Silog

Sandi and I were craving " Sizzling Sisig", a Philippine dish made from a pig's head; jaw, ears, etc. from the restaurant Silog. They make a very tasty one served with garlic fried rice and a soft boiled egg on top of the rice. If the idea of a pig's head being used to make this delicious dish turns you off, do not despair. Chef Lemuel is aware that some people are not as adventurous as others so he makes his "sisig" using pork belly and pork shoulder.

We ordered their addicting Lumpia (pork eggrolls) for our appetizer. That went well with the equally addicting sweet and sour sauce which had a bit of a kick to it. I almost forgot about their wonderful salad you get with your entrée. It has a mango dressing with chunks of mango in it. I neglected to take a picture in my excitement. For drinks, I had to have the Calamansi Mojito.  Calamansi is the Philippine lemon/lime. It's the best drink ever!

The Sizzling Sisig is now served a different way. The Sisig comes in a small cast iron pan so it stays hot longer as it continues to sizzle. The garlic fried rice with the egg came separately. The proper way of eating this is first breaking the soft boiled egg as it oozes unto the rice. Take a quarter or half a spoonful of sisig and the fill the spoon with rice. You then close your eyes and savor the beautiful flavors which explode in your mouth and say: " Saaarap" which is delicious in Tagalog.

Dessert time came along. We always order the Turon (Fried Banana) which has jackfruit in it and is wrapped like an eggroll and fried. This is served with either mango or jackfruit ice cream. This time we thought we would try the Leche Flan. We asked that they burn the top like a creme brulee. The presentation was beautiful! Unfortunately, Sandi and I just had one bite each. The flan was too heavy and was not good. Our server Kate who was super nice apologized but could not do much for us since the owner/chef was not there at the time. We ended up ordering the Turon (fried banana) which was yummy as ever.

I spoke to Chef Lemuel the following day and he did apologize. Apparently, the person that cooked the flan had the wrong temperature and left it in the oven longer. He thanked me for bringing it to his attention and always welcomes comments or critique. That to me is a sign of a great chef. One that doesn't have an inflated ego. Restaurants cannot be perfect all the time and I am always forgiving when they recognize mistakes and try their best to correct them.

Silog is located at 1555 W. Sepulveda Blvd. Suite G in Torrance, California.

Tin Roof Bistro

The last time I was at Tin Roof Bistro, I vowed I would not go back. It wasn't the food that kept me away but it was the chaos, the overpowering sound of people talking. It was at the height of lunch and I remember that a friend and I could not hear each other.  Jody was there recently and she raved about the Brussels sprouts and some curry dish.  Three of us met there yesterday at 11 a.m. (that's when they open).

We ordered the Caramelized Brussels Sprouts, the Indian Spiced Spinach Dip and a Carbonara Pizza from their own wood burning pizza oven. Let me tell you, the Brussels Sprouts were to die for! The sauce consisted of butter, garlic, lemon, capers, and anchovies. We were all shocked about the anchovies.  It was lemony, salty, slight bitterness from the sprouts itself, and just as Jody put it, "orgasmic"! The sprouts were served over bruschetta which was wonderful in the lemony, salty, buttery sauce.

The Indian-Spiced Spinach Dip was also very good. It had mozzarella, Parmesan, and curried cream in with the spinach and this was served with woodfire flatbread. The Carbonara Pizza had pancetta, roasted mushrooms, ricotta, smoked mozzarella, pecorino topped with sunny side eggs. That too was very good. We could not finish the pizza since my two partners didn't eat as much as I did.

We absolutely did not have room for dessert. We were so full that I was not hungry for dinner and just settled for a cookie; a large oatmeal cookie at 7:00 p.m.

Tin Roof Bistro is located at 3500 N. Sepulveda Blvd. in Manhattan Beach, California. It is best to go before the whole population of Manhattan Beach arrives. They are open from 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. and open till 11:00 p.m. on weekends.

Dominique Ansel at the Grove

Yesterday, we left the Palos Verdes area at 9:30 am and it did not take us long to arrive at the Grove. This usually takes us at least an hour. We figured this is the best time; a Sunday morning when people are just having a late breakfast or still at church.

Our intention was purely picking up some Cronuts. This month's flavor is Concord Grape and Lime Fromage Blanc filled with homemade grape jam and creamy lime zest sugar outside. This time we restrained ourselves from buying 8 each, we settled for 4.

We decided to have an early lunch so we ordered 2 sandwiches to share. The first one was called "Not a Simple Grilled Cheese", served with a salad for $13.00 and the second was House-made Porchetta Sandwich served warm, with a side salad as well. The grilled cheese came first so we didn't waste any time and just went for it. It was good but definitely not the best grilled cheese we've had. The salad was very good, not too tart and just right.

