the new & true yumlife: search for new flavor profiles

NEW YORK EDITION

2009-06-17T12:58:00.000-07:00

i'm so ashamed at how bad i've been in keeping this website up-to-date, but not many, if anybody, is visiting this site, so... i guess i don't feel too ashamed. also, in my defense, the picture edit function on blogspot is pretty shitty.

anyway, long overdue, if for nothing else, than to keep a "diary" of where i've even. anyway, moving on...

back during the memorial day holiday, a group of us went to new york city, "the culinary capitol of the world (or at least the united states)," to do a culinary tour of the city. the entire trip's agenda was scheduled around places to eat. in between the meals, mainly to help digest the prior meal before the next, we walked around the city and took in the sights. this was not my first trip to the city, but it was definitely the best, as i was able to see more than just goddamn 32nd street (the city's "koreatown" - in quotes because the koreatown there is literally one street). below are some highlights of the food journey:

where: le bernardin
area: midtown manhattan
when: thursday, ay 21, 2009
how was it: chi chi, but rightfully, chinliciously so

where: eileen's special cheesecake
area: little italy (manhattan)
when: friday, may 22, 2009
how was it: chincake

where: lombardi's pizza
area: little italy (manhattan)
when: friday, may 22, 2009
how was it: arguably most chinful pizza experience of life

where: perilla
area: west village (manhattan)
when: friday, may 22, 2009
how was it: top chef season 1 winner level chintastic! if nothing else, for the duck meatballs with gnocchi

DESSERT

2009-02-08T22:12:00.000-08:00

where: pinkberry
area: west la
when: wednesday, january 14, 2009
how was it: sinlessly chinlessly chinlicious

originally i did not understand what the craze was... when these stores first began popping up around town, it was certainly not worth the wait
but as i continued to consume them, due to my friends' desires, the more it grew on me
now i love it...
and though it seems kinda pricey, the thought that i am able to eat expensive fruits (such as blackberry, raspberry, kiwi, etc) more than compensates for the seemingly high price
the yogurt (or "non"-yogurt, controversially noted) is so silky smooth...
...and now they have pomegranate flavor!

CHINESE

2009-02-05T22:48:00.000-08:00

where: mei long village
area: san gabriel
when: saturday, january 10, 2009
how was it: chin-chin-eeese

two words: shanghai dumplings!
not only does this delectable chinese restaurant have the lovely shanghai dumplings, filled with all its gloriously greasy soup withIN the dumpling, the "regular" dishes are also quite flavorful and fulfilling
meats are cooked wonderfully, sauces are flavored just right, the prices are good, the serving sizes are perfect, and the food is overall quite comforting. this restaurant is the definition of "comfort food"
had one bad experience when i ordered a sea cucumber and pig feet dish. i like sea cucumber and i love pig feet, but the two together don't work... and the sauce this one time was too heavy and gelatinous
granted, i really only get the same 3 or 4 dishes every time i go, which is rare, considering the distance - though it is worth the trip on those occasions!
here's what to get: vegetable rice with pork chop (rice is so simple... and dripping with grease), shanghai dumplings (two orders, sometimes - it's that good!), pan fried noodles with several different meats, ginger fish (something like that - there is a very nice light and steamed fish dish that is great)

JAPANESE

2008-12-31T17:46:00.000-08:00

where: musha restaurant
area: santa monica
when: sunday, november 16, 2008
how was it: chin-lightful

japanese "tapas" style restaurant, serving small appetizer sized dishes for a pure, chinful experience
spicy tuna dip with rice crackers, japanese style fried chicken, slow roasted pork (forgot japanese name for this), seared mackerel, tofu french fries, cheese risotto
flavors were wonderful - definitely japanese, but a different "twist" on the traditional
favorites: pork and grilled habachi. the grilled habachi particularly exciting as they torch the raw sucker right at your table!
nice, affordable prices and ability to try a plethora of goodies. however wait may be kinda long. if starving, get a little taco at the wahoo's right next door

KOREAN

2008-12-28T16:23:00.000-08:00

i recently went on a trip to korea (to visit family, sightsee with my gf on her first visit to asia, and actually to work for a week as well), and there was so much to eat... all these unique flavor profiles one can't get in los angeles, despite there being a pretty giant koreatown. since i want to keep the "reviews" restricted to the socal area, i will refrain from "fat face reviewing" each establishment, but rather provide a link to a gallery of food photos taken while in the country. of course not everything we consumed is included, but there are quite a number of them. go here for pics

some favs:

JAPANESE (by way of KOREAN)

