Great breakfasts and great albumsgo together so well. I always Always ALWAYS try to start my day off with music in the morning. Sets the tone for the day, at least I hope to.
Poached egg over avocado and whole grain toast makes me feel like a king.
Kyuss' Welcome To Sky Valley (the original version, you know, with all the songs connected) is one my life's most favorite albums. Introduced to me by none other than my beautiful hot haole wife, I was a little caught off guard from the beginning track. It's such a great stoner rock album. Songs together in is entirety for a conceptual album's purpose, which a lot of great bands in the beginning days of when rock and roll started sound nice and fuzzier.
Just rolled in for the V-Twin Expo last night and already been eating pretty frickin well (as you may have guessed).
This old market we found, Findley Market, was established in 1852. So many vendors to choose from but we went with the pasta.
Glad I actually used the treadmill at the hotel this morning. Hoping 4 miles would cover the olive oil and black pepper pasta dish I had with a side of spicy curry chicken salad and Cincinnati's own chili.
Saw this butcher specializing in BACON. The selection was pretty dope to say the least. Wish they'd cook it for you, I'd have to try the peanut butter bacon just because I love peanut butter. And bacon.
Where... have... I... been. Its kinda interesting, from my perspective (or via pakajunk perspective) thats its been the same but with more in life. Definitely better, for sure. Its as if things are the same + amplified positively since my last post in April 2015.
Still training, eating, training, you know. Family, work, train, food.
I mean the whole pakajunk blog thing started just because I wanted something to do besides writing articles for motorcycle magazines. Even if it was just a couple of sentences, I just wanted to run on a tangent about something ELSE.
And just before I started pakajunk, everything was motorcycles. My 9 to 5, my part time job, my hobby, my commute to work, emails. Surrounded by motorcycles. It was a relief doing this.
Then after a few years, life sorta got in the way. Had a kid, life got very interesting and cool, got wrapped up in martial arts and I'm still there. Its kinda nice being into something that can't be bought. It was a little rough watching things I loved dearly, that was once garbage to most people, become the holy chalice of their garage built pile of chopper freedom.
I love the fact that my open guard or my armbar can't be purchased on eBay or bought before I could find it on some odd craigslist ad in San Diego.
But fuck all that, I guess its how its going to be now and I've come to accept it.
I still work in the v-twin industry but in a much more different mindset. Can't tell you how much more refreshing it is. Like an in-house consulting guy, I guess. My bosses leave me alone to what I'm good at it (or what I think I'm good at!) and I get the job done.
So yeah, just wanted to rattle off what was on my brain as I sit here full of home made pizza.
1 teaspoon white vinegar (apple cider vinegar works too)
1/2 cup green onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons ginger, chopped
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
Place all of the ingredients in crock pot, cover and cook on HIGH for 5 hours or LOW for 6-7 hours. Makes 4 or 5 solid servings. I basically put as much chicken as I can into the crock pot, long as most of it is touching the sauce. Half way through or so, take the cover off and mix it up.
I also add a half a chopped onion if its sitting around. Also note that the temperature of your crock pot may vary, so the chicken is ready when its soft and is just about ready to fall off the bone.
I was on the way to work one morning and stopped into this Cambodian market along PCH, looking for bananas (I eat a lot of them with peanut butter!).
I used to drive all the way to Torrance to pick these up from one of the Japanese markets there. I was pretty shocked to find these here. The cashier/manager of the store was getting all stoked that >I< was stoked, then he went on to tell me they also carried Okinawan sweet potatoes as well.
I think they're also called Asian Sweet Potatoes as well.
Just wash, then dry thoroughly.
Poke the hell out of them with a fork.
Put in the oven. Maybe with tinfoil underneath it.
350 degrees for 1.5 to 2 hours, until the sugars start dribbling out the fork holes.
There are some flaws, sure, but every other data base of reviews pales in comparison. Yelp's a good site and app to use if you know how to use it. You can NOT rely on it completely for two main things though, across the board:
Reviews
Search Results
The first being, when it comes to food, most people don't have a good palette for it. For example, I'm not going to listen to someone who tells me where their "most faaaaavorite" taco stand is while they are also doing reviews of McDonalds. In fact, if you regularly eat at McDonalds its very unlikely that I'm going to take your culinary advice.
So read between the lines. Lotsa complainers on there too, who are just always having a bad day and want to voice their opinion because they probably never got past getting their shit printed in the high school newspaper.
