Sushi Party at the Onoda House

My mom is quite the entertainer when it comes to having parties. For my birthday this year, she wanted to have everyone over for a temaki (hand rolled) sushi party. Basically she cuts up the ingredients, makes sushi rice, and cuts up nori. Each person has their own rice and can take whatever ingredients they want to make their own roll. She also got quite fancy and make chawan mushi (soft egg, custard dish that is savory). It was so good. My favorite is the spicy tuna she chops up and seasons and the tuna with kaiware. It was a nice party and as a extra surprise, my older sister Christie surprised me and jumped out of the bathroom.

A Special Birthday with Special K at Sona Restaurant

Kirk has been just the most amazing boyfriend and friend to me. Tonight was no different. He took me to the well known Sona Restaurant. I have been dying to try this restaurant out and he made my dreams come true by taking me there tonight. It measured up to my standards in every single way. The service was impeccable, extremely attentive but not overbearing. The ambiance was quite but not silent, and trendy, but not pretentious. Kirk and I enjoyed the 6 course menu tasting which was just the right amount of food. Every single piece of ingredient was cooked perfectly and of the highest quality. My favorite was the veal cheeks, so soft and fatty, it just fell apart under my fork. I loved it and look forward to going back to try the 9 course tasting. Thank you Kirk for this memorable meal and for making my life so complete!

Me and Special K

Some really tasty and fresh bread!

Amuse Bouche: tofu with mochi, edamame, and seaweed

1st course: sashimi with cucumber and nori paste

2nd course: squid ink risotto with skatewing and squid

3rd course: slices of duck with chorizo, celery, and cauliflower

4th course: veal cheeks and tenderloin with potato

5th course: Orange cream with carrot gelee, kumquats with amaretto, and guava sorbet

6th course: Chocolate soccer cake and ice cream

The Pastry Chef's Dessert Sampling of Miniatures: Lemon Meringue, Cranberry Souffle, Apple Lasagna, Cream Puff, Chocolate Macaroon, Chocolate Cookie Sandwich

Kirk eating a miniature lemon meringue (looked like a mini sunny side up egg)

I love miniatures!!!! (miniature chocolate french macaroon)

Sona Restaurant

401 N. La Cienega Blvd.

West Hollywood, CA 90048

www.sonarestaurant.com

Getting Older at Riva

Daniela, Jessica, Julie, Me, and Angie

The Molto Maiale

Eggplant Parmesan

Quattro Formaggio

Burrata with Peppers

Carrot Cake

Chocolate Hazelnut Purse

Strawberry Ice Cream

The talented Chef/Owner Jason Travi and his partners opened up a new restaurant in Santa Monica called Riva. Trendier and  bit more casual than it's sister restaurant Fraiche, Riva is a great place for sharing dishes with friends. My friends were sweet to suggest celebrating my birthday early here. We shared two appetizers (a wood roasted mushroom salad and burrata with peppers). Both were scrumptious and fresh. Then we got crazy with the pizzas and decided to order 4 and share so we could have a sampling. We ordered the Molto Maiale (sausage, meatballs, pancetta, bacon, and tomato), Polpette (house made meatballs, tomato, fontina), Eggplant Parmesan (tomato, gruyere, mozzarella, and basil) and the Quattro Formaggio (ricotta, mozzarella, romano, and something else). The pizza dough was thick at the crust, but extremely thin elsewhere making the pizza floppy and foldable. I loved the Molto Maiale and the meatballs were so yummy. I could just imagine a big pot of spaghetti and meatballs. Thank you Daniela, Jessica, Julie, and Angie for a memorable birthday meal at Riva.

Riva

312 Wilshire Blvd

Santa Monica, CA 90401

www.rivarestaurantla.com

Lunching at the Little Next Door

Since I was fortunate enough to have the whole week off and my friend Marsha was off today, we spent a lovely friday afternoon lunching at the Little Next Door Cafe. It was the cutest little lunch place with great salads, sandwiches, and desserts. I of course got my favorite Croque Monsieur which I must try anywhere I see it on the menu. It was the best Croque Monseiur I had outside of France. Marsha had the little next deal which you get a half a sandwich, salad, and soup. A great little deal for lunch. Definitely a place to go back to for tasty french food and a cute ambiance. 

The Little Next Door

8164 West 3rd Street

Los Angeles, CA 90048

www.thelittledoor.com

Celebrating Valentine's Day at Campanile

Tonight Kirk and I celebrated Valentine's Day at Campanile. They had a 5 course menu tasting for all the lovebirds in the house. We both started with the lobster bisque shooter. Next I had a apple salad and Kirk had the blood orange salad. For our third course I had the garlic pasta and Kirk had the Beef with fried pasta. My main course was my favorite beef bourguignon. Kirk had the seafood risotto. And lastly for dessert I had the strawberry cobbler and he had the chocolate cake. All in all it was a tasty meal. Although because it was valentine's day it was a complete mad house. We had reservations at 930pm but didn't get seated until 10 because they were running late. The dishes were definitely not plated in their normal style. Basically they were just trying to get you in and out. Not the best most romantic way to celebrate that day, but it was definitely nice to be out with my man.

