Looking Back: Favorite Meal of 2011

I love to eat. If there was such a thing, eating, and eating lots of delicious food, would be one of my favorite hobbies. I don't discriminate, I'll try just about anything.  One of my most memorable meals in 2011 was at Morimoto in Napa Valley, CA.  Wow, from the beautifully designed restaurant, excellent service, to the most visually appealing and delicious meal I had last year, I was thoroughly impressed.  Why am I posting this now at the end of February 2012?  I keep thinking about it...

If you have a chance to go to any of Morimoto's restaurants, I would highly recommend the omakase (chef's tasting).  It is pricey, but well worth it.

(Images property of Daily Decorum)

March - New Restaurant Roundup

It's that time again!  To share with you, one of my favorite pastimes - eating good food at new restaurants!

Mayahuel - East Village.  Loved the tamales, guacamole and chips, and tacos.  Good drinks and atmosphere.  Would I go again?  Definitely.

Veniero's Pastry - East Village.  These canoli's look delicious right?  They're just okay... along with their "famous" almond torte.  Would I go again?  No.

Poke - Sushi restaurant in the UES.  Simple restaurant, just okay, expensive for what you get.  Would I go again?  Probably not...

Larchmont Bungalow - on Larchmont in Los Angeles.  Lovely place for brunch, delicious food, laid back.  Would I go again?  If I was in the neighborhood...

Blue Smoke - by Danny Myer in Gramercy.  There's an upstairs and downstairs, great ribs, pulled pork, and fish tacos appetizer.  Oh and don't forget the mac and cheese!  Would I go again?  Definitely!

El Paso Taqueria - Upper East Side.  Finally found a decent Mexican joint!  The nachos are great, so are the tacos, and chicken burrito.  Would I get it delivered again?  Already have!

Butter Lane - Lower East Side.  Cupcakes!  These were just okay... I thought Two Little Red Hens was much better!  Maybe because it was towards the end of the day?

Sophie's Cuban Cuisine - Midtown East.  Stopped in after a visit to the dentist, I was happy with my roast pork with rice and beans, green sauce, and mashed potatoes stuffed with ground beef.

Brgr - Upper East Side.  Burgers made from 100% grass fed beef.  Good, not great... expensive for what it is I think.  I would rather go to Shake Shack.  They offer Coke Zero though, always a plus.

All in all, it was a good month of eating.  Found a couple I wouldn't go back to, but hey ~ at least now we know!

Favorite Restaurants in Los Angeles - Part III

What was that?  Another post on my favorite Los Angeles restaurants?  Yes, out of hundreds, the two previous posts, and the ones below are just a few of my favorites.  This time I will highlight some "cheap eats."

Wurstkuche - love the "exotic" grilled sausages and the Belgium style fries with various dipping sauces.  Not great for a big group though.

Langer's - this deli is my absolute favorite for pastrami.  I've tried many, many pastrami sandwiches, even in New York, but Langer's takes first place.  If it's your first time, please try the #19 sandwich, an order of fries, and start off with the matzo ball soup.  It's A LOT of food.

In-N-Out - the burger, the fries, milk shake, or even the extra fizzy fountain sodas... so delicious!

Phillipe's Original - the birth place of French dip sandwiches.  I always order the beef sandwich, dipped, potato salad, and a soda.  Be careful of the hot mustard!  It truly is hot!  FYI:  cash only.

Daikokuya - love this tiny little ramen place in Little Tokyo... it's the soup that makes it so good!

Mario's Peruvian Restaurant - anything saltado (i.e. pollo saltado, lomo saltado...), the mussel ceviche is delicious, and so are the seafood dishes.

California Chicken Cafe - I'm not into salads, but the Chinese Chicken Salad is pretty awesome, and so is the rotisserie chicken.

Sushi Gen - love this place for lunch, the prices are more reasonable - for some reason, the dinner menu items are around $10 more.  The sashimi is delicious - try the chirashi.

Honey's Kettle Chicken - crispy fried chicken, flaky biscuit with butter and honey... yummm.  They sell their biscuit mix, which also makes excellent waffles!

Roscoe's Chicken and Waffle - I always order the 1/4 chicken, dark meat, gravy on the side, with waffles.  Really good stuff.

M Cafe - I'm not much of a healthy foods person, but this "modern macrobiotic" (whatever that means...) eatery has the best Grilled Tuna Burger.  Really good... and occasionally, you'll see random celebrities.

And there's plenty more... sigh.  So many good things to eat out there!

Favorite Restaurants in Los Angeles - Part II

Part II of my favorite restaurants in Los Angeles.  After the eye opening experience at Hatfield's which I mentioned in my last post, we've been eating at all kinds of restaurants, almost every weekend.  That hour to hour and a half trek to LA became not so long as we anticipated dining at another great restaurant.  A few more...

Father's Office (no reservations so cozy up and make new friends!) - the best restaurant burger I've ever had.  You must order the F.O. burger, fries, a great beer, and for starters, the brussels sprouts, and the croquettes.  The second location in Culver City is so much easier to get to, and bigger.  It was nice when F.O. wasn't so popular in that tiny little Santa Monica location...

Comme Ca - although this restaurant doesn't have the greatest review on Yelp, they serve good French bistro food, and have great bartenders.  Test them!  Have you ever tried to make French food at home?  It takes hours!  Beef bourbuignon, coq au vin, marrow and ox tail jam... so delicious!  Plus, I love the interior design.

