thrown noodles....

noodles.. if you dont know i love noodles. and from my trip in vietnam the one noodle dish that i took with me the most was the thrown noodles in Vung Tao, Vietnam. its a basic egg noodle but the catch is that the man throws the noodles about two stories. how cool is that?? ? talk about having a nice little thing to bring the people to your spot. some people twitter and some just cook with stunts.

this place also had the cutest little beef balls. but i must admit that in vietnam the chili is so much spicier and better than in the states. but the USA makes really good dipping sauces...

top shot of the damage that my family did at this noodle spot.

Bo Bia... better than your average spring rolls...

Many people eat spring rolls on a regular basis. You find them in CPK, PF Chang's and just about all the whole foods markets, thats how popular they are these days. I even make them for catering parties and when I am hired on as a private chef. People love them.. but what i prefer more is Bo Bia. its a different concoction that has more flavor and texture if you ask me. during the first few days when i arrived in Vietnam, i was in the local village of Long Son which is a bit out of Ho Chi Minh City. I had started to crave for Bo Bia since it somehow slipped into my head while sitting outside watching people pass me by on their motorcycles (hondas as the locals call it) ... I turned to my cousin and said i wanted to eat bo bia and she gave me this look of "what are you talking about" my mother then decides to tell me that its something that is known only to the chinese/vietnamese mix of people. thus it was only in the city would i find this delicious roll.

(my adorable niece demonstrating how to enjoy bo bia properly)

So now that i've been staying up in the city with my relatives i was able to eat any food my stomach desired. And so it was mentioned early in the morning that i was craving bo bia for the longest time and lucky me my family loves me... they found the bo bia street vending lady!!!!!

I know i keep going on and not even telling you what this amazing food is.. well its the cousin of the spring roll (boiled shrimp, boiled pork belly, rice noodles, lettuce, pickled carrots and daikon, mint and sometimes a bit of chinese chives and all wrapped up tightly in rice paper) Bo Bia on the other hand is made with different ingredients that give it a more unique flavor.

Bo Bia - Lap Cheong (chinese cured sausage), tiny dried shrimp, a stir fried mixture of julienned jicama, carrots, egg omelet that is thinly sliced (this vendor didnt have it), thai basil and lettuce all wrapped up in rice paper. dipped in a sauce that is similar to the sauce for the traditional spring rolls consisting of hoisin sauce, chili sauce and some crushed toasted peanuts for crunch.

the bo bia lady came by right outside our home to make these super fresh. the jicama mixture was piping hot, the lap cheong was sliced thinly and as you can see from the pictures the assembly was quick. we ordered about 25 or so rolls eat averaging about 2000 VND which is about maybe 10 cents USD. this snack was very delightful as it was light, crunchy and filled with flavor. I ate about 5 rolls myself with some extra chili in my dipping sauce. sweet and spicy is a such a nice dipping sauce when you have something that crunchy and salty coming into it. I enjoy this snack so much, sadly in the US its very hard to find Bo Bia as fresh as this (*unless you make it yourself of course-my family might do it once a year since most people are not so good with the rolling process and handling of rice paper) anyhow if you do find bo bia in the states you get them usually at Van's bakery or asian bakery/bread places that might sell pre-packed food. happy hunting for it in the states or get yourself an invite to a family party that has this yummy snack.

eat extraordinary everyday!

Still in Vietnam....

There are so many things to talk about that it is hard for me to put into words which to speak of first. sometimes while i'm eating new things i forget my camera and thus have to hope i'll be remembering what it was called to buy it again. anyhow, for the most part of my trip i have been staying in the island of Long Son which is where my mother is from. and i have had so much seafood i might find it very hard to consume seafood when i get back to the states, unless its sushi, but of course thats another thing. . .

so anyhow in Long Son there's a little area that you take this boat to, its basically a restaurant on the water. they have hammocks and its private and its peaceful.

we ordered just a few things since it was only two people eating. we had some local clams which was super yummy. dipped in the salt/pepper/lime

next we had crab with tamarind, sooo yummy. if you ever have this you will never go back to regular crab and butter sauce. this is my favorite way of eating crab.

then we have some grilled oysters with some butter... it was yummy since it was fairly fresh. i really enjoyed my time eating all the seafood.

so thats that for now.. more food postings while i can. trying not to get sick of the food while i'm here..

eat extraordinary everyday!

do you like rice???

Broken rice dishes are the best.... in america there are tons of restaurants that serve only these dishes. the key to the best of these dishes are the rice, the meat and the sauces. sometimes the sauces are to fishey as they are consisted of fish sauces. but sometimes when you have things just right it is a happy meal. well vietnamese happy meal that is. i thoroughly enjoyed every rice dish i've had since ive been back in vietnam.

oh yes.. i'm currently in vietnam. my motherland. eating tons of amazing exotic fruits, and dishes i have only heard of. hopefully i'll keep a good record of everything with pictures and stories for my blog.

usually you get a plate of broken rice, some pork chop or strips of beef in it depending on what you order. but when its all seasoned correctly you get a good bite and heaven is in your mouth. seriously. and i like the egg on top too, the fresh veggies on the plate are a nice change in temperature and texture when you're eating.

I'm a big fan of eating quick and delicious. today was just rice for you.. lots of noodles and more yummy good stuff. i've been taking pictures everyday so sit tight for more foodie pix i'm considering a nice blog of just pictures.

