At Natalee Thai Again

I had not been to Natalee Thai in a few years so when me and Cam were trying to figure out what to get to eat before an interview we went to in Santa Monica the plan was some sorta burger joint. We passed this and I mentioned how good it was and how I had not been in a while so we stopped here. We started off with the chicken and shrimp wontons which are still really good, huge, and filling. I need to learn to remember that this can be a meal in and of itself.

Cam got the chicken larb and didn't like it that much. I have not tried theirs but larb seems like it would be hard to mess up. I didn't try it because I was filling myself up on my meal and those wontons I had.

I had the Korean barbecue beef. This was a really good dish. I wish it was sliced though. With beef this thin there's really no point in leaving it whole. It had a side of kim chee which I didn't eat. I don't like that stuff. I had a side of white rice and it came together well. This place is good but the waitress we had could have doubled as a magician the way she kept disappearing. 

Tilapia Ceviche

This past weekend H. made some awesome ass ceviche. I had some a long time ago made with shrimp and it was very bitey. The one she made had tilapia which I raved about a few years back when I had a huge supply of it and was able to experiment (click here for my first try at it). H. told me all the ingredients that she used and or course I cant remember them. I inhaled this with some surfboard chips from Trader Joe's. Very good and I'd love to give this a try myself.

Dorito's Jacked Ranch Dipped Hot Wings

Have you ever had your mouth attacked? I have. Many times. But this time I'm talking about these new Dorito's Jacked Ranch Dipped Hot Wings. I got them at 7/11 which is the new home of great chips. I got one of the new sandwiches they have there and spotted these near the counter. They taste good but I'll be damned if they aren't crunchy as hell and very big. They are larger than the regular Dorito and way harder. If they had this same hot wing and ranch flavor but in a regular crunch I would enjoy them way more. I'll definitely try these again if only to have Cam write about them on her blog Potato Chips & Beer. Again, I’ll try these again but the next time I’ll at least have my mouth prepared for how huge and crunchy they are. 

Kay & Dave's and Buddha's Belly

I am so bad. There have been a bunch of food blogs I needed to post and didn’t because I have been a neglectful inner fat man and I haven’t had my camera when I was eating food. But I have some from two places I’ve been to. One was after a hiking trip with my friends. Kay & Dave’s in Pacific Palisades is a nice little place. We called ahead and let them know there were eight of us coming so they needed to batting down the hatches.

The place seems to make every type of food. It was early and I was a filth bomb from walking in a small creek and wanted pancakes. I got some really good and not heavy pancakes, eggs, and bacon. It was exactly what I needed. And they had good, fresh orange juice. The problem I have with most fresh orange juice is that while its good, its warm. This was nice and cold.

East Coast Candy

The other day I checked my mail and saw a package from Josh Smith aka Goldeneye. Josh is an awesome ass guy and sent me some candy from the East coast. One of them was a Mr. Big bar. As soon as I saw it I had a flashback of having this when I was a kid. I knew that I had this once in my life and had to keep from ripping it open and inhaling it at work. The Mr. Big bar has a wafer crunch, is crispy, and filled with nougat. It was pretty damned awesome and made my mouthparts very happy.

The next was Wunderbar and damn this thing is good! If Butterfinger made a version with caramel in it. This thing is honestly one of the best candy bars I've ever tasted and I rage against the fact that I cant get this where I live. Maybe if I go to a specialty shop or some nonsense but screw that. I should be able to go to 7/11 and grab this sumbitch! Its so good...

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Vietnamese Pork & Shrimp Salad

Over the weekend (yes, I eat multiple full dishes in one day sometimes) me and H. had a really awesome dinner she made. It was Vietnamese salad with pork and shrimp. Thankfully I have been eating more vegetables lately because this had, like, actual salad-ness to it. I will rarely turn down a dish that has pork or shrimp in it let alone both. Are you crazy?! I’ve had dinner with her and her family multiple times but never got to make them one of my dishes but I hope to very soon. This was way more filling than I imagined it would be. When she told me about it I pictured one of those small side salads that you get at restaurants. It wasn’t! It was big and good. Like me. Click here to get the recipe for yourself.

Breakfast At Panini Cafe

Last weekend me and Cam went to Panini Café to get breakfast. I rarely plan anything out in advance but the idea of not seeing my best friend for almost two weeks is ridiculous so I asked her if she was available and she was. Yayness! So the plan was the either go to Charlie’s at The Grove or Toast. We drove past Toast and it was packed as usual but then we headed down Crescent Heights and saw that Panini Café had breakfast and there was parking right out front. So went sat outside and ordered our stuff.

Honey Nut Chex

Honey Nut Chex is amazing. This is one of those cereals that when I was little would dread when it went on sale because my mother would buy it. But last week I decided to skip on the Lucky Charms and Fruity Pebbles for a few weeks and got this and some Fiber One. So far both are good and actually make me feel better. That’s the thing about honking up your body for years with “bad” food. When you try something new the results are immediate.

Larb And Ribs At Sammy's Thai

This past Saturday I was talking to Dashuh on the phone and she mentioned the fact that she got ribs. I wasn’t even thinking of ribs until she brought it up and I decided to give Sammy’s Thai ribs a try since in the years I’ve been going I had never tried anything in the form of a barbecue. So I ordered them and while very messy (thankfully I don’t eat ribs in public) getting on my pants and blanket they were very good. But you know I cant stop there. I’m not gonna get something to eat there and get just one thing. They’re that good. I also got a cup of Thai iced tea that I managed to drop while still in the restaurant. It wasn’t my fault. They tied it weird and it was cool because they replaced it for free.

