[Los Angeles] [Asian Fusion] WP 24 Restaurant

WP24

900 W Olympic Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90015
(213) 743-8800

The Lounge here can be one of the best hidden spot in Downtown LA.

Its very tastefully designed, dim light, with views of LA Skyline. Although I have to admit that the view in the actual restaurant has more of the WOW factor in there (Speaking of the views and the design).

The service is very good. Professional, friendly and courteous. Just as what you would expect from Ritz Carlton Hotels (this is part of Wolfgang Puck chain but inside Ritz Carlton @ LA Live).

The drink price is not as steep as I would expect, its actually very "fair" for a place at this caliber. Most importantly, its very good! We all enjoyed the signature cocktails and their classic Mojito. It may not be one of the best on my list, but its certainly good!

The dessert that I received for my birthday was beautifully presented and its very creative nevertheless. Asian fusion penna cotta. Worth a try next time if you are here.

Good atmosphere, good drinks, good view and good friends. oh boy, I had such a good time there for my birthday :)

[Key West] [Cuban Cuisine] El Siboney Restaurant

El Siboney Restaurant

900 Catherine St
Key West, FL 33040

(305) 296-4184

www.elsiboneyrestaurant.com

This is my first try with cuban food. Ordered the famous Seafood Paella for two. Called ahead so it did not take very long for our food to come out.
The server brought some cuban bread immediately which was hot and delicious.

My immediate thought: OH MY GOD. ITS HUGE!!! It got chunks of Lobster tail, shrimps, squid, beef, chicken and lots vegetables. It tastes pretty good but since I am not familiar with the food I have no comparison. It was big enough to feed the family of four. However, both me & my friends believe that it will be better without beef and chicken. If its seafood only, it will be even better.

The fried banana is really good. I thought it would be sweet but it actually turned out to be quite interesting taste. Would not hesitate to recommend this place to others when visiting Key West.

[San Francisco] [Seafood] Swan Oyster Depot

Swan Oyster Depot

1517 Polk St
San Francisco, CA 94109
(415) 673-1101

Went to this place again in March, again in June.

I went way too late in March (around 4pm) and the shop already closed its dine-in line so my only choices was to go and my favorite blue point oysters were sold out :( I think it does taste better when you dine in (maybe I am biased).

However, I went in very early in June...wait about an hour..finally had my oysters.

I only go by myself so I can only have so much

1) 1 dozen of oysters (6 blue points, 2 local miyagi, 2 east coast miyagi, and 2 Kumamoto oysters). 1 cherry stone clam.
2) 1 Crab salad with louie dressing.
3) Sourdough bread from boudin bakery.

I have to say...Swan has not let me down once. All the foods were fresh and delicious. The texture of their oysters are the best I have ever had. Mouthful of flavors. Friendly servers too. Felt like you are eating at your neighborhood restaurant.

Cash Only, However :P

[Oakland] [Chinese Cuisine] Vien Huong Restaurant

Vien Huong Restaurant

712 Franklin Street
Oakland, CA 94607
(510) 465-5938

This place brings back so much of my childhood memories. I have been coming to this place since age of 9. I have seem their servers aged (So Am I, sniff sniff). However, the taste of the broth has never changed. I actually go to Oakland every time when I visited bay area just to get my crave for the chow chou rice noodle. I wonder when LA can make food like this?

for the Chow Chou rice noodle:
Broth - clear, not greasy, full of flavor
Rice noodle - not sticky/powdery, very fresh unlike other Vendors that leaves their rice noodle for days.
Ingredients - pork , pork liver, shrimp, fish balls, meat ball, ground pork, marinated pork, bean sprouts and more. Its pretty loaded for the price that you are paying

I will also get their lemonade and fried fish cake.

Sure is nothing fancy but I like the taste of this place so much I could be careless. Plus the price is not that expensive but the only downside is that they close by 6pm.

[Torrance] [Japanese Cuisine] Kantaro Sushi

Kantaro Sushi

1542 W Carson St
Torrance, CA 90501

(310) 320-0200

Another Hidden Gem in Torrance area. I agree with previous posters that if you factor in apparance, you shouldn't be eating here. However, I find this place gives excellent value and quality food at the same time.

This sushi joint located inside a small Mexcian strip mall in the middle of Carson blvd. If my friend didn't introduce me this place, I wouldn't even know about this place. It seems to me that they actually opened for at least 20 years and the owner is Japanese couple and most of the customers here are local Japanese crowd.

Their lunch set is VERY affordable. You can have hand made fresh sushi from around $8 dollar to their most expensive item $16.99. The meal is awesome, especially for the price you can only get a small box of sushi at mitsuwa versus here you are getting a whole set that comes with soup, salad, pickcles, and more.

