NOM, NOM, NOM

I'm not gonna lie, I suck at updating my blog. There's always so much I want to say but when I think about the tedious task of writing it all down, I get lazy. But this just isn't fair to all my loyal readers, even if there are only three of you out there :( So, to celebrate the new look of my blog and my triumphant return to posting, I decided to buckle down and give the fans what they want: an enormous blog about food obviously!

A major goal of my "Food Endeavors" section is #81 Eat at 25 new restaurants and it seemed like it would be a good way to get me to try new things. I tend to visit the same restaurants time and time again and order the same dishes every time I go. Well this becomes a major snoozefest after a while. I wanted to break free from my monotonous ways and discover new and exciting places to eat. Now you might be saying to yourself "Only 25 restaurants? Pshh, that's easy. I could do that in a month". If you are in fact saying this then you need to stop bragging, but more importantly you're kind of right. I completed this goal within the first 9 months or so which wasn't really ideal since now I technically don't have to go to any new restaurants for the next 2 years. It became tiresome to constantly take pictures and remember names of restaurants whenever I went somewhere new so I'm glad it was only 25 but it would have been better to spread them out among the 1001 days. It would've made more sense to change the goal to "Go to a new restaurant every month" but I guess now I know better for my next list. Anyway, enough talk.


Without further adieu, I present to you all 25 new restaurants I ate at over the last year:

Warning: Pictures and descriptions may cause excessive drooling...




1) Maggiano's - Costa Mesa


Way back in November I talked about going to this Italian restaurant with my family for Thanksgiving. Good times and good food.

One of the Highlights: Baked Ziti with Sausage and Provolone Cheese :)




2) Buffalo Wild Wings - Lake Forest


This is the place where my famous Blazin' Challenge victory took place. I supposedly have my picture up on the wall but I've never gone back to check :/


12 Blazin' Wings in 6 Minutes!!




3) Tupelo Junction Cafe - Santa Barbara


This is an awesome breakfast spot Marcella and I went to after seeing the Santa Barbara sunrise. Definitely a good spot for Mother's Day or something special.

Smoked Bacon, Gouda, Spinach Omelette + Homemade Biscuit and Jam

Ice Water Served in Jam Jars...Say What??

4) The Veggie Grill - Irvine

My first experience with vegan food. I've even been back a few times :O

Healthy Fake Chicken That Tastes Like Chicken + The Best Sweet Potato Fries Everrrrr!



5) Agora Churrascaria Brazilian BBQ - Irvine

I don't know if it rivaled the Brazilian BBQ I had in Vegas but it was for sure a fantastic birthday dinner Marcella surprised me with.


All You Can Eat Meat, What's Not To Love?




6) Gyu-Kaku Korean BBQ - Pasadena


Haha cheers to a fun drunken night out on the town with Jim, Neil, and Molly.


Yakishabu beef = Delicious. Beef Intestines = Nasty Crap.




7) Din Tai Fung Dumpling House - Arcadia


I HAD to try this place as much as Marcella raves about it. Overall reaction - good but I don't see why it's so different from other dumpling houses. I guess I'm not Asian enough to tell.


Juicy hand-made Pork Dumplings.




8) Green Street Restaurant - Pasadena


Known for their Diane Salad and Zucchini Bread. Marcella and I were going for a light lunch but we ended up ordering far too much: the aforementioned salad and bread plus a shrimp quesadilla and sweet potato fries! Our taste buds were bigger than our appetites :)


Famous Diane Salad (Don't really remember what was in it but it tasted good).



Shrimp Quesadilla, Oooh Now We're Getting Fancy




9) Cabo Wabo Cantina - Las Vegas


Don't really remember what I ate here but I know I had a bomb margarita. That's weird too because I always remember everything I do in Vegas....


