Happy Monday!

Can’t think of a better way to start Monday morning than with donuts! I’ve been having a hankering for Krispy Kreme donuts lately. Blame it on the hormones. I even had a chance to grab some last week but resisted but that was mostly because my co-worker talked me away from it (how’s her yeah? J/K.). Anyway, I’ve been seeing these donuts pop up all around Social Media and I just had to try it! They are Floresta Nature Doughnuts and they are sold in the Ranch 99 Food Court. They are actually housed within Kansai Yamato which is a local mochi company. Okay, I can say this because I am Chinese…they get some grumpy Chinese ladies working there. I am actually surprised that this Japanese confectionary has all these Chinese ladies. English is not their first language and customer service is definitely not their priority. It is very true, you can stand around in front of the shop for a while before they acknowledge you. When they do, don’t expect stellar service. If you can get past all that, give their stuff a try. These donuts are PRICEY. At least $2 each, but I keep hearing how they’re better for you…and well it helps that they’re so cute! I don’t quite know the different flavors of these donuts…they are pretty creative. The “ears” on the donuts are actually almonds! I didn’t know the coating of the donuts were HARD, I figured they were some kind of soft frosting. How are they? Well, they taste like healthier donuts. They’re not bad but not great, nothing I would go back for especially for the price. So why don’t we just look at how cute they are…look but no buy (next time anyway).

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Where’s the Rain?

As I was finishing up my laundry today, it started to pour and I loved it! I do love rain, when I’m not getting soaked in it. I looked at my phone and it read rain all day. It is totally clear and sunny now. That’s Hawaii for you. I do hope we get more rainy days soon, mainly so it won’t be so HOT. I had a pretty okay week. It was busy but am glad for the rest. This week is the death anniversary of my mother so I plan to take some time off to visit her. Gosh, death anniversary sounds so terrible. Isn’t there another word for it? It wouldn’t be memorial day right? Anyway, I just wanted to share a mish mash of pictures today. Hope you folks have had a good weekend so far!

140928-01I love cute plant arrangements like this. When my kitchen is done, I would like to place something similar to this on my window sill. Perhaps herbs as well! By the way, this is from Mr. Tea Cafe. I tried their bubble tea with 100% sweetness, I was not happy at all. I cannot recommend this place even though they have cute plants! The balls were hard, the drink was not sweet enough…Thang II is still the best in Hawaii.

140928-02Our Campus Center had an open house and I got to try some of their catering options! See the neon stuff on the left? That’s actually mashed potatoes infused with beet. I’m assuming beet puree. How was it? Ehh…a bit weird. You could totally taste the beet in the mashed potato…I liked that they tried it but I think it could be done better. The asparagus was good and the salmon was great!

140928-03This was some kind of moroccan chicken with lemon. Strong lemon taste. It was good though! I just wish their catering prices weren’t so high…

La Tour Cafe – Kalihi, HI

It’s a vicious cycle. I work hard all week. Go to school and attempt to study all week. The weekend comes. I am dead tired and try to sleep it off but inevitably, the weekend ends (all too quick) and I am back at work again. For you state workers out there, our next holiday is in NOVEMBER. Gosh. I should really take some vacation days here and there before I crash and burn forreal.

I hope you are all doing well. I can keep apologizing but I’m sure you folks are used to it and tired of it by now. So all I can do is ask for your patience and to keep checking in! I’ll try to update at least once a week…hopefully more. This post focuses on a visit I had to La Tour Cafe recently. It was a pretty good meal! They are much better than I remembered so I should return sooner rather than later. I had what my friend called rabbit food. I didn’t feel like something too heavy and well…I got hungry pretty soon after. Haha…anyway, check it out!

140924-01La Tour Burger
My friend’s lunch. Not bad. The sauce on the side definitely makes the burger better. Not sure if the sauce is for the fries or the burger. The sauce does not go well with the fries..haha

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Sorry for the blurry picture, here is the inside of the burger!

140924-02Pomme Frites – comes with the burger

140924-04Crispy Goat Cheese and Beets
Breaded Goat cheese, fresh beets, spring greens & our tomato balsamic vinaigrette.

140924-05Raisin bread slices with the salad. A bit of a weird combo for me, I didn’t eat the bread.

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140924-07Crispy Goat Cheese! I love goat cheese, especially with beets! Great salad! I would recommend it!

ALOOOOHA

This aloha friday couldn’t have come fast enough. It’s been a pretty junk week for me…real junk. I also had a class presentation tonight and I woke up feeling sick. I think I did okay for the presentation. I got my major points out – I felt nervous but got through it fine I think. Just glad it’s over. Now I gotta think of my other presentations. I think my next one for this class will be more of an activity so I won’t have to talk the whole time. Yes! I hope you folks had a good week though. I’ll share a nice and serene picture I took a few weeks back.

140919-01Nice yeah? Filter and nice font later. This is shot from Makapu’u Lighthouse Trail.

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You didn’t think I would leave you without some food pics right? Another dish I tried from 711 recently. Not too shabby!

