Natsu Matsuri Weekend Summer Festival

I love summer in Seattle. The weather is wonderful and there are so many events going on that it's almost too hard to keep up with! I haven't been able to go to many of the events yet but was able to this past weekend. The Seattle Uwajimaya store held their Natsu Matsuri, Japanese summer festival which consisted of Japanese street foods, drinks, performances and I went on both days.

I loved seeing the crowd gathered and the interest many people had in trying all the tasty treats and watching the different performances.

I will say that I probably ate waaay too much, but its summer time and time to enjoy oneself!

Here are a few pictures of the festival!

Takoyaki--Japanese ocotopus dumplings in wheat flour covered with Kewpie (Japanese mayonaise), takoyaki sauce (sweet/savory sauce), nori (seaweed) flakes, and bonito (fish flakes)

Okonomiyaki-Japanese savory pancake filled with cabbage, onions, noodles and other good stuff and topped with sauce and bonito flakes.

Tonkotsu (pork broth) ramen topped with menma (fermented bamboo shoots), kamaboko-uzumaki (spiraled fish cake), seaweed, and onion.

This by far was one of my favorites! It was served nice and hot, and the broth was so flavorful.

For a cool off, some ice cream! I love the whole sweet & salty combination and I find it very refereshing when it's a combo in ice cream form.

I tried all the toppings and I think I liked the Sakura (Cherry Blossom) the best.

Events that happened during both days.

Kabuki Academy

Mak Fai Kung Fu Club

Megumi Pre-School

School of Taiko

(These kids are so good!)

Ramune drinking contest

Massive Monkees and guests

Hopefully i'll be able to go to more events and places during this Summer. I hope everyone that has a summer right now is enjoying it too!



Taqueria La Rancherita: Restaurant Review

Every now and then, I get a craving for Mexican food, but less of the typical tacos and burritos type. This past weekend, I went to a local restaurant with m parents and had a very pleasant experience at the Taqueria La Rancherita in Renton, WA.

I haven't been here in a long while (probably since high school >.<) but I have been to their other location. My parents go here more on the days they spend together and they usually bring home left overs which I eat. I wanted to try something different and I was in the mood for seafood. Therefore, I ordered this Campechana dish which is a Mexican seafood soup/cocktail dish that came with shrimp and octopus (my faves!) It was $12.99 and was a very generous portion of seafood. I loved the fresh onions and cilantro throughout and especially the avocado. It added a nice soft texture to the dish. I added extra lime to give it a nice tang. It wasn't spicy but it was flavor packed. It was exactly what I was craving without even knowing it. I of course ordered their Horchata (sweet and spiced rice milk drink) and it's always refreshing. It is a little sweet, but the ice dilutes it down later on.

I didn't think the Campechana would fill me up (even though it did), so I ordered a Lengua (beef tongue) soft taco. The beef tongue was nicely cooked and was nice and tender, not chewey at all. A little flavorless on its own, but that's why you add your own salsa or pica de gallo to it. Simple and delicious. The single taco was around $3.

Now this next dish we shared as a family. The waitress already asked my dad ahead of time if we wanted the Menudo which is a Mexican beef tripe soup. I guess my parent's are more regulars there than I thought. The Menudo is only made on the weekends so it is more of a "special treat." They make a rojo (red) version spiced with paprika (I believe) and other spices. It comes with a side of condiments such as dried oregano, cilantro and onions, and red pepper flakes. I personally think it tastes better with all the spices added. It gives a mouthful of flavor and also, if you don't like the smell of tripe, it masks it as well.

The tripe was very soft and tender and overall, an excellent dish. I'm used to eating tripe and such prepared in an Asian way (Chinese dim sum, or in Vietnamese pho dishes) so having it prepared another way with different flavors is always a good experience for me.

I highly recommend this place if you're craving good Mexican food. It's reasonably priced and offers delicious foods! 

