Mixed Plate

Gotta have posts like this here and there, I don’t always fully capture my meal so you will have to get it in bits and pieces. 🙂

Romano’s Macaroni Grill
Mama’s Trio | $25.95
chicken parmesan, lasagna bolognese, fettuccine alfredo

Is Mama trying to kill you? Yes, I think so. This wasn’t my dish but look at this…hefty portions of hefty dishes. It was not finished, had to be packed up to take home. No waste!

Romano’s Macaroni Grill
Shrimp Scampi | $24.95
sauteed jumbo shrimp, capellini, garlic, rosemary butter, roma tomatoes

Yeah, I had the shrimp scampi again. So wot? Like fight? Nah, getting it a second time means it was good ah? Was good.

Little Sheep Hot Pot
Half & Half Pot | Original & Spicy

I can’t say I was super impressed when they first opened, I was still a huge fan of Sweet Home Cafe. Well sorry to say, well not really sorry, but I basically only go to Little Sheep now. Love their sauce bar and now they have all you can eat deals for lunch and dinner. Service is hit or miss (you better be willing to flag anyone and everyone down to help you). Delish!

Ja Gal Chi Restaurant
Bossam | $30.99
steamed pork with oysters

Gosh, can anyone help me? There used to be the most bomb bossam restaurant by Ala Moana, it was located where Dowon Chinese Restaurant is now. They specialized in Bossam and it was soo good but alas, like most businesses, the owners decided to retire and they closed for good.

Anyway, I don’t think a lot of Korean restaurants offer this but Ja Gal Chi does and boy oh boy was it a treat. I mean look at it, of course it was a treat. They give you kimchee and the little salted shrimp sauce too. It’s just heaven.

Asakusa View Hotel – Tokyo, Japan

Do you folks want to see hotel pics? Well, I didn’t get much of my Osaka hotel but I did of the Tokyo one! So here it is, Asakusa View Hotel!

The toilet and the bath area are separated and the main sink is outside of the bathroom. There is a shower and it’s located in the same room as the bathtub and the floor is the drain. It’s a trip! Big bathroom in this hotel, the bathroom in Osaka was HUGE. Like such the opposite of my past experiences, especially in Airbnbs. The thing I missed the most though? Washer and dryers from the Airbnbs! This was a longer trip too so I really had to stretch some clothes…good thing the weather was cold.

Beautiful city views from the hotel! We didn’t pay enough for the Skytree view from our room. Ah well, I don’t really need it. What was nice was that they had a viewing room in the hotel, it was on the 20-something floor and it had a very nice view of the Skytree. Why pay when it’s free? Haha, anyway…it was a nice hotel. I liked that the hotel limousine stops right at the hotel. I do feel like Asakusa was situated a bit away from just about everything…but that’s okay. I don’t mind walking around and catching transport in chilly weather.

Oh wait, I have a funny story to tell. So the first night of our stay, my body full of Denny’s sangria came back to a very warm hotel room. I kept tinkering with the AC to no relief. Then we noticed our fancy Japanese toilet was broken. Ugh. We called the front desk about it and they sent a very nice worker up. I think she was Filipino but fluent in English and Japanese of course. I asked her why they room was so hot. Here’s the Hawaii girl, apparently it’s so cold that the heater kicks on. No AC. I was not happy. She asked if we wanted her to open the window. Sure.

So here I am looking like a freak with my head practically out the window to get some nice chilly air. Then I ask about the humidifier in the room, it was blinking a red light and I didn’t know how to fix that. She mentions casually that I just need to fill it with water. Well, I was already kind of irritated and never worked a humidifier before so I ask her to help with it. We had a humidifier in the Osaka hotel but the maid staff must have been refilling it for us every night. Well it did not happen in this hotel, I had to refill it every night.

She offered to bring a fan into the room and we took her up on the offer. They fixed the battery in the toilet and she mentions that when we want the window closed, we just need to call down to the front desk because they have to close it with a key. Well, I just told her to close it already because I didn’t want to have to call down to close it later. After we cooled down a bit after our showers, I actually just turned off the “heater” that read air conditioner and the room cooled down considerably. It was quite nice with no heater on in the room. I never had this before, I could always just control the temperature in the room…didn’t realize we had to deal with a heater only. Glad we found a fix in the end though!

Funny Signs – Japan

Just wanted a funny post to start your weekend and show that I am mentally nine years old.

Hah?
PSYCHO-PASS!!!!!!!!!
heh…
Sorry for the language but can’t get over the question mark
lol yup, it’s a franchise!
amirite ladies?
(you probably gotta be local for this one to make sense)

Mixed Plate

What is she up to now?

