All posts filed under: Japanese

BUDDAKAN- CHELSEA, NEW YORK CITY

Published by Nicole Isaacs

Buddakan in New York City is located next door to the charming Chelsea Market. This place is one of the most trendy and expensive restaurants in the city. The restaurant was even featured in the movie Sex & The City for Carrie’s engagement dinner to Mr. Big! lol. Serving unique contemporary Asian cuisine, not only is the food amazing but the decor of Buddakan is extravagant, grand and absolutely beautiful. My sister, friends and I had a great experience. The service was great, the food delicious and the atmosphere was fun and lively. EDAMAME DUMPLINGS- Shallot-Sauternes Broth Best thing of the night. I would have never in a million years ordered this off the menu, but our amazing server brought these from compliments of the kitchen, and I couldn’t believe how delicious it was. Inside was an edamame puree, in a delicate, thin noodle dumpling. The sauce tasted like truffle oil broth. It melted in your mouth and had amazing flavor. For not ordering this myself, it happened to be my favorite dish of the night. It makes me think of how many incredible dishes …

KOI- LOS ANGELES

Published by Nicole Isaacs

Dinner & Drinks at KOI w/ friends. Our servers jumped into the picture too 🙂      Can’t go wrong w/ dinner and drinks with friends at LA hotspot, Koi. This upscale, chic & trendy, asian-influenced restaurant has a beautiful atmosphere and great Japanese cuisine. I went with a group of friends and we all ordered small dishes, and lots of champagne lol. Koi is great for a romantic date night, dinner with friends, business meetings or any special occasion.  KOI CRISPY RICE Spicy tuna on crispy rice w/ sliced jalapeno on top. One of my favorite dishes to order at sushi. You can’t get this dish wrong! Amazing. FRESH OYSTERS ON THE HALF SHELL If you like oysters, these were great. Not too big, (the big ones freak me out), they were smaller and with hot sauce and lemon they are very fresh and good quality oysters. SALMON CARPACCIO W/ BLACK TRUFFLES, CITRUS SAUCE Loved this dish! I love anything with black truffle, and I’ve never had salmon carpaccio before so this was something different for me. …

KOGI TEST KITCHEN- ALIBI ROOM, CULVER CITY

Published by Nicole Isaacs

          I’m sure most of my readers and followers from LA know about the famous Kogi BBQ truck. The Alibi Room in Culver City is the Kogi Truck taste kitchen, where Chef Roy Choi’s famous Kogi specialities are featured on the menu. The Alibi Room is a micro-brew and wine bar with a menu offering fushion food from Kogi’s Kitchen (a mix of Korean BBQ & Mexican). They also has specialty & unique cocktails. The place is a casual lounge- it’s tiny but has a cool & laid back vibe. The food is great, the cocktails are unique, and it’s a great place to chill with friends. The drinks are great, and there are two items on the menu that I highly recommend. Read below to find out what I think is the best “item” I’ve ever had! Left: Shiso Margarita- shiso leaf infused tequila, fresh lime juice, cointreau, agave nectar, sesame salt rim Right: Mojito Kogi Three Taco Combo- Corn tortilla, slaw, cilantro, onions, salsa roja, w/ choice of short rib, bbq chicken, spicy pork or tofu I got …

SHIBUYA, CALABASAS

Published by Nicole Isaacs

SHIBUYA HOUSE ROLL If you love sushi like me, you are probably very critical when it comes to it. Shibuya in Calabasas is known for good quality, high-end sushi. It’s definitely more on the pricey side, but it’s worth it for the quality of fish they have. Shibuya is TINY. If you go for dinner, there will most definitely be a wait because this small place is always crammed to the max. Even during lunchtime all the tables are usually filled. If you go, expect to wait for a table. This little gem is in a small strip mall in Calabasas, so sometimes parking can be tough too, depending on what time of day it is. Shibuya isn’t a fancy restaurant by any means. It’s actually the contrary- it may be a little pricey, but it’s just a hole in the wall with great sushi. THIS IS PRETTY MUCH THE ENTIRE RESTAURANT. TINY & CRAMMED! MY FAVORITE ITEMS ON THE MENU:    ~ALBACORE SASHIMI W/ GARLIC PONZU & JALAPENO- SO GOOD. AMAZING QUALITY AND SO FRESH TASTING. IT MELTS …