los panchitos

san diego, ca

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adventures in san diego with our host, steve, started with excellent spanish tapas and expensive cocktails at cafe sevilla in the trendy gaslamp district in downtown san diego. progressed to rum+cokes and a video dj mash-up performance (turn-table scratching with videos?) in a warehouse at the afterparty for the asian american film festival. and ended with cheap mexican food on pacific highway. a job well done, steve.

los panchitos was the final stop of the night. open very late, it serves perfect post-partying cuisine. authentic? probably not. but it was still pretty good. i had cheese enchiladas and ordered rolled tacos for derek, which are basically flautas. cheesy greasy hangover-prevention goodness.

the odeon

new york, ny

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after an eventful evening of cocktails at ward III for my birthday, i managed to convince all of my friends to follow me on a hunt for dessert. yes, i played the "birthday girl" card. wandering around tribeca with our guide jenny, we managed to find the odeon, which is open until 2 am on weekends.

i was excited to finally try this place because i've heard about their doughnuts. freshly fried and dusted with sugar and cinnamon, they're served with maple and raspberry sauces. although i prefer a voce's bomboloni, these doughnuts made a perfect late-night post-drinking birthday snack.

bon chon (boka)

new york, ny

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michelle, derek and i skipped dinner in order to wait in line to see "sherlock holmes" (which was highly entertaining) so by the time the movie got out at 1:30 am, we were very hungry. michelle suggested bon chon nearby at st. mark's, which is always open late. i've only had bon chon when derek brings home takeout, so this is the first time i've been in the actual restaurant. the st. mark's location is nice - clean and laid-back.

we ordered some lychee soju and a half & half order of chicken - half spicy and half garlic+soy. the lychee soju was surprisingly good. the chicken was amazing. korean fried chicken is double-fried and dressed with a light glaze. this gives the skin a light crispy texture. imagine walking through a foot of snow on the ground, where the top of the snow has frozen. each time you take another step, you have to break through the crispy shell to sink through the soft snow below. that's what this chicken is like - you bite through the delicate crispy skin to reach the juicy meat inside. so good.

hop fung noodles restaurant

tsim sha tsui, hk

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after getting some excellent cocktails at the starck-designed felix in the famed peninsula hotel, we decided to find a late night noodle bar. we wandered around TST (tsim sha tsui - the downtown area of kowloon) looking for a good spot. one of our friends suggested hop fung and as our large group of hungry asians approached, the man cooking tripe in the front window eagerly waved us in.

cheap greasy food - perfect after a late night of drinking. i had the mai fun with preserved cabbage and pork. derek had the salted fish and chicken fried rice. both were good, although i liked his better and kept sneaking bites off his plate.

in-n-out burger

los angeles, ca

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okay - as i mentioned in my previous post - i was HUNGRY when i got to LA. after hanging out with my friend cindy c's very cool LA friends at father's office for a while, we headed back to cindy's apt. en route - we saw an in-n-out. we had to stop. yes, that's two burgers in one night. i blame jetblue.

the entire meal for cindy and i - two burgers and two drinks - cost less than a single shack burger. sigh. but for some reason, i got a gigantic piece of lettuce. eh, it's a good burger. it's definitely california style with fresh, but cheap ingredients. cindy says its like something you'd put together in your backyard barbecue. good burger for the price, but i really don't understand the people who prefer in-n-out to shake shack. to each their own, right?

les halles

new york, ny

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9:30 pm on a sunday night is a difficult time to find a restaurant. fortunately, les halles on park is open until midnight. it's famous for being where anthony bourdain used to cook. solid french bistro fare, although a little pricey. there were two french tourists at the table right next to us. when i received my mussels (pictured), my neighbor leaned over and explained that the proper way to eat mussels in france is to use the empty shells as pinchers to scoop out the rest of the mussels. it was actually quite handy because then you don't stab out the meatiness of the mussels. and those were some meaty mussels. i prefer my mussels smaller and more delicate, but the broth was excellent. derek enjoyed his poulet roti frites (chicken and fries). he had wisely copied what the two french women had ordered.

one of the women told us all about the original les halles in paris which is no longer in paris but is now outside of paris. i think it was some kind of market. i tried my best to understand but we all know i'm not good with accents. halfway through our meal, the ladies left and asked derek to calculate how much tip they owed. once they were gone, i finally put some ketchup on my "frites." i had waited because i didn't want to offend the friendly french women with my crass american ways...