My Bday: SushiMaru

For my 24th birthday I wanted sushi, so guess where Jeremy took me... SUSHI!  I had heard that Sushi Maru, which used to be in Sunnyvale but is now in Milpitas, is pretty good.  I had to try it out myself, so that was where we went!  I read that they have sushi boats, which I'm typically skeptical of since they float around for who knows how long waiting to be taken by someone.  To their benefit though, the items actually looked rather fresh, except for the fried items which I would never get off the boat.  I didn't end up getting anything off the boats, but I saw them add a number of items as well, so I would've chosen those- maybe next time :)

What I DID have, was the sushi dinner.  I got some of my favorite nigiris like aji, hamachi, salmon, and tuna among others.  I was actually quite impressed with their California roll, as was Jeremy, because it wasn't too mayonaise-y which I hate.  I believe they also use actual crab instead of imitation crab which makes it taste better.  I enjoyed all the pieces of sushi in my meal... gosh I love sushi.  I also made Jeremy try some of my raw fish.  He had eaten them before but just wanted to share some sushi love with him :)  I also liked their miso soup that came with the dinner.  I can't pinpoint exactly what I liked about it, but it had enough miso flavor balanced with some seaweed and tofu pieces.  There were a few pieces of salad that looked kinda sketchy to me, as in a bit brown, but nothing detrimental to my health at all.  

Jeremy got the katsu curry and enjoyed it.  He really liked the pickled daikon that was served along with it too.  Of course I sampled a little bit of the tonkatsu as well as the curry and must say I enjoyed the bite as well.  Jeremy is a big fan of curry, and a big eater, but he didn't quite finish all of it.  He finishes mine though as he pointed out, so mine must be better :P

Overall a pleasant experience and I would definitely recommend it to friends as well as go back again for some more sushi!  Thanks Jeremy for my bday dinner.

Another thanks to my roomie Christina for getting me a delicious Cookies N Cream Ice Cream Cake- what a way to finish the night!  I had Carvell ice cream cake at work because my lovely coworkers had gotten me a cake as well, but hey if you can't splurge on dessert on your birthday, when can you??  I love birthdays- until next year!

Brenda's Bday

Happy Birthday Brenda!  For those that don't know, Brenda is my best friend from high school that lives up in SF.  I decided that I don't see her or Erika hardly often enough even though I always try to get up there more often... so since all of us are september babies, I decided I have no excuse this time to not go at least for dinner!  We met up at Cha Cha Cha's, which is a Cuban tapas restaurant, in the Haight because it was right by the bar they were going to celebrate further with a group later tonight. 

The sangria we got to drink to kick off the night/dinner was quite delicious.  It didn't have too much alcohol and I didn't drink too much since I was driving, but I enjoyed what I had- the fruit in there was good too soaked in the wine and juice!  

As for food dishes, we got 4 dishes: a creamy shrimp dish that had a hint of spiciness to it, fried plantains with black beans, BBQ chicken quesadilla with guacamole and salsa, and a mixed greens salad.  All the dishes were quite delicious!  The shrimp was good, especially as you dipped the bread in the creamy sauce and munched away.  I'm really glad we had salad to even things out, especially since I've been feeling vegetable deficient from eating out so much lately.  I must say my favorite though was the fried plantains.  There were crispy parts that I love, and a perfect ripeness and sweetness to the plantains. It's a small side dish but yet can be a dessert too!

Brenda, happy birthday and I'm really glad I got to see you on your birthday!  Thanks for all the laughs & good times over the years and may 25 be a great year!!  I love you and love that you're a part of my life. I can't be thankful enough for friends like you and Erika who I may not talk to for long periods of time but feel comfortable like nothing has changed when we get together... I'm saying it again but we need to get together more often!!

Gombei San Jose

Fine dining club strikes again! My two wonderful, food-loving roommates Angela & Christina and I went on another adventure to try a restaurant that none of us had ever been to called Gombei in San Jose. They apparently have 3 stores now, in Menlo Park and Santa Clara, but San Jose Japantown was the first one. It is definitely a good sign when the people you talk to on the phone and that greet you are actually Japanese!

We went into the place knowing that it is technically not a FINE dining restaurant because the food there is more of a set dinner and more of a home cooked feel than like a 4-course, high class meal. I do like the fine dining experiences every now and then, of course, but the home cooked, good bang for your buck places are more my style! We ended up getting 3 "set" meals and split them all. Each set came with veggie sides (kiriboshi daikon and stewed greens), really well cooked white rice and miso soup. I highly recommend looking at the white board of specials because they all looked quite good. We got three sets off the specials board:

1) Sashimi set which came with tuna sashimi and hiyayakko (cold tofu)

2) Broiled yellow tail with yuzu and salmon creamy croquette set also came with salad

3) Salted and broiled hamachi-kama served with Agedashi Tofu.

They were all very satisfying, but we all particularly liked the veggie side dishes that came with each set- thankfully we each got one! I especially liked the kiriboshi daikon, which is not surprising since I love when my Mom makes it! I also liked the hamachi-kama and yellow tail with yuzu, even though I didn't really taste the yuzu too much, both piled with daikon oroshi. I LOVE daikon oroshi. Nothing tastes as good as oily and lightly salted broiled fish with a squirt of citrus and refreshing grated daikon... YUM. I wasn't particularly impressed with the creamy croquette or the agedashi tofu. Not that I drank the tofu broth, but it was quite strong in saltiness. The tuna was good but apparently women aren't supposed to eat too much tuna as we discussed in the car ride over... that is very sad news and I might be in trouble if that really causes issues since I grew up on fish and love maguro/tuna!