2008-11-16T23:46:00.000-08:00

where: a-won sushi (어원)
area: koreatown
when: sunday, november 2, 2008
how was it: chinfully chintastic

japanese restaurant in "style" of korean food. basic fresh sashimi/sushi
the "set menu" is the best thing on the menu, which is, for $70 per person you get a billion course meal of fresh-ass sushi, sashimi, other fish, grilled fish, and ending with some rice and a spicy fish stew. the choicest selection of sashimi is part of the set menu, including toro, uni, and yellowtail
i will say no more, and let the pictures speak for me

MEXICAN and INDIAN

2008-11-10T19:26:00.000-08:00

where: tacos la flama
area: west la
when: saturday, november 1, 2008
how was it: chin

strip mall on pico and barrington had both a taco joint and a fast food indian place. i had the tacos, my girlfriend had the indian
tacos la flama was not bad, overall the tacos were quite tender and tasty
probably will return, if other options are not available
would probably much rather go to the indian place instead, moving forward
one unique and interesting thing about the place was that they also had a butcher in the back that sold mexican meats. for that, may return

where: chutney's indian fast food
area: west la
when: saturday, november 1, 2008
how was it: chin

best thing about this place was that it had a little "bar" of sauces
the chicken tikka masala was pretty tasty - not better nor worse than your average tikka masala at any given indian restaurant
prices were good, considering at a sit down indian place it may be double and the food not necessarily doubly delicious

FRENCH

2008-11-01T20:12:00.001-07:00

where: fraiche
area: culver city
when: sunday, october 15, 2008
how was it: tres chien!

supper club october
appetizer = risotto in bacon confit, salame platter, pasta dish that literally translates to "priest suicide" or something like that; me = sea bass; my gf = lamb; my brother = sea bass; my friend = monk fish
overall, the food was quite delicious, but of the above, my favorite had to be monk fish. the fish was quite tender and the seasoning was quite good. that being said, the sea bass was cooked to perfection, and with the sauteed vegetables, etc underneath, stewing within the enclosed bag, each bite was quite enjoyable. lamb was quite tasty as well
as always, these types of "higher end," pricier establishments are delicious, due to the use of a lot of fat and delicious bad-for-you flavorings. but with the good, is also the generic nature of these "fine dining" joints. they all seem to lump together for me. i don't readily recall what exactly i had at one particular place, and in the end all seem to bleed into one another. thank god i take pictures of the food now...
...speaking of which, our waitress was a little annoying, in that she seemed to have some weird type of smug demeanor. not in the haughty, "oh you're here in this fine dining establishment" demeanor, but just more smart-assy. she was giving me shit about taking pictures of the food, and all i could reply was, "i don't remember what i eat very well, so the pictures help me to remember." the whole waiter-customer relationship that restaurants in amerca have established, to this day somewhat baffles me. can we not just order, eat, get what we want, and leave? what is the purpose of the banter? i understand it's for tips, but in the end, out of guilt and avoidance of confrontation, we all leave the required 15 ~ 20%, so why all the fuss? let's keep it real, shall we!
one last extra comment about the risotto in bacon confit. i mean, doesn't that just SOUND delicious? it's cooked in its own fucking bacon fat juices! and there were large chunks of bacon. in rice. and butter. and bacon. i may return to this restaurant for this alone. special fat face rating for this dish:

KOREAN

2008-10-16T22:10:00.000-07:00

where: seoul garden
area: koreatown
when: wednesday, october 15, 2008
how was it: a truly chinful experience

have come here many times, but tonight was the first night in roughly a year or two...
...and was it fantastic!
the breakdown: 1) little salad with a ginger base dressing, 2) whilst prepping the middle table's cauldron of beef stock over a flame, 3) then come the side 반찬 (pahn-chan) dishes, 4) and the raw thinly sliced brisket and vegetables, 5) dump little by little in beef stock and watch the instantaneous cooking occur, 6) eat eat eat, 7) with leftover stock, udon noodles are prepared within, 8) and finally, the coup de grace, rice, sesame oil, egg, and dried seaweed are thrown into the last bit of beef stock to make instant "risotto!!!"
referred to as "jin-ghees-khan" (진기스칸), it is essentially shabu shabu... but with so much more!
this is a paradigm of korean "survival cooking" - meaning, koreans will use every last scrap of everything to consume

AMERICAN

2008-10-16T21:57:00.001-07:00

where: the counter
area: santa monica
when: thursday, october 9, 2008
how was it: chin; too chinver-rated

the counter - a chain burger joint that allows you to pick whatever toppings you want. has an interesting selection of sauces and pretty standard fare toppings
me: beef patty + hot pepper jack cheese + lettuce/tomato/onion/pickle + fried egg + white bun + horseradish sauce on the side = A'IGHT. thought that a good judge of the burger "goodness" required a standard, layered selection of toppings
hillary: beef patty + crumbled blue cheese + lettuce/tomato/onion/pickle + bacon + white bun + spicy sour cream sauce on the side = A'IGHT
sweet potato fries were quite tasty (as they would be anywhere), and the deep fried dill pickle chips were quite delicious as well. never in my life did i ever think that i would ever try "deep fried dill pickle chips." i think that's as american as you can get
very clean establishment and the concept is cute, but i doubt i will return. the discovery of a burger that is better than in-n-out is ever elusive

