Restaurant Review | Taiwan Teahouse

Most everything in Indiana is in a stripmall. You can't ever judge a book by its cover in this state. And Taiwan Teahouse is one of those places. I have a funny hobby of eating Chinese food everywhere I go. It's like a regional taste metric. I don't believe regional Chinese food should all taste authentically Chinese, unlike this lady. French Chinese food - horrible. Guatemalan Chinese food - just as bad. Irish Chinese food - delicious. Chinese Chinese food - pretty good. I'm not going to get into the politics of Taiwan as a domicile of China, but Taiwan Teahouse is tasty either way. The mapo tofu was very good - maybe even the best I've ever had. We had a spicy dumpling appetizer that wasn't very spicy and a little too salty for my taste. The Old Man enjoyed his General Tso's chicken. All in all, two thumbs up.

Booze | Crispin Cider

I had Crispin for the first time in Chicago. I was in love. I'm a serious cider drinker and Crispin hits the spot. It's a lot less sweet than any Woodchuck. It's similar to Strongbow, but slightly more refreshing. After having it in Chicago, I went on the hunt here in Indy. It's actually kind of funny because the guy at one store asked if it was a "hard" cider. I had no idea what he was talking about. Oddly, I hate apple juice. (It's a long story involving me repeatedly watching Footloose as a child.) So, I don't drink "soft" cider and didn't realize not all ciders are alcoholic. You learn something new everyday.

Recipe | Riso Parmesan with Mushrooms

The original recipe called for shaved truffles. I decided I don't want to break the bank over dinner, so I make mushroom chips instead. I looks a little like white rice in the picture, but I use riso pasta and it's a very flavorful recipe.

Restaurant Review | Pita Bar and Grill

Restaurant | Pita Bar and Grill
Location | 519 N Fairfax Ave Los Angeles, CA 90036 

This place has a delicious falafel sandwich! Many times in LA, I found falafel sandwiches served with cold, soggy falafel, iceberg lettuce, a little hummus and a stale piece of pita bread. For me, its about all the unique ingredients that go into this sandwich, that make is so good. I've had a difficult time finding anything close to that sandwich until I came across Pita Bar and Grill. The falafel in the sandwich is served hot and crunchy, with creamy hummus, pickled veggies, on a thicker than average pita bread. SO GOOD!

Product Review | Oscar Mayer Real Bacon Bits

I was pleasantly surprised with these bacon bits! My first thoughts were, How can meat sit out like that? Bad idea! I'm glad I tried them because they're pretty tasty. It says on the packaging to refrigerate after opening and best if used 14 days after opening. I've kept them long past 14 days and they taste fine. Although, I'll keep food until it gets up and walks away. It also says it it "may" contain potassium chloride and maple flavoring. I don't know what Oscar Mayer is implying by the statement. Neither is listed in the ingredients, which are only chemically-cured bacon and hickory smoked flavor. If you're not shy, try them. It's a lot easier than buying a slab of bacon, popping grease everywhere, and having the rest of the pack turn into slim a week later when you forget you have it.

Marketplace | Saraga International Grocery

Location | 3605 Commercial Drive  Indianapolis, IN

This place is the Disney World of international food. I don't even think there's anything remotely like this in LA. I think it's because LA has a lots of different neighborhoods and people are pretty isolated in their respective ethnic villages - Chinatown, Little Armenia, Thai Town, Little Tokyo, Little Ethiopia. I feel like if someone could get some square footage in DC, where people are forced to live amongst each other, this place would make a killing. It has most everything you can imagine from anywhere on earth (with the exception of passion fruit concentrate). I can get Ting by the case here, so I'll always be loyal.

Restaurant Review | Le France

Location | Place de la Loge  66000 Perpignan, France

Somehow, I decided we should go to Perpignan. Primarily because Aer Lingus had a cheap flight there back to Dublin.  It's a decent-sized town very close to the border with Spain. It is in the Catalan region, so there's a lot of Catalan pride. However, no one really speaks Catalan. And unfortunately, no one spoke Spanish either, so we were still stuck with pointing to menu items and saying s'il vous plait. Le France was around the corner from our hotel, so we decided to hang out there to have some drinks and tapas. This is the place we became addicted to chorizo iberico.

Trippin | French Junk Food

Surprisingly, the French love McDonald's. We drove through the South of France last month and made a pit stop to have McDonald's per recommendation. Luckily, there are kiosks to order from and you can choose many languages to avoid struggling with French at the counter. I got a Big Mac and it tasted like a Big Mac from home. I really enjoyed the French side salad. The Old Man ordered some kind cheeseburger and it had horseradish sauce on it. It was surprising, but I think he enjoyed it. Because we were on the road so much, we ate lots of French junk food.

