Funny. How I Often I Forget...

...just how lucky I am to live in the same apartment with my closest friends. Funny too, how infrequently we see one another despite sharing either sides of a bedroom wall. I have to remind myself these things from time to time, lest I take them, and our very wonderful living situation, for advantage.

Shann and Darien leave tomorrow for Hawai'i, and Steph leaves a week later. You appreciate home so much more when it's freeezing over here in NYC. It's been a while since just the four of us have dined together, so we met up at Lam Zhou (thanks to Robyn for introducing this spot!) this evening. Hot soups. Hand pulled-noodles. Dumplings. Yes.


We were all last here a few months ago for Shann's birthday - boy does time fly quick. Decision making is easy. Noodle soups all around - Dumpling Noodles for Darien and I...

...Beef Brisket Noodles for Shann...

...and Fish Ball Noodles for Steph.

Lam Zhou has become noticeably more crowded since they've posted a full English translation of the menu.

The increase of diners are, as you can probably guess, of a very different demographic from prior months. Not surprising, given how much blog/media coverage it recently received. Part of me is a sad to see so many hipsters crowd the restaurant on a Friday evening. But in the end, this place is most certainly deserving of more business.

$4.50 bowls of noodles sounds about right. Cheap dinners are often the most satisfying. We followed the meal with a stop at Hon Cafe. Milk tea, red bean bolo baos, and sponge cake. I lack the proper words to note just how lovely this simple evening was. Shann, Steph, and Darien may as well be family as far as I'm concerned. By the way, I don't think you've meet them before! Time for a proper introduction.

Shann. We've lived together for nearly two years - first on the Lower East Side, and now, the East Village. She's a graphic designer and has been with me through a lot of crap and good stuff. A lot. I would trust my life with this girl :)

Steph. We baked Kelly's graduation cake together. We had long phone chats throughout college. She knits! She introduced me to yoga. We're antique and flea markets shoppings buddies. And her room looks like a little clothing boutique.

Darien. She speaks Spanish and Portuguese. She's currently mastering Korean. Chinese is next on her agenda. And I don't know anyone who loves red bean bolo baos as much as her. Can you say incredible?

And there you have it. Some really good food, and even better friends.

Ok, it's off to sleep for me now...don't think this week could have been any more draining.

Happy Friday/Saturday!
Shann and Darien: have a safe flight!

Lan Zhou Hand Made Noodles
144 East Broadway
New York, NY 10002
(212) 566-6933

Oh! By The Way.../Macaron News

...some have asked if there are other locations aside from Tafu where you can find Itzy Bitzy macarons. Wonder no further...Mitzy will be at the DUMBO Winter Pop-Up location of the Brooklyn Flea this coming Sunday, 11am-6pm. Mitzy's currently working on a new line of really awesome flavours for the month of February. We'll post flavour names here on Saturday night.

Till then, take part in the remainder of January flavours (Vanilla, Matcha, Hojicha, Mocha, Lemon, and Raspberry-Pistachio) at Tafu or via online order at the Itzy Bitzy Patisserie website.

Brooklyn Flea Market @ DUMBO
76 Front Street
Brooklyn, NY 11201

If I lived On Oahu...

...every Saturday morning would begin with a ready appetite and a visit to the KCC Farmers Market.

Why not - have shave ice for breakfast?

And bring home a Bale baguette for dad.

(Sometimes he switches it up and requests a loaf of potato and onion focaccia).

The bread and pastry options from Bale have expanded since my last visit six months ago. Suffice it to say that Rodney Weddle is turning out the best bread on the islands. Japanese, Chinese, and even Korean breads are plentiful here, but it's so very rare that once comes across a decent loaf of the rustic European type, much less a great one.

Remember the Magic Rice Pop machine we came across at Palama Market? Well they also have a similar contraption here, EXCEPT...