Sitka & Spruce: Father's Day Dinner--Review

Yesterday for Father's day, my family and I went to Sitka & Spruce located in Seattle's Capitol Hill.

The little restaurant is located inside Melrose Market , which also has a bunch of other little shops inside as well. It is a farily open space with windows all around letting the light in offering green house feel to the atmosphere which I found really comforting.

They're menu, I believe, changes every day so click HERE to see updated menus for Sitka & Spruce.

We started off with their bread of the day which came from the Columbia City bakery (located in south/central Seattle).  The baguette was nice and crusty on the outside and soft on the inside. The whipped butter with the sea salt flakes paired nicely with it as well.

The brined & baked ham with fermented rhubarb was also a nice pairing to the bread. I've never had rhubarb in a fermented/pickled form and found it quite nice. It had the sour/tartness of a pickled radish and went well with the mild flavor of he ham. The fresh Italian flat leaf parsley also added an earthy element to the dish and when eaten together, it offered a nice, clean, fresh taste. The tartness of the rhubarb really enhanced my appetite.

 

Then came our salad which consisted of young lettuce (romaine I believe) hazelnuts and a cow tomme cheese. Nothing much to say about this salad besides the fact that it was indeed fresh and the vinagrette enhanced the sweetness of the young lettuce. The cheese added a nice salty touch and the nuts added a crunch of texture.

 

Then we had the black morel (mushroom), garlic spear, and egg soup. At first glance, it looked like a typical Chinese egg drop soup, but that is where the similiarities end. the flavor of the broth was more robust than your typical egg flower soup but I can see inspiration taken from the Chinese soup. The morels were excellent and provided a meat like texture to the soup. It was quite unexpected but welcomed. It brough a sense of heartiness to the soup. The chopped up garlic spears/scapes also added a nice mild onion-y flavor and texture to the soup. Then the beaten egg that was added to the soup created a fullness to the soup as a whole. Overall, this was a really excellent soup.

 

I really wanted to try the raw salmon, but was a little put off by this dish since it had zucchini in it. I'm not a huge fan of zucchini but found that it worked really well in this dish. The soft texture of the zucchini paired nicely to the raw salmon (which by the way was not fishy at all and you could taste the pure flavor of the salmon.) Along with the crunchiness of the rye bread, the texturse flowed nicely. I found the dill to be a little too overpowering in flavor, but the sea bean added the right amount of tart and salty flavor to the overall mild flavoring dish.

 

Then came the lamb belly and lentil dish. This dish is the perfect way to consume lentils, in my opinion. The lamb was nice and soft and flavorful without being gamey, like most lamb dishes are usualyl known for. I was nice and moist, most likely from the fat, and paired nicely with the lentil and emmer and borani (a Persian appetizer with yogurt).

Then came the halibut dish which though it was good, didn't impress me as much. The piece of fish was a lot smaller than I thought it would be. The flavor and method of cooking the fish also wasn't too impressive. It was packed with a butter flavor, but I will say it was cooked well and wasn't too fishy in smell. I did enjoy the terragon leaves however as it added an unexpected twist. The potatoes were also good and gave a new appearance to how to present potatoes since it looked like meat. Overall, this dish was okay and something I could pass up.

Lastly, we tried the gateau basque which I would say is like almost a soft thick custard type of pie. It was not to sweet and it was creamy on the inside with a nice flakey crust. The strawberries paired nicely with the this tarte like dessert as it was sweeted and seemd to have had the strawberry flavor enhanced.

It went really well with the coffee we had as well.

As we got our check for the evening, they came with the caramels (which I also believe they hand made). They were nice and soft, but seemed a little greasy since the butter that was used to make the caramel perhaps was too much? It oversaturated the paper wrappers they were held in.

Overall, I would like to try this place again, maybe for their brunch or lunch even! I like the idea and concept behind using fresh ingredients on the daily and providing a new menu almost every day to keep things unexpected.

It is a little pricey, but you are paying for the services (which by the way is excellent) as well as the quality of the food.