update on hnn's m&m adventures - paris, LA, NY

so it seems like i'm always a billion years delayed getting anything up on this blog. but i blame the fact that i hate writing, or rather that i hate getting anxious about writing. (damn asian genes! damn math/science high school! damn pre-med!) HOWEVER, as i've heard that i've developed a readership (of sorts), AND as i've made a resolution to blog more regularly, this is my first attempt at catching up. it won't be pretty (as it's been MONTHS), but i'll do my best to capture my finest (and not so finest) moments of yummy eating & movie watching.

paris wanderings

so i spent my 30th birthday in paris. it was an independence trip to celebrate my free spirit and my sagitarrian sensibilities. yes, there are places where it's not safe, but where it is, i love travelling on my own. i can wake up whenever i want. i can do whatever i want. i can go wherever i want. and i can change my mind a bazillion times (haha, eri, haha) -- over and over and over. it's a beautiful thing.

i suppose it's too late to comment on every detail of this trip (though i could certainly go on ad nauseum to whoever would like to hear about it), but let's just say that i had the best time. i was a little out of it at first in my little room at les trois poussins (a cute little hotel on a side street in montmartre -- http://www.les3poussins.com/). then again, i was on a plane for hours and hours, so who wouldn't be a little off? (still, i'm forever grateful and thankful for direct flights.)

after a day and a half of getting somewhat un-jetlagged, i stopped wondering what the heck i was doing in paris and i started to really enjoy it. i walked around for hours and hours a day, and i saw all the sights that i'd never gotten to see on previous visits -- the louvre, the musee d'orsay, the musee rodin. i checked out some lesser known sights -- the catacombs, the chateau de vincennes, the musee dali. and i went back to some of my favorite places in the city -- sacre coeur, the jardin des tuileries, the jardin du luxembourg. i also checked out some new sights that have sprung up in recent years -- the ferris wheel at the place de la concorde and the holiday market down the champs elysee.

i could go on and on about the loveliness of all the sights, but the best part was being able to get to them on foot. roaming around paris, strolling along the seine, and walking all the way "home" to montmartre at the end of the day was absolute heaven for me. and doing it all in the light drizzle wasn't even too horrible. there's just something so romantic about rain in paris. even when you're all by yourself.

one of the best parts of paris is the ubiquity of crepes. i swear i had at least a crepe a day while i was there, and the best one BY FAR contained cheese and merguez sausage. it was absolutely SCRUMPTIOUS. and i'm so glad i couldn't finish it b/c i seriously could've died from the grease. but OMG was it delicious! i picked it up from this guy on the rue montmartre who kept trying to speak to me in french, and i swear i told him i thought it was hot outside when i was literally freezing to death waiting for this unforgettable crepe. thank god i survived the wait!

in addition to regular crepe eating, i allowed myself a pastry a day, and i sampled from cute little bakeries and pastry shops within a small radius of my hotel. and b/c i ate heavier at lunch, i usually just picked up small eats for dinner from the local eateries -- the cheese & meat shops, the rotisserie/butcher shops, the sushi place, and even the supermarket. i loved coming home at the end of the day and just walking around my little neighborhood. i somehow felt like i belonged there, like i'd be back soon.

last but not least, we must go into my amazing foodie experiences while i was abroad! and i must say that i had QUITE the gastronomic adventures. in my first foray into parisian fine dining, i decided to check out l'atelier du joel robuchon (http://www.joel-robuchon.com/). to be honest, i think i would've fared MUCH better at la table du joel robuchon b/c i'm simply not a fan of wraparound bar eating. even though guides say that bar eating works great for solo diners, i think it really depends on what kind of solo diner you are. i prefer a TABLE. to MYSELF. so i don't have to TALK -- at least not to anyone but the waitstaff. what i got at l'atelier was a seat by two americans (good grief) -- one who was quite lovely and the other who was quite, well, loud. needless to say, i ended up conversing w/them and it wasn't too painful. (i even got my dessert paid for! in honor of my birthday -- very sweet indeed.) but i would've preferred not feeling rushed to order and not feeling rushed to eat. in the end, i was entirely displeased with the pigeon, which came out unceremoniously wrapped in cabbage, and which tasted, well, gross. i can't even remember whether i finished it all, but it was neither pleasing to the eye nor the palate. on the flip side, the lamb was delicious. even though there was very little meat on each of the chops, what was on there was amazingly flavorful. (at 45 euros for 5 chops, it better have been good!) and the grapefruit dessert had really great acid. on top of everything, the service was excellent. all of the servers spoke just enough english to make the atmosphere pleasant and inviting. i'd love to go back -- were it not for the wraparound bar and the high chairs (where my feet couldn't touch the ground).