Endless Meat Parade: Fogo de Chao

Tonight we celebrated my mom's birthday by going to Fogo de Chao in Beverly Hills. I love brazilian bbq, but can only handle it once in awhile. They really pile on the 16 kinds of meats at this place. You really had to control your red/green placecards or else the swarm of men with meat on a stick overwhelm your plate. The best cut of meat I thought was the beef rib. That was actually served from a carving board (the only one not on a stick) and it was fatty and juicy and just melted in your mouth. Fogo de chao also has a lovely salad bar, but after one trip and all that meat, you're done. They bring rice, plantains, beans, farofa, cheese bread, fried polenta, and mashed potatoes to your table and that is endless as well. My mom enjoyed it and desperately wanted her photo with a meat man. It was cute. For $56.50, it was worth the meat and all you can eat brazilian fare....but just go with a empty stomach and clear your mind.

Fogo de Chao
133 N. La Cienega Blvd
Beverly Hills, CA 90211
www.fogodechao.com

Restaurant Week at Kirk's House

Kirk must have been inspired by all the Restaurant week hoopla, because he was trying to come up with a multiple course meal. Lucky me....I got to be the guinea pig to try the meal out on. He had time to make a blood orange gelee, chocolate brownie, and filet minon with dried plum sauce served on a brown rice and goat cheese risotto cake with asparagus. Yum Yum. Kirk I must say is an excellent cook and he is great at making healthy and tasty meals. Yes, you should be jealous...I have a man who can do way more than just boil water. I think in this day and age, women barely cook, so to snag a guy who can cook is a rarity. The blood orange gelee didn't quite set into a gelee....more like a jelly :) But it was ok because we spread it on our toast the next day and that was really fresh and tasty. The chocolate brownie was a 100 calories....it was a dark chocolate brownie and it was extremely moist. The main course was quite fancy. Kirk slaved away on the dried plum sauce (aka prune sauce). It complimented the perfectly medium rare filet. If you ate a piece of the filet, piece of risotto with goat cheese, and some plum sauce, it was a flavor explosion in your mouth. You're genius Kirk....can't wait to try the 5 course tasting at your house next time.

Restaurant Week Part Deux: La Cachette

Angie and I have been wanting to try La Cachette for awhile now and it just seemed like the perfect opportunity to go during restaurant week for the better price deal. La Cachette (or the hideaway) is a cute little french restaurant owned and run by Chef Jean Francois Meteigner, the former executive chef of L'Orangerie. I love french cuisine and this place really highlights french food. I had the vegetable soup which tasted like lentils and some other vegetables. For my main course I had the smoked salmon sandwich. Such a simple dish, but somehow I know if I tried to make it, I would fail. My dessert was a tarte tatin....a perfectly poached whole apple on top of a thin tart. Angie had the tower of beet salad (never a bad choice), seafood bouillabaise, and chocolate cake. Again, like Akasha, I choose all the second best items. But Angie had already chose those items, so I thought I would get something different and we could share. I would definitely go back if my wallet was fat enough.
PS. I forgot to take photos

La Cachette
10506 Santa Monica Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90025
www.lacachetterestaurant.com

Restaurant Week Los Angeles: Akasha

Restaurant week in LA is a great way to try out various restaurants in the greater LA area. For the most part, you are getting a good deal on price. For a set price ($34, $44, etc) you get a lovely three course meal. I calculated Akasha and we basically got a discount of about 15 bucks. However, there were some places like Comme Ca (which Angie went to ) where the price was the same. Nevertheless, it is a great way to try different restaurants as they try to showcase their talents. Tonight, Kirk and I went to Akasha....a somewhat new place in the booming Main Street area of Culver City. It did not disappoint. My cousin Bryan Masaki of course had been there and recommended it. The place is all about organic, fair trade, natural, heathly, fresh fare. And it delivered just that. My friend started off with the Pizza with various grilled veggies, which was my favorite dish of the night. I started with a butternut squash soup which was nice and creamy. For our entrees, I had the scallops, with black rice risotto, and asian veggies. My friend had the flatiron steak. His steak was way flavorful. The scallops were cooked well and the taste was very clean, but the dish didn't really have a wow factor. It was just good. For dessert I had the carrot cake and my friend had the apple tart. The ambience of the restaurant was very modern and clean lines. I must say all the baked goods were top quality.

Akasha
9543 Culver Blvd
Culver City, CA 90232
www.akasharestaurant.com