49'er Flap Jacks

I had to do my lab work early this morning without having anything to eat or drink for my annual lipid panel (cholesterol). I was an hour early for my appointment as I went straight from the gym. I was hoping they could take me in earlier. For some strange reason, I was the only one at 7:45 a.m. so they took me right in. I was out of there by 8:00 am. The bank was next on my list but they don't open until 9:00 a.m., and since I was starving to death, I decided to go the the Original Pancake House in Redondo Beach.

Got there and was ready to order my favorite Dutch Baby. If you haven't had this, see my previous blog on "Pancake House" on January 28, 2012.
I saw my waiter deliver a plate with what looked like a very flat pancake the size of the large plate. I asked him what it was; it was the 49'er Flap Jacks. They are 3 super thin pancakes (not crepes) that are just plain but they are chewey and gooey. I decided to try them.

There is nothing inside or in between the 3 pancakes. I tried to figure what made it chewey or gooey. I was told it is just the way it is cooked. It was very good. I had to do a little preparation before consumption. I used all the whipped butter and carefully and strategically spread it all over the layers and then poured some of the syrup...Ohh mamma!

I am glad I did this right after my lab work as I won't have my cholesterol results for probably a week. What I don't know won't hurt me...right??

IHOP-International House of Pancakes

Chances are you have been to an IHOP near you or at some highway on your way to somewhere. When I want a no-nonsense breakfast, I head on over to IHOP. As far as pancakes, I think theirs is not as good as Pancake House but they have some things that the Pancake House do not have.

Their Cheese Blintzes are very good. It is filled with healthy cottage cheese and cream cheese (o.k. cream cheese may not be as healthy) and topped with your choice of fresh strawberries or strawberry preserves which I prefer.

Then there is the International Passport in which you have a choice of various crepes with eggs, bacon or sausage. My very favorite is the Swedish Crepe served with lingonberries and lingonberry butter. The crepe is light enough to compete with some of the creperies. It is rich and creamy with just the right amount of tartness.
It goes down sooo smooth; so the next time you are at IHOP, try not to order what you always order; be adventurous and try the Swedish pancakes and let me know what you think. It just might surprise you.

Madame Chocolat - Beverly Hills

If we were not early for our dinner reservation 2 nights ago, we would never have stumbled over Madame Chocolat across from the Montage Hotel. It was meant to be - it was fate!

My friend and I were like little kids in a candy store..but alas..this is not just a candy store. It is high end chocolate; the ambiance being like that of fine chocolate stores you find in Paris.

They have all sorts of interesting Belgian chocolates like chocolate covered cheerios and cornflakes. I wouldn't mind having these cornflakes every morning. Think how healthy that would be especially since I got the dark chocolate.

They had all sorts of bunnies, owls, chicks for the coming Easter. They also had chocolate that looked like legos. The Christian Louboutin shoe made with chocolate caught my eye. This is for the lady that has everything. I don't quite have everything yet, so I passed on that.

I got excited when I saw the very colorful glitter truffle balls. These are edible glitter truffles with different flavors; they had champagne, Orange, Johnny Walker Blue, and caramel. Before I purchased a small box; I asked the man for assurance that I would not end up at Cedar Sinai emergency room! I tried them when I got home and realized why they were not cheap.

I can't wait to go back and try the rest! On the counter, there is a darling ceramic fat lady with the caption: HAPPILY DYING OF CHOCOLATE
That says it all............

Jiro Dreams of Sushi

If you love sushi, this is a must see movie. If you are not into sushi like myself, more reason to see it. At the end of the movie, I was wishing I could fly to Tokyo and land a seat at his restaurant.

It is a story of Jiro Ono who at 85 years old is considered to be the greatest sushi chef of all times. He has been awarded 3 star Michelin at his 10 seat Sukiyabashi Jiro restaurant in Tokyo in a basement of an office building. It takes months to get a reservation and you would have to pay dearly for a seat. Price was never mentioned but they all say that every bite is worth it.

It is fascinating to watch as he goes to be best tuna man to buy his tuna and the best octopus man to buy his octopus. In other words, he goes to the best suppliers to accomplish the best. The octopus is massaged for a minimum of 40 minutes (lucky octopus) they are in ecstasy before they are executed; therefore you have the most tender (not rubbery) calamari.

