Luxury Box at the Staples Center...Doesn't Get Any Better Than This!

Tonight I was lucky enough to accompany my cousin Jen to a Clippers vs Utah game. But it wasn't just any game. I got to sit in a VIP luxury box!!!! One thing to cross off my list before I die...definitely something I have been wanting to do for a long time, but never actually thought I would get the chance. We got to sit in the Canon box and even got VIP parking which we didn't have to pay for and it was literally steps from the VIP entrance. It was awesome!!!! We walked into the room and they had chips, nuts, and popcorn along with sodas and beer. Jen and I got some burgers, fries, and nachos. It was so much fun sitting there, eating, and enjoying the game. Even though they lost, I was happy to see the UCLA alum Baron Davis play. Thanks again Jen for inviting me....I will never forget that experience.

Daniela and JR's Wedding - Vegas Style

Today was Daniela and JR's wedding in Las Vegas. The ceremony was held at the Little Chapel of the West located right on the Strip of Las Vegas Blvd. It was a cute little place (see picture), but definitely conveyor belt wedding style where in about the span of 1 hour, I saw at least 10 brides pop in and out. There were young brides, old brides, fat brides, skinny brides :) It was quite the collection of brides. The ceremony was short and sweet....just the way I like it. Then we were off to the Paris Buffet for the post wedding reception. Check out the photos from the celebration (apparently I was the unofficial photographer since I had my nice camera on me).

The Little Church of the West

Putting on the dress in the hotel room The bridesmaids....faux chatting photo

The maid of honor Angie Onoda

The beautiful bride Daniel and her father walking her down the aisle

The Wedding Party

Going in for the wedding kiss

The Chapell's

Daniela

The newlyweds with their baby Marcus

The Groomsmen

The bridal party

Julie, Jessica, and Angie

Julie and I waiting to get our grub on

Waiting in line for food

Daniela grabbing some claws
My yummy plate of food....I love shrimp!

Halloween in Sin City

Sarah Palin shoots a moose
At Club Blush in the Wynn Hotel

Strawberry Shortcake and Alice in Wonderland pose for a shot

Angie and I

Halloween night this year was spent in Las Vegas with my sister and friends. Angie and I drove up from LA ( a very painful drive for me due to some crazy festivities the night before). We got ready and headed over to the Mandalay Bay to meet up with Jessica, Mark, and Julie. Had some pre-party drinks, then headed over to Club Blush at the Wynn to meet up with some more friends. Vegas on Halloween is quite scandalous. If you don't have something hanging out, you will have a hard time fitting in. They are not into the creative costumes there. But nonetheless, I had fun even though I think I was still hungover from the night before. As my sister would say "why would you go big the night before vegas?" Yeah....I have no idea....I blame it on flapper Audrey :)

La Conversation - A Frilly French Parlor with Excellent Breakfast

Today I had breakfast with my friend Sarah before heading off to get my hair chopped at dNa Salon. It is a cute little french parlor type restaurant with great baked good and breakfast. It was the perfect way to start a saturday after a friday night hangover :) We both had the special of eggs, sausage, potatoes, and pumpkin pancakes. I never would have thought pumpkin pancakes would be that good, but they were. They were exceptionally light and fluffy. We were lucky to grab a table outside along the sidewalk where we people watched the couples with dogs, trendy gay crowd, and lots of cute families walk by. A great little breakfast find, but beware, it gets quite busy for breakfast.
La Conversation
638 N Doheny Dr
Los Angeles, CA 90069-5506

Providence: One of the top 50 restaurants in the U.S.

The Fresh Baked Bread, Butter, and Salt (had to take a picture of the mini scooper for the salt...I love those miniature food items)

I had one of the, possibly “the” most amazing meal of my life yesterday at Providence. Not only was it appetizing to my taste buds, it was truly an visually appetizing meal that I will never forget. We all decided to go with the 5 course tasting menu (90 per person sans wine). There is a 9 course and a special chef’s tasting menu which I think has 15 courses. Each course was so carefully prepared with amazing ingredients that I’m sure were the best quality possible. Here’s how the tasting menu went ( I wanted to let the photos speak for themselves, but it was too dark, so I will try to recollect as best as possible what was on the menu).

