Oyster House, Studio City

If you LOVE oysters, then you’ll LOVE Oyster House.  Its a no nonsense place for you to just get your fix of oysters without the foofooey frills or prices of a fancy restaurant. In fact, this place is quite the opposite. Its a tiny little restaurant North of the Boulevard, at quite a random intersection. It is very dark and dreary inside, since there aren’t too many windows.  The workers are all 50+ and have been working there for ages.  Yet, there is something quaint about that.

Oh, and did I mention their drinks are cheap too?  They also make their own Peach vodka drink.  It’s a dive bar, so I really recommend you try their dirty martini. You’ll love it and it goes so well with the oysters.  Their food is really good. I ordered a pasta, but they accidently gave me the eggplant parmesan instead…but it turned out to be a happy accident.  Plus they accomodated by giving me a small plate of pasta.  Their oysters are chilled and so fresh!  My mouth is watering just thinking about it.  Not to mention, they’re actually good for you!  Increases your libido and some other stuff.

I try a lot of restaurants, but its rare that I’ll go to a spot more than once unless I really like it.  This is one of those places that I have made a regular spot.  I can’t wait to take my friends.

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El Pollo Nortenito, Van Nuys

El Pollo Nortenito

14522 Vanowen Street

Van Nuys, CA 91405

I love trying random hole-in-the-wall restaurants.  They can be quite pleasantly surprising, like El Pollo Nortenito.  I was on a mission to find this Creole restaurant that I has just bought a restaurant.com coupon for and when I got to the location the restaurant was actually out of business!!  I was bummed as hell, but low and behold across the street there was smoke coming from a bbq and something told me to check it out.  Well, I’m sooo happy I did because the food was UH-mazing!  They have combination plates of chicken and beef and delicious homemade salsa, at very affordable prices.  Even though it’s a bit out of the way, located in the heart of Van Nuys, I would still drive out there JUST to have this again.

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Umami Burger!

Many of you probably consider this next burger one of the best burgers you’ve ever had. I can totally see why because the pattie is so soft, delicate, and juicy as hell!  You can actually see the juice oozing out of the burger.  It literally melts in your mouth.  I suggest you read up on Umami and how they created this unique taste.  According to the Umami Burger website, Umami is a Japanese word describing the pleasant and savory taste imparted by glutamate, a type of amino acid, and ribonucleotides that occur naturally in foods.  I think one of the most popular burger that I know of is the Truffle Burger seen below, but there certainly are other burgers that I’d love to go back and try.  Now a lot of foods that I try and blog about, they’re good, but I try to make it clear which ones to ABSOLUTELY go to, and which ones to go to ONLY if you’re in the area. Meaning, I wouldn’t necessarily suggest you go out of your way to try it.  This place, however, I DEFINITELY insist you go out of your way for because it is delicious, and some of you may just consider it the best you’ve ever had (mine is still IN N OUT!).  That is why I think it is absolutely worth the try.  The one thing about it that makes it not my favorite burger is that I feel like the bun, or some sort of sauce on the burger makes it just a tad sweet.  In fact, it might even be that “umami” taste that I’m just not a fan of.  That’s why I can’t call it MY favorite.  However, you might try it and absolutely love it.  I’ll post a better picture when I go there again, but until then, I HIGHLYYY recommend you try this.  What’s your opinion?

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$5 Margaritas + Mexican Food

El Coyote

7312 Beverly Boulevard

Los Angeles, CA 90036

www.elcoyotecafe.com

El Coyote is a cool place to grab drinks during happy hour because they’ve got great $5 margaritas and good food too. Plus they’ve been around since 1931, so you can only imagine its great history. It is lined with autographed images of celebrities that date back many years ago.  It was clear to me that my co-workers had many stories to tell about this place and how it used to be THE spot to go to, and still is.  In my opinion, the best entree is the Coyote Plate with the rib eye steak, seen below as the first pic, but the enchiladas are tasty too.

