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Hunan Tea Garden
My mom has been wanting to take us to her friend's sister's restaurant, Hunan Tea Garden Hunan Tea Garden, for a while now, but it's in New Jersey and we rarely get out there. To be more efficient, we planned a day of tax-saving shopping (poor Lon) to work up an appetite for the massive meal to come. My mom had pre-ordered all her favorites, several in double portions, and then some complimentary dishes were added, culmina... -
Grand Harmony
I am pretty much against eating dim sum in Chinatown/Manhattan these days but it was the convenient thing to do for 7 people on our way to New Jersey. We tried Grand Harmony Grand Harmony and the short version of it is, it's not very good. We forgot the camera in the car but nothing looked that appealing anyway. Several plates were cold or room temperature. The fish ba... -
Sweet Home Blogger Award
Thank you to Julia at Backcounter Buffet for passing on the Sweet Home Blogger Award to us. Your blog has rea... -
Nirvana Cafe
Yesterday was one of those uncomfortably humid days. My clothing was getting stuck to me as I walked with Xiu to Nirvana Cafe Nirvana Cafe, where we met with Sarah, for a fun dinner of Sri Lankan cuisine.Inside, the air conditioning was on so low, it was barely noticeable. I was sticking to the chair and trying to fan myself for most of dinner until the AC was turned up ... -
Tzatziki
I love Tzatziki and make it pretty often in the summer. It's so refreshing, a perfect way to balance spicy dishes or meats coming off a barbecue grill. After making it in many different ways, I've decided on a recipe: I chose to use kirby cucumbers because the regular or garden cucumbers can be watery and flavorless (at least in NY). I specified Fage yogurt because it is my favorite yogurt and I ... -
Chio Paprika Potato Chips
We brought back some chips from our honeymoon in the Mediterranean. We decided to try the Chio Paprika Chips last night, which we purchased from Greece but then realized that they're actually from Germany, oh well...Sushi Yasuda # 14
I think this is visit #14 to Sushi Yasuda. (I forgot to number it last time.) I can't believe I still always have new fish to write about. Tonight, we had Tarpon, the red colored one on the left. Depending on the part of the fish, the flesh ranges from deep red to almost purple, a very striking piece. It tastes very much like non-fatty tuna but the meat is more loosely packed together. Blackfish, on the right, is actually a pinkish...Inside the Despana Basket: Afuega'l Pitu
I was so excited to try the big ball of cheese in the basket, the Afuega'l Pitu. This one was the red variety made with paprika and/or cayenne. The texture looked great, similar to fresh goat cheese. I was planning on spreading it everywhere.The Price of Food
Have you been feeling like the price of food is much higher all of the sudden? If so, you'd be right. A recent agricultural post from the Cattle Network compares the price of various food stuffs between May 2007 and May 2008.I've mostly heard dairy prices rising, and while eggs and milk are up, it seems the field crops are getting slammed the most. We shouldn't be surprised there have been ...Ippudo
I'm generally bored of the modern look these days but Ippudo Ippudo manages to have that clean modern look, without feeling stale. $13 and up seems steep for a bowl of noodles, but I figured I would just try it once.My assumptions were all wrong. I was expecting a glorified version of the ramen packets you get at Asian markets...you know, those 75 cents dry ramen bags (which ...Olive Oil from Greece
We brought back several different bottles of olive oil from our honeymoon. This bottle of Kolimvari Extra Virgin Olive Oil was recommended to us by a store employee who s...Inside the Despana Basket: Jamon Iberico
Drum roll please.....The Despana basket included the famous Jamon Iberico. Lon and I have been talking about getting this special, imported cured ham, but with busy wedding plans, it had slipped our minds. Lucky us, who finally got to try this delicious meat. The flavor is like a combination of Serrano and Prosciutto, really good one...Inside the Despana Basket: Almond Torta
Here's the first installment of "Inside the Despana Basket": an almond torta, kind of like an almond brittle, wrapped in a nice box, perfect for a gift.