KOREAN

2008-10-15T01:17:00.000-07:00

where: home
what: packaged kahl-gook-soo (칼국수 - korean noodles, literal translation "knife noodles")
when: monday, october 6, 2008
how was it: chins

bought this at korean market, from a very insistent and convincing lady. "just heat it up like ramen," she says
surprisingly quite tasty. both efficient and good
added egg and dried seaweed for extra flavor
overall a good experience, but nothing to go crazy about

MEXICAN: Dia de los Tacos

2008-10-15T00:39:00.001-07:00

on october 5th, 2008, a sunday, james, hillary and i decided to go on a little taco hunt. ever on the search for the elusive "perfect taco," we journeyed to multiple locations in downtown los angeles, koreatown borders, and lincoln heights. here are the results:

where: carnitas michoacan
area: lincoln heights
when: sunday, october 5th, 2008 - 1st stop
how was it: chin-ulous

the al pastor was on a spit - just like the blogs claimed
the blogs also claimed this to be the best al pastor in los angeles. i don't disagree completely, but i still hold a verystrong allegiance to el super taco's al pastor
only salsa roja was available, but luckily it was quite tasty. it had a nice chipotle like smoky flavor. pretty unique
neighborhood not my fav, but who gives a shit the tacos were tasty! will definitely return!

where: king taco
area: downtown los angeles
when: sunday, october 5th, 2008 - 2nd stop
how was it: chin'ight (get it? like "it's a'ight")

our 2nd stop on dia de los tacos
not much can be said, other than... it's pretty overrated
i'm sure back in the days of its taco truck roots, the tacos were quite delicious. but as with all popularized chain-like locations, quality is replaced with convenience and cleanliness. which is saying a lot, but in the end, all i want is tasty-ness
i wish i didn't order so many tacos here (which included carne asada, lengua, al pastor, and suadero), because...

where: the surfer taco
area: downtown/koreatown border
when: sunday, october 5th, 2008 - 3rd and final stop
how was it: chin-batable. requires second serving, but 1 taco consumed was quite chin

despite our over-stuffed-ness, we carried on... and drove by the supposed location of this truck. lo and behold, was it there! we had to get at least one taco, since we were all the way out here, right?
it was great... but i was way too full at this point to really give it a fair assessment
the blogs noted that this truck actually had a pineapple sitting atop the spit of the al pastor, which is impossible to find, no less al pastor available on a spit. i couldn't actually see the spit, so was unsure, but after finishing the taco i asked the worker if they indeed had a pineapple atop the spit. he said "yes. wanna try a piece?" i said "sure," as i wondered why he didn't give me a piece to begin with...
after munching on the semi-warm piece of pineapple, i thought to myself and discussed with my companions, "this would have been frickin' awesome with the taco! little chunks of pineapple similar to the onion/cilantro atop the taco woulda been grand! we must return and eat it as such!"

ITALIAN

2008-10-04T21:35:00.000-07:00

where: bay cities deli
area: santa monica
when: saturday, october 4, 2008
how was it: chinderful!!

have been coming here for many years now, and i am 85% sure that this is the best sandwiches available in los angeles
above pics are of my large poor boy, with the works, and spicy peppers
i've read other blogs/comments that this place does not compare to delis in nyc, which i'm sure is the case... note to self: visit nyc
but considering i don't live in that godforsaken city, this place will have to do...
sandwiches are fantastic... the hot foods available are great... and the foods available in the market area are nice, but...
came upon this "gem" pictured to the left (click on it for a better view). i can't believe this logo is still being used! but then again, it's from italy, so what can you expect. not that i'm justifying it mind you, but it does explain it some...
despite the find of such a product, the food is fantastic, but loses a full fat face because of the nightmarish wait and crowd (but considering the food, cannot blame them...), and a lot of the clientele there are a bunch of westside yuppies who think they are smarter than they are!

