Kat's 9 Lives

Ever since the Diamond Jamboree Plaza has been built, it has become a hot spot for locals. They have a dessert place called Guppy House that attracts the "young'uns", especially late night. Hey, it is the OC... not much to do and even less to do at night. This place tends to be busy at night. The first time I went there was a long line for a seat inside. HT and I opted to sit outside in the freezing cold to eat ice cold desserts! lol Yes, we are that crazy. O=) Some seats don't even have heat lamps! Of course we ended up in one of those. lol *shivers*
From a long time ago, Ms. Lin told me that they have a combo deal that was not bad for a group of people. Of course I ordered the combo even though there were only 2 of us! O=) For $19.99 you get Popcorn Chicken ($6.99), a small Shaved Ice ($11.95), and a Brick Toast ($6.99). It is not a bad deal as a whole. I they they are WAY over-priced normally. $12 for a small shaved ice? Are you kidding me? I'm Asian and $6 is pushing it! lol Albeit the shaved ice is HUGE, but you know the main component is water! lol The shaved ice was humongous and they do put a lot of fresh fruit on top. Still, you can easily make this at home... but at least the big size and plentiful amount of fruit help justify the price. That day we had a pretty decent amount of condensed milk seeped into the shaved ice, so the flavor was very good. Needless to say, I brought many boxes of leftovers home! lol
The Popcorn Chicken was not bad. To me, the flavor was just okay because it had more of a curry flavor. It didn't taste like the typical popcorn chicken I'm used to. The chicken had a different breading that makes it not as crispy, but still good. It's just a matter of personal preference. Ordering this combo allowed me to try a lot more things here that I would if I ordered separately.
What really tempted me to try out this combo was the Brick Toast because I have been a big fan of brick toast ever since Half & Half Tea House. The brick toast was very different here. Now I can sort of understand why it is so expensive here. It's super thick and glossed with tons of sweet syrups. I think I still like the simplistic way where there is only the special milk powder atop a beautifully buttered piece of toast. The toast they use here is huge and the ratio with the special milk powder is lower but of course the plentiful sweet syrup helped to compliment the huge chunk of bread. Still, $6-$7 for a brick toast is quite hefty in my opinion. Good thing is I will finally be making a trip to SGV and I can get me some more yummy brick toast. O=9
Since it was so freezing outside, I decided to get a large cup of Hot Milk Tea. The drinks here are so-so. You can taste the subtle flavor of the tea. All in all we were freezing to death, but we still enjoyed our time. The downside is there was absolutely no service at all! Yes, we may be sitting on the outskirts of the store but we are still paying customers! They didn't really have a bad attitude but I just couldn't get anyone to serve or help us as we were freezing away. I had to go up and wait to ask for boxes to take home. Then it took forever to get the bill and nobody came by to take the check away. We probably could have left without paying and they wouldn't have noticed. HT went to the bathroom so she went up with our bill. Whilst she was there she was observing them work and she noticed that they use the same knife to cut fruit and non-fruit items without washing. She was a bit grossed out at how they don't separate which knife is used to cut what and she wasn't too happy about service so she left no tip. I was a little taken aback because I always feel bad not tipping but she convinced me that no service means no tip. -_- It made me a bit frightened that the next time I come that they might spit in my food! lol I got over this and have been back since. O=9 **and yes I tipped**

