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salad

The Restaurant - The Getty Center

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The Restaurant - The Getty Center

The Restaurant is located in the Restaurant/Cafe building (upstairs from the cafeteria). The Restaurant offers full service in an elegant setting with views of the Santa Monica Mountains. Menus do change seasonally and the restaurant is opened for dinner service during summer.

I've passed by The Restaurant many times, but never thought about dining here. They have a pretty prestigious menu that compliments the art pieces you can find at the museum. Everything we had was fantastic.

Pepper Tomato Gazpacho - Recommended to open your palate. 

Mission IPA 

I think I had 3 slices of bread. Incredible with the soft butter served alongside.

Beet Hummus - Toasted Cumin, Cilantro Pistou with Pappadam Crisps. ADDICTING.

BBQ Flat Bread - Grilled Flatbread, smoky barbeque pulled pork, white cheddar, arugula and red onions.

Rucola con Pecorino arugula, crisp apple, applewood smoked salami shaved pecorino toscano, white balsamic

SUMMER FRUIT PANZANELLA  marinated mozzarella, wild rocket, torn croutons, pistachio honey balsamic. Seasonal Peaches and cherries were the summer fruits of the day. Delicious.

Crudo scallop, garlic oil, capers, tomato coulis fresno pepper

Chefs take on Pozole. PORK LOIN - Hominy, ancho puree, papaya cabbage slaw, cilantro. One of my favorite dishes.

PRIME FILET OF BEEF - potato pancake, spicy sweet glaze, crispy onion, pickled vegetables.

Prawns Pomodoro - locally milled wheat pasta, heirloom tomatoes garlic, basil

Dessert

Perfect restaurant to go for a special occasion or just to treat yourself to a nice meal before or after walking the Getty.

Hours

Lunch

Tuesday–Saturday 11:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m.

Sunday 11:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.

Dinner

Friday 5:30–9:00 p.m.

Saturday 5:00–9:00 p.m.

Closed Mondays

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Pier Del Sol - Special Olympics 2016

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Pier Del Sol - Special Olympics 2016

The Special Olympics Southern California offers year-round sports training and competition for children and adults with intellectual disabilities. More than 26,006 athletes in 11 Southern California counties train and compete in 12 Olympic-type summer and fall sports. There is no cost for athletes to participate in Special Olympics.

I'm extremely excited to support Special Olympics Southern California at the 20th annual Pier del Sol fundraiser event on October 9th at Santa Monica. It's a fantastic event hosted once a year with family fun events featuring rides, entertainment, food, silent auctions and more.

 

Below is a little more about the mission and vision of Special Olympics Southern California:

“The mission of Special Olympics Southern California is to provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, giving them continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes and the community. Our vision is to provide sports and training programs for any individual with intellectual disabilities who chooses to participate, thereby improving their lives and the lives of everyone they touch.”
— Special Olympics Southern California

Here are all the awesome food that I got to eat. For $175 a ticket, you get spoiled with some of the best restaurants of Los Angeles, meet the athletes (even sing with them), go on rides (for free), get 12 game tickets, and knowing that all proceeds goes towards the programs.

Oysters from Providence / Connie's & Ted is always a favorite stop.

Live music to celebrate the 20th annual Pier Del Sol. 20's themed.

One of my favorite games! Watching awesome special Olympic athletes play.

Children are super competitive.

12 tickets, 12 chances!

Can you guess who won?

Can you guess who won?

Yup..

My brother wins!

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Daikokuya - Monterey Park

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Daikokuya - Monterey Park

Everyone went crazy when Daikokuya opened in Monterey Park. The whole 'Yay we don't have to drive to little tokyo!' or 'Yay we don't have to wait that long!' perception will be crushed in a matter of seconds that moment you start writing your name on the wait list. Along with the line of other groups ahead of you. As you slowly count up and realize you are not number 1, but number 15. And then you start reflecting on your life. Have you ever been number 15? It's worse than a midlife crisis. Or, you're all happy pulling up to see tons of parking spaces. But then you see the crowd of people huddled outside like it's below 0 when it's hot as a mother F'er.