Bouchon - who doesn't love Thomas Keller?  Along with his classic French dishes, especially his macarons!  (This location offers macarons on rare ocassions)  Beautiful decor and ambiance, sit at the outdoor terrace once the weather is nice.  Again, just great French food.

Pizzeria Mozza - I heart Mario Batali, he is one of my favorite celebrity chefs.  The pizzas, the fresh mozzarella, the butterscotch budino... to die for!  I try to order a different pizza each time, but a lot of times, I'll order the house made sausage fennel pizza.  AND their opening one in Newport Beach!!  Perfect for Orange County.

Osteria Mozza - although right next to each other, the two restaurants are very different.  Pizzeria Mozza serves great pizzas in a more casual atmosphere, and Osteria Mozza is a one Michelin star restaurant serving excellent Italian cuisine.  You can see Nancy Silverton working the Mozzarella Bar at any given night, they cook the pastas perfectly al dente, and the seafood and meat dishes are juicy and flavorful.

Lazy Ox Canteen - went when the restaurant first opened, and back again before leaving California, I haven't tried a dish I didn't like.  It's a small plates concept in a cool, laid back atmosphere, and the small space gets pretty packed.

More worth mentioning:
Ford's Filling Station
Jar
Angelini Osteria
Bottega Louie
Drago Centro
The Bazaar
Campanile
Church and State
Fraiche
Cobras and Matadors

Still more to come...  

Favorite Restaurants in Los Angeles - Part I

I was talking about Los Angeles restaurants with a few New Yorkers, so I decided to share some of my favorites with you.  These are nicer restaurants, and reservations would be a good idea.

Lucques - has a Sunday supper that is great for a small group of people especially during the summer, and their seasonal dinner menu is excellent as well.  I love the quaint little outdoor dining area, quite romantic... and the little snack of almonds and olives they give you is very, very addicting.

Animal - where do I even start... this place is any meat lover's heaven.  The best pork chops I've ever had, and the donuts... Very small, simple restaurant, get a bunch of plates and go family style!  I would love to try the Animal guys' soon to open Son of a Gun, and still in the works Dirty Chicken one day.

Hatfield's - this one Michelin star restaurant was where I had my very first tasting menu, and what got me hooked as a foodie.  Back when they were located on Beverly Blvd., they had a 7 course chef's tasting menu that brought two different dishes out for you and your date.  So essentially, you came away trying 14 different dishes not including the amuse bouche.  Now located on Melrose Ave., and although they don't bring out different plates for each person, you still have a fantastically prepared, farm fresh seasonal tasting menu.

AOC - a great place for French/ Californian small plates and a nice glass of wine.  Love their hanger steak, bacon wrapped dates, cheeses, arroz negro, brioche with proscuitto, and cauliflower...

Providence - this two Michelin star restaurant serves perfectly prepared seafood (mostly seafood dishes), mixed with molecular gastronomy.  I highly recommend a tasting menu, you won't be disappointed!  I still think about the Santa Barbara sea urchin, the perfectly seared scallops, and the veal tenderloin...

More to come!

(Images via eaterla.com)

Culinary Adventures: San Francisco

San Francisco is one of those places that I have been lucky enough to visit often because it was only about an hour plane ride away.  Plus, Napa Valley is only about an hour drive away!  (Napa Valley deserves an entire post... to come).  Some of my favorite restaurants:

Delfina Restaurant - Love love love! their spaghetti.  Their menu changes daily, but the spaghetti is always offered.  Everything, I mean everything is delicious.

Pizzeria Delfina - right next door to Delfina Restaurant.  Excellent pizzas, salads, and starters.  If they ever have any dish with octopus, it's a must try!

Cafe Jaqueline - Go through the kitchen to the bathroom so you can catch a glimpse of the adorable little French lady in the kitchen with a mountain of eggs (complete with a golden egg on top!) whisking up savory and sweet souffles!

Blue Bottle Cafe - Various locations, I've been to the one in the Ferry Building.  They make great drip coffee and espresso.

Hog Island Oysters - Obviously their fresh oysters on a half shell, but their grilled cheese sandwich and clam chowder are AWESOME!

Perbacco and Barbacco (Few doors down from each other) - Excellent urban Italian food.

Ferry Building Farmers Market - So many great vendors and fresh products.  I love to walk around and try as many different foods as possible!  Every Saturdays in front of the Embarcadero and the back.

Tsing Tao Chinese Restaurant - (Korean Chinese in Albany)  Really good jja jang myun (black soy bean sauce over noodles), and fried shrimp dish.

There's so many more...

Javier's and El Flamin' Taco

I have two favorite places for Mexican food, and I've eaten at many different places to come to this conclusion for street tacos, and restaurant tacos.  My favorite for street tacos is El Flamin' Taco (taco truck) on Vermont & 5th across the street from Jack in the Box.  My favorite for restaurant tacos is Javier's at Irvine Spectrum.  I've eaten at A LOT of taco trucks, and Mexican restaurants, and these are my personal favorites... if you don't trust me, please try it for yourself and let me know what you think.

El Flamin' Taco:  must try the carne asada and al pastor, tacos or burritos.  Don't wait until you get home, eat it right there next to the salsa bar while it's hot.  Maybe take a burrito home for breakfast the next day!

Javier's:  must try the Soft Taco plate with steak, Steak Picado, Steak Fajitas, or Shrimp enchiladas.  Beware, always a long wait, but great food, and great interior design/ atmosphere.  

  

New York has very few good Mexican food options so it makes me miss these two places even more.  On my recent visit, I made sure to visit Javier's once and El Flamin' Taco twice!  So if you're in Southern California, have a taco for me!