the next day, i decided to check out brasserie lipp (http://www.groupe-bertrand.com/lipp.php), a quintessential parisian brasserie. totally old school w/an older clientele to match. the most important thing to know about this place is that you can't be in any sort of the rush. the service is, shall we say, slow. and even though everyone was quite pleasant (including the maitre d', who looked like a cross b/w tim gunn & the shoe fetish guy on SATC), they're not looking to turn tables. here i decided to order quintessential parisian dishes -- the escargots, the duck confit, and the millefeuille. all were quite good, though nothing jawdropping.

of all the restaurants i visited while i was in paris, my ABSOLUTE favorite was spoon (food & wine) (http://www.spoon.tm.fr/public_fr/actualite/index.htm). this place is one of several spoon adventures around the world, all of which are situated in exotic locales -- paris, hong kong, mauritius, and saint tropez. and rightly so b/c the food is absolutely AMAZING. i don't remember the last time i had food THIS good. moreover, each dish was a spectacular piece of art. to the point where i simply wanted to cry when i had to sink my utensil into the dish and break it up. i wish i'd remembered that my blackberry has a camera (oh don't even say it) b/c i don't think i even came close to imprinting the beauty of those dishes in my memory. at the start of the meal, i received a lovely amuse bouche -- a mix of tofu, mushrooms, and spinach. i know it doesn't SOUND appetizing, but it was quite pretty in its tall shot glass and quite yummy in my mouth. my ceviche appetizer was gorgeous w/the sauce a perfect blend of oil & acid. my ribs entree was the tallest dish i've received to date. what gave it height was the super thin potato chips and the fluffy lettuce leaves. all went well w/the scrumptious meat. i ended the meal w/the mac 'along -- a citrus dessert that was nice & light. coffee came w/more cookies. and i realized how much i love getting unexpected things for free.

for my last restaurant meal, i had dinner at le potager du marais (http://www.restaurantsomh.com/p19.htm) -- a vegetarian spot in the marais. considering how meat-loving paris is in general, it can be tough to find good veggies NOT cooked in lard. (not that i have anything against lard of course.) thankfully, this place does a pretty good job. i had a great vegan zucchini soup to start, and i've decided that cream is so unnecessary in veggie soups. my eggplant was great with spinach, though the almond rice was really bland. however, the meal ended with a delicious pear tarte tatin. i have to admit that the crust tasted like semi-cooked dough, but the perfectly caramelized pears pretty much made up for that.

back to LA - 1

after i got back to LA in early december, i only had a few weeks before jetting to new york for the holidays. but during that time, i ran a 10K and enjoyed some lovely post-run eats w/dani. considering that i hadn't worked out since before thanksgiving, i totally surprised myself by completing the santa monica-venice christmas run in a record 1:01:28.4! that's less than a 10-minute mile, folks! (i was so excited that i ended up buying a picture of myself. which required scouring through a bazillion pics on the website. of course, this is what i get for wearing my number on the back instead of the front.) with this accomplishment, i'm now ready to attempt a halfsie. (see resolutions post.) WOOHOO!

as for our lovely post-run eats, dani & i made it over to axe (http://www.axerestaurant.com/) -- a chic spot in venice that i discovered w/the HEOC ladies way back in the day. the restaurant just opened before we got there, so we were thrilled. we decided on the ginormous 9-grain pancake, the basic rice bowl (which the waitress suggested), the apple smoked bacon, and the chicken apple sausage. the sides were completely throwaway (sadness), but the pancake was delicious and filling, and the rice bowl was quite scrumptious too. last time, the star sighting was rosario dawson. this time, hilary swank. uh huh. AW YEAH.