The other dish I got was, of course, the larb. I love their larb. Dashuh looked it up and said that larb sounded like what you’d do after eating it. Regardless, it’s a great meal. I got the spicy one and it wasn’t really that different than the non-spicy one. I had two of the four ribs and most of the larb. Damn it. That is a weird word. I had to fight to make sure that I didn’t head back the next day to get some more of it. I’ll try and get something new the next time I go. Try.

"New" Fruity Pebbles

Fruity Pebbles has a brand new flavor. Well, there is no real flavor. Its the color. They made it brighter which makes it look prettier. Thankfully they haven't messed around with the taste. I was talking to some coworkers that are in their mid 20's and had to explain to them that certain cereals, though they have the same name, taste very different. Most noticeable if you grew up eating cereal almost every morning are Trix (completely different taste and not for the better) and Kix (which used to taste like armpit but it is now sweet). I don't know what I'd do if they ever changed the taste of Fruity Pebbles. Probably riot. Yeah. I'm pretty sure I'd riot. I know it may not seem like a big deal to many but to me this is the best cereal ever made and messing with anything but its color is ridiculous. 

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Last week my Coco asked me to help her make a pineapple upside down cake since I had made one before. Did I? I searched this blog for it and couldn't find it anywhere. Then I checked Dantania and lo and behold there it was! I had written it and made the cake before I ever started this here blog. Isn't it strange that she would remember that but not me? Either way we got started after a struggle to get to Ralph's.

I hate Santa Monica Blvd. traffic. As bad as it is for the person driving, as a passenger not only am I pissed to be in it I have to listen to a pissed off driver and all the other lunatics on the road. And for whatever reason we're getting summer time weather so that didn't help my half asleep mood. The ingredients are very few for making this. Brown sugar, butter, canned pineapples, those sweet ass cherries in a jar, cake mix, eggs, and vegetable oil.

Lots Of Food At Lots Of Places

In the last few weeks I've had a lot of food at multiple places. Instead of doing several tiny posts I decided to just bombard your asses with one semi-long one. The first is from Sammy's Thai which me, Cam, and her Salsa Hooligans ordered during the Academy Awards. It took a while to arrive which was understandable since the awards are like a holiday here. We got pad thai, rice, won tons, shrimp dishes, and chicken larb. The chicken larb was great and I've had it once before at another spot Heidi had taken me to near Hollywood. It was spicy but not kick your ass spicy which was good. What the hell is larb, you ask? There is beef, chicken, and pork larb. So far chicken has been my favorite along with white rice.

Celery Flavored Soda

I tasted hatred. I never knew that hatred had a taste until I had it yesterday. I tried for the first and last time Dr. Brown’s Cel-Ray soda. It is celery flavored soda. That’s right. The vegetable you loved as a child is now a soda that hates you. By “other natural flavors” I assume they mean sugar, rage, and struggle. I’m still not sure why I tried this. Cam, who hates celery pointed it out and in my non-sleeping stupor I decided to get it with my hotdog. What a bad idea! As soon as it hit my tongue I could taste the celery breaking through with sugar sprinkled on it. I would never try this again and suggest you don’t try it once. As I told Jacquese, “It tasted like a felony.”

Burgers At Plan Check

A couple of nights ago me and some co-workers went to this place over on Sawtelle called Plan Check. BS had said it was great and boy he did not lie! I had been over in this area once before with Cam when we got the moving spaghetti, Blue Marlin. I got the Chef’s Favorite which had a cheese…uh…plate, bacon, sauce, and fries that were fried in beef fat. I didn’t get it with an egg on it because I’m not a fan of unscrambled eggs. This was one of the best burgers I’ve ever had. Top three for sure. The fries were amazing and everything was served on baby skillets. Don’t go here if you’re in a rush.

The service is not the fastest in the world but they are plenty nice. Parking is a whore depending on when you go because this area is heavily populated. I’ll be going here again very soon. I doubt I'll remember the name of it though because its really not catchy. The prices are slightly high but worth it for the big ass burger and amount of fries. You could split the fries between two people and be okay. The seating is all around the windows, outside, and a small island indoors for a large group. There is a large selection of things to try and crazy mixed drinks I will attempt to have at some point.

Panini Cafe on 3rd & Crescent Heights

The other day before I headed off to work I asked Cam if she’d be up for grabbing something to eat. I was thinking of going to Toast, but the last time we tried it was super packed and we ended up going to At Bangkok. She mentioned that Panini Café on 3rd and Crescent Heights had opened. She had been to the downtown location before and said it was good. She has the good taste so we headed there. I got the #6 which was a chicken sandwich, chicken soup, and an Arnold Palmer. The sandwich was amazing. The bell peppers were perfectly grilled and so damned good. The chicken soup was real chicken soup and not some canned nonsense.

Cam got a salad, this rice with carrots that was good, and chicken kabobs. Both of us enjoyed the hell out of our meals. The staff there was really nice and the food came in minutes. I was shocked when I saw a waiter with plates and it was our meals. The way its set up is really open and people aren’t on top of each other. There’s also outside seating available. The only problem you may have is parking since 3rd street is not made for people to park easily on. Between both our meals it was less than $25 which is a great deal. If you get a chance to go here you really should. I cant wait to head back here and get some more meals.