Gastro Monkey // 美食家

Every time we head up to Seattle, we try to find some new place that we haven't been to. During this trip, it was The Brooklyn Seafood, Steak, and Oyster House. It looked awesome. Beer and oyster flights? Sign me up! They have other flights to choose from, but I went for the beer and oyster flight. The options change daily depending on what's on draft and which oysters are freshest.  We grabbed a seat at the bar in front of the oyster display and main signage. Service was surprisingly slow for a restaurant that wasn't busy yet (we were there at 4PM on a Sunday because we had a flight back home afterwards). I was also not the only one to be a bit disappointed by the beer and oysters. There was some bits of shell in my oyster, so a little sad that they didn't clean the knife between shucks. With flights, I like trusting that someone took the time to taste the beer or wine and the food item so that they pair nicely. I feel like in this situation, it wasn't well pa

As this was my second trip to New Orleans, I wanted to try some things I hadn't my first time around. Since I had been to Acme already, I wanted to see how other places did the same things. One of the names that popped up repeatedly, was Drago's. Of course, that meant I would have to give it a try. The waitress started out helpful, telling us what not to get ("If you want real New Orleans food, don't get that. You gotta try our gumbo. And the oysters"). We went for a dozen oysters, which I believe I ended up eating the majority of. One of the people in my party had never eaten oysters before, and the other two seemed indifferent. The oysters were good, but definitely not as good as Acme. I would say if you want to try it to have something to compare Acme to, this is it. You'll either like it better or appreciate Acme more! Aside from that, I would suggest skipping the gumbo and the Shrimp Creole. The gumbo was really salty and inconsistent at our table. Mine

The first time I ever saw anything to do with New Orleans and oysters was Man Vs. Food -- gross, I know. But, even with the overeating, Acme still maintained a strong reputation for really good chargrilled oysters. While I am not the biggest fan of cooked oysters (I like them freshly shucked), I am still always down to try new things. The first time I went to New Orleans was May 2015. Just in time for the tail end of Jazz Fest! And being there a week, I knew I had a ton of food spots to hit up. Of course, Acme made the list. I'm not into trendy things, but I do like seeing what the fuss is about and deciding for myself.  The line was only about half a block long and the wait maybe around 30 minutes. While in line, I was able to enjoy a few processions. I love that there is always something happening in New Orleans. Maybe all of the hullabaloo reminds me of Taiwan in a different way, but I love it. It made the wait to get in pass quickly. Also, it probably helped that we were w

If you haven't figured it out yet, I am always looking for a few favorite items. I like eating a lot of things, but certain things I feel like the search is never ending. These are my comfort foods, and because I can't make them the way I like it myself, I have to maintain the hope that someday, I'll find something relatively close to where I live. Shanghai Restaurant is located in Oakland's Chinatown. It's a comfortable little space, and the owners speak Shanghainese (this always makes me feel better, like having a Taiwanese person make my pearl milk tea). I ordered the salty soy milk with some oily sticks, stinky tofu, soup dumplings, and pan fried buns.  The salty soy milk was alright. Better than the other places I had tried before in the Bay Area, so it means I would actually go back for it again. I don't know how the places in Taiwan make it so good, but compared to those ones, this one lacked flavor. I added some vinegar in there and it was better.

Cafe Du Monde. Their yellow/orange coffee cans are sold just about everywhere. What makes their coffee stand out though, is the chicory added. This was done because of the coffee shortages during the civil war. The chicory adds a fuller, bolder flavor to the coffee. I don't always buy this coffee to drink at home (I prefer a light or medium roast to maximize my caffeine intake), but I do have it in my rotation when the mood strikes. The bolder taste pairs really well with the beignets sold at the cafe.  Their menu is very simple. Black coffee, au lait (coffee and steamed milk), frozen au lait, milk, chocolate milk/hot chocolate, orange juice, and beignets. The beignets are the best. I have tried a few other places that have been touted as better than the over hyped Cafe Du Monde, but I am starting to think that those reviews were either done by people who are too lazy to wait for a better product, or they really just can't taste the difference. The beignets at Cafe Du Mond

It just so happened that it was on a rainy day that I ended up making my first trip to Ad Hoc/Addendum. I ordered online ahead of time because everyone told me how the wait takes at least an hour. I am here to tell you that on this rainy day, there was only one other person in line for food who was actually ordering, and a lady with two dogs in a stroller sitting at the only bench eating her chicken. Since there were no dry seats, we ended up eating in the car.  If you haven't been before, Addendum is just behind Ad Hoc (I originally tried making reservations at Ad Hoc, but had no luck). It's in a nice little garden area in the back with picnic tables and shade for the sunny times. If you're in the area for wine, this is a good place to eat first so you don't have to tap out too early ;) The ribs were pretty good. The meat came right off the bone. The sauce was sweet. I think I would personally prefer a little kick or more savory taste, but don't let that stop

