by | May 4, 2009 · 8:05 pm

Thai one on after you tie one on

by Brian

My buddy Adam, of Orochon Ramen fame, makes his triumphant return to EatMeCalifornia in this first post in a series on Asian cuisine.  As many of you know, I am not asian.  I’m not even smart like asian people tend to be.  I grew up eating meat and pototo based meals, and as a result, was morbidly obese at the age of 12.  Okay, not really, but I was husky.

Anyway, Adam is my new Asian food guru.  He promised to show me the ropes and keep me out of trouble.  To get a good baseline for Thai food he took me to one of his favorite Thai restaurants called Sanam Luang Cafe.  The real credit for this find goes to one of my former fraternity bros, Tam.  His parents grow the fabled Ghost Pepper, which is the hottest chili in the world.  Because of this, he knows everything about pretty much everything.  So thanks, Tam, for lookin’ out.

Sanam Luang Cafe – West of the 170 on Sherman Way in North Hollywood

It looks different at night... i'm told.

It looks different at night... i'm told.

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by | May 3, 2009 · 5:55 pm

The Final 3 on Hells Kitchen

by Mikey

We are nearing the finale and thank goodness.  This has been a rough season to watch.  I think Gordon may have to do a Hells Kitchen from somewhere else and find a new talent pool.  This whole season I’ve been comparing these guys to the Top chef contestants and maybe that’s my mistake.  Maybe they really want that whole rags to riches thing to happen.

last-31

We start off from last week waiting for whatever surprise Gordon has for them.  Again, I was hoping it would be Rampage Jackson blasting out of the kitchen to fight the last 3 finalists, but instead it was just their families coming out to hug and cry with them.  This isn’t the kind of crying I like.  I want down home, American, why are you all rejecting me, I’m breaking down emotionally kind of crying. Continue reading →

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by | May 2, 2009 · 2:31 pm

Danny’s Deli and Grill

by Mikey

Ventura is in need of some seriously good deli’s. Thousand Oaks is loaded with them but Ventura thus far has been lackluster. T and I were hoping this family owned Deli would be the beginning of some good stuff. The question remained would the huge jar of scary pickles be to much for us to handle? Continue reading →

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by | May 1, 2009 · 7:19 pm

Our Readers Are Super Talented In The Kitchen

by Brian

I didn’t run this by Mikey, but I doubt he’ll mind too much.  Tonight I’d like to spotlight one of our fine readers before my review.  Her name is Amy and not only does she have awesome taste in food blogs, but she can bake a thing or two as well.  How do I know this?  Well she dropped some samples of one of her newest creations by my office the other day.  It was our first official fan gift, so I just had to write about it.

high hat cupcake

Amy is the creator of Stolen Sweets Bakery.  I’m pretty sure everything that she makes is created with ingredients stolen off the back of a hostess truck.  I’ll have to confirm that though.  Anyway, I’m not usually a cupcake guy, but these were just too interesting to pass up.  They are called “high-hat” cupcakes and are made of chocolate cake and an interesting marshmellow creme frosting which is then dipped in chocolate.  Think ding-dongs, but like 1000 times better.  Here’s the interior view:

highhat interior

What really makes these cupcakes different from the kind that I make is the fact that they are really tasty.  The cake was super moist and the frosting tasted like a mix of marshmellow creme and powdered sugar.  It had that grainy texture that you only get from something that you know is really bad for you.  The chocolate coating just flakes off and melts in your mouth like a little bonus gift.  Did I mention that they taste really good?

Mikey didn’t get to try these because my coworkers stole them all before I had a chance to save him one.  Maybe Amy will be nice enough to share her next creation with both of us.  Stay tuned to EatMeCalifornia.com for more on Stolen Sweets.  We’ll let you know as soon as she is officially open to the public.  Right now were just lucky to be the guinea pigs.

Also, you should know that Amy is a great writer and has her own blog.  You can see it in our Sites We Like on the right side of this page.  It’s called Parenting With Duct Tape.  Check it out and read all about Amy’s adventures with life, parenthood and raising kids and one incorrigible husband.  (Sorry Dean)

In keeping with the sweet theme, I chose to review a place I had heard about, in Thousand Oaks, which is supposed to have the best donuts.  Did they?  You’ll have to keep reading to find out… Continue reading →

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by | April 30, 2009 · 7:54 pm

Raise your glass to the Katmai! Deadliest Catch

by Mikey

B-hizzle wasn’t able to catch the last episode of deadliest catch because he had a meeting with the President in regard to making the word “Hella” the official word of California.  Lucky for you guys, being the constant couch potato and armchair crab fisherman I did catch it.

The 3rd episode, one of the most sobering of the shows correctly phrased, “Stay focused or die”, really kind of brought down the mood of the usually cheerfull show. This truly is the worlds most dangerous job. Continue reading →

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by | April 29, 2009 · 4:24 pm

When your local café has given up on life

by Mikey

I wrote not too long ago about how to tell if a sushi restaurant is in trouble.  This article is a bit different because it is more about eating at joint that has just completely given up on life.  I usually eat at a place and it doesn’t get posted for a day or two.  I had to get this place up as soon as possible to save your stomachs, your taste buds, and your soul.

DW Café – Ventura at the intersection of Victoria and Moon

Yep you can get your bail bond while you eat.

Yep you can get your bail bond while you eat.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

From the outside this place looks like your typical country kitchen kind of place.  In fact, I think a few years ago that’s what it was.  Now it’s a café that’s open from early morning to mid afternoon.  I was out and about on a few errands and thought I’d try it out for breakfast.  Damn me and my curiosity. Continue reading →

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by | April 28, 2009 · 8:12 pm

The Biggest Freakin’ Mexican Restaurant Ever

by Brian

Hey everyone,

If you’ve been playing along at home, you already know Mikey’s boy Trent is a soccer star and recently discovered savant.  What you don’t know is that he went and did what every kid always does… he got sick.  That’s how it came to pass that the baton would fall to me to post this fine evening.  Lucky for me I skipped lunch.

Yolanda’s – On Los Angeles Ave. between First and Madera, Simi Valley

I’ve been wanting to go to this place for a long time, but just haven’t had the opportunity.  Well, that all changed tonight.  Since Yolanda’s is right on my way to the skating rink (yeah, i’m a nerd like that) I figured I just couldn’t pass it up.

yolandas

The first thing I noticed was that this place was huge.  I know it looks tall from the photo I took, but that isn’t the half of it.  They have a decent sized bar, big patio and two huge banquet hall sized dining rooms.  I think the only place that’s bigger is Los Toros, but that’s because they just kept annexing territory in their own attempt at manifest mexican food destiny. Continue reading →

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