Restaurant Review | Le Table Marocaine

Location | 14B, Chemin de Tivoli 13800 Istres, France

If for some reason you find yourself in Istres, check out Le Table Marocaine. My brother (who plays basketball in Fos-sur-Mer) can't figure out if he likes couscous, so he brought us here so he could try it again. 

Marketplace | South of France

There are outdoor markets everywhere in France. In the center of Bordeaux, there is a big market. There are all kinds of things, including antiques. It was very fun to walk around and see the sights... when it wasn't raining. 

Restaurant Review | Le Cosi

Location | 12 Rue Suquet  06400 Cannes, France

It was our first time in Cannes, so we did what any good American would do - eat! There's a little winding street (Rue Suquet) with tons of little restaurants. The hotel didn't give us any specific recommendation, so we just walked a bit and picked one. We chose Le Cosi.

Kitchen Therapy | Ahi Tuna, Kale & Couscous

I wanted to have a little bit of lone time to myself, so decided I would commit to Kitchen Therapy tonight and treat myself to a simple, healthful, home cooked meal. 

I decided a fish, grain and veggie would be the outline for my dish tonight and did a quick sweep at the local Trader Joe's, going straight for items that fit those categories and nothing else. I'm like a kid in the candy store when I go to the market, so to avoid spending more than I wanted, I kept my laser focus.

Home Economics | Coupons

I was watching the new season of Mad Men and it made me realize that coupons are pure marketing. Something I absolutely don't need is 2 for 22¢ - sounds catchy, Peggy, but no thanks. Personally, I don't go out of my way to look for coupons because it's not worth my time. And I have a low paying graduate fellowship, so that should tell you something about the value of my time. I enjoy discounts, but coupons don't do it for me.

More importantly, fresh grocery items don't need coupons because they're perishable. You can always find a deal in the fresh produce section or at the butcher counter because those tomatoes and that steak aren't going to stay pretty for long. I've bought meat before where the butcher has looked me dead in the eye and sternly told me to cook the meat that same day. Great price, no coupons! If you stick to what you know you should be eating, you can get considerable discounts without the hassle of coupons. And you won't have to wonder how 10 boxes of cheese doodles for $10 made you gain 10 pounds.

Restaurant Review | e.leaven

Location | 54 East Ontario Street  Chicago, IL

When I'm in Chicago I always try to have breakfast at West Egg. I was at West Egg with friends at 7am and only had juice because I thought I'd go back and have breakfast when the Old Man woke up. By the time we got there at 10am, it was packed as usual. We were in a rush, so we google mapped it over to e.leaven instead.

Yo Mama | Seafood Gumbo

We have dairy farm friends from Upstate New York who've never had gumbo before. So I made it! I tried not to put anything strange in it, as to not scare them. I've been eating gumbo my entire life and sometimes the things my mom puts in there still scare me. As a result, I left out the okra, oysters, chicken hearts, and alligator boudin this time around. If you like those little accoutrements though, feel free to add them to the recipe.

Product Review | Kombucha Drink

A friend of mine was talking about Kombucha. She mentioned how one of her clients gave her a bottle, and that she has felt a difference in her digestion and "system" after a few bottles.  A year or two ago, it was the hip trendy drink in Los Angeles.

Home Economics | Hope for the Best Veggies, Meal Plan for the Worst

All single-occupancy dwellers know how much food you waste when you're living alone. Your eyes are a lot bigger than your stomach come market time. If you want to avoid food spoilage, I think it's important to plan your meals for the week even if you don't have an army of children. It may even be more important if you're just a household of one. Meal planning helps you avoid waste and ultimately, save money.

Resturant Review | Milk

Restaurant | MILK
Location | 7290 Beverly Blvd  Los Angeles, CA 90036

Ok, this review is for a dessert shop in Los Angeles. I plan on reviewing this place a few times because there are so many things I have to try. The reason I came here was rumors they had a Thai Iced Tea Macaroon ice cream sandwich. Yep, you read that right.

Marketplace | One World Market

 Location | 8466 Castleton Corner  Indianapolis, IN 

Forget the groceries at this place - the little cafe alone is more than worth the trip! The tempura is so oishii, what more can you ask for? The tonkatsu hits the spot. And I hear the sushi is better than any sushi bar in town. And there are the groceries! The market is small, but it has all the Japanese cooking supplies and snacks you can ask for - takuan, hondashi, gomadare, Pretz, Black Boss, baumkuchen, etc. They even have my favorite chapstick, Shiseido's Water in Lip, in the cosmetics section. 

Restaurant Replica | Zuppa Tocano

Dish | Zuppa Tocano

Restaurant | The Olive Garden

Just went to The Olive Garden for the first time in many many years, and had the most delicious soup. Zuppa Tocano... potatoes, bacon, spicy sausage, kale and a touch of cream. 

