San Francisco

Back from San Francisco!

I was blessed with amazing weather, food and company.

Ferry Building.

Bay Bridge in the distance.

Clear blue skies, not a single cloud.

Pho Ga at Turtle Tower.

My first meal and very first stop, straight from SFO. My favorite Pho Ga.

Homemade Granola, Yogurt & Fresh Fruit Bowl at La Boulange Bakery.

Best yogurt bowl ever.

Snap Pea Ravioli at Magnolia Pub & Brewery.

This Ravioli was so delicious. It had goat cheese and snap pea inside and the crunchy texture of the snap pea remained. Never had anything like it. Went on Tuesday, which is $3/pint day. Had their Pale Ale (didn't like) & Hef.

San Francisco

In a couple of hours I am off to San Francisco for 3 nights!

It's been a WHILE since I was there for more than one night. SO excited!!

Katsuya Laguna Beach

I had never been to any of the Katsuya restaurants in LA so the new (and 1st) Orange County location Katsuya Laguna Beach was much anticipated.

Valet & Restaurant. Packed.

I started off with a 'Kiwi Envy' cocktail which had: St.Germain Elderflower liqueur, gin, hand-pressed kiwis, fresh lime juice and sparkling water. It tasted like... Kiwi Juice but with an artificial aftertaste. I didn't taste any gin or the carbonation from the sparkling water.

As a starter, we shared this:

Special Katsuya Roll.

It had some fish (salmon, tuna, scallop) and avocado wrapped with soy paper and cucmber. It sounded better than it tasted and at $16, there was nothing special about this roll.

My friend knew the managers so the manager gave us 2 of their most popular appetizers on the house:

Seared Tuna with Japanese Salsa ($18)

This was a disaster... it was straight up salsa (nothing Japanese about it) on top of 6 or 7 pieces of dinky tuna, poorly decorated with a hideous orange flower on top. And for $18? I would never order it. 

The 2nd was: Crispy Rice with Spicy Tuna ($14)

So the caption on the menu reads "Our most flavorful dish on the menu and the one Katsuya is most famous for... a can't miss dish."

It was very unoriginal to say the least and if this is what they are MOST famous for and their MOST flavorful dish... I have nothing further to say.

We also shared this: Shrimp Tempura Roll ($12.50)

I expected some Eel Sauce atleast or other fillings (cucumber, yamagobo, etc.) if I were paying $10+ for a shrimp tempura roll. Fail.

Sushi Sampler Plate ($30)

Again, nothing special. My friend ordered this so I didn't eat any of it, but the fish didn't look too fresh.

I think this may have been one of the harshest posts I've done (I prefer not to blog negatively) but for being the new "hot spot" of OC, the interior, vibe and most importantly the food/presentation... everything at Katsuya was a disappointment, over-priced and beyond over-rated. My first and definitely last visit. 

East Borough

Late lunch at East Borough inside The Camp mall. It's a casual Vietnamese/French restaurant (or stand).

The 'interior'. It's all an outdoor space, perfect for the weather in SoCal.

East Borough sign.

Chicken Salad Baguette.

 Shredded Chicken breast, pickled daikon and carrots, cilantro, cucumber, jalapenos, peanuts and raisins.

The baguette was fresh and it was good, but next time I want to try the Pork sandwiches.

Lemongrass Tofu Vermicelli.

Vermicelli noodles, fresh greens, crispy shallots, peanuts and an eggroll.

East Borough is a great place for a quick and light lunch under the sun.

Mastro's Ocean Club

Dinner at Mastro's Ocean Club in Las Vegas.

There are a couple of Mastro's in Orange County, but I'm not big on steak so never made it there.

Located inside Crystals at CityCenter.

The best thing about this restaurant is the interior. The architecture is so amazing and I love the simplicity of the furniture.

They start you off with a fancy bread bowl.

We ordered Sauteed Sea Scallops for the appetizer along with 2 salads. The Scallops were my favorite!

Then our food came and I was in shock. The portions here are ridiculously huge. The sides are a meal in itself. FOOD COMA!

I ordered the Fillet of Arctic Char Oreganata. This photo doesn't prove how enormous this fillet was, but it was as big as my palm!

I had never heard of Arctic Char before and the waiter informed me that it was like a blend of salmon and trout. It was good, but WAY too big.

If I come back, I'll probably order the appetizer-portioned Sea Scallops and share some sides or half-sized salads, because entrees are just too much. It has a gorgeous bar area (my boyfriend had a couple Caipirinha's which were excellent) so that might be a better option.

Bistro Don Giovanni

Wow... hadn't updated in a while. Hope everyone had a great 4th of July weekend!

Last post from Napa Valley.

Our family friend took us to Bistro Don Giovanni for dinner. My mom liked it so much she wanted to stop by for lunch before our long drive back.

Entrance.

Really homey, relaxed atmosphere.

They have cool sculptures and art placed all over the place. It's conveniently located at the start of Route 29.

Interior.

More interior, really casual and super spacious. They also have a large patio area as well.

I took some pictures over dinner, but it didn't come out that great because of the dim lighting. So here is what we had for lunch:

Tricolore Salad.

Margherita Pizza.

Ragu Rigattoni.

Butterscoth Pudding.

The waiter really pushed this dessert so we gave it a try. But it was so rich and a bit heavy. I will probably skip dessert next time around.