Restaurant Name: Neptune Oyster
Specialty: Anything seafood, particulary oysters!
Location: North End, Boston, Massachusetts
Company: Joanna ( :
Overall Experience: AHHH. Book me a plane ticket back to Boston please!




Neptune OYSTER, so of course we had to order oysters! Actually, I think that this was the actual reason why we were here in the first place ( : The order sheet that Neptune Oyster provided had very helpful descriptions in explaining the flavors and textures of the oysters. Being in Boston, I only wanted to get oysters that were from the area. We ended up getting the Thatch Island, Katama Bay, Wianno, and the East Beach Blondes. The Thatch Island was extremely smooth, but not as briny as I prefer my oysters. The Katama Bay were described with a "buttered popcorn finish" but Joanna and I did not feel like getting a bunch of these oysters and sitting down with a Blockbuster movie, herego, we did not taste the buttered popcorn finish (I don't even know if I used 'herego' correctly...). I think (honestly, I do not really remember) that the East Beach Blondes were my favorite. I do not think that my tastebuds are as acute as I thought them to be, for I did not taste the "sweet pea finish." OOH! The clams were the last thing that we had, from Wellfeet, MA, they were the first raw clams that I've ever had and they were SO GOOD. It had the typical clam texture with the briny-ness of oysters. It was very interesting and I'd definitely get it again. I think that the best thing about the oysters, besides the oysters themselves, were the cocktail sauce that accompanied them. Totally homemade, I kept dipping my fork into it and just eating the sauce by itself (I prefer my oysters with just a cute squeeze of lemon). The sauce was intensely sour but softened by something else magical that Neptune Oyster conjured up. The sauce=the best cocktail sauce ever. If this was a side dish, I'd definitely order it the next time I'm at Neptune Oyster.




So, Joanna and I, just being the two of us, decided to sit at the bar since there were two seats open. The couple next to us ordered this dish, Steamed Littleneck Clams. When the dish came, Joanna and I kept starring until one of us decided "Let's order that!." I'm honestly not a huge fan of the actual steamed clams, but I am a devout food enthusiast to the broth that it comes with. We got bread, grilled!, and soaked it in the juices. There was an intense amount of garlic which was perfect to counteract the natural saltiness of the clams. While I did eat some clams, most of my utility was eating the clam-broth-soaked-BREAD.




This is Neptune Oyster's version of the Maine Lobster Roll. They serve it on a toasted roll and hot with butter. The Maine lobster meat was incredibly tener. Because of the size of lobster meat, I feel that it is very difficult to perfect cooking lobster meat correctly, but whatever Neptune Oyster is doing, is definitely working for them. I wish that the bun was freshly baked (Yes, I've been pretty spoiled). It felt like one of those hot dog buns that you can buy a year ahead for your barbeque and still expect it to be fine. Well, it wasn't that bad, but sort of that same idea. I at least wish that if they were to use this particiular bun, that they would have toasted it like they did with the bread that they provided with the claim. I felt that it would have made a big difference. DUDE! The fries were way legit. While doing my research on food in Boston, I discovered that they were known for their ice cream, clam chowder, baked beans, Boston cream pie, etc. I think that fries also needed to be added to that list. All the fries that I consumed while in Boston, including fries at Neptune Oyster, were ridiculously good. Fried just a tad bit longer to give it that extra crispyness and skinny! So good. Possibly not something that Neptune Oyster would consider, but I also wished that they had made their own ketchup. Don't get me wrong, I do love the heavily processed and bottled Heinz, but I love it more when a resturant/food place spends the time and effort to make their own. Such good fries though! ( :

Coffee Shop: Intelligentsia
Specialty: Iced Coffee!
Location: Pasadena, California
Company: Skinny Kevin
Overall Experience: new favorite Intelligentsia?





This is the newest Intelligentsia to sprout up in Los Angeles. (Message to Intelligentsia: Keep 'em coming! They're in way high demand by yours truly, Joanna Yeh!) It has a bar-like atmosphere in terms of ordering and receiving coffee. From the front entrance, there an L-shaped counter that heads into the back of the room. At the beginning of the counter, you order your coffee and go through an almost museum-like, live-action demonstration of how they prepare their coffee. You know how when you are waiting in line at Disneyland, notably Star Tours, there are sights and little action-thingys that keep you entertained? It's like that. But with gorgeous siphons, fashionably-dressed baristos/as, and jaw-dropping chemex and drip coffee processes. I'd rather wait in line at Intelligentsia than Star Tours!