For my version, I used some spinach and left out the bacon. I thought about using milk instead of cream, but nah...

Restuarant Replica | Shabu Shabu

Dish | Shabu shabu

Restaurant | Shin-Sen-Gumi

Location | 1695 W. Artesia Blvd.  Gardena, CA

I miss all-you-can-eat shabu shabu in Japan. I miss all-you-can-eat anything in Japan. I miss eating in Japan. Boo hoo. Anyhow, if you can find the sliced meat for shabu shabu it's one of the easiest meals you can make. The hardest part is slicing the veggies. Unfortunately, there weren't a lot of interesting vegetable choices at the market because of the season. I really wanted corn but couldn't find it anywhere.

Recipe | Chipotle Marinade

This marinade is smokey, sweet and spicy. I found this recipe on So Delushious. This is the perfect marinade to keep in your freezer, its great meat, seafood and veggies! Its a simple marinade, in which you may already have most of the ingredients at home: brown sugar, vodka, ketchup, olive oil, garlic, cilantro and canned chipotle peppers.

Recipe | Mango-Lime Cheesecake

Because I don't own a mixer, my cheesecake comes out a little less than smooth sometimes, but it's no less delicious. And because it's one of few baked goods that doesn't require an arsenal of kitchen appliances, I actually enjoy making it. The key without a mixer is to get the cream cheese at least to room temperature. I was in a rush here because we had people coming over, but if you have the patience to let the cream cheese really soften up you can do it all by hand and have it come out perfectly smooth. Appliances or not, take advantage of all the mangoes on sale lately!

Restaurant Review | Curry House CoCo Ichibanya

 Location | 2455 Sepulveda Blvd  Torrance, CA 90501

CoCo Ichibanya is a popular Curry house chain in Asia. They have a location in Torrance, that is about a year old. Here you can customize your curry, you pick the spiciness level of the curry, and all the toppings you want.   The more toppings you add, the more expensive your meal is. 

Recipe | Irish Blue Cheese Soup

I was in Panera the other day and a woman told the cashier that she didn't like soup. The cashier made a funny face and asked who doesn't like soup! Personally, I wouldn't affiliate myself with someone who doesn't like soup. Blasphemy! The Old Man was sick last week so I decided to make a soup that had some flavor, but was quick and easy to make.

Recipe | Pasta a la Grad School

The basis for this recipe comes from an Italian cookbook, The Food of Italy, that I got from Borders in the bargain section a long time ago. (It was not $65! It wasn't even $15. RIP Borders.) I really like fresh tomato sauce recipes and it's not as difficult and time-consuming as you'd think (especially is you don't spend time peeling and de-seeding the tomatoes).

Tips & Tricks | Raw Onions

Adding raw onions to salads adds a nice flavor and texture. However, I am not a fan of super strong onions and onion breath!

To mellow out the onion flavor, place the chopped onions into a bowl of room-cold temp water. After a minute or two, drain and the onion is ready to go. The texture and flavor of the onion is perfect for salads, especially pasta, chicken, tuna and quinoa! You'll definitely notice the milder flavor.

I learned this tip from Sandra Lee on her Food Network Show "Semi-Homemade."

Product Review | Reusable Produce Bags

I have severe anxiety about being green. I try. I really try. Plastic is one thing that scares me. There's no research on it. No one really how long it will last in the environment. I bring my own shopping bags to the grocery store, but I was still stuck with the plastic produce bags because the cashier didn't seem to appreciate handling wet lettuce and loose lemons. And usually you can't really reuse the plastic produce bags like you can reuse a plastic shopping bag. I first saw these little nylon produce bags at Crate & Barrel. I got a pack, which came with five bags for about $11. I really like them, but thought they were a little expensive. Then I saw some others at Target for almost half the price. I keep both brands in the fridge just like I would the plastic version and they're washing machine safe, which comes in handy if you let something linger past its expiration date.

Recipe | Sweet Potato & Quinoa Salad

This is my first time cooking with quinoa, and this recipe turned out fantastic!

I came across this recipe just the other day, and since I had already had most of the ingredients at home, I decided to try it out.

Home Economics | Make the Bread, Buy the Butter

I was really excited when I heard about this book by Jennifer Reese - Make the Bread, Buy the Butter. As an economist and a foodie, what more could I ask for in a book? However, as an economist, it's glaring that she doesn't include the price of anything other than the ingredients to the homemade recipes. These aren't even externality costs, these are just plain ol' costs she didn't include!

Recipe | Chimichurri & Sirloin Steak

Yum, yum, yum. Chimichurri and steak! I've never been to South America, so I've only ever had Central American chimichurri. I think it's a little more tangy than the traditional recipes I found online, so I spruced up a recipe to increase the spice and the tang. You can really make it to your own tastes though. Either way, it's a great little dressing to jazz up grilled meat, veggies, and even tofu.

