Food vs human

Food should look appealing to human eyes by the way its supposed to look thats coded in human minds. A souffle is supposed to rise and salad is supposed to look like veggies. A piece of steak is supposed to look brown or charred and medium rare ia supposed to be red in the middle. A person is supposed to meet his/hers expectation fromothers or exceed. A person is supposed to meet the goals by a certain path not the alternatives. A person is supposed to put up this image or a front to show others only the good side not the negative sides. What is true and what is real.. Molecular cuisine fits perfectly in this category...

Ikko, Costa Mesa

Mixed feelings about this tiny Japanese fusion place in Costa Mesa. Been there a few times and still couldn't give this place a definite yay or nay. The last experience at Ikko was good, even though Chef Ikko wasn't around but they did managed a good job in serving some decent sushi. The cooked food tho, especially the monkfish liver wasn't how I liked it. The liver was rather fishy, and the sweet, tangy sauce to go along with the liver felt like 2 separate world in my mouth.
My companion loves their Uni. I asked if last night's Uni from akasaka in Hacienda Heights was comparable she said, Ikko's uni is wayyyyy better.

The highlight of the meal was this-Tamago. Actually, it's the highlight of my food journey in these couple months. Finally, a tamago thick enough that satisfies my cravings for tamago yet flavorful and so tender that I just wanted to order more. I loved it so much that I had to order one togo for my dear bf to taste it.

How will the next dining experience at Ikko goes? We will see.

Diary 1, my passion for food

Felt a bit sentimental today as an old friend and I met up and chat about our lives. We haven't seen each other for years but we felt free to have an intimate conversation about our families, relationship and most importantly, the loss of our most beloved parent. It's not easy for me to talk about what happened as I was very traumatized and still today, even though it was 4 years ago. She too, feels the same way. Recovery road takes time. I've inherited this wonderful hobby of traveling to places to eat..even if it takes 40-50 minute drive each way. This is a gifted genes from my parents, mainly my beloved and respected father, who passed away 4 years ago while I was on the flight back to Asia to visit him. I didn't even had a chance to say goodbye. I thought they were coming to pick me up from the airport but instead, it was my aunt..dressed in all black who broke the news to us 10 minutes before we arrived home. I knew it was coming, I knew it. My father suffered from Type II diabetes for almost 30 years and his condition has worsen in his late years due to stress and sadness.

My father loved food as much as I did. He would buy a plane ticket and fly to taipei just for a bowl of comforting soup. I too, would do the same. Nothing heals better than food. Every time when I savor delicatcies all over LA, I just wish that I could share it with him...til every last bite.

Bottega Louie- Downtown Los Angeles

Clockwise from upper right- chocolate/coffee creme brulee(or tart? cant' remember), vanilla creme brulee, Lemon meringue tart & chocolate raspberry Napoleon(?).

The dessert display at Bottega Louie always catch my attention so this time, instead of getting their infamous macarons as gifts, I got some treats for myself as well. Agh, the beautiful raspberry on top of puff pastries, creamy creme brulee and the beautiful lemon meringue tart...how could anyone resist it?

Lemon Meringue- Light, airy meringue & the tanginess from the lemon made this the best little treat in this box.

Creme brulee- This good old traditional classic dessert was nice a creamy but it lacked the crunchy(or crispy?) sugar crust on top for textural contrast. Alright, but a boring dessert.

Raspberry chocolate napoleon- Okay, not sure what was wrong with their puff pastry. The pastry was hard unlike the airy & flaky puff pastries I've had in the past. The chocolate was just there for decoration since it doesn't enhance the overall taste or texture for me. The chocolate fillings could've been tasty all by it's own only if it weren't accompanied by that unfit raspberry jam in the middle!! The raspberry jam tasted weird; acidic yes alittle but it does not harmonize the flavors of chocolate fillings in the napoleon and actually made it worst.

Chocolate creme brulee/tart- I have to admit that it was my fault that I didn't eat it on the same day instead, I saved it for the lunch next day. BAD idea! The tart did not taste fresh, had a bitter but somewhat acidic taste to it...and it looked like there were molds growing on it already?? It could've been problem with my eyes that made me think there were molds but com'n! the taste and the mold just go together. To the trash it goes.

The shell/tart base they've used as a container for the brulees/tart tasted flour-y that I could care less about.

Overall, just stick to their macarons, there are definitely rooms for improvements on the rest of the item in that glass display case...!

Montage, Beverly Hills

With high hopes and expectations, we were a little disappointed at their signature afternoon tea sets. Montage had every thing it needed for it to be a perfect afternoon for girls gathering-- the ambiance, silverwares, the china, the teapots and the service BUT the tea sandwiches & the desserts were quite disappointing. I even ordered a tuna poke to compare it to my first visit and nope, the tuna poke tasted awfully salty as if the chef drown the tuna in a bottle of soy sauce and we had to notify the waiter about it. The tuna poke at the first visit was delightful- tasty and refreshing and the second experience has none of it.
The tea sandwiches at montage is alright, but I'd rather drive down to Pasadena for more filling & tasty sandwiches @ Scarlett tea room. Desserts were nice...but nothing beyond it's look. Afterall, I'd probably hit Peninsula or Langham in Pasadena if I absolutely have to have teas at a hotel.

Japan 3/11/2011

God bless Japan and the people of Japan. Stay strong, the world is here to help.

Oden

Raku
Las Vegas

Ahhhh oden, its comfort in a bowl. It's a very popular snack in Asia where you can find it in convenience stores or street vendors. Here in states, you'd have to hunt around Japanese izakaya style restaurants or Taiwanese tea places to get a bowl of comfort that's consist of clear konbu & bonito broth with added ingredients like daikon (radish), carrot/burdock/squid/veggie/plain fish cakes, hard boil egg,fried bean curd stuffed with mochi, intestines, pork rice cake.. etc.

Haven't had much of oden when I was little but as I grew older, I grew more attached to these kinds of street food that my dad despises. Rice, noodles, stir-fry are stables in Asia and it's considered as standards for meals but oden for dinner sounds like a good idea on a cold winter night..yah?