See-Food Buffet

Fat tuesday is always a day to eat whatever you want and however much you can eat. I intended to make the most of the day since the next day would be Ash Wednesday. A mark to signify the beginning of Lent.

My mom and I ventured into Kyoto Seafood Buffet on Glenoaks, Blvd in Glendale, CA. I have a love/hate thing about buffets. Depending if the place is good or not, I end up wanting to try everything. The place is nice and spacious.

We arrive just before the dinnertime rush, so we were able to get some nice seats at a booth. Brightly lit. Servers come to take your drink order and let you loose onto the buffet. It's funny I'd see people going back three, four, five times. Some carrying platefuls of crab legs and other items. That's what you get when it's "all-you-can-eat"! I went for two and half rounds. I like to try pits and pieces of what seems to interest me at the moment.

They had a nice wide selection. Chow mien, wantons, peking duck, stuffed shrimp, stuffed mussels, fish, mushrooms, sweet potato tempura. All this on plate #1.

Plate #2 consisted of a sushi variety (which are freshly made by a couple sushi chefs stationed by them) seaweed salad, Kimchi, baked stuffed mussel, cream cheese wontons. There was still another section of the place I didn't get to try like whatever was served at the grill station and the miso soup. 

Of course one can't leave a buffet without having some kind of dessert. I opted for a couple strawberries, jello, a cream puff, and a cake roll. I'm usually big on dessert, but at that point after two rounds I didn't want to push my luck.

I'd definitely come back again and try out more of the foods I didn't get a chance to try. Considering, I tend to be picky about buffets this is one worth going back for.

Kyoto Seafood Buffet
1407 W Glenoaks Blvd
Glendale, CA 91201
818.243.8168

Little Dom's

Little Dom's. To be quite honest, I didn't even know it existed until a friend of mine had mentioned it to me. I've passed by this place several times when I would go the Alcove Cafe just down the street. The trendy Silverlake/Los Feliz area is home to several delicious spots. This place goes on my list as one of them. One of my closest friends took me here for a Sunday (Post-Birthday) Brunch. 

It was a nice slightly chilly day so we opted to each at the covered patio area. All day breakfast/lunch. A nice selection from their menus. I didn't get to see much of the inside, but it did have a nice looking bar. 

We start off ordering a hot cup of coffee. I love that each person gets their own little kettle pot, so you wouldn't have to ask for refills for a second cup. Just pour it yourself. It also came witha small decantor of milk and some sugar cubes. 

Nutella Panino

I would have chosen something with eggs, but on this particular day nutella was calling my name. It's actually a first I've seen it on any kind of menu, so that was cool. There was also a some mascarpone cheese in it, too. nice and creamy. Yum! The breakfast and lunch are served all day.

Ricotta Cheese & Fresh Blueberry Pancakes w/ Maple Syrup 

My friend orders the pancakes. Simple, yet delicious! I'm actually craving for blueberries right now. Mmmm... 

I'm definitely coming back here again. I want to try out their lunch and dinner selections. Another friend of mine also suggested their breakfast pizza, so that's sure on my list of menu items to order. Come to think of it... I remember this place being featured on the show Best Thing I Ever Ate. Adam Gertler chose this place specifically for the breakfast pizza. I guess that means another trip is in my near future. 

Little Dom's

2128 Hillhurst Ave.

Los Angeles, CA 90027

323.661.0055

Deli to-go orders: 323.661.0088

A Birthday Dinner

Yesterday, I turned another year older. As they say age is just a number that keeps ticking up (or down..depending which way you look at it.) The day was relative a low-key one. Did some errand and got myself a little giant birthday cupcake.

My mom took out to dinner at Taylor's Steak House in La Canada, CA (north of LA in the hills. No not those hills.) The place is situated on Foothill Blvd of this seeming quiet city. It may not seem like it from outside, but the place had a decent sided dinner crowd for a Tuesday night. They've been about since 1953 and by my book if you've been around for longer than 50 years, you must be doing something right in the restaurant business.