So, two drinks were ordered: one hot and the other cold. The iced coffee process, I'd say impressive at this Pasadena location. It is so precise and articulate. They take freshly ground beans and soak them in cool/cold water for a period of an entire day. That's 24 hours! And then they filter it and BAM! (not to steal Emeril's phrase) you've got a delicious cup of coffee! The coffee ends up tasting refreshing, lacking the bitter taste that gets so many individuals angry about coffee, particularly black. Discussing the process with a baristo, I discovered that adding heat to coffee creates that bitter taste. Therefore, he explained, since the process does not add heat at all to the coffee, there is no bitter taste. Genius! I say!

Ice Cream Parlor Name: Sweet Rose Creamery
Cusine: Delicious homemade ice cream!
Location: Santa Monica/Brentwood, California
Company: The Sunday Brunch minus Joanna, Maddie Ota, Panda, Eugene, and Ronald
Overall Experience: so cuuuute! ( :



When you go to your ordinary, emphasis on ordinary, ice cream place, you're kindly given samples in plastic spoon. At Sweet Rose Creamery, definitely your more refined and gourmet ice cream parlor, you're given metal spoons! [Pictured Left] My sample spoon! I sampled their plum sorbet, of course using their metal spoon. It was absolutely delicious. The plum taste was very clean and complemented with the fresh coolness of the sorbet aspect perfectly. The owners of Sweet Rose Creamery, Josh Loeb and Zoe Nathan, also owners of Huckleberry and Rustic Canyon, are definite advocates of farmer's market quality produce and organic "legit" ingredients. Their ice cream is made using not only organic eggs and other goodies, but also with Clover milk!



Susie, my cousin that recommended me this place, told me that their cones are really good. Therefore, although I feel in love with their plum sorbet, I wanted to get something creamier that would complement the cone better. Thus, I got a single scoop of their salted caramel with added sea salt on top to accentuate the flavor. It was only after a lick that I realized that I should not have gotten extra sea salt. The sea salt was good, just too salty for me, for evident reasons! The ice cream itself was extremely extremely good, and I chose a good ice cream to pair with the cone. You could really taste the milk in the sense that it allowed the perfect combination of caramel flavor and creaminess to occur. The cone was ridiculously good. Forget all those store-bought, last-forever, cones that you get from the grocery store. Let's stock up on Sweet Rose Creamery's delicious daily-fresh-awesome-made cones! The cone never grew soggy, a fear I am always faced with that makes me rush through my cone. It chewed up very well. It had enough body that one did not need to use their back teeth to get a chunk, but was deliciate enough that it melted/slash/crumbled in your mouth. So good, so good. Good job Sweet Rose Creamery!



This is Ronald's something sundae. I just remember the brownie. Oh how amazing it was! It made me realize that I had not eaten a delicious brownie in a while and I was happy to stumble upon this one. Sweet Rose Creamery makes their toppings and sauces daily on site. That I believe. The brownie was intensely chocolate-ly but was subdued a bit with the vanilla ice cream.



Eugene ordered a strawberry sundae of some sorts. After trying both of the sundaes, I realized that Sweet Rose Creamery not only does amazing ice creams and sorbets, but also astonishing toppings. Typical ice cream places usually just get sprinkles and break up candy bars, but not Sweet Rose Creamery! The star topping in Eugene's sundae was this delicious unnamed crunchy topping. It tasted like bits and parts of a cone but felt chunkier. Hm..I wonder. I guess I shall just have to visit again ( : Anybody up for a delectable scoop of ice cream on a hot summer day? Call me up! ( :


[Below] I try to keep this a strictly food blog, but this picture of us is so adorable that I just had to share, with the few people who read this ( :

Restaurant Name: Urban Solace
Cusine: New American
Location: North Park, San Diego, California
Company: Skinny Kevin, Kato, Raymond, and Rebecca
Overall Experience: THE place to go for the best freaking sandwiches






Urban Solace calls these their "Famous Warm Cheese Biscuits with Orange-Honey Butter." Everybody should know and taste these delectable light biscuits! They have the flavor and aroma of cheese without the actual presence which would actually weigh these fluffy pillows down. The biscuits are small, but do not let their size deceive you for a couple of these will definitely fill you right up. The orange-honey butter that comes with the biscuits was a bit odd for me. I'm not a huge fan of honey (unless its super delicious and from the farmer's market) and I'm not a huge huge fan of citrus-infused flavors except in my sangria. The biscuits without the special butter are absolutely delectable and don't need butter to make it any better.