His eldest son, Yoshikazu will end up taking his place eventually but in the mean time he is still learning from his father. It is endearing to watch him strive for perfection as he constantly seeks his father's approval.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-aGPniFvS0

Scarpetta-Beverly Hills

It has been a year since I've been to Scarpetta. I remember having wonderful scallops,a pasta bolognese and a pasta with shaved truffles. They were all wonderful and I couldn't wait to go back.

I looked forward to our 6 pm dinner reservation last night. We got to the beautiful Montage Hotel in Beverly Hills early; so we thought perhaps they could take us earlier. No such luck as they didn't open till 6 pm.

At 6:02 pm they escorted us to our choice of tables. We were told that upstairs is more quiet so we opted for the upstairs, besides we figured it would be good to burn a a few more calories.

We were tempted to order the tasting menu but decided to decline as we had certain dishes in the menu we wanted to try. We ordered the beet salad, the creamy polenta and the cod.

While we waited for our order, a small selection of bread was served with olive oil infused w/lemon, a flavored butter (can't remember the flavor) and eggplant w/olive oil that was delicious. Our favorite was the bread that had genoa salami and cheese which was very tasty.

The salad and the polenta arrived at the same time. Our server poured the fricassee of truffled mushrooms over the polenta. It looked divine as you can see in the picture.
Sandi and I simultaneously took a spoonful of it; we were speechless! This is surely an appetizer they would serve in heaven. If I were in death row, I would ask for this as my last meal. The recipe can be found on the internet but it is too long and complicated (at least for me).
The beet salad was just o.k.,after tasting the polenta it did nothing to excite our taste buds.

Chef Conant's spaghetti with tomato and basil is known for its simplicity yet big on flavor. I asked for parmesan cheese and our waiter informed me that it already had parmesan. I think he really meant to say: "It's perfect the way it is and you shouldn't add anything". While he was getting the cheese, I did try it and it did need a little more oomph. After he sprinkled some on my mound of spaghetti, then and only then was it really perfect. It was aldente as should be.

The cod was disappointing. Nothing really wrong with it but once you've had the cod at Nobu, you can't help but compare. Next time, I will try something else.

Our waiter was about to recite the desserts of the evening; he started with the Vanilla Caramel Budino. He described this as a pudding with salted sable crunchy cookies, caramel sauce and home made whipped cream. We both interrupted him and told him we didn't care to hear the rest. We decided to order 1 each. We normally would have ordered 2 different desserts to split but we both are suckers for salted caramel. Wow, I know for sure this is one of the desserts served in heaven.
We could tell that it was loaded with calories.. made with eggs, heavy cream, brown sugar, butter.

Sandi is already planning her next trip to Scarpetta so she can order the polenta and the Budino. I will have to do her a big favor by accompanying her as I'm sure she won't want to eat alone.

Lunada Bayhouse in Lunada Bay

I can't believe this restaurant has been around since 2009. That's 3 years of me not stepping foot at a restaurant close to home. Chef Rafael Solorzano was voted "Chef of the Year" and the restaurant was selected as one of the Top 10 new restaurants in 2009.

Last night was a good night to meet a friend at Lunada Bayhouse. Their menu was a good mix of salads, steaks, seafood and pasta. We both ordered each a nice baby bottle of champagne, a bargain for $9.00! We split a warm goat cheese salad which was quite good. For appetizers that evening, they were serving fresh oysters on 1/2 shell and oysters rockefeller. I had to order the rockefeller. My friend does not eat oysters (forgive her Father, for she does not know what she is doing) and lucky for me, I had to eat all 6 of them! They were so delicious! My champagne went well with them. I also ordered the fried breaded artichoke hearts which had a lot of herbs and parmesan cheese served with a cocktail sauce and an aioli sauce. When it doubt which sauce would go best; mix them both and you have your answer.

My friend settled on the four cheese ravioli with spinach, artichoke hearts and mushrooms. I tried some and it was almost perfect; almost, because it was not aldente which is a requirement for me anytime I have pasta.

For dessert, we ordered the lemon souffle. It did not have the texture of a souffle, it was more of a very light lemon pudding but we managed to consume the whole thing; not bad at all!