Restaurant Review | The Tripel

Location | 333 Culver Boulevard  Playa Del Rey, CA

My brother is a total food snob and picked this place for his birthday dinner. Honestly, I liked the atmosphere and if I stilled lived at home, we'd have to try to avoid seeing each other here. The place is very dark and there is group seating around big tables, which makes for fun socializing with strangers.

Restaurant Replica | Breakfast Bars

Dish | Breakfast bars
Restaurant | Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf

If I could, I would have a delicious pastry with coffee every morning. Once a week I usually hit up Whole Foods or Coffee Bean for a latte and a sweet treat. On other days of the week I either have a bowl of cereal, or a smoothie when I have time. Coffee Bean had a "wholesome" breakfast bar which was pretty tasty, I'm sure it was healthier than a blueberry scone or piece of pound cake. It had some oats, cranberries and granola in it, it was moist and not hard like a granola bar. So, I decided to look up some recipes online for some "healthy" breakfast bars. I came across two recipes which I decided to experiment on to make them a bit more substantial for my morning meal.

Product Review | Magic Bullet

 I would take a bullet for my Magic Bullet! Okay, no, I wouldn't - but maybe a BB. 

I generally do not believe in kitchen appliances. I don't own a microwave. I don't own a hand mixer. I don't own a crock pot. Although, there's a small coffee maker and a George Foreman grill belonging to the Old Man that he never uses. And I may give into a meat grinder with a sausage attachment to make my own sausage. (I love hot dogs!) Anyhow, I really enjoy owning a Magic Bullet.

Must Have | Higashimaru Chicken Seasoning

I love this stuff!

Rather than figure out how to read Japanese, it's probably easier to just memorize the look of the box. If you live in a city, you can probably pick it up at your local Japanese grocers. In LA and Chicago, Mitsuwa has it. In Indy, One World Market has it. Here it is on Super-mom.jp, if you're in NYC, but Sunrise Mart may have it.

Recipe | Joce's Green Juice

I try to add more greens into my diet. Juicing in one of my favorite ways of doing so. I made a large serving of this super green juice. The taste is mildly sweet and fresh. I try to juice 2-3x a week (the worst part of juicing is the machine clean up).

Yo Mama | Macaroni & Cheese

I love my mom and grandma's macaroni and cheese, and most everyone I know does too. In high school, I once tried to make myself and it came out horrible! I've never made it again for fear of what would come out of the oven. I figured it's time to try again. However, this time I did it under my mother's supervision. I apologize for my worse-than-usual picture quality, I only had my camera phone when I was in LA. It may not look like here, but you'll want to make a pan of it everyday if you can.

Food Trend & Review | Coconut Water

Coconut water hype?  Coconut water is known to be super nutrient rich and a good source of hydration. Coconut water is the liquid found inside a young coconut before it matures. As the coconut matures, the water turns into the solid white flesh found inside.

Food Fact | Honey

If you really sit down and think about what honey is - bee barf - you probably wouldn't eat it. However, like most other animal products we consume, we put the production process in the back of our minds and eat up.

Trippin | Hawaiian Cuisine

Just got back a few weeks from my first trip to Hawaii. We flew to Oahu, and stayed in Waikiki.

I was hoping for lots of fresh seafood and Hawaiian cuisine. What I got was pancakes and processed meat for days. Ham, bacon, Portuguese sausage, spam... with eggs and rice, or even better all together in fried rice.  Many of the tourists flocked to Egg 'N things for large portions and macadamia nut pancakes, or to Duke's for some "Hawaiian" inspired food. From what I noticed, locals did eat a lot of Poke, which was always fresh and pretty good. We also had shrimp scampi and shaved ice at the popular spots in North Shore, still a bit underwhelming considering all the hype. Pictured above is a plate from a Hawaiian Luau dinner show; fried chicken thighs, Mahi-Mahi in cream sauce, sweet bread, salad, mac salad, pasta salad, rice, kalua pork and poi.

Restaurant Replica | Chicken Tikka Masala

Dish | Chicken Tikka Masala

Restaurant | Indian lunch buffet

Location | Anywhere, USA

The Old Man loves chicken tikka masala, but my dilemma for this post was deciding between just using a jar of tikka masala paste and doing it from scratch. I decided it's recipe and not a product review, so I'll make my own masala because I was recently a gifted a big jar of ground cumin.

Product Review | Sambazon Smoothie Pack

Have you tried an Açaí bowl or smoothie yet?  I like to make smoothies for breakfast a few times a week, and recently bought the Sambazon Smoothie Packs. You can find it in the freezer section. It comes with 4 packs of açaí puree for around $6.

Welcome to Jelly!