Best Chocolate Cake Ever!

That is vanilla bean ice cream on the background, while up front we have The Cake. This is the best version of the brownie I have ever tasted. Its a soft cake shell filled with chocolate fondue. I am not entirely sure what the cap is made from, seemed like a cheese of some sort. It mostly melted into the fondue and the browned part was pretty chewy.

To summarize the lesson of the day is if you ever make a brownie, hollow it out and fill it with chocolate fondue.

IKEA Trip

Swedish meatballs!

It's been a while since I had them, but they are great. These were from the IKEA cafeteria, so not the best showing that they might have. Still it was free and it was a good memory to relive. Also strangely Thanksgiving-ly themed.

Hopefully when I'm actually in Sweden I'll be able to post a more accurate and delicious looking portrayal (if they are really Swedish, which I haven't checked yet). I'm keeping this post short, but when I do some more research I'll blog about it.

Peru.... Well Done!

So me and my brother were in the south Santa Ana area when dinner time rolled around. We ended up going to DX Peruvian restaurant. This place is fairly small, and is run by actual Peruvians! I decided to be adventurous and ordered the ceviche. The green sauce called huacatay was also very good, slightly spicy, very herb-y.

I really liked it. It is very zesty, and also quite spicy. The service was outstanding, they were all smiles and answered all my questions, and I had quite a few. I also chose a unique drink. I got the chicha morada, which at this restaurant is a fruit drink made from purple corn, pineapple, and apple. According to Wikipedia it is usually fermented, but this one wasn't. I will admit I was disappointed with the fried yucca, but overall this was one of the best surprises of the year.

Thank You Delicious Potatoes

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving.

Our dinner was probably a lot more conservative then most, and a little less traditional. We didn't have any pumpkin or turkey. We did have potatoes though and this is one of the best ways to have them.

Simple meal, with some roasted pork loin, steamed vegetables, rice, and roasted potatoes. The potatoes are thinly sliced, seasoned and layered. Then, we pour a egg, milk, and cream mixture to fill in the gaps. Sprinkle a heavy layer of cheese on top to melt and give a nice brown golden layer, and you are good to go.

Happy Thanksgiving!

First, I just want to wish everyone a happy thanksgiving.
Second, I want to say that the thanksgiving dinner food isn't ready yet, so the picture(s) will have to come later.
Third, this year we aren't having turkey so it won't be a very typical thanksgiving dinner.

Lastly, I hope everyone has a great time, and I wanted to keep this short so I could also get back to my own feast making and relaxation.

Fritto Misto

Welcome to Santa Monica! There are a lot of good restaurants around here. This time around I decided to go to a small homely Italian restaurant called Fritto Misto. This place has delicious homemade pastas at a moderate price. Under recommendations I got the Jumbo Raviolli, this plate is a ridiculous assortment of delicious. All you need to know is that it has prosciutto, chicken, mozzarella, pancetta (bacon), dried tomatoes, and caramellized onions, all immersed in a garlic cream sauce. Ok enough talk, take a deep breath and take it in.

I haven't even left, but I already want to come back to LA.

New Food Opolis

At the suggestion of a close family friend I went to Zoës Kitchen, a trendy new Mediterranean dinner. I ordered the grilled chicken pita sandwich and chose the pasta salad to accompany it.

This place is good. The ingredients are fresh and the food tastes like something you should eat while enjoying the sun and overlooking the Mediterranean from a high Greek balcony. I am also a huge fan of Mediterranean food. A good point this family friend brought up, is that they have wonderful vegetarian options. I could gladly have a vegan meal off of Mediterranean foods (though eating feta cheese would be extremely tempting).

Unlikely Collegian Classic

Pork loin baked to perfection was one of my all time favorite dishes to cook in college. I would chop up some garlic and seasoning, rub it into the pork loin with some salt. Heat the oven up, throw that baby in there and go make yourself some side dishes. In college I would make rice, takes about 15 minutes on the stove top? Never really timed it. Then, when the meat was getting about ready, I would thrown in some bananas in the stove for some sweet baked bananas as a side. I will probably do a post on baked bananas as my roommates in college were fascinated by them.

This is a post-college version, we still have the pork loing, but in addition to the rice we have some spinach and instead of baked bananas I went with some french fries.

Asian Pick-up

You know I am not a true Asian when I get Pei Wei to go and consider it a quick and good Asian meal. My Chinese friend refuses to accept Pei Wei as a true Asian restaurant, but then again he is very picky. For me the Thai style chicken coconut curry dish was great.

