OUR AWESOME PLANET

FOOD TRUCK Hunting in LA: @TapaBoyLA, @GrlldCheeseTruk & @WhiteRabbitTruk

It was harder to hunt food trucks in LA since it has a wider geographic area unlike SanFo where it is concentrated in the downtown area.

Thanks to Emilie (@Nuts4Pilinuts), a Filipino Food Blogger of Food Truck Adventure ,who is passionate about hunting food trucks in the LA area. 

Here's a photo essay of our food-truck hunting experience and my favorite food trucks in LA:

Food Truck Hunting Series:

• FOOD TRUCK Hunting in SanFo: @SenorSisig, @ChairmanTruck & @HapaSF!
• FOOD TRUCK Hunting in LA: @TapaBoyLA, @GrlldCheeseTruk & @WhiteRabbitTruk
• @CucinaAndare: FOOD TRUCKS in Manila! @ShawarmaBros, @ChefBroosy, & @MexiCombi

Sprinkles Red Velvet Cupcakes

"Let's be clear, they're not just pint-sized cakes. Cupcakes are something else entirely. At Sprinkles Cupcakes, with over tantalizing flavors to satisfy the sweet tooth, we get it right. Baked fresh in small batches throughout the day, Sprinkles cupcakes are handcrafted from the Finest Ingredients, including sweet cream butter, bittersweet Belgian chocolate, pure Madagascar Bourbon vanilla, fresh bananas and carrots, real strawberries and natural citrus zests. Topped with Sprinkles trademark modern dots, rich chocolate sprinkles from France or seasonal sugar decorations, Sprinkles cupcakes are a deliciously sophisticated update on an American classic. " (www.sprinklescupcakes.com)

The best pasalubong from anyone who is coming from LA is the Hollywood's famous Sprinkles Cupcakes. It is so far the best cupcake I've ever tasted. They bake it fresh on that day itself using fresh ingredients with a satisfying icing that is not too sweet just right. The cake is soft like a sponge and crumbles when you bite it. No wonder, this cupcake bakeshop was copied here in Manila. Do you recognize the similarity with the box design and font?


Just look at Aidan's face when I gave him his surprise pasalubong.... I got pogi points from my wife because of the cupcakes :) Sprinkles is located along South Santa Monica boulevard and it is already near the LAX airport. The cupcakes taste great for a day or two and they put it in a nice recycled box with elegant recycled fork and knife.

Diddy Riese Cookies

LA is crazy about the Diddy Riese cookies and you can see the long lines above to prove it.

I love Diddy Riese cookies because they are fresh, crunchy in the outside but soft / chewy in the inside. The bestsellers is the Cookie Sandwiches where you can select any two flavor of cookies and a choice of Dryer's ice cream. Diddy Riese is 2x better than Mrs. Fields (yes, that is how good these cookies are). I do hope somebody franchises it in the Philippines.

[Los Angeles vs. Manila #3] Porto's Cheese Roll

I still can remember a couple of years ago when eating a carbo-loaded krispy kreme donut is a cool thing when you visit the US. Now, that's a thing of the past, and Porto's bakery is a better alternative. Its famous cheese roll is a must try along with the other cakes and other pastry delicacies. The cheese roll taste like Otap baked to perfection with cheese inside it, similar in texture to a croissant. It's super addicting and I easily ate 5 pieces in one sitting. Porto's Bakery is a cuban family-owned and operated business that has served Glendale and its surrounding areas for over 35 years and they recently opened a beautiful new store in Burbank.

One could argue that Becky's or Conti's taste a lot better, but the I've never tasted a cheeseroll as delicious as porto's. If you can manage to bring one home as a pasalubong, it is highly recommended.

los angeles

[Los Angeles vs. Manila #2] Hollywood's famous Pink's Hot Dog

This is one of the famous must-eat destination in LA, and I was extremely curious why a chili dog can be this famous for 66 years! Paul Pink started this hotdog stand in 1939 and it stood on the same spot, giving the same quality of hot dog for years. I'm glad that Atty. Joseph Joson who was kind enough to accompany me to eat in this so-called hot dog to the stars. The hot dog heritage is a great marketing sell and they have photos to prove it (amazing)! I'm not really fond of hotdogs and I'm eating a vegetable rich diet lately, but this one is a must try (not to mention my weakness is chili). In the Philippines, we don't really have something equivalent to this and Ogie Doggie would be the closest but far from the heritage that Pink's hotdog built over the years.

The verdict: The chili is phenomenal, polish dogs are the best! Read on...

Technorati Tags: los angeles, Restaurants

los angeles, Restaurants

[Los Angeles vs. Manila #1] Inn of the Seventh Ray! Creekside Dining

This is the ONLY restaurant I love while I was on vacation and I visited Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Cincinnati, and Chicago. The Inn of the Seventh Ray is L.A.'s most romantic restaurant and in fact, when we were eating on a Saturday Lunch, there was an engagement proposal with the beautiful setting -- 12 red roses bouquet, a carpet of petals and dining beside Mother's flow ( in other words, creekside :). I felt that most of the US restaurants are either man-made, full of dead food (steaks, white bread, etc.), pretentious service and too commercialized. This creekside dining experience is a dining made in heaven indeed and this is a must-eat destination for all of you who will have a chance to visit L.A.

(Note to Jay of Kinabuhayan Cafe: Jay, Kubli Springs can be a lot nicer than the Inn of the Seventh Ray. You just need to have excellent food and an overall concept. Check out the photos... )

Let me pause for a bit here before we go to the rest of the review, it just occurred to me how lucky the Philippines is with the kind of world-class nature inspired restaurants that we have and I can already count seven easily...
1. Antonio's Restaurant, Tagaytay
2. Sonya's Secret Garden, Tagaytay
3. Nina's Kusina Salud, San Pablo, Laguna
4. Ugu Bigyan's Pottery Garden, Tiaong, Quezon
5. 85/15 Restaurant, The Farm @ San Benito, Lipa, Batangas
6. La Cocina de Tita Monings, Manila
7. The Prana Restaurant, Mandala Spa, Boracay

I LOVE THE PHILIPPINES! I missed it during my vacation and I'm glad to be back. I'm creating this series of [Los Angeles vs. Manila] to challenge your own mental models that the Philippines is the best place to be in. I felt like Neo in the matrix scene where he suddenly realized that all of the reality he is seeing is computer generated, and I suddenly felt that visiting the US, everything is man-made. Enjoy this series...

los angeles, Restaurants

Sunset Over LA :)

I'll be on a blog leave until the end of March. I'll surely miss updating this blog regularly and I'll surely miss exploring the culinary delights of Manila. It's been fun over the last few months, specially when I receive comments and feedback from my readers. I love the conversations! This blog is very fulfilling for me in making connections with other people and in the process, I learn more secrets :) I leave you with this beautiful sunset picture of LA taken during the landing of our PAL flight. My brother was teasing me about some insider secrets of Los Angeles and I might have some posts on our LA adventures. Stay tuned...

Philippines