I Wanna Be A Supermooooodel...

And my hair will shine like the seaaaa!

This past weekend, the awesome photographer Maria Silva, snapped some photos of me! The theme was MUSIC...



She also has a blog.
And you should become a fan on facebook!

So, if you need a talented photographer who is fun, nice, and totally reasonably priced, contact Maria!

Maria Silva
Phone: 914-213-5893
E-mail: Maria@mariasilvaphoto.com

Check out the slideshow!

Christmas, Japanese Style

My family and I were quite unsure of what we were gonna do for Christmas because of the mess in the house. I LOVE Christmas and having family dinners and such so when my mom was not up for doing anything, I was Debbie Downer. However, last minute, my mom took action and turned it around!

Christmas Eve was a Tomaru-Family go to celebration night at Kalbi House. We love it there, as I have subtly mentioned before.

Christmas Day was at Amanda's apartment. Amanda, if you were wondering, is my brother's girlfriend. We had Thanksgiving at her parents house.

Amanda's apartment is amazinnnnng!! It's funky, colorful, and super-cute!! She really did an amazing job of using space efficiently!


So, being Japanese, Christmas meals have no boundaries in my mind. For a few years, we did Temaki Sushi. We sometimes did a Nabe (Hot Pot). We've done Ham and Collared Greens. We've done everything. For 2009, we did Sukiyaki. Sukiyaki is a kind of hot pot with sliced beef, tofu, shirataki, and vegetables, simmered in a soy sauce based soup. You then dip the goods in raw egg! RAW EGG IS AMAZING! But make sure you get fresh, local, organic eggs. All ingredients can be bought at Daido! My favorite Japanese supermarket in Westchestahhhhhh...

To make it extra special, we used super good, super-fatty Rib-Eye (sliced thin) and Pork (sliced thin):


Veggies (Hakusai, Negi, Shiitake):


Veggies (Shimeji), Tofu, and Scallops (my mom actually just pan fried these with butter, soy sauce, and ginger.... omg):


The Big Ole' Stone Pot:


Then we get started. It's quick, fun, interactive, and delicious... not to mention healthy!

The bunch- Mom, Kyuta, Amanda, Amanda's Dad, Amanda's Mom


My brother was in charge of keeping the Nabe full because he was the closest:

(BTW... that eggplant, my mom cooked first on the Teppanyaki [griddle] and then put in the pot... I loveeeeee eggplant!)

Finally... fill your little bowls with whatever you want, stir the egg...



Eat, Enjoy, Repeat!

Kalbi House (Yelp)
291 Central Ave
White Plains, NY 10606
Phone: 914-328-0251

Under Construction

My.Apartment.Is.A.Mess.And.For.Someone.Who.Is.Obsessively.Clean.And.Organized.It.Really.Really.Sucks.



This for 3 weeks? Or More?!


My poor kitchen.... it's even worse now. Clearly no cooking for the past 3 weeks. DEPRESSING I KNOW!


WTF?! I come home one day to find that my closets have been stripped of their doors! And my ceiling!!!! Where is it?!

Just had to have a bitch session. Thanks.

When In Doubt...

Post delicious photos of Lulu goodies :-)


Could this be?...
Yes the Sno-Balls! The first time I had these, it was chocolate cake with marshmallow frosting + coconut. Like this:

But this time.... It was like this:

Yellow cake, CUSTARD!, and marshmallow frosting + coconut!!

And they had a new cookie:

Peanut Butter and Jelly! Who doesn't like this combo? Apparently, the new guy, who I will refer to as "TINY" does not like Peanut Butter.... ummmm, really?

It was like the perfect, peanut butteriest, chewy cookie ever... and they made it with both apricot and raspberry jelly, but obviously the raspberry was better. Cuz who eats PB+apricot sandwiches? It's all about raspberry or strawberry... no grape.

Lulu Cake Boutique
40 Garth Road
Scarsdale, NY 10583
Phone: 914-722-8300

How Does One Date?

I've never like "dated" before. What does it mean to "date"? People are like, "You should date a bunch of people now and see what you like!" I dunno. But I went on a date last Friday. And it was a really nice date because the dude made the reservation, and the reservation that he made was at a restaurant that I had never been to but wanted to go to for a long time. So already, he has accumulated 50 delicious points in my book.