Kabuki Sake Tasting

So last night I attended this sake tasting event at Kabuki restaurant, in the Old Town Pasadena location. I went for research but it turned out to be a private lesson from the Master Sake Sommelier Yuji Mastumono, who is a dear friend of mine. 

anyhow here is the low down on this, currently working on a sake project and I've been learning a lot about sake so more details to that to come. but for the most part I'll cover what happened last night. i like sake, its one of the only things that i can drink provided that there is enough food involved. its very clean and refreshing, and i like to taste those types of drinks. 

there were three types of sake that were offered to taste all different in body type. 

1) Kikusui which is a Junmai Ginjo. (light body)

2) Mizbasho which was a Ginjo. (medium body)

3) Nanbubijin which was a Tokubetsu Junmai  (full body)

and my personal favorite was the last one (Nanbubijin) which was a full body sake, at first i did not like the Mizbasho at first but in the end it was a very good sake to go with food. 

with the three sake came small samples of the rolls, sushi and the grilled ribs. Yuji had me smell and taste all three sakes prior to the food coming. so based on that first impression i liked the full body and more earthy flavored sake. and did not like the way the Mizbasho cut in with bitterness at the end, but i changed my mind shortly after the food came. 

so first sake up with food was the Kikusui, i sipped a little then had the salmon sushi. after sipping some more the salmon flavors came out more and had a nice smokey savory flavor that came out even more. i really enjoyed that. and then yuji suggested that i tried the ribs and see how that went with a light body sake. and boy o boy was it different. the ribs did not go well with the ribs as the sake was able to cut the rich flavors of the beef. so light with light. 

second up was the Mizbasho, which was not my favorite at first as it had a sharp finish on my tongue. but with the albacore sushi, it was really really nice. the sweetness of the fish came out and really help the finish on the tongue after food was with it. next food with the sake was the Triple A roll (avocado/asparagus/albacore) wow! the avocado and rich buttery flavors came out with a sip of the sake, i ended up trying the Yellow Tail sushi with this sake as well and it help bring out the buttery notes of the yellow tail. i was thoroughly impressed with how much the sake complimented the food and was surprised that i liked it after giving it a chance with food. 

lastly the sake i liked without food, i had this with the ribs and it was a perfect match. yuji was right, i like meat and this sake was perfect with the beef. it help bring out the grilled beef flavors of the meat and the sake was full enough to stand up to such a strong flavor, uber savory and smokey yet a smooth sweet finish. 

overall the experience was very good. i also got to try to nigori sake which is unfiltered sake, much sweeter and cloudy. i could only imagine some cool recipes with that to come... 

i had a great time with my friend at kabuki and i hope that everyone goes out and tries more sake. and remember its all about if you like it going down your mouth or not. have fun and drink it cold unless directed otherwise... its good for you, promise! i'll have some medical backing soon... till then

eat extraordinary everyday!

June....

Hi everyone... 

Well i'm very sorry for having not posted anything up in a long time. I have been slacking very much I'd admit but for all good reason... 1) i've been doing tons of research and writing for a book. so it is why i haven't been posting anything up. Yes this is a very informal post. sorry again. please keep reading or follow me on twitter. 

since i've been a bad blogger i'm just going to throw a list of things ive come across..

@ angels stadium, the hot dogs are a bit salty. i didn't finish mine. 

@ machi Fusion, you can get home style and bar style Taiwanese food. it gets pricey but it is very delicious. Think Tapas but Asian. if you haven't heard yet Taiwan is a hot foodie destination. stinky tofu and all, check on it. make travel plans, make it happen. 

@ fix coffee in echo park. they make a proper cup of coffee. i adore places that take the time to warm up my cup before filling it with any hot liquid. trust me it makes all the difference in the world. 

@ Sunday bistro in Alhambra; why is it that most of the Chinese restaurants have the worst service? i'm just throwing it out there, some days when i get excellent service at an asian spot i am in awe and look around for the manager and say thanks. 

@ coffee spots with free wifi. thank you so much and thanks even more when you make good coffee and have good music playing... mom and pop places. xoxo. 

@ yogurtland, omg, i'm still in love with this place. despite the fact that i wont try new flavors. 

i still love brunch...

steak vs mushrooms. 

my best and i went for brunch this morning. she said that little dom's had this crazy french toast souffle that i had to check out... and that she was craving. so we went. and i must say i was happy. she also said we HAD to have the rice balls... they had cheese in them.. i was sold when she said cheese and fried. so the low down. the place kinda reminds me of new york city, total hipster place but with good food. service was a bit slow today but it happens, i over heard they were short staffed. 

we have the rice balls... sooo good.. they were rice balls with mozzarella cheese with some Parmesan on the outside batter. very good. its a must try for everyone. perfectly seasoned which is wonderful. 

she gets the french toast souffle and o.m.g. sooo good. i love souffles especially when they are sweet kinds... but of course savory ones are great as well. it wasnt as souffley as i hoped but it was delicious none the less so if you like french toast give this a go! I had a hard time deciding what to have, the hollandaise was the key to my selection. i wanted to check the poached egg selection so it was steak and eggs vs. mushroom and eggs. and i went with steak. 7 oz of steak with two soft poached eggs over grilled bread and topped with hollandaise that had fennel in it. AMAZING. very good and i was happy i made that selection.. also the cappuccino was very good. sadly my friend's mimosa didn't come fast enough we had to ax the order... but overall I'll be coming back.. they have Italian wedding soup on the lunch menu and i have a sick feeling that its going to be good..

enjoying brunch with my best friend is a nice way to really feel at home in california.