The finished product looks a bit blah huh? So here’s what I did. I wanted to make one pan of brownies with half regular fudge brownies and half fudge brownies with oreos. So I cut a piece of cardboard and wrapped it with foil while I poured the batter with oreo in, held the cardboard in place as I poured the regular batter in. Then, I just lifted the board out and baked it! The batter is thick enough that it won’t mix into one another…and even if it did…it’s all brownie batter!

I made it for a student training and they ate it all so I’m guessing it was good! Glad it worked!

You’ve heard about the craze. Plant based burgers all over the place. A bit late in posting this but I tried this a few weeks ago. It was good! It tastes just like a whopper, I can’t taste the difference. But honestly, if you think about it, a whopper tastes more like the veggies (onion, tomato, pickles, lettuce) than anything else.

A video blogger did a video about the impossible burger and she asked her location if they fry it on the same grill as the meat burgers and they said they do. WELL, OF COURSE THE IMPOSSIBLE BURGERS WILL TASTE GOOD THEN. Don’t you agree? Would I order it again? Sure! I like these meat alternatives!

Mixed Plate

MEAT LOAF. I know this is considered whatever kine food for people but I really enjoy it and find it comforting. I also like the making of the meat loaf. I love putting all the ingredients together in the bowl in a pretty way and then mixing it. Looks good ah? Well not delicious good, just good good.

Meat Loaf, Rice and…can you guess what the yellow and red thing is? It’s a bit shameful actually…

I found a recipe online for a quick elote corn. Um, don’t do that. First off, I didn’t have lime, only lemon so that was a big mistake on my part. And crushed up flaming hot cheetos on top? What was I thinking? Don’t follow any kine recipe okay? Next time I will leave out the cheetos, find some limes…and make it GOOD.

Okay let’s move to something I am proud of. Look at this refreshing and absolutely delicious watermelon dessert I made! I drew inspiration from this video, he made it look so good. I had to improvise. I found mini seedless watermelons from Costco. Bought some strawberry popping boba from Don Q and the scene was set! Balled up some melon, crushed up the leftover flesh to create watermelon juice. Poured the juice back into the melon shell, added the balled melon on top…topped it with condensed milk and then the popping boba. Sugar bomb? Yes. Worth it? Absolutely yes!

Mixed Plate

Just a random post with various eats that won’t make a whole post on it’s own. First off, Whole Foods Market, when Jalna shared about the 2/$5 deal! Thanks so much! Now I check my amazon app all the to check the deals. The pizza was pretty good, the garlic and spinach one was mine. Plenty garlic so I liked it a lot!

Ninja Crispy Chicken Bento | $12.49

Chi Chop is located in the Ala Moana Food Court, not great. The fried chicken is seasoned with quite a bit of five spice powder if that’s your thing. I also think it was quite pricey for $13!

Two Combo Plate (Spicy BBQ Chicken & Fish Jun) | $16.50

Korean Hibiscus BBQ! Oh boy, what a deal. A cute and sweet couple run this shop and the portions are generous! The taste was great and do you see? Two pieces of fried mandoo too! I do have to say, MSG galore, I was thirsty all night!

Saying Goodbye…

Okay, misleading title…no I am not the one saying goodbye! This post is focused on bidding goodbye to an employee of mine. While I am sad to see her go, I am excited for her new adventures and her move to the mainland! Now, she is a graphic designer so I knew I wanted to personalize her gift with something handmade…and well…if you know me, you also know I am obsessed with miniatures so guess what I did…

I made a miniature of her office! Yes, this was all done by hand from scratch…I wanted to help her to commemorate her first ever office space as well.
Made her bookshelf, mirror (yes her mirror is blue!), art work…
Of course the iPad box contains an iPad inside too! Gotta focus on the details!
Did I? Yes, these are real books in her shelf that I scanned the covers of to create the books! Sorry I didn’t get to show a book inside, but the pages are text lined! Loved creating these mini books!!
One of my favorites in this project, creating the cork bulletin board! Yes, the pictures were the same as the ones on her real board!
Created the blinds in her office with the exact view out of her window…and yes, the blinds move!

I put a lot of work into this piece and while I had my moments of insanity (mainly because I am so focused and detailed), it was all worth it because she loved it! Ugh…I love miniatures so much…

Of course I had to cook for the going away party! I made homemade pancit because it’s one of her favorite foods. Very nervous making this because it’s just such a good dish and the taste is key! I gotta admit, I did a test run myself before this day and did not like the first test. I revamped the recipe I worked with and I think it came out great! My coworkers seemed to like it so I am super happy!

If you follow Kat, you would have noticed she talked about Butterfly Pea Flower tea the other week! It was such a coincidence because I had just ordered the dried flowers online and was prepping to make this drink! So you steep the flowers and the water turns into a very bright blue color. When mixed with acid, it changes color! I made a fresh lemonade (first time, was good!) and poured the drinks at the party. It was so fun to see it turn purple and pink! The tea itself doesn’t have a strong taste or any taste, it’s hard to explain. I would pour maybe 3/4 of lemonade to 1/4 of the tea. Tastes great!