...The Despana Basket
When Lon and Justin K. had first discovered Despana, Lon said that he wanted one of everything. Having grown up with Lon, Justin K. and his brother Steve, knew that Lon really meant it. Over the weekend, Steve and Justin came over with a big surprise, a giant basket with one of everything from Despana! Best wedding present ever!Homemade Peanut Butter Cups
Our niece Sabrina had a fabulous backyard first birthday party yesterday. Bonnie, Sabrina's grandma, made burgers, hot dogs, cedar plank salmon, potato and pasta salads, fruit, and desserts, the works! Of course, I had to make something. Sabrina doesn't eat much solid food yet but she'll see these pictures in the future and I am just ensuring my spot as favorite aunt.I have been waiting till after the wedding to make peanut butter cups because they are pretty decadent. -
Curried Crab over Rice
There used to be a wonderful Indian restaurant on 58th Street, where from time to time I'd enjoy their Curried Crab appetizer. For $12, one could have a pint of curry-flavored crab. Every bite was amazing. Unfortunately they went out of business and I haven't had the dish in a while.This weekend Jessica's mom dropped off four medium-sized, steamed blue crabs, shipped in a bushel from Maryland (the crabs we talked... -
Sushi Yasuda
We missed Sushi Yasuda Sushi Yasuda so much. As soon as we got back from the honeymoon, we made reservations. I was extra excited to go this time because we brought a gift for Chef Tomura. I had read that it was common in Japan for patrons to bring gifts to their sushi chefs. Since then, I had been plotting to bring him back something from ... -
ABC Chinese Restaurant
We missed Father's Day while we were on honeymoon so we made sure to celebrate soon after our return. We had planned to go for Peking duck but the restaurant was booked for the night, a second choice had a long wait, and we ended up at ABC Chinese Restaurant ABC Chinese Restaurant. All because most of Chinatown doesn't take reservations. There's always a down side right.It ended up being a pretty average Cantonese st... -
One Fish, Two Fish
We missed Stephen's birthday during our honeymoon so we had to celebrate as soon as we got back. We ended up in my old high school neighborhood, at One Fish Two Fish One Fish Two Fish. Wow, does the area look different. The restaurant feels spacious, which is a rare pleasure in Manhattan when you're back is usually up against a strangers. Unlimited salad, 1 basket of garlic bread... -
What's Up With Sammy's Noodle Shop?
On the last day of our honeymoon, we had to eat breakfast (same buffet) at 5am in the morning because Princess Cruise Lines forced us to meet at 5:30am in the lobby, to have us arrive at the airport at 7am, for a flight that was at 11:55am. We couldn't even check in till 9am so we had to sit by the entrance of the airport for two hours, before our 3 hour wait. I did pack up a bunch of stuff (croissant, danish, muffin, apple, small box of raisin bran) to munch on in the airport, more out of bored... -
Naples, Italy
BreakfastAnother quick breakfast and we were off to see the city of Naples.Too Much SnackingShortly after getting off the boat, we spotted a cafe, which are all over the place. In Italy, it seems that cafes look a little like small bars, but people are standing around drinking cafes (what we think of as espresso). I wanted to try one so we took it to go since we don't speak Italian. Everyone s... -
Another Day at Sea
BreakfastIt's a long way between Santorini and Naples so it's a whole day at sea. It's great cause we can relax and sun bathe but bad cause we'll be eating a lot without the walking a lot. We slept in and it was too late to eat in the dining room so we had to join the crowded buffet for the same old food that I'm sick of.DemoChef Alfredo Marzi is the head chef for all 18 fleets of the Princess... -
Santorini, Greece
BreakfastBreakfast was standard. Lon ate another one of those chocolate almond pastries but I resisted the platter of donuts.Getting LostSantorini was by far my favorite stop, which is no surprise. Everyone raves about it and it is truly wonderful. Our boat anchored out in the water. We boarded tenders to get to shore, where we road the cable cars up the steep mountain side (while watching o... -
Rhodes, Greece
Breakfast Nothing interesting about the buffet breakfast today.LunchRhodes is also very touristy, but at least there's more to see than just stores. We walked through the Palace of the Grand Masters, which exhibits ancient jugs, bowls, jewelry, etc. within beautiful stone and marble walls. We took plenty of great photos before looking for lunch, where we were at a loss. Every place looked the same: full of tourists, expensive, with back g... -
Kusadasi, Turkey
BreakfastI was excited to see an interesting variety of quiches at the buffet this morning. Unfortunately, they were ice cold, just pulled from the fridge. I couldn't eat it and I really wanted to. There were flavors like mushroom leek, artichoke goat cheese, sausage and potato, etc. Too bad......