The Porchetta Sandwich looked promising with caramelized leeks and mustard. Unfortunately, it was all looks. The sandwich was tasteless. The porchetta was dry. I was starving so I ate a bit more but didn't finish my half. Sandi only had 2 bites. I went to ask for mustard to add flavor. However, the mustard alone could not salvage the sandwich. For $17.00, one would expect a reasonably good if not a fabulous sandwich. We asked for the manager. Jose, the supervisor talked to Sandi but all he could do was promise to relay the message to the manager. What good is that? He didn't even ask for our information.

Sandi did purchase an extra cronut for us to try while we were still at the restaurant. The grape/lime cronut was delicious. We were both surprised that it didn't taste "grapey" which was good because we both dislike grape jelly. The lime took care of the grape and therefore made a wonderful combination of flavors. I still think no one can make better cronuts than Dominique Ansel. Perhaps he should stick to making cronuts and pastries.

Dominique Ansel is located at the Grove at 189 The Grove Dr. in Los Angeles, California.

Desserts by Patrick

This blog has nothing to do with desserts though they do have a variety of good desserts. I recently ordered 2 of their quiches; one was ham and cheese and the other was a salmon spinach. I have had both at a party given by the Commelins' and I loved them.

The quiches were a hit except for someone that does not like salmon. The rest of us enjoyed them. These quiches were very light and fluffy. I picked them up and they were still warm so serving them at room temperature was just perfect.

I thank Patrick for coming in early to make these special quiches. They were a hit!

Desserts by Patrick is located at 1820 S. Catalina Ave. in Redondo Beach, CA 90277.

NBC Seafood Restaurant

My cousin Gina is in town and we haven't seen each other in at least 15-20 years, although she seems to thinks it's only been 10 years. We have always been too busy to see each other when I am in the  Philippines or when she is in town. This time we were determined to meet half-way for a long overdue visit.

We met at NBC Seafood Restaurant, a dim sum place in Monterey Park which was huge. It was very nice seeing each other, both of us older but still could walk without help! She was in charge of ordering the food so she ordered, Steamed Pork Siu Mai. Steamed Shrimp Dumplings, Pork Spare Ribs, and Vegetable Dumpling. She asked me if I like Chicken Feet. I've never had them but I figured if Gina likes them, it has to be good! The Eggplant with Shrimp looked delicious so I ordered that.

They were all delicious, including the chicken feet. The only problem is though tasty it doesn't have much meat so, for me, sucking was work! I would definitely go back and perhaps even have a very early lunch at 10:30 a.m. The restaurant opens at 8:00 a.m. and I can't imagine what people eat at that time.

NBC Seafood Restaurant is located at 404 S. Atlantic Blvd. #A in Monterey Park, California. They are open from 8:00 a.m to 10 p.m. seven days a week.

Potato Pizza at Bonello's New York Pizza

Don't knock it if you haven't tried it. I recently had a Mashed Potato Pizza in Chicago and I loved it! Sandi told me that she has had the Potato Pizza at Bonello's Pizza. These were slices of potatoes, not mashed. She raved about it so I naturally had to try it, especially since she normally is not fond of pizza.

The regular pizza is 14 inches which is not their large but to us, it was quite large. They do not have a liquor license but Tony welcomes any adult to bring their alcohol so I brought some red wine in a thermos! I didn't bring a bottle since Sandi is allergic to red wine and therefore could not share a bottle with me.

The pizza arrived and the size was overwhelming for just the two of us. That is one fantastic tasting potato pizza. It's creamy with different kinds of cheeses and mushrooms. The crust was nice and crisp. The last time we tried a potato pizza (aside from the one I had in Chicago) was in Rome many years ago. I managed to eat 4 large slices; my partner in crime only had two. What can I say, she doesn't eat like a truck driver like I do.

Bonello's New York Pizza is located at 24427 Narbonne Ave. in Lomita, California.

Ladies Night at Gaetano's

Sandi and I thought we would go to "Ladies Night" at Gaetano's since it has been a while since our last visit.  It's funny because it's the places closest to you that you often ignore or forget.  This time, we ordered just appetizers but from the regular menu so we got more food. The quantity is not diminished and they are half-price. The wine and cocktails are also half price.

We ordered their infamous Bruschetta Pomodoro. I have to say that I have had bruschetta from different restaurants and this is by far the best. The color of the tomatoes alone were enough to get anyone excited. We enjoyed the Calamari with the 2 sauces. I preferred the green sauce. We both were not sure what kind it was and later we were informed by Grace our server, that it was pesto with some mayonnaise. (If we read the menu, it did identify the sauces.) We were surprised because Sandi and I do not care for pesto but this pesto had magic in it.