while i was back, i also went to see the reader and slumdog millionaire. i must operate on a totally different movie rating system than critics (with my site of choice being metacritic.com) b/c i loved the reader and found slumdog millionaire a bit overrated. i'll admit i'm a total kate winslet fan, and i've been dying to see revolutionary road as well. but i thought the reader was quite moving and i disagree w/critics who think the point was overly made. i mean, is there really just one point? and can you really overly make it? well, perhaps there is and perhaps you can, but the reader did not. for me, one of the main points was this: sometimes you make choices on impulse, sometimes you make them with thought, but ultimately you often make choices that no one can possibly understand but you.

as for slumdog millionaire, i wish that people hadn't hyped up the movie so much. i hate when people say 'that was the best movie ever!' i mean, are you kidding? how many movies have you SEEN? and do you know anything about movies? ok ok, i know i sound like a movie snob when i'm the one that pays to see HSM 3 (which was fabulous btw). but shut up already! i'm just SAYING that 'the best movie EVER' is just a bit MUCH. at any rate, i did think the movie came close to meeting the hype (unlike benjamin button -- scroll down below). i think i would've been a bigger fan had i even watched a single episode of who wants to be a millionaire, but i found the storyline quite engaging. flashbacks don't work for every movie, but the past-present switching worked really well in this film. the cinematography also had a lovely indie quality about it, including a memorable shot of latika looking up at jamal from below. the bollywood dance at the end clinched the movie perfectly. it totally made you want to get up and shake your groove thang.

i love new york

yes, it's my hometown. yes, i know it really well. and yes, i'm falling in love with it all over again. after being in LA for almost 6 years, i'm tired of southern california -- weather and all. i miss walking and i miss being in a city that's up all night -- even when i'm not.

after catching up w/my mom for a night, i moved out to jeff's apt in murray hill (thanks, jeff! hugs & kisses!). i must admit that i didn't even get to indulge in his amazing flat-screen TV b/c i literally came home every night after hours and hours of walking and promptly passed out. it was such luscious sleep. and i realized then and there that i'll only get a full 8 hours if i wear myself out earlier in the day. mmm....

on my first full day in the city, i kicked off the morning w/neena & matt in c-town for dim sum! we went to a small place down on mott street. i think it's evergreen or emerald something, but it's a place that jeff took me to back in the day. there seemed to be fewer carts, probably b/c we went on a weekday morning rather than a weekend morning. at any rate, the food was quite good, and we ordered plenty to fill us up -- spare ribs, beef balls, spring rolls, shumai, dumplings, sticky rice, roast pork buns, beef noodles, shrimp noodles, sesame balls, etc. i wish we'd had more room, but we could barely make it out of there as it was! after brunch, we drove up to rockefeller center and got a glimpse of the tree. it was more ginormous than i remembered it, and the crowds were more intense that i remembered them. thank goodness none of us needed to stick around for very long!

after that, i trekked downtown to meet up w/derek, who really wanted to see waltz w/bashir. granted, i'd never heard of it AND it was animation, but i so rarely get to indulge my BFF, so i thought i might as well. i show up and the first thing he tells me is that he's had stomach flu. GROSS. which means i spend our whole time together making sure he doesn't breathe on me -- huge germophobe that i am. so we go in and sit down. 10 minutes in, he nudges me and says "i'm bored." and i'm thinking "THANK GOD B/C I'M DYING HERE." a few minutes later, we get up and walk out. we've done this before (c/o spider -- the worst movie ever made) and i have NO qualms about doing it again. i swear i was already passing out w/in the first 5 minutes!

we decided to trek over to soho to explore 2 chocolate cafes he was looking to check out. we stopped by vosges, which i've been to, and which is way more shop than cafe. so we decided on the cacao bar at the mariebelle (http://www.mariebelle.com/s.nl/it.I/id.3/.f) instead. this place has a lovely shop in the front and a cute little cafe in the back. and derek & i both decided to indulge in some hot chocolate before dinner. derek went for the spicy, which he thought was good but not very spicy. and i went for the unsweetened, which had a nice bitterness to it. both were quite decadent, though we weren't sure whether they gave us our drinks American-style (w/water) or European-style (w/milk). (or is that vice versa?)