The service was excellent. Our waitress, Andrea was great. She answered all our questions in detail. You could tell that she enjoyed her job.
The ambiance is not formal; rather, very family friendly which is fine for the Palos Verdes area as most people are not into getting dressed for dinner, at least in my observation.

I called the Chef Solorzano today to ask him what was in his oysters rockefeller. I was not surprised as to why I loved them; they were cooked with spinach, a combination of cheeses including parmesan, bacon (who doesn't like bacon?) and the liquor, pernod which is like its relative; in Greece is ouzo and in Spain, Ojen.

I learned from my conversation with the Chef that he has another restaurant in Redondo Beach called Delzano's By the Sea. That will be one of my future assignments. Meanwhile, I will be sure to return to Lunada Bayhouse to further investigate what I have been missing!

Indian at Home

The next time you have a craving for Indian food and your spouse or friend is not in the mood to go to a restaurant, just make believe!

I made a really simple Chicken Tikka Masala. You need chicken breasts which I seasoned with salt and pepper. I then sprinkled them with Wondra flour. I proceeded to brown the chicken in olive oil and some butter. I then took a jar of Tikka Masala Curry (which you can get at World Market). I poured it over the chicken, got a can of baby corn and dumped that in. I wanted to add olives but I didn't have any. I looked in my pantry which I just organized (more or less) last week and found some cashew nuts. I've seen cashews in Indian food before so I figured...why not?

I then simmered the breasts with the sauce for 20 minutes. I had some left over rice and mashed potatoes. My husband had his with the potatoes and I had mine with white rice. Microwaved some carrots for a balanced meal. It turned out pretty good.

So,there you have it...a simple and speedy dinner. Namaste.

Standing Egg - Equinox

I have no doubt you have heard of the Vernal (Spring) Equinox in March and the Autumnal Equinox in October. This is when they say you can stand an egg on its bottom and even have a broom stand on its bristles which I just heard today and never tried.

The simple explanation is that day and night are the same lengths; both 12 hours. Ever since I heard of the egg thing...I tried balancing it and I have always been lucky.

I am not a scientist or an engineer and I'm sure you can find a detailed explanation if you google as to why an egg can stand. I am just someone who has nothing better to do and get excited every time I do it. So, before the day is over, try it as it takes practice and confidence. This time it took me longer... 5 minutes.

Good luck and may the force be with you!

Note: I have tried this a day after the equinox and it still worked. I also I tried it a couple of days after and weeks after...never worked.

Ocean Tava - Live Jazz on Sundays

Ocean Tava in Redondo Beach has a Live Jazz Evening on Sunday nights. I was curious to see what type of jazz they would have. Was it perhaps Indian jazz...what is Indian jazz?

A friend and I went last night and was pleasantly surprised. There were 3 men (as pictured) with a clarinet, a sitar and guitar. They played Indian music. This was educational for us as we thought the music might be annoying, not knowing anything about their music. It was quite soothing. After 20 minutes, they switched to American jazz. The only way I can describe it is I felt I was watching "Midnight in Paris" (the Woody Allen movie). My friend agreed. We both imagined ourselves in the streets of Paris in the 50's.

The food did not disappoint. Nitin the manager, suggested we try the Tandoori Paneer for appetizer. This was homemade cheese slices marinated and grilled in tandoor. I did not recognize the cheese as it was bright orange. We both had a bite and simultaneously went...uhhmmmm! It was delicious. I wanted to order their baby corn appetizer but they didn't have it so I asked Nitin what we should have instead. I guess this was a blessing in disguise.

For our entree, we ordered the Tava special chicken and the Tava special vegetable. Both were wonderful dishes cooked in their special sauce with different herbs, raisins and cashews. We also had the Channa Masala which is a spicy garbanzo beans cooked in onions and spices.This came with with a cup of Raita which is a yogurt with cucumbers; this is a not as thick as regular yogurt, it is meant to complement some of the spicy dishes. The dinner menu has the option of including rice and naan for an additonal $3.00 which is still a bargain because you get a big serving of the naan. My friend got the garlic naan and I had the olive naan. I also ordered the Peas Pullao (basmati rice).

Needless to say, with all that food we had left overs which we happily took home.
For dessert, we decided to try the Mango Kulfi which is an old fashioned traditional Indian ice cream. Boy was that very good. It is unlike regular ice cream nor is it like a gelato. It is thicker and has more of a substance and lots of mango flavor.
We were only sorry that we had to split an order. Next time I will not be sharing my mango kulfi with anyone!

