slacker's Profile
Stainless steel fry pan - how to fry eggs without them sticking!!
I disagree with the less heat method. I use stainless for almost everything. The hotter the pan is, the less likely something will stick. Heat up the pan really hot, add the normal amount of oil, let the eggs fry, don't try to release them before they're ready. You can turn down the heat a bit once the eggs are in.
Best won ton soup?
delishdonna, where did you get wonton noodles with abalone? That's very unusual. And now, expensive. Are you sure it was real abalone? :p Actually, there is a lot of fake abalone out there.
Here are the makings of a good wonton noodle soup:
Wonton filling: shrimp, pork, dried ground pomfret.
Wonton size: small enough to easily fit in your mouth and you can eat it in one pop. And it should have fresh mouthfeel, no mushy.
Noodles: thin egg noodles dipped into a very large pot of rapidly boiling water, and the water should continue to rapidly boil after the noodle it placed in, and leave the noodles in for only a minute or so.
Broth: clear, flavorful, made with pork bones and dried shrimp.
Add a little bit of scallions and that's it. Maybe some gai lan (Chinese brocolli).
The winner for me is Sam Woo in San Gabriel, on Valley and Del Mar. Please note: not all Sam Woo's are created equal. Ipsedixit, above, mentions Sam Woo in Alhambra. I haven't been to that one in a long time, but that's a good Sam Woo.
I haven't been to Wonton Forest, but in posted pics, their wonton noodle looks like some weird ramen hybrid. They put egg and a slice of char siu in it? Sorry, but as I'm a wonton noodle purist, that is just horrifying.
I used to go to Har Lam Kee a lot bc it's more convenient than some other places, but as I recall, their wonton noodle was just not that great in that the wontons are way too big, and kind of mushy. I don't remember the broth too well, but recall it to not be very clear, and I think the noodles may have been a little bit overcooked.
The wonton noodle at Sunday Bistro in Alhambra is also good, but there's just way too much MSG in it. The one at Harbor Kitchen in Alhambra is not bad, if I don't want to put up with the wait at Sam Woo. Also, The Congee in Alhambra is pretty good, but the noodles I got were a little undercooked (could have been just that day), and their wontons are all shrimp, and I prefer to also have some pork in it.
Anyway, that's my 2 cents on one of my favorite topics, wonton noodles.
Been to Maison Akira lately?
Don't waste your money. I had been wanting to/meaning to go to Maison Akira for years, and finally did, a few months ago. What a huge letdown. The place feels like it's tired, and just cranking out food disguised as higher end.
Food:
We did the $55 prix fixe. I will say that my black cod entree was excellent. The uni spaghetti and the veg that came with it on the dish were also very good. My friend got their famous Chilean sea bass, and it was fantastic.
Everything else was mediocrity. Seared ahi: mushy, not very fresh; corn soup: no body; dessert: mine had some tasteless supermarket fruit including those horrible supermarket strawberries, and the flourless chocolate cake was mush beyond mush.
Service: horrible. Really horrible. I felt like I was in a really bad diner.
The space: There was a big blotch of missing paint on the wall. What up with that? Decor is like the concept of "French" in the 80's. The trail leading the the restrooms is covered with filthy service carpets. The women's restroom door was filthy.
Arcadia restaurants other than Din Tai Fung
I disagree with Mr. Gold quite often, especially when it comes to Asian and particularly Chinese food.
I don't understand, it sounds like you're saying that if Jonathan Gold says so, then it must be true in fact, and we should follow like sheep.
tea in Santa Monica/WLA?
For an excellent British afternoon tea: Gordon Ramsay. They do a very delicious tea.
How is Pann's?
Bud? What the..
You guys need to get the facts before spewing at others.
According to Pann's it is "half margarine and half butter." But having eaten it, and seen the consistency after being in a styrofoam container for 20 minutes, it seems to be more than 50% margarine.
Okonomiyaki in LA?
Gaja Moc is the place to go for it. Haru Ulala also makes it, but I don't think it's on the menu, you'd have to ask for it. Even Raku in Honda Plaza has it, but theirs is not good. I think a good number of places have it, but I don't really like the stuff, so I don't look for it.
No okonomiyaki in L.A.? Please.
Edit: btw, Gaja moc is focused on okonomiyaki, they have a lot of different kinds, and you can cook it yourself at your table-top, or they'll cook it for you. Some they recommend cooking for you. We got, I think, their second most popular one, and they felt it would be better for them to do the cooking, I can't quite remember the reason now. They have the standard sauce, plus other sauces too.
Haru Ulala is an izakaya that also serves okonomiyaki. Same with Raku, but Raku is not so good in general.
How is Pann's?
You saw it. But did you eat it? The tub must be margarine. I got my order to go and got a small container of the margarine. I'm assuming you get the same whether you dine in or take out.
And right, margarine also used to make the biscuit.
