La Casita Mexicana, Bell CA

For my mom’s birthday this year, I picked (wait a minute… why am I picking?!) La Casita Mexicana. Oh, I know why. If I don’t pick, we’ll likely end up someplace close by, that we’ve been to already, and I know my mom likes trying new places. I guess me being in town makes my [...]

Trip to NY State – upstate NY

Part III of our recent trip to NY! We decided to get in the car and drive through upstate NY. Our journey started on a ferry to New London, CT. After disembarking, we were hungry for lunch, and ended up at a pizzeria called 2 Wives, which was surprisingly good! The pizza was molten hot, [...]

Trip to NY State – Long Island

For the second phase of our New York trip, we headed out of the city towards Long Island. The weather was still gorgeous, as were some of the little towns we drove through. The beaches are quite different than on the West coast. Where’s the sand?! =D The areas we saw were gorgeous, and I [...]

Trip to NY State – NYC

For a long overdue vacation this year, we decided on a trip to New York. We couldn’t have asked for better weather, and, apart from a couple of delays (US Airways… grrr), the trip went without a hitch. 3 days in NY City, 1 day on Long Island, and 2 days trekking through upstate New [...]

Mottanai Ramen, Gardena, CA

I’m astounded at not only the amount of existing ramen-yas in the Southbay, but the amount that continue to open up! Come on, how about some new ramen places in Seattle?! Anyway, at least I still come to LA often enough to get my ramen fix on occasion. This time, it was Mottanai, a new [...]

Parks BBQ, Los Angeles, CA

Park’s is one of those places that I’d been meaning to go to for quite a long time.. and I finally got to it a couple of weeks ago. My family loves Korean bbq, so we had high hopes that Park’s would be incredible. We started off well, with some tasty banchans. The kimchee was [...]

Yamadaya Ramen, Torrance, CA

Another ramen review? Of course! Ever since I moved to Seattle, I’ve been craving good ramen even more than when I lived in Las Vegas. Surprisingly, there really aren’t very many ramen places out here, and the best we’ve found still pales in comparison to the ‘just okay’ places in LA. Yamadaya is a newer [...]

The Loft, Gardena, CA

I hadn’t been to the Loft in years until recently. My favorite dish there was always the Hawaiian fried chicken, so of course, that’s what I ordered again recently. And I wasn’t disappointed! The chicken was crispy, and savory yet sweet, and just greasy enough. The accompanying ramen cabbage salad was excellent, as usual, as [...]

Oumi Sasaya, Lomita, CA

Oumi Sasaya has been around for a couple of years, and I decided to give it a try recently after reading a review in the LA Times. They specialize in udon, which they make fresh daily, and it is quite good. Chewy in texture, yet silky, and definitely fresh tasting. I opted for the wakame [...]

American Farmhouse Roadside Grill, Manhattan Beach, CA

On my last day in L.A., I wanted to try the American Farmhouse in Manhattan Beach, which I’d heard good things about. The restaurant is small, clean and cute. Contemporary, yet with a retro ‘farmhouse’ kitchen style to it. As is my usual breakfast habit while in L.A., I split an entree with my mom; [...]

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