Fresh steaming bread to start off the meal with some butter.

The simple decor of the place is a reminder of the time that once was. I do like the photos by each booth how the landscape was before modernization came.

The appetizer. 

We order up some large bacon wrapped scallops. served with some lemon and clarified butted. The next photo shows just how large these things were.

The scallops were cooked just right. No too chewy or undercooked. Seared just enough for the knife to cut right through. Is it just me or is there something about bacon and butter that I just can't live without? 

My mom orders one of the specials of the night. Salmon with some white since sauce served in a gravy boat dish and a side of creamed spinach. I had a piece small taste of the salmon and it was nice and flaky. It was a pretty large piece.

I decided to go all out and went for the prime rib dinner. This is the original cut. It's around an inch thick. The meat nice and pink in the center. Really tasty. I chose a baked potato for my side as it also came with some creamed spinach. Also a side of horseradish sauce. That thing was HUGE!!! Unless you're hungry, I suggest going on a really empty stomach. I think they had a choice of a smaller cut, but what do I know. :) Besides it was after all my birthday. I can order what I want, right? 

You can't have a birthday without cake. Special thanks to my mom for getting me this one. And you can't have a cake without the number candles. Yes...that is my age.

Chocolate and vanilla with a chocolate cream filling from Cakery Bakery in La Canada.

So now with a full stomach and smile on my face, I wait another year before I get to do it all over again.

I've never been much for big celebrations, I've always liked the quiet, sometimes spontaneous moments.

Taylor's Steak House

901 Foothill Blvd.,

La Canada, CA 91011

(818) 790-7668

Potato Corner

I totally thought I had posted this already and it was stuck in draft mode for the past week. Eek!! My mind is seriously everywhere lately. Anyway... During an afternoon at the Americana in Glendale. I see a new, at least to me, little food stall that used to be another food stall in the outdoor mall. This one caught my eye as it serves main one thing. Fries.

 The menu

Potato Corner is the name of the place. At the time I knew I had seen something similar before and as I check to see it had some online presence, sure enough it hit me where I had seen it before. I remember seeing these around the malls in Manila when I went to the Philippines last year. (Potato Corner)

Originally from the Philippines it has made its way to the US. It's really neat to see a franchise of it open up in Los Angeles.  They had tater tots and regular french fries, curly, sweet potato. I think I thought I saw hash brown, baked potato and potato chips somewhere in there. And your choice of flavors like BBQ, cheddar, chili, sour cream and onion. You can even have them plain, too.

I order Sweet Potato fries with Sour Cream and Onion flavor in the largest size. Perfect to share between two people. It was really tasty. I think each is made to order. Delicious. It was a good  mini-meal or afternoon snack if you prefer. I saw many more people after me their own style fries. I think is a great little spot with families with kids as it's also conveniently located near the kids jungle gym.

If you're around the Glendale and stop into the Americana and you feel like having some kind of comfort food. I say give this place a try. No one can resist the power of the french fry!  I sure can't. Then again I love my carbs...so yeah. Conveniently located right across Sephora.

Dim Sum Brunch

The best times to eat dim sum is during brunch. Usually shortly after they open is a really good time. No long lines and no waiting. Best of all you know you're getting first pick of the fresh batch of whatever they have cooking up  in those carts! I had to go to Chinatown in LA already so I made the most of this trip with some dim sum. The place we went to was Empress Pavilion just off the 110 south freeway in Los Angeles. I written about them before a little over a year ago. (Here)

Shrimp eggrolls

Fried Dumplings

Chicken and mushroom in rice noodles

Sesame Rice Dumplings

Pork siumai

Spicy Garlic Spareribs

The delicious empty plate and happy full stomachs

Zono Sushi

I'm still craving soup. There's no deny the fact that rainy and cold weather stirs up the soup cravings. On this dreary cold day, my mom and I ventured into our Sunday lunch thinking soup once again. No, the lobster bisque from the previous day wasn't enough. We head to Zono Sushi. I had written about this place before a while back (here). It was quiet with few customers. I guess it would also be the fact it's kind of hidden away at the courtyard of the Glendale Exchange.