Amuse Bouche: Shot of Gin and tonic, bubble of Mojito, and Shot of Saffron Syrup and Fennel Soup

Course 1: Kanpachi with Plum Granita, Cucumber and Shiso

Course 2: Scallop with Black Truffle Oil, Frisee, Roasted Cherry Tomato, and Baby Artichoke

Course 3: Turbot with Sake and Shiso Cream Sauce

Course 4: Veal with Wild Mushroom, Roasted Torpedo Onion, and Celery Root Puree

Course 5: Lime Gelee, Shiso and Lychee Sorbet, White Chocolate and Coconut with Tapioca sauce.

Complimentary Dessert: Assortment of Chocolates, Handmade Caramels, and Chocolate French Macaroons

Let me just tell you…..I MUST return to this restaurant again. If not to try the 9 course or 15 course menu…at least to try the dessert tasting menu. I was actually quite depressed once the dinner came to the end. Words cannot describe how absolutely life changing it was! Ok, I am being somewhat dramatic, but really, if you appreciate good food or consider yourself a gourmand…you must visit Providence. You will thank yourself, thank me, and thank the earth for creating Michael Cimarusti.

Providence

5955 Melrose Ave

Los Angeles, CA 90038

www.providencela.com

Barney's Burgers in Brentwood

The Baja Burger (photo courtesy of Julia Chang-Mayo)
The Santa Fe Burger (photo courtesy of Julia Chang-Mayo)

Thanks to my awesome running partners, we often get to go out to eat after our workouts. Today Julia and David treated Angie and I to Barney's Burgers in Brentwood. They are known for their huge list of gourmet burgers which have just every kind of ingredient you can think of. Angie and I shared two burgers, the Baja Burger and the Santa Fe Burger. The Baja came with avocado, bacon, salsa, and monterey jack cheese. The Santa Fe came with cheddar cheese, grilled onion, and grilled fresh jalapeno peppers. Both were good along with the basket of skinny fries and curly fries we shared between the four of us. The jalapenos were hot and a little much for me as the first bite pretty much burned my left corner lip and remained tingly and numb for the rest of the meal. I was hoping it came with the marinated jalapeno peppers which aren't quite as hot. But the burgers were tasty and quite reasonable at $8.50 each. Thanks David and Julia....you guys always, always take such good care of us!

Barney's

11660 San Vicente Blvd

Los Angeles, CA, 90049

(310) 447-6000

www.barneyshamburgers.com

Why I Love Living in the Sawtelle Area

I absolutely love living in the Sawtelle area. There are so many places to walk to, eat at, and chill at. The only issue I have is perhaps the lack of full liquor licenses :) You can only get wine, beer, and soju at these places. This past weekend, I had a chance to go to two of my favorite walking distance restaurants. Saturday night, my good friends Alex and Adrienne came out to Westside and I took them to Nook Bistro. For those of you who haven't been to Nook...it is a great, casual, comfort food kind of place. It is truly in this little nook of a corner in a unassuming strip mall. You would have never guessed it was there. Whenever I take people, they get thrown off by the bagel shop, $1 chinese food signs, and flourescent sign of the nail salon. But Nook is truly a treasure. I had the Nook Burger...I have to say, it was better than Father's Office. That's just my opinion. It was good and the frites were just perfectly fried served with Aioli sauce (you have to ask for that). Adrienne had the Chicken Paillard, which was pounded tender to perfection. On the side she had mashed potatoes and sauteed rapini (aka broccoli rabe). I noticed that she had left almost all of her rapini on her dish. It was extremely bitter (I would have pushed it aside too). But after looking rapini up on wikipedia, turns out it is a bitter, pungent and an acquired taste to say the least. They need to perhaps change that vegetable side. Alex had the Ribeye which was nice and tender. They ordered a side of mac and cheese....always very tasty there. Alex and I shared a carafe of a Petite Syrah which was nice and full bodied...great with my burger :) For dessert we shared the bread pudding which was nice and rich with a fresh cream. Thank you two for coming out and paying for the dinner. I was so grateful to you guys for coming out and treating me was the icing on the cake!