Secondly, search results. If you put "Chinese food" in the search bar, you'll never find this $7 gem of CRISPY FRIED CHICKEN. So really localize your searches or really be thorough here. Can't let those hole in the walls be a secret forever.
Near the corner of Atlantic and Anaheim is where New Panda Chinese Fast Food sits, in a run down old strip mall. You'd think (so would I) that its just another cafeteria style point-and-choose Chinese food spot. Well, it kinda is but the difference is that they have a freshly cooked menu as well.
On this menu is the above delight, Crispy Fried Chicken. In about 15 minutes, you get this amazing fried chicken over rice. It's got a hint of charsiu flavor of course and for $7.15, it's kaboooom.
Not sure what else is good there but if you dare to venture, don't come back to me saying you tried blah blah blah but it wasn't that good. Just go there and order the Crispy Fried Chicken and thank me.
First, I simmered then fried up some Filipino Sweet Sausage - Longanisa. Then fried a couple of eggs in coconut oil. Next was the rice, which is half brown rice that I made last night... the rice didn't end there.
I used this Indonesian garlic fried rice paste and fried it with two beaten eggs. When the eggs were half done, I threw in half a pot of rice. Added a little ground pepper and salt. Turning it into Garlic Fried Rice.
It's a typical Filipino breakfast, although it would've made it more perfect/authentic if I had a couple slices of a fresh tomato on the side but I believe this pretty much nails it. The rich garlic taste in the fried rice counters the sweet sausage. Then egg yolk all over everything, which is like breakfast gravy.
Been hearing about this place and Bruddah Rod over at SXA had made the claim that this place was full legit... and that's all he had to say! I was sold. When I saw this sign, I was getting pretty excited and hungry.
It was fucking BLAZING hot when we got out of the truck. Industrial area, right off Nimitz Hwy, one street over from Sand Island Access Road.
The handrails on the second floor was all items that Alicia's carries. Frickin dope.
This is where the excitement really began. I knew I was in for a treat. This menu looked fucking ridiculously great. RIDICULOUSLY. I've never seen such a combo of local items all in one spot! How can it be?!
Got lucky and missed a mad rush of people, which happens throughout the day at Alicia's. So many choices, not enough room in my big belly.
Rod got a mini (haha MINI! was huge!) plate with one scoop rice, Top Sirloin Beef, Poke and Kim Chee.
Sasha was getting nuts. She got two kinds of poke over a salad, which I believe was the Spicy Ahi on the left and Limu Poke on the right. HUGE plate she mopped, good job Sasha! The selection of poke they had was crazy too. Rod said the place is like a wasteland come Xmas time.
Interesting looking and very good was Rod's pick: Tofu Poke! Looks like alien food, I know.
This terrible photo did not do this lunch any justice. I had a Lau Lau, Lomi Salmon, Roast Beef and Poi.
Alicia's Market is just... choice. You HAVE TO this place out when you're in Hawaii. Wish I could fly there now. Go by their website just for drool too! I highly recommend it as a EAT HERE spot!
Quite possibly, and I mean this, the best sandwich I've had this year.
HOT BEEF TONGUE
Yes, you read that right. I'm not looking for shock value or anything like that. HOT BEEF MOTHERFUCKING TONGUE is a excellent sandwich. Of course you know I've had many taco de lengua, I've been eating beef tongue my whole life but this just takes it to another level. The soft, slightly fatty, slice meat is just amazing and flavorful.
I stepped into a Tommy Pastrami chain restaurant in Irvine because I was desperate and soon as I walked in, I shit you not, it's the only thing I could see on the entire menu before even walking up to the counter. Went back twice for this HOT BEEF TONGUE.
You've heard it before, maybe seen it on Anthony Bourdain's show or something, and you thought to yourself, "oh, I'll try that next time..." but you never do. So quit being such a wuss next time and do it. Most real deal NY style delis will have it.
Oh, what did I think of Tommy Pastrami's? Well, slightly overpriced but this sandwich is so fucking worth it (their Santa Ana location does not serve this). I never ate anything else there either.
I keep adding more and more ingredients to get my acai bowls right. Good thing is, you can keep all the fruits in the freezer with the acai packs.
