Spring Vacation (Food Edition): Chicago, IL

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Review: Hello Kitty Cafe

Hello Kitty Cafe 93 Spectrum Center Dr Irvine, CA 92618

Three months ago, Cindy persuaded me to stand in line for the grand opening of the Hello Kitty Cafe. Hoping to not be waiting in the line for ages, we arrived at the cafe three hours before it opened. Unfortunately, being that it was hot out the three hours were torturous. We also realized that they only serve a customer at a time which resulted in us waiting in additional hour despite being fifteenth in line. The tart that I got was not too bad. I did appreciate the Hello Kitty packaging as well as the baked good decorations, but the food (as expected) was pricey and the wait was definitely not worth standing in line for hours. After spending a good few hours at the mall, we realized that another long line formed that wrapped around itself a good five times. It was a good experience, none of the less, but you can definitely find better desserts elsewhere. If you are a Hello Kitty fan, this place is for you. I am not sure of how long it will be in this location, unfortunately.

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Review: Sharetea

Sharetea

3940 S Bristol Street

Santa Ana, CA 92704

Cindy loves her drinks and she especially loves trying out places that serves drinks late into the evening. A day after its grand opening, Cindy and I decided to pay Sharetea a visit at their newest location just minutes before they closed up for the evening. Don't worry, we did call in to ask if it was okay to stop by - we're not that big of jerks. We walked in and were greeted by two lovely employees who helped us better understand their brand's concept.

When you order a drink you can choose how much ice you want (which is a huge plus since a lot of tea places put way too much ice into your drink, therefore resulting in less of the tea itself) as well as how sweet you want it. Now I don't know about you guys, but any fruity drink is usually pretty sweet so I cannot even imagine anyone who orders one with 100% sweetness.

I ordered my drink without any additional sweetness and it turned out really good. To keep their concept fairly simple, all the drinks come in one size. Overall, I like this place so I am giving it a solid 4/5.

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Review: U Jelly Donuts

U Jelly

16051 Brookhurst Street

Fountain Valley, CA 92708

If you are from the Orange County area and a dessert aficionado, you have probably heard of After's Ice Cream. If you have, then you are probably aware that the owners of After's opened a donut store called U Jelly. Besides donuts, they sell an assorted amount of stuffed croissants with fillings like pizza and philly cheese steak. Because Cindy and I arrived quite late into the evening, they were out of a lot of donut flavors. We did manage to score Reese's Peanut Butter, taro, pandan, Cinnamon Toast Crunch and coconut flan topped donuts. If you are big on sweets, you might like this a lot. Personally, it was too sweet for me (much like After's ice cream) so I will give it a 2/5 for flavor but a 3/5 for interesting choices of toppings.

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Review: Tokyo Central

I have always been a fan of Mitsuwa Marketplace, but the prices have always been quite steep for me. I now only go there when I want to have some cheap ramen from the food court. Not too far away from Mitsuwa was a marketplace called Murakai, but it has since been closed. In replacement of Murakai is Tokyo Central, my new favorite Japanese marketplace.

Unlike Mitsuwa, Tokyo Central does not have a designated food court with varying restaurants in it. Instead, it has a buffet (think Whole Foods), a large selection of fresh sushi, and occasionally, they host varying food events where they set up small stalls at the front of the store testing new drinks or food to sell in the store. Aside from that, Tokyo Central sells a variety of items from house ware, fresh produce, seafood and meat, snacks, beauty products and much much more. You can also sign up for their membership card which allows you to earn points towards future discounts.

Next to Tokyo Central is a Book Off (used books and electronics store) where you can fulfill all of your reading and nostalgic electronic needs. Overall, I absolutely love this marketplace and highly recommend it to anyone looking to try new snacks or to get some Japanese food and goodies!

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Review: Zero Degrees

Zero Degrees

9822 Bolsa Ave

Westminster, CA 92683

Cindy is quite a foodie herself and she decided to take me to Zero Degrees, a little drinks and dessert place that serves ice cream, sweets and boba drinks. For my first visit, I decided to get some ice cream since it was quite a hot day. I got the potted sundae which is filled with dairy ice, vanilla custard topped with crushed Oreos and gummy worms. For the amount I paid for ($4-6), I think it was alright. The vanilla was good, but I think it I paid for the aesthetic more so than the dessert itself. I am going to have to give my ice cream a 3/5. Cindy got the chamango which is filled with dole whip and mango ice soaked in chamoy and tajin topped with tamarind candy and lime juice. She gave it a 5/5 (but she also loves everything at Zero Degrees, haha). Next time I will definitely try one of their drinks for a more thorough review of their menu!

