Butterfly Shadows

Five Fingers on the bottom of my feet.
The sounds of Pandora's music box in my ears.
A shadow appears over my left shoulder.
Wings of beauty clears my path.
And leads me away from you.
My mind becomes empty of any thoughts
My heart becomes free for only an instance
I realize I wish I was a butterfly
To be free of this life
Would bring my soul to peace.

OMG Sushi Food Porn!

I am very simple when it comes to food, give me a street counter dirty dog and I am one happy camper. But I have been traveling down a dark road of indescribable taste that leaves me to yearn for more! Last night I was in LA and had dinner at Shunji's. Before we even had our first taste of the incredible sushi, the interior design of Shunji's must be noted. The rich color of the light and dark woods with the lighting and open space puts you at ease. I really love the interior design of Shunji's. I have never been to a sushi restaurant with such a nice modern feel.

We started with Shishito Peppers and Red Snapper with sea salt and yuzu pepper. I have been wanting to try Shishito Peppers and this was the perfect opportunity and they were so good. It was not spicy but very flavorful. I am not a fan of Red Snapper and my friend Tyana is not a fan of eating sashimi. The Red Snapper was smoking and was "the best I have ever had" (note to read, this comment will be repeated over and over in this blog entry). With a little push, Tyana tried the Red Snapper and really liked it. She like it so much that she took back her other piece that she gave away. Sauteed Siitake mushrooms and asparagus with Rock Shrimp was so good! Our next dish was Albacore with daikon radish, onion and chive with ponzu oil. The Albacore was like butter in my mouth, it just melted. Blue Fin Tuna tasted like a nice piece of rare steak! The Albacore and Blue Fin Tuna was the best I have ever had. At this point Tyana was converted to a sashimi lover. I am not a fan of cooked oysters, not even fried! And everyone knows anything fried taste good.... The Tempura Oysters were so good! The only thing I could say was oh my god!!!

I dont know what a Tartare is, but I love it! The Sweet Shrimp with black truffle and truffle oil topped with gold flakes and caviar tartare murders my taste buds for all other foods... It is a must try! I can't even describe the flavors. The Miso Cod Fish makes butter fish taste like government butter. The Miso Cod Fish taste like Grade A++ Organic Butter! The Salsa Salmon Sashimi makes me jump up, grab the nearest Senorita (bear :p) and start heading to the dance floor for some twist and turns! It’s really that good. If you really want to show someone you love them. Skip the flowers and take her to Shunji’s, even if she doesn’t like sushi. Because Shunji (is the name of the chef) will convert her.

Foodgasm

Ribeye, medium rare. Those three words make me so happy. I have never been inside a fancy steakhouse before, even though steak is on my list of favorite foods. Last night I enjoyed a three course dinner at Ruth Chris Steakhouse. We came for OC Restaurant Week, but didn't eat from that menu. Our waitress told us that Ruth Chris has a similar menu, but with a little extra cost. My beautiful date and I decided to go off the main menus three course meal. For starters we both order the French Onion soup. The soup was by far the best French Onion soup I have every enjoyed with a silver soup spoon.

Our main course was a medium-rare Petite Filet with Shrimp and medium-rare Ribeye. Both steaks came out on a super hot plate glazed with butter. My date had reached for her knife and touched the hot plate. She got burnt by the plate it was so hot. I decided to touch it, not once but twice. The first touch didn't hurt, maybe because I didn't touch it for long. The second time I realize it was a bad idea. Damn it really was a hot plate!

I enjoy good food, but this was the best food. I haven't been happy for the past several of weeks, but I now have a better understand of what comfort food really is. Every single bite of the steaks was food sex for my mouth. This Ribeye made me the happiest I have been in a long time. I am sure my twelve year old Scotch on the rocks, two glasses of wine and great company had a part to play in this secret food affair. But my heart knows what it wants, and that is a great steak.

My only disappointment was my side dish. She got Creamed Corn and I got the Garlic Mashed Potatoes. The Creamed Corn was so good! The Garlic Mashed Potatoes was not so great. It reminded me of instant mashed potatoes my stepmom use to make, ew! I told my waitress in the nicest way and she told me to mix the two sides together, HEAVEN! It was so good, I scooped up another spoon full. I reached across the table and gave my date a taste, HEAVEN! It reminded me of Thu's Thanksgiving Mix Plate (a blog for another day). I love things that remind me of my childhood. The joy of being carefree, warms the heart.

The dessert was a Chocolate Sin Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream. My waitress told me that she found the biggest piece for me. The Chocolate Sin Cake looked like a cup cake with cream cheese frosting. The cake was very moist and the cream cheese frosting mixed with the Vanilla Ice Cream was a sweet end to an awesome night.

Blueberry Cake-nuts (mymy :p)

Like Homer I love a great donut. My old love and my new love meet for the first time. I love a good maple bar. It just has to be fluffy and light. I think I am the last person to have a blueberry cake-nut. And I have to say it was completely worth it. These things are so good! I eat trader joe's blueberry waffles for breakfast all the time, but this was a great change! Can't wait to get another one, but not anytime soon. Gotta lose those lbs and this won't help the cause.

What did we learn today class? Truffle Oil makes everything taste good!

This place is weirdly awesome! I have never been to a Japaneses place that has tatter tots. I <3 tatter tots. It reminds me of being a kid again. I order the Tasty Sliders that come with Truffle Oil Tatter Tot. You really cannot mess up tatter tots. I mean you throw them in the oil and bam! You have tasty cylinder fried potatoes. But The Open Door decided to fry them in truffle oil. The best tatter tots I have ever eaten. If I had these when I was a child, I would have been a spoiled little kid! We also order Truffle Butter Edamame. I can compare this food item to KFC. Finger licking good! We also order Sesame Seed Chicken Wings, Fried Rice in a Stone Pot with a Boiled Egg, Sauteed Mushrooms and some kind of white fish sushi that Clement order. The really like this place and can't wait to come back to try all the different food they have and come back for the truffle foods :D

I would have pictures of their food but they change items on their menu and not always service the same items.


The Open Door

122 S Atlantic Blvd
Monterey Park, CA 91754

(626) 282-9829

Notes on a page....

Sound moves you
Warms your heart
Tames your soul
In the depth of it all
It makes you free

Burger Haven

If there is one thing I know, it has to be a good burger. I love burgers. If I can pick one thing to eat for the rest of my life, it would be a burger. You can make it many different ways. I am always in a search for the greatest burger. So far this has to be the best burger I have ever eaten. Every bite of this burger was haven for my heavy heart. I could taste the pickled red onions, roasted red bell peppers, wild arugula, st agur cheese and the garlic aioli brings a powerful kick to this flavorful burger. The truffle fries were ok... The top fries didn't taste like truffle oil, but the bottom half of the fries tasted very good. I think the burger would have tasted better with a more hoppie beer and not the recommended helfiwissin.


Haven Gastropub
190 S. Glassell Street
Orange, CA 92866
(714) 221-0680