Tea Party Cook-off

Our division at work had a Tea Party the other week! This tea party was a cook-off competition with the proceeds going towards a charity. I always try to participate in the cook-off to support a good cause and of course the competition itself! With the help of a few colleagues, we did a great job! Actually, we won the best savory category! I had an idea for this dish and yes it’s been done before but I never executed myself before.

We made salad in won ton cups, finger food perfect for the tea party! I was a bit particular about this dish. I wanted the won ton cups to be perfectly light and crisp…and the won ton pi they sell in stores are generally too thick. So, I made a trek out to Chinatown because Yat Tung Chow Noodle Factory has an “extra thin and extra small for soup” won ton pi. LOL…I went into this not knowing what to expect. Well it was cheap and the customer service was stellar (just kidding about the second part). Well the pi worked out great! It fits perfectly in the mini muffin tins and it is thinner than most pi so it worked perfectly for my recipe. Check out the pics below! I’ll post the various dishes from the cook-off too!

Asian Crunch Bites
Any suggestions for a new name? Haha…salad in a cup didn’t sound too great. But this name is a bit too ambiguous. 
Best Sweets Winner!
Look at how beautiful this dessert is! Tasted great too! Definitely a worthy winner.
Wagashi

I have to give this contestant SO MUCH CREDIT. Sorry to the sweets winner, but I voted for this dessert as the winner. This person made these wagashi sweets all by hand and I’m sorry I don’t have all the pictures but she made different fruit shapes for each (the effort, food coloring, etc.!). The time and effort put in…is amazing. I grabbed this one. And yes, she individually packaged each one too!

Disneyland – Los Angeles, CA

What trip to LA is complete without a visit to Disneyland? I’ll let you in on a little secret, this was my first trip to Disneyland. Yes, seriously. I didn’t have much travels as a kid and when we did travel, it was to the homeland, not the mainland. I’ve been to other Disney parks but was excited to check California out! We decided to check out both Disneyland and California Adventure Park…and boy am I glad we did. I didn’t know this beforehand but did you know…Disney celebrates Lunar New Year??

There was a gentleman there writing these on the spot by request! Well not completely by request, you had to choose a character from their list. I chose luck!
Lunar New Year ears. Yes, I bought it. And yes, I took pictures with Mickey and Minnie in their Lunar New Year clothes!
Can’t be a visit to Disney without seeing the castle…oh wait…umm…
Award Wieners – California Adventure Park
Spicy City Dog | $9.79
Cheddar-Jalapeño Sausage topped with Chipotle Crema, Queso Fresco and Pico de Gallo with Filmstrip Fries
A Cheesy Celebration | $9.99
Cheddar Sausage Link with creamy Macaroni and Cheese, Salsa Verde, crumbled spicy Cheese Puffs, and Cheese Curds on a Toasted Bun with Filmstrip Fries

I can only comment on the cheesy celebration because this was my dog. Did I tell you I am lactose intolerant? Was this a good choice? Probably not. I was lured by the cheesiness of it. Was it good? Ehhh…for all the flavors named, it was quite a plain dog. They just threw everything on top and it was all just…empty calories and not worth them either!

Ikea – Burbank, CA

Ikea. This store has been a dream of mine to visit for years. We drove out to Burbank to visit this location and I am glad we did. It is a huge store and the street is named after them! I wish I lived in California, I would have bought so much stuff. Not to say I didn’t anyway, I made room for it in my suitcase. I still am holding up hope for it to come to Hawaii one day. Not sure why the this place has such low ratings on Yelp. It’s a nice big store although I’m not a fan of the layout, I guess it’s their way of making you walk through the ENTIRE store. It was a bit of a nightmare for me since I was so unfamiliar with this store, I kept getting lost.

Anyway, my main reason for the visit was also to try the meatballs! Food related, who would have thunk it.

Swedish Meatballs Complete Meal!

I love meatballs, so it doesn’t take much to impress me. I enjoyed it a lot! The gravy was great and the lingonberry jam too! Didn’t need the vegetables or mashed potatoes…give me a big plate of the meatballs and jam and gravy and that would be great. Well, as an Asian give me some rice too, thanks. Something else caught my eye as I lined up…you can see a corner of it in the picture above…

Chocolate Cake

I mean, look at that piece of cake. It’s everything you hope and dream of. It’s like that chocolate cake from Matilda. Mmm yum. I don’t think I need to say much more, just look at it. It looks as it tastes, gooey, moist and delicious. Ikea. Boom.