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Rosalind’s Ethiopian Cuisine, Los Angeles

On a mission to try a new cuisine, I came across two Ethiopian restaurants online, Little Ethiopia Restaurant and Rosalind’s Ethiopian Cuisine.  The reviews for Little Ethiopia were really good, but when we got there, it was really empty inside.  However, just a few stores down was Rosalind’s which had a good number of people inside.  I took that as a sign and went to Rosalind’s.  From the pictures below you can see that we ordered a combination plate with different meats to try.  I recommend this if you are having a hard time trying to decide what to get.  It comes on a plate of Injera, which is a flatbread that is rather spongy. It kind of reminded me of miniature rolled up carpets.  Because the plates already come with it, it may not be necessary to order a separate order of Injera.  We also ordered sambussa as an appetizer which was really good. I also loved their salad which had a very simple but tasty dressing.  Ask the waitress about their special Ethiopian wine and beer which is definitely worth trying.  I can’t say you’ll fall in love, or like it enough to go twice, but if you’re and adventurous eater and want to try new cuisines, then Rosalind’s is a great choice

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Il Pastaio, Beverly Hills

A “romantic” girls night out and catching up with my friend Mona at Il Pastaio.  I’ve been here twice and liked my experience both times. The food comes in smaller portions that are just the right size for one person, but not ideal for sharing or if you just eat a lot. But the idea is to get multiple courses so it will be satisfying.

I tried the soup aka Zuppetta: mussels and clams steamed in a spicy tomato and garlic broth. It was really good but salty, so I asked for lemon to even it out. And what I was impressed by the most is the authenticity of the Italian-ness. There were many Italian people dining there and I figured, if they like it, it must be good and authentic!

The ambiance is just right, whether you are on a date or with friends. The prices are up there, but its on Canon Drive in the heart of Beverly Hills so you’ve gotta expect that. If you’ve never been, and you’re looking for a nice restaurant in the area, you can’t go wrong with this place.

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My trip to Oahu, Hawaii

Here are some pictures of my trip to Hawaii not too long ago.  I stayed at the Olomana Gardens doing a program similar to WWOOF’ing. If you’re not sure what that is, visit www.wwoof.org.  Its a great way for people to travel if you are on a budget, want to get into farming and organic living, or simply want to live with a family rather than on your own because you get to experience the true culture of the place you are visiting.  This was my second visit to the Olomana Gardens and I had a blast! Every night I ate like a KING because I was making fantastic meals for the whole gang and topping it off with a nice glass of wine or beer. Everyone would pitch in, whether it be side dishes, wine, freshly baked tortillas, etc.  I most definitely left the calorie counting back in LA!  I’m so happy and grateful for all the experiences and most importantly the friendships that I made.  I can’t wait to go back!

The Kitchen, and the great people at Olomana Gardens

My Bedroom, which really was converted from a Van lol

Gorgeous organic papaya freshly picked from the tree

Imagine having a picnic while enjoying this amazing view. Words cannot describe how it felt.

Potlucks are the best! You get a taste of everything!

Our "backyard"

The best spaghetti I've ever made in my life all because of the love and "aloha" that went in it as some called it, also the fresh oregano didn't hurt either ;)

Freshly caught Tilapia!

On the last day of my trip, I spent the whole day making chili guava peach jam :)

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Tofuya BBQ, Los Angeles

Tofuya BBQ

11267 National Blvd.

Los Angeles, CA 90064

(310) 477-6075 ‎

If you’ve never done all you can eat Korean BBQ you must try this!!! It is so much fun. You get to order as much as you can eat, but…you have to cook it yourself! If you ask me, I think that’s the fun of the whole experience.  I’ve been to several Korean BBQ restaurants, and this is just one example, a little place called Tofuya BBQ, not to be confused by Tofu Ya, both of which are on or near Sawtelle!  I’ve listed the address and phone number of the one I went to because it can get very confusing if you try to look it up on your own.  This place gives a ton of meat and was about 16.95 per person.  Other places generally tend to be a few dollars less than that.  The place was clean. Service was good.  I do recommend it.  However, I’ll be sure to review some others in the future. If you know of any good ones I should check out, I’d love to hear about it.

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