140918-02I didn’t know this was there…but look! A sheet of plastic on top! I think it’s to help the cream sauce from burning when you heat it up. That’s just my guess…I hope it doesn’t give me cancer!

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How was it? Pretty good! This picture makes it look kind of lumpy huh? It wasn’t…the noodles were still pretty firm and the sauce was nicely preserved!

Spicy Cold Soba – Yajima-Ya

This food truck is great. The last time I came here, I tried their mushroom chicken and thought it was good but a bit salty (Previous Yajima-Ya Post). During my recent visit, it was hot as all heck and I needed something cold to cool me down. I tried their spicy cold soba and I gotta say, there’s no turning back now. It was exactly what I was looking for!

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Umm…droool. I am so wanting a bowl as I write this post. Can you see the ingredients in this? The mixed vegetables (great!), kimchee (ah weak sauce in terms of spice), kakiage (actual chunks of shrimp!), oh so soft thin slices of beef. I think it was beef, was pretty sure. Super soft and flavorful…ahh…

140917-02They packed the tsuyu separate which is great. Mine leaked but I blame it more on how we transported back more than anything else. We didn’t have AC at work for half the day today and this bowl of deliciousness would have really hit the spot. Look, I got a green onion hooked onto my chopstick. I don’t know how I do it, but I manage it every time…lol. Have a good one folks.

Pumpkin Spice Latte

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140916-02Pumpkin Spice Latte is back in stores! That’s the true sign of Autumn. I decided to give the iced version a try the other night. I wasn’t a fan – I would definitely recommend the hot one only. Delicious!

Chukaya Sea Dragon Table – Ala Moana, HI

I’ve been wanting to try Chukaya Sea Dragon Table ever since they opened up a while back because I was curious how Japanese style Chinese food would taste like. The start was interesting. First off, you have to find your own parking so I parked in the sketch are behind a well known druggy park. We got to the restaurant and decided to check out some shops on the side before heading in. The restaurant opens at 5pm and we got in at about 6pm. Well, we tried to get in at 6pm. The restaurant was fully lit and employees were inside waiting for customers to come in. So basically, they hadn’t unlocked their door yet and we were their first official customers. I couldn’t believe it and I bet if a customer tried to open the locked door and couldn’t, they would just walk on by.

My friend and I were pretty excited about a few dishes we saw on Yelp but as we browsed through the menu, many of them were crossed off. We were informed that they are going through a re-design and would be changing up the menu. We were disappointed but stayed around anyway. One of the main dishes I wanted was their Dragon Ball soup which is something they discontinued. The waitress was nice enough to ask the kitchen about it and they were willing to make it! Check out our meal…

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Jajamen
So, I am used to the Korean version of this dish and this was a lot different. They used more of a Chinese red bean sauce which I liked as well! The noodles were great, chewy and firm. I enjoyed it!

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140915-05Spicy Eggplant
I’m not a huge fan of eggplant but my love for it has been growing lately. I guess what they say is true, as you get older – you start liking things you didn’t like before. I like when eggplant is prepared like this – braised. This was delicious!

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140915-07Dragon Balls
The famous dragon balls! Which they no longer carry. If you folks know what cha gor (tea roll) is, this is very similar. The plain mochi covers a savory filling. In this case, their filling is like a spare-rib/pork hash filling. It was pretty good but nothing I would order again (not that I can anyway). I think I just compared it too much to the ones I grew up with and nothing beats home cooking!

140915-08As we were walking back to our car, I saw the J-Shop that Jalna posted about! I had to check it out and saw this big hunk of meat for $1000! Insane. Only Japanese restaurants can afford this kine of thing huh? How much do they have to charge to make their money back?? That marbling though, looks amazing. But $1000…craziness to me!

Restaurant Do-ne Japanese Food

Wait a minute. Did that really just happen? So I’m totally stoked for the new iPhone and I just put in my order…and it went through. Like for real. I did it within 15 minutes of the official release. I’m pretty stoked but knowing my luck, I will get some kind of error message tomorrow. Hahaha ah well. I’m not dying to get it first…I just wanted to get it and not stand in line. We will see huh?

Can I start off my post with a big MAHALO to Ono Kine Recipes? I’ve been following them for a while now and I was so honored when I saw them featuring my recipes two days in a row! People seemed to like the recipes too so it was such an honor, really. Welcome all new readers to my humble little blog, I hope I get to talk to you folks soon. This should also serve as motivation to make new recipes for the blog! I do have one recipe that I’ve been holding onto, it’s SO good but I think I should ask for permission before I post it. It might be too top secret to share…lol.

Anyway, I hope you are all having a great week. Tomorrow is Friday! Yay! Classes have been going okay. Then again, I haven’t had to start my papers yet so it’s a bit early to judge. I am however interested in everything I’m learning about so that’s a good sign! Today, I’m sharing a dinner I had recently at Restaurant Do-ne Japanese Food. I’ve dined there before and liked it, this visit was no different! Great food! Great…company? Well, my dining companion was cool…there was a table of older gentlemen, and how can I say this nicely? Getting bombed. They kept offering everyone cigarettes and beer. Yeah. Hahaha but other than that, it was good. They have limited parking but you just double park and it’s a small enough restaurant that you can tell people leaving that you can move your car. Let’s get to the food!

