Crackin Kitchen

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Crackin Kitchen

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New to Pasadena, straight from Hawaii, comes Crackin' Kitchen. This is the first Hawaiian cajun I've come across. They do seafood platters to different varieties of mussel pots. The viet cajun seafood boils we are used to is now fused with Hawaiian flavors for a different twist. Come check them out in Old Town Pasadena when you're in the area.

House sodas. This is peach and watermelon.

House sodas. This is peach and watermelon.

Seafood platter. Oysters, shrimp cocktail, tuna poke, smoked salmon with taro chips, and snow crabs.

Clam Chowder fries. Mashed potatoes topped with french fries with ladles of clam chowder, cheddar cheese and fried egg. My ultimate carb obsession.

Seafood tortilla pizza - Ahi, shrimp, tomato, avocado, jalapeno, cilantro, red onion, and special sauce served on a crispy tortilla

Thai Mussel Pot - Coconut milk, lemon grass, coriander, kaffir, fish sauce, chili, ginger, garlic

ULTIMATE COMBO - Shrimp, clams, mussels, corn, potatoes, andouille sausage and snow crab. Served with all three signature sauces. 

115 E. Colorado Blvd. Pasadena, CA 91105

Plenty of seating with a full bar. Love that the space feels really open. I would recommend coming with a larger group to try out different items. They have a HUGE selection of different flavored mussel pots.

enjoy!

 

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Commerson

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Commerson

Lately, breakfast/brunch consists of something fast and effortless. Most of my weekends are spent at the gym in the mornings followed by breakfast with my dad on Saturdays and somewhere for lunch Sundays. We normally eat the same things: Vietnamese or Chinese Hong Kong Cafe in Alhambra. I haven't ventured much because it's been hard to find a place that serves delicious breakfast food. To find one that has good food AND good coffee is a plus for me.

Commerson - 788 South La Brea Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90036

Service was fantastic as expected. Our coffee cups were filled often which is always a plus. Their coffee is good in case you're a skeptic of "diner" style coffee, this is not that.

Pork Belly Hash - two sunny side up eggs, tomato marmalade, piquillo peppers, cherry tomatoes, fennel, toast. This is filled with chunks of pork belly perfect to fight through any hangover. Their commitment to sunnyside eggs is pretty much the most perfect I've seen.

Forest Mushroom Omelette - bun shimiji, shiitake, maitake, raclette cheese, caramelized onions, and a side of mixed greens. Ok. Probably the best mushroom omelette I've ever had. The sweetness of the caramelized onions pairs so well with the raclette cheese. Of course the delicious mushrooms cooked with the onions brought a nice level of umami-ness to this that I did not crave meat.

Brioche French Toast - toasted macadamia nuts, rum butter, coconut chantilly cream. I am not a sweet breakfast kinda girl. But damn did this sweep me faster than the extra food in the kitchen email from work. There's just something so decadent about this. It's quite hard to explain. The texture element on this was on point. The brioche is crispy all around with a softness when you cut into this. Homemade brioche yo!

Housemade Sopes with Mole Hollandaise - poached eggs, red onions, cotija cheese, chorizo, fresno chilis, corn, cilantro. No words can express how great fresh tortillas are let alone fresh sopes. This combination is bonkers. The soft poach egg man. I've never had a sopes made like this before and now I'm changed forever.

Smoked Salmon Benedict (you can also get neuske's canadian bacon) - house made english muffins, poached eggs, béarnaise, fried capers, dill, mixed greens. Their home made muffins remind me of the british muffins. So fluffy and holds all that bearnaise sauce and runny poached eggs. Not a lot of people do this, but when I see fried capers I know they are doing it right.

Housemade Granola - Served with honey, berries, straus organic greek yogurt (or milk). Simple, but goes really well with the granola and a slight drizzle of honey. A pretty hefty bowl perfect for a morning fuel if you don't want something too large.

This is their Gin & Tonic on Tap - House made tonic, juniper berries, citrus peels, rose blossoms, and soda water. This isn't a part of their current brunch special, but if you are interested, I highly recommend their bottomless bellinis & mimosas for $35. This also includes one food item from the menu per person. There's a 2 hour seating limit for tables with bottomless bellinis and the $35 offer excludes the ribeye cap steak and eggs from the menu (what did you expect?).

I must come back for dinner. Can't wait for you guys to try it out. And if you get to dinner before me, please let me know what you think!