He took me to Lusardi's in Larchmont. These people also do Moscato in Scarsdale, Chat 19 in Larchmont, and Chat American Grill in Scarsdale. I've only been to Moscato but I loved it, so I was so excited for Lusardi's!

I'm an awful date. I am really indecisive so it takes me like an hour to order. Then I take out my camera to take pictures of the food... how embarassing! But my date was such a trooper and let me do whatever I pleased! He even gave me great dining advice. I said couldn't decide between a pasta dish that was on the regular menu or the fish special of the night. And he said, "Well, the pasta is always gonna be on the menu, but this is your only chance for the fish." Duh.

So here was my Red Snapper with Grilled Vegetables:


And he also got a special... the Veal Ravioli:


And of course dessert! The Fresh Berry Tart with Lemon Curd:


My fish was delish. His ravioli was almost holy. Our tart was simply a work of art.

Wow I didn't know I had such skills in poetry. Oh snap. But for real, our meal was soooooo good :-)

Just to give all y'all an update on this guy. He's quite impressive. He took me to another restaurant that I'd never been to. The Latin American Cafe (which was another winner)... It was Cuban food, and I can't say that I've ever had Cuban food. I mean I guess Latin American food has its similarities but it was just a new experience for me. I ordered Camarones al Ajillo (shrimp with garlic sauce)::in full on Spanish:: with Brown Rice and Black Beans. Plus the owner brought out fresh Fried Plaintains! What a freakin' treat!
It's just so unusual, because I'm usually the one making reservations and picking restaurants. It's nice to just kinda chill and be taken along... He's introducing me to a whole 'nother world!

Lusardi's
1885 Palmer Ave.
Larchmont, NY 10538
Phone: 914-834-5555

Latin American Cafe
134 E. Post Rd.
White Plains, NY 10601
Phone: 914-948-6606

Crap Ow!

Thai food in Westchester is so not good enough for anyone. Everyone's like Sripraphai! Sripraphai! which I have never been to, but I just feel like I've never had "good" Thai food. I LOVE what I know to be Thai food that I've had (Siam Orchid, Garlic and Pepper, etc.)but I do feel like... inadequate.

So, of course, after reading these "sooooooo good!" reviews on Chowhound about Tangerine Thai, I had to try it. I had been to Garlic and Pepper which used to occupy what is now Tangerine Thai, but everyone was saying how much better it was!

So, of course everything is an excuse to gather a bunch of people and go out. Last week, we went to Tangerine Thai for a friend's birthday! My family came out as well. And we ordered a bunch of stuff... things we've had before and new things toooooo!

They really redid the inside too! The walls are this like neon-ish yellow green and it looks like a real restaurant and not just a dingy old bar :-)

We started off with Chicken Satay... surprisingly alll of the chicken dishes were so moist!


My brother loves Curry Puffs... and they were delish!


Duck Salad with pineapple, cashew nuts, carrot, pepper, onions in spicy lime dressing.... never had anything like this was it was good!


This KKK-hat shaped Rice was at first cute, and then kinda weird.


Amanda got the Ginger Fish... which she didn't like because A). The head was still on it, and B). The fish itself was quite bland. And I agree. But the veggies were super gingered up and tasty!


My mom of course got the Green Curry because that's what she always gets... this was the BEST dish of the night! It was so good! At first it tastes rich, creamy, and sweet, and then the spice kicks in!


My brother's Thai BBQ Chicken. The sauce was a peanutty marinage that was very salty, but the chicken was SUPER DUPER JUICY!!!!


I got the Sautéed Krapow (how do you pronounce that? Crap! OW!)with shrimp, Thai basil, chili, garlic, bell peppers, onions... This one too was really really good, but the flavor was very strong. Not really just salty, but it just kinda kicks you in the face!


My mom also got the Spicy Glass Noodles with Shrimp and Chicken...


Can I just say that Tangerine Thai does spicy really well! If you ask for it spicy, you will DIE so just stick with the regular spiciness cuz it was plenty spicy for me!

Tangerine Thai
90 Yonkers Avenue
Tuckahoe, NY, 10707
Phone: 914-771-8200