Happiness In A Glass

10) Boathouse - Pasadena


Marcella, her family, and I went here for Marcella's birthday dinner. Apparently we were supposed to go to a fancier, better place across the street but it was too busy so we settled for this place. I don't know if this is how normal cajun seafood restaurants are but it was a complete mess by the end of the meal. There was basically no silverware or plates and they just bring you big bags of seafood that are covered in juices and you're supposed to peel and eat them with your hands. The Cajun spices made everything kind of taste the same by the end of the dinner but it was a fun experience. It's pretty much impossible NOT to play with your food at a place like this :P


Bag O' Shrimp



The disastrous aftermath!!!!




11) Steelhead Micro Brewery - Irvine


Jim's dad was in town for a night so we all naturally decided to go eat at a brewery. Had a very relaxed, loungy feel to it but it wasn't busy for a Friday night. O well.


We ordered the healthiest option on the menu:
Jalepeno Poppers, Onion Rings, Calamari, and Wings




12) Chinez Chinese Restaurant - Irvine

Sometimes it's hard to find good Chinese food but this place certainly delivered the quality goods. It was a bit pricey but that's probably because we ordered way too much food as usual. But what's Chinese food without leftovers? Also, we ate out of the little white containers the food comes in so it would feel like we were living in a New York apartment or something?? You'll have to ask Marcella what that was all about...

White Rice, Fried Rice, Orange Chicken, Honey Walnut Shrimp,
Pork Chow Mein, and Kung Pow Chicken All For Two People!!




13) China Pavilion - Santa Barbara


Continuing the Chinese food trend, Marcella and I went to a fancier Chinese restaurant on State Street in Santa Barbara. It was ok food but it was weird because there were only about five other people eating when we went in. I guess that made it less awkward when I took pictures of our food when it came.

General's Spicy Chicken

Beef Chow Fan

14) Tacos & Co - Irvine

Happy hour 3-6 every day - $1 tacos, free chips and salsa, and $5.50 pitchers of Dos Equis. Nuff said.

Food is bomb too

15) Nick's - Laguna Beach

Valentine's Day with Marcella. It was romantic although I'm pretty sure our waiter was on drugs. But the special thing about our dinner was that we decided to blindly order what the people sitting next to us ordered. Everything on the menu sounded good so it was kind of a calculated risk but it turned out well.

Asparagus Fries with Parmasan Crust = Yum



Pan Roasted Salmon with Caper Mustard Beurre Blanc Sauce - wouldn't have been my first choice but Marcella was happy



Red Wine Braised Boneless Short Ribs with Horseradish Cream - excellent choice stranger

16) Harbor Restaurant - Santa Barbara

Located on the pier with great views of the water. Marcella and I decided to do something different and just split a few different appetizers so we could save room for dessert.

Calamari Strips, Dungeness Crab Cake, and Lobster Mac and Cheese with Goat Cheese and Truffle Oil




17) Gin Sushi - Pasadena


Possibly the best sushi I've ever had. It was that good. Creative fancy rolls and fried green tea ice cream :)


Baked Lobster Roll Special = BOMB!!

18) Johnny Rockets - Irvine

Even though it is one of the few places to eat that surround B&N at the Spectrum, I never had gone because it was a sit down restaurant. But I finally went after work one night and it turned out to be a pretty decent burger place. I think I got a bbq burger and a peanut butter shake (shocker).

Who else gives you ketchup happy faces with your meal??

19) Guppy House - Irvine

Jim, Marcella, and I were looking for a place to eat after 10 pm and this little asian place was still open. It's located in an asian shopping center with a bunch of other similar restaurants and when the three of us walked in to the Guppy House, we were definitely the only three non-asians in there. Anyway, the food was very different, in a good way. I've even been back a couple times.

Our fried rice was served in a half pineapple and had dried shredded beef on top (I think that's what it was) but it was super good. My "super spicy dumplings" were kind of a letdown but the spicy popcorn chicken made up for it.