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Mykonos, Greece
BreakfastWe're about half way through the cruise and we're starting to feel full just about 24 hours a day. We actually wake up still full from the day before so we managed to avoid the donuts at the buffet this morning.LunchMykonos was really cute, although again very touristy. I loved the white buildings, the famous Pelican (who I took a photo with), the incredibly blue water, and most impor... -
Athens, Greece
BreakfastWe went to the buffet for breakfast again, mostly the same old stuff so I didn't bother taking pictures. We had the lemon almond pastry today (they do seem to serve different flavors daily) which was very good.LunchThe ship parks in Piraeus so we had to take the train into Athens, where we walked around Plaka, an area known for shopping and flea markets, and looked up at the Acropolis... -
Katakolon, Greece
BreakfastWe had time for a leisurely breakfast in the dining room, which started with more donuts, still the best part of breakfast on the boat. I had a sugar donut, Lon had a chocolate almond pastry, and we shared a pretty good blueberry muffin. The Mushroom Fritatta was over-cooked, while the cheese on top was not even melted, but the sausage and polenta sides were better.... -
Corfu, Greece
BreakfastWe went for the buffet for breakfast again since I wanted to hop off the boat as quickly as possible. There was a selection of sliced meats this time. I had some prosciutto and black forest ham, which were ok (I know I've been wearing out the word "ok", but that's really the best way to describe most of the food on this boat). I had some fruit and decided to call that breakfast. Lon had oatmeal and donuts. -
Dubrovnik, Croatia
BreakfastWe woke up later than I had hoped but we really needed the sleep. We went to the Horizon Buffet for a quick breakfast where the offerings weren't that enticing. Lon picked up some pates from a large selection but didn't really enjoy them. The rest was pretty standard buffet stuff, bacon, scrambled eggs, bread. (Not posting pics of this due to bad bandwidth. Only posting best ones.)Again, the donut (this one was like a fresh zeppo... -
A Day at Sea
BreakfastWe chose to browse the Horizon Buffet for breakfast. Lon was very happy with the wide array of smoked fish, Mahi Mahi, swordfish, whitefish, and more (at least 7 types). I thought most were either too chewy or two salty but did finish my slice of smoked salmon....
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Venice
2008-06-07: Updated to include images.We arrived in Venice and shuffled off to our ship, the Princess Emerald, where like we mentioned, we spent a ridiculous amount of time trying to get wireless service to our laptop. By the time we were done calling our travel agency at American Express, we were starving and rushed off to find a dining room. Luckily, we were seated quickly. We were both in a bad mood, deeply regretting our... -
Airplane and Airport Food
I don’t ever expect airplane food to be good so Lufthansa gave me what I expected. I chose the pasta (with canned mushrooms) which was terribly over-cooked. The bread was cold from sitting in the fridge, the cheese was bland, but the fruit was pretty good. The brownie was also edible, not too sweet.... -
Honeymoon Kicks Off to a Rocky Start
We had some bad airplane food (on Luftansa), after being delayed over an hour for take-off. We've finally arrived at our ship - Princess Emerald, leaving from the port in Venice, and we're having issues getting internet access. We were lead to believe that wireless would be free although spotty, but we are now being told it will cost 75 cents per minute (some packages available). We hope to have this resolved as we have just spent time that should have been enjoying Venice, on trying to get wire... -
Blueberry on Steroids
Should I be concerned about eating this blueberry? It's almost 1" in diameter!!
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Pizza Paradise
We noticed another pizza joint in our hood so we had to try it. ... -
La Paella
For Olivia's birthday, we gathered for dinner at La Paella La Paella, a tapas restaurant where the waitress recommends skipping Paella and sticking to the little plates. I'd hate to taste their Paella then, considering none of the tapas surpassed mediocre for me. Actually, I think this is the most consistently mediocre restaurant I've ever been to. All but one dish, the scallops whi... -
Carnation Bakery
There's so many Chinese bakeries these days, it's hard to know which ones to go to. For that, I have my mom, who always knows what's good in the realm of Chinese foods, especially in Queens. After brunch on Monday, my mom drove us to Carnation Bakery Carnation Bakery, one of our favorites. It is out of the way, and not within walking distance of a train sta... -
Rehearsal Dinner at Dong Yi Feng
Our rehearsal dinner was at Dong Yi Feng Dong Yi Feng, a Chinese banquet style meal of ten courses, for each of our five tables, seating ten people each. With all the excitement, I forgot to take pictures of a few dishes. I'm sure you can understand. The first course was a really unique chopped clam dish served in lettuce wraps and hoisin sauce. I heard several peo... -
A Foodie Wedding
~WE'RE MARRIED~Obviously, Lon and I are obsessed with food. At our wedding, we named each table with an herb or spice and the appropriate sign was made:...
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Rice Works
We were in the May 19, 2008 issue of People Magazine and I didn't want to post anything until the wedding because then my guests would see the bridesmaids dresses. In any case, the photo shoot was fun and our super nice photographer, John Clark, supplied us with snacks. We all went crazy over the Rice Works Gourmet Brown Rice Crisps. The Sweet Chili flavor totally rocked!!We took some great photos of the girls pigging ou...