As you can see here, I use the following frozen items: Red Grapes, a few ice cubes, a few Mango pieces, half a Banana, Blueberries. Then from the fridge, I add Flax Seed, a splash of Coconut Water and Coconut Milk. All this makes 2 big bowls. Use as little liquid as you can, or add to get the consistency you want.
I've also been adding a small handful of Unsalted Roasted Peanuts in there, to give it a peanut-buttery flavor. I think its much better than using actual peanut butter. Topped with Hemp Granola. A few years ago I would've pointed and said "fuck that hippie shit!" but I'm in fucking LOVE with it now.
It was my mother in law's birthday and we wanted to give her the full dim-sum-from-a-cart experience. There's a GRIP of dim sum places out there along the 10 freeway and if you haven't eaten at any of them, you should. And don't recommend any to me until you've tried a few, sucka, because they're pretty much all good.
Found this place via LA Times article, several were reviewed.
Walked into the grand banquet hall style restaurant, typical of dim sum places. Weird lighting and some gaudiness. BRING IT!
First cart to come by was breads. Being completely starved, we got dessert first. Sorta. Baked bean/coconut action.
Turnip Cakes. Must have.
Meat patties, pork and chicken.
Steamed Pork Buns... standard.
Siu Mai. Must have. One of the more popular items here at Empress Harbor.
Pork Spare Ribs. Dope. Could've had another one.
Shrimp Noodle. Love these wide noodle things.
Beef Noodle. Minced beef wrapped in wiiiide noodle.
The famous, Xiao Long Bao - Soup Dumplings. I've had much better around these parts. Still worth getting though.
Then this crazy dessert thing. Like a deep fried doughnut log wrapped in wide noodle. Dang, it was so filling but good.
Mushroom Stuffed with Shrimp
Lastly, we had the Fried Sticky Rice because well, we saw it last!
I ended up eating so fucking much that I was comatose for about 10 hours. Took a nap inbetween. Couldn't eat dinner. And that was brunch! Take a 25 minute ride up the 710 and pull into a dim sum spot on a Sunday morning for brunch. Definitely a delightful meal and there's no traffic to deal with, either way.
111 N Atlantic Blvd #350
Monterey Park, CA 91754
(626) 300-8833
Yup, you read that right. David Chan ate at over 6200 different Chinese restaurants - many in the L.A/O.C area! He must run to all of them because he looks pretty frickin' skinny.
I came across this article in theLA Times and of course I had to bookmark it, especially forhis top 10 list. When you want good Chinese food, take advice from a Chinese guy! I'm digging his list, which lists 7 spots within a 30min drive from Long Beach.
Oh, if you haven't noticed he put Din Tai Fung on his top 10 which I posted about last Sept. 2012.
I heard from Sensei Haley that I had been missing out at Fuji's Burgers, that its not just about the burgers there. Had to investigate!
Fuji's just opened a Fountain Valley location, about 2 blocks from our new office.
Started out with spinach salad. Very simple.
And then the bomb. Charsiu Fried Rice Burrito. Holy shit, it was good!
The nice lady there, Mrs. Fuji (her family moved to CA from Hilo!) told me I should try it with avocado, which I did. The combo of charsiu fried rice, avocado, a little cheese then wrapped in a flour tortilla doesn't sound like it would work. But trust me, it does!
17870 Newhope St
Ste 103
Fountain Valley, CA 92708
(714) 437-1570
...your Jiu Jitsu game. Eat an amazingly delicious Filipino breakfast like this that's incredibly bad for you, except for that sliced tomato of course. But holy shit, it's good.
2 Filipino hot dogs, 2 longonisa sausages, 2 eggs, garlic fried rice and that tomato slice.
Found this place on yelp, near our new office in Fountain Valley. It's a juice bar, I guess that's what they're called, inside the OC Mart Mix in Costa Mesa just off the 405. They just opened about a month ago, too.
I usually make my own acai bowls but sometimes I want a gourmet treat.
Had the Peanut Butter Acai Bowl, topped with blueberries, bananas, strawberries, granola, honey and some other delightful little tidbits of sweetness. Fruits tasted fresh. Acai itself wasn't overly peanut buttery, just a faint hint of it. I'm going to start adding a few peanuts into the initial blend of my own acai.
There's a pretty trendy coffee joint next to a tea brewery, too. I was also told that a waffle sandwich is in there too, so I'll have to check it out. Can't wait to get another one of these Peanut Butter Acai Bowls!
3313 Hyland Ave Ste A17
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
(714) 873-7479