Royce' Chocolates - A Glimpse of Heaven

If you can't wait to go to heaven, the second best thing is to have a glimpse of it.
It isn't very easy, after all who ever said heaven is easy to get into? I am one of the lucky ones to have tried the Nama Royce' Chocolates.

They are little squareish truffle-like chocolates covered in powdery cocoa that come in different flavors.
My favorite is the champagne. It is one of the most delicate velvety smooth chocolates you will ever taste.

There is good and bad news on these chocolates. Let us start with the good news: They are only available in Japan, Hong Kong,Singapore, Shanghai, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Brunei, Jakarta, Busan and Manila. The bad news as you may have guessed is if you do not live there, you are out of luck.

Do not despair, this is why we have friends; friends who travel. If vacationing to one of these places is not in your agenda, ask your friend to bring some home. They freeze well. At Narita airport, you can get them in Terminal 1 & 2. The best way to buy them is at the end of a trip as these are very delicate and can easily melt especially coming from a hot country. Of course, they thought of that so they pack them with mini ice packs (which they charge for) and further pack them in insulated aluminum bags.

If you intend to share these little gems with your friends, make sure they don't pop the whole thing in their mouths. It has to be savored like fine wine. If they don't make any sounds or heavenly facial expressions; say goodbye to that friend!

The different namas are champagne, white chocolate, cherry, au lait, bitter and most of them have liqueurs but some can be had without the alcohol. Don't be surprised to see a larger selection of chocolates; chocolate dipped potato chips, fruit flavored sweets etc., they are all good but the namas are exceptional.

Heaven awaits.

Capricciosa

Again, I got excited to try this Japanese Italian restaurant in Torrance, Ca. I did my homework and googled the restaurant to preview the menu. Everything that caught my eye had meat in it. It happened to be another Friday in Lent. (Can't eat meat)

I also read about the history of how this establishment came into being. It started with a young chef who eventually opened his first restaurant in Shibuya, Japan.
He later expanded to Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines and Hawaii.

Yesterday, a friend and I decided to have dinner there. It's a small place; 1/2 of what occupied the old Claim Jumper. The other 1/2 is now Tony Romas. My friend just ordered water to drink; she's not into alcohol. I was planning to order a glass of the house wine. I asked her what the RED house wine was and she answered, chiablis. With that answer, I figured I should stick to diet coke!

We split an order of 1/2 of a caesar salad which was plenty for the two of us. It was nothing special. We also split an order of the shrimp gratin and eggplant gratin which looked so good in the picture. It was indeed good, the shrimps were tender, and the eggplant also good with lots of cheese. Both entrees were nothing to write home about.

The waitress came to ask us about dessert. Most of the desserts were ice cream, so we thought we should try the tiramisu. According to her, they made this in house and was very good as she just had it earlier. It arrived with a bunch of slivered almonds which I didn't think belonged there. It was nice and light but we both have had better ones.

The next time I will have to go to the other 1/2 which is Tony Roma's. At least there I know what to expect...good ribs...though I haven't been to this new one since the one in Redondo Beach closed many years ago. So, till then.........

What's Really Good at Panera Bread?

There are lots of good things at Panera Bread. Their bagels are very good; among my favorites are the cinnamon, french bread and asiago bagels. When I get them I always buy a serving of honey walnut cream cheese which wakes up any bagel! The exception to this is the asiago. I take this home, toast it and smother it with butter and black currant jelly.

If you happen to come in after 9:30 a.m.,chances are you've never seen their egg souffles. They are the best. You can get artichoke spinach, spinach w/bacon, four cheese souffles. I have tried them all and all have my seal of approval. The only problem is they only make it in the morning and when they run out of it....that's it. So next time you are close to a Panera sometime in the morning, get a few to eat asap or have it for lunch or a light dinner served with some salad and a glass or two of champagne.

Shepherd's Pie

There are lots of recipes for Shepherd's pie, from Gordon Ramsey's to all sorts of different versions. My recipe is simple and quick. The ingredients are 2 lbs of lean ground beef, 1 chopped onion, 2 packages of hunter sauce, frozen peas, and shredded sharp cheddar cheese, mashed potatoes.