Pizzeria Mozza Update
I'm not a fan of P. Mozza. But apparently you must have the butterscotch budino for dessert. Endless raves from foodie friends. I haven't tried it, and would go back just to try that.
The Next Comfort Food Trend?
I like that! Chefs could even compete to see who can be the most creative.
How is Pann's?
I just went back to Pann's yesterday, after a long long time. Pann's fried chicken: really nicely fried, crispy, but no flavor. The biscuit: it's fine, not so memorable, the raves are out of whack. They use margarine, not butter. Eggs and homestyle potatoes: standard diner.
But yes you should def go if you haven't been. Oogie the Googie, good service, check out the chicken for yourself.
Ladera Heights-ish is not scary.
Arcadia restaurants other than Din Tai Fung
Yes, definitely difference in taste. But sometimes, actually often enough, I enjoy northern style noodles, etc. It's just that at that lunch visit, I had previously OD'd on the stuff. The SGV has so much northern style noodles, onion pancakes, etc and so on, so no need to crawl through muck and barbed wire. :) Actually I'd never crawl through anything for northern style Chinese food.
Cannot edit a post twice?
Yes, ok. I was hoping to avoid having to remember that or making note of it.
Cannot edit a post twice?
Ok, thank you. Is there a contact moderators link somewhere?
Cannot edit a post twice?
I just posted something, saw an error, made the edit and saved. Then saw another error, made the edit, and the second edit saved, but then the first edit went away. Then I tried editing the first error again, and again, this one saved, but the other one went away. Uh, are we only limited to one edit per post?
Arcadia restaurants other than Din Tai Fung
I love Mandarin Noodle too. The best beef stewed noodle soup.
Arcadia restaurants other than Din Tai Fung
I've been there once for lunch, ordered dumplings, noodles kind of thing. And another time for dinner. Lunch was ok, but I wasn't really in the mood for northern style noodles, etc.
Dinner was also just ok. There was basically one flavor in the many dishes we ordered, if there was any flavor at all: 5 spice. It was either 5 spice or bland. There was another flavor: salt. I generally like smothered whole fried fish, from any ethnic cooking, but the sauce on this one was pretty much just soy sauce flavored. The spare ribs wrapped in sticky rice, wrapped in lotus leaves was good, but really, that's almost a can't miss dish. Pork belly, another hard to miss dish. Some other dishes sounded good, but were boring. The veg with bamboo pith: very skimpy on bamboo pith, which is very inexpensive.
REVIEW: Take a Bao, Century City
They also have the best scones I've had in a long time.
Best Buffet in LA?
The buffet is at the Universal Hilton, Cafe Sierra.
I've had tea at Cafe Pacific in the Trump National Golf Club. It was the worst tea I've had in recent memory. Tea bags, gross curried chicken salad stuffed in day-old croissants that came 24 to a pack, orange juice reconstituted from frozen, Andres-level sparkly. But who knows, maybe their other meals are brilliant.
Arcadia restaurants other than Din Tai Fung
In the same plaza as DTF are Chang's Garden: Shanghainese, not excellent, but pretty good. and Sinbala: Taiwanese cafe, I can't believe I still haven't been there, but it's just so crowded every time I'm over there.
Dumpling House, mentioned above, IMO is pretty mediocre and the place is gross. The XLB are good, but everything else is blah, and the walls are filthy, plus they let dishes sit around on the tables long after the guests at those tables have paid and left.
There's also Inaka Seafood, which is new. They have healthy Japanese prepared foods, and it's also a fish market. At night Chef Niki there offers an excellent multicourse dinner, but well over $25pp (for the dinner).
LA Michelin Starred Restaurants ('09 Guide) just released ...
I actually agree with Triumphal Palace over Sea Harbour. My last visit to Sea Harbour was about a month ago, and a number of the dim sum items were a letdown.
LA Michelin Starred Restaurants ('09 Guide) just released ...
Yes, that surprised me too. And also agree about Zo.
Where to find Lucques olives?
Pasadena, either of them. I haven't been back in awhile for the lucques, so can't say for sure if they have them right now, but they've always had them in the past.
Seeking cuban/spanish bakeries on Westside
Was over there last night, the chicken looks like regular rotisserie. They used to make Peruvian chicken. Too bad.
ISO Restaurant(s) Serving Matsutake Mushroom Dishes
Craft offers a selection of different in-season roasted mushrooms. You may want to call to see if they'll have it.
Seeking cuban/spanish bakeries on Westside
It's Coppelia's. It's Peruvian chicken, and it's dry. It's possible that I got a piece that was sitting around for awhile in the warming oven. Maybe their whole chickens are less dry.
They also have a small Mexican menu, a little odd.
Which one? Queen Mary, Ritz Carlton, Getty,Warehouse,Shanghai Reds for brunch?
Neither Getty offers a buffet.
Where to find Lucques olives?
Whole Foods! Pretty much the only reason i go to whole foods anymore.