VIETNAMESE

2008-10-04T11:41:00.000-07:00

where: pho show
area: culver city
when: tuesday, september 30, 2008
how was it: pretty chin

standard vietnamese food. not bad, not great. pretty good
best part about the place is its name - "fo sho!" or "it's a 'pho SHOW.'" many interpretations, any way you look at it, it works
the best thing of the night was the fried octopus, calimari, whatever you want to call it. it was lightly fried, and was very flavorful and lacked the usual "heavy breadedness" of most deep fried crap
actual place clean, except... once we were done eating (luckily), a spider, i can only assume, fell from somewhere onto our plate!!! it was kinda gross

THAI

2008-09-28T22:14:00.001-07:00

where: renu nakorn
area: norwalk
when: sunday, september 28, 2008
how was it: chinny chin chin

for months our "supper club" (consisting of my girlfriend, my brother, and my friend) have been talking about going to this place, ever since we enjoyed the unique and sultry flavor profiles of lotus of siam in las vegas. that restaurant was the primary reason that a passion for food flavors were reinvigorated. anyway, being of the same owner, we have been meaning to go for months
and at last we did, and, though does not compare to lotus of siam, it is a good "local" substitute
is it worth the 40 minute drive? maybe
super affordable, for a lot of tasty food
everything was tasty and on top of all that, i was able to try something brand new - jack fruit. it was this tuna salad sandwich type consistency that contained these "thai-esque" (for lack of a better word) spices, mixed in with the jack fruit (which i'm unsure what it is)...
a little saddened by the fact that mango and sticky rice dessert wasn't available

PIZZA

2008-09-28T21:57:00.000-07:00

where: abbott's pizza company ii
area: santa monica
when: saturday, september 27, 2008
how was it: chintastic

i went to the original venice location once and i really liked it. however, the shitty location with the lack of parking kept me from ever visiting again. it was good, but not worth the hassle of going to venice
it never occurred to me that there was this santa monica location! until now...
slice by slice prices are pretty over-priced, so we opted to get the large, with pepperoni, jalapeno and mushroom, with the "everything" crust
highlights include (and were/are not limited to): crust/pizza dough, fresh toppings, new york style crispy-ness, and most of all, the mustard/spicy dipping sauce. mmmm-mmmm
will return

AMERICAN

2008-09-28T17:01:00.000-07:00

where: home
what: nathan's hot dogs from grill
when: saturday, september 27, 2008
how was it: chins

for lunch
nathan's - tastier options for hot dogs

where: home
what: blt
when: friday, september 26, 2008
how was it: chins

for dinner
what is there to go wrong - bacon, lettuce, tomato, mayonnaise, bread

??? and MEXICAN

2008-09-28T13:13:00.000-07:00

where: green truck
area: miracle mile
when: friday, september 26, 2008
how was it: kinda shitty

organic truck located outside my office on wilshire and fairfax - miracle mile area
tried it out from suggestion from my friend, but didn't remember what he said was good. so tried the $8 chicken tacos
tortillas breaking apart, dry, crusty
chicken dry and tasteless
no sauce other than some pico de gallo - this was actually ok
undercooked black beans included in the "taco"
luckily i also ordered one taco (and jarros lime soda) from...

where: another truck (forgot the name), across the street from green truck
area: miracle mile
when: friday, september 26, 2008
how was it: not bad, chin

was not bad! simple - al pastor meat, with onions, cilantro, sauce
spicy as hell
meat was ok - pretty tender. maybe thought was much better than it was due to the shitty green truck tacos
woman asked me if i wanted cheese, which i found a little odd

MEXICAN

2008-09-28T12:58:00.001-07:00

where: pili's tacos
area: west la
when: thursday, september 25, 2008
how was it: not so chin

tried their carne asada, al pastor, and cow head (forgot the spanish name) tacos. asada too salty, al pastor not tendor, cow head was best, but even then slightly too salty
pictures on the wall of the restaurant show other dishes... might deserve a second visit to try those instead. their barbacoa looks tasty (per the pictures)
no sauce bar, and sauces provided lack some flavor - just simply "hot" or "not"
drink selection wide and unique - i heart jarros lime soda

MEXICAN

2008-09-28T12:47:00.001-07:00

where: el super taco
area: west la
when: thursday, september 25, 2008
how was it: chinlicious

best taco joint on the west side
get their al pastor - deelish; but all of their meats are nice and tender. thus far have tried al pastor (pork) and carne asada
nice and simple - tortilla, meat. that's it. add onions/cilantro and sauce to your liking
radish and lime availability
sauces outstanding, particularly the "cloudy" green avocado based one they have

WELCOME TO (THE NEW & TRUE) YUM LIFE

2008-09-28T12:07:00.001-07:00

welcome to "the search for new flavor profiles," a collection of culinary photos, with some descriptions and ratings. why aren't these food blogs just part of logic-bullets, you may (or probably not) have asked? cuz i heart tasty food in my mouth. simple as that. hope this site is both enjoyable and informative. and i thought it would be clever to use my last name "yum" in "yumlife."