140912-01Katsu-don Set – $12.50

140912-02I usually go for a raw fish don but this night, I felt like like a good old..katsu don. It was delicious! The seasoning was just right and the chicken was moist and tender inside.

140912-03Always enjoy their salads! Very refreshing, the dressing has a citrus/ponzu flavor.

140912-04Seasoned Eggplant. I really want to learn how to make their side dishes. I’m not even a fan of eggplant and I ate this right up.

140912-05Okra with Mushrooms. Not sure what kind of mushrooms exactly, delicious once again. Yes, okra has a bit of a slimy texture but it’s totally fine in this dish. Once again, their flavors are on point.

140912-06My favorite side dish of the night – by far! This is made in the style of Mentaiko Pasta but with konnyaku. My gosh, the crunchy texture of the konnyaku with the creamy yet spicy sauce was heavenly. The little strands of basil I assume were the perfect accent. I wish I could steal a whole pot of this and run far far away. I would love to recreate it if I could! Maybe I will…

Superb Sushi – Kalihi, HI

I live in the heart of K-town and noticed that Superb Sushi put up a banner a while back advertising their fresh poke bowls for $6.00. I’m down! But they were never in the forefront of my mind because I always thought they were a catering company so it didn’t automatically click until about a week ago. It’s a great little shop, you basically walk into their open air kitchen that has a small counter area. I was stoked to try their food! They make the food pretty quick and there is a very interesting painting in the waiting area – try take a look when you visit. If there are any kids around, I wouldn’t let them look too closely at it…you’ll see what I mean when you see it.

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Poke Bowl/California Roll Special – $10

140905-02Awesome poke. I don’t know if you can see it too clearly here, but there are salt crystals that you crunch into. I wasn’t super into that at first but grew to like it quite a bit.

140905-03California Roll, classic. This set also comes with a miso soup. That was probably the one downer of the whole set – it was SUPER salty. And this is coming from someone who likes salt. I don’t know if they made my soup wrong or not, but I had to dump it because of the salt.

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140905-05Futomaki with Unagi – $6.50
Yes, I sprung the extra dollar for unagi and it was DELICIOUS. This roll was so good. What is that pink thing inside this roll? I know it was a type of seafood and it seemed to be like sugar crusted. It was good! I really enjoyed this roll as well. I definitely plan on returning to this place.

Go Pink or Go Home

If I were to compare my studying last Saturday to today – I would get a big fat F. It was a pretty tough week and I basically spent today sleeping. I had two long naps! Crazy right? Anyway, I help out by picking up my brothers from Chinese School on Saturdays. Chinatown is abysmal but in the past, I was able to stop on the side and they would run out. Well, this year – the teachers have decided to play it safe and not allow the kids to run off anymore. What does that mean for me? It means I have to find legal parking, park and then walk over. Parking in Chinatown – horrific. But I’m able to find spots so I pay the meter and run out to grab them. Today was a weird day. My usual spot was taken so I had to park further away. So my car is parked and I am waiting for the right moment to leave and notice a woman passed out on the side. She seems to be normal (meaning she wasn’t obviously homeless…how do I explain..) and she was just laid out and her pants were like a bit down so her butt was on full display. It just so happened that a cop had pulled up and parked his car right next to her at the same time as me so I figured, okay good.

Well a few minutes later, I get out of my car and start walking towards the school and towards her…I’m freaked out because I’m actually hoping this woman is alive. I look at her…her face is all red and sweaty (the sun is right on her!) but she moves so I breathed a sigh of relief. I glimpse at the cop and he’s in his car with the windows down. I keep looking at him because I’m thinking – is he gonna come out? Now that I think back to it…he had a baby car seat in his back seat. This was totally his personal car but he had one blue light on top. I’m still confused. Anyway, I grab the kids and come back to my car and lady is still in the same position passed out. The cop still in his car. I get in my car and sit there staring at her…cause now I feel a sense of like responsibility. The cop then drives off! I’m not sure why he was parked there in the first place. So I sit there for at least 5 minutes wondering what to do…like if I should call 911. When finally she gets up and starts like arranging herself, I finally feel okay to leave. I don’t know what to say. Maybe this is just how it is all around Chinatown? What is the proper protocol in these situations? I can tell you what I did observe, choke people walking by and seeing her and just…like taken aback and then moving right along with their business.  I knew I wasn’t going to leave her like that unless I saw her gain consciousness or I would have called 911. Anyway, that was my Saturday so far. I hope that all my sleeping today leads to a good night of studying – I doubt it. Hope you folks have a good one.

140904-01Quick share of a recent purchase. That’s right, pink tools. Go pink or go home. Wait, I already stay home. Haha nah, I just wanted some handy tools around. These are definitely not high quality but gets what I need done…which is nothing serious.