20) Cajun Kitchen Cafe - Santa Barbara

I lived in Santa Barbara for about 5 years and I always heard people rant and rave about this place and how awesome the breakfast is here. I've walked by in the morning a bunch of times and it's always packed. Well finally I went there a few months ago to see what all the buzz was about. It was pretty busy as usual and I ordered some sort of eggs and chili dish. Maybe that wasn't the best choice but I must say it didn't live up to the hype. The cajun seasoning in the food was alright but other than that it was like a normal breakfast place to me.

Cajun Chili

21) Pastavino - Goleta

I know we had some sort of pasta dish but I don't remember exactly what Marcella and I ate here. Obviously it wasn't that memorable. It is located across from Chili's and everything that has been in this location has failed. What can compete with Chili's anyway, right?? So with this combination of forgettableness (forgettability? forgettfulness?) and likelihood to fail can't bode well for Pastavino :(

Man, we should've gotten this!




22) Chino's Rock & Tacos - Isla Vista

This is a relatively new place in I.V. and I guess it was put there to compete with the bagillion other Mexican restaurants in the area. Well I went there during a recent visit back to SB and let me tell you it sucked ass. The tacos were literally like Taco Bell tacos and it was super expensive. I'm pretty sure it is more of a place to go and drink versus going to eat their food but they can at least try to make the food taste good. Hint: stick with Freebirds.

23) Irvine China Garden - Irvine

Yet another Chinese restaurant on the list. The good thing about this one is that it is open until midnight. This works out well since I always get off work late and there is nothing open anywhere in Irvine after 10 pm. Food was decent too and not that expensive.

Food always tastes better late at night :)

24) Joe’s Cafe - Santa Barbara

I've passed by this place a million times while walking along State Street and I've never stopped in to eat. It's always packed on weekends because I think it turns into a bar at night but it just seemed like an older crowd that goes there. Anyway, we decided to give this place a try one night since we were in an adventurous mood. The atmosphere was fun since it is like a cafe with an older feel to it. However, the food wasn't too great. I had steak and Marcella had Calamari steak (interesting choice) and it was just so-so. I don't think I'd go back and have dinner but maybe it would be a cool place to chill and have a couple drinks.

25) D’Angelo’s Bakery - Santa Barbara

Marcella and I were looking for a nice little restaurant to eat breakfast on a Saturday. We heard this place was featured on the Food Network so we yelped it up and everyone said it was awesome. Naturally we had to give it a try. It is a bakery so they specialize in baked breads and desserts but people said their breakfast was good too. We each had different omelets and they came with a choice of fresh baked bread and jam. Yum! Both were delicioso but we ended up switching because Marcella's thought hers was too spicy, which wasn't a problem for me. Also, Marcella got a blueberry tart "to share" for dessert. From the tiny taste I got, it seemed pretty good and I'd like to go back and try some of their other choices.

Omelet, Potatoes, Bread and Jam = Perfect Breakfast

To top it all off, we sat next to comedian Dennis Miller and had a conversation with him!!

So there you have it folks. All 25 new restaurants I've eaten at during the last year. For most of them I had the fine company of Marcella with me and Jim was sprinkled in for a few of them as well. The top three restaurants were probably Maggiano's with my parents for Thanksgiving, Nick's with Marcella for Valentine's Day, and the Korean BBQ with Jim, Neil, and Molly. The worst had to be Chino's Tacos, especially compared with other tacos places I went like Tacos & Co which is awesome. But all in all, I'm glad I got to experience new places and try some new foods. I think one of the best ways to experience a new city (like Irvine where there's not much to do) is to sample it's restaurants and local food places. Plus, eating is just one of life's greatest pleasures, don't you agree :)

Goal #81 Eat at 25 new restaurants

As a little side note, on my recent trip across the country, Jim and I decided it would be a good idea to not eat at any restaurants we've ever eaten at before. It was tough (especially avoiding Taco Bell) but we were successful and it resulted in eating at about 23 new restaurants. So as it turned out, I have eaten at about 50 new restaurants in the past year instead of 25. Just thought I'd mention that.