at this point, we were both starving for dinner, so we trekked up to nick & stef's (http://www.patinagroup.com/east/nickStef/), where i'd made a reservation several weeks ago. i was surprised that so many folks were already at dinner, especially since our reservation was for 6PM and there was already a pretty full house. (we found out from our waitress that there was a game at MSG. of course, neither of us had a clue who -- or what -- was playing!) since derek's tummy was still off, and i didn't want to gorge myself, we decided to split the porterhouse for 2 and tack on some brussel sprouts (for good measure -- and fiber). the food was AMAZING. the meat came out quickly, perfectly done (medium rare), and with several sauces for us to try. i gave derek about 2/3 of the meat (since i'm trying to watch my figure), and my 1/3 was the perfect amount. i found the bearnaise a bit too decadent, and the jus a bit too plain, but the peppercorn was a good flavor. i mean, honestly, the meat was so good that it didn't even need anything else, though the sauce did add a bit more interest. the brussel sprouts were also quite good. we decided to skip dessert since i was off to meet irene in k-town, but we were both really pleased w/the food AND the service. we even got our napkins folded whenever we stepped away! if anything, that should give this place FDE status. ha!

after dinner, i made my way to koryodong (http://wirednewyork.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-2872.html) -- a yummy dessert place in the middle of k-town. this is a great place to munch on sweets alone or w/friends. and i have to admit that i was here 2 nights in a row sitting at the exact same table. i guess there aren't that many dessert places in the city that are easily accessible to everyone. so i must send kudos to irene AND karen, who both trekked out to meet up w/me on consecutive nights! the first night, i went w/a ginger iced tea and a mango bomb. the tea was amazing, but i was disappointed that the bomb wasn't really your typical bomb. it was a mini-cake bomb and not an ice cream bomb. my rec: order something else. irene's creme brulee wasn't too shabby, but definitely not my favorite. the second night, i went w/a citrus iced tea (the same one that irene had gotten hot) and i thought that was delicious. (i must admit to loving acid these days.) for dessert, i chose the shaved ice w/the green tea ice cream. OMG. i ate the whole thing myself, i was super bloated, and yet i wanted another. this thing was SO good. in addition to the ice and the ice cream, there was also fresh fruit and red bean -- i was in heaven. must...go...back....

the next morning, i made my way uptown to meet up w/soon the elder. while waiting for the bus, i made the acquaintance of an older woman who works for UNICEF. at first, i was a little wary when she asked if i wanted to split a cab uptown if the bus didn't show up. i suppose i haven't lost my new york edge b/c i thought she might ditch me in the cab w/the fare. thankfully, the bus arrived and i got over my attitude. it was great hearing about the woman, her job, and her travels around the world -- all of this in a 15-minute timespan! she even gave me a l'occitane towelette and a big hug when we both got off the bus at 80th street. now isn't that a lovely way to start the weekend?

i picked up soon at his fancy schmancy digs and we trekked over to oren's (http://www.orensdailyroast.com/) for a bit of coffee before trekking through central park. my pumpkin latte was yummy, and i'm glad we got a bit of caffeine, b/c i really made soon work. we rambled along many dirt paths and covered a fair bit of the park going from east to west. we even made it over to belvedere castle, where i spotted wild turkeys! (they're on my camera phone -- i think i got a bit of their backsides.) after some huffing and puffing (dang we're old), we made it out of the park alive.

at this point, i was starving. and since we both needed to head downtown, soon suggested the jazz brunch at garage (http://www.garagerest.com/). now, i've been wanting to try this place FOREVER, so he pretty much read my mind. as we walked in, we were greeted by the hostess and the lovely sounds of live jazz. we got seated at a fabulous table on the balcony overlooking the 3-piece band and the entire restaurant. the decorations were beautiful, including an upside down christmas tree hanging over the bar! the jazz brunch is a great value, since $15.95 can buy you a full and hearty meal. i went w/OJ and the farmer's market omelet. despite not getting my egg whites, i was very pleased.