When I first looked at the menu for Ma'Ono, I found the prices a bit offputting. A loco moco for $17? Saimin for $15? It better be a damn good loco moco for that price! The thing is though, I pay those kinds of prices for good food, even though I have never paid that kind of money for Hawaiian comfort food. I still had to give them a chance, because honestly, fried chicken is one of the things I really enjoy in life. I will pay that $21 for half a chicken or $40 for the full.  This was during my birthday weekend (yes, I celebrate the entire weekend), so I was with a few people. I read online that if you want the fried chicken, you have to order it in advance when you make your reservation (which means I have no idea what happens if you try to walk in and order it, but you are welcome to find out if you are that curious about it), so we had to figure out sooner than later if we wanted the full or half chicken. There were four of us, and we wanted to get some sides also. Because

As a fan of The Walrus and the Carpenter, I was pretty excited to hear that Renee Erickson opened up another tapas restaurant. Located right next door to Walrus, it's a good place to hang out and enjoy some tapas while waiting for your seat. I had Barnacle bookmarked for at least a year before I finally had a chance to get in and try it for myself.  We went in figuring that we could get some of the oysters without having to wait to get into Walrus, but because it was end of summer and the ocean was pretty warm, the oysters were in low supply (ie none available for Barnacle patrons). We weren't too upset though, because we knew there were a few items we wanted to try anyway. On the list we had the serrano jamon, octopus, and sardines. All of them were really good. Honestly, I was not expecting anything less. Great for hanging out pre-dinner with just a friend or two - the space is limited. If you aren't sure what to drink, the bartener is a great resource. Unless yo

When I think of oysters in the San Francisco area or the Napa Valley area (sounds weird, I know), I think of Hog Island Oyster Co. They get their oysters from a variety of locations and update their menu accordingly. The ones I go for though, are the kumamotos and the Tomales Bay Reserves, or Tomales Bay Sweets (the Reserves are my absolute favorite though). Both locations get pretty busy so don't be surprised if there's a wait. Sometimes you can bypass the line by being willing to sit outside on the patio if the day is a bit colder. It is pretty fun to sit at the bar though, because then you can watch them prepare the food. The food is also a bit pricey; everything adds up fast. Interior of the Napa Valley location Two dozen oysters - half kumamotos, half Tomales Bay Sweets Hog Island's clam chowder. Lots of clams and full of flavor. Hog Island's grilled cheese sandwich. They use Cowgirl Creamery cheese. It's a combination of fromage blanc,

Bar hopping on a Saturday night in Seattle on a nice October night led us to the Good Bar. Pretty noisy and dimly lit, they serve only a handful of things (which I like as it means they can master a few things rather than Cheesecake Factory it and not master anything) and specialize in classic cocktails. Of course, along with the classics, they have cocktails with their own twist. I only had the Pisco Pie that night. Service was a bit slow, and as we were trying to check out more places that night, we ended up just leaving after the one drink. The drink was good, but the food was too salty for me. The Sloppy Joe filling wasn't bad, but I think instead of ciabatta bread, I would like something else. The bread was a bit too hard on the surface (I mean, it is  ciabatta) for my tastes. Worth checking out to admire the decor and try a drink, but I wouldn't spend an entire night here. Good Bar's Sloppy Joe. It has Painted Hills beef, tomato, stout beer, and onion aioli

The Tsukiji Fish Market was pretty high on my list of things to do in Tokyo, so of course I spent some time putting some research in. Knowing my time was limited, I wanted to be sure to eat somewhere amazing. The top two restaurants that popped up on every search I made was Daiwa (大和寿司) and Sushi Dai (寿司大 ). I went with Sushi Dai because a few bloggers said they ended up at Daiwa because the wait at Sushi Dai was too much for them. That said, if Sushi Dai is the experience of a life at the Tsukiji Fish Market, then Sushi Dai it is! My friend who I had been traveling around Nagoya and Yokohama with agreed.  We didn't wake up early enough to get to the tuna sales, but that just means I have a reason to go back again some day! I believe we got there around 11am. The line, of course, was a monster that went around the building. I immediately started stressing out since they close at 2pm! I couldn't have come this far just to stand in line and not get any sushi! All in all,