It is slightly spicy, but the coconut milk keeps it in check. This is a great no effort meal, which can be picked up and enjoyed at home. Call in, pick it up and you have yourself a cheap quick dinner. The portions are usually big enough for two meals as well.

Crème Brûlée

Here it is, the much anticipated dessert from the Yucatan taco stand. The white chocolate crème brûlée.

There isn't much to say, the creme is sweet and the berries are just the right amount of tart. The crisp crust is hard and provides the crunch to keep your teeth working. All in all a great derivative of the classic dessert.

Tequila or Taco??

So the Yucatan Tequila Bar Taco Stand  recently opened on the Woodlands waterway, so me and some friends went try it out (I feel like I need to go back for dinner and order some liquid fell good food). I admit this picture isn't much to look at, so yes if you will actually have to read what I have to say about it.

This shredded carne de puerco (pork) taco looks more like a burrito bowl salad. That's a good thing, it gives you an idea of the size of this flavor packed taco. As an after thought I would have liked to mix the ingredients all together, as you can not see the pork is all under the salad and cheese, but there is plenty of it, trust me. For this meal I only got this single taco, I was saving up room for the dessert. That can wait till tomorrow though.

My First Bench Mark!

I want to take the time to thank any regular viewers out there. It's gratifying to know people are reading my blog.

I also want to take some time to share some statistics. Yesterday we crossed the 1000 views mark. With viewers from 14 different countries. The top 5 being the United States, Russia, Brazil, Sweden, and India (China would complete the BRIC).

I would also like to invite anyone to reply to any of the posts with suggestions about other restaurants or traditional meals (the more diverse, the better). I would love to be able to try whatever 'it' is someday. Also I gladly welcome any excuse for me to go travel somewhere.

2008 Euro trip. Showcase my travelling spirit.

Oh and for my Swedish or Russian viewers, I am hoping to visit your country in the near future.

Bento Box!

From sushi and tempura to bento box and donburi The Japanese seem to never fail to please. This is an elaborate bento from Fokuda Japanese Restaurant. If only every day my lunch could be as carefully prepared.

Out of the many bento options I chose the Robata bento. It was very good, as was the not picture salad and miso soup that comes before the main portion. After eating this, it makes me think we could all take a lesson from the Japanese.

Brio Tuscan Grille!

If you want that top notch service, great food, classy upscale atmosphere, head over to Brio, a nice upper scale Italian restaurant. The lunch menu is different from the dinner, with portions considerably cheaper, but also smaller. I had the Pasta Yandolino with Rigatoni, chicken, spinach, mushrooms, Feta and diced tomatoes in a light bercy with pesto bread crumbs.

Everything I have eaten here has been of great quality. I have never had a bad waitress, and somehow just walking in makes you feel important. I think it's a great place for when you have a little extra to celebrate, besides just being your awesome self!

The Devil's Food

This cake, more commonly known as Red Velvet comes from the esteemed Cheesecake Factory. It was consumed in celebration of a good family friends birthday. The thick cheesecake layer is suave and delicious with just enough cream cheese. The cake is just moist enough to crumble effortlessly in your mouth. Finally, to be a little critical I found the white chocolate shavings a little too sweet.

If you are wondering red velvet is a chocolate cake. Traditionally the acidity of buttermilk and vinegar mixed with cocoa makes the anthocyanin pigment of the cocoa more apparent giving the cakes its reddish color. Now food coloring makes the red tone even stronger, giving it a stark contrast with the common cream cheese layers. It'll taste good if it looks good, right?

Cold as Ice

The newest old trend in self-proclaimed healthy desserts is frozen yogurt. These places are popping up everywhere, and I'm not one to complain. The pay by the pound style is great for limiting your consumption to a decent amount. It's true, I tend to get carried away sometimes, but usually I keep my head and get a great dessert for a great price.

The condiments are what makes the dessert. Here I have a mix of red velvet (almost chocolate) and cheesecake frozen yogurt as a base, with strawberries, cheesecake bites, and some yogurt sprinkles on top. This time I forgot, but I usually also add some condensed milk to keep things deliciously sweet.

Black Walnut

Sometimes you just want to relax with friends. Eat great food, drink great tea/coffee. Lean back on a comfortable arm chair. Maybe get a sweet dessert. Well you can do any or all of those things at the Black Walnut Cafe. Here is one of my favorite entrees.