...the crackers are embedded with furikake! How exciting :)

When the entire family comes, we usually grab a few plate lunches for breakfast. Options are so many it can be overwhelming. The pesto grilled pizza is a family favourite, though we try to switch it up with other dishes like laulau...

...or garlic shrimp...(the fried taro mochi is also worth stomach space, that is, if there is any left by this point!)

...but no matter what eat, we always end on a shared dish of fried green tomatoes. Heheh.

Saturday, 9am

I've been visiting the KCC Farmers Market twice a year. Once in the summer, and once in the winter. Lucky all those who live on the island - it's so easy to take advantage this market. Find my last post (summer 2008) here. I wish this was a more comprehensive post, but alas, tax season has all but drained my energy (and dried out my eyes ;).

Happy Tuesday/Wednesday!

KCC Farmer's Market
4303 Diamond Head Rd
Honolulu, HI 96816
(808) 484-0052

Happy New Years! ^_^

Justin bestowed upon the apartment-mates and I an adorable duo of plush bears this past weekend. Steph and Shann, exhausted from cleaning (thank you so much!) broke for a little nap before a nightcap at Redhead.

Be back soon for a food-related post :)

@ Sheng Wang, Robyn with Pomelo

Dinner of hand-pulled noodles and dumplings at Sheng Wang ended a bit before 9pm. Robyn, Jessica, Greg and I stood to don our coats while we waited for Diana. I was faced in the direction of Robyn and couldn't help but notice the enormous lift she made in order to shoulder her messenger bag. The move required a lean forward, and heft of solid energy.

"Robyn, what is in your bag? It looks so heavy!"
"Urhm hehehehehe" she made a look and laughed in her oh-so charming way. Robyn's laughs are endearingly genuine. They are of a very unique sort in which she is able to effortlessly trigger everyone else around to fall into laughter - the same sort of heartwarming laugh that makes you smile on the inside and out. And so we did, which naturally increased our curiousity.
"What is in your bag?" I asked once more. She laughed again, and we could not help but laugh back, thus making humour out of a very simple question.
"Urhm, it's a…"
"A what?"
"uhhh, a…pomelo!"
And perhaps it is not very funny now, as I write this. It was clearly one of those you-needed-to-be-there situation, coupled with a you-need-to-know-and-love-Robyn case. (Everyone should know and love Robyn as far as I'm concerned ^_^)
"A pomelo? You're carrying a pomelo inside your bag?" Not that there's anything wrong with carrying pomelos…it's just…you don't hear that everyday from Robyn.

She laughed again, and removed the evidence for viewing, hence this photo.

My favourite memory from the evening meal.

Sheng Wang
27 Eldridge Street
New York, NY 10002
(212) 925-0805

wd-50: Just Back From Dinner...

...with John. It was my first return to wd-50 since a spur of the moment visit with Robyn in 2005. Four years ago...as a college sophomore! Goodness, an awful long time has passed. We went with the tasting menu this evening - surely the ideal route at this restaurant.

Below, photos from the January 2009 Tasting Menu, plus two additional desserts.

Sesame Flatbread

Shrimp, Bulghur, Honey, Hops

Everything Bagel, Smoked Salmon Threads, Crispy Cream Cheese

Foie Gras, Passionfruit, Chinese Celery. Innard foie shot.

Scallops, Tendon, Endive, Parsley, Hazelnut Oil

Truffled Carbonara

Lobster Legs, Brussels Sprouts, Lily Bulb, Banana-Kimchee

Rabbit, Wild Rice Polenta, Cassis, Kale, Black Olive

Squab, Butternut Noodles, Cream Soda, Carob

Ricotta, Capers, Frozen Honey

Jasmine Custard, Black Tea, Banana

Hazelnut tart, Coconut, Chocolate, Chicory

Milk Chocolate Cream, Devils Food, Banana, Coffee

Caramelized Brioche, Gala Apples, Sage, Brown Butter Sorbet

Cocoa packets. Pear-Pistachio Cake. Chocolate and Milk Ice Cream.

