Here and There

Apple galette with almond frangipane and really great homemade puff pastry (I didn't peel the apples so there would be some color - the reds are from pink ladies); chicken adobo burrito with garlic fried rice from papalote's annual mexi-pino menu mmm

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Underdog(s)

Underdog (hot dogs) and Underdogs (sports bar + taco shop) can get easily confused, especially since they are just about 2 blocks away from each other on opposite sides of 19th. Underdog feels like a hippie version of Top Dog with their extensive list of vegetarian and vegan "sausages," except significantly more expensive by $2+. The meat versions are all organic, and they also include some grassfed options as well as a Let's Be Frank dog, which would explain the higher prices, though it isn't more satisfying than a $1.50 Polish from Costco. Good and healthier I suppose, but how healthy are hot dogs anyway?

A bouncer was collecting cover before the UFC fight... not a shocker, we ate and left before it started. =P Mmm fish taco Nick's way and a cold beer.

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The Challenge: Complete

Brunch galore: Mama's and Cafe Fanny (far R)

I've made it. Well.... I have a little confession to make. This weekend on 30-Jan, just 2 days left in the month, I was at Korean BBQ and enjoying my vegetable bibimbap, and I picked up some of the banchan that I thought was tofu. Well... it turned out to be fishcake! UGHHHHHHH FAILLLLLLLLLLLLLL

While I would like to discount that because it was a pure accident right before I was home-free, I know I can't call this challenge a success without feeling guilty. I was sooo close. Oh well!

French onion soup and a glass of wine at the Absinthe bar on a rainy day! Blue Bottle's toast and latte

Do I feel different? Did I miss meat? Will this change the way I eat from now on? I feel exactly the same, and like I said before, the only difficult part was eating out or in social gatherings. Since my last post, Rhonda was gracious enough to make a special mushroom ragu for me at a party, I tried the house-made veggie burger at Monk's Kettle (Can't Fail is much better), Mike and I have had a lot of red hot catatoes, and I've been enjoying many a veggie burrito from La Taq after church. I've been saving money from the discipline of bringing my lunch to work instead of spending $10/day on overpriced FiDi salads, and hopefully I can continue to do that since it's also healthier.

Every time a new article was posted about meat contamination or something just as disturbing, I definitely thought "I'm glad I don't have to worry about that." Now that I will again, I think I might stay away from questionable products like hot dogs, bologna, etc unless I know that they are sourced from actual substantial pieces of real animal that hasn't been sitting in its own feces and disease. But who am I kidding. It's so difficult to really track that down, so maybe I will just try to only eat meat when I eat at non-sketchy places (since most SF restaurants grind their own meat, etc). We'll see! Maybe I'll try it again another month, but in the mean time I will be enjoying the nduja that has been sitting in my freezer, waiting for this day to come.

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The Challenge Update: Halftime

Something I still won't see for awhile: 4505 Meats lengua/brisket sandwich, topped with shredded brussel sprouts, a fried egg, and hollandaise

I am halfway through my month of not eating meat. It's only been 2 weeks, but I feel like it's been a long time, and February couldn't come sooner! The very first day (1-Jan-2010), I was already challenged by having lunch with my extended family at a serious Vietnamese restaurant (like... Story Rd Little Saigon serious). Now, I never realized how difficult it is to avoid meat and meat products in their cuisine, and at the time I was under the impression that I just wasn't eating meat... so I ate around fish, but still ate fish sauce. Some would call that cheating, like my sisters, but I didn't think it was. Regardless, I haven't eaten anything cooked with meat or meat-based sauces either since then.

Eating out in social settings is really the hardest part, as I learned once again on 2-Jan-2010, when my friend had a party with Hawaiian BBQ. Good thing I brought my own food! Many of my friends have shaken their heads with pity on me after forgetting about my month-long diet, especially after offering me some bacon that was more or less a cube of fat. One night I went to the MOMA and hung out at the rooftop Blue Bottle, where their only savory options were a mortadella sandwich, and a sweaty, stale cheese sandwich that had been left out all day. I ended up having a latte and half a slice of cake for dinner.

No sweaty cheese on this tray! R: the makings of an amazing butternut squash pasta with fresh sage from my mother's garden, and brown butter (it looks really dark because of the solids, which I later strained out)

So what have I been eating, and not just avoiding? LOTS of curry. I have seriously been eating some form of curry multiple times a week - Korean, Indian, Thai... you name it. I went to Udupi for the first time I learned of Mike's absolute love for Indian and Thai food (I thought it was just Italian). I've had split pea soup up the wazoo (so easy to make), and discovered the most amazing mix at TJ's - almonds, peanuts, wasabi peas, and dried cranberries. I've generally also been eating less - not because I've been restricted, but since I have less options, I don't have the chance to over-gorge like I normally do. My body has also been craving fat, something I am not used to since I generally get that from animal protein. I should probably eat more eggs.

While it hasn't been too difficult so far, it's still been more challenging than I thought it would be. Here's to two more weeks!

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In December Drinking Horchata

Christmas in LA: Daikokuya, Luscious Dumplings, Porto's Bakery, and lots of Sam Woo woo!

Kotteri (back fat) broth, lots of cool posters

Potato balls (fried mashed potatoes filled with beef stew), and a sampling of all the guava pastries. In store, sensory overload! It was very confusing

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The Challenge: Goodbye, Meat!

I've always said I could be vegetarian if I wanted to. I normally don't cook with any meat (out of pure laziness and frugality), and I enjoy a lot of vegetarian food. While I wouldn't choose to be vegetarian forever, I thought I would try it out for a month.