I ordered the Chicken Salad sandwich by being convinced that the chicken comes from a local farm (don't quote me) and accompanied with farm fresh ingredients. The chicken meat was very delicious. It had a very clean feeling to it and was lightly accompanied with a typical mayo dressing. I felt that the mayo weighed down the salad a bit but the fresh tomatoes and lettuce helped to counter that. Each sandwich/burger was also accompanied with sweet potato fries that I felt were too deflated and fried. There was too much batter on each fry and it took away from the sweet potato aspect.



Urban Solace's Monte Diego sandwich is a take on a monte cristo, where the bread part is french-toast-like. The Monte Diego comes with smoked ham, fontina cheese, grilled pears, marinated onions, and a strawberry current jam. The sandwich is more like fluffy-french-toast-on-steriods rather than an actual sandwich. It was a bit saltier than I had liked it to be but each element was definitely delicious. The french toast sandwich bread was made to perfection while still holding on to a sandwich-bread-like quality. The pears gave the sandwich an interesting texture while also adding a natural sweetness to it also made possible with the strawberry current jam.



The Smoked Salmon sandwich was a bit salty for me, but it was interesting. It was gently grilled smoked salmon! After being spoiled from the smoked salmon that I tasted in Malmo, Sweden, this smoked salmon bears no competition. However, within the standards of the typical diner at Urban Solace, who did not have this Swedish experience, the salmon is pretty good. The grill also adds a really nice additional smokiness that just brings the whole sandwich together. The sandwich also includes fresh tomatoes and a bed of lettuce that helps counter the salty smoked salmon.




Apparently, Urban Solace's burger is famous and here it is! Their House Burger is comprised of ground Niman Ranch Beef, aged cheddar, and smoked tomato jam and sandwiched between an egg bun. The beef is amazingly delicious and definitely not your Ralph's ground beef. The egg bun also creates an impressive texture that does not over the flavors of the beef and additions. The bun is a bit softer and a bit sweeter than a typical hamburger bun. So good! I would definitely chose this burger over Hodad's any day of the week!


Overall: This lunch keeps me going back to Urban Solace! I had also visited their brunch which is absolutely amazing (possibly another post). I could eat all of their sandwiches any time of day. So good, fresh, and delicious!

Truck Name: Gastrobus
Cusine: Tapas Style
Location: Los Feliz Farmer's Market, Los Angeles, California
Company: Maddie Ota (for her birfaday!)
Overall Experience: cooooooorn




This Gastrobus's Blood Orange Ricky. It was a combination, I believe, of sweet soda water and fresh juice of a blood orange. So good! I thought that it was going to be ordinary, but the ripeness of the blood orange and the balance of the soda water made for an excellent combination. It was very light and refreshing and just absolutely delectable!



Blueberry pancakes paired with honey! I thought that there would be berries within the batter, but as you can see, the berries are more of an after-thought, though a good one at that, rather than included in the pancake itself. Instead of providing a wealthy dosage of maple syrup, we got honey! and powdered sugar which I thought added a nice class aspect to this pancake. The pancake itself was very good, nothing extraordinary, but also not your usual pancake. The blueberries on the side were accompanied very nicely with the honey and provided a nice little twist to blueberry pancakes.



This is the $6 Grits and Fried Egg with McCallis sausage and refrito. OHsogood! This dish, or paper hot-dog-esque container created a home for this delicious combination. The sausage sat on top of the fried egg which sat on top of a bed of slightly creamed corn and with a side of amazing salsa. My favorite part about this was the slighly creamed corn which is hidden under the blanket of egg in the picture. It is not as creamy as creamed corn, therefore I've cleverly nicknamed it "slightly" creamed corn. The corn pieces are also a bit chopped up compared to cream corn which creates a more crumbly texture and feeling in your mouth. You take a piece of the sausage, some egg, and salsa and you've created yourself a wonderful bite! You then take a generous scoop of creamed corn and you've got an amazing dessert ( : Gastrobus is probably one of my favorite food trucks! Seriously, their "slightly" creamed corn is just that good, that or I'm a sucker for creamed corn ( :