Mary's Secret Garden

So it's been quite an eternity since this blog has been updated, blame it on the holidays. I decided to resurrect it to write a post about a vegan restaurant I visited for the first time last week. Mary's Secret Garden is tucked away in a very smal space next to an art gallery in Ventura, but if you find it you won't be disappointed. They have an array of vegetarian fare such as the Vegan Pad Thai with Shrimp that I sampled. I enjoyed it a lot. Mine came with cilantro which I enjoy, but my mom hates it so on her pad thai she requested basil and the staff was really good about accomidating special orders. My dad ordered a veggie soy burger, but it had a really yummy southwestern sauce that set it apart from your normal veggie burger. For dessert, we split rice pudding with mangos which was super delicious! Oh, and to drink we had earl grey tea with organic raw sugar cubes. The waitresses were very nice and attentive. The downsides were that since the space is small, you feel like people are so close they can't help listening in on your conversations (or at least that's the vibe I got). And you have to walk by the cooks in the kitchen to get to bathroom. But other than that, I would highly recommend coming here for dinner. Not only was the food good, we left feeling happy that we all eaten an entirely meat-free dinner.

100 S. Fir St.
Ventura, California 93001

University Club

@ USC

Fine Dining at USC? It's unheard of! Here is a look in the hideaway restaurant in the heart of the University Park Campus.


Steak frites with roasted vegetables. Sadly, it looked better than it tasted. My steak was a bit too chewy and rare for my taste. Also, the chef did not trim the silver skin from the steak, making the cutting of the steak a bit troublesome.


Kermit gave two thumbs up for the club's lamb chops.


I learned banking 101 from George.

Harold & Belle's

2920 W. Jefferson Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90018

A Creole restaurant recommended by a fellow foodie, Ginger.


Post game dinner with takeout from H&B's. Tip: make reservations!! We went without one and they told us the waiting time was around 2 hrs!


THE BEST CATFISH EVER! It was crispy (even after the ride back home), not a bit greasy and oh so flavorful. H&B's menu might run a bit steep, but it's worth the price (and wait) because their portions are gargantuan. The fried catfish came with crispy garlic toast, clam chowder, and corn on the cob - enough to feed 3 people.


Corn on the cob with its own special holder

Pinot Bistro

12969 Ventura Blvd.
Studio City, CA

A night of fine bistro cuisine with my friend Allen and his work colleagues.


I started out with the Belgium endive salad with Roquefort cheese, caramelized walnuts and champagne vinaigrette. I'm not much of a salad fan, but I did like their play of the salty and sweet with the cheese and honey.


My entree, the grilled bistro steak with potato puree, crispy onions, and broccolini. Fabulous cut of beef with a light sauce and the fried onions provided a nice texture contrast. The potatoe puree was a bit jarring however with unmelted chunks of blue cheese that overpowered everything on the plate.


Allen's entree, a grilled fish dish with amazing polenta and haricot verts.


Desserts was definitely not Pinot's specialty. I had some stale profiteroles filled with generic tasting vanilla ice cream.


Allen's lemon tart was no better. It was heavy and sour but lacked lemon nuanced flavor.


Allen with Jeff and his wife Ginger (a fellow foodie!)


Allen and me, dressed to the nines


Overall, I loved Pinot's ambiance and main plates, but desserts? Better head over to Pinkberry for a green tea yogurt *i mean* iced dessert with raspberries.

Bombay Cafe

12021 W Pico Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90064

Behind a fairly inconspicuous storefront lies a wonderfully delicious and colorful experience. If you like Indian, you have to try this place. Their delictable dishes are decently priced and are served family style, so everyone gets a bite. I recommend their eggplant deva, basically sauteed eggplant layerd with fennel infused tomato sauce and ginger-flavored yogurt. (I love anything with fennel in it!) Their lamb naan and all of their curries were also very, very good. I didn't try anything that I didn't like. Oh and make sure you try the ginger margarita. It is incredible. My grandfather tasted the one my Aunt Vickie ordered and wouldn't give it back.

Formosa Cafe + ArcLight Theater

You guys are wonderful :)

yumm!



Cheekies + guest cheeky

The *official* fellowship pose

Doughboys Bakery

Tsz and I had dinner at Doughboys Bakery on Highland Ave. I think you could pass by this restaurant and miss seeing it because it's nestled between several entertainment companies like Crew Creative and Point 360. They have tables outside or inside and they let you choose wherever you want to sit. The place is open and airy. They have a pretty substantial menu and breakfast served all day which is a plus. I ordered the pumpkin pancakes because I'm a sucker for anything that has pumpkins or is seasonal. They served it with a huge dollop of cream cheese frosting which was delicious and I'm sure incredibly fattening and probably the worst choice for someone looking to eat healthy, but if you're planning to splurge then it's a good choice. The pancakes had walnuts in it which was nice. The syrup came in a bottle that looked kind of like a shampoo bottle, which we both liked. Tsz ordered clam chowder soup that came in a bowl as large as a bucket. Definitely come to Doughboy's hungry!

The service was a little slow, but I couldn't tell if they like to give you time to have actual conversations without a waiter hovering over you, or if they just weren't attentive. The prices for the amount of food you get are very reasonable. Another downside was that the tables are so close together that on a busy night you can't help overhearing everyone's conversations around you. Luckily no one was sitting directly next to us so I felt better.