We always order the Arancini, fried risotto balls with Marinara sauce, again it's not just plain marinara, it's magic marinara. I have to mention that the Blood Orange Mojito cocktail I ordered was wonderful. It consisted of blood orange puree, rum, simple syrup, freshly made citrus juice, soda water, and lime.  This is a drink I will definitely order again.

Next time you're in the neighborhood, check out Ladies Night on Mondays at Gaetano's Restaurant at 2731 Pacific Coast Hwy. in Torrance. You'll be glad you did.

Oktoberfest 2018 at the Alpine Village

The only time I went to the Oktoberfest at the Alpine Village was in the late 70's. I was taking German and remember having a fabulous teacher named Gundula. She was great because not only did she teach the language but made the class very interesting with stories about Germany and it's people. She also taught us German songs. What better place to practice and experience German than to go the Alpine Village for Oktoberfest.  Our whole class went and we all had a blast ordering our food in German, dancing and singing the songs we learned. I remember the band playing the "chicken dance song" and we all got up and did the silly dance.

I conned a friend into going with me last Friday.  Admission to the tent was $20 and $15 to a designated driver who received 2 tickets to a soda or water. We went as soon as it opened to avoid the crowds that can be rowdy.  The band straight from Germany performed and got everyone in the mood. unfortunately, it was too early for dancing. We had our silly picture taken for free, so that was something else to do.

We both ordered the Pork Schnitzel on a pretzel bun. It looked good but it was on the dry side. The French fries were nice and crispy which made up for the schnitzel. We skipped the Apfelstudel because it was not the flaky type of strudel; it was the cakey type which didn't look appetizing.

We both ate, listened to the music and shortly after the lady across from me spilled her red wine all over the table onto my knee and purse, we immediately thought it was time to leave. There were cops all over the parking lot getting ready for the crowd. I mentioned to one of them that the rowdy ones would soon be coming and he jokingly accused me of being "the rowdy one."

I'm sure that this is the last of my attendance of the Oktoberfest at the Alpine Village in Torrance. It's probably more fun if you go in a group and get drunk! The food was not good. We would have been better off going to the restaurant and ordering Rouladen or Sauerbraten. Oh well, not everything can be ausgezeichnet.

Jean-George at the Waldorf Astoria

It has been a month since we last took advantage of the Travelzoo deal at Jean-George at the Waldorf Astoria in Beverly Hills. We all love a great deal so we decided to do it again before it ends sometime this month. We all were to pick an appetizer, an entrée which was slightly different this time, and a dessert. We also could have a glass of wine or a cocktail up to $24 which was included in the $38 luncheon deal.

After we ordered our favorite cocktail which was Rose-Aperol Spritz; vodka, rosé, Aperol, lime, and club soda, we readily attacked the bread basket which was mostly olive bread. We remembered how addicting it was the last time so I asked Michael, our server who happened to serve us last month, to give us more of the olive bread.  It was unanimously agreed that this was the best olive bread we ever had.

This time they served us an amuse-bouche of  Pink Lady Apple, Melon juice with Ginger. We sipped that baby so fast that just before Mertz was about to have her last sip, I had her stop so I could take a picture of it. Sandi ordered the Calamari again which made me very happy because I knew I would get all the tentacles! I have to mention that the sauce for the calamari was outstanding. Cindy and Mertz had the soup of Coconut Foam with lime froth, mint powder, and lime zest. That was delicious. I had to have the Ahi Tuna Tartare with avocado and a radish ginger dressing.  That alone was almost a meal. It was so smooth and delectable.

For our entrée, everyone decided on the Grilled Wagyu Cheeseburger with pepper jack cheese, avocado, miso Russian dressing. That burger was humongous which made it hard to eat but since we were all  (except for one who shall remain anonymous) game, we tried our very best to be ladylike to no avail since we had sauce dripping all over but it was ohh so very good. The burger came with a large serving of French fries which we absolutely had to consume.

We were almost full even before the burger because of the olive bread which was rapidly replenished when the supply decreased. Dessert was once again a no-brainer. We all had the Chocolate Cake with more chocolate oozing out, a wonderful way to end a meal.

Thanks to Michael and Ramiro for again the excellent service. Special thanks to Michael who took our picture several times at different angles so no one looked fatter than normal.

Jean-George is truly a great restaurant. I was there for dinner a year ago and the food and service were excellent. Jean-George is located inside the Waldorf Astoria in Beverly Hills.