So Sean started his new job, and he was in charge of dinner... We used to get this Men's Health Magazine at our old place from the previous tennants I guess, and in there Sean had found a yummy recipe while he was browsing it.  He bought a tad too much (it fed Scott, Kyle, Sean and I and then Sean and I literally ate it for the entire week) but it was good enough that we didn't mind.  Next time we'll ration down, but it sure was yummy!  Potatoes, sausages, corn on the cobb, shrimp... goodness!

This is your new blog post. Click here and start typing, or drag in elements from the top bar.

For Brittany B's birthday we took the trek over to San Dimas- her new neighborhood.  It was my first time EVER in San Dimas, but I was excited to see Britt's new place and celebrate her birthday.  We went to her favorite bar called Montana's which is a country bar.  They have a huge dance floor where everyone does all kinds of different country dances-- if you aren't good enough they'll kick you off though, so beware!  We were able to hop on for the electric slide, cupid shuffle and "freestyle time" though, so that was fun!  It's crazy how good some of the people are, and amazing how many different dances they all know, Sean said it was like a cult!  
Before we went there though, we had some dinner at Britt's cute new apartment!  She made dinner to go with the theme of the night, and had pulled pork sandwiches (they were so good), beans and corn.  I unfortunately didn't get to take any pictures but hopefully Britt can send me some.  It definitely makes me want to learn to cook using a crock pot!

Happy 10 year anniversary, Gyukaku!!!

We were more than happy to help Gyukaku celebrate their 10 year anniversary.  On top of their normal happy hour they had a "Toshi's platter" for the event.  The picture right below was all for $10- shrimp, kalbi, rosu and bacon wrapped scallops- what a great selection and price!

Sean and I both got emails from C&O wishing us Happy Birthday and a $15 certificate on a meal.  So we figured, why not?  The food as usual was great, especially for the price, and cant get enough of dem garlic balls!!!  However, this experience was definitely less enjoyable than most.  They sat us outside (we were at the one further East, away from the beach and didn't even know there was an outside at that location!) and boy was it LOUD.  Granted there were a ton of big birthday parties and I'm sure everyone was drunk, but why sit a party of 2 outside with them?  I think there were 4 big parties and then 3 tables of 2... I couldn't help but think what if this was our first date or something?  Yikes!  We couldn't even talk all meal because we couldn't hear anything the other was saying, and we were already screaming!  The waiter was also kind of rude in the beginning when we told him we had a certificate and were trying to figure out which one to use, then realized we couldn't use the $25 (and spend $50 excluding drinks) with just the two of us, he got testy and then just left!  EEW.  But as the night went on, we realized we'd probably be in a bad mood dealing with everyone outside too and cut him a break.  He offered to bring us a free dessert to apologize for all the noise, but at that point we just wanted to get outta there!!!  

Sukiyaki is definitely one of my very favorite Japanese meals.  Kabuki makes a great one, but I usually opt for sushi when I have the choice there, so having it at home is perfect.  Nijiya makes a premade marinade that is really yummy, but a few months ago when I first got it and loved it, I haven't seen it since.  So when I saw it again, I had to jump and buy some!  It came out really yummy- beef, toyko negi (large green onions), shiitake mushrooms, tofu, enoki mushrooms and napa cabbage  (or wonbok as we say in Hawaii).  Next step is going to be making my own marinade from scratch! (but this one is yummy and so much easier haha)

Sean decided he wanted all you can eat sushi for his birthday.  So Scott, Sean and I went to Midori for his birthday dinner.  Nuff said!

For Sean's birthday dinner with his parents we went to The Grill On The Alley in Beverly Hills.  We actually came here maybe 4 years ago with them for his birthday as well so it was a nice treat to come back!  It's your good ole all American food, and we had a lot of fantastic seafood that night.  Again, the pictures have been misplaced, but I will find them and post them asap!

After dinner we walked over to Nic's Martini Lounge.  As some of you may or may not know, BH is Jim's stomping grounds.  He has worked at the Beverly Hilton forever now and as a result, knows all the great places to go and a lot of people in the area.  He is friends with the owner here, and so we stopped in for a martini and a trip to the vod box.  
Sean's martini was "girly looking" so he refused to be seen carrying and sipping it ;)
The vod box is so much fun!  This is the second time I've gone... you get to dress up in fur coats and hats (because the vod box is like 0 degrees and storing all the vodka)... they serve you shots of different ones, depending on what kind of flavors you like-- fruity, coffee, chocolate, straight up... after about 3 shots I was definitely drunk!!!!  It was a fun night :)

It had been quite some time that we had ourselves some yogurtland-- so after our dinner at Coral Tree Cafe in Brentwood, we walked over for some dessert.  I like how they have staple flavors all the time, but then roll in seasonal ones.  It definitely mixes it up but then always has your original flavors.  I always go for the plain tart (pinkberry flavor) and then I mix in other ones... usually a coffee, pomegranate or coconut type flavor.  I also love that they give you sample cups...  I like to try the new flavors, but not necessarily do I want a whole bunch of it!
P.S. Coral Tree Cafe is very soso... we used to order them on LA Bite often and while it's ok for lunch, it really doesn't satisfy me at dinner!  Especially price wise.  Sean agreed.  His panini was just so so...

Sean and I had to run an errand at Macy's, and since we were on a bit of a time crunch, we decided to just grab dinner at the food court at Westside Pavillion.  Now Century City has the best food court (other than Ala Moana's at home), but I do have to give Westside props for upping their choices in the last year or so.  Before there were your standard, Mc D's, Panda's Kitchen and a few other generic ones, but now the variety is quite nice!  There is a japanese place, a thai place, sbarro's, and my favorite- mongolian bbq!  Which, of course I had, and Sean had a teriyaki chicken/ sushi combo that was pretty good!  
Here are a list of eating places at Westside: http://www.westsidepavilion.com/Dining

I kind of rotate dinners... it's hard to think of new things sometimes, but it's a good thing that some things really never get old!  Kalua pig and cabbage is one of those things... I tend to use Kalua turkey so that it's a little healthier and I usually use two heads of cabbage because I just LOVE cabbage...and most of the time, I like to add long rice (noodles) to it as well.  My aunty peggy gave me that tip, and it's just delicious!

We decided to go to Vegas, yes again, for the long weekend.  I was really excited to have a different kind of Vegas trip with just Sean and I.  It would be our first time to Vegas just the two of us!  It was even more fun than I imagined... lots of great food, gambling, shopping, a show... jam packed goodness! :)  

The next morning we went to our other favorite stomping grounds...the Bellagio buffet.  The line is always ridiculously long every weekend, and for good reason.  The food is fantastic!  And it's a great deal too... we have a little trick we use, but I can't share it with the world, sorry! ;)  After a quick wait, we were ready to eat ourselves into a food coma again...

Everything was just really, really OK.... the price was average, but for the few dollars extra, hikari is a world of difference.  It's worth the extra 10 minute drive for sure.  Not to mention the service was pretty horrible...there were only 3-5 other people in the restaurant the whole time, but each piece took forever to come out.  Not to mention, they charged an automatic 18% gratuity for parties of 2 or more... it's pretty sad when you have to do that.  I