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Delicious Restaurant Explorers

Santa Monica, CA

Back to our favorite seafood spot, Water Grill on Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica. On the table: sourdough bread, grilled wild Spanish octopus, bluefin toro tuna tartare, uni/sea urchin served on its shell, grilled sea bass, macaroni & cheese and a dozen oysters (two of each) - rappahannock, damariscotta, John's river, Fanny Bay, Henderson Bay and malaspina.

Sea urchin at Water Grill, a favorite seafood spot

Los Angeles, CA

The other night's dinner was "food to go" from Agra Tandoori Indian Restaurant located  in a strip mall on Ventura Boulevard close to Corbin in Tarzana. We ordered goat karahi/goat curry, tandoori chicken, saag paneer, naan bread and steamed rice. Let's eat!

Goat curry, chicken tandoori and saag paneer

Red snapper, red snapper, red snapper... love red snapper nigiri. Also on the table: abalone sashimi, ankimo (monkfish liver), uni sushi and sashimi, scallops, halibut, bonito, sea trout, hamachi and Japanese mackerel. The place is called Sushi Spot in Tarzana. In  operation for 32 years now, they are one of the pioneer sushi restaurants on Ventura Boulevard, also known as Sushi Row.

Abalone sashimi, ankimo and nigiri sushi at Sushi Spot

Las Vegas, NV

Luxury meets comfort plus a stunning view! Oh, and the bed too, as well as the pillows and linens will make you wish you could stay a little longer! I'm talking about Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas. Come join me for a quick tour of a suite on the 62nd floor. Then' let's have sweet treats and coffee at The Café.

Wynn Las Vegas room tour

It's dinner time! Most restaurants at Wynn were fully booked with the exception of Allegro and I can't remember the other one. We made a reservation at Allegro and here's what we had. Polpo and calamari for appetizer. Josh had focaccia pizza without cream cheese, I had striped bass and husband had risotto pescatora.  

Allegro Italian Restaurant at Wynn in Las Vegas

Today’s lunch was a feast to the senses that transported us to the Middle East/Mediterranean.  I’m talking about mezze dishes at Mantee Café, a charming restaurant quietly tucked on Ventura Boulevard in Studio City. Just like Spanish tapas, mezze-style dining consists of salad and a variety of hot and cold dishes in small plates. On the table: fattoush salad, motabbal, kebbe naye, soujuk flambéed tableside, shish kabob and chicken kabob. I love Mantee. Food is consistently delicious and service is always professional and attentive.


Mouthwatering mezze dishes at Mantee Café

After almost an hour of contemplating where to grab dinner to go, we ended up here at one of our favorite Peruvian restaurants. Located on a strip mall on Winnetka Avenue and Prairie Street in Chatsworth, Fina Estampa serves delicious Peruvian food. We ordered pescado ceviche and lomo saltado to go.

Peruvian pescado ceviche and lomo saltado at Fina Estampa

A delicious lunch with gorgeous views of Los Angeles up from 71 Above, the highest restaurant west of Mississippi.

What we had...

FIRST
- hamachi crudo, beef vinaigrette, cucumber, grapes, cilantro
- roasted beets, grains, chickpeas, cucumber, preserved lemon, sumac, yogurt, watercress
-steak tartare, crostini, porcini, aioli, mizuna kimchi, scallion, sesame

SECOND
- diver scallop, faro risotto, roasted shimej & porcini mushroom, fennel pollen, pickled leek
- crab, squid ink pasta, calabrian chili, corn, chives, bottarga
- Salmon, delicata squash, miso brown butter, grilled squashimi, sherry-maple-glaze, basil

DESSERT
- tiramisu, kumquat, strawberry sorbet, vanilla ice cream

71 Above in DTLA, the highest restaurant west of the Mississippi

If you like seafood like we do, then the iced shellfish platter or more commonly known as seafood tower at Water Grill is a must try. It has Maine lobster, Peruvian scallops, Barents Sea king crab, Channel Islands sea urchin (uni), oysters from British Columbia, Washington and Massachusetts, wild littleneck clams from New York,  mussels from Saltspring Island and shrimp from Mexico.