after a bit of jazz, we jetted down to soho -- soon in search of michelle's xmas present and me to catch up w/brig. soon has zero sense of time (sorry, soon!), so i had to cab it over to the movie theater where brig & i were going to watch benjamin button. of course, i was THRILLED to see brig, who's been stuck in the boonies of bloomington for months now. unfortunately, i was NOT thrilled to see benjamin button, which has been entirely overrated. not only was the storyline bland, but the chemistry b/w brad and cate was totally lacking, and the whole aging and reverse aging w/the make-up was just bizarre and un-authentic. while some of the scenes were quite beautiful, they couldn't quite make up for the movie's shortfalls. (i'm sorry, mike, but you know nothing about good movies. nothing AT ALL.)

seeing that i couldn't stick around for revolutionary road (BUMMER!), brig & i decided to trek around union square until her second movie. we made our way over to TJ's, which she doesn't have in bloomington, and we spent a good amount of time checking out all the cute guys that exist in new york, but not in bloomington OR LA. *sigh* oh, till we're back in the city again....

the next morning, i met up w/ivana & ashley for sunday brunch at david burke & donatella (http://www.dbdrestaurant.com/). well, at least that's what it was called until the end of 2008! (apparently, the partnership went splitsville in august, and the name change to david burke townhouse wasn't going to happen until the new year. shows how much i'm up on foodie news -- *sigh*) at any rate, the experience was DIVINE. at first, i was a little nervous, since i walked in (the last to show up) and the room was in a complete hush. (the last time i had to deal w/this was at town, and that was NOT a pleasant experience.) however, after a few more parties showed up, talking at normal volume wasn't a problem. in addition to lovely waitstaff, db&d had fabulous decor. it was all quite chic & festive, decked out in red & white. while some critics have grumbled that it's too feminine, i think they're idiots. i think the decor is totally cool & trendy, and i loved it.

as for the food, it was AMAZING. and seeing that is my NEW FAVORITE in the city, i'm devoting a whole paragraph to it. (that and the fact that we shared everything, so i must comment on ALL the food.) for my prix-fixe brunch (a great price for so much food), i chose the lobster-lemongrass bisque (w/yummy bits of apple), the asparagus casserole (w/perfect mini-cubes of potato), and the chocolate-gingerbread mousse. ivana went with the pretzel crusted crabcake (that came in a lovely rectangle), the reuben bendict (though she got the nova scotia benedict by mistake -- eek!), and the coconut layer cake. ashley chose the granola parfait w/the mango donuts (that sadly turned out to be singular rather than plural), a main dish that i can't remember, and the butterscotch panna cotta. out of everyone's dishes, i have to say that i loved my selections the best! the bisque was great, probably b/c it wasn't too lobster-ey. (FYI that i don't generally enjoy lobster or shrimp.) and even though i picked out most of the potatoes, the veggies in my main dish were delicious. the mousse was equally amazing and totally decadent. i thought ivana's crab cake was really yummy, and we both enjoyed the cream on her coconut cake, though we both found the cake itself on the dry side. we also enjoyed splitting ashley's single mango donut, though we missed the mango filling that was supposedly in the middle but was nowhere to be found. ashley's panna cotta was nice and creamy as well. along with our chosen items, we also got a lovely soup as our amuse bouche and delicious rosemary popovers. this was definitely my BEST meal in new york this time around.

after rolling out of the restaurant on a full belly, i trekked uptown to meet up w/nicole for another outing in the park. we both love walking, so the park was the perfect adventure. especially when we got lost and couldn't figure out what direction we were going in! i didn't mind too much, though nicole seemed somewhat concerned. thankfully, our combined powers of bad direction led us to the boathouse cafe (http://www.thecentralparkboathouse.com/sections/home.htm) for some yummy snacking. as i was still on a fully belly, i decided to hydrate instead, though i did snag a few bites of nicole's oatmeal raisin cookie. the atmosphere was really nice, though we had to sit outside since the place was so packed. the view is quite lovely, and nicole vowed to go back for a full meal sometime soon.

seeing as how it was getting dark (and both of us were directionally challenged), we decided to trek over to the guggenheim (http://www.guggenheim.org/) to check out the exhibits. the museum was closing surprisingly early (for me at least), so we managed to get discount tickets. (thanks, nicole!) while the photo exhibit left a lot to be desired, the design & space of the museum is really enough to fascinate me. the spiral walkway and the immense height are absolutely amazing. while nicole found the random phrases printed on the walls to be quite depressing, i suppose i was too enraptured by the interior design to be pulled downward. i even found the drowned body of pinocchio in the pool of the lobby to be quite amusing. (is that so wrong? ok, maybe it is.)