The food is gorgeous, huh? :)

...am off to hang out with Justin (aka long-time friend, old prom date) who came down from Yale. Hand-pulled noodles tomorrow, then web design and dancing the day after. Stay cozy and bundled for the impending cold weather, and have a wonderful weekend ^_^

wd-50
50 Clinton St
New York, NY 10002
(212) 477-2900

OK Dudes, Itzy Bitzy Macarons Are Back...

...at Tafu ^_^ Monday's batch sold out, but Mitzy just made a new delivery yesterday. Huzzah!

Details at Zach's post here.

January flavours. Clockwise from Top Left: Vanilla, Matcha, Hojicha, Mocha, Lemon, and Raspberry-Pistachio.

Oh, and yes, there's also Caramel Fleur de Sel.

My personal favourite of the month is the Hojicha...

...though Lemon, with a bright citrus-y tang is a unexplainably addictive.

Robyn prefers the Triple Vanilla...

...though truth be told, there's not a single one I'd pass on ^_^

Happy Thursday!

Itzy Bitzy Patisserie @ Tafu
Double Tree Metropolitan Hotel
569 Lexington Ave
New York, NY 10079
(212) 980-1310

Busy at Work...

...but I'd rather be busy than twiddling my thumbs. How about some mochi to keep you occupied? Michel bought this dainty and delicious set of little bites from Shirokiya. Clockwise from top left: Strawberry, Pineapple, Melon, and Orange.

Happy Wednesday! :)

Shirokiya
1450 Ala Moana Blvd # 2250
Honolulu, Hawai'i 96814
(808) 973-9234

In Hawai'i: Yotteko-Ya, Once More

One rainy Wednesday, Mom and I found ourselves with dinner arrangements canceled on both ends. We phoned up one another and made plans for an early dinner and shopping. Those unscheduled for, easy-to-relax nights are among the best I store in memory.

We met at Yotekko-Ya, our favourite ramen shop on the island.
It's tradition to come here, just mom and I, every time I visit home. My father and sister are not such great fans of ramen, but mom and I are borderline obsessed with this place. A fair majority of my eating preferences are unintentionally molded after her - mochi, bibim kooksoo, and gnocchi. Not to mention lamb chops, dumplings, and doughnuts. Thank you, mom :)

Gyoza

We slid into the window corner table as they opened for dinner service. The restaurant would be full and in dire need of another waitress upon our departure an hour later. Though till then, it was nice to bask in silence and watch the rain pound down with no end in sight. We started with a trio of pan-fried gyoza to whet the appetite...

Yakibuta Chahan

...then moved to the glistening pork fried rice, complete with eggy bits, onions, and extra fatty cuts of pork. It's done "wet" style, they way I prefer fried rice.

Yataiaji Ramen

Unable to settle for one style of ramen, we shared two. First the lighter one in a shoyu-based broth, the Yataiaji Ramen...

Paitan Ramen

...and then their thickest, and heartiest offering, the Paitan Ramen. I've batted my lashes over the wonders of their charsiu - nothing has changed since my last visit. Couple that with a addictively deep and heady broth, and you have a very happy diner.

Banana-Chocolate Ice Cream

And because we needed to build up energy for the shopping to follow, we had the only dessert offering (aside from single ice cream scoops) on menu. This dessert may look silly/amateurish, I'll give you that. But after a belly warming meal, I like to cool down in an uncomplicated manner with ice cream or fruit. Or in this case, both ice cream and fruit. Starting from the base: canned fruit (peaches, pears, mango) followed with three scoops of ice cream, sliced bananas, whipped cream, and chocolate syrup.

Then…off to Ala Moana to build our collection of handbags, hehe ^_^

Happy Monday!

Yotteko-Ya
McCully Shopping Center
1960 Kapiolani Blvd. #214
Honolulu, HI 96826
(808) 946-2900