Jin Patisserie

I've been meaning to do this post on Jin for awhile but just never got around to do it. So here I am, updating my blog and doing other things than writing my paper for graduate school. =T I first heard about Jin on t.v. and have read about this place in the paper as well. Apparently the place is owned by Kristy Choo who is a young unconventional pastry chef and has brought the popularity of afternoon tea to Venice Beach. A friend of mine really likes this place cause he's into afternooon tea and stuff. Yes.. guys can appreciate afternoon tea as well! It's not just a "chick" thing. =) But then if we're talking about a group of guys having afternoon tea on a Saturday afternoon, eating dainty pretty desserts and drinking tea...then.... hmm...no comment! Haha! ANYWAYS.. So my friend offered to take me since I've never been there before and I just wanted to see what all the hype was about! =)

First of all, I want to warn you that it took me forever to find street parking along Abbot Kinney Boulevard. I haven't visited Venice Beach since I was a kid.. so I didn't know what to expect when I got there. But yea.. parking was a pain.. especially on a Saturday afternoon.. goodluck!

When I first walked into Jin Patisserie, I thought the place was pretty cute. It was definitely smaller than what I had imagined but there was a nice cozy feel about the environment. I guess I would interpret this place as the modern classy teahouse. Its definitely not the American afternoon tea establishments like Sweet Divas in Brea or Victorian Tea Manor in Orange where the teahouse has hand-painted flowers on the walls and the customers wear cutesy big hats while they enjoy a cup of tea. Those places are definitely not my cup of tea. But Jin is a place where you can sit outdoors in their nice patio area on a nice sunny day, enjoy some dessert and tea, and chillax with a friend IF you can snag a table because the place IS really small.


Anyways, my friend recommended that I get the Afternoon Tea Set ($19). There was the cake set, and scone set but the Afternoon Tea set provided the most variety and samples from their pastry and cake selections. The set also included a pot of their infused tea. They actually had a nice selection of tea in their menu. They had 35 different varieties of green, black, scented, organic, and white tea. I decided to order Jasmine Tea since I love the scent of Jasmine. But the Afternoon Tea Set basically included two egg finger sandwich, a slice of cake, a praline mousse, a meat filed pastry, and some mini sweet desserts. The homemade raffles scones were accompanied by little pots of clotted cream and strawberry jam. My overall impression of the Afternoon Tea Set? It was "okay".... I mean.. I really don't know what all the hype is about. It definitely wasn't filling for me and I understand that all afternoon teas are expensive but.. I don't know if I would order this the next time I come back. I would probably want try something from their good selection of pretty delicate desserts or even order from their lunch menu.




In addition to the cakes, pastries, scones and quiches at Jin, Choo also makes cakes, cookies and chocolate candies, which are sold at a retail counter inside. Jin is also known for their nice selection of handmade macaroons which I bought some to take home to give as a gift to my friends and family. Beware.. the edible arts ain't cheap! But if your like me and like to try everything, it doesn't hurt to splurge every once in awhile. =) Jin is a cute place... I don't know if I would go out of my way to visit this place again. It took me a good hour and half in traffic to drive to Venice from Cerritos.. plus parking there sucked! I guess if I was in the area and happened to come across this place again.. then I would go. Buuut otherwise.. its more like a been there done that thing.

Jin Patisserie
1202 Abbot Kinney Boulevard
Venice, CA 90291
(310) 399-8801

http://www.jinpatisserie.com/

Koi Sushi Restaurant

Wow.. it's been quite awhile since I've updated this thing. But after having another wonderful meal tonight at Koi, I figured that I better do a post at this restaurant because it truly deserves its' props and recognition! It was funny because I was asking my friend the other day where she had her date with a guy she just met. She mentioned to me that they ate at her favorite Japanese restaurant in Seal Beach. When I heard that, I instantly said "Was it Koi?!?!?" And she immediately said "YES!! How did you know?!?" We started to laugh and named all the yummy dishes we love at this restaurant. Yup, it's thAt good!


When I first walked into this restaurant, I honestly didn't expect much out of this restaurant. I figured that the restaurant wasn't going to be very "authentic" because the majority of the customers were all non-asian (well.. it iS Seal Beach) and plus I didn't think much of its' atmosphere. I mean, the decor ain't Geisha House or Yamishrio that's for sure! But there is definitely a nice casual, family friendly atmosphere about the restaurant.


So when I think of Koi, I immediately think of their Stuffed Shiitake ($9.50) dish. OMG.. this is one of my favorite dishes! I've ordered this dish in other restaurants but honestly, I feel that Koi does it the best! It is basically two fresh large shiitake mushroom caps on a shiso leaf (Also known as perilla which is an herb part of the mint family) stuffed with snow crab and tempura-fried. The shiso adds a perfume like aroma to the taste of the mushrooms. Plus, the sea salt and japanese red peppers that they bring out with the dish adds such a harmonious combination to this dish.

Next, the California Roll ($7.50). OKay.. I know what your thinking.. California Roll is California Roll.. what's so special about this one? Well, I've noticed that the texture of the crabs are different from what you get in other japanese restaurants. I dunno.. the crabs in the california rolls that I buy at the market all seem kind of mushy and chopped up finely. However, the crabs in Koi's rolls taste like real snow crab.



Crunchy Roll ($9.50) Shrimp tempura rolled with gobo and cucumber and topped with smelt eggs, crunchy bits, and sweet sauce. Good!



We also ordered the Seafood Stuffed Papaya ($12.50). It is basically a warm baked papaya filled with chunks of seabass and scallops, baked with a creamy miso glaze. I've never had baked papaya before so this was an interesting dish to try. Baking the papaya in the miso glaze definitely sweetened and brought up the taste of the papaya in a good way.