Saute the onions in a bit of olive oil, then add the beef. When all is cooked, add the hunter sauce and peas. Season w/salt & pepper. Pour in a casserole dish and add the cooked mashed potatoes. Top with the cheese and broil till brown (about 2 minutes).

Serve with your favorite salad and some red wine.

Dinner at Home

Since I do not eat out every night I have to make dinner exciting; at least try to.
The other night, I decided to make a chicken schnitzel which turned out pretty good. All I did was flatten the chicken breast, applied salt and pepper, dipped it in Wondra flour, beaten egg and panko. I then fried it in butter. I garnished it with lemon slices and anchovies. I also squeezed some lemon just before serving. I made some red skinned mashed potatoes (salt & pepper,milk,butter garlic powder and some bleu cheese). For color, I microwaved some carrots with a dash of sugar.

Tonight, I decided to experiment. I decided to just put something together without going to the market. I took 1/2lb of bacon and cut them into strips. I cooked 1 lb.of penne pasta with spinach (healthy..vegetable plus it has fiber) in my pasta boat. If you haven't heard of the pasta boat, you are wasting a lot of your time.
When the bacon was almost done, I added a whole tub of shitake mushrooms (again, healthy..lots of selenium). I then added the aldente spinach penne. At this point I was not sure what else to add. I thought of adding a jar of pasta sauce but I didn't want to drown the taste of the bacon and its wonderful fat. So, I decided to add some black truffle oil. Seasoned it with salt and pepper and a bit of parmesan. Voila! That did it. Served it with more parmesan.

Dinner at home could be exciting but then when all is done, one has to do the dishes!

El Torito Grill

Once again I had to figure out where to consume a no meat dinner since we are still in the Lenten season.

El Torito Grill in Torrance is an old staple of very good food. Value without sacrificing quality. Decided to try their happy hour menu which is a great deal. First of all, the drinks are $5.00. You can get a cadillac margarita,Jack Daniel's manhattan, and all sorts of fruit margarita for yes...$5.00! I was about to order a mango margarita when our waitress suggested the strawberry mango which I ordered. It was sooo good and refreshing. I also asked for their wonderful tortillas served with 2 different spicy sauces but I prefer the honey butter.

We started with their famous fire roasted tomato soup. I have had this numerous times in the past. It is the best fire roasted soup you can imagine. Its a bit spicy and creamy. I can only describe the taste as yummmmy!

My friend ordered from the regular menu which you can. He ordered the shrimp enchilada which came with a scoop of heavenly sweet corn cake which is made with corn, masa and lots of butter! Tried a bit of the enchilada and it was very good. I ordered from the happy hour menu..the crispy shrimp with serrano lime sauce for $6.00. Before I ordered, I asked how many shrimps come in an order. I guessed 2-3; I'm glad I was wrong as it comes with at least 8. This was served with cucumbers. It also came with extra sauce. The shrimps were tender, not overcooked and was delicious. After the 4th shrimp, I all of a sudden started getting hot; body temperature hot. The shrimps seemed to come alive, I felt like a dragon ready to spit fire! I thought I could handle spicy since I've been going to the Indian restaurant and having spicy food. On their scale of 1-5, I was a 2). This was a 4. I ate all of my cucumbers and more of the tortillas to stabilize the heat in my mouth. So for those who enjoy spicy, this will not disappoint.

El Torito is not your usual mexican restaurnt. They put a twist on everything. It will surprise you.

Bristol Cafe - Rolling Hills Estates

Went to mass this morning and had skipped breakfast(not a good idea). I thought I would eat after so I can relax and read the papers. The only hymns that could be heard from me was coming from my stomach. I was starving! So right after mass, I thought I would not make it home alive so I had to do something drastic to silence the chorus.

Bristol Farms in Rolling Hills had just finished their remodeling and I haven't been in their cafe in a long time so this was it. I didn't know what to order so I asked the waitress what she would recommend. She immediately said I should try their cinnamon french toast since it is made with their own fresh cinnamon swirl bread. This is what I ordered. It came with a choice of fruit or potatoes. I was partly brain dead from hunger that I just blurted out "Fruit" It was probably the influence of my guardian angel.