Guppy House

When I was at college BJ's Restuarant & Brewery had not become such a big chain. I'd go there occasionally between classes or even skip classes. O=) For a long time coming I have not been that big of a fan since a horrid experience. The only time I really go back is for the Pizookie, which you can easily make at home, or when Ms. Lin begs and agrees to pay for the me. =9 After a long argument of where to eat, I finally caved in and agreed to go with her. The closest one is the one near Laguna Hills Mall that replaced Gordon Biersch. I have been to this location many times before and have never really liked it either so I make it really hard for Ms. Lin to get me to go. =P
We were seated pretty quick. They use to be busier when they were new but they still have a good flow of business since this is the right target neighborhood. Ms. Lin already knew what she wanted and we always get the same things, but this time she REALLY REALLY wanted Mozzarella Sticks. If I had to split the bill, I would've denied her the joy but since it was free for me... whatever floats her boat! lol It wasn't that good and pretty pricey for what it is. The Marinara sauce was decent and we were able to get another helping. I felt like the mozzarella sticks were at the level of cheap frozen mozzarella sticks that were tossed in the fryer. They still had that wet goopy water inside them when you bite in. Needless to say it was a bit of a waste to order these but at least Ms. Lin got her fill for now.
For our main course we got the usual pizza half & half with The Great White and Buffalo Chicken. While we were waiting for our food to come we heard the table behind us. Our waiter told them of the current deal that they were offering. For $20 you get a medium pizza to share, salad, and drinks. He never offered us this deal! BOOOOO! lol We were joking about taking it out from his tip! Making us spend more, BOoOOOO! Now back to the pizza. I don't know, but my tastebuds have outgrown this tired chain. Recently I have had pizza from Chicago and it really doesn't even hold a candle to the yummy goodness from the real place. In fact, Ms. Lin has my next batch of pizza in her house right now. ^_^ I asked for extra garlic in my Great White as always, but the pizza was extremely bland. Ms. Lin liked the Buffalo Chicken but I found the sauce to have a weird sweet tangy flavor. It was more like barbecue sauce to me. At least they had a decent amount of ingredients on top. I tried to add different sauces to make the pizza more edible to me but in the end I just sat there and watched Ms. Lin eat.
The main reason I would even consider agreeing to come here is to have the Pizookie! lol Even though it is super easy to make it at home but eating it there just has its appeal. Also, I am a lazy person. O=9 For those that don't know of the Pizookie, it is just a fresh baked cookie that's not baked all the way through and topped with a Vanilla Bean Ice Cream. ^_^ We always get the Black & White when we are together. I told Ms. Lin that she had to eat the Chocolate Chip side because it is too sweet for me and I like the White Chocolate Chip Macadamia Nut side. It is best to eat the Pizookie while it is piping hot from the oven and before the cookie becomes hard. I think it's a great way to end the meal.

All in all I just don't like their food anymore. Service was not that great and we were jipped out of the deal! lol Even though I didn't pay, it could have saved Ms. Lin some dough! lol Would I come back if somebody didn't pay for me? Heck No! Well, maybe for the Pizookie! lol For the food, ummm not likely. I won't go for friends, only go for Ms. Lin. *You better feel special!* lol

BJ's Restaurant & Brewery

It was quite an adventurous day. I brought PK up to LA to meet up with Burumun and our other friend for some fresh seafood. After our foodie adventures in LA, PK and I went to the Korean Bath Spa together. We decided that before we go in that we were thirsty and in need of liquids! As we were getting closer to our destination we passed by Coffee Zone. We figured they would be able to satiate our thirst and I can also dig in on the seafood I bought. The place looks fine on the inside, but we decided to sit outside since I have "outside" food and I don't want to disrespect the place by eating inside. Boy was that a mistake. Take my advice... sit inside! We had a huge fiasco that day. lol
We chose the Taro Snow Bubble with Tapioca and the Mocha flavor. The drinks were only so-so really and they weren't that cheap. I think next time I should drive down a little more and go to Boba Loca instead... So what happened outside... we were sitting there and this crazy drunk guy was asking for change. I just kindly declined and PK... well... I would blame her if anything happened! lol She was funny but I felt a bit unsafe... it's not like this is a dangerous neighborhood or the safest but boy was that guy confrontational! There were a few Korean guys nearby and they said no, then the guys got into a sort of argument... then... the guy comes back to us AGAIN to ask and make comments... then... PK went off on him. It was actually kind of funny to watch her reaction, but I was like ummm the guy is drunk and crazy so we should just ignore him or let it go. In the end we made it out fine but chalk it up to another memorable experience! lol I laughed about it as I reiterated it to Ms. Lin... but I definitely wasn't as calm as it happened. O=)