Sauteed Australian Lobster ($18.50). The large chunks of lobster is sautéed with tender asparagus, mushrooms, and Japanese peppers. It was good but I'm not sure if I would order this again just because I would probably want to try some new appetizers next time!


Grilled Yellowtail Cheek ($14.50) with ponzu sauce. Yum!


I didn't get a picture of their sashimi.. usually my family orders and shares the sashimi combo appetizer ($17.50) which includes salmon, tuna, and yellowtail. But the restaurant does offer a nice selection of fish and rolls. Seriously.. FRESH sashimi. I'm kind of picky in where I order my sashimi but my family and I agree that Koi's is definitely GOOD and FRESH!

All the entree come with a bowl of salad with sesame or miso dressing and hot miso soup. Koi offers a variety of entrees such as Beef or Chicken Teriyaki and even Chilean Seabass Teriyaki. Honestly, I'm not crAAzy about the entrees in this restaurant. I mean, don't get me wrong.. their good but there not anything different from your typical japanese restaurant. But one entree I usually like to get is their Lobster Tempura ($25.75). THat's right! You heard me.. LOBSTER TEMPURA! How can you go wrong with this dish? The Australian lobster tail that they use is definitely fresh and sweet.


Of course I had to end the meal with Green tea ice cream ($2.50). Lurve it!


Overall, Koi is definitely a restaurant you should try when you want to find great quality sushi in the Seal Beach area. I don't think they take reservations so be sure to arrive early to avoid the long waits cause they dO get really busy! The prices are not cheAap but then again you aRe paying for GOOD quality fish and yummy food. PLUS, they aren't crazy expensive as what you would find in other japanese restaurants like Nobu or Matsuhisa. I would also recommend that you try some of their monthly specials that they offer in their menu. Every month their specials change because they usually offer items that are in season. Plus, the dishes are unique and most of the time they are really good! Like tonight we had their Steamed tile fish with cherry blossoms dish which was soo good and also their Steamed Kampachi with seaweed in white wine sauce. I couldn't help but notice the natural sweetness of the fish. Seriously to die for!

There's my yummy time at Koi! =)

Koi Sushi Restaurant
600 Pacific Coast Hwy
Seal Beach, CA 90740
(562) 431-1186

www.Koisushi.com

Gloria's Cocina Mexicana

So after watching I am Legend with my friends, we were deciding where we should eat. My friends suggested somewhere in Cerritos, but I wanted to try a new place since there aren't many gReAT restaurants around Cerritos. I remembered my friend telling me about this place in Downey called Gloria's. She claimed that it was the "best and most authentic Mexican food" that she has ever had! That is a pretty bold statement to just throw out there! So after persuading my friends to drive all the way to Downey for Mexican food, we were off to decide for ourselves how good this place really is!

When I pulled up to the restaurant, I was picturing the restaurant to be this small dingy restaurant because my friend did tell me that it was a "hole in the wall" type of restaurant. But it wasn't at all. It was a pretty decent sized restaurant with a lot of people waiting to be seated inside the restaurant.

Gloria's Cocina Mexicana:


It's definitely a clean family oriented restaurant. There are red leather booths surrounding the room and there is also a separate Sport's bar room with big screen t.v.'s for customers who want to come in for a drink or take advantage of their Happy Hour from 4-7 p.m.


Right when me and my friends were seated, the Mariachi band began playing and taking requests from each table. At first it was nice to watch the band perform, but the music was REAAALLY loud and I kind of felt bad for my friends because they were visiting from Boston and St. Louis and we haven't seen each other in quite awhile and had planned to get together so that we could catch up on what has been going on in our lives. It just got to the point where my friend turned to me and said "Okay.. I'm a little annoyed now.." I'm not sure if the Mariachi band plays every night but if you are looking for a quiet sit down restaurant where you just want to have a nice conversation with your friends or family, make sure you find out what time the band plays because we were barely able to hear each other talk during the music.


One of the great things about this restaurant is that they make their own tortillas. You can really taste the difference because of the elasticity and texture of the fresh hot tortillas.

Tortilla lady:

Warm crunchy tortilla chips and thick salsa verde was immediately served to us at the table. They were really yummy!


Me and my friends ordered the Carne Asada $8.99. The dish comes with Carne Asada, salad, rice, beans, salsa, guacamole, and your choice of corn or flour tortillas.


When our orders came, the first thing that came out of my friend's mouth was "Wow! This is really GOOD!" I turned to my friend and said, "Really???" I took a taste of the beans and rice and said, "MMm.. this is GOOD!" All of a sudden my friends and I stopped talking.. and we were just concentrated in our meal. I think that's when you know the food is good when everyone stops talking at the table. =) The fluffy rice with the thick glutinous beans blended nicely with one another and the carne asada was thinly sliced and seasoned well. They don't mess with their Mexican food at Gloria's! It's not your typical Mexican-American chain restaurants like Acapulco and El Torito. This is real Mexican food. The service there was also really prompt and attentive. Our waiter was open to answer any questions we had about the menu and asked us if we wanted any refills on the chips/salsa. I think the only downside to our experience at Gloria's was not being able to chat with one another because of the loud music played by the Mariachi band. But if you are just there for the food and don't mind the loud noise in the room, it's definitely worth giving this restaurant a try!

Gloria's Cocina Mexicana
7401 Florence Avenue
Downey, CA 90240

(562) 776-1488

M-F: Lunch Buffet; Happy Hour 4-7 p.m.