I think the only disappointment for us was that Gombei doesn't offer dessert. We sat and drank tea for a bit since it wasn't too crowded on a Thursday night, but I do wish they had dessert. To satisfy Christina's and my craving for something sweet, we went to... McDonald's for soft serve ice cream cones- what an interesting twist of events for our "Fine" Dining Club dinner. That's why I love my roomies- spontaneity and appreciation for good food regardless of cost! Gombei was definitely fiiiiiiiine food- we'd all go back again any time :D

Jeremy's First Gochi

I really enjoy going to Gochi, as does my roommate Angela, but my fiance Jeremy has never gone and has wanted to go since everyone talks about it. Four of us finally went: my Mom, my maid of honor Jessica, Jeremy, and I. He met up with us after a busy day of dress shopping for me-fairly successful I believe. I didn't actually get the dress yet, but basically narrowed it down to two, leaning towards one, and trying to be okay with the price.

Anyway, back to dinner at Gochi. We got a few things that I have gotten before like the daikon salad which is good (not fabulous) and HUGE. I had forgotten how big that thing was! We also got the fried chicken and eggplant with a ponzu type dish that I love. We also got a kimchi pork clay pot where the girls all wanted the nice crispy rice parts- it's the best part! We also got a few new items: "kabocha mochi" which is mashed japanese pumpkin with cheese inside and I believe grilled with a soy saucy flavor on the outside to really make it have the texture of mochi. It is then wrapped in seaweed just like you would eat a plain mochi! I really enjoyed it so I hope it is there next time I go. We also got grilled squid which was new and just okay, not huge flavor, nothing special. I can't remember if we got anything else, but we sure did get dessert.

My mom saw a dessert come out at a different table and wanted it. It ended up being delicious green tea tiramisu with red bean on top. It is definitely not like the usual tiramisu, but I'd say it was very tasty! The other dessert we shared was black sesame ice cream which I had before and enjoyed. I didn't know how Jeremy would like either of them but he liked both, especially the tiramisu! No wonder I love the guy! He likes what I eat, and everybody KNOWS how important food is to me!! :) Yay Gochi!

Sushi Sam's

I went to Sushi Sam's with my Mom and her friend when she was visiting me so we could go dress shopping. A good friend of hers had recommended this sushi restaurant in San Mateo, so we made reservations and went.

To be frank, the food was good but I wasn't blown away. The "chef's special" only included sushi unlike what we're used to with other culinary dishes besides sushi incorporated in for the whole meal experience. The sushi chef ordered some appetizer dishes for us, and they were all delicious. I will say though that the star was the sushi. The fish was fresh, well presented, and we ate some unique/rare items. My only complaint is that most of them had ponzu sauce on it which kept it the same flavor as well as hiding the natural flavor of the fresh fish a little. There was also a scallop with salt and lemon but it had toughened up a bit with the lemon on it for too long.

The other thing that hung me up about the place was the service. The sushi chef conversed with us, especially when it came to golf, but he would shout out orders often. We also were not told when our sushi specials were done and were waiting there for a while before we asked if that was it. We thought they were going to ask if we wanted any additional sushi or ask us about dessert, but we had to initiate both conversations. We had heard good things about their handmade desserts, so we tried 2 different kinds and my mom's friend was correct to say the desserts are delicious! The sushi chef's niece who is a waitress there makes the desserts that change from time to time. I got the kinako panna cotta with red bean sorbet, mochi balls, and fruit. Not too sweet, beautifully presented, and enough to share around.

I enjoyed the meal, but I left not completely satisfied for the price we paid. But again, maybe I'm too spoiled from Sushi Ota in San Diego that I absolutely adore :)

Dacia-cakes

I have to give a shout out to my coworker and cube neighbor Dacia.  She makes the best cupcakes in the world and she made me engagement cupcakes today :)  She played around with fondant and kneaded like no other to make a beautiful and DELICIOUS white cupcake with milk and white chocolate chips as well as a hint of raspberry! It was so moist and yummy I can't even explain.  I am not a big frosting person so I opted for the naked cupcake.  A good cupcake really doesn't need any frosting!

Dacia, you're amazing and if you open up your own shop I will be a frequent customer!  I brought one home for Jeremy too and he devoured it very quickly~ I've already hinted that if we don't get a wedding package and she's up for doing a lot of cupcakes (since whole cakes overwhelm her), there may be some talking... :) They are THAT good!!

It makes me want to specialize and perfect something I make so that I can be a specialty person that can own her own place some day too!

Santa Ramen

After a disappointing first wedding venue viewing, Jeremy & I decided to dinner in San Mateo since we had driven all the way to Burlingame. We decided on Santa Ramen, and we discovered that it had moved to a larger location! The good thing is that they can let more people in, even though there is still a continual line out the door meaning you can't linger with your food. I ALSO found out, that they no longer have the stewed pork ramen option. You have to choose either shoyu, tonkotsu, or miso ramen for $7.95, and add 2 pieces of stewed pork for $4.95!

They get a better place to serve more people and hike up the prices... I was not so happy... the stewed pork was good and I will say that they are clearly larger than what was included before, but it wasn't worth $5 for Jeremy or I. I will say that as usual the broth impressed me, and I was drinking it up. I kept doing tastings between my tonkotsu and Jeremy's shoyu... can't pick a favorite because they are both quite tasty and it just depends on the mood! Jeremy had to remind me to take pictures before diving in to my food haha what a great fiance (accent on the e) I have!