Honestly, I have no idea where that rant came from. This is what happens when you have hot noodle soup during a hot summer day. You start seeing and saying sh*t.

Luckily, my friends and I got here in time where we didn't have to wait over an hour. Maybe it was 30 minutes, but it's fine since I ran into really good friends of mine.

I wouldn't say famous, but this is a very delicious bowl of salad that comes with an order of Ramen. It's their own house dressing which you can also purchase a bottle to take home. A must have.

Tsukemen

I ordered their Tsukemen which is all the fixings; Seared Chashu, green onions, sprouts, soft boiled eggs and ramen that has been cooked and cooled under running water. Served with a bowl of pork broth.

Salmon Carpaccio

Salmon sashimi with housemade carpaccio sauce, passer leaf, salsa and parmesan cheese. A lot of flavor, but quite tasty.

Chicken Kaarage

Honestly, chicken Karaage is the ultimate beer food. I take that back, it's the ultimate food to have with any alcohol. I love this stuff. With a lot of lemon. And when I am really hamming, over a bowl of rice. Sitting on the floor, with stretchy pants..

Daikoku Ramen

This is their signature Tonkotsu Ramen (Ton-KO-t-su, not katsu please). The tonkotsu (pork base soup) is infused with their house blended soy sauce. Served with boiled chijre style egg noodles, kurobuta pork belly chashu, marinated boiled egg, bamboo shoots, bean sprout, green onions and a dash of sesame seeds.

Shredded Pork Bowl

Their famous shredded pork bowl. Ok I'm not sure if it's famous, but it's extremely popular. Tender kurobuta pork belly that's grilled and served over rice with green onions, pickled ginger and a sweet sauce. If you are hungry, and want something extremely umami like, this is it. It's hard not to get this and even harder not to take a bite when someone offers.

111 N Atlantic Blvd, Ste 241, Monterey Park, CA 91754

 

 

 

 

 

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Wood Ranch - Burbank

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Wood Ranch - Burbank

I attended a media event for Wood Ranch the past week at their newest location in Burbank. If you are familiar with this area, it is where the old Elephant Bar used to be. Shocking to see that they closed, but having Wood Ranch in the area made more sense. The location will officially open for dinner at 4 p.m. on Monday, June 13 and for lunch on Wednesday, June 22. So get ready to mark your calendars.

110 N. 1st Street Burbank CA 91502

Here are a glimpse of the food items we had that evening:

You have your fresh guacamole, salsa and chips. Killer wings (both buffalo and fiery). Their famous shredded onions which you can literally put on everything. There's absolutely no way your hands will be clean after this round.

Old Fashioned

Old Fashioned

We had a few salads to try. From their sides, a mountain of original peanut coleslaw. Their Tuscan Kale Salad composed of watermelon radishes, chives, carrots, green beans, cauliflower, golden raisins, toasted pumpkin seeds, shaved Parmesan, and tossed with a balsamic vinaigrette. Natalie's Salad - mixed greens, candied pecans, avocado, Gorgonzola crumbles, cucumber, balsamic vinaigrette. And their BBQ chopped salad with your choice of chicken or tri tip - Mixed greens, corn, black beans, Tillamook® Monterey jack, tortilla strips, tomato, carrots, scallions, cilantro, ranch, and Original BBQ sauce. Which one would you get? I liked the chopped salad because I'm a meat salad type of girl.

St. Louis Ribs

St. Louis Ribs are sweet & spicy, dry-rubbed & smoked. Served with a side of Original or chipotle-cherry BBQ sauce. I loved these ribs the most. I'm a huge fan of dry rubs and these were definitely fall off the bone tender.

All American Baby Back Ribs

These were center cut and hand trimmed, served with the original BBQ sauce. Sweet and tangy. These were also fall off the bone. You can see it by the shreds.

Wood Ranch Tri Tip and Fire Roasted Chicken.

Wood Ranch Tri Tip and Fire Roasted Chicken.

They had some premium sides like grilled asparagus. Also signature sides like sweet potato mash, and Mac & Cheese.

At the Burbank location, there are a few exclusive items you'll find here, and only here.

