Archive for July, 2008

Lee’s Tofu - Gardena, CA

Tuesday, July 22nd, 2008

Address: 1743 W Redondo Beach Blvd, Gardena, CA 90247
Telephone: (310) 323-0006
Website: N/A
Bill: Approx. $8 / person
Recommend? Yes

It’s funny - I mentioned having Korean tofu for lunch one day to a colleague of mine, and she invisioned a slab of tofu being served on a plate.  Oh no, that’s not close at all!

If you like meals that serve a lot of side dishes, Korean tofu is your best bet.  Many Korean tofu restaurants serve a side of salad, kimchi, potato salad, seaweed, bean sprouts, and cucumber.  Aside from all the tasty side dishes, there is a menu full of choices of which “flavor” tofu you want. 

Seafood tofu, combination tofu, dumpling tofu, kimchi tofu, mushroom tofu, beef tofu, clam tofu.  Then you get to decide how spicy you want it.  White (which is not spicy at all - the soup base is literally white) , mild, spicy, or extra spicy.  I can’t handle too much so I usually opt for the mild.  It’s just enough for me to taste the flavors.

I ordered the seafood tofu, which has a little bit of shrimp, clams, and oysters.  The tofu was very, very soft and the flavor is just right.  The tofu comes in a stone pot and is still sizzling when served.  They give you an uncooked egg so if it fits your fancy, you can crack the egg into the sizzling stone pot.  It’s so hot that it will cook the egg - just make sure you mix it.  You also get rice, which is also served in a stone pot.  It’s very hot so don’t try to get the rice yourself.  Have the waitress scoop it out for you.

Of course, tofu is not the only thing on the menu.  There’s also the BBQ ribs that is marinated in their sweet BBQ sauce.  That is served on a sizzling iron plate.  You can also order the bimbimbop.  It’s vegetables over rice mixed with their sweet red sauce.

The shop itself is next to a Japanese restaurant.  It’s also a little bit small, but the service is great.  Parking may be difficult to find if all the other restaurants get packed. 

So would I return?  Definately.

Have you dined at this restaurant?  Share your experience with me by commenting below.

The Boiling Crab - Garden Grove, CA

Monday, July 14th, 2008

Address: 13892 Brookhurst St., Garden Grove, CA 92843
Telephone: (714) 636-4885
Website: Click here
Bill: $300 for 12 people = Approx. $25 / person
Recommend? Yes, if the site of eating critters don’t make you want to puke.

“Here, suck on this. It’s juicy.” It was the head of the half mutilated crawdad that my husband passed over to me. I scrunched up my nose and passed.

I pass by that restaurant often but never really thought about dining there. Initially, the thought of pulling apart heads and little itsy bitsy legs apart and then peeling the shell off the body to get at the small meat does not sound too appealing to me. Nor does having my meal served to me in a large plastic bag.

As I begin to wonder why the line is literally 1/2 a mile long, the waitress taps me on the shoulder to ask if I wanted a plastic bib tied to my neck. Graciously, I took it.  I didn’t want my nice blouse to get stained.

Ahh, The Boiling Crab.  After living so close to the restaurant, I finally caved in.  Finally, I’m seated at a table with a big plastic bag full of critters.  A bag full of crawfish, shrimp, sausage, and yellow corn marinated with their special spicy Louisiana spices.

No, we did not order any boiling crabs.  In fact, we didn’t order any crabs at all!  Instead, we ordered raw oysters on their half shell.  They actually were really really good.  I think I enjoyed those more than the crawfish!  What made it so good was the red sauce that they served with the oysters. 

$25 a person really isn’t too bad.  I mean, we ordered 4 bags of critters, a round of beer, and 2 dozen raw oysters.  So would I return?  Sure, why not?

Have you dined at this restaurant?  Share your experience with me by commenting below.

Nagging Cough, Bye Bye

Monday, July 14th, 2008

My nagging cough is finally gone.  Well, not entirely gone because my throat will feel a little bit tickly once in a while and I’ll force a cogh to make it comfortable, but it’s a lot better than how it was feeling last week!

That Z-Pack worked.   At the end of the 5 day regimen, I definately felt the difference in my throat, chest and nose.

Along with taking the cough syrup with codeine, I definately feel much better now.

My Nagging Cough

Thursday, July 10th, 2008

I’ve had this nagging cough for nearly 2 weeks now.  I gave my doctor a visit last week and he prescribed me cough syrup.  The one that makes you drowsy because it has codeine.  Strong stuff.  I’ve been light headed and sluggish since.  I took it for 5 days and have not gotten any better.  So I saw a different doctor.  He said I had an infection in my chest and prescribed the “Z-pack”.  It’s a 5-day antibiotic regimen.  I take 2 pills the first day and one pill a day thereafter.   I took my second day’s supply yesterday and am feeling a little better.

But still coughing quite a bit.  Still blowing my nose every hour.  And still washing my hands every 30 minutes.  Oh, and still going to work.

Also, I’ve been running a slight fever.  Perhaps that is why I have been feeling so gross.  Ugh.  I just want to sleep….

My First $100 Gas Tank

Wednesday, July 2nd, 2008

I filled up my Toyota Highlander yesterday.  My first $100 gas tank.  Wow.  I remember last month when I saw someone before me fill up their car for $100.  It must have been a truck.   Now, the Highlander is at $100 for a full tank of gas.  How can anyone keep up with the rising prices of gas?  Our raises at work barely keeps up with inflation…

My Neighbor’s Car

Tuesday, July 1st, 2008

We live in a condo with stacked parking in the Garage.  Since we switch cars with my mom everyday because of the car seat (we have only one car seat and it hooked up to the Honda), we have to plan ahead as to which car is parked in the front and which car is parked in the back.  It’s already a pain in the tooshi having to think about it.

But what happens when your neighbor parks so close to the line that divides his parking space and your parking space?  Does he not know how to park his car correctly?  It’s so close that I have to park more to my left.  But that leaves me virtually no room to open my door (there’s a pole that can block me from opening my side of the door all the way).

So how do I even get the baby out?  So I just bang my door against his door to make me feel better.  Of course, I don’t have the heart to actually dent his car or anything like that.  I wish I was brave enough to take revenge so that he’ll learn his lesson!  But I know it’s not the best solution because I know he can do worse things to my car.

But why do people do that?  Why do they park so close to you?   Why are the so inconsiderate?  What ever happened to random acts of kindness?