I remember coming here every Sunday after mass when I was younger and ordering their bento lunch. The place looked really different then what it looks like in the picture above. We seat ourselves in an open booth. Out waitress hands us out menus, which also has a new design. She brings out a small bowl of fresh edemame and miso soup. Yum!

We finally make out order.

I order the Sushi Combo 1, which is 5 sushi pieces (tuna nigiri, shrimp nigiri, salmon nigiri, and 2 mackrel nigiri, topped with fried onion shavings.  I ate them all up along with the pickled ginger the usually accompanies any sushi. Have I mentioned that I love sushi?

The combo also included a piping hot bowl of udon noodle soup. Served in a cast-iron bowl with a square piece of wood under to keep the pot from burning the table.  Look at those noodle deliciousness. There were a few slices of egg, bamboo and heads of shiitake mushroom in the broth as well. I love the way it's served. I need to find me some cast-iron bowl/pots like those. I ate this all up as well.

Aren't soup days great?


Zono Sushi (Glendale)

139 N Maryland Ave
Glendale, CA 91206

(818) 507-4819

Harry Potter, Car Trouble, and Lobster Bisque-- Just another Saturday

Saturday was an interesting day. First, I had myself a little car trouble. Nothing to do with the engine, bu more to do with my window. And it just so happens that on that day it was raining. Not fun. Then a matinee trip to the Cineramadome at the Arclight Theater in Hollywood to watch Harry Potter. Yes, I'm an HP geek. I've read all the books and I love the movies. I wouldn't miss seeing it on opening weekend. I've been wait for the movie for the past year, soooo worth it! Cant wait for part 2.

Then spent a couple hours after trying to fix my window again. I need to take it to an auto body shop. Ugh! :( By then my stomach was grumbling, I was stressing out and it was getting late. I'm kind of picky sometimes at what times I eat. So I took an early dinner with my mom to Granville Cafe at the Americana. I've written about the place before in this post. Our trip this time around was basically just to relieve some of the stresses of the day. 


As we made our way there, we passed by another restaurant and conversed about a lobster bisque they had on their menu. We spend a few good minutes on that. Ha. 


We arrive at Granville and take our seats. First thing we ask was the soup of the day. I had been craving soup for a while and rainy days are perfect for those. Our waitress kindly tells us, which was...lobster bisque. Well...wouldn't you know? So we each order a cup. We also order the rest of our meal from the Shareables section. 

Loberster Bisque seasoned with apple brandy. Two toasty slices of french bread with herbs. Not to mention the two large chunks of lobster in the soup. I enjoyed this one. It's got a nice creamy texture to it. I love how the toasted baguette slices didn't soak up the soup too much, so you got that nice soft/crunch when you bite down onto it. and they were generous with the pieces of lobster. It wasn't those pea-sized pieces.

Sweet Potato fries with ranch dressing, ketchup and blue cheese dressing. I'm a sucker for this. Any restaurant. I'll be tempted to order it no matter what. This was when I realized that I had a small deep fryer at home. I had a mini lightbulb moment. 

Lettuce Cups.  Butter lettuce with a mix of mango, avocado, grape tomato and asian slaw. Served with a side of asian dipping sauce. My mom had ordered this before but with some slices of beef. This time around we left it purely vegetarian style. Still tasty.

Granville's Artisan Cheese Quesdilla

Fontina, Gruyere and Mozzarella Cheeses in a flour tortilla, with Basil Pesto, Grilled Vegetables, Caramelized Onions and Crumbled Goat Cheese

I like quesadilla. Period. Need I say more. Hehe...okay. I love the chunks of veggies that were in it. Zucchini, bell pepper...