The Ultimate BBQ Sandwich. A stack of Carolina Pulled Pork w. Carolina Slaw, Double RRanch® Brisket topped with Tillamook Swiss®, wood-grilled premium kielbasa (spicy smoky sausage), charred jalapeño, Famous Shredded Onions on a freshly baked brioche bun. Choose any barbecue sauce on the side. Good luck taking a bite of this. I had no problem... but a warning in case your jaw gets stuck.

Manny's Crispy Chicken Sandwich

Manny's Crispy Chicken Sandwich

Premium, juicy chicken thigh, brined overnight in buttermilk and spices, then coated with their specially-seasoned mix.Fried to order and topped with their Peanut-Cilantro Slaw on a freshly baked brioche bun. A large sandwich. Crispy and delicious. Good luck headed towards the gym after.

Bar Area Special during Happy hour, Momday-Friday 3-6pm. These are their Smoked Pulled Pork Nachos. For $6, this is definitely a steal. Carolina Pulled Pork, Tillamook Monterey jack® and cheddar cheeses, black beans, chopped jalapeño, salsa, house-made guacamole and sour cream.

Save room for dessert:

Graham Cracker crust cheesecake with raspberry sauce and their Oreo Cookie crunch - Vanilla bean ice cream rolled by hand in ground.

Make sure you check them out!

110 N. 1st Street Burbank CA 91502

 

 

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The Counter Burger - Pasadena

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The Counter Burger - Pasadena

I've been going to The Counter Burger for over 7 years now. I would also add that it was my first gourmet burger I've ever had. Now that I work up the street on Lake Avenue in Pasadena, The Counter is literally within my reach whenever I want it. It's crazy. And I've been on this burger diet last year where all I ate was mostly that. I'm not sure if it was a phase. But I think it's just all the people telling me how crazy I was to eat burgers constantly. Get this straight. There is no judge zones when it comes to eating. If I want a damn burger, I will get me a damn burger!

Their new menu no longer comes in a binder. It is now as you can see, a laminate menu printed on both sides. The build your own burger is still available, but they cut down on the ingredients that were available to make the building less complicated, and more realistic. Like really, do you really need 10 items on your burger? Might as well go down the street to Souplantation if you just want to fill your cup. Make it quick, make it simple.

The Counter Burger has other locations, please click "Here" to find one near you.

Tater Tots with Pimento Cheese and BACON

If you've never had Pimento Cheese, obviously you need to try it. But to have it served with tater tots becomes a whole new ball game. You definitely want to eat these with a fork to get the biggest bite possible. Portions are great to share.

Sweet Sriracha Chicken Wings

The first bite is sweet, spicy, and tangy. The heat will slowly creep up. And next thing you know it, you are craving for the next one. It's not as spicy as you think they'll be, but they do pack a good punch of flavor in each bite. Don't worry about napkins. It's all finger licking and sucking at this point.

Crab Encounter

This item is also on their new menu. Monster lump crab meat, diced eggs, bacon over bacon, roasted red peppers, green onions and spring mix to make you feel better about yourself. Served with a honey mustard dressing, but of course you can always ask for something else. This was $18, but well worth it. I'll say it again, HUGE lumps of crab. I also loved the diced eggs and tomatoes. This was very fun to eat.

Southern Fried Chicken

They put the chicken in a buttermilk brine. Served with jalapeno jack, tomatoes, sliced Jalapenos, coleslaw, honey dijon all sandwiched between a brioche bun. Jalapenos are frightening. There are days where it wouldn't do much, but there are days it will totally destroy my stomach and bottom after a few hours. This was spicy when I had it, just the way I like it. If you want to give it a spicier punch, ask them for buffalo sauce or something instead of honey mustard. A bleu cheese dressing sounds delicious too.

Last but not least, 2 milkshakes to put out the butt fire. Strawberry Banana and Nutella. YUM. I love milkshakes. They really do make me feel like a kid because we didn't grow up drinking these. So to have it was definitely a treat.

There are also a few new items on their menu. Feel free to ask the staff about them.

Pasadena:

140 Shoppers Lane, Pasadena CA 91101

 

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