thai tapas. Oba, the Japanese restaurant next door, is owned by the same owner and since we really like Oba we wanted to try RICE. The tapas style is really nice because we could all try a bit of everything. The Mignon Satay and the Pad Thai were my favorites. The beef is very tender and I kept the peanut sauce on my side of the table hoping that no one would notice because I then proceeded to use it on almost everything. It was delicious. The owner told us that their Pad Thai is very traditional and the chef refrains from using ketchup or anything else to make it red or orange. The Pad Thai was really flavorful and fresh. The almost sticky texture of the noodles is fantastic. We ended the meal with a black sticky rice with mango which was pretty good. I'm a huge fan of black sticky rice and mango is my favorite fruit so for me it was perfect. I rarely find Thai places that make mango sticky rice with black rice instead of white rice so I was really excited for that. Overall the food is very flavorful and super fresh and perfect for a large group because it's easy to share. (Sorry for the bad photo quality!)

Monzo

A friend recommended this udon spot to us and my dad and I love all kinds of noodles so we decided to give it a try. When I eat noodles I enjoy a more chewy texture with a bite as opposed to a softer texture. I ordered the Sea Urchin Udon which is their most famous bowl.

The texture of the udon was perfect but I was pretty disappointed by everything else. The soup base was very thick and heavy and all the tempura was over breaded and drenched in oil. The heaviness of creamy soup/sauce and the oily fried food was not a good combination for my stomach and I left feeling unsatisfied. Despite the disappointing aspects of the meal I'd probably go back for the udon itself but I would go for a simple miso or soya based soup with no tempura.

I then went to Little Tokyo Village across from Monzo for the freshly made Japanese pancakes with red bean (dorayaki) but was once again disappointed to discover that they are closed on Mondays!! Finally I decided to walk to Marukai Market a block away (my favorite market), and I bought myself a daifuku red bean mochi which I am currently enjoying with a cup of green tea. 

Although it wasn't the most enjoyable meal I'm glad I tried it. The only way to discover something amazing is to try it all.  

These Are a Few of My Favorite Things {Bacon Cheddar Biscuits with Maple Butter}

So recently I've been making a list of my favorite foods. I have A LOT of "favorites" so I'll be posting them a little at a time. But basically, what defines a favorite food for me is something that I'll crave quite often and really could never get sick of. So...here's my first one!

Choosing favorites, especially for food, is super difficult for me. Mostly because I always try something new that I love even more than what I thought was my favorite. But this delicious treat has held a solid first place for a while now. Bacon Cheddar Biscuits with Maple butter from Manhattan Post. (sorry, the picture's not great. I just get so excited to eat it I don't really check to see if the picture turned out okay.) But really, these biscuits are to die for. They are served warm so not only do they taste amazing, they smell like a little piece of heaven, and the best part is that it is served with maple butter. The butter is super fluffy and the sweetness of it really complements the bacon and cheese. When you spread the butter onto the biscuit it literally melts into the biscuit. The restaurant itself is one of my favorites. I also LOVE their Fried Chicken with Truffle Honey. The restaurant is also in Manhattan Beach so the location is perfect for walking down to the beach afterwards. If you go, don't forget to take some biscuits home for breakfast the next morning. Just throw it into the oven and you've got the best breakfast biscuit in the world!!

Carly is Hungry

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Check out Carly's food blog, carlyishungry!!!

Hinoki & the Bird

Hello! This is my first blog post and I'm super excited to write more about this passion of mine. food. I love to try new things and adventure into the colorful world of flavors. 

To celebrate Fathers' Day, my family and I decided to try something new. Hinoki and the Bird came up and it seemed interesting. Asian american fusion food and trendy decor. Waiters wore white converses with striped socks and the outdoor patio was composed of wooden furniture accented with cute lights and planters hanging from the wooden frame across the sky.

Now to the important part, the food. The portions are sharing sized so we ordered a selection of foods to try. We started off with a beef tartar topped with coconut and sesame. It was good, but tasted like an ordinary beef tartar. Next was the crispy chicken with lemon aioli. The chicken was breaded and fried to perfection and the aioli had a hint of truffle which complemented the chicken well. The must try items according to other reviews seemed to be the Chile crab toast and the Lobster roll with green curry and thai basil. The flavors were unique and personally, I enjoyed the Crab toast more. The smoother texture of the crab with the crunch of the chile was a great combination. We also ordered a miso marinated skirt steak which was very tender and flavorful. The baked yam with bacon and crème fraiche was also delicious. 

Finally, the dessert. The grand finale. Miso donuts with caramel. Seems like a strange combination but trust me, you will be pleasantly surprised at how the flavors collide to create a perfect balance between sweet and savory. 

Overall, the food was pretty good but it didn't get too exciting until dessert. The drinks were also good but overall, I think the ambiance of the place really brought it together. The patio decor and atmosphere is soothing and comforting making for a great place to dine.