The serving was very generous. An order came with 3 thick slices of the cinnamon swirl french toast. Of course I had to ask for extra powdered sugar. Powdered sugar is good for the soul. It was very good especially after I added a little butter and poured the warm syrup. It would have been perfect with a side of bacon but oh, since it is a Friday and Lent; can't eat meat. FYI, the fruit was....... fruit!

International Express - Filipino Market

I got excited when I saw this tiny Filipino market in the corner of Pacific Coast Hwy. & Pennsylvania in Lomita, California. I stopped by yesterday to investigate and see what they had to offer. It is a mini market, a take out and catering place. They have about 3 small tables and a few chairs. They had a lot to offer, including a middle eastern menu.

Today, I ventured in to actually order something for dinner. I decided on the chicken adobo, their house specialty, and the fried boneless bangus (milk fish). They also had shanghai lumpia which is normally finger size in diameter. Theirs was the size of a regular egg roll; no complaint there..the bigger the better right?

While I waited for my order to be cooked, I went ahead and ordered a halo-halo for my lunch.(translated: mix-mix). It is a dessert with a variety of stuff, from sweetened garbanzo beans, red beans, flan, macapuno, ube, banana (sweetened from brown sugar),langka (jack fruit), ice cream and milk. This is usually served in a tall glass with lots of finely crushed ice. To eat, you have to flatten the mound of crushed ice and mixing it so the bottom full of whatever stuff you ordered, comes to the surface ready for consumption. I also ordered my favorite dessert, turon. This is like a fried eggroll but is stuffed w/ banana and langka then fried. The turon's texture was excellent, very light. The banana was o.k. and could have been sweeter. If they put a tsp. of apricot preserves or blackcurrant jelly in between the banana and langka, it would have been excellent. When the halo-halo came, it took me a long time to mix everything as the crushed ice was not crushed properly. It had pea size ice balls which was quite annoying. I had asked for only 3 items and skipped the ube ice cream. I just had the milk. Well, it was disappointing as it was quite tasteless.

I looked forward to dinner. I heated everything and got my diet pepsi ready. Don't laugh. Wine to me just does not go with filipino food. The adobo was again just o.k. I have had really good adobo so my expectations were high. The bangus (milk fish) was very good, especially after drenching it in filipino vinegar. The shanghai lumpia was good but not addicting as should be.

I have to make another trip as I am CURIOUS to see how their pansit (filipino noodles) taste. I have to be careful as you all know what happened to the cat!

Father's Office

It's funny, every time someone asks "Have you been to Father's Office" they either know what you're talking about or they give you a confused look..."whose father's office?" For the sheltered population, Father's Office is a gastropub with 2 locations: Santa Monica (opened in 1953) and Culver City, California.

I have always heard about their burgers. My friend and I were in Culver City so we decided to give it a try. They have outside seating and there were a good number of people outside on this nice warm day. We noticed an employee sitting by the door with earphones. Either he was secret service (though not so secret) or a bouncer about to check us out to see if we were fit to come in. He just greeted us and asked if it was our first time; was it written on our foreheads? He proceeded to tell us to just order from the bar.

We sat in the bar and told our bartender we were there to try their burgers. He asked us what we wanted to drink. They specialize in all kinds of beer. Cindy and I are not beer drinkers but we decided to put our lives on the line. We asked for his suggestion. He got us both the Bear Republic Racer 5, a bit bitter but is the best one to complement the burger.

The burger came and we both loved it. It was a generous portion. It had arugula, caramelized onions, bleu cheese, and bacon. The onions were so sweet which went well with the salty cheese. The beer had a hint of grapefruit and I don't mean to sound like a wine connoisseur who can taste, raspsberry or chocolate in their wine. I have never been able to taste anything other than wine in my glass of wine. But this beer really had that distinct flavor. This was like a symphony; everything just came together beautifully. I was not too crazy over their fries. It was thin and crunchy, too crunchy that I could not appreciate the flavor of the fries. They served this with a wonderful aioli sauce. Caution: they do not serve ketchup. I usually add a bit of ketchup to an aioli to give it a bit of an oomph. I hate to admit it but this really didn't need any oomph.

The man next to me ordered fresh oysters that looked really good. I asked him how it was and his response was: "very good, would you like one?" I was tempted but passed. There's always a next time.....