I have to mention that their pickeles are one of the better one in this area, it has three different types of vegetables and they give you alot! Their salad is typical green salad with Italian dressing. Soup is full of seaweeds, tofu, and green onions.

Now the sushi:
Deluxe Sushi Lunch set ($9.90). Wow are you kidding me? I am getting 8 pieces of nigiri sushi plus 6 handrolls on top of everything else? With this price I can barely get a set lunch at niko niko down the block! Sushi consists of Salmon, Tuna, Red Snapper, Shrimp, Shrimp Eggs, Surf clam, egg and white fish, along with 3 pieces of cucumber cut roll and 3 pieces of tuna cut roll. portion wise, its more than enough to fill you up unless you have big appetite.

Supreme Sushi Lunch Set ($16.90). This is their most expensive lunch menu item, except the Omasake set ($40). It consists of more expensive items such as Cho-Toro, Yellowtail, Sweet shrimp, Tuna, Sufr Clam, sea eel, egg, Uni, Salmon eggs, Halibut Fin (This you usually don't get it elsewhere) and 6 pieces of california roll w/shrimp egg. Best of all, this also comes with free greentea/redbean ice cream of your choice! Their uni is big in portion and full in taste. So Sweet!

My only gripe is that their chu-toro has tendons in it which kinda ruined the whole buttery taste. But rest of the sushi items were fresh and tasty. Next time I would ask for less wasabi in my sushi since I like to taste the fish's natural taste more.

I think their Omakase is really good value ($40) . It has many items that's not on the menu and you will get the authentic Japanese taste and presentation. Its definitely not "fancy". However, for the high quality, good value and cozy family-like enviroment, this is the place to be.

More pictures of the sushi restuarant can be found at my own blog (http://travelsmart8.blogspot.com/2010/05/kantaro-sushi-torrance-ca-cp.html)

[Los Angeles] [American Cuisine] Eva Restaurant

Eva Restaurant

7458 Beverly Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323) 634-0700

www.evarestaurantla.com

Solid 5* Luncheon Experience.

The ingredients that they used are definitely fresh and tasty. I love this place from the moment that I stepped in. Very cozy and they divided into indoor & outdoor portion. We picked outdoor portion since it was perfect weather.

The lunch meal consists of Appetizer, Entree, and Dessert of your choice.

I picked Cherry Salad, Linguine with Clams, and Berries. Cherry salad used fresh, ripen Bing cherries and the salad itself used vinaigrette dressing which is also very refreshing. Like others mentioned, the Linguine w/ Clam (they used udon instead of typical linguine pasta) is off the chart. Pretty mind blowing experience. I was surprised this dish can be THIS good. Perfect balance between the udon, the sauce, and the clam (esp the green leaves in the pasta sauce...I wonder if its shiso?) so good! Berries n Cream is fresh too but nothing to write home about.

My friend had Asparagus, which is very good with the olive oil (served warm). Albacore is also an excellent choice, and the cheese plate for dessert.

Its definitely beyond my expectation and I was very pleased to dine in here. I will definitely return to try their famous Sunday Supper Menu!

For more pictures and detailed review in Chinese, Please Visit (http://travelsmart8.blogspot.com/2010/06/eva-restaurant-west-hollywood-ca.html)

[Redondo Beach] [Japanese Cuisine] Izakaya Bincho

Izakaya Bincho

112 N International Boardwalk
Redondo Beach, CA 90277

(310) 376-3889

izakayabincho.com/

"Hole in the Wall" Izakaya. The first thing for me to do when I came back from this restaurant to write how cool/good it is.

- This restaurant has almost no sign from outside, only insiders would come here or those adventurous people who bypass the restaurant yet its still full.
- They only open for dinner, and they are exactly how izakaya should be in Japan. Very informal, friendly atmosphere. Everyone is very laid back there.
- The food price is very reasonable and the taste is superb.
- The customers were all Japanese, age varied from young to old. That tells you this place is catering to true Japanese food lovers.

Now the Food:

I noticed his frying skill is like one of the best.
I highly recommend:
1) Fried Chicken Nuggets, Japanese Style
2) Fried Spicy Chicken Wings
3) Agedashi Tofu
4) Meatball Hot Pot
5) Chicken Zousui
6) Stewed Pork Belly

The food is a bit towards salty side so if you don't like the salty stuff, its not for you.

This place has more meat dishes than seafood dishes. If u want seafood, the Seafood market place next door is a good alternative.

I can't wait to return to that place!