Coffee Zone

I rarely come to Little Tokyo because I am always afraid of parking in this area. So far I haven't had too much trouble but be sure to bring your change for the meters! lol This time around I went with Tiramisu. We decided to grab some sushi in this area, but we actually got lost a bit. There was a wait to get in and we shopped around the Japanese Village Plaza Mall. After dinner, we came out and continued to shop as well grab a dessert. We happened to choose Mikawaya, which was near the center of the plaza. The place was pretty empty but we decided to check it out. They are a cash only place and luckily I had enough cash for the both of us.
Tiramisu bought mochi desserts for home and I decided to give their gelato a try. After trying a few, I wasn't too impressed but I always feel really bad when I don't buy! Darn my conscience for causing me to spend money on stuff I don't want. I think after trying a few flavors, I just decided to choose one that I hadn't tried and wing it. The flavor I chose was Crème Brûlée and it was not very good. I thought it lacked any real flavor and was more watery/icy than smooth. Don't remember if I even finished this... but I am sure it was not fun... had to burn those extra empty calories! grr! lol I wish I had just gone to Céfiore. Would've been a much better choice... =*(

Mikawaya
118 Japanese Vlg Plaza Mall
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 624-1681

Ice Cream & Cafe really brings back a lot of childhood memories. I remember that this was the first place that made me fall in love with Beef in Sesame Pocket. The place has not changed much. It really is just a hole in the wall. There are only a few tables to sit and eat but luckily it's never that busy. This time around we were just strolling around and wanted some shaved ice. It might not be as tasty as the one from SinBala or the one from Half & Half, but it's good in its own way and cheaper.
What I have always liked from this place is the simplicity and cheap prices. Of course they are no longer as cheap as when I was a child but still a good deal in the area. We got the Shaved Ice and you can choose your toppings. When I was really young, I never chose any topping. All I want on it is the Sugar Syrup and Condensed Milk. ^_^ That is all you need to make it yummy! lol
You can't see the toppings but they were on the bottom, but I provided different shots of the yummy top! It's obvious what makes the shaved ice.... mMmMM good. I wish we had more shaved ice places that are actually good down in OC! In the end I gave away my toppings, which were never on top but on the bottom... lol I just like eating/drinking the sweet shaved ice. All in all it's a good place just for a quick snack at a reasonable price. Is it to die for? Nah, but it does its job. ^_-

108 Ice Cream & Cafe

After Ms. Lin brought back a bento back to the apt awhile back, I've been craving the bento combo that Marina Food offers. They actually have a decent food court/prepared food and cheap! =9 If you shop in the supermarket and spend a certain amount, they will give you these money vouchers that you can spend in the food court. So if you need to do some shopping then here is the perfect place. You can collect a bunch of these vouchers and save them to use another night for yourself or your family. O=)
The service here is your typical Asian place. I didn't like the lady that helped me. There was no one around and she sounded super pissed. The worst part is she skimped on my bento! I got a 3-item combo for $5.99. My choices were Lemon Chicken, Chicken Wings, Salt & Pepper Shrimp, and Huo Phen. She actually gave me 5 shrimps and only 3 tiny wings! =*( I was mainly there for the yummy wings! *sobs* The lemon chicken didn't taste like lemon chicken, it was bright red, and it was cold. It almost felt like sweet & sour chicken. They also give you a cup of soup and I chose the Hot & Sour soup. The truth is everything is just aiight but it's a great deal! ^_^
My main purpose coming here was for the wings. I debated and debated as I sat their eating... darn it! I want me some wings! lol I decided to ask how much it was to buy just wings. The lady said $4.99-$6.99 depending on the box size. I decided to go with the biggest size, 32 oz., and to my surprise she packed a lot of wings inside. My eyes were wide open like a kid in the candy shop. =) (well it was $7) Then I went to checkout, the cashier charged me $11.99! I was in shock and told her the other lady said it would be $6.99. Eventually they gave me the promised price. If it was $11.99, I wouldn't have bought it! For $7, I was satisfied about the amount of wings. This made up for my sad 3 piece wings in the box! lol I ate the wings on the plane and again the next day. O=9