part three of food filled weekend!!!
Posted: October 17, 2011 Filed under: babble, Uncategorized | Tags: food, noodles, pho 1 Comment »Ahhh we’ve finally reached the last and final leg of my dad’s bday extravaganza food coma induced weekend!
We ended the weekend off with noodles…pho noodles to be exact! It’s no mystery that I love noodles. I can eat noodles anytime of the day. From ginger scallion noodles (a lunch time favorite), spaghetti, to my baked ziti… I can go on and on, I love noodles!
For the last leg, we headed back to Little Saigon for noodles. It’s so worth the trip to go there from HB :)
We scarfed down noodles at Quan Vy in Garden Grove. It wasn’t exactly a hole-in-the-wall place, but more like a random-noodle-shop-in-a-strip-mall-inside-Asian-market kinda place. Don’t get me wrong! Sometimes these type of places can be just as yummy, especially if you’re in search for a quickie bite to eat.
Yelpers were not to kind with this place and give it 2.5/5 stars. In all honesty, I agree with the 2.5 star rating. With these type of places, you get what you pay for. It’s not a fancy schmancy dining experience, so don’t expect it. You order, you eat, you pay, you go…don’t expect service. Also, just point when you order because English is not an option. They will have a tough time understanding you and vice versa.
The food was nice and hot and very filling (I had major belly bloat for the rest of the day :)! If you order the specials, it’s 50% off which is typical for pho places these days. I’m not all too familiar with pho offerings, so my baby almost-twin brother ordered for me. How sweet, right? :)
Feast your eyes on my noodles below…
for a few bucks more, I got the large bowl... I couldn't finish it all :)
look at all those nooooodles!
spring rolls || I go to pho places mainly for these, they are my favorite. I was very disappointed with the sauce because most places typically serve a peanut sauce with the spring rolls. However, this place serves hoison sauce with chopped up peanuts...not a great mix.
all done! (my dad ate the half I couldn't finish, thanks daddy! :)
Thank you for joining me on my fun-filled family weekends! Weekends are the only time where we get to see each since we all live such busy separate lives.
Once again, happy birthday dad, love ya!
xoxo, kat + family
ps. check out part one and part two :)
uh oh, detour!!
Posted: October 17, 2011 Filed under: babble, Uncategorized | Tags: food, ikea, meatballs, swedish meatballs Leave a comment »
IKEA restaurant
I had my first Swedish meatballs experience at Ikea!! And it was O-M-G AAAAMAZING! Now I can see what all the hype is about at IKEA.
Aside from their ridiculously cute adorable furniture options, their cafeteria-style restaurant is the perfect escape from furniture shopping!
While there, I picked up a box up their famous meatballs to go and a 6-pack box of cinnamon buns. The mashed potatoes were extremely plain. Why don’t they slather some of that gravy on the potatoes? The meatballs were good…but honestly, I think my meatballs are better. I really can’t comprehend what all the hype is about when it comes to these little suckers?? Do you love them? Or are you on the same boat as me?
the meatball station!
just look at those balls! that's what she said... :)
Is there anything at the IKEA restaurant worth trying?
xo
part two of food filled weekend!!
Posted: October 17, 2011 Filed under: babble, Uncategorized | Tags: chinese, food 4 Comments »Oh geez! My family weekends are killing me. I consume so much food that I end up being full for the rest of the week!
Anyhoo, part two of my dad’s birthday extravaganza led us back down to the OC where we indulged in Chinese/Vietnamese style food at the iconic enclave of Orange Country known as “Little Saigon”. Any OC native will tell you that this is where you go if you want OG, authentic dirty-hole-in-the-wall Asian food.
We spent the latter part of his bday at Seafood Cove for dinner. This restaurant has been family-owned since 1989, and I have been going there since the 90′s (oh yes, I’m really that old! :).
Yelpers gave this place 4/5 stars. Hmmm this is tough, but I’m going to have to give it 3/5 stars. Why? Ok, don’t call me picky! Don’t you judge me! Ok fine, call me picky… but the food wasn’t as good as it could be that night. It seemed like some dishes were cooked when order, and some dishes have been half-cooked and then re-heated when ordered. Don’t you just hate that? I know I do… Maybe food tasted a lot better when I was a kid since I didn’t really have a concept of what’s good and what’s bad. Sigh… I just remembered being in love with the food at this place when I was younger…
Oh, dad gives it 2/5 stars. He’s such a tough critic here on she cooks, he eats :)
Here are some pics of greasy food for your viewing pleasure…
house special lobster || if you go this this place, you try the lobster!! it's fresh! they grab it from the tank and show it to you! Yelpers gave a lot of praise for their lobster
thai spice clams || another Yelp fan favorite, and it's also my mom's absolute must-order!
peking duck || this was terrible! the duck was way overcooked and the non-crispy duck skins had bits of duck bones attached...that is not how it's suppose to be. this dish was a disappointment. buns were okay.
deep fried crispy bean curd || it was yummy. although I wish it was a tad crispier.
shrimp with honey walnuts || simply addicting!
house special chicken in between the duck and lobster) || sorry for this aftermath photo, forgot to take a pic of the house special chicken. this was mine and my brother's fave when we were growing up, and it still taste just as delicious as the day I remembered it. this taste amazing alone with just a bowl of rice :)
One more thing, everything is family style! So don’t be afraid, just dive in and eat, eat, eat!!
xoxo, kat
pantry pasta lunch for two
Posted: October 17, 2011 Filed under: pasta recipes | Tags: food, menu, pantry raid, Pasta, Recipe, spaghetti, Tomato sauce 4 Comments »
pantry pasta
What do you do when you hungry, lazy, and don’t want to go out? A pantry/whatever’s available in the fridge raid!!!!
Here’s what I was able to find in the pantry/fridge:
- whole wheat spaghetti (leftover from when I made whole wheat spaghetti caprese)
- can organic tomato sauce
- grape tomatoes
- white button mushrooms
- parmesan cheese
- broccoli
- half a bag of whole wheat spaghetti
- 16 oz can organic tomato sauce
- grape tomatoes
- white button mushrooms
- grated parmesan cheese
- organic dried oregano
- red pepper flakes
- sea salt/fresh ground pepper
- Boil the pasta according to directions. Drain and set aside.
- In a medium pan, combine the tomato sauce, grape tomatoes, mushrooms and bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer. Season with however much dried oregano, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper to your liking.
- Let the sauce simmer for about 20 minutes or until it’s no longer watery in consistency. (KITCHEN TIP: I love using cheese to thicken the sauce! Just add a few handfuls at time and voila! :)
- Once it’s done, mix the spaghetti in with the sauce.
- Serve. Sprinkle some parmesan cheese and top it off with a few basil leaves.