after lots of uptown time, i made my way downtown to meet evelyn for a stroll over to the seaport. she was w/o kikyo this time, so it was a good opportunity to catch up on the latest dish. it's always good to see her b/c she always has so much to say! i wish i could be so fluid w/my words. then again, she IS a writer. : ) so given that i'd asked for a street vendor hot dog, evelyn didn't force me to eat at nathan's, but instead purchased me a seaport dog outside pier 17. (i love you, evelyn!) then we wandered over to her favorite cafe nearby for some veggies, some coffee, and some dessert. she chose the berry tart and i went for the lemon tart. and they were just what we needed to sweeten up the night.

rather than seeing yet another film that might disappoint me, i decided to see something i knew i'd love -- let the right one in. it was playing at the angelika (to which i haven't been in YEARS), and i was in the mood to be alone that night w/a vampire love story. b/c this was probably my favorite movie of the year, i'd suggest that everyone see it rather than asking me what it's about. all i can say is that the storyline, the dialogue, and the cinematography were all equally amazing. and more than that, it won a major award at the tribeca film festival. i'm just sorry i missed it the first time and had to wait until it played at UCLA!

before i left for the airport, i was actually able to see mikisha at josie's (http://www.josiesnyc.com/) a block from jeff's apt, and debra at tisserie (http://www.tisserie.com/) at union square. it was all a bit of a whirlwind, but a great way to end the trip. i even got a chance to walk through the union square market really quick before booking it to penn station! oh, how i miss it already....

back to LA - 2

a few days after i got back, i met up w/john tam who was visiting from out of town. i'd been wanting to check out rock sugar (http://www.rocksugarpanasiankitchen.com/) for the longest time, so i made a reservation for 2 and we caught up over some yummy pan asian cuisine. i'd mentioned this place to the foodie gang way back when, but i got politely shot down by jenny who thought it might be overdone. to be honest, it was totally over the top in terms of decor, but yet everything totally worked. it's like tao having a giant buddha. i mean, is it necesary? no. then again, is it awesome? uhhh... YES. and i was totally impressed by the high ceilings and the heated patio. john commented on all the lights, which he was sure looked amazing at night.

in addition to great decor, we were met w/a great menu & a great server. considering that i don't drink alcohol, i was excited that there was finally a dedicated list of non-alcoholic options. w/some help from the server, i decided on the yuzu lemon crush, which was a wonderful blend of acidic sweetness. john went w/a thai iced tea, and we decided to dive into the menu. thank goodness for sharing b/c there were so many yummy things to try. we decided on the green mango & papaya salad and the calamari to start. i didn't really understand the salad selection, but john said that was his favorite, so i thought i'd oblige. both were good, but nothing too memorable. for the main dishes, we went w/the pork vindaloo that came w/the festive rice, and the singapore omelette. i thought the omelette was good, but the pork vindaloo was FABULOUS. it tasted so incredibly good -- great flavor, just the right amount of chew, oh so succulent. it was nice to have the rice to balance it out, though i'm dying now to try the ginger fried rice w/chinese sausage. (who's interested??) for dessert, i wanted the warm ginger cake and john chose the thai basil ice cream. both were quite scrumptious, but i really want to try the vietnamese coffee ice cream now. augh! how can i be hungry at 1 in the morning? oh how easily i get myself in a tizzy!

i celebrated new year's eve w/dr. griffin, judy, and judy's friend at beacon (http://www.beacon-la.com/index.php) in culver city. i thought i'd give this place another shot after dining there w/the foodie gang a while back, but i was once again underwhelmed. after being told that changing the size of my reservation wouldn't be a big deal, we ended up being seated at a 2-person table! i mean, seriously? i know it was partly my fault, but don't lie to me. i'm not stupid, y'know? at any rate, three of us ended up ordering salads, b/c they were out of kim's fish. i mean, how are you out of stuff on new year's eve? don't you prepare ahead of time? it was all very tiring after a while. thankfully, the night ended w/desserts. the chocolate dessert was totally melt in your mouth. unfortunately, the green tea cake was noticeably dry. bleh. no more. no more! it's time for a fresh start.