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Relaxation Hour ft. British PG Tips Tea

Slow down and enjoy life. It's not only the scenery you miss by going to fast - you also miss the sense of where you are going and why.
- Eddie Cantor

A quick shoutout to Rhys for sending me some Hobnobs and PG Tips. I think I love British food more than he does, hehe.

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Food Adventures

I do not know about anyone else, but I have an odd taste palette. I like things spicy or savory. Rarely do I like anything sweet by themselves (minus Easter candy because let us be honest here...who does not buy candy after major holidays like Easter and Halloween?).

1. PG Tips with almond milk and a bowl of rice topped with a fried egg over easy, avocado, green onion and hot sauce
2. Vietnamese mi lay cay
3. Euro Caffe vanilla latte and french kiss crepe
4. Bowl of rice topped with a fried egg, avocado and sriracha
5. IKEA crepes breakfast with a side salad and orange juice
6. Poke bowl and Peace tea from Mitsuwa
7. Day after Easter candy sale haul
8. Fried rice and BBQ short rib
9. Eggy toast topped with sriracha 
10. Vietnamese spring rolls with avocado and hoisin/sriracha dipping sauce
11. Bowl of rice topped with fried egg, avocado, cilantro and sriracha
12. Homemade baked churros

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Chasing the Sun's Rays

Letting go helps us to to live in a more peaceful state of mind and helps restore our balance. It allows others to be responsible for themselves and for us to take our hands off situations that do not belong to us. This frees us from unnecessary stress.
-Melody Beattie

I had one of those moments where I needed to leave the house even if it was 3 in the morning. Cindy and I decided to hit the gym to destress and make a spontaneous trip to IHOP for some breakfast and chat about life. Sometimes it is nice to unwind and vent to your friends over filling breakfast.

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Beach Appreciation

 

Having lived in Southern California for so long, I have never truly appreciated the fact that I live quite close to the beach - a privilege that most people do not get to experience living away from a body of water. Cindy and I decided that it was a perfect day to go to the beach and unwind from our daily routines.

We first stopped by Arirang Market to get some Korean snacks as we opted to not eat breakfast so that we can have a picnic at the beach. We grabbed chips, rice snacks, ramen noodles (I brought a thermo of hot water with me along with water to stay hydrated), bimbap and some sides (seaweed, sweet fish cakes, cuttlefish, and onions). Afterwards we went to Paris Baguette to get sandwiches and soft bread as our main entree. I got the imitation crab sandwich (basically sushi in a sandwich) and sweet potato bread. Our food was absolutely filling and delicious and it was such an amazing day to go to the beach.

Although we had an umbrella to keep ourselves shaded from the sun, we did end up coming home sun burnt. PSA: Always apply sunblock regardless of the weather every 1-2 hours and after you get out of the water. Let the sunblock set on your skin for 15-30 minutes before going out again.

Have you guys been going out to the beach as of late? Do let me know in the comments down below!

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Big 'Ol Breakfasts

I always make it a point to each a hearty breakfast every morning since I seem to always miss out on lunch. Lately, I have been trying my best to fix my eating habits (mainly because I have been sick and only seem to have an appetite of things that I crave) so I try to make it a point to eat a healthier alternative to what I would otherwise get. I guess one of the main reasons for my odd cravings stems from constantly watching YouTube videos of varying recipes and constantly wanting to eat things off of my screen. What is your favorite meal of the day and what have you been craving as of late?

First meal: Tomato soup (from the can), Greek salad (olives, olive oil and feta cheese) and whole grain bread.
Second meal: Denny's Lumber Jack meal (I will give it a 6/10).
Third meal: Dim Sum from a local Chinese restaurant and a side of sliced applies that I added (I will give it a 6/10).
Fourth meal: iHop's Breakfast Sampler meal (I will give it a 7/10).
Fifth meal: Generic branded organic cereal with almond milk and three lady apples.
Sixth meal: Denny's Club Sandwich meal with fries (I will give it a 8/10).

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