It was a good way to end a semi-stressful day. A good meal and an awesome movie. 

Grandville Cafe (Glendale) 

The Americana at Brand

807 Americana Way

Glendale, California 91210

(818) 550-0472

Weekend Eats

It's always fun to spend time with good friends especially when it's been a while since you've seen them. We first ventured down for lunch at Alhambra, Ca. There were four of us. Chatting it up. For those who know me, know I'm not picky about foods. So my friend chose a Vietnamese place. She was craving some pho and so was I.

Pho Super Bowl 

Located in a tiny stripmall, the place isn't large. A moderate size and not too crowded.  We situate ourselves at the table and look over the menu.

To start I order myself a nice refreshing Thai tea with boba. 

There were a few undercooked boba, but that didn't matter to me. It was still refreshing.

The server brings out the bean sprouts and greens for our soups. 

I tend to much on it while waiting. I like to eat them fresh sometimes.

One of my friends orders a couple shrimp spring rolls. Served with a side of sauce.

Our other friend orders the traditional spring rolls.

For the main dish, I order the seafood pho. Fish balls, squid, shrimp, with some onions and rice noodles in a large bowl of broth. I add a handful of those bean sprouts and several squishes of sriracha and we've got ourselves deliciousness in a BIG bowl. 

I didn't mind choosing soup as it was a really lovely day in LA, which took me by surprise from the heatwave we recently had. 

To cap off the meal, a lovely little bowl of this. 

It tastes very much like a rice pudding with baby tapioca balls. I can't for the life of me remember what it's called. But I do know that we have something similar in the Philippines.

Later that day, after venturing into Pasadena for a few hours, we head back into Alhambra. Remember last week when I mentioned I had a slushy craving? This is where i fulfilled that craving.

 Tea Station

This place is like of like a small trendy little place for the youngsters. It's a place where you have to order something. You just can't sit there, chat it up or do you reading, you have to order something. 

They serve traditional hot teas, but also an array or selections to choose from as well as various tea snacks and meals. Here's what we chose.

One of my friends orders the fried spicy chicken. Though this one didn't taste really spicy. I guess you have to request it as my friend suggests.

Another friend orders the fried buns. Served with a side of condensed milk to dip. The cool this about this is that it's the way they made it. They put strips of bread together for the center and wrap it up like a pillow with large thin pieces then fry it up. So when you tear into it, you tear it up like french fries. and dip it into the condensed milk.

My friend also orders a Mango shaved ice. That thing was large. Yum!

I order the takoyaki balls, which is a battered balls with octopus. Topped with a mix of things like some mayo, okonomiyaki sauce, seaweed.

I accidentally burnt the roof of my mouth. I have the habit of doing that. I get too excited sometimes to eat something that's freshly cooked and still steaming hot. 

To wash it all down I also order a green mango snow ice with boba. My slushy craving has been accomplished!!!! I love the way they serve it. In a little decantor...you know in case you want to share with some people. Mmmm... I love the flavor of this one. Then again...I love mangos of all kinds.

Finally later into the evening, we decide to head out for a little "snack" and decide to go Islands. I was tempted to get some of their awesome cheese fries, but I stuck with the tortilla soup. I was pretty stuffed from earlier in the day and I felt it fitting to order some delicious hearty soup.

This has some shredded chicken and fresh vegetables,
topped with jack cheese, avocado & tortilla strips.

 I ate that one right up!

Overall, it was a good day with good food which made an afternoon with friends all the better.

Pho Super Bowl
1300 E. Main Street
Alhambra, CA 91801
626.293.7018


Tea Station -- Alhambra
560 W. Main St.
Alhambra, CA 91801
626.289.7389

Islands -- Glendale
117 West Broadway
Glendale, CA 91204
(818) 545-3555