Ciao

 

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Mori

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Mori

Mori - JR Tokyo Station Yaesu basement Central Exit 1-minute walk

The food scene in Tokyo Station is something I recommend you checking out. Yes it can feel like a tourist trap, but it's one of those places you have to walk through at least once. We stayed in Ginza so walking to Tokyo Station only took about 15 minutes. What's great is how accessible it is to get from one destination to another. We had little hesitancies to go to different areas of the city because of that.

With plenty of food in Tokyo Station, I recommend going for what you really want to try or crave. It's also fun if you want to do a restaurant crawl down here and there's plenty of walking if you feel it's needed to digest. And... a Starbucks is also around for quick pick-me-ups.

I checked out Mori not because of the lines. Because there was none. But because I was craving beef tongue. And if you've ever had Japanese beef tongue, you will understand why the cravings were legit. The perfectly scored meat with the subtle smoke of the binchotan incasing it as the fat drips down. It's spectacular and there really isn't anything like this flavor.

Here is their beef tongue curry. Simple, but very delicious. Tender beef in a rich curry sauce to be accompanied by rice and fukujinzuke (best w curry).

My beef tongue came with rice, the most amazing scallion soup made with beef bones, and an incredibly delicious salad. I like to eat each piece of beef with a little wasabi followed by their pickled greens.

I can't really explain the comfort level of this dish besides it making me happy every freaking time. I assume this is oxtail tongue as it reminds me of Gyutan Tsukasa here in California (can find GT in Mitsuwa, Costa Mesa).

 

 

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Weho Bistro

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Weho Bistro

Ok obviously this is from West Hollywood. I totally just caught on to that right now even though I've been here before. I only know of a few French restaurants and this is one of them. They have a pretty extensive menu and I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before from the first time I blogged about this place, but you can pretty much get all your fixes here. 

I've been obsessed with bread. But more so, carbs lately. This is served complimentary with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and olive tapenade (contains anchovy).

And maybe not too strange, but I've also been really addicted to Caesar salads with seafood. I added butter shrimp to this. BEST combination ever.

Escargot a la bourguignonne. Bathed in a pool of buttery garlic parsley sauce with more baguettes. 

Cream of mushroom soup. I like to call it, cream of decadence. 

French onion soup. If you think it doesn't get cheesier than that, let me tell you there is more cheese under that.

Joey's homestyle spaghetti bolognaise. Homestyle is right. You won't expect anything more than a comforting plate of spaghetti, meat sauce, and cheese. Did I mention I was craving for carbs? You bet I did.

Chicken piccata. More like chicken bathed in butter with garlic mashed potatoes. Sometimes, I forget this dish exists. Then I start to realize I've been shorting myself with my home cooking recipes.

No dessert because I'm smart enough to call it quits. Boy was I stuffed. Went home around 7-8 and crashed! Can you believe that?

http://www.wehobistro.com/

1040 N La Cienega Blvd

at the corner of Holloway Dr
West Hollywood , CA 90069

310.657.9696

 

 

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Napa Valley Grille Brunch

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Napa Valley Grille Brunch

Napa Valley Grille is one of the enjoyable spots I like to visit when I'm in Westwood. Including that day, I think I've ate here in total of 4 times. This time we've attempted to dine during brunch. They have a spacious patio to get some of that Vitamin D. 

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Coffee Cake. They bake their own bread to serve before your meal. This changes pretty often depending on what they decide to make. Dinner also changes as well. I love freshly baked bread and pastries so this is always a treat.

1/2 salmon caesar salad. They served the salad in another 1/2 since it was shared between 2. Super thoughtful. This was also very delicious. Simple, but salmon was cooked perfectly.

Shrimp & Stone-Cut Grits served with an over-easy egg, and fennel-frisée salad. Love the touch of shaved fennel. This isn't your New Orleans style shrimp and grits. The broth was definitely lighter and not filled with a pull of grease and sausage. Very flavorful nonetheless

. Crab Cake Benedict with roasted potatoes, hollandaise, and fresh herbs. 

Charcuterie - prosciutto, duck salumi, soppressata, housemade brandied chicken liver pâté, seasonal jam, and charred rustic bread. My favorite is their brandied chicken liver pâté. 

Prosciutto loving with charred bread.

This restaurant is extremely spacious. They also have intimate rooms for private dining for groups or business meetings. I recommend Napa Valley Grille if you've never been here.

1100 Glendon Avenue, #100, Los Angeles, CA 90024

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