Seafood tower at Water Grill

My blood always runs a little sweeter every time we visit Bhan Kanom Thai - our favorite spot for Thai sweet treats. Located in Thai Town at a little strip mall on Hollywood Boulevard, they sell some authentic  yummy Thai desserts to satisfy ones sweet cravings.

Thai desserts at Bhan Kanom Thai

Originally from Japan, Kura Revolving Sushi Bar is a great place to bring the kids for some sushi or mochi. First, you order the sushi on a touch screen monitor, then it will be placed on a covered plate and delivered to your table on a conveyor belt. It's a fun dining experience especially for the kids. 

Kura Revolving Sushi Bar in Sawtelle

Omakase at Michelin star Shin Sushi is the best! Located on Ventura Boulevard in Encino, in what is known as Sushi Row, chef-owner Taketoshi Azumi's Shin Sushi is awarded a Michelin star. We've been to many sushi spots and a few Michellin-starred restaurants including the two-starred Spago and Providence and I would say that the experience at Shin Sushi is definitely worth coming back. Currently, he serves 6 on the bar, 3 tables per setting and two sets per dinner service. First set is at 5:30pm which we thought is a little early for dinner, so we made reservation for 7:30pm during our last two visits. 

Omakase at Michelin Star Shin Sushi in Encino

Solvang, CA

California is a beautiful place with wide open spaces where you can drive for miles and miles and enjoy breathtaking sceneries from ocean to mountains, deserts and wildflowers. On this video, we took a scenic road trip along the Pacific Coast Highway to Solvang - a charming Danish town settled in the Santa Ynez Valley.

Our first stop was at Solvang Restaurant which is home of the famous aÆbleskiver. Then we strolled around for a couple of hours and stopped by at Olsen's Danish Village Bakery for some delicious pastries on our way home.

Solvang Restaurant, home of the famous aebleskiver

A very popular seafood restaurant among locals, Marsicos El Toro Guero in Cabo serves the freshest seafood in town with a friendly smile. Love this place and been coming here since 2012. Pescado Zarandeado is my absolute favorite as well the chocolata clams which still move when you squeeze a lime.

Chocolata clams at Mariscos El Toro Guero

A favorite place this side of town, Boccaccio's Restaurant located at The Landing serves delicious Italian food on a laid-back setting with a gorgeous view of the lake. On the table: carpaccio, tomatoes & burrata, Tuscan chicken, Veal Oscar and seafood risotto.. yum!


Carpaccio at Boccaccio's Restaurant 

Sailing with a pod of dolphins aboard Ya Sabras with friends in Cabo, Mexico. What a sight to see, a once in a lifetime experience! We also saw "Pancho,"  some sea lions and tons of fish while sailing at El Arco, a rock formation at the southern tip of Cabo.

Sailing with the dolphins

Right across Daichan, one of my favorite lunch spots, is another restaurant from the Land of the Rising Sun, Ramen Jinya. My favorite is Tonkotsu Black with pork broth cooked for 18+ hours, pork chashu, seasoned egg, dried seaweed,  wood ear, green onion, garlic chips, garlic oil, fried onion and ramen noodles. Slurp, slurp.... yum! Karaage and takoyaki are also delicious!



Tonkotsu at Ramen Jinya

Been coming to this restaurant for about 15 years now. This is one of my favorite lunch spots when I used to work in the area. Daichan serves Japanese soul food/home-style Japanese comfort food in Studio City.  A popular dish on the menu is the poki bowl. They've been serving poki bowl long before this dish became popular and poki bars started sprouting all over Los Angeles.

Japanese soul food at Daichan

Westlake Village, CA

Located in Westlake Village, Mediterraneo is a great restaurant for outdoor dining overlooking a small lake and mountain. This place is perfect for a leisurely breakfast or brunch. I had the chef's mess, Josh had chicken and waffles and husband got the eggs benedict.

A great restaurant for outdoor dining

Moby Dick is one of our two "go to" seafood spots in Santa Barbara. The other one is Brophy's Brothers. Located on Stearn's Wharf almost right across Santa Barbara Sea Center, this restaurant serves the freshest, yummiest seafood and has a stunning view of the ocean. On the table: steamed black mussels, shrimp cocktail, oysters, halibut, grilled whole rock fish and Maine lobster... YUM!

 