January 2010 seemed like a good trial: no more holidays so I could control what I eat, the start of a new year always carries with it some increased motivation, and I just watched Food Inc a few weeks ago and have been slightly paranoid about meat. While the documentary didn't stop me from eating at ghetto Chinese restaurants during Christmas weekend, I did manage to resist ordering a burger at In n Out (only ate animal fries... a first!).

I think I'll be able to last, and my little sister even offered a big bag of lentils as my prize, since they will surely be a main source of protein now. Any other wagers?? Let's just hope I last more than a week =P I originally wanted steak or a burger as my last meal, but since San Tung is slated for NYE dinner, I will just have to see that nice juicy beef on Feb 1.

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Cynthia + Elvin

Photo courtesy of Kevin Wang

Cynthia is one of my best friends, so it was definitely a busy fall/winter organizing wedding events and putting together a candy table, let alone normal bridesmaid duties! It was a special day though, and it was a relief that everything came together so well in the end.

I made a few things - the usual truffles, fleur de sel caramels, truffle lollipops, marshmallow lollipops, custom pocky sticks, cookies... you would think a candy table wouldn't cost much compared to a dessert table, but if I had actually bought those things, especially when those caramels will go for $1/piece... man. I would be broke.

The sheet hanging in the back is covering a gigantic TV.

Photos below courtesy of Mike =)

After the jump are a few more photos... they're from Luna Photo, the official photogs for the day. Very bad quality because I don't have the actual files, but I just wanted to share because they captured some great shots that I wasn't able to get from anyone else's camera! They're a super friendly team, and they definitely captured some beautiful photos of Cyn (and Elvin I guess).

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The Real Real Korean Tacos and Some Snake

FINALLLLLYYYYYYY

The last time I was in LA it was only for 24 hrs and Kogi was closed. The last time before that, I was in the OC for a wedding and couldn't leave. The last time before that, Kogi did not exist. Well, it's about bloody time! With my luck, the truck wasn't even operating because of Thanksgiving, but at least the douchey Alibi Room was open.

Tacos and quesadillas: the only pictures I took because Curtis started pretending he didn't know me

And yes, it does live up to the hype. The tacos were really good and nicely topped with some kind of sesame slaw. The quesadillas also won me over - the black jack quesadilla wasn't much of a stretch, but the kimchi one definitely proved that cheese and kimchi can, in fact, go together well. I would've tried more (sliders, burrito), but I was trying to save my stomach for...

Wurstkuche, downtown LA's answer to the sausage beer garden. With "exotic" options like rattlesnake/rabbit (really tough) and alligator/pork, the real draw is the warehouse-like atmosphere with rows and rows of communal tables lined with brown paper. Fun place despite the Lykke Li remixes and drunken 21-yr-olds.

I've never been a lover of LA, but there's plenty more to come after Christmas...!

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Providence

My mom's birthday is only a week before mine, so our family always celebrates them together at a nice restaurant the weekend after Thanksgiving. Being in LA, Providence was the logical choice: aside from the chef's recent appearance on Top Chef Masters, this new American seafood restaurant was just awarded 2 well-deserved Michelin stars. Plus, my sister had been twice and saw Hiro once... who doesn't love celebrity sightings??

We were lucky enough to snag the chef's table - a private booth looking into the kitchen. It was really great being able to peek in, even if it was just the plating side... and the lighting from the kitchen was great for photos =) It reminded me of Le Bernardin - very clean and focused, which definitely showed in their food. We got the full tasting menu of 9 courses, and I must say that it was definitely one of the best meals I've had in a long time! I was really impressed from the start - knowledgeable and warm service, and delicious bacon brioche and nori focaccia. Mmm even the bread was memorable!

Amuse: "gin+tonic" -- frozen gin gelee with the squeeze of a lime, "mojito" spherification, carrot soup in a mini stein (random)

First course: kampachi, rice crackers, creme fraiche, coriander flowers (delicious)

Sea urchin with egg yolk, brioche croutons ("deliciousness in an egg shell"); hokkaido scallop w/ chanterelles and bacon in a butter sauce

Striped bass w/ burdock and wine butter sauce; salmon w/ shaved truffles, wilted spinach, buckwheat (every component was delicious, and my mom and I agreed that this was the best cooked salmon we've ever had!)

Veal (I believe it was cooked sous vide at 140 for 2 hrs) w/ sweet onion puree, hazelnuts, other stuff (delicious); palate cleanser - cucumber sorbet w/ juniper berry yogurt (the yogurt had a really surprising tart pop, a perfect pairing to the cool sorbet)

Of all things, I forgot to photograph the dessert, a mexican chocolate "bread pudding," with an avocado banana puree, corn tortilla ice cream, and tortilla streusel. While the bread pudding didn't actually use bread (devil's sweet cake, according to our waiter), it was definitely a concept I've been meaning to try -- custardy cake, who wouldn't? The puree had a bit too much banana, but the ice cream and streusel were really impressive and added so much cohesion... delicious cohesion!

I obviously really enjoyed my meal here, as evident by the number of times I used the word "delicious." My only real complaint is that almost all the sauces were butter-based, and it would've been nice to see a bit more variety. However, that is the most nitpicky of complaints I can think of which just goes to show how great everything was. =)

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Pre-Thanksgiving

November is always insanely busy, even before Thanksgiving. This year... bachelorette in Napa, 24 hrs in LA, Mike's birthday + his family visit, lots of potlucks, Mom's birthday, my birthday!

Dinner at Redd: not as amazing as I thought it would be, but it was a solid meal

San Tung and Zuni - SF classics

Dishdash lamb marinated in yogurt... amazing and much tastier than 53rd+6th halal cart; Citizen Cake pudding pop... chocolate overpowers all other flavors

Other things...
Savory bread pudding
Zankou chicken
Soup galore: butternut, split pea w/ ham, lentils + chard
Hobees

Tanto

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