Honolulu, Oahu, Hawaii - Part 2

Continuing with my Hawaii trip.....the second time around was to join Carly in Honolulu. She had business while I laid by the pool for a few days. This was one of most relaxing trips in a long time. Our meals consisted of fish, fish, and fish. We went to Morimoto in Wakiki at the New Edition Hotel one evening and had plenty of Mahi-- sandwiches and tacos oceanside. Hertz was nice enough to upgrade us to a convertible so we drove up to the North Shore in style. I highly recommend this side of town – no tourists and very peaceful, totally what I pictured Hawaii to be.

The Big Island, Hawaii:Food and Sunsets- Part I

I consider myself quite the lucky duck and last month doesn’t fall short of that. In less than 2 weeks, I went to Hawaii – 2 islands, the Big Island and Oahu. For my first visit, I went for a friend’s wedding in which I was a bridesmaid. I’m not gonna lie, it was kinda hectic and crazy but food and booze was plentiful. I saw a lot of the island and highlights were Costco, lava rocks, Snorkeling, and 4 days of amazing sunsets. The food in Hawaii is quite interesting very influenced by the Japanese. My favorite meal was simple---Katsu Bento Box and even Spam Sushi. Also, we were spoiled by authentic Luau food and a dinner catered by the Hilton Waikoloa. The Pork Belly was extremely memorable.





I want to give a shout to Sarah & Harry and the Ou’s for putting one hell-of- a-party/ies and thank them for entrusting me with cooking for their guests one evening. I whipped up my version of a Hawaiian/German BBQ!









Hawiian MUST: food out of styrofoam boxes - Kalbi, etc.


Loco Moco



Famed bento box meals - this is Katsu

Our German BBQ in Hawaii

Dress Rehearsal and Luau



Looking gorgeous Sarah!

Dishes from Wedding

Dinner Last Night

I'm back...trying to cook a lot more. Yesterday was a birthday dinner for my cousin and neighbor! More to come!

Experimenting for Friends

I’ve decided to go on a hiatus and am not taking any clients for cooking parties. I just don’t feel inspired cooking for strangers lately. So, I’ve been doing parties for friends who really need me and it’s incredibly gratifying. I’ve done 4 parties in the last 2 months---a bon voyage party, birthday party, bachelorette party and most recently a dress rehearsal dinner. Going back to comfort food and keepin’ it real.








And I’ve been experimenting lately in the kitchen. Concoctions of shephards pie, chicken ramen, karaage, brisket, pulled pork, dishes I rarely cook. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the slow cook meat process and how the Japanese fried chicken came out!








I want to share the Karaage (japanese fried chicken) recipe I found on www.norecipes.com, click here to view. It's super easy.








Enjoy the pictures of my latest adventures. I'm off to Hawaii for another wedding in a few days, check back for that post.






Karaage!



Friend's wall blackboard (such a cool idea for your home)

Happy Birthday Jack (my cousin)

Couldn't resist a goofy picture of little brother Ben

Dinner for Alicia and Chris' party/rehearsal dinner, 6 hour cooked Brisket

Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad

Congrats to Alicia and Chris!

Portland for the Weekend

One of my good friends had a business trip in Portland and I convinced her to stay for the weekend so I could come and visit. It was a quick trip but we ate, drank, and even saw a little outside of Portland.

Arriving at around 11 AM on Friday, it was perfect---dropped off my luggage and grabed a cup of coffee at Stumptown, an institution in Portland. As I was waited in the long line, I noticed the calmness and politeness of folks and people relaxing---reading magazines, working on their laptops, and chatting over coffee. I wasn't in LA anymore.

Next we strolled around the city where we saw tons of billboards of PBR (Pabst Blue Ribbon) so much so that I thought it had originated there. That’s not the case as I read in the NY Times, apparently Portland was the place where PBR was revived by local Hipsters just within the last decade. We also ran into shacks and shacks of food stands. I was amazed to see blocks of food stands not trucks but stands. I didn’t know where to begin to eat so opted for photos---seemed like Asian cuisine dominated the scene – Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese

We decided to lunch at Clyde Common connected to the Ace Hotel. The highlight dish was the Heirloom Beets with Frisee and Gorgonzola cheese.

To digest, we took a stroll through Pearl District and stopped in at Bridgeport Brewery for a testing---$8 for 8 tastings! My favorite was the ESB.

This was just the teaser for the next few hours as we headed to the Brewfest by the river. Trucks and kegs of all sorts, along with beef aficionados. I could handle only a few tastings.

After a short rest, we were ready for dinner at 7 PM heading off to south Portland to Pok Pok, written up by Food and Wine and Gourmet Magazine, specializing in Southeast Asian food---a very popular spot in PDX. Located in a craftsman style house, there was already a 45 minute wait when we arrived. We walked across the street to their sister restaurant, Whiskey Soda Lounge. This is a brilliant marketing scheme as there are no reservations taken at Pok Pok ---the cocktails are Thai inspired. For the meal, we ordered a protein feast of Thai pork ribs, Vietnamese style wings and game hen, and fried catfish! Sorry all my pics turned out too dark to post.

Next morning, we decided to rent a car and drive down the Columbia River Gorge. Before our road trip we headed to Kenny and Zuke’s – a Jewish style delicatessen. This was one of my favorite meals---the pastrami was out of this world and as were the potato latkes. They are also known for their Bialy. Full and ready to hike off our food, we arrived at Multnomah Trails for a 3 mile trek. The pictures speak for itself ---beautiful.

Continuing along our drive, we visited the Bonneville Dam, Salmon Hatcheries and had a breather/photo op at the Horsetail Trails. On our way back, we stopped at Edgfield, what I like to call a Disneyland for adults – a place of pubs, restaurants, a winery and movie theater.




When we got back to the hotel, it took us a few hours to decide upon dinner but we chose Ned Ludd. I didn’t eat much that night as the sun and dehydration took the best out of me. Overall, it was quick trip to Portland but action packed. I would definitely come back again for the hiking and pastrami. I hear that wine tasting in the Willamette Valley is fun too, can't wait for the next trip!