Chicken tenders and fries, with honey mustard and chipotle ranch dressings. The price is on the higher side, but the quality of the food pays for itself, and if you need more motivation, the large portion should be enough to serve as lunch and dinner. I'll post about their desserts and you will find out the wisdom behind rationing your entree.

It Tastes Like Green

When I was a little kid I claimed to be able to taste the difference in different colored pastas, no one believed me... That was then, now I make no such claim and people still don't believe me.

Spinach fettuccine with a mascarpone cream sauce with a handful of shredded Parmesan on top. A hard cheese will give you thinner shavings as opposed to soft cheeses. In my opinion it looks a lot better for the presentation, and will melt easier. I also like hard cheeses, because they have a more powerful taste to them.

Rolling with it

I am a huge fan of sushi and I am surprised it has taken me this long to post them up on here. I don't know of any studies on how healthy sushi is, but every time I eat it I feel like I'm being healthy. This is a roll that I got at H&H, but I much prefer simple sushi like just tuna or salmon over rice (also healthier).

Pre-prepared sushi also makes for a great lunch on a hectic day.

Fire in the Hole!

Austinites might recognize this slogan from Pluckers. This isn't a picture of when I did the challenge, no that was too painful to showcase in public. If they hadn't put up that huge poster on the left wall right as you walk in on the Rio Grande location in west campus, you would see my picture about eye level (if you are... idk 5'6), but they did put the poster up and my picture is now gone... Sad I know, that wall just has no charm anymore...

Their wings however are as hot as ever, and delicious too boost. I got medium with lemon pepper, and it was as a little spicier then I remembered. Their cups are large so you are set to go, but the wait for a refill can be painful. If you want a great loud atmosphere, go there for any Texas game, you won't be disappointed.

Monday Mix

So I have been playing pick up soccer games on Monday nights at my gym, and it kinda runs into dinner time. So after hitting the showers I leave my gym to hit the food counter at H&H kitchen. They offer a variety of ready pre-prepared hot foods. I tend to try and get something different every week.

This week I went for 2 chicken tenders and portobello mushrooms. It's more filling then it looks, and it's also a late dinner so I usually don't over indulge.

Cuatros!

Ok, what has a 4x4 mega screen, shows soccer matches, has great burgers/chicken sandwiches/tacos, and 

some of the cutest waitresses in Austin?

CUATROS. I love this place.

This is the Burger for Breakfast. Say hello to a sunny side up on your burger, and then say your goodbyes as it disappears into your stomach.
I can't say exactly how many times I have come to Cuatros for a brunch and devoured one of these while watching a football or a futbol match. I can say it hasn't been enough.

Alas, Hunger Broke my Fast

After fasting for about 10 hours I woke up quite hungry so I went for a complete breakfast...

It's hard to find a good mango but that one was juicy sweet. As the main course I chose a salami/Havarti sandwich with and a strawberry jam dessert.

Now that's something worth getting up for.

Simple Bowl Complicated Salad

In my hometown (The Woodlands, TX) there is a upscale outdoor shopping center called Market Street. There is now a salad wrap/bowl location there, which is not creatively called Salata. This place is pretty cool. You first choose whether you want a tossed salad bowl or a wrap, then you pick from their vast array of extras to compliment the lettuce just the way you want it. Then, for a small fee you can add some protein in the form of chicken or seafood (salmon, shrimp, etc.).

Though some will say it's a bit pricey for 'just' a salad, I think it's a great fast option for a light and healthy meal. Also the salads are quite big, and all the ingredients are incredibly fresh and of great quality.

I got mine with a pesto toast (devoured before picture...), mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, feta cheese, green and black olives, grilled chicken and a balsamic vinaigrette dressing.

QA QELATE KATI NA FATE?

So it was the birthday of one of our good family friends last weekend, and we went to a spirited Greek restaurant called Olive Oil. I got a simple gyro plate, but one of my friends got the sampler, which contains a little bit of everything. It was more photogenic in this case...

I will comment on the gyro meat, which is what I got, and I will say that it was good, not terrific but good. The hummus appetizer was also good, but a bit dry for my taste, the pita bread however was amazing. The restaurant also has a little show on Saturday's, which consisted of some traditional Greek dancing, and a bellydancer (who happened to be an old high school colleague). If you like music and dance with your a good hearty Greek dish, this place has got it all.