The next day, as though I hadn't eaten out enough this past weekend, I had a chance to take a friend to Blue Marlin. I would take a bunch of people to this place because they always have so many choices of authentic Japanese dishes that never disappoint. My favorite being their Om-Rice which comes with a variety of flavors and sauces. Blue Marlin always has weekly specials which have never, ever been the same. And I think I've been there over 10 times at least. The chef must be very creative and imaginative there. The Om-Rice special was chinese chicken salad over Om-Rice. That didn't sound too appetizing to me, so I opted for the Sweet and Spicy Shrimp over Om-Rice. I've had that before and it was good...huge, huge portions.

Most likely if you visit me and we walk to dinner, we'll perhaps head out to either of these restaurants. Other favorites of mine in the walking area include: Bar Hayama, Orris, Tofuya, Pinkberry, Beard Papa, Javan, Furaibo....so come out and experience the restaurants of Sawtelle with me!

Nook Bistro
11628 Santa Monica Blvd #9
Los Angeles, CA 90025
www.nookbistro.com
Closed Sundays

Blue Marlin
2121 Sawtelle Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90025-6200
Phone: (310) 445-2522
no website, open daily

Gjelina....A Definite "Jewel" in Venice

I had dinner tonight with my favorite foodie cousin Masaki at Gjelina (pronounced Jewel-ina) located on Abbot Kinney in Venice. They serve a lot of foods that are farmer's market fresh. The decor of the place was rustic meets urban...with concrete wall with a little design on them and dark natural wood tables. The service was great despite the huge crowd of people on a thursday night. Luckily we had reservations :)

We shared a bunch of small plates which I always like doing so that I can try lots of different things on the menu. First came the Mushroom Toast with assorted mushrooms in a creme fraiche and truffle oil sauce over toast. It was extremely rich and extremely tasty. We ordered two roasted veggie dishes: Roasted Butternut Squash and Kabocha flavored with salt and rosemary and Roasted Beets with Escarole and a Coriander Yogurt Sauce. The latter was fresh and simple but all the flavors just worked well. We shared a Grilled Squid with Chickpea Salad and Kurobota Pork Belly cooked in Apple Cider and served with Mustard Greens. I think the Roasted Beets and Mushroom Toast were my favorite. Then there was the dessert....a heavenly little coffee cup full of Butterscotch Pot de Creme with Creme Fraiche and Salted Caramel. Like my cousin so eloquently put it "I could eat a whole ramen bowl full of this stuff." I definitely would go back and you should try it!
*Sorry all the pictures are so dark*

Gjelina

1429 Abbot Kinney Blvd

Venice, CA 90291 (310) 450-1429

Seafood Extravaganza at the Redondo Beach Pier

Jeanne and Russ organized a wonderful Seafood Extravaganza at the Redondo Beach Pier. I had always gone to Quality Seafood with Darren every year for my birthday, so it was time to make some new memories there. A bunch of us met up and sat at our newspaper covered tables with our beer and seafood mallets and chowed done on the freshest seafood you can get around here. I went for the fried clams (like popcorn clams) and a 1lb local lobster. The lobster just had a tail, no claws :( Nevertheless, it was meaty and melted in my mouth along with the butter sauce. Everyone else enjoyed a variety of items such as fresh Uni, steamed clams, raw oysters, clam chowder in a bread bowl, steamed shrimp, and the oh so good Dungeness crab. It was the perfect day outside and the perfect time enjoying seafood, beer, and the company of some great friends.