If you learn one thing from me as a result of reading this blog, let it be this: Don't ever eat at a restaurant that serves more than one type of Asian cuisine. You know exactly what I'm talking about. The place down the street that serves sushi, sweet & sour pork, pho, and pad thai. Now that is one confused Asian. I was walking through my neighborhood earlier and spotted a new restaurant called Taste of Asia. The name makes it sound so exotic and enticing. I wish the owners the best of luck, but they won't be fooling me anytime soon. Asian food is all so very different. Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese, Chinese, they all have different flavors and methods of cooking. It's just not right to lump them all together. It would be the equivalent of opening a restaurant called Taste of Europe and having Italian, French, Spanish and German dishes all in one location. How appealing does that sound?
One of the things I miss most about living in Southern California is the Asian food. There are entire communities like Little Saigon, Koreatown, Chinatown and Little Tokyo and they all serve up the most amazing foods. Here are some of the places I miss the most:
Sushi on a conveyor belt may not sound so appealing, but when you've got specialties like Baked Lobster Roll and Spicy Tuna on Crispy Rice, it's hard not to give this very affordable place at least one try. Remember you can always order direct from the chef, but it's usually hard to ignore all the yummy sushi zooming by you at the bar.
Located in a strip mall, this unassuming, tiny contemporary space serves up some of the freshest sushi available on the west coast. The albacore, yellowtail and scallop are a must in my book.
It's what your college ramen had the potential to be, but never did you dream in your wildest dreams it could be this good. Boiling hot and savory, the noodles are swimming in a sea of broth and accompanied by your choice of pork,.chicken, tofu or veggies. My favorite is the Tan-Tan Men, (pictured above), a spicy egg drop soup with ground pork and bean sprouts.
The name may be French inspired, but the food is all the way Vietnamese. Probably some of the best Vietnamese food I've had outside of Vietnam. What they're most famous for is their Nem Nuong (pictured above). A delicious spring roll with grilled pork, lettuce, and cripy scallions accompanied by a special house dipping sauce. If I could bathe in the sauce, I would.
Freshly made mochi ice cream straight from the source. It doesn't get any better than that.
Empress Pavilion
Yelpers have recently panned this iconic Chinatown establishment and I hope it's not all true. But, from my fond memories, all I can recall is some of the most delicious dim sum treats. Usually packed on the weekends, go early to snag a table without waiting in the long lines. If you're on the go and want to pack a